"Summoning Technique!"
Boom!
A massive cloud of smoke erupted, and the enormous body of Manda appeared beneath Orochimaru's feet.
Manda shook his head irritably and roared, "Orochimaru, I was sleeping! You've ruined my dream again!"
Orochimaru smiled. "Manda, I'll offer you a new sacrifice."
Hearing this, Manda hissed in warning. "This time I want fresh living humans. If you try to fool me with those corpses from your lab again, I won't forgive you."
"I know. I'll meet your demand."
Satisfied by the promise, Manda nodded. "Fine. So, why did you summon me this time?"
"To hold off the Eight-Tails."
"...Fine."
After Orochimaru promised to double the offering, Manda reluctantly slithered forward, charging at the Eight-Tails.
With Manda temporarily keeping the beast busy and preventing it from releasing a Tailed Beast Bomb, Orochimaru finally turned his gaze away. Just as he was about to assist the Allied Shinobi Forces, he suddenly felt someone's eyes on him.
Turning his head, he saw Yuzuru Uchiha seated calmly atop a high platform tens of meters above, his pitch-black eyes deep as an abyss.
Orochimaru used the Body Flicker Technique and appeared before Yuzuru in an instant.
Yuzuru greeted him with a faint smile. "Orochimaru, we meet again."
Orochimaru's golden eyes gleamed with curiosity. "Yuzuru-kun, you intrigue me more and more."
"Even while the Third Raikage himself charges through the battlefield below, you can just sit here at ease. Honestly, calling you the Kage of the Hidden Cloud wouldn't even sound out of place."
Yuzuru replied calmly, "Not every Kage is as cowardly as Hiruzen Sarutobi. As the village's strongest force, isn't it natural to be on the frontlines?"
Orochimaru chuckled. "Yuzuru-kun, you're not still fantasizing about having me work under you, are you?"
"It's not a fantasy. It's a reality that will happen."
Orochimaru's tongue slid across his cheek as his expression turned cold. "You're insane, Yuzuru-kun. Killing a daimyo so brazenly—most wouldn't even dare think it. But arrogance like yours always comes with a price."
He narrowed his eyes, his killing intent sharp as a blade. "So now, show me your full power. I'll defeat you—and let you see what reality truly means."
Feeling the battle intent radiating from Orochimaru, Yuzuru sighed.
"Always someone eager to taste failure…"
His black eyes shifted into a pair of crimson Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Very well. I'll grant your wish."
In that instant, a chill of death swept through Orochimaru's heart. Countless brushes with death had honed his instincts, and his body screamed to evade—
—but before he could react, a tearing pain ripped through his arm.
The next second, his left arm fell to the ground.
"Don't move," Yuzuru said evenly. "Next time, it'll be your head that separates from your body."
His tone was calm, yet sweat streamed down Orochimaru's face.
What just happened?
Yuzuru hadn't even moved. He hadn't sensed a thing. Yet his arm… was gone.
Was this the power of the Mangekyō Sharingan? So tyrannical...!
"Orochimaru," Yuzuru said, his voice carrying the weight of command, "cancel Manda's summoning."
It sounded less like a request and more like an order from a superior.
Orochimaru hesitated, then pressed his remaining right hand to the ground with a grimace. "Summoning Release!"
Manda's enormous body vanished instantly. The Eight-Tails blinked in confusion, scratched its head, and then resumed charging a Tailed Beast Bomb toward the shinobi alliance.
"Why didn't you kill me?" Orochimaru rasped, his voice lower and more hoarse than before.
Though Yuzuru's power terrified him, what puzzled him even more was why—why his enemy had spared him.
Yuzuru smiled faintly. "I told you already. Your talents can serve me well. For someone as... unique as you, I'm willing to be patient."
Seeing that Yuzuru truly didn't intend to kill him, Orochimaru relaxed slightly, though his slitted eyes still glared warily.
"Yuzuru-kun," he hissed, "the moment you left Konoha, we became enemies. My teacher is the Hokage. I'm destined to become Hokage one day."
"And you… are a Konoha rogue."
Yuzuru snorted softly. "Orochimaru, you might never become Hokage. And I might never truly be a rogue."
Orochimaru frowned, confused by his words. "Then tell me—what is it about me that interests you so much?"
Yuzuru rose slowly, brushing dust from his cloak, and looked down at the raging battlefield below.
"Life is too fragile. This world… too dull. I will reshape the shinobi world into the image I desire. And talents like yours—scientific minds—are exactly what I need."
After a few exchanges, Orochimaru no longer felt that initial fear. He licked his lips and grinned. "You speak as if you understand me completely, Yuzuru-kun."
"Perhaps," Yuzuru said with a soft clap of his hands. "Third Raikage, that's enough fun for now, isn't it?"
At his words, the Third Raikage appeared beside him in a flash.
"It's been ages since I've had such a good fight. I feel like I could go another two days straight!"
Then, noticing Orochimaru nearby, his aura flared violently. "What's he doing here?"
"Third," Yuzuru said, "let him go. I have my own plans for him."
The Third Raikage, having gone through much with Yuzuru already, nodded without hesitation. "Fine. I'll leave him to you."
Orochimaru's jaw dropped.
Even with his connection to Hiruzen, he could never imagine the Hokage ignoring a foreign Kage-level enemy based on a single word!
As they spoke, Sakumo Hatake, A, Killer B, and Fugaku returned to Yuzuru's side.
Unlike the Third Raikage, they were exhausted—half a day of relentless battle had left them drained.
"Yuzuru," Fugaku asked, "are you ready for the next phase? The comrades in the village are growing restless."
"No," Yuzuru said, shaking his head. "I've changed my mind."
Originally, he had planned for the Third Raikage, A, Sakumo, Killer B, and Fugaku to completely dismantle the Allied Shinobi ranks, allowing the Cloud ninja to seize control of the battlefield.
But after watching the chaos unfold, even he couldn't help but feel his blood boil.
That deep thirst for battle—he could no longer ignore it.
Yuzuru leapt from the platform, his eyes blazing.
In midair, his Dōjutsu Power surged violently.
A colossal, pitch-black demonic figure—over a hundred meters tall—materialized before the Allied Forces.
Yuzuru's voice echoed across the battlefield like thunder.
"This… is the Third Power—Susanoo, the divine strength of the Uchiha clan!"