On the central tower, Anko Mitarashi froze after hearing Shinju's words.
From the very first day of the exam, when it was discovered that Orochimaru might have entered the Forest of Death, she and the ANBU had been conducting a carpet search throughout the forest.
Four days had passed in a flash. Aside from Shinju claiming he had once seen Orochimaru in the woods, they hadn't found a single trace of him.
To avoid sparking panic among the other villages, Konoha's higher-ups decided to suppress the matter for now and quietly observe further developments.
And now, the Orochimaru who had remained hidden in the shadows all this time… finally revealed his vicious face once again!
"Was what that red-haired boy said really true?" one of the proctors asked.
Anko's eyes locked onto Shinju's movements on the monitor.
"Doesn't matter if it's true or not. We need to get down there and see for ourselves!"
Just then—
A sudden change!!
A massive serpent, as tall as a building, suddenly burst out of the forest nearby!!
"Roooaaarrr—!!"
Its intention was obvious—charging straight toward Shinju and Sasuke!!
Having long anticipated that Orochimaru might make a sudden move, Shinju quickly leapt aside to dodge!
The enormous snake opened its maw wide. Its massive body crushed forward, swallowing three Kusagakure ninjas whole in an instant!!
Beside the serpent, Naruto and Sasuke, saved by Shinju, broke into a cold sweat.
"That… that giant snake—does that mean Orochimaru is here?!" Sasuke asked, his face grave.
Shinju didn't answer. He only nodded silently, his gaze shifting toward a certain spot in the dense forest.
A few seconds later, a figure stepped out—it was Orochimaru!
The moment he appeared, his eyes locked on Sasuke with a greed that words could not describe.
A chill shot through Sasuke's body. After all, this was once one of Konoha's legendary Sannin, a veteran of multiple shinobi wars. The murderous aura radiating from him made Sasuke tremble under its weight.
"This time… I won't be as weak as before!"
Clenching his teeth, Sasuke drew a kunai from his pouch and stabbed it hard into his thigh.
At that very moment, the giant serpent moved again!
It twisted its enormous body, lashing its massive tail toward Shinju!
Shinju hurriedly leapt away, forming hand seals in midair.
"Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!!"
Boom!!
Blazing flames roared from Shinju's mouth!
This time, he held nothing back, pouring out chakra in torrents!
Whooosh!!
The flames he unleashed were searingly hot, covering a terrifyingly wide area!
In an instant, the dragon-shaped inferno incinerated the forest ahead into nothing but ash!!
The summoned serpent caught in the middle of the jutsu was charred black from head to tail, like a massive burning log, even giving off the faint scent of roasted meat!
Orochimaru was stunned!
（´°Δ°`)
He knew Shinju was gifted, but this level of power from a single ninjutsu was absurd!
In sheer force and area of effect, the jutsu was at least four times stronger than his own!
"Gulp…"
Orochimaru swallowed hard.
Until now, he had always wanted the Sharingan—for in those Uchiha eyes lay endless secrets.
But now… he wavered.
Possessing a body that could amplify the power of ordinary ninjutsu several times over didn't sound bad either.
And this boy was likely from the Uzumaki clan, with an enormous chakra reserve and sensory abilities…
Meanwhile, Anko—who had just reached the base of the central tower, ready to support the examinees—was left dumbstruck.
Utterly shocked!
What kind of monster was Shinju, to turn a simple B-rank ninjutsu into something this terrifying?!
"Shinju!!"
After a long moment, Anko snapped out of her daze and shouted.
Shinju turned his head, eyes puzzled.
"You did great. Leave the rest to us!"
With that, the proctors and ANBU by Anko's side all rushed at Orochimaru!
Shinju, meanwhile, basked in the glow of Anko's praise, secretly pleased with himself.
But then Anko added with a teasing smile, "Also, all those trees you just destroyed—you'll have to pay for them~"
Shinju: (╥╯^╰╥)
Damn it, he'd lost control of the jutsu's range again!
But seriously…
He'd just made a contribution to the village, and now he still had to pay damages?
Too cruel!!
"Wait!"
Shinju suddenly remembered—the Kusagakure trio were still inside that serpent's stomach!!
Could his Fire Style have cooked them alive?!
With that thought, he borrowed a short blade from Anko and sliced open the serpent's belly.
Inside, the three Kusagakure genin were huddled together, still protected by a Water Style barrier.
Pulling them out, Shinju checked their breathing.
Confirming that all three were still alive, he let out a sigh of relief.
"Good… good. They're still breathing."
Beside him, Naruto and Sasuke were completely absorbed watching the ANBU fight Orochimaru, gasping in awe from time to time.
"Why's Orochimaru so strong? Fighting all those ANBU at once, and he's not even struggling… he looks completely in control…" Sasuke muttered, his eyes showing admiration.
He was a boy of vengeance.
The entire Uchiha clan had been slaughtered by Uchiha Itachi.
So Sasuke needed strength—for revenge.
"But his fighting style's so gross! His body's all bendy like a snake, and he even attacks with his tongue… ewwww!" Naruto said with disgust written all over his face.
Shinju tapped their shoulders, reminding them,
"Hey, stop watching and back off. Orochimaru's strong. If he breaks through and sinks his teeth into you two, it won't be pretty."
Naruto waved it off. "Come on, his name's Orochimaru, but he's not really a sn—eh?!"
Halfway through his sentence, his pupils shrank sharply!
He had just realized—the Orochimaru fighting the ANBU was nothing but a mud clone!!
"A fake?! Then where's the real one?!" Naruto cried in panic.
Sensing something wrong, Shinju suddenly felt a gust of killing wind at his back. He yanked Naruto and Sasuke down to the ground!
Slash!!
Sure enough—
A head, still attached to an absurdly long neck, whipped past just above their scalps!
Following the neck back, Shinju saw it was connected to a body in Orochimaru's garb…
Which meant Orochimaru had stretched his own neck like rubber to ambush them!
Even as Shinju froze in shock, Orochimaru's head snapped sideways, fangs sinking toward Sasuke's shoulder!!
Sasuke couldn't dodge in time—Orochimaru's bite sank deep into him!
The moment Orochimaru's fangs pierced, a curse pattern flooded into Sasuke's body!!
Agonizing paralysis hit instantly, dropping Sasuke to the ground in pain!
Having completed his task, Orochimaru's neck retracted at once.
"Sasuke… I hope you survive…"
----------------
For each review +1 Chapter
Pls Drop some Power Stones
+100 chapters and support me on Patreon(.)com/Jixo