With Orochimaru covering them from the rear, the five teammates rushed forward to meet the charging Color-Changing Thunder Sound Lizards.
Jiraiya's chakra boiled as he wove hand signs!
Fire Release: Great Flame Serpent Technique!
Jiraiya spewed a mouthful of rich, pure chakra from his mouth. The surrounding temperature soared, and orange-yellow fire flared. Under the control of intricate, profound hand signs, a monstrous serpent of fire, barrel-thick and over ten meters long, condensed from the fierce blaze.
Controlled by Jiraiya, the thick, fiery serpent coiled through the air, tracing an orange-yellow path of flame. Carrying roaring heat waves, it swiftly swept over three pouncing Color-Changing Thunder Sound Lizards.
"Aooo, aooo, aooo—" With three miserable animal screams, the fire serpent dissipated. A burnt smell quickly permeated the air as three charred, blackened lizard corpses dropped lifelessly, hitting the forest floor with three dull "thuds."
Bluebird and Tsunade were not to be outdone. Bluebird's swift and fierce Hyūga Gentle Fist unleashed streams of vacuum pressure, shattering the scales and tearing the flesh of two seven-to-eight-meter-long Thunder Sound Lizards in the blink of an eye.
Tsunade's Monster Strength Fist was even more brutal. Her chakra-infused fist sent one Color-Changing Thunder Sound Lizard flying like a cannonball with a single strike. It crashed violently, snapping a towering tree before falling heavily to the ground, leaving a pool of crimson blood.
She nimbly spun, dodging the pounce of another Thunder Sound Lizard. Just as the lizard was about to land, Tsunade grabbed its tail, yanked it back, and delivered a heavy punch to the lizard's vulnerable abdomen, then flung the dead carcass away.
Orochimaru watched calmly from the back, a look of satisfaction on his face.
Suddenly, a foul wind came from behind him. Without turning, Orochimaru's body shifted just slightly, evading the black shadow's pounce. In the moment of passing, a whip kick drew a faint afterimage, slamming heavily into the shadow's body.
"Roar—" A sharp, piercing shriek erupted. This was the family leader, a giant, over ten-meter-long Color-Changing Thunder Sound Lizard that had been hiding nearby. The tremendous force of the kick instantly sent it flying. After crashing through several large trees, a powerful internal force suddenly exploded inside its body.
"Pfft!" A bowl-sized bloody wound suddenly burst open on its tough dorsal shell. Shattered organs and flesh scattered everywhere, raining blood onto the ground.
The battle quickly concluded. Even Manji managed to kill one of the lizards using a Chakra Scalpel. The remaining two were, inevitably, stabbed clean through the heart by Chi as he burst out of the shadow dimension.
Orochimaru nodded, and the group of six set out once more.
Pitter, patter, pitter, patter—
Five rapidly moving figures leaped across the water several times, reaching the opposite riverbank.
The five spread out, maintaining a distance of about two to three meters from each other—the ideal range for mutual support and flanking. The entire team was arranged like the outstretched wings of a goose. The lead figure displayed a strange sight: the ghastly, pale-white, bulging veins of the Byakugan extended into his eye sockets, giving the impression of a mysterious power that could see through anything.
In the forest shadows not far from this team, a small figure vanished and reappeared in the darkness, constantly darting and weaving through the shadows, barely releasing any detectable chakra fluctuations, keeping a watchful distance from the five-person Wing Formation team.
This was Orochimaru's group of six. Following the route and formation Orochimaru had set, they had been traveling for five days. Barring any accidents, they would see the exit today.
During these five days, the six had encountered ambushes from various venomous snakes and fierce beasts, as well as multiple waves of ninja ambushes and interceptions. Everyone bore traces of fatigue and travel dust, and their once-clean clothes were marked with crimson bloodstains—both their enemies' and their own.
However, unlike five days ago, after days of continuous refinement and fighting, the five teammates (excluding Orochimaru) had sharpened like rough jade. Their exceptional individual talents were quickly manifesting, their practical combat ability was rapidly improving, and they now exuded a formidable presence. Orochimaru knew it was the edge of a blade and killing intent.
In a few breaths, the six had covered a hundred meters and vanished once again into the deep woods.
About two more breaths passed. The clear river water, as if three stones had been thrown into it, suddenly gave rise to three faint ripples. No sooner had these ripples appeared than they began to churn violently. "Splash, splash, splash—" Like newborn geysers, three blue water columns, each taller than a man, gradually rose from the ripples.
Three ninja wearing Mist Village headbands slowly materialized from the azure water columns.
The brown-haired boy on the left smiled and said: "Mangetsu, the Konoha people really do have the map!"
The youth in the middle, with hair as blue as water, gave a faint smile.
The ninja on the right, although appearing the oldest of the three, spoke with great respect to the other two, carefully choosing his words: "Lord Mangetsu, that Orochimaru is not easy to deal with."
Hōzuki Mangetsu recalled their experience tailing the group. His smile receded, and he nodded seriously. Not only Orochimaru, but also the five companions by his side, had visibly grown over this journey. Under Orochimaru's command and deployment, the three of them had failed to find a single opportunity to launch a sneak attack, forcing them to reluctantly follow them until now.
Hōzuki Mangetsu only paused for a moment before smiling and saying: "Don't worry, Kōno! We won't focus on Konoha for now. But when they get close to the exit, we can set up an ambush and take a few shots at them. Then we'll have the map, heh heh!"
Kōno nodded.
"Let's go, we can't lose them!" Yagura urged impatiently.
The three performed hand signs, and their figures sank back into the water.
Orochimaru's group was running through the forest. Towering, ancient trees, tens of meters tall, sped by, dissolving into a blurry, distorted landscape that they left in their wake.
Not only had Orochimaru tasked Bluebird with scouting using the Byakugan, but he himself was also constantly scanning the surrounding jungle with his formidable spiritual power.
Truthfully, over the past few days, although Orochimaru's team had encountered several waves of ambushes and interceptions, none of the defeated teams possessed the mission map, or even the information slips about the map. Their luck, one could say, was terrible. During rest periods, the other five sometimes seemed anxious, but seeing Orochimaru's confident smile, they didn't press the matter.
Just then, Bluebird, running at the front, suddenly spoke: "Lord Orochimaru, I see the exit!"
🗒️NOTE:
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