The scene before them was beyond comprehension, chilling to the core.
Their comrade, killed in such a horrific way, had become a monstrous entity.
And it could attack them?
"Orochimaru's defection…" a ninja stammered, voice trembling. "It was because he conducted horrific experiments on villagers."
The words dragged memories back to years ago. Orochimaru, once revered, was exposed as a ruthless killer, slaughtering villagers for his vile ninjutsu experiments.
Could this be… the result of those experiments?
Facing Orochimaru, his aura heavy, cold, and terrifying, the crowd of ninja froze. None dared step forward.
Only the first attacker stared, disbelieving, at his fallen comrade.
Then—
"That's no ninjutsu," Sasuke said, his voice quivering slightly. "This man… has no heartbeat, no blood flow. He's a dead man walking."
"Correct," Neji said, his Byakugan active. "And the one he's controlling… is already dead. Just a corpse."
"What?" The crowd erupted in shock.
Hyuga clan members activated their Byakugan, faces paling with horror.
"It's true—he's a dead man!"
"But there's chakra flow."
"A puppet?"
"No, no chakra threads!"
The chatter grew chaotic. Then, Hiraki—the reanimated corpse—abandoned his standoff. He lunged at his former comrade, their kunai clashing. As he was stabbed, Hiraki's blade pierced his opponent's heart.
"Daichi!" a ninja cried.
Too late. The avenging ninja fell to his own comrade's hand.
"Another fine specimen," Orochimaru said, his sinister smile unwavering. He reached out, and the scene repeated. Moments later, the fresh corpse staggered upright.
The eerie spectacle left everyone gaping, breaths catching in their throats.
What was this horrific technique?
Sasuke and Neji exchanged a glance, finding the same answer in each other's eyes.
"You," Sasuke said, pointing his longsword at Orochimaru, face grim. "What kind of twisted *cans* did you buy to gain this power?"
"That cold, non-chakra energy, that strange flow," Neji said, assuming a fighting stance. "No doubt—it's a skill."
Unlike the other ninja, they'd seen the *cans*' wonders.
They knew *can* openers defied logic.
Though wary of Orochimaru's methods, they weren't paralyzed by the unknown.
Just… disgusted.
The other ninja, shamed by the kids' composure, caught the meaning in their words.
"What do you know?"
"Twisted *cans*?"
"Neji, if you have intel, share it. This traitor's methods are bizarre."
Fear lingered, but with comrades beside them and the village behind, no one would retreat easily.
Neji hesitated. This wasn't something explained in a few words. They knew Orochimaru's power came from *cans*, but its nature and limits? Unknown.
Orochimaru turned, his two "corpses" mimicking him.
*Skill: Eyes of Fear*.
Instantly, everyone froze.
Not from external force, but pure, primal terror, as if Death itself stared them down. Orochimaru's presence carried the chilling gloom of a midnight graveyard—and the promise of their own demise.
The elite ninja trembled.
Their earlier bravado seemed laughable.
They'd thought numbers could defeat this monster.
He wasn't human anymore.
A true monster.
His gaze alone plunged them into despair, like falling into an abyss, knowing only a brutal death awaited.
"I'll savor your taste," Orochimaru rasped, his words like a serpent's hiss at their ears.
Some ninja wept, fragile as children, yet no one mocked them.
Even Sasuke, Neji, and Naruto, facing away, felt death's icy grip.
Strong… impossibly strong.
How many *cans* had he opened?
As Sasuke and Neji strategized, Orochimaru sighed.
"Pity."
With that word, the suffocating fear receded like a tide. Every ninja, Jōnin to Chūnin, collapsed, drenched in sweat, faces alight with the clarity of survival.
But Orochimaru's next words chilled them anew.
"I must kill my teacher and Konoha's leaders, turn them to corpses," he murmured, as if to himself. "If I turned you all into corpses now, that gentleman would be displeased."
His intent was clear.
He aimed to slaughter the Hokage and Konoha's elite.
He meant to destroy the village.
A resolute Jōnin, voice shaking, asked, "You, a demon like you, fear someone? Who is he?"
It felt weak to ask, but they doubted the Hokage could face this monster.
Konoha's hope might lie with this "gentleman."
"You still have the courage to speak?" Orochimaru's cold gaze locked onto the Jōnin. "A bearer of the Will of Fire? Interesting. Let's test if that will can resist the dominance of the undead."
"Enough!" Naruto roared, fists clenched, unable to bear more. "Your target's me, right? If you've got the guts, face me in the Fate-Witnessing Stage!"
If he hadn't spent all his money for the Chūnin Exams, he'd have summoned the stage himself.