Is it worth using Kotoamatsukami on Orochimaru?
Most would say: absolutely.
If a single village managed to make Orochimaru abandon his pursuit of immortality and instead focus on multiple R&D projects across different fields, the technological advancement would overwhelm the rest of the world in less than a decade.
Chad would answer: it depends on the situation.
He already had two potential targets for using the technique that would be highly beneficial. While Orochimaru also qualified, Chad wouldn't use Kotoamatsukami on him until he had secured at least one of the other two targets first.
But by then, several years would have passed, and he didn't know whether an opportunity would arise. Not to mention all those soul fragments scattered around in the form of Cursed Seals—if subordinates like Kabuto discovered something was wrong, they might choose to "revive" the original Orochimaru to eliminate his "reformed self."
There was only one exception to this situation: obtaining Shisui's other eye with the same ability as the one currently in Danzō's right eye socket.
But given Danzō's tendency to use Izanagi…
The chances were slim, but not impossible.
"If I hadn't been so busy collecting things during Orochimaru's attack, Danzō would've received a surprise visit."
For now, Isaribi's performance had more than satisfied Chad. By the time he manifested an eye on her cheek and an ear at the nape of her neck beneath her hair, she already had her back to the sea, ready to retreat and prioritize her life if the worst happened—just as he'd taught her.
She caught Orochimaru by surprise and kept her distance while using ninjutsu, avoiding the Sannin's troublesome hidden snakes.
Taking advantage of Orochimaru's confident reaction to Isaribi's attack, he manifested arms to hold him in place.
"Tch! We almost got him, sensei."
Not at all—if he hadn't been able to dodge, he would've done his trick of emerging from his own mouth.
"You did well holding him, Isaribi," Chad said as he manifested a mouth on his student's neck. "I'm proud of your performance."
Knowing Orochimaru's caution, instead of taking the rugged paths likely monitored by snakes, Chad took a more direct route, stepping on the air toward the beach.
As for Yugao and Yugito, he asked them to go notify the Raikage. If he didn't inform him as soon as possible, problematic things could happen later.
The Sannin's expression upon seeing him "walk" through the air and stop in front of Isaribi was priceless.
"I think this is the first time we've formally met," Orochimaru laughed, quickly snapping out of his stupor. "It seems your physical prowess is above what I'd heard, Chad-kun."
Orochimaru couldn't help licking his lips at the sight of such a magnificent physique—but he stopped halfway, his expression genuinely confused.
Isaribi shuddered at the sight. Was it possible that Orochimaru… was like that?
Sensei had said the snake sometimes possessed women's bodies—maybe…?
She felt bile rise in her throat at the thought.
No—Sensei was hers and the others'!
Setting aside the kunoichi's reaction and her increasingly uncontrolled thoughts, Chad stood with his arms crossed, watching Orochimaru's behavior with great interest.
"What's wrong?" he asked in an amused voice. "Envy?" He flexed one of his bronzed, muscular arms.
Orochimaru didn't answer, keeping his gaze fixed on Chad.
Something was wrong—very wrong.
What was that sensation?
"Did Isaribi's blow have some side effect I didn't notice?" he thought, checking his current body for anomalies. "Or an illusion?"
He formed the release seal, but nothing changed.
"Don't tell me that since you couldn't finish off the Hokage in Konoha, you came to bother my student because you had nothing better to do," Chad asked.
A vein bulged on Orochimaru's forehead. He really was feeling something strange when looking at this guy.
"Mmm," Orochimaru snorted. "I only came to retrieve—"
"Nah-ah," Chad wagged his finger, interrupting him. "I found her, I kept her—no returns!"
"That's right, that's right!" Isaribi added from behind Chad.
She wasn't going anywhere!
Another vein popped. Orochimaru couldn't believe there was someone even more shameless than Jiraiya.
He wasn't going to leave empty-handed after traveling all this way. He would take Isaribi—or at least something for the lab.
"It'll be a hassle to prepare things later, but I can't delay much longer or the village will notice something," Orochimaru prepared, reluctantly, to summon Manda to at least swallow Isaribi. "Although, perhaps…"
He slammed both hands onto the ground.
"Hebi Kuchi Shibari! (Serpent Mouth Bind!)"
The beach twisted as the partial summoning of a giant snake's stomach enveloped the three of them.
"Disgusting," Chad commented flatly, lifting his foot, the slime of soft flesh stuck to the sole. "It reeks."
He knew the technique. Even summoning something as large as Gamabunta wouldn't rupture the snake's elastic organ. Nor could he use Earth Release here unless he created his own ground—and punching the flesh would take too long.
Sure, he could summon a Sea King and blow this thing apart, but that would be equivalent to crushing everyone inside.
"Ah, sensei!" Isaribi felt her body being absorbed by the flesh, as if sinking into a swamp.
"Good," Orochimaru thought, having caught her off guard. "Once she's fully enclosed, I'll cancel the jutsu and flee. I can retrieve her later and turn her into my new body after studying what changes Chad made."
As for making another enemy—it wouldn't change anything. Too many people were already after him; one more wouldn't make a difference.
"I suppose it was foolish of you to notice…" Chad sighed, clearly disappointed by Orochimaru's actions for some unknown reason, clapping his hands loudly. "Suiton: Bakusui Shōha! (Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave!)"
Vast quantities of water began filling the confined space.
"Mmm?" Orochimaru raised an eyebrow at his actions.
Was he trying to force him to cancel the jutsu by eliminating the air?
It wasn't a bad plan against someone unprepared, but with his bodily modifications, staying underwater without air for minutes wasn't a problem or a threat. Both would end up unconscious from that move, and then he could take them.
It was only belatedly, when the water filled the entire space seconds later, that Orochimaru realized something was wrong as he noticed his hair rippling rhythmically in front of him.
Why was there a current in an enclosed space?
"No—the water wasn't meant to deal with me!" Orochimaru's eyes darted quickly behind Chad.
Isaribi was holding the current between her palms as the water compressed and spun faster and faster.
"Suiton: Yarinami! (Water Release: Wave Lance!)"
Orochimaru's pupils contracted—there was no room to dodge in such a confined space!
"Shi—!"
BOOOOOM!
Chunks of flesh and blood mixed with the projected water rained down from the sky in a bloody downpour.
"I'm going to need a bath when this is over," Isaribi thought in disgust, brushing off bits of flesh still stuck to her scales and hair. "Orochimaru should be dead, right?"
She was sure she'd hit him!
Several meters away from her and Chad, she could see that the entire left half of Orochimaru had vanished, barely sparing his head.
"Of course it wouldn't be that simple," Chad sighed.
"Hehehe, using my own confinement against me—I admit, cough, I didn't expect that," Orochimaru said, looking to his left as his jaw dislocated and another body emerged from within, covered in unknown slime. "I'm sorry we can't continue this, but it seems I must retreat for today." With the ease of a practiced routine, he began sinking into the ground without taking his eyes off them.
Chad simply crossed his arms as he watched him merge with the earth.
The snakes must have warned him of the Raikage's imminent arrival.
Indeed, barely two seconds after his departure…
"Where's that slippery snake?!" the Raikage arrived in Lightning Chakra Mode, crashing into the bloodstained sand while scanning the area.
Several jōnin teams accompanied him, scrutinizing the surroundings with extreme caution.
"You're late."
"What?!" The Raikage confirmed Orochimaru was gone, though the remnants of the battle were still very much present. "What the hell did he want here?" he asked, deactivating his chakra.
They still had a score to settle with Orochimaru for what had happened to Killer B's predecessor during the war.
"My student," Chad gestured toward Isaribi. "It seems that since he couldn't kill the Hokage, he wanted to 'recover' her after seeing her during Konoha's chūnin exams and remembering she existed."
As if he'd ever allow that to happen. Even if Hidan and Kakuzu went after Yugito, it wouldn't end well for them.
The Raikage scratched his head. He remembered that Isaribi had indeed been recovered from one of Orochimaru's labs, but after so much time, he'd assumed the Sannin didn't care—and it was clear the kunoichi felt not the slightest loyalty toward the snake.
"Fine. Write up a report and send it to me later with all the details," the Raikage ordered, looking at both of them covered in blood, flesh, and snake bile. "You'd better take a shower—both of you stink!" he said, wrinkling his nose at the penetrating odor.