With a thunderous impact, the puppet's attack shattered the terrain. The earth ruptured outward, and a familiar pale figure was forced out from underground—Orochimaru's true body.
His grin vanished.
"Enough!" he snarled. "If you want death, then die!"
Dozens—then hundreds—of snakes erupted from the ground, slithering toward Hinata and her puppets like a living tide.
Yet even as the serpents surged, Orochimaru's real body retreated deeper into the shadows, leaving a clone behind to stall her. His priorities remained unchanged—Sasuke came first.
But Hinata wasn't fooled. Her puppets struck again, crushing the clone before it could act and forcing the real Orochimaru to reemerge from the ground.
Frustration flickered across Orochimaru's face. His patience had reached its end. With a hiss, he began summoning even more snakes—larger, faster, stronger than before. Their numbers multiplied until the entire forest floor writhed like a sea of scales.
"..."
Hinata advanced instead of retreating, showing no fear of the poisonous vipers or massive serpents that surged toward her. Her focus was absolute as she controlled her puppets, commanding them to clear a path through the sea of snakes.
Like relentless machines—a bulldozer and a meat grinder combined—the puppets tore through the swarm. Venomous snakes writhed and died under their crushing blows. The snakes' fangs were useless against the puppets' reinforced bodies; at most, their venom corroded only the outer layer of the puppets' synthetic flesh.
Hinata herself remained completely safe. Under her control, the two puppets moved with flawless coordination, forming a living fortress around her. They blocked the poisonous mist, shielded her from every strike, and allowed her to focus solely on the battle ahead.
As Hinata and Orochimaru closed the distance, their confrontation intensified. The first puppet launched the offensive while the second guarded Hinata's flank. Through the puppet's movements, Hinata executed the Gentle Fist with perfect precision—her strikes fast, fluid, and ruthless.
Orochimaru's speed was tremendous, but to Hinata's twice-optimized Byakugan, his every motion was as clear as day. Not only could she perceive his chakra flow, but she could also glimpse his intent a few seconds before he acted. Yet even so, his raw power was undeniable. In terms of sheer physical skill, he still held the edge.
Hinata's human body had its limits, but her puppets did not.
When Orochimaru threw a punch, the puppet caught his wrist mid-swing and countered with a devastating palm strike to his ribs. As his sword lashed out, the puppet twisted its neck unnaturally, dodging the blade, then lunged forward to deliver an iron headbutt straight to his face.
The impact deformed his features, sending shockwaves through the ground.
This was no sparring match—no friendly exchange.
Hinata wasn't holding back. Every strike carried lethal intent.
Orochimaru had rarely felt this level of frustration. His taijutsu was completely suppressed, and whenever he attempted a ninjutsu, Hinata's timing disrupted him before he could complete the seals—even when he had reduced them to a single hand sign.
"Can she… see the future?" Orochimaru wondered darkly.
He was losing ground. His movements were restricted, many of his chakra points sealed. Continuing like this would only put him at a disadvantage.
Then, to Hinata's surprise, Orochimaru suddenly severed one of his own arms, using the motion to wrench himself free and leap backward, widening the distance between them.
Hinata blinked in shock, but her Byakugan quickly tracked the flow of chakra in his body. He was preparing another technique—something powerful. She immediately commanded both puppets forward to interrupt him, while retreating just far enough to assess the situation.
Orochimaru's mouth opened unnaturally wide, his jaw distorting beyond human limits. From the gaping maw, his severed arm reemerged, whole and restored. His hands blurred into seals.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A roaring gust erupted from his mouth, sweeping across the battlefield like a hurricane. The two puppets couldn't intercept in time—they were flung backward, crashing through the trees like ragdolls. The force tore through the forest, scattering venomous snakes and giant serpents alike. Trees splintered, rocks shattered, and debris rolled together in a violent storm.
When the wind finally settled, a massive clearing stretched several hundred meters long and ten meters wide—carved clean through the heart of the forest.
"Is she dead?" Orochimaru murmured, scanning the wreckage. His slitted eyes narrowed. "No… not yet."
Snakes were sensitive to heat; they told him she was still alive. He maintained his stance, chakra flaring as he readied for another attack.
From the dust and rubble, Hinata emerged—her breathing steady but her expression cold. One of her puppets stood before her, shielding her from the blast, its outer layer shredded and scorched.
The Wind Release: Great Breakthrough wasn't a high-level jutsu—its strength depended entirely on the user's control. Orochimaru's version was powerful, but not enough to kill her.
I can't let him use ninjutsu again, Hinata thought grimly. I need to end this before he runs out of chakra—or before I do.
Her mind raced. She knew her strengths and her limits precisely.
Battle, to Hinata, was about luring the opponent into her domain—and defeating them through superior perception and experience.
The distance between them was several hundred meters—far enough for Orochimaru to form multiple hand seals. She couldn't afford to let him complete even one.
Hinata exhaled slowly and extended her hand. Her short hair began to grow wildly, cascading past her shoulders, past her waist—reaching her knees in mere seconds.
This was her one chance. If she failed here, she wouldn't survive.
Ten seconds.
Thirty seconds.
Two minutes.
Neither moved.
Hinata gathered chakra in silence, her aura pulsing faintly, while Orochimaru focused on unsealing his blocked tenketsu(Chakra Points).
Then—both moved at once.
Hinata surged forward, her body low and swift, her speed leaving faint afterimages. Orochimaru's hands flashed through complex seals—far more than before. The power behind this new technique was immense.
But Hinata's wireless chakra link reached him first. The invisible threads of control stretched out like radiation, brushing against Orochimaru's chakra network. With a precise motion, she focused her control on a single point—and forced one of his fingers to bend.
"What—?!" Orochimaru's eyes widened.
A single error. A fraction of a second. But it was enough.
His chakra flow faltered. The hand seals collapsed. The jutsu failed.
Hinata seized the opening. Her hair—now hardened into thousands of steel-like strands—exploded outward.
Rabbit Hair Needles!
The iron-hard fibers rained down like a storm. Orochimaru twisted and leapt back, evading most of them, but several still struck. At first, he ignored them—until he realized the chakra in the hit areas was sealed, cutting off his control.
His expression finally changed.
"One—Ten Gods Vacuum Strike!"
Hinata unleashed her finishing move.
A surge of blinding chakra erupted from her palm, forming a sphere that exploded into a torrent of invisible fists. They struck faster than the eye could follow, crushing Orochimaru's body under their combined force.
Her Byakugan locked onto him, ensuring every strike landed with precision. At the same moment, the Rabbit Hair Needles detonated again, pinning him from all directions until his body resembled a grotesque hedgehog.
Before the dust had even cleared, Hinata charged in. Drawing three kunai from her pouch, she drove them unhesitatingly into Orochimaru's forehead, throat, and heart—each strike perfectly aligned with a vital point.
She stood still for a moment, breathing softly. Her eyes glowed white as she swept the surroundings with her Byakugan, confirming no other threats nearby. Then, quickly and efficiently, she gathered what useful items remained and turned to pursue her teammates.
After several minutes of running—beyond the reach of her usual Byakugan range—she noticed movement.
From the corpse she'd left behind, a small snake slithered free, disappearing underground.
Her eyes narrowed.
"So that wasn't his real body…"
Exhaustion finally hit her. Her knees buckled, and she collapsed to the ground, breathing hard.
So, he saw through it too… pretending to be dead. Clever.
Even in her fatigue, she couldn't help a bitter smirk. "What kind of monster is that guy…"
With trembling hands, she pulled a handful of pills from her pouch and swallowed them without hesitation. Then she set up several traps around her position, covering herself with leaves, soil, and stones until she was completely concealed.
Only then did she close her eyes and retreat into her home space to recover.