What was supposed to be an action-packed anime suddenly turned into a disaster film.
Ino wasn't used to this.
But whether she liked it or not, she had no choice but to do her best in the chaos. She reinforced the earthen walls while Shikamaru, Choji, and several other ninjas whose injuries weren't too severe helped rescue fleeing villagers. Sakura, who had regained some stamina, also pitched in.
When they noticed that their group had gathered quite a crowd, Sound Ninja and Sunagakure ninjas began attacking them. Ino didn't hold back—she greeted them with Water Severing Waves, taking them down one by one!
In the end, she teamed up with Shikamaru, Choji, Shino, and the Third Hokage's Shadow Clone to repel the Edo Tensei-reanimated Fourth Kazekage. Yes, that was Shino Aburame—no one even knew when he had arrived.
The Fourth Kazekage was trapped by Ino's Great Water Prison Technique, then smashed to pieces by the Third's Shadow Clone with a single strike from his staff. Left lying on the ground, waiting for his Edo Tensei body to regenerate, the surrounding Sunagakure ninjas thought their village's Kage had been killed and launched a frenzied assault.
Ino had originally planned to seal the reanimated Fourth Kazekage—she remembered that during the Fourth Great Ninja War, the powerful figures revived by Kabuto Yakushi could be sealed. But the Sunagakure ninjas fought like madmen, throwing themselves at her without regard for their lives. The Third's Shadow Clone had limited chakra, so most of the pressure fell on her. The battle was exhausting, and by the time she finished, the Fourth Kazekage had already escaped.
The Third Hokage's Shadow Clone continued the pursuit while Ino sighed heavily. Sakura, however, was in the worst state—she collapsed into a "duck sit" position and burst into tears.
"It's all my fault! Everything is my fault!"
Ino: "???"
She couldn't figure out how Sakura had reached that conclusion.
Sakura sobbed like a waterfall. "If it weren't for me… if it weren't for me, the First Hokage wouldn't have been revived…"
She refused to say anything more. Ino's mind raced, and after a few moments, she suddenly understood—or at least, she thought she did.
Noticing Shikamaru and Shino glancing their way, she couldn't let these two sharp minds figure out the truth. She cut Sakura off firmly. "You idiot! That was Orochimaru's doing! What does it have to do with you? You're just overthinking things because you're too free! Go help over there! Now!"
Her scolding successfully diverted Sakura's attention, and Ino secretly wiped her brow in relief.
She assigned Sakura a mountain of tasks—applying medicine to the wounded, bandaging injuries, preparing food for the villagers—anything to keep her too busy to dwell on things.
As more and more villagers gathered around Ino's group, she left the rescue operations to Shikamaru and the others while she focused on observing the enemies—especially the three Kage revived by Edo Tensei.
The Fourth Kazekage had a wide attack range and was said to possess the power to suppress the One-Tail in the desert. But this wasn't the desert, and he was far weaker than in his prime, making him relatively easy to handle.
The Second Hokage's performance was much worse than she had expected. The one Orochimaru had reanimated couldn't even display a tenth of his original strength.
The First Hokage's Wood Release was awe-inspiring in scale, but that was all—its lethality was nowhere near the legendary level of going head-to-head with an Armored Susanoo.
They were all watered-down versions.
Facing the combined assault of the Third Hokage and numerous ninjas, Orochimaru began to feel the pressure. He loosened some of his control over the Edo Tensei and recalled the First and Second Hokage to his side.
Relaxing control allowed them to unleash more of their combat abilities. Another obvious change was that the eyes of the three Kage became more lively—they could speak now, no longer in that robotic state from before.
The First Hokage, who had been using Wood Release to restore forests in the village, sensed something when part of his control was lifted. He turned his head sharply, looking in Ino's direction.
Orochimaru, who was controlling the Edo Tensei, quickly formed hand seals, but found that the First Hokage hadn't broken free—it seemed to be just an unconscious movement.
Ino was startled. In that brief moment, she felt a connection between the Asura's Chakra within her and the First Hokage—a connection far beyond the level of Edo Tensei.
The Second Hokage noticed his brother's odd behavior and asked, "What's wrong, brother?"
The First Hokage laughed heartily. "Seems like one of my descendants? How embarrassing, letting a descendant see me in such a sorry state."
The Second Hokage scoffed, then berated the Third Hokage. "Monkey, put some effort into it! Your attacks are so weak—can't even take down a dead man like me?"
The Third Hokage was panting heavily, too exhausted to argue. He was seventy years old, not thirty! Holding out this long was already impressive.
When the First and Second Hokage returned to Orochimaru's side, he immediately dispelled his Shadow Clones to focus entirely on the battle at hand.
Meanwhile, Ino realized that with Asura's Chakra and her Sensing Transmission ability, she could bypass Edo Tensei entirely and communicate with the First Hokage telepathically from a distance.
"Are you my descendant?" the First Hokage asked through their mental link.
"Uh… I'm not sure, but I'm Tsunade-sensei's student," Ino answered vaguely.
"Little Tsunade? How is she doing now?"
"Great! Three days ago, I drank with Tsunade-sensei—a huge barrel, and we each drank half!"
"HAHAHAHA—" The First Hokage roared with laughter.
Like Ashura and Naruto, the First Hokage was easygoing and didn't realize Ino was just a "messenger"—that the Asura's Chakra didn't actually belong to her.
He didn't notice, and Ino didn't explain. Instead, she went on and on about her relationship with Tsunade.
The Senju Clan had long since merged with Konoha, so it wasn't strange for a Yamanaka descendant to have Senju blood—at least, the First Hokage thought it was normal.
He also didn't find it odd that Ino had low Yang Release but high Yin Release. Not every Senju was sunshine and rainbows—his younger brother, Tobirama Senju, was proof of that. Just a little gloomy, so what?
"HAHAHA—So you're Tsunade's student? Then we're practically family!" Hearing Ino talk about how his granddaughter and her student were constantly running from debt collectors, the First Hokage was thoroughly amused. He had been the same way—definitely his own flesh and blood.
The First was unaware of Asura's Chakra. Currently, Naruto and Gaara were chatting in the distant forest, and in his sensory perception, Ino was the closest blood relative among his clan—without exception.
Through Sensing Transmission, he said to Ino, "This young man's Edo Tensei technique is formidable. His restrictions on me and Tobirama are severe. I can briefly resist his control, but I fear he may alter the control seals in my mind. Once he completely strips away my consciousness, I'll be powerless. Little girl, I'll resist the Edo Tensei's seals—you help me control this body. If you can hold off Tobirama, the pressure on Sarutobi will be halved."