Chapter 9: Sasuke vs. Orochimaru (Part II)

"Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique!"

Under Sasuke's precise control, the surging, roaring flames transformed into a blazing fire dragon that hurtled straight along the thin wire to strike Orochimaru dead-on.

The formidable piercing power of the searing-hot flames burned directly through a massive tree that required five men to encircle.

As for the enemy, the physical body had long since been charred yellow and shriveled, leaving behind nothing more than a heap of unidentifiable remains resembling ash and burnt mud.

Had he... finally eliminated him?

Just as he attempted to catch his breath, a vicious fist suddenly struck from the side.

Even though Sasuke had perceived the attack and his mind was screaming warnings, his body was simply too slow to evade in time.

With a resounding thud, the immensely heavy, ferocious fist smashed hard into his face.

The sandbag-sized fist was both massive and brutal; had time been slowed, one could have seen the flesh of Sasuke's face cave inward directly under the impact.

The blow left his head spinning and his senses reeling. While he was still dazed, a rapid succession of follow-up punches rained down upon him relentlessly.

Orochimaru truly lived up to his terrifying reputation.

His punches were ruthless and blindingly fast, striking with the impact of iron hammers.

Ovewhelmed by this flurry of blows, Sasuke was left with zero room for counterattack, forced to raise his arms in a hurried, desperate attempt at passive defense.

The impact of the fists striking his arms radiated an excruciating pain.

After sustaining several blows and realizing he could neither shake off the enemy's close-quarters assault nor establish any advantage, Sasuke concentrated chakra into the soles of his feet and burst forth with explosive force, leaping backward to put distance between them.

While airborne, fearful that the enemy might seize the vulnerable moment of his suspension in mid-air to launch an attack, Sasuke instantly flicked his wrists to hurl three kunai in reverse.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

The razor-sharp kunai whistled through the air, but Orochimaru sidestepped them effortlessly.

Retreating two steps to clear some space, his eyes never leaving Sasuke for a second, Orochimaru immediately unleashed a barrage of kunai the instant Sasuke's feet touched the ground before he could steady his stance.

Every single one of these kunai was thrown with viciously tricky precision, each trajectory meticulously calculated to anticipate Sasuke's landing spot and his subsequent movement.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Despite the blistering speed of the incoming projectiles, Sasuke's three-tomoe Sharingan laid bare every single detail, allowing him to track them clearly.

The moment his boots hit the bark, he was forced into a continuous series of backward aerial flips to dodge. Fortunately, the ancient tree trunk was sufficiently spacious.

Clang!

The final, inescapable kunai was intercepted and deflected with absolute precision by a shuriken he flung in return.

Hah...

Drawing a sharp breath, Sasuke instantly assumed his initial combat stance.

Sensing his internal reserves, he realized his remaining chakra was running dangerously low.

His brain operated at lightning speed, analyzing the gathered intelligence.

His own chakra was nearly depleted, but what about his opponent?

The adversary still appeared to possess an abundant supply of chakra.

This person was no ordinary genin, nor even a chunin—without a doubt, this was a jounin.

Throughout the battle so far, the opponent had deployed clones—one clone after another—solely to wear him down and probe his capabilities.

These physical clones were so flawlessly executed that even his three-tomoe Sharingan could not distinguish between the real and the fake, forcing him to treat every single one with absolute caution.

Furthermore, the enemy's prowess could not be underestimated; up to this very moment, he had yet to find a single discernible flaw in the opponent's defense.

To compound the danger, the enemy lurked in the shadows while he stood exposed in the light.

"I must locate the enemy's true body, and then use that technique to end the match."

"Damn it, just where is the enemy's real body hiding?"

Pulling a No. 1 Blue Xiaoyao Pill from his ninja tool pouch, Sasuke swallowed it.

Simultaneously, his three-tomoe Sharingan kept vigilant watch over the foe ahead while rapidly scanning the surrounding environment, searching for any potential hiding spot of the real body.

The Xiaoyao Pill dissolved the instant it touched his tongue, and he immediately felt a surge of renewed physical and mental energy welling up from deep within his body, waiting to be converted into chakra.

"Xiaoyao Pills?"

Catching sight of the blue pill, Orochimaru's interest was piqued.

Ever since he learned of the existence of such unreasonable, logic-defying medicines in the ninja world, he had conducted his own research into them.

The ingredients were utterly ordinary, consisting of nothing more than standard medicinal herbs molded into pills.

Yet for some inexplicable reason, they possessed the miraculous ability to replenish stamina and restore chakra.

It was truly bizarre.

Just the day before, he had paid a private "visit" to that divine physician, hoping to unravel the manufacturing process of these secret drugs.

However...

He had been killed instantly by a single glance from that individual.

That kind of genjutsu... The fellow named Xiong Fengshan was simply far more terrifying than Uchiha Itachi.

Konoha certainly harbored some extraordinary hidden dragons and crouching tigers!

Fortunately, that individual—much like the disciples of the Xiong-style sect operating shops in other villages—only cared about money and possessed no formal allegiance to Konoha.

After paying a fine of one million ryo, he had been released.

Through meticulous testing, Orochimaru was well aware of the Xiaoyao Pill's efficacy.

It required merely five minutes for the medicinal properties to take full effect.

He deliberately waited a dozen seconds, granting the drug sufficient time to work its magic.

What harm was there in letting Sasuke recover some chakra? He, Orochimaru, had at least nine different methods to dispatch him—nine distinct ways!

Besides, he relished above all else the process of keeping his prey in a state of constant tension, forcing them to flee, struggle, and ultimately plunge into utter despair!

"Sasuke-kun, your chakra should be mostly recovered by now, shouldn't it? That being the case, allow me to continue testing your strength."

*This guy!*

Sasuke still could not fathom the enemy's true objective.
Was it his Heaven Scroll? No, the Heaven Scroll wasn't even on him.
His life? Unlikely; the opponent merely sought to fight him, testing him over and over again.

What on earth was he after?

Gritting his teeth, Sasuke pushed the distracting thoughts away. As long as he eliminated the enemy, that would be enough!

Tap, tap, tap! Moving with blistering speed, he charged straight at the opposing Grass Village female shinobi, leaped into the air, and utilized the momentum of a mid-air spin to hurl three kunai, which Orochimaru effortlessly evaded.

Planting his foot backward against the underside of a thick branch, Sasuke unleashed a burst of chakra from his soles and, propelled by the recoil, shot directly toward Orochimaru.

Thanks to the rigorous conditioning imparted by Teacher Panther, his taijutsu was by no means lacking!

An incoming right hook aimed straight for the crown of Orochimaru's head was easily blocked. While suspended mid-air, leveraging that downward momentum, he snapped out a left front kick, which was intercepted by Orochimaru's bent right forearm.

Smack, smack, smack!

The two exchanged a flurry of blows, trading punches and kicks as they fought their way from one end of the massive tree branch to the other.

Orochimaru's taijutsu, formidable as it was, was laid completely bare before Sasuke's three-tomoe Sharingan, allowing him to perceive every single movement!

The intense close-quarters combat instantly ignited the atmosphere!

Sasuke desperately wanted to employ genjutsu, but the adversary seemed overwhelmingly experienced in combat against the Sharingan, affording him zero opportunities to lock eyes.

After another exchange of blows, the two leaped apart.

Sasuke rapidly formed hand seals. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Surging flames transformed into a gigantic fireball hurtling straight toward his foe, yet the enemy stood completely rooted to the spot, neither dodging nor parrying.

Sasuke assumed the opponent had faltered; although his flames lacked the terrifying potency of Naruto's to melt solid steel, they were certainly not something a human body could withstand head-on.

Hiss...

The sound of fire fearing water echoed as the flames were abruptly extinguished, immediately followed by a dense plume of billowing steam filling the surrounding air.

A Water Formation Wall manifested around the enemy's body to block the onslaught of the fireball, and the remaining stray embers were casually swatted out by Orochimaru with a single wave of his hand.

"Sasuke-kun, a fine jutsu."

Orochimaru darted his serpentine tongue across his lips, an expression of genuine appreciation washing over his features, much like an art connoisseur admiring a flawless piece of porcelain.

*Earth, water, wind... Damn it, just how many chakra natures does this guy possess?*

Rumble, rumble, rumble—!

Orochimaru's lower body morphed into a serpentine tail, granting him immense momentum and blistering speed as he coiled along the tree branches, rushing toward Sasuke with such velocity that he left blurred afterimages in his wake.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Three kunai were discharged, yet Orochimaru easily bypassed them relying on his extreme speed.

Though the enemy moved fast enough to blur, under the unwavering gaze of the Sharingan, everything slowed to a crawl.

Closing in for close quarters, a razor-sharp kunai slashed toward Sasuke, meeting with zero resistance as it cleaved through his form.

Splash...

Hiss~~~

What had been sliced apart was merely a lightning clone, and the ensuing discharge of electrical current paralyzed Orochimaru, rendering him momentarily immobile.

"Ha!"

From the underside of the tree branch, Sasuke abruptly emerged, driving a fierce kick that sent Orochimaru flying. Leaping up synchronously, he latched onto Orochimaru's back from behind and began spinning rapidly in mid-air.

"Front Lotus!"

Thud!

Orochimaru crashed headfirst into the ground with bone-shattering force.

"This isn't the real body..." A single glance was all it took for Sasuke to leap away, resuming his scan of the surroundings.

Before the echo of his voice had even faded, the "Orochimaru" beneath him dissolved into a puddle of viscous mud.

"The real body is right here!"

Chakra erupted violently from the soles of his feet as Sasuke launched himself forward with explosive velocity, rapidly closing the distance to his target.

"Found you! Chidori Sharp Spear!"

A terrifying blade of lightning swept across the area, leaving a jagged trail in its wake as it cleanly severed a massive tree trunk right at the waist.

At that exact moment, a figure sliced neatly in two tumbled out from within the hollow wood.