Naruto: Starting by Marrying Uchiha

"Hey, isn't this Shikaku? Haven't seen you in a few days, and you've already fallen behind?"

A teasing voice rang out.

Whoosh! A flame as thick as an egg shot out, knocking away the kunai aimed at Nara Shikaku.

Following the direction of the flame, Shikaku saw the figure bathed in a golden-red veil. The flame at the figure's right fingertip slowly dissipated.

It was as if a deity had descended!

For some reason, this thought flashed through Shikaku's mind.

"Uchiha... Takashi?"

He uttered the name in disbelief.

If it weren't for the fatigue in his body from chakra depletion, he might have thought he was dreaming.

"You used to call me Lord Takashi, but now that you've got a new master, it's just Takashi? You sure change your tune fast."

Takashi teased as he approached.

If he didn't think keeping Shikaku in Konoha would make the Third Shinobi War more interesting, he wouldn't have bothered saving him.

In the future, Shikamaru would owe him one.

Without him, Shikamaru wouldn't even exist.

"Lord Takashi, you're joking. I misspoke just now, but this isn't the time for idle chat. Please go support Lord Orochimaru immediately!"

Shikaku snapped out of it after the jest and quickly urged.

Orochimaru couldn't be allowed to fall; otherwise, everything would collapse.

"Be careful yourself!"

Takashi nodded lightly, then dashed toward the direction where countless grains of sand floated.

Leaping high into the air, he began a free fall.

Clap! He crushed a small bottle with his hands, letting the 'hot spring' inside seep into his body.

Now, even without the hot spring, he could enter Sage Mode, but the process took too long for practical combat, so he continued to rely on the hot spring for assistance.

Closing his eyes, ignoring the wind rushing past, Takashi focused on merging the vast natural energy within him.

Golden-red flame patterns emerged from his brow, quickly spreading.

A domineering and intense aura surfaced.

"Let the flames purify everything!"

Takashi opened his golden-red eyes.

At this moment, his presence in mid-air caught the attention of the Sand Shinobi on the ground.

"Is that Uchiha Takashi?"

"What's he doing here?"

"Retreat!"

...

There was no other choice.

As a top figure among the Sand Shinobi, everyone recognized Takashi.

Not to mention his nearly iconic white flame veil.

It looked magnificent and sacred, but everyone knew it contained terrifyingly high temperatures capable of incinerating everything.

Entering Sage Mode on the battlefield again, Takashi felt good.

It was faster and easier than the first time.

With the experience of using Sage Mode in full combat before, and his training during this period, this performance was unsurprising.

Whoosh! Flames erupted beneath his feet, allowing him to land safely from his free fall, then he leaped toward Rasa, who was floating in mid-air, manipulating a cube of sand gold.

"Sage Art: Totsuka Blade!"

With a grasp in the air, a sky-blue longsword about a meter long appeared in his hand.

Without using the true form of Susanoo, the consumption was not significant.

Only when using Susanoo's true form would the consumption increase more than tenfold.

Of course, the power would also increase exponentially.

With the flame cloak, Takashi had short-distance flight capabilities, allowing him to threaten Rasa, who was floating in the air.

At this point, Rasa had two choices.

One was to ignore him and continue manipulating the sand gold cube.

The other was to abandon the manipulation and evade with all his might.

Clearly, Rasa made his choice without hesitation.

Shhh! The massive sand gold cube began to disintegrate.

"Magnet Release: Sand Gold Spear!"

While distancing himself on a sand gold platform, Rasa used this jutsu.

A large amount of sand gold in the air condensed into long spears, shooting toward Takashi.

Swish, swish!

He swung the Totsuka Blade, compressed from the 'Orochimaru', easily slicing them apart.

However, this caused his upward momentum to stall, and he began to fall toward the ground.

The flame cloak only granted him 'temporary flight' capabilities, not true flight.

On the ground, the strong from both sides separated due to his appearance.

Pakura stood beside Chiyo, facing off against Orochimaru.

Their auras intertwined, and any retreat from one side would lead to a full attack from the other.

Thud! Takashi landed right in the middle of both sides.

If it were an ordinary ninja, suddenly jumping in like that would be a death sentence, no matter how many lives they had. But in Sage Mode, Takashi was full of confidence.

Even if several people combined their forces for a joint attack, he was confident he could take them head-on, which is why he dared to play like this.

"Uchiha Takashi, what do you mean by this?"

Chiyo placed a hand on Pakura's shoulder.

Since the opponent hadn't attacked with full force right away and merely interrupted their attack, there must be another plan. It wasn't worth it to fight desperately now.

"How about giving me some face and ending the battle here?"

Takashi activated the 'Face Fruit'.

"No matter how strong you are, Uchiha Takashi, you can't possibly be a match for our thousands of Sand Ninja troops!"

Chiyo firmly refused.

Even if he was a 'Sage', unless in a special terrain, their Sand Ninja army wasn't without a chance to fight.

For example, if they spread out and attacked now, how many people could he protect?

"Indeed," Takashi admitted, then said, "But if I told you I brought 800 reinforcements, would you Sand Ninjas give me some face?"

Yes, he couldn't protect too many people alone, but with the support of the Southwest Ninja Army, it was a different story.

Without any worries, his threat level increased exponentially.

A ninja appeared beside Chiyo, and after a quiet report, she coldly said:

"This time, it's Konoha's luck. We'll give you, Uchiha Takashi, some face, but there won't be a next time!"

The feeling of being thwarted was unpleasant, but at this point, they had no choice but to give up.

However, losing the battle didn't mean losing face, so Chiyo still had to put on a tough front.

"Looking forward to our next encounter!"

Takashi responded indifferently.

He really didn't want to fight. The opponent was a 'kind person' who not only gave him the basics of puppet techniques but also provided him with 'free purchases'.

In fact, he was more afraid than anyone of something happening to the opponent.

If something happened to them, those things wouldn't be obtainable.

Orochimaru also remained silent.

He was already at his limit, and being able to maintain composure was a testament to his incredible willpower, so he wouldn't speak up to keep anyone.

If they forced the Sand Ninja army into a desperate counterattack, it was uncertain if they could annihilate them, but they would definitely suffer heavy losses.

If it were only the Sand Ninja as the enemy, the losses would be just that.

But now, Konoha had several strong enemies, and losing this elite force would make life difficult, so it was best to end it here.

As for Sarutobi Shinnosuke?

It was completely ignored, glossed over as if it never happened.

Even if Sarutobi Sachiko and others wanted to take the opportunity to force the Sand Ninja to release people, the prerequisite was that they had the right to speak.

Currently, there were only two and a half people who could make decisions.

Orochimaru and Takashi, both Kage-level powerhouses, naturally had a say, and Nara Shikaku, as the Jonin squad leader and Konoha's strategist, had a special status, giving him 'half' a say.

However, Orochimaru didn't want any accidents, so he kept silent.

As for Nara Shikaku, he was some distance away and missed the chance to speak.

So, both sides tacitly acted as if nothing had happened.

The Sand Ninjas retreated like a tide.

"Takashi-kun, I never expected you to have mastered Sage Mode!"

Orochimaru, now relaxed, stared intently at Takashi, as if looking at a priceless treasure.

He had wanted to study Takashi for a while.

Now, discovering that he had mastered Sage Mode, his desire to research was uncontrollable.

Fortunately, he still had some sense, knowing he couldn't force it, or he might have tried to drag him to the lab.

'What does Orochimaru mean by this, has he set his sights on me?'

Feeling Orochimaru's greedy gaze, Takashi was a bit annoyed.

If the opponent played hard, he wasn't afraid.

But if they played dirty, he couldn't guarantee he wouldn't fall for it.

Especially since the opponent's ability to survive was unparalleled. Even if Hashirama Senju were reborn, he might not be able to deal with him.

So it was like a toad squatting on your foot—it doesn't bite, but it's disgusting.

"Isn't Jiraiya-senpai also a master of Sage Mode?"

Takashi directly hinted that Orochimaru should study his own good friend instead of focusing on him.

You're drooling over me, you lowlife!

"Not the same!"

Orochimaru muttered to himself.

He was well aware of his friend's talents.

Most of his power came from Mount Myoboku, which was also why he was so focused on finding the 'Child of Prophecy'.

To repay this kindness!

But Uchiha Takashi, at his age, had already become a Kage-level powerhouse, which was unprecedented (in the future, even Genin-level Six Paths exist), let alone mastering Sage Mode.

He didn't have a 'Sanctuary' behind him, so his research value was far above Jiraiya's.

Unable to withstand Orochimaru's 'enthusiasm', Takashi could only leave his sight under the pretense of handling follow-up matters.

This was 'Aunt Snake', after all. There was nothing she wouldn't dare to do, and he didn't want to fall out with the village just yet.

(End of Chapter)