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***
"Rumble!"
Thick trees instantly formed, forming a defense that shielded Orochimaru.
The Totsuka Blade slashed down, its blade obstructed.
This sudden change was also something Itachi hadn't anticipated.
"Damn, that was so close!"
Itachi muttered, for he had imagined such a situation.
He had heard from the Fourth Hokage about the battle in Konohagakure five years prior.
At that time, Minato had nearly taken the masked man's life, only to be stopped by someone suddenly.
The one who could evade the Fourth Hokage's perception and use the secret technique of Wood Release must be Zetsu.
Therefore, upon noticing the trees growing around Orochimaru, even with murderous intent in mind, Itachi immediately abandoned his attack.
The crimson chakra glow of Susanoo suddenly dimmed.
Not only did the armor vanish, but the Totsuka Blade also dissipated.
Itachi immediately retreated.
Buzz!
As he left that position, the space ahead suddenly began to distort in a vortex.
Within the distortion, a figure emerged.
It was the masked man!
At that moment, Itachi, standing within the now-degenerated Susanoo, a mere skeleton, cast a gloomy gaze upon the masked man.
Itachi had refrained from attacking because he knew the masked man would arrive soon.
Against his unique space-time technique, Susanoo's defenses and attacks were practically useless.
Normal physical attacks were ineffective unless Itachi's attacks outpaced the masked man's intangibility.
But that was something only the Fourth Hokage could achieve, and Itachi was powerless.
As for psychic attacks at the level of illusion, Itachi doubted his Tsukuyomi would be effective against the masked man, who also possessed the MangekyĹ Sharingan, but with even greater eye power.
The masked man's eye power could manipulate the Fourth Mizukage, a perfect JinchĹŤriki, a feat beyond Itachi's current capabilities.
And if Itachi persisted in attacking Orochimaru, even if he could kill his target, he would inevitably leave a significant flaw, allowing the masked man to exploit.
That would be a loss.
"Such quick reflexes and judgment, not fooled at all."
The masked man's eyes gradually dropped.
By then, Itachi had already stood beside the surviving young man of the Kaguya clan, his skeletal Susanoo shielding them both.
Meanwhile, Shisui, on the other side of the stream, immediately moved towards Itachi with Izumi.
He clutched a specially crafted trident-shaped kunai, its handle faintly marked with white.
The battle had taken place outside Kirigakure, so Shisui and the others didn't dare use it to summon the Fourth Hokage, giving the village's sensory ninja a chance to seize control.
But now, Itachi had expended a significant amount of chakra and eye power in his battle with Orochimaru.
The masked man's sudden appearance signaled that the rest of the Akatsuki were on their way.
This was no longer a situation Shisui and Itachi could handle together.
With a swish!
With Shisui's speed, even with Izumi, he quickly appeared behind Itachi and the white-haired boy.
Itachi's hand had also reached into his ninja tool pouch.
Clearly, his judgment mirrored Shisui's.
"That'sâŚ"
The masked man's gaze paused momentarily on Shisui, standing behind Itachi.
He immediately noticed the unusually colored Flying Thunder God kunai in Shisui's hand.
"Where's Hatake Kakashi?"
He glanced around, but couldn't spot Kakashi.
Just as he was startled, a figure suddenly materialized beside Shisui.
Shisui and Itachi turned their gazes.
The sudden appearance was, of course, Kakashi.
"Did this guy find us?"
Kakashi himself didn't know why, but after completing his temporal shift, the first person he noticed was the masked man.
He looked at the masked man with his exposed right eye.
Coincidentally, the man's mask also had a single eye, and that eye was also visible.
"What should we do?"
Kakashi's sudden appearance caused Shisui to pause and ask Itachi.
Itachi hesitated, then said, "Let's retreat for now."
Although he desperately wanted to kill Orochimaru, Itachi had just managed to corner him.
Trying again, in his current state, would be a stretch.
Even if the Fourth Hokage summoned him now, with his space-time ninjutsu, he could protect Izumi.
But the Land of Water was still the masked man's territory, and the rest of the Akatsuki should be arriving soon.
Kakashi was already exhausted from the continuous use of space-time ninjutsu.
If they stood up, their chances of gaining an advantage in the fight were slim.
Furthermore, their most important purpose in coming to the Land of Water was to expose the masked man's true identity as the one manipulating Kirigakure.
If Shisui consumed a significant amount of his eye energy in this battle, temporarily disabling the MangekyĹ technique in his left eye, it would be a loss.
"Hmm," Shisui looked at Kakashi and said, "Can you still lead the others to move?"
Kakashi nodded, "If it's just a few people, it's not a problem."
As he spoke, Itachi had completely retracted his Susanoo.
His breathing was a little heavy, but his right eye was already locked on the masked man.
Itachi knew that the masked man had to materialize before attacking.
So, if he launched a surprise attack, he could try to attack him with Amaterasu.
The masked man also understood Itachi and the others' intention to retreat.
His attention was now focused on the Flying Thunder God kunai in Shisui's hand.
"What exactly is that mark?"
The masked man's eyes were filled with fear, and for a moment, he dared not move rashly.
Shisui grasped Kakashi's shoulders, while Kakashi reached out and placed his hand on Itachi's.
Itachi frowned at the extremely weak boy beside him, the sole surviving member of the Kaguya clan.
Suddenly, Itachi reached out and grasped the boy's arm.
Kakashi formed hand seals.
Swish, swish, swish!
The next moment, the five figures vanished before the sullen masked man.
"Why didn't you stop them?"
Zetsu, shrouded in pitcher plants, emerged from one of the dense trees behind the masked man, completely obscuring Orochimaru's form.
"Are you afraid of the Fourth Hokage?"
Black Zetsu asked, having noticed the unusual chakra in Shisui's Flying Thunder God kunai.
"But it's no wonder. Those two men had their eyes locked on you."
Not only did Itachi intend to use Amaterasu on the masked man as he attacked, but Shisui had also prepared his right eye's dojutsu while simultaneously accumulating chakra in his left.
While the masked man's eye power surpassed both Itachi and Shisui's, he only had one eye.
The power of the two MangekyĹs, combined with the uniquely marked Flying Thunder God kunai, momentarily overawed the masked man.
...
"It's just that in this situation, it's impossible for you to kill Uchiha Itachi."
Black Zetsu said again.
Even if Itachi and the others escaped, the result would be the same if they were to ambush them again.
As long as Itachi stayed with Shisui and Kakashi, they would not be able to kill him.
Itachi would probably return to Kirigakure later, but the masked man did not dare to act there.
"Let your clone inform Pain and the others that the operation is canceled."
The masked man said in a deep voice.
Although he was unwilling, the development of the situation had long been out of control.
In fact, after failing to ambush Itachi outside Kirigakure, it was impossible for him to find another chance to kill Itachi.
"Yeah," Black Zetsu replied, then turned his eyes and said, "It's your turn to deal with this guy behind you."
After he finished speaking, the trees gradually shrank back to the ground, and Zetsu followed the trees into the earth.
Orochimaru's figure emerged.
He gazed at the trees, which vanished into the ground, and licked his lips with a hint of heat in his eyes.
"Such a sophisticated Wood Release technique! Much stronger than my test subject!"
"Haha, you were nearly killed just now. What a fanatic you are!"
The masked man sneered at Orochimaru.
Hearing this, Orochimaru withdrew his gaze, his eyes fixed on the masked man, a deep interest welling up in his serpentine pupils.
"Those clothes. Are you from Akatsuki?"
The masked man was also wearing Akatsuki robes.
"Those eyesâŚ"
Orochimaru finally noticed the masked man's Sharingan, but when he met its gaze, he felt a tremor in his heart.
Then, the expression in his eyes shifted several times.
The corners of his lips, as thin as a blade, suddenly lifted as he looked at the masked man and said, "Since it was Akatsuki who saved me, I must repay you."
"How about letting me join Akatsuki?"
"This guy, is he attracted by Zetsu's abilities and my Sharingan?"
The masked man narrowed his right eye.
He certainly didn't think Orochimaru was joining Akatsuki out of so-called gratitude.
"Your presence here seems to align with my purpose, right?"
Orochimaru didn't think the Akatsuki had come all the way to rescue him.
Their target must also be Uchiha Itachi.
It seemed that the Fourth Mizukage of Kirigakure did have some connection to Akatsuki.
"But judging by this, Akatsuki's combat power seems to be lacking."
"What a tricky guy!"
The masked man's eyes flickered as he looked at Orochimaru.
In this brief moment, Orochimaru had analyzed a lot of information that was unfavorable to Akatsuki.
"I think you'll need my strength right now," Orochimaru continued, staring at the masked man.
Swish!
Just as he finished his words, the masked man suddenly moved with incredible speed.
Orochimaru's pupils constricted.
The masked man appeared before him in the blink of an eye, extending his hand.
Orochimaru, on guard, flung the Kusanagi Sword from his sleeve and thrust it forward.
However, the masked man, without a pause, met the Kusanagi Sword with his hand.
As the two made contact, it passed through Orochimaru's body as if touching air.
"What kind of power is this?"
Orochimaru wondered.
Their figures overlapped, the masked man piercing through Orochimaru before grabbing him with his backhand.
The masked man's movements were so swift and agile that Orochimaru had no time to turn his sword.
However, Orochimaru had a backup plan.
From his free arm, two ten-centimeter-thick brown snakes emerged.
The masked man grasped Orochimaru's shoulder with one hand, while the other snakes snaked around his neck.
Simultaneously, the two snakes bit the masked man's forearm, the arm that was reaching for Orochimaru.
The masked man's hand, wrapped around Orochimaru's neck, now held a kunai, pressing it against his throat.
Bitten by Orochimaru's snake, the masked man remained unfazed, muttering, seemingly unconcerned, "A venomous snake?"
"This fellow."
Orochimaru gulped, glancing sideways at the masked man behind him.
"What you just said is indeed true," the masked man whispered.
Only his right eye, visible beneath the mask, shone with a fierce gleam.
"However, I don't want anyone else to hear what I just said. Otherwise, I'll kill you at any moment."
The masked man's words weren't merely threatening.
Orochimaru could clearly sense the chilling murderous intent behind him.
Even as one of the legendary Sannin, he felt genuinely intimidated by this man's murderous intent.
With that, the masked man released Orochimaru.
Standing behind Orochimaru, he said, "From today on, you are a member of Akatsuki, codename Void."
"Someone will find you soon, and he'll tell you the rest."
With that, the space in front of the masked man's right eye twisted again, engulfing him.
After the masked man left, Orochimaru's expression grew increasingly heavy.
"Uchiha Itachi," he gritted his teeth, repeating Itachi's name.
Not only had Orochimaru failed to capture Itachi this time, he had also lost another elusive test subject.
This was arguably the most humiliating battle Orochimaru had ever endured as a ninja.
Even when facing Hanzo, he had never felt this way.
However, Orochimaru's mindset had changed from that of an ordinary ninja, no longer blindly pursuing immense power.
In his current perspective, even the most powerful force would eventually fade into a pile of bones over time.
Even someone as formidable as the First Hokage could not escape this fate.
While the loss of his experimental subject was heartbreaking, it wasn't entirely without other gains.
At least, many things within the Akatsuki organization had piqued Orochimaru's interest.
Within a high mountain in the Land of Water lay an extremely spacious cave.
Swish, swish, swish!
Kakashi, Itachi, and the others moved into the cave.
"Has Senior Shibi already begun?" Itachi asked, looking at Kakashi.
"Yes," Kakashi nodded.
He had left more than one mark in the Land of Water.
After bringing Aburame Shibi from Konohagakure to the Land of Water, Shibi had immediately begun searching for his target, Ao, so he wasn't there at the moment.
"Please briefly explain the situation," Kakashi said, looking at Izumi and the young Kaguya clan member standing beside Itachi.
Just as Shisui was about to speak, Izumi's body suddenly went limp.
Itachi immediately stepped forward, allowing the girl, who was about to fall, to rest against his body, supporting her with his hands.
His brow furrowed, he spoke in a deep voice.
"Orochimaru's venom has not yet been completely resolved."
....
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