"Kill!" Hidan, now fused with the body of a pig, charged wildly.
Fujiwara Kirito shifted slightly, and with a loud bang, Hidan-pig slammed into a tree, face-planting into the trunk.
"You bastard, it hurts! Ahhh, it hurts so bad!" The intense pain caused the newly reattached neck to show signs of tearing again, and Hidan screamed in agony.
"Hahaha! Hidan, are you trying to make me laugh to death so you can inherit my money?" Kirito clutched his stomach, laughing uncontrollably as he watched Hidan struggle to get up.
Humans are bipedal; pigs are quadrupeds.
Hidan's brain wasn't exactly top-tier, so it was no surprise he couldn't properly control his new body.
"You bastard, I'm going to kill you!" Hidan finally got upright after much struggle. Staring at his stubby pig legs, he wanted to cry but couldn't shed a tear. He could already see his miserable pig life flashing before him.
"Alright, alright, you say that every day. Look carefully—no one can stitch your body back together. It's impossible." Kirito pointed toward the scattered rubble.
Hidan turned his head and realized it was true. "But… you didn't have to turn me into a pig."
"Where do you expect me to find a human body in the middle of nowhere?" Kirito rolled his eyes. "I'm not a saint, but I don't kill people for no reason. This was just a little experiment. I'll find a more suitable body for you tomorrow."
"Really?" Hidan blinked, his bloodshot eyes showing a rare trace of innocence.
"Uh..." Kirito was disgusted. "Of course."
As soon as Hidan looked touched, Kirito pulled out a rope and tied it around his neck. Hidan reflexively asked, "Hey, what are you doing?"
"Walking the dog. Or well, you can't control this body well yet. I'm tying you up so you don't fall apart." Kirito answered with a straight face, full of nonsense.
Hidan was stunned. He had a feeling something was off, but after thinking it over, he still couldn't figure it out.
Kirito didn't bother explaining more. He grabbed Pakura, held Hidan by the rope, and used Flying Thunder God to teleport back to the ruins of the ancient city of Rōran, handing him over to Kakuzu.
Ten days flew by.
During this time, Orochimaru's plan to have Kabuto use Guren and Yukimaru to control the Three-Tails failed spectacularly.
The Three-Tails was ultimately captured by Deidara and Obito together.
Meanwhile, Sasuke was tormented by Orochimaru over the course of ten days.
Orochimaru's base.
"How's the situation?" Orochimaru sat on the hospital bed, staring at the medic performing the examination.
"Your condition is deteriorating. The rejection symptoms have worsened. If we don't act soon..." Cold sweat streamed down the doctor's forehead, clearly fearing for his life.
"I asked if there were any changes in the baby's development." Orochimaru's golden eyes were bloodshot.
"I'm sorry, Lord Orochimaru. It may be too early. I couldn't detect any abnormalities. We'd need instruments to be sure."
Before he could finish, Orochimaru extended his tongue like a snake. A gleam of a blade flashed—and the doctor's head fell to the ground.
"Trash," Orochimaru spat venomously, withdrawing his tongue. "That bastard Kirito deliberately didn't tell me the child's growth rate would be the same as a regular child. Is he trying to stall and mess with the timing of my reincarnation?"
Orochimaru suddenly threw off his blanket, stood up, and began to laugh maniacally. "I won't fall for it. It's just an Uchiha embryo! Sasuke's body is mine—hahahaha!"
His mad laughter echoed throughout the underground base.
If Fujiwara Kirito had been present, he'd probably shake his head and say Orochimaru was overthinking things. He hadn't stalled the reincarnation on purpose—it was just a moment of mischief. He never expected Orochimaru would outlast Sasuke.
"Who's there?" Orochimaru suddenly sensed someone outside the room.
"It's me, Lord Orochimaru." The door opened, revealing Kabuto, who had cold sweat all over his face, just barely recovering from Orochimaru's earlier insanity.
"Kabuto, how's the situation with the Three-Tails?" Orochimaru reined in his killing intent.
"Apologies, Lord Orochimaru. It was intercepted by the Konoha squad. Naruto's team." Kabuto stood respectfully, bowing nervously.
To Kabuto's surprise, Orochimaru didn't get angry. He calmly walked past Kabuto and patted his shoulder. "Time to prepare the reincarnation ritual. Clean this up."
"Yes." Kabuto was stunned for a moment before respectfully replying. He took a long breath, then stepped to the table. As he glanced at the documents left there, his eyes widened in shock. It took him a long time to regain composure as he muttered, "Lord Orochimaru... is pregnant again?"
Meanwhile, Orochimaru had arrived at Sasuke's chamber.
"It's time, Sasuke-kun. Before you die, I'll tell you something good. I'm pregnant. And yes, the child is yours. I assume this was Kirito's scheme to stall me from using reincarnation—so I'd hesitate to act. But it's useless. I won't be stopped over a mere Uchiha embryo."
He opened the door and spoke as he entered. His golden eyes glistened with madness, and saliva dripped from his lips.
Sasuke still wore a look of utter despair. But upon hearing the word "pregnant," his brows furrowed faintly, though he didn't speak.
Seeing Sasuke's silence, Orochimaru assumed he'd given up. He sneered. "Hahaha, Sasuke-kun, have you accepted your fate? Then I won't be polite."
"I'm starting." Orochimaru declared, spitting out a White Phosphorus Snake—the catalyst for his reincarnation ritual. It devoured Sasuke and dragged him into the alternate space used for the ritual.
Orochimaru's shedding body—the pregnant shell—was left behind.
Inside the reincarnation dimension, a crimson sea of flesh and blood squirmed. It gradually engulfed Sasuke.
Across from him, a fleshy sphere formed. As it pulsated and twisted, Orochimaru's face emerged from the grotesque mass.
Sticking out his long tongue, Orochimaru grinned wickedly. "Hehehe, Sasuke-kun... now, your body and your eyes are mine."
Two fleshy tentacles extended toward Sasuke from the bulbous mass.
Sasuke said nothing. He closed his eyes, appearing utterly defeated.
Just when Orochimaru believed he'd won, Sasuke suddenly opened his eyes—first revealing three-tomoe, then Mangekyō Sharingan, and finally activating the Cursed Seal transformation.
(End of this chapter)