"Explosive Tag!!"
Orochimaru exclaimed in shock, his snake eyes narrowing as he burst forth, his speed instantly more than ten times faster than before. With lightning-fast reflexes, he dodged the explosion and bit deeply into Sasuke's nape.
"It's over, huh??"
Orochimaru smirked, about to conclude, when he suddenly felt an odd sensation in his mouth, freezing him in place.
The next moment,
The Sasuke under his snake mouth exploded into a Substitution Jutsu log... and this log was covered with hundreds of Explosive Tags.
"Boom..."
In Orochimaru's stunned moment, all the Explosive Tags flashed with white light and instantly detonated... A mushroom cloud rose, tearing apart all living things within dozens of meters.
"Thirty thousand Ryo worth of Explosive Tags, that should be enough to give you a taste... My heart aches, my money just went to waste like that!"
Sasuke's eyes flickered as he watched the mushroom cloud, thinking to himself.
He had only prepared three of these Explosive Tag Substitution Jutsus as a precaution... He hadn't intended to use them on Orochimaru, only planning to play with him using the Sharingan Windmill Triple Blade... But Orochimaru's killing intent just now made him unable to stand by!
He could only take a gamble to see if he could severely injure Orochimaru... "Binding Genjutsu..."
Just as Sasuke was considering whether to play it safe, Orochimaru's figure suddenly burst out of the smoke, forming hand signs and letting out a low growl.
Almost instantly, Sasuke felt his body unable to move!!
Unlike the previous suppression by killing intent, this time he genuinely felt the pressure of a Genjutsu.
Even his Two-Tomoe Sharingan couldn't break this Genjutsu!
His mind was clear, but his body couldn't move... "Interesting... That series of attacks before was all a cover for the final explosion.
To be honest, even a Jonin would be dead or crippled by that move!
But unfortunately, you met me..."
Orochimaru, his body tattered, spoke with excitement, startling Sasuke again.
Because Orochimaru's face revealed half of his feminized true face!
That was the true appearance of the Impure World Reincarnation in this body, and the true meaning of Orochi-baa... "Your performance satisfies me greatly... So, as a reward, I won't kill that girl for now... Accept my parting gift, Sasuke!!"
Looking at Sasuke's shocked and angry expression, Orochimaru let out a sinister chuckle.
As his words fell, his neck suddenly elongated and he bit towards Sasuke again... [Although I know that with my current strength, I can't avoid the Heavenly Cursed Seal.
Getting the Cursed Seal also gives me a buffer time to grow steadily... But actually accepting it still feels too unpleasant...]
Looking at the rapidly approaching snake mouth, Sasuke couldn't help but sigh helplessly.
Although the Cursed Seal itself is a type of Sage Mode, this thing is too ugly... Cursed Seal Level One is barely acceptable, but Cursed Seal Level Two is a human-shaped monster!!
It's too degrading... "Sasuke..."
At the critical moment, Naruto's voice suddenly boomed.
Sasuke only felt a blur before his eyes, and Naruto was standing in front of him... Caught off guard,
Orochimaru, who had charged straight in, bit Naruto's shoulder, and the Cursed Seal he had been preparing was activated.
"This..."
"Nani??"
Seeing this sudden turn of events, Sasuke and Orochimaru were both dumbfounded... Especially Orochimaru, who couldn't believe he was blocked by a Genin brat.
"I... I will never allow you to hurt Sasuke... You disgusting snake demon!!"
Enduring the piercing pain and erosion in his body, Naruto bravely looked up and roared.
In an instant, a pair of scarlet beast eyes appeared in Orochimaru's vision... "This is... So that's it, it's you, the Nine-Tailed brat!!"
Looking at the fierce eyes, Orochimaru suddenly smiled meaningfully.
The Nine-Tailed plus the Cursed Seal, he wasn't sure what kind of terrifying guy it would create... However, that wasn't his problem to worry about.
The Akatsuki, who were collecting Tailed Beasts, should be the ones with the headache... At least, his Heavenly Cursed Seal wasn't wasted!
The Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki could still be used as a pawn... "Ugh... Sasuke... I..."
Naruto, who had burst out with the Nine-Tailed's power in excitement, passed out after less than two seconds, his vision going black.
The erosion of the Cursed Seal was something he couldn't resist at his current state!
"Although it's a bit unexpected, you are still my favorite target.
Sasuke, it's your turn..."
Looking at the unconscious Naruto, Orochimaru once again spoke fiercely, extending his neck and biting Sasuke's nape.
This time, there were no surprises!!
[Damn it... What's going on... I thought Naruto's appearance would bring some turning point, like him bursting with the Nine-Tailed's power and crippling Orochimaru... I didn't expect him to just come to give himself up for nothing??
Now it's great, I'll be ugly, and my brother will be ugly with me... Playing 'brother tattoos,' huh...]
Feeling his body being severely eroded, Sasuke's pupils trembled, and he fell to the ground.
"Hehehe... I'm looking forward to your growth more and more now!
Sasuke, if you want to gain the power to defeat Uchiha Itachi.
Then show your best in this Chunin Exams... Only then will I pay attention to you!
Between you and Naruto, I will choose the strongest one and give him even greater power..."
Looking at Sasuke's unfocused eyes, Orochimaru chuckled playfully, inciting him with advice.
Bonds are a protective force that ties people together!
But if used properly, they can also become a force to accelerate Sasuke's growth... [Detected Orochimaru's malicious suggestion, triggering a 10x C-rank reward.
Mission: Surpass Naruto in the Chunin Exams; Reward: Summoning Technique...]
Before he passed out, Sasuke vaguely heard the system prompt.
This made him tense up before he completely lost consciousness... "Boom..."
Just after Sasuke fainted, a scarlet Nine-Tails Chakra erupted from Naruto's body with a boom... It spiraled rapidly around Naruto's body, suppressing and expelling the Cursed Seal's power with even more violent force.
This sudden change made Orochimaru, who was about to leave, pause... He pulled up Naruto's clothes and saw the manifested Eight Trigrams Seal.
"The Nine-Tailed, huh... Although it's an unexpected creation, I'm also looking forward to his growth!
Don't you dare ruin my fun..."
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed as he muttered indifferently, and in an instant, five types of Chakra—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—appeared on his right hand.
"Five Elements Seal..."
Without any hesitation, Orochimaru slapped his right hand onto Naruto's abdomen, applying the seal.
The next moment,
A puff of white smoke rose from Naruto's abdomen, and the overflowing Tailed Beast Chakra rapidly receded and disappeared!
And Naruto's fox-like state instantly returned to normal... "Sasuke-kun, Naruto..."
Just as Orochimaru finished all of this, Sakura, attracted by the explosion and worried, quickly arrived.
Seeing Sasuke and Naruto both collapsed, she quickly drew a kunai and threw it at Orochimaru.
"Perfect, I'll leave them in your care..."
Ignoring the kunai attack, Orochimaru smiled calmly and sank into the ground, disappearing.
"Sasuke-kun, Naruto... What exactly happened!!"
Sakura no longer cared about anything else at this moment, she rushed to their side, her beautiful eyes wide and her voice trembling.
She saw irregular black markings appear on both of them, and their foreheads were steaming.
"No, a battle here will definitely attract enemies' attention.
We must leave here first..."
In a short while, Sakura calmed down and made a decision.
Although she herself was exhausted of Chakra and felt weak all over, she still resolutely helped Sasuke up and moved him dozens of meters away first.
Then she returned to help Naruto... Like a hamster moving its home, she repeatedly rotated to evacuate them.