Just as Guren finished speaking, Yoruha vanished from where he stood. Noticing the sudden silence behind her, Guren turned around to see the now empty spot, her expression complex.
"That bastard, why did I have to meet him?" she muttered, clutching the kunai Yoruha had given her, gazing into the distance.
"Make sure you come back safely," Yūkimaru said, looking up at Guren. "Guren-nee, do you like him?" Guren was taken aback, her face flushing red. "What nonsense are you talking about?"
Yūkimaru lowered his head, saying, "I can tell, Guren-nee, you definitely like him. He's the one you need."
Guren hesitated for a moment, then reached out to ruffle Yūkimaru's golden hair, smiling softly. "He doesn't need me, but maybe I need him."
Guren no longer hid her feelings. Meanwhile, Yoruha, who had left Guren's side, appeared in the massive crater created by the Tailed Beast Bomb. He watched as Kabuto Yakushi struggled to stand up from the dirt.
Yoruha stood not far from him. Kabuto's glasses were shattered. As he managed to get to his feet, he muttered to himself, "This beast, just as annoying as his master."
"Being so impolite isn't very nice, you know," Yoruha's voice came through. Hearing this, Kabuto turned his head towards Yoruha's direction.
The moment he saw Yoruha, he frowned at first, not recognizing him.
But soon, he noticed Yoruha's attire, and the face that had been etched into his memory countless times matched up. Kabuto immediately tensed up.
"You, you're that guy." "I guessed right. Wherever the Three-Tails is, you're bound to be nearby," Yoruha said, smiling at Kabuto. "You guessed pretty accurately."
But Yoruha had only been with the Three-Tails this month. Over the past three years, it was only this month that he had been with the Three-Tails.
Kabuto was on edge. "You're the one who made the Three-Tails like that, aren't you?"
Kabuto speculated that the reason the Three-Tails had become so powerful was because of Yoruha.
After all, only he would have such bizarre jutsu. As Yoruha's summoned beast, the Three-Tails must have been modified by him.
Yoruha's lips curled slightly. "I didn't expect Orochimaru to have survived my attempt to kill him." Yoruha's words stung Kabuto, reminding him of the humiliation from three years ago.
"How could you possibly kill Lord Orochimaru? Lord Orochimaru is not someone a brat like you can understand." But as he said this, Kabuto's expression was tense.
He had no idea how much Yoruha had changed or how strong he had become over the past three years.
Even if Yoruha had stayed the same, his strength from three years ago was not something Kabuto could match now.
"Yoruha, coming to the Land of Water was a mistake. This isn't Konoha. I can gather a large number of ninja here to kill you," Kabuto shouted loudly.
Yet his demeanor seemed frantic, lacking confidence. Yoruha chuckled, "I know, but I didn't expect Orochimaru to be with you, nor did I expect him to have regained his arms." Yoruha's words left Kabuto momentarily stunned.
A clump of earth slowly rose up. Once it emerged, it transformed into the figure of Orochimaru. "Hehehe, Orochimaru, it's been a while. It seems you don't fully trust this guy, do you?"
Kabuto Yakushi shuddered as he looked at Orochimaru, who had appeared beside him. He hadn't realized that Orochimaru had followed him here.
Orochimaru didn't look at him but instead focused on Yoruha, his voice slightly hoarse as he said, "Yoruha-kun, it's been three years. You've grown quite a bit."
Yoruha smiled, "Yes, it's been three years after all. I'm already 16." This statement left Orochimaru feeling a bit awkward.
At just 16, Yoruha's strength was already beyond his comprehension, and he had even killed Orochimaru once when he was only 13.
Orochimaru glanced at the lake and asked, "Yoruha-kun, what method did you use to enhance the power of the Three-Tails so significantly? Does it have something to do with Sage Techniques?"
This was what Orochimaru was most concerned about. He had been observing the battle from the sidelines, and having researched Sage Techniques for so long, he was naturally sensitive to them.
He could confirm that the jutsu used by the Three-Tails bore traces of Sage Chakra.
Yoruha nodded, not bothering to hide it, "It seems you've done your homework. Indeed, the Three-Tails used Sage Chakra. And it's based on improvements to your curse mark, thanks to the one you left on Sasuke."
Orochimaru paused, his gaze sharpening as he pondered something.
Soon, he looked up at Yoruha, "It seems I underestimated you. You've improved the curse mark. Could you tell me how you did it?"
Yoruha chuckled, casually replying, "I'm afraid not. Although the technique isn't mysterious to me, it's still a Konoha asset and Sasuke's trump card. Sorry, I really can't tell you."
"Hahaha, Yoruha-kun, you're indeed interesting. But I'm very curious. In these three years, I haven't been idle either."
"I think you'll tell me yourself in a moment."
"Oh? I'm curious to see how much you've improved in these three years. As one of the Sannin, you should be the one who has been progressing the most."
Orochimaru's gaze sharpened. He raised his hands. His hands were healed.
Originally, Orochimaru could replace his body using the Reincarnation Jutsu to restore his hands, but it required periodic reincarnation.
Over the past three years, Orochimaru had been searching for a suitable host.
While researching the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques, he discovered records of their methods.
In the Land of Whirlpools, he found the Uzumaki clan's ruins and successfully uncovered a way to break the Reaper Death Seal. So now, Orochimaru had reclaimed his hands from the Shinigami.
However, this was the first time Orochimaru used a jutsu after recovering. His hands moved swiftly through hand signs, "Mandara no Jin."
The first jutsu released countless venomous snakes. Thousands of snakes were summoned by Orochimaru, slithering rapidly toward Yoruha.
Yoruha shook his head, "This jutsu again. I saw it once three years ago."
Three years ago, when Yoruha helped Sasuke deal with the soul imprint of Orochimaru within Sasuke's curse mark, the resurrected Orochimaru used it once. Watching the countless snakes swarm toward him.
Yoruha also raised his hands. His hands moved swiftly through hand signs, "Water Release: Raging Rain of a Thousand Needles."
After casually forming a few seals, a curtain of water appeared above the snake formation. In an instant, it shot out countless raindrops at incredible speed.
"Pop pop pop" "Boom boom boom" A torrential downpour, a rain of a thousand needles.
In the blink of an eye, all the snakes summoned by Orochimaru were pinned to the ground, corpses strewn everywhere, rivers of blood flowing.
Not a single snake survived; they all turned into lifeless bodies.
It happened in just an instant, the precision was astonishing.
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