The sudden strike came like lightning, unfolding in an instant.
The stretched neck was about to brush Tejima Shinichi when the Anbu mask shattered, revealing beneath it a face whose skin looked like dead bark.
The Anbu who had just arrived didn't have time to react; they could only watch the open jaws lined with sharp teeth snap toward Shinichi's neck.
"It worked—!!"
A glint of triumph flashed in Orochimaru's eyes. His fangs pierced the skin of his target's neck, ready to inject the cursed seal's power—yet in that instant, his golden serpent pupils dilated in horror!
The sensation was wrong!
No warm blood, no muscle resistance—only a hard, cold wood grain!
The "Tejima Shinichi" he'd bitten quickly showed wood patterns across its surface, turning in the blink of an eye into a lifeless wooden dummy.
"What?! A Wood Clone?!"
Orochimaru's cry rang out as his neck snapped back, warily sweeping the area!
But... too late!
The instant his neck recoiled, the ground beneath him exploded!
A figure burst from the earth. On Tejima Shinichi's right, a highly compressed blue sphere of chakra screamed as it smashed toward Orochimaru's still-exposed chest and abdomen.
"Rasengan!!"
Orochimaru's golden pupils shrank to slits!
At that critical moment, Orochimaru displayed the terrifying reflexes of one of the Legendary Sannin.
Though his neck hadn't fully retracted, his left arm shot up!
"Many Hidden Shadow Snake Hands—!!"
From his sleeve, a swarm of vipers surged to meet the lethal Rasengan!
Boom!!
The Rasengan's force slammed into the serpents!
Under the violent rotation, the snakes were shredded into bloody mist and pulp, but they absorbed most of the jutsu's direct impact.
"Blocked it!!"
Orochimaru adjusted his posture; his neck finally returned to normal.
Yet shock still lingered in his eyes when Shinichi's icy voice rang out again:
"Blocked it?!—Impossible!"
Shinichi pressed on, left fingers hooked like a tiger's claw, stabbing straight for Orochimaru's right chest!
"Mn—?!"
Orochimaru's face changed; he tried to react but was a heartbeat too slow!
Thud!
Shinichi's left hand sank deep into Orochimaru's thick right chest, fingers burrowing through flesh until he felt the warmth of blood.
"Ugh—!"
Under Shinichi's Chakra Enhanced Strength, Orochimaru's right chest nearly burst; the agony drew a groan.
And Shinichi wasn't done!
Almost at once, his right hand, fingers straight as a blade and edged by condensed Wind Release chakra, stabbed mercilessly toward Orochimaru's heart.
A blade-into-flesh sound echoed; Orochimaru's brows twitched, extreme pain flashing across his face.
Yet the pain lasted only a moment—his jaw then opened to an impossible angle, as if dislocated!
"Hrk—"
With a wet, slithering sound, a figure drenched in mucus shot out of Orochimaru's mouth at high speed.
This new Orochimaru, slick and glistening, back-flipped in midair, putting distance between himself and Shinichi.
All that remained of the "old body" was a collapsing husk—chest gripped by Shinichi's left hand, heart pierced by his right—slumping to the ground, turning gray and desiccated into a pile of sludge.
Shinichi narrowed his eyes, stepped back, flicked off the unknown slime, and looked toward the freshly molted Orochimaru.
"Orochimaru-Style Substitution... troublesome as expected!"
Shinichi muttered, sounding as though he'd anticipated it.
After all, Orochimaru had countless life-saving tricks—every forbidden and vile jutsu at his fingertips. Killing him was an incredibly difficult task.
...From Shinichi's surprise strike to Orochimaru's substitution, only an instant had passed!
Only when the two separated did the stunned Anbu finally react!
"Enemy attack!"
"It's the S-rank rogue Orochimaru!"
"Protect Tejima Shinichi!"
Several figures flashed, shielding Shinichi.
Kunai and short swords drawn, every Anbu locked their gaze on the slime-covered man.
Yet Orochimaru ignored the encircling Anbu!
He licked his lips, looked at the distanced Shinichi, and said excitedly,
"How delightful, Shinichi-kun. But... how did you know I'd strike?"
Shinichi stepped past one Anbu to stand opposite Orochimaru.
"Don't forget, Orochimaru, we... were taught by the same master!"
Shinichi paused, then said grimly,
"Facing a 'senior' like you, how could I... let you ambush me?!!"
Orochimaru blinked, then chuckled as though he'd heard something hilarious.
"Heh-heh-heh... quite right. By the old man's reckoning, we really are... fellow disciples!"
But as he spoke, his serpent eyes narrowed, studying the twelve- or thirteen-year-old who already showed such terrifying strength.
That calm, unruffled face somehow reminded him of another youth—the very one who had once dealt him a crushing defeat: Uchiha Itachi!
Against Itachi he'd lost a hand; against Tejima Shinichi he'd nearly lost... something else!
Almost the same age, the same unfathomable depth, the same ability to make him...!!
A shadow flickered across Orochimaru's eyes.
The humiliation of being powerless before Itachi's Sharingan now resurfaced!
"Seems the old man has raised another... remarkable student," Orochimaru said, voice laden with both admiration and undisguised greed. "But Shinichi-kun, your Wood Release... interests me even more than the Sharingan!"
"I appreciate the compliment," Shinichi replied coolly. "But if you're interested in me, you'd better act fast—otherwise, after a while..."
Shinichi lifted his chin, eyes contemptuous:
"You won't even qualify to die by my hand—!!!"
At those words, Orochimaru's grin froze; murderous intent erupted, putting every Anbu on edge.
"Heh... hahaha..."
Orochimaru's shoulders shook as he burst into wild laughter:
"Such... arrogant confidence, Shinichi-kun... yet that fearlessness matches the power you wield..."
Before he finished, his expression shifted, as though sensing something; regret flashed across his face.
"Pity... it seems today must end here." His body began sinking into the shadow at his feet. "But we'll meet again soon, junior disciple... my 'research' on you has only just begun!!"
With those words, Orochimaru's presence vanished entirely, leaving only the alert Anbu and Tejima Shinichi, eyes deep as the night!!!