"We did it!"
The tomoe reflected in the serpent's eyes made Uchiha Jinsuke breathe easier.
Using genjutsu as an attack was a dangerous gamble. If they failed to control the giant snake, they would have no way to dodge in midair.
"This is what happens when you underestimate the Uchiha."
Jinsuke spat to the side. Even if Orochimaru was clearly holding back, being able to bind him so quickly was something only the Uchiha's Sharingan could do.
On the night of the Nine-Tails, the Third Hokage and the others had been wrong. The Uchiha Police Force should have been sent in.
"Hisss..."
The sound of a snake's tongue suddenly filled Jinsuke's ears. Snapped out of his thoughts, he was horrified to see the tomoe fading fast from the serpent's eyes. A massive mouth opened wider than he thought possible, snapping at him with lightning speed.
How could it have broken free of genjutsu so quickly? Did someone else mess up?
A foul wind blasted against his face as the jaws closed in. In that split second, Jinsuke drew a short blade from his back and slashed hard at the giant fangs.
"Clang!"
The short blade didn't cut through the fang, but the rebound knocked Jinsuke out of the serpent's bite range.
At that moment, one of his comrades reacted quickly and threw a kunai tied with wire.
Jinsuke didn't resist. The wire wrapped twice around his waist, and with a strong pull, he was yanked back to safety.
Landing on the ground again, he was drenched in cold sweat.
The other squad leaders who had used genjutsu weren't so lucky. Some were taken out by the serpent's first snap, unable to react. Others dodged once, but their teammates couldn't help them in time, and they were swallowed whole.
The battlefield fell silent, broken only by the sound of the serpent swallowing.
"They couldn't have been eaten for real, right?"
Even with Uchiha temperament, the thought of being eaten alive was horrifying.
"Splurt!"
One by one, human shapes were spat back out by the snake. At the same time, a figure leapt into the air, splitting into eight, and in the blink of an eye carried the squad leaders to the edge of the battlefield.
After checking them quickly, Shisui let out a breath of relief. They were only unconscious. Other than being soaked in slime, they didn't seem badly hurt.
Meanwhile, one of Yamata no Orochi's central heads opened its mouth. Orochimaru's upper body emerged, wearing a chilling smile.
"This is a lesson."
"A Tailed Beast Jinchuriki is not the same as a normal Tailed Beast. If you want to control them with Genjutsu, your eye power must be strong enough to control both the Jinchuriki and the beast."
"You're not there yet."
No one knew if the elite Uchiha took this warning to heart, but they realized that Genjutsu wouldn't work on the Yamata no Orochi.
The eight snake heads were just for show. The real body was Orochimaru hidden inside the massive serpent.
To strike the real body, they had to take down the Yamata no Orochi first.
But before this, the reason they tried using Sharingan Genjutsu was because they couldn't defeat the Yamata no Orochi head-on.
The elite Uchiha now understood their goal had to change: not to win quickly, but to hold out until Orochimaru's chakra ran out.
This approach felt wrong to them. They were used to finishing fights cleanly, quickly, and with style.
Dragging things out was something only talentless shinobi would do.
But now, no one objected or treated it lightly.
They hated losing more than they hated an ugly win.
Orochimaru, with all his battle experience, easily noticed their change of plan.
"Hiss… So you plan to hold on until I can't keep going? Not a bad idea."
"But… did you forget something? From the start until now, I haven't even started attacking."
The serpent's face twisted into a human-like sneer. "If you want to hold out, you'll have to stop me first!!!"
With a loud roar, the Yamata no Orochi dropped its defensive stance and charged straight at the Uchiha, ignoring the flames.
The ground shook. Wherever it passed, trees toppled and earth walls collapsed. The Uchiha elites kept retreating, unable to put up any real defense.
The battlefield turned into chaos as the Yamata no Orochi tore through it, scattering the Uchiha police force again.
"Fire Release: Majestic Dragon Fire Technique!"
Uchiha Jinsuke formed hand signs and launched his strongest jutsu, but the giant snake swung its tail and crushed the fire dragon's head with ease.
Jinsuke leapt back, dodging sparks and flying debris.
Landing on a tree trunk, his Sharingan locked on the massive serpent. He took a quick breath.
The ninjutsu worked to some extent—the Yamata no Orochi had slowed down a little, and its attacks were weaker than before.
But the police force had suffered even more.
Even though Orochimaru was clearly holding back, just trying to break their formation, the shockwaves alone kept injuring their people.
If not for Shisui pulling them out of the worst of it, this training drill would have ended in heavy losses.
"What now? If this keeps up, the clan's going to lose face."
That thought flashed through Jinsuke's mind, but he couldn't change the situation. If Genjutsu didn't work, then a giant beast like this was a nightmare for any shinobi.
Just then, a figure leapt out from the forest, landing near the Yamata no Orochi in a gap between its attacks.
Jinsuke was surprised when he saw who it was. "The clan leader? What's he planning to do?"
With the formation broken, commands meant nothing, and the field was a mess. He thought the clan head had already left.
"Does he have a plan?"
That thought flashed by as Fugaku formed hand signs and slammed his hands on the ground. "Uchiha Flame Formation!"
In an instant, fire burst from his fingers, and glowing red lines spread across the ground. A half-transparent wall shot up, sealing the Yamata no Orochi inside.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The giant snake tails slammed against the barrier, but it held strong—and even started burning the tails in return.
Jinsuke stared in shock. "It worked? The clan leader even learned such a rare barrier jutsu."
Barrier and sealing techniques were known for being hard to master, and the Uchiha Flame Formation was one of the hardest.
It wasn't just a fire barrier. It also drew on the earth's own element to reinforce its defense.
It was closer to a Kekkei Genkai—an outward fusion of two chakra natures—than a normal ninjutsu.
"Either way… it worked." Jinsuke let out a breath of relief.
If a whole police force went after one ninja and still lost badly, Uchiha's pride would be gone for good.
Just then, the sound of breaking glass suddenly rang out.
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