All he wanted was to return to the one place he longed for most right now—Konoha.
He had so much to report to Tsunade, and just as much he longed to share with his teammates.
He wanted to know how his friends were holding up on their separate fronts.
Even with Sage Mode and the Flying Thunder God Technique, he couldn't make it back to Konoha right away—a fact that deeply frustrated him.
At regular speed, it would take two days to reach Konoha—but even cutting that in half wouldn't be fast enough.
No matter. He'd soon return to that safe haven.
## Land of Rice — Hidden Otogakure Base ##
"Where the hell is that bastard trying to run to?" Kiba Inuzuka barked as he chased after Kabuto. The group chased him deeper into the tunnels beneath Otogakure's base.
Hinata's Byakugan and Kiba and Akamaru's combined sense of smell confirmed there were no traps ahead. So what exactly was Kabuto planning?
"I think he's heading for the control room," Hinata interjected. "He knows we're here to save people."
"Are those people really that important? Important enough for him to hide rather than just leave?" Kiba asked another question, his anger burning hotter by the second.
For someone like Kabuto to betray his former Konoha comrades made Kiba furious already, but now Kabuto hid away like a coward—that only fueled his rage further.
"Why retreat from a battlefield where you hold the advantage?" Shino countered, perhaps trying to rationalize Kabuto's actions. Many Otogakure ninja would choose to retreat upon discovering their base compromised.
But in Kabuto's case—who was always so confident—he hadn't laid any traps or sent underlings after them. He'd even "kindly" given them a chance to escape.
"To me, it seems like his brain's fried."
Eventually, Team 8 reached a dimly lit chamber where a massive, serpent-shaped statue loomed against one wall.
Kabuto sat atop the serpent's head, no longer concealing himself beneath his hooded cloak. His appearance was horrifying—his body covered in white scales, a white serpent coiled around him as if it were part of his body, its head emerging from his navel. Hinata had already seen all of this through her Byakugan, but even so, she still flinched when seeing it directly.
"I don't know what you're trying to accomplish," Kabuto said coolly, slowly rising to his feet atop the serpent's head. "Even the three of you, even if you work together perfectly—you're absolutely no match for me. Surely you've figured that out by now."
"Figured what out?" Kiba barked at the grotesque hybrid. "Ever since we found you, you've been hiding from us, running away like a coward!"
"I simply didn't want to kill you in front of your comrades," Kabuto smiled. "I didn't realize that sparing you a little courtesy would lead you to mistake it for weakness."
Before Kiba could charge, Shino held him back.
Even from atop the statue's head, Kabuto still held a height advantage. If he hadn't anticipated their assault, he wouldn't have taken that position to begin with.
"As cunning as ever," Kabuto smirked as he saw Shino stop Kiba Inuzuka's charge. "But you can't resolve anything by dodging me. Didn't you come here to save people? How do you intend to rescue them without pressing forward or defeating me?"
Shino pushed up his glasses. Then another Shino descended from the ceiling, lunging at Kabuto. "Hmm, so he's attacking me with a clone."
Before that Shino could get close, Kabuto suddenly vanished at an incredible speed, dodging aside and rushing straight toward the three completely vulnerable Chunin. His intended target appeared to be Shino—the slowest of the three. Kabuto morphed into a serpentine hybrid, mouth wide open like he intended to swallow Shino whole.
Yet just as he approached Shino, Kabuto abruptly sank underground. "Earth Release: Underground Projection Fish Technique! Hahaha! You actually believed I'd fall for that? A triple feint—clones to distract you, then letting you think you've deduced my plan by guessing you'd attack from above? Your minds are truly unimaginative!"
Even though their plan was flawless.
"I don't know!" Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru fused together into a massive two-headed wolf. "But this works for me! Passing Fang!"
Kiba and Akamaru spun wildly, creating a howling storm powerful enough to tear through the air. Barely touching the ground, they shredded the floor into pieces, drilling through everything like a devastating earth-boring machine.
It was just a matter of time before Kiba and Akamaru tore through every inch of floor in the room.
There was no way Kabuto could stay buried for long—he knew Kiba and Akamaru could track him by scent.
Eventually, he'd be forced out. Unfortunately for Kabuto, Hinata had been watching his movements closely, ready to strike the moment he surfaced.
"He's within my range!"
[Eight Trigrams Gentle Fist: Two Palms!] she shouted. Her hands struck Kabuto's body, leaving him completely under her control. She continued her assault without pause. [Four Palms! Eight Palms! Sixteen Palms! Thirty-Two Palms! Sixty-Four Palms!]
Sixty-four rapid strikes pounded into Kabuto's body. He stood frozen in shock, then staggered back and crumpled to the ground.
"Just kidding!" he yelled out. Then, abruptly, all movement stopped. A white snake erupted from his navel like a bolt of lightning, wrapping tightly around Hinata's throat.
"What an impressive effort! First driving me underground, then forcing me into your preferred position, and finishing with Taijutsu! You lot might be the best Konoha ninja graduates I've ever seen!"
"What the hell!" Kiba, now in his wolf form, bellowed in a hoarse voice. "She landed the hits. So why's he still on his feet? And why is he moving so fast now?"
"Fawning over Orochimaru wasn't the only thing I picked up," Kabuto said, as the snake wrapped tighter around Hinata's throat.
"I've implanted the DNA of another ninja. After countless experiments, I've finally replicated his [liquefying parts of my body]. Her attacks are completely ineffective against me." He said proudly, while Hinata was already bleeding from the corner of her mouth, suffocating.
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