Chapter 280: Battle with Orochimaru
Boom! Boom!
In the distance, low rumbling sounds echoed continuously.
Amidst the dense forest branches, a squad of nine Konoha shinobi in green flak jackets was moving toward the source of the rumbling. They were the reinforcement team sent by Konoha.
Leading them was none other than one of the legendary Sannin—Orochimaru.
"You can hear it even from this far…"
"Did Sunagakure deploy a Tailed Beast?"
One Konoha shinobi behind Orochimaru spoke with a grave expression.
The rumbling and the tremors felt through the ground—this could only be caused by something massive ravaging the land.
They were familiar with this kind of phenomenon.
When the Sannin summoned their giant beasts in battle, they had felt similar tremors from afar, like earthquakes.
Sunagakure didn't have any large summoning beasts, so if this kind of destruction was happening, it could only mean a Tailed Beast was involved.
"Sage Mode? Or something else?"
As he moved along the tree branches, Orochimaru kept glancing up at the sky. In his sensory perception, streams of natural energy flowed like tiny rivers toward something up ahead.
This could only mean one of two things—either someone up ahead was entering Sage Mode, or something was absorbing large amounts of natural energy.
The volume of energy being drawn was immense—otherwise, it wouldn't have caused such a visible flow of natural energy.
"Interesting…"
Orochimaru extended his long tongue. As one of the rare geniuses in the ninja world who could perceive natural energy, and a contract-holder with Ryūchi Cave—one of the Three Great Summoning Lands—he understood well the power of natural energy.
But being able to perceive natural energy was one thing; absorbing it was another entirely.
Natural energy had an incredibly dangerous assimilative effect. Absorbing it carelessly could cause one to be merged into nature and die.
Even with Ryūchi Cave's methods to enter Sage Mode, Orochimaru had never dared to try it. That's how dangerous it was.
Now, something—or someone—was absorbing natural energy mid-battle. Whether it was a person or a device, Orochimaru was extremely interested.
After all, senjutsu was a power he had always longed to control.
Soon—
The rumbling ceased.
Orochimaru's team exited the forest and saw, at the bottom of a cliff amidst the ruins, a black Shukaku standing tall.
"Shukaku?"
"No, something's off. That's not what Shukaku looks like."
At first glance, Orochimaru thought it was Shukaku. But the color was wrong—and more importantly, the feeling it gave off was completely different. It wasn't the sensation one got when facing a Tailed Beast.
Still, none of that mattered.
Because he had sensed it—the flow of natural energy in the surroundings was all converging toward that black Shukaku-like monster.
Clearly, that black creature was the one absorbing natural energy.
This was the first time Orochimaru had seen something capable of absorbing natural energy while actively fighting.
Was it a summoning beast?
He began to speculate.
Natural energy was incredibly corrosive to the human body and uncontrollable. Normally, one had to absorb a specific amount and then stop to form senjutsu chakra.
Even the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, would only absorb a large amount in an instant to form senjutsu chakra before stopping. He couldn't absorb it continuously during battle.
Yet this monster could do what even the First couldn't.
Whatever that black creature was—
If he could capture it and study it, maybe Orochimaru could finally master Sage Mode.
His tongue licked out once more, and his intense gaze locked onto the distant black Shukaku as he leapt forward, biting his thumb and slamming his palm down.
Summoning Jutsu!
Boom!
A massive puff of white smoke burst mid-air, and a giant, coiling figure emerged—Orochimaru's summoning beast, Manda.
"Orochimaru… huh? What the hell is that thing?"
Manda had planned to scold Orochimaru as usual, but the moment he saw the black Shukaku-like monster continuously absorbing natural energy, he froze in shock.
Natural energy wasn't something just anyone could absorb.
Even summoning beasts born in the Great Sage Regions required special training and could only absorb it in moderation—or they too would be assimilated.
Yet this black creature was continuously absorbing natural energy—even while fighting.
"How is that possible?"
The thought flashed through Manda's mind as he twisted his body, narrowly avoiding a massive Wind Bullet filled with chakra.
"That giant snake… it's one of the Sannin—Orochimaru."
The Iron Sand Shukaku's large eyes gleamed with intelligence.
Inside its belly, Sasori felt a stir in his heart. One of the Sannin—Orochimaru—was the perfect test subject to prove the Puppet Core's power.
Bang bang! Sasori had the Iron Sand Shukaku charge forward, opening its mouth to fire a series of compressed air bullets.
Manda didn't back down. Twisting like a massive serpent, he dodged the attacks while charging straight toward the Iron Sand Shukaku.
"It's not senjutsu… nor is it natural energy."
"Weird… Orochimaru, what is that thing?"
The ninjutsu emitted by the energy-absorbing creature wasn't made of senjutsu chakra or pure natural energy. This confused Manda, who asked the master on his head.
"I want to know too."
Orochimaru's long tongue flicked out again as he stared at the rapidly approaching Iron Sand Shukaku, hands flying into seals.
"Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!"
The ground beneath the Iron Sand Shukaku turned into a swamp. Because of its immense weight, the massive creature quickly sank.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Manda lunged in like a giant python, wrapping around the Shukaku and squeezing tightly.
"Argh… so hard!!"
Manda winced as he realized this hunk of metal was too tough. He couldn't crush it—instead, it hurt him.
"This is… not good!"
Standing atop Manda's head, Orochimaru now had a close-up view. Finally, he realized what this black Shukaku was—an Iron Sand construct, a product of the Third Kazekage's Magnet Release.
His expression changed instantly.
"Get away—now!" he warned.
He didn't need to say it. The moment Manda felt how hard the thing was, he'd already begun to recoil.
Zzzz zzzz!
In an instant, countless razor-sharp iron sand spikes protruded from the Iron Sand Shukaku. Manda's body was pierced in over a dozen places.
Bang!
Freed from Manda's grip, Sasori had the Shukaku leap out of the swamp and land nearby, glaring at Orochimaru and the snake.
Neither man nor snake had taken serious damage.
"That was close!"
Manda breathed a sigh of relief. If he hadn't used his skin-shedding technique in time, he would've ended up like his discarded snake skin in the swamp—riddled with fatal holes.
"Perfect—he's human!"
Orochimaru's long tongue slipped out again as he stared at the Iron Sand Shukaku across from him.
Anyone who could use the Third Kazekage's Magnet Release and manipulate iron sand had to be human.
And this human was absorbing natural energy while using ninjutsu—clearly the result of some secret technique. Capturing him could lead to discovering it.
"But where is he?"
"Could he be hiding inside?"
Orochimaru frowned. He couldn't sense anyone near the Iron Sand Shukaku, but his eyes locked on its chest—where all the natural energy was converging.
He must be in there.
"He's coming, Orochimaru!" Manda warned suddenly.
Opposite them, Sasori's Iron Sand Shukaku began crackling with lightning. It opened its mouth wide.
Orochimaru's expression changed. He jumped from Manda's head, bit his thumb again, and slammed it to the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu: First Rashōmon!"
Rumble!
A massive, hellish gate erupted from the earth.
Clang clang clang! As the gate appeared, countless iron sand needles charged with lightning shot from the Shukaku's mouth, forming a thunderous black storm that rained down over hundreds of meters.
Shhhh!
The ground was shredded several feet deep by the sheer volume of iron sand needles in just a few breaths.
Even the Rashōmon gate—renowned for its absolute defense—began to groan and crack under the pressure.
(END CHAPTER)
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