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The group was immobilized by Orochimaru's overwhelming killing intent. With an amused smirk, he licked his lips before flicking three kunai toward them.
Clang clang clang.
Naruto was the first to snap out of it, deflecting the kunai with his own weapon. He then spun around and kicked Sasuke hard in the ribs, jolting him awake.
"How can there be such strong genin?!" Sasuke gasped, still disoriented. He assumed everyone at the Chunin Exams would only be low-level ninja.
Naruto almost wanted to kick him again for being so oblivious. "Is your Sharingan blind?! Which part of 'this guy isn't a genin' do you not understand?! If all genin were this strong, I'd livestream eating—"
He stopped himself mid-sentence, realizing that Konoha did have ridiculously powerful "genin." Some were even stronger than this.
"Two interesting brats waking up so soon," Orochimaru said with excitement. The more his prey struggled, the happier he became.
"I'll go first; get ready," Naruto instructed, tossing the scroll to Sakura, who caught it awkwardly as she snapped out of her daze.
Naruto crouched low and charged forward, kunai in hand.
Sasuke, meanwhile, was catching his breath. His earlier bravado had faded as reality set in—he'd been paralyzed by sheer killing intent yet again. Recalling Naruto's warning about how formidable their opponent was, he finally believed it. This man wasn't just stronger than Zabuza; his killing intent alone surpassed anything Zabuza could muster.
Orochimaru merely stood smiling, unmoving.
Shhht. A sharp sound rang out as Naruto's kunai sliced across Orochimaru's chest, leaving a long gash—but no blood spilled. It was a decoy.
Naruto immediately tensed, scanning the area warily.
Orochimaru had used a substitution technique to evade the attack, but Naruto hadn't detected any movement. Since substitution techniques weren't space-time ninjutsu, the lack of visible motion meant one thing: Orochimaru was simply too fast for Naruto to perceive.
Orochimaru reappeared from behind a tree, only to be grazed on the waist by a kunai thrown by Sasuke—who was attacking blind based on a faint shadow he'd barely glimpsed. Again, no blood flowed.
"I saw it!" Sasuke declared, his Sharingan spinning furiously. Finally regaining some confidence, he prepared to fight properly.
But deep down, he remained uncertain. After all, he'd only guessed where the enemy might be based on the faintest trace of movement.
"Sasuke, you're quite impressive," Orochimaru remarked casually, his voice dripping with mockery as he rose from the ground despite having been slashed open moments ago. His wound vanished instantly.
What kind of monster is this? The feel of flesh against my kunai was unmistakable, Sasuke thought, horrified.
Naruto moved beside Sasuke, glaring intently at Orochimaru—but it didn't matter. Orochimaru's speed rendered Naruto's focus useless.
"You can actually see my movements clearly. What remarkable eyes you have," Orochimaru said, his tongue flickering like a snake tasting the air.
Naruto didn't respond, instead hurling several kunai toward the sannin.
Of course they wouldn't hit. Indra's reincarnation absorbing Asura's chakra daily made Naruto nearly invincible—but he was still far from awakening the Rinnegan.
"Your eyes hold power surpassing Itachi's," Orochimaru noted idly, catching the kunai effortlessly.
That comment sent Naruto over the edge. You son of a bitch! He charged recklessly, launching a relentless barrage of attacks.
Screw you, Snake Uncle! Naruto fumed internally. Every buff seems to go straight to Sasuke!
Orochimaru calmly blocked each strike, then suddenly accelerated, grabbing Naruto by the head and slamming him into the ground. He dragged him several meters before releasing him. Naruto slid another few meters before scrambling back to his feet.
"Do you have news about Uchiha Itachi?" Sasuke asked desperately, his eyes burning with hatred.
Naruto wanted to scream obscenities at Sasuke. Your brother abandoned me, and here you are caring only about him?! You're nothing but surface-level loyalty—a fake friend, just like Kurama.
"Boy, you've piqued my interest," Orochimaru mused, watching the wounds Naruto sustained during the drag heal rapidly. He remembered someone else with similar abilities—Hashirama Senju. Even Tsunade required special techniques to achieve such regeneration.
"I'm not interested in you," Naruto shot back.
I already know you'll end up practically worshipping Sasuke later. Pathetic.
While ranting internally, Naruto didn't slow down. Forming seals, he activated Wind Wrap, which he'd forgotten to use earlier in his rage.
Damn those days when he forgot to flash-step…
Meanwhile, Sasuke realized he couldn't stand idly by while his teammate got beaten. Joining the fray, he attacked alongside Naruto. Despite Sasuke's earlier betrayal, Naruto held no grudge. After all, Sasuke was fighting alone, and Naruto needed to be the bigger person.
Orochimaru continued blocking their assaults, testing the limits of their abilities.
Bam! Naruto was sent flying by a snake-punch, crashing through three trees before coming to a stop.
Without hesitation, he got up and charged again. Pain didn't matter if the injuries healed quickly.
Bam! Another cluster of trees fell as Naruto crashed once more, this time coughing up blood. This punch packed significantly more force than the previous ones.
Struggling to rise, Naruto took two deep breaths. Every bone in his body ached.
On the other side, Sasuke felt Orochimaru's speed increasing exponentially. Now, even though his Sharingan could track the movements, his body couldn't react fast enough.
At this rate, we're doomed, Sasuke thought anxiously. Orochimaru toyed with them like a cat playing with mice. Without a plan to counterattack, today might very well be their last.
"Naruto!" Sasuke shouted, leaping into the air and forming seals.
"Got it," Naruto replied, creating shadow clones. While his clones pulled out barrels of alcohol and oil, Naruto prepared to brew some "snake wine" to replenish his strength.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke announced dramatically, unleashing a massive fireball.
Naruto rolled his eyes. Show-off.
Between Naruto and his clones, over twenty barrels of alcohol were tossed into the flames, along with a few bottles of oil. The mixture ignited explosively, sending a towering inferno skyward. A deafening explosion followed.
Sasuke landed next to Naruto, glancing at the roaring flames. "Did we get him?"
Naruto resisted the urge to strangle him. You idiot. By announcing it, we definitely didn't.
Sure enough, as the flames dissipated, Orochimaru was nowhere to be seen.
Footsteps sounded behind them. Turning sharply, they saw Orochimaru strolling toward them leisurely.
"What excellent teamwork," Orochimaru reminisced fondly. Back in the day, Jiraiya and Tsunade had worked with him just like this—effortless coordination without needing words.
Sasuke swallowed nervously. How could anyone survive that unscathed?
Naruto said nothing, charging forward recklessly. He was pure brute force—if you don't kill me, I'll keep coming.
Orochimaru continued testing their limits. He'd already evaluated Sasuke's jutsu, taijutsu, and Sharingan observation skills. Now, he focused on Naruto.
Naruto's regenerative abilities closely resembled what Orochimaru had observed in Hashirama's cells. Testing its limits would provide invaluable data for his research.
Another brutal snake-punch sent Naruto flying, smashing through another cluster of trees.
Even Naruto was starting to feel the strain. This feels like Tiger Fist-level damage! And why does he keep targeting me?! Does he pity Sasuke or something?!
Taking advantage of Naruto's recovery time, Orochimaru used Body Flicker Technique to appear behind Sasuke.
"So... so fast," Sasuke stammered, trembling. He hadn't seen the movement at all—only sensing Orochimaru's presence behind him.
Orochimaru sank his teeth into Sasuke's neck, leaving behind a cursed seal shaped like three tomoe.
As he retracted his tongue, he gave Sasuke's cheek a lingering lick. "Don't die, alright?"
His voice was eerily seductive.
"Ahhhh..." The cursed seal began to activate, sending Sasuke writhing in agony on the ground.
His screams were so pitiful that Naruto briefly wondered if he was giving birth.
"And now, onto the next one," Orochimaru said, looking skyward. "It's your turn."
Naruto, recovering from being flung away, jumped off a tree branch high above, using gravity to amplify his attack.
Bam! Naruto landed with tremendous force, creating a crater beneath him. But Orochimaru dodged effortlessly, observing from the sidelines.
"Your teammate is down. What will you do now?" Orochimaru licked his lips hungrily. The main course was secured; now it was time to savor dessert.
Naruto kicked Sasuke toward Sakura, who was still frozen in shock. Pushing off the ground, he declared, "I'll keep fighting, obviously!"
He threw a punch, which Orochimaru caught easily.
"Not bad..." Orochimaru praised mockingly, pulling out Kusanagi and stabbing Naruto cleanly through the abdomen. "How about this?"
Uncle Snake, are you trying to perform a C-section on me?! And with such a huge scalpel?!
Meanwhile, Yuugao was still en route to the Forest of Death.