"Damn, that was disgusting."
Kiyosuke crawled out from the body of the White Phosphorus Snake, spitting out a mouthful of bloody water. The Mangekyō in his eyes faded back into three tomoe, slipping into cooldown. Fortunately, he had plenty of chakra, so the downtime wouldn't last too long—before long, he'd be able to use it again.
This move really was terrifying—Kotoamatsukami: Radiance. Different from the regular Kotoamatsukami.
Kotoamatsukami silently rewrote someone's will, while Kotoamatsukami: Radiance was a purely offensive technique. It could burn a person's spirit into ash. Unfortunately for Orochimaru, he had dragged Kiyosuke into the mental space of Living Corpse Reincarnation, where he couldn't use other jutsu. That left Kotoamatsukami: Radiance as the only way to end him.
The weakness of Living Corpse Reincarnation was that if the target's spiritual energy was stronger than the caster's, there was a chance the jutsu could be countered. That was probably why Orochimaru only used it on subordinates who were fanatically loyal to him.
Loyal to the core, Orochimaru's people would give their lives for him without hesitation—just like those three who became his vessels.
But with Kiyosuke's spiritual energy, resisting Orochimaru's Living Corpse Reincarnation was no issue. His only drawback was a lack of effective offensive methods on the spiritual plane. The Mangekyō made it efficient—otherwise, it would've taken him far more effort.
He rinsed the snake blood off his body with a Water Release technique. A serpent slithered out from his sleeve, opened its mouth, and swallowed the Kusanagi Sword. Then, Kiyosuke quickly left that wretched place.
Manda, having lost his summoner, vanished as the contract collapsed. Black Snake followed suit. That fight wasn't over just yet.
Kiyosuke turned and saw Yakushi Kabuto stumbling toward Orochimaru's corpse. Smiling faintly, he said:
"Don't let me down, Kabuto. This is something I left just for you."
No matter who eventually triggered the Fourth Great Ninja War, Kabuto's strength would be indispensable. Kiyosuke had no time to babysit him or guide him toward rediscovering himself. Better to leave that headache to Itachi and the Uchiha.
With that thought, he swapped back to his original eyes and left.
...
Catching up with Naruto's group, Kakashi asked:
"How did it go?"
"It's over."
"Orochimaru… actually dead?" Sasuke frowned. Having lived with Orochimaru, he knew just how difficult that man was to deal with. Dying so easily? It didn't sound right.
"He's dead, but not completely. There's still a chance he'll come back."
Orochimaru wasn't so easy to kill. His consciousness lingered within his curse marks.
"Kiyosuke, your neck." Kakashi's sharp gaze caught the Heaven Curse Mark there. "Want me to seal it for you?"
"No need."
Pressing a hand to the mark, Kiyosuke entered Sage Mode, absorbing the natural energy and extracting Orochimaru's chakra. He aimed in one direction.
Boom!
A massive pillar of fire scorched a blackened scar into the earth.
"Done," he said simply.
Orochimaru's fragment of consciousness had already been erased by Kotoamatsukami: Radiance. Releasing his hand, the curse mark disappeared.
Sasuke didn't comment. To him, Orochimaru was already dead at Kiyosuke's hands. Resurrection was a possibility, sure, but nothing more. The curse mark granted him its mode, a state of immense power. That strength was exactly what he lacked.
The strength to stand equal to Naruto—no, to surpass him.
"Kakashi, take Naruto and the others back to the village. Sasuke, you know Orochimaru's hideouts, don't you?"
"I do."
"Good. Take me there. There are some people I want to bring back to Konoha."
"Alright." Sasuke nodded and led the way. Naruto wanted to follow, but Kakashi stopped him. Frustrated, he hung his head and went with Kakashi and the others back to Konoha.
...
Sasuke brought Kiyosuke to one of Orochimaru's bases.
"Hōzuki Suigetsu's here. What are you waiting for?"
"Waiting for someone… forget it, let's just go in."
They entered. Sasuke, familiar with the place, led Kiyosuke straight to the laboratory.
Rows of culture tanks lined the room. The largest one in the center bubbled constantly, something moving inside.
"Well, well, who's this? Isn't that Sasuke? What brings you here today?"
A pale-haired boy appeared in the tank, naked, with sharp purple eyes. He was about Sasuke's age, a shark-like tooth jutting from his mouth.
Hōzuki Suigetsu—likely the only remaining member of the Hōzuki clan.
Like his brother Mangetsu, he was a prodigy with blades. After the Hōzuki clan's downfall, he escaped from Kirigakure and was taken in by Orochimaru—only to become an experimental subject, confined to culture tanks with little freedom. He'd met Sasuke before, which was how they knew each other.
"Wait a sec—who's that? Why does he look so familiar?"
Suigetsu leaned forward, eyes narrowing. Kiyosuke's face looked oddly familiar, as if he'd seen it somewhere before.
"Hello, Suigetsu-kun. I'm Asakawa Kiyosuke."
"Asakawa… Kiyosuke?! No way—"
Suigetsu's eyes bulged. He thrashed inside the tank, sending bubbles flying.
"Yeah, the one you're thinking of. Hold on, I'll let you out. I've got business with you."
Kiyosuke punched through the tank's glass. Water spilled everywhere. He handed Suigetsu a set of clothes.
Once dressed, Suigetsu asked warily:
"So, what does the great Kiyosuke-sama of Konoha want with a nobody like me?"
He knew Kiyosuke wasn't here out of boredom. Why Orochimaru had allowed Konoha shinobi into his base, though, he had no idea.
"Oh, Orochimaru? I just killed him. I'm letting you all go. You've got talent, kid. So, two choices:
One, come with me to Konoha—no pressure.
Two, I'll send you back to Kirigakure. The village is reforming—it's not the Bloody Mist anymore. They'll take you in. I've already notified them. Should be here any moment… ah, there they are. Think it over. Sasuke, go gather some of Orochimaru's research—we'll bring it back to Konoha. That stuff's valuable."
"Got it."
Kiyosuke stepped out. Before long, he returned—with Terumī Mei.
Seeing Suigetsu, Mei sighed.
"So much like his brother… and Gengetsu too."
Looking at him, memories of her comrade who had perished in the village's civil strife came back. She spoke gently:
"Suigetsu, I'm Terumī Mei, the Fifth Mizukage. I'm sorry for what happened to the Hōzuki clan. Will you return to Kirigakure with me?"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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