72: A Mistake From the Past: A Face Revealed

We open to Pakkun, Naruto, and Sakura traveling the forest. Pakkun notices that Sasuke has stopped and that Sakura uses the same shampoo as him! This sends Sakura into a spiral of depression.."I smell like a dog.. I smell like a dog.. I smell like a dog.. " Of course, Naruto is angry that hair products are being mentioned at a time like this.

Picking up where we left off on the last episode, Sasuke has caught up with the sand genin. Temari quickly attacks Sasuke and tells Kankuro to leave because Gaara is the only priority. As Kankuro attempts to leave, Sasuke attempts to stop him, but Temari interferes. Her strategy is to make him waste chakra quickly because she isn ot a match for the Sharingan.

After some light engagment, Temari repeatedly uses her Windscythe jutsu to force Sasuke back. She then uses Sandstorm jutsu which causes sand to accumulate on the branches of the trees. Sasuke leaves the tree he was hiding behind to use the Phoenix Flower jutsu against Temari. She is forced to the ground where she is surrounded by fire. Temari uses the Windscythe jutsu to put out the flames and knock Sasuke back. He lands on one of the branches which causes him to fall. She jumps at his slip and hits him with three kunai. Unfortunately for Temari, Sasuke had substituted a log for himself. When Temari realized this, it was too late because Sasuke had attacked a paper bomb to the log. She was knocked down and nearly immobile.

Sarutobi trembles. He asks who he is fighting. In response, Orochimaru tells his sensai that he is himself. Sarutbi claims that Orochimaru is no longer human if he has mastered this forbidden jutsu.

We flash back to Sarutobi and two ANBU in a darkened tunnel. From behind a door they come upon, they can hear sounds of cutting tools. The door is bust open and a younger Orochimaru is seen with a corpse. He is surprised that he has finnally been found out. He had set many boobie traps to give him warning of an intruder, but he had not expected his sensai who could, in Orochimaru's own words, "get past anything." One of the ANBU explained the disapperances of ninja from the leaf village, and the other ANBU calls Orochimaru the superior shinobi and asks how he could do such a thing.

Sarutobi asks what Orochimaru is doing, and Orochimaru reveals that he is researching and developing jutsu. With some despair in his voice, Sarutobi says that Orochimaru is after forbidden jutsu. Orochimaru says that he wants to know every jutsu created and to make countless more. This process takes an extreme amount of time; time that a mortal such as Orochimaru does not have. When he is asked again about the specific forbidden jutsu he seeks, Orochimaru is happy to announce that he wants eternal youth and immortality.

The Imortality jutsu recycles a soul by pouring spirit into a young host body. Orochimaru explains, in the present, that he used his old form to make their reunion "nostatilgic". He says that growing old is a sad, empty thing. He fortells Sarutobi's death, but before he starts, he thanks Sarutobi and the entire leaf village for preparing Orochimaru's next body. Sasuke Uchiha.

Orochimaru returns to his original face for Sarutobi to watch as he dies. From there, the First uses his secret jutsu to fill the entire barrier with forest. Enma created a box just large enought to sheild Sarutobi from the forest. He then asks what is wrong with Sarutobi because Enma believes that this is not like Sarutobi.

Back to the flashback, Sarutobi narrates his past hope of Orochimaru following in his place. Orochimaru asks if Sarutobi plans to kill him as Sarutobi summons Enma. Orochimaru, believing that Sarutobi wouldn't do it, walks past him. Enma pleads for Sarutobi to kill him while he has the chance, but Orochimaru escapes.

Back to the present, Sarutobi vows to correct his mistake and bury Orochimaru once and for all. He then creates two shadow clones which worries the ANBU because Sarutobi has little chakra left. Enma, with disbelief in his voice, asks "Could it be..? Is he..?".

Sarutobi uses a sequence of hand signs which confirm Enma's suspcion. A ghost appears behind Sarutobi; it is a jutsu that is only visible to the one who casts the jutsu. After hearing Orochimaru's babbling over victory, Sarutobi explains that the village is his home, and as the central pillar of his home, he is entrusted with the protection of his home. The Second uses the Infinite Darkness jutsu to cover all of Sarutobi's vision in black. The only things visible are Sarutobi and his clones.

Orochimaru talks of the short history of the village, and how the Hokage faces will crumble to nothing. Orochimaru, as explained by Sarutobi, never understood that the village was much more than a cluster of huts. It was a home that shinobi fought and died for. We are shown scenes of the various Hokage, the Sannin, the Fourth, Iruka, Kakashi and his squad, the other genin squads, and Konohamru. Sarutobi claims that, despite not sharing ties of blood, the people of the village are precious to him. Orochimaru claims that Sarutobi is a rotting pillar and will fall on his own. Sarutobi explains that, even if he dies here, Orochimaru will fail because Sarutobi carries his title in trust for the Hokage who came before and the ones who will after. If he is killed, a new, stronger Hokage will take this place as the pillar, roof, and walls defending the village. Finally, Sarutobi claims that he is about to use a jutsu that even Orochimaru has not seen.

Behold! Sealing jutsu! Reaper Death Seal!

Previous Episode: An Unrivaled Match, Hokage Battle Royale

Next Episode: Forbidden Secret Technique, Reaper Death Seal

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