Orochimaru ran away?
Shimizu absolutely didn't believe it. Even the former "Demigod of the Shinobi World," Hanzo of the Salamander, had never made Orochimaru bow his head.
He had to be somewhere nearby!
To escape a 140-meter sensory range in an instant—aside from space–time ninjutsu, only Orochimaru's elusive Earth Release techniques could manage that…
Shimizu panted heavily. The continuous, massive chakra expenditure had drained the color from his face, leaving it unnaturally pale.
It had only been a few minutes…
And his chakra was already nearly depleted. Chakra at the level of an average jōnin simply wasn't enough in front of Orochimaru.
Fortunately, he still had his "mobile power bank"—Samehada.
It was precisely because he had fused with Samehada that he dared to pour an enormous amount of chakra into Water Release: Water Wall to withstand the self-destruction of Orochimaru's snake swarm.
It had been a very successful defense—trading a large quantity of chakra for an unscathed escape was well worth it.
And now, it would likely take several hours for this entire body of water to dissipate…
More than enough time to decide the victor.
Suddenly, Shimizu sensed something strange—the temperature of the surrounding environment was gradually rising.
"This is…?"
His feet could clearly feel a current of heat surging upward.
The lake water was being heated?
Within seconds, bubbles began rising from the surface—clear signs that the water temperature was nearing its boiling point.
If this continued, he would be scalded.
After several leaps, Shimizu landed atop a broken tree trunk.
Standing at a higher vantage point, he scanned the surroundings. The entire lake was in turmoil, countless bubbles surging up from the depths.
Was Orochimaru planning to evaporate all the water here with high heat? How foolish.
Didn't he realize that as long as Shimizu stood here and used Water Release again, all that effort would be pointless?
Wait—
Standing here?!
At this exact position?!
A thunderclap seemed to explode in Shimizu's mind. Alarm bells rang wildly.
Without forming seals, he instantly activated Water Release: Water Wall!
BOOM!
A massive earth dragon suddenly burst from the water, smashing viciously into the water wall.
"So close…" Cold sweat seeped down Shimizu's back.
There was no time to think further. The overwhelming sense of danger forced him to pour all his remaining chakra into the water wall at once.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Dozens of sharp stone spears were blocked by the still-unyielding wall.
Shimizu glanced down. Beneath his feet—and within a radius of dozens of meters—countless jagged rock spikes had erupted from the ground.
Terrifying.
What was ordinarily just the common Earth Release: : Earth Flow Spears technique had, in Orochimaru's hands, achieved such horrifying range and lethality. On a battlefield, this would be a nightmare for enemy shinobi.
If he hadn't injected all his chakra into the water wall at the last moment…
Suddenly, the danger lurking beneath the water surfaced again.
Two earth dragons appeared on Shimizu's left and right, their massive, ferocious heads continuously firing mud shells like cannonballs in a crisscross barrage.
THUD! THUD! THUD!
Dozens of mud bullets rained down upon the water wall in the blink of an eye.
Fortunately, the water wall provided full 360-degree defense—otherwise…
And Earth Release countered Water Release. Was Orochimaru using elemental advantage to accelerate his chakra depletion?
Indeed, the water wall was no longer as indestructible as it had been at first. The ripples from each mud impact spread wider and wider. The defensive technique was on the verge of collapse.
And Shimizu's chakra was exhausted…
"Uzuki-kun, how much chakra do you have left to squander on that Water Release technique?"
Orochimaru slowly emerged from beneath the water. The lake surface was no longer boiling.
Genjutsu?!
Since when...?
So this had been Orochimaru's plan all along.
First, through illusion, he made Shimizu believe he was heating the entire lake to boiling—perhaps even intending to evaporate it completely. Forced by the imagined high temperature, Shimizu had no choice but to retreat onto the severed tree trunks.
And that—
Was exactly what Orochimaru wanted.
Standing fixed in one spot, making it easy for him to launch a ferocious assault from the shadows.
Shimizu could only be grateful that he hadn't foolishly formed seals to use Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave again to "replenish" the lake—and even more grateful that he possessed this no-seal Water Release technique…
Otherwise…
That scheming bastard!
Cursing inwardly, Shimizu decided to strike back immediately.
He formed a one-handed seal: Dog–Ox!
"Secret Art: Time Reversal."
Under Orochimaru's watchful gaze, in the span of a single breath, Shimizu went from utter exhaustion back to peak-condition chakra reserves!
A time-based ninjutsu?!
The golden vertical pupils widened to their limit, gleaming like amber.
Even the two earth dragons seemed startled, halting their barrage of mud bullets.
Shimizu calmly dismissed the Water Wall. With a light leap, his feet once again touched the lake's surface—this killing field filled with danger.
At this moment, the boundless blue waves gave him absolute confidence.
"Come, Orochimaru." Shimizu drew his kunai and called him by name.
"Uz—"
Before he could finish even a single syllable, Shimizu vanished from Orochimaru's sight.
As if evaporated from the world—without the slightest trace.
A sharp, frenzied chirping of birds erupted from behind him. Caught off guard, Orochimaru could only summon venomous snakes to block.
SLASH!
More than a dozen snakes were cleaved in half by the Lightning Blade Slash, blood spraying everywhere.
Shimizu's forward momentum stalled slightly.
Seizing that instant, Orochimaru used his extraordinary hand-seal speed to perform the Body Flicker Technique and retreat sharply. Just as he began forming seals to counterattack, the lightning-clad young shinobi vanished from his vision again.
This was no ordinary Body Flicker…
This was true space–time ninjutsu!
The deathly chirping rang out again by his ear—same position as before!
Repeating the same trick?
Did he think the same move would work on one of the Sannin?
This time, Orochimaru did not dodge.
His right hand summoned a mass of snakes to intercept the devouring lightning, while his left hand cast Hidden Shadow Snake Hands.
This C-rank technique summoned small snakes with lightning-fast strike speed—perfect for ambush.
But what came flying toward him was not Shimizu's Lightning Blade Slash.
It was a kunai.
A strange kunai glowing blue.
This is—!
Orochimaru's pupils contracted violently.
BOOM!
A violent explosion tore the summoned snakes into scattered remains.
From beneath the churning lake surface, another streak of lightning shot toward the figure standing at the explosion's center—
Screech!
The Lightning Blade Slash carved across viciously!
After landing the strike, Shimizu did not recklessly press the close-range assault. He immediately retreated at high speed.
Orochimaru's Water Release must also be formidable—but certainly not to the degree of the Three-Tails, Isobu, with its near-absolute control over water. And so Shimizu dared to push his advantage to the extreme.
Not only the lake surface—beneath the water could also serve as his attack vector.
And once he seized offensive momentum, he would unleash attacks like a raging storm.
That was Shimizu's style.
Now, he had finally drawn blood.
He glanced down at his left hand, stained crimson.
This was not snake blood—
It was Orochimaru's.
Yet, according to his original calculations, that strike should have pierced straight through Orochimaru's abdomen…
Suppressing his doubts, Shimizu looked up. Orochimaru's entire body was now wrapped in snakes. So those venomous snakes had absorbed much of the damage.
If that had been Chidori instead of a long-range Lightning Blade Slash…
Silence fell between them.
Short bursts of explosive combat drained both stamina and chakra severely. Shimizu seized every second to recover.
As for Orochimaru… just how much had that remote Lightning Blade injured him?
"Shimizu Uzuki… you should feel fortunate. Had you not once again demonstrated your value to me just now, you would already be a corpse."
Orochimaru no longer sounded leisurely or amused. His voice now carried an eerie chill.
Shimizu remained silent.
Against a shinobi of Orochimaru's caliber, if possible, he too would prefer not to engage in close combat.
Close range meant risk.
Even a jōnin's life was fragile.
A single fatal strike to a vital point was enough to end it.
But if he did not close the distance—how could he wound Orochimaru?
"What was that secret technique you used just now?"
"What do you want my blood for?"
"Heh… At a time like this, you still dare to negotiate with me? Do you truly believe I cannot kill you?" Orochimaru's voice was sharp as a blade.
Indeed—this was one of the Sannin.
How could he possibly have used his full strength already?
A man who endured to the end against the peak "Demigod" could not possibly be limited to this level.
Orochimaru had not drawn the Kusanagi Sword—perhaps out of Sannin pride, unwilling to use such a divine blade against a mere jōnin.
He had not summoned Manda either—
Or perhaps he feared that a more intense battle might attract the attention of Konoha's ANBU.
A Sannin... though no longer untouchable, he is still beyond my current reach. Shimizu Uzuki, you still have a long way to go...
With that thought, Shimizu drew the tri-pronged kunai Minato had given him. The Flying Thunder God formula engraved upon it was strikingly conspicuous.
"That settles it. Let's stop fighting."
He exhaled deeply, forcing himself to shed the crushing pressure born of extreme tension.
Ignoring Orochimaru's icy gaze, he smiled.
"I'll give you my blood—you give me Flying Thunder God. You tell me what you want my blood for, and I'll tell you what that secret technique was."
"Simple and straightforward. Otherwise… I doubt you'd want to face my summoned beast."