"Lord Orochimaru…" Ran hesitated, finally speaking up.He wanted to stop this. After all, Maito Dai might be mocked as a failure, but he was still an elite jōnin. And Orochimaru… he wasn't exactly famous for mercy.
But Orochimaru only turned his serpent-like gaze on him, eyes narrowing."Ran-kun. You've contradicted me again… and again."
A suffocating wave of killing intent poured out from Orochimaru, crashing over Ran like a tidal wave. His body went rigid, frozen in place. He could barely twitch his fingers under the pressure.Ran lowered his head, unable to resist.
"Ran," Dai's voice cut in, calm and steady. "I know you don't want me on the battlefield. But I can't just sit back while the village is in danger."
He raised a thumb in his signature pose, grinning despite the tension."I'm willing to fight for Konoha."
The shinobi who had been snickering at Dai's "delusions of grandeur" suddenly couldn't meet his eyes.
Orochimaru clapped slowly, smiling."Stirring words, Dai-kun. But unless you earn my approval… you're not setting foot on the battlefield."
Once, Orochimaru might've admired such reckless courage. But now? He couldn't understand it. Why waste fragile life so eagerly? Why leap toward death with a smile?
Dai only nodded seriously. "Understood, Orochimaru-sama. I'll do my best."
With a wave of Orochimaru's hand, the crowd dispersed, leaving an empty ring.
Dai crossed his arms before his face, veins bulging across his forehead."Then… here I come!"
"Eight Inner Gates—Open! Rest! Life! Pain! Limit! View!""Sixth Gate, Gate of View—OPEN!"
A roar of dark green chakra exploded around him, whipping the air into violent gusts. His skin flushed red with strain, his body glowing like a living furnace.
Orochimaru's golden eyes widened."What… incredible chakra. Like a tailed beast."
"Power of Youth — Prelude!"
Dai vanished. A blur, a shockwave, and then his foot slammed into Orochimaru, kicking him into chunks of shattered earth.
But the fragments burst apart into dirt.Substitution Jutsu.
The real Orochimaru slithered up from the ground, his legs unraveling into writhing snake tails."Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
Dozens of serpents lunged at Dai.
"Lanjiao! Dance of Youth!"
Dai's legs blurred into afterimages, each kick unleashing a crescent of green chakra that ripped through the snakes in sprays of blood. He broke free, landing hard.
"Lanjiao…" Orochimaru's eyes narrowed."That's Uchiha Jinzō's taijutsu, isn't it? Generating vacuum blades with nothing but speed and chakra control. Difficult. Costly."
The incoming green slashes carved Orochimaru in half. But his ruined body split open grotesquely, and from the mess, a fresh, slimy Orochimaru crawled free.Orochi-style Substitution.
He whipped a shuriken at Dai, hands blurring through seals."Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu."
One became hundreds — a storm of steel that blotted out the sky.
Dai clenched his fists, punching so fast the air itself caught fire. Blazing shockwaves ripped forward, colliding with the shuriken storm."This technique… I call it Morning Peacock!"
Explosions filled the air as shockwaves met steel, evening the clash.
Orochimaru smirked, his jaws unhinging."Ten Thousand Snakes Formation!"
The ground writhed as a sea of serpents surged out, each spitting out gleaming blades.
Dai kicked off hard, springing into the sky."Moon Step—Running Youth!"
Orochimaru's eyes widened again. Moon Step. Another of Jinzō's creations. A taijutsu technique so demanding even he couldn't pull it off. And yet this "failure" of a man…
"Impressive. Truly."
But Dai was already gone — accelerating mid-air, stepping on the sky itself.
His roundhouse kick smashed through Orochimaru's chest. But again, his foot hit only writhing coils of snakes. The serpents burst apart, reforming as Orochimaru wrapped around Dai's legs, lunging with a sword protruding from his throat.
Steel hissed through the air. Blood dripped.
A shallow cut marred Dai's brow — but he'd already twisted, kicking Orochimaru away and tearing free. The snake-body splattered apart, reforming yet again in a haze of gore and chakra.
Panting, Dai crouched low, one hand pressed to the ground, legs braced like a sprinter."Orochimaru-sama… this is my final strike. A move I named after my son. My strongest technique."
Orochimaru's lips curled into a smile. "Show me, then. I want to see it."
The earth cracked beneath Dai's feet. Green chakra surged upward, roaring, shaping itself into something colossal — almost a dragon — but sputtering under his failing reserves.
He launched forward anyway, a green comet tearing through the air, splitting it with raw power.
"Kai!!"