"Hey, Orochimaru, think of something quick!"
Wanshi was screaming as the freezing blast, now condensed into a single white beam, shot straight at him.
He'd been on the outs with Orochimaru for ages, but the moment that familiar summoning pulse hit, he bolted to the battlefield without a second thought.
All for a couple of measly offerings—just enough to brag to the grandkids back in Ryuchi Cave.
But no way in hell did he expect this. Whatever he was facing? It wasn't human.
"Just a human? Daily dessert in Ryuchi Cave."
"Konoha ninja? Overhyped tri-colored dango, that's all."
"Even carrying a cold current and propping up a useless summoner, I, Wanshi, am still unbeatable!"
"Orochimaru, save me!!!"
"Shut up, I'm working on it!"
Orochimaru leaped off Wanshi's back, bit both thumbs, and slammed his palms to the ground.
Summoning Jutsu: Triple Rashomon!
The ultimate defensive walls, designed to absorb any attack, rose one after another under Orochimaru's chakra.
The storm-like assault followed instantly, ice raging across the earth.
BOOM!
Cracks echoed one after another as the Rashomon gates were pierced layer by layer.
But the hell-forged iron walls of the Shura Gate still deflected the impact. When the frost cleared, all that remained were three massive gate craters and two long, ice-spiked scars torn through the ground.
"Not bad!"
Sakura's figure darted through the blizzard.
Her next strike, wrapped in Armament Haki, was already swinging at Orochimaru's face.
"Again?!"
Orochimaru's eyes widened. Massive natural energy surged into the curse seal on his arm.
He flung out a swarm of venomous snakes, weaving and coiling around Sakura, trying to lock her down.
Too bad—even with the curse seal boosting the jutsu, the snakes froze solid the moment they touched her skin. With a casual twist, they shattered into ice dust.
"Hahaha, that all you got, Uncle Orochimaru?!"
Laughing like a maniac, Sakura leaped high.
Her fists danced, scattering pure white, freezing light.
Sensing danger, Orochimaru spread his arms, unleashing a flood of snakes—each mouth hiding a blade.
As Sakura's pink fists came down, the snakes shot upward, blades extending.
A forest of sharp swords tore through the wind, growing wildly to engulf the girl in the sky.
Sakura pulled a kunai and hurled it hard at Orochimaru, perched atop Wanshi's head. The blade whistled through the air.
Orochimaru's golden snake eyes caught the cherry-blossom mark on the handle. His gaze sharpened.
"Flying Thunder God, huh? Now that's nostalgic."
Thinking of the golden flash who dominated the Third Great Ninja War, Orochimaru didn't dare let his guard down.
One of his snakes reared up, a Kusanagi blade slashing the kunai mid-air—perfectly bisecting the blossom mark and destroying the space-time anchor inside.
"Tch."
Sakura clicked her tongue.
Sure, Flying Thunder God was lightning-fast, but every top-tier ninja who knew the technique had their own counter. Whether keeping her at range or now slicing the mark, Orochimaru was ready.
"Wanshi, bite her!"
Orochimaru jumped to the ground and gave the order, already forming seals.
Wanshi: "Wait, me?!"
Before he could shake his head, blinding light filled his mismatched pupils. The girl's delicate pink fist—packed with overwhelming Haki and frost—came crashing down.
"Orochimaru, I swear to—"
BOOM!!!
A mountain-sized beast got its skull caved in. Storm and ice crushed its body, and a soul-level clash exploded inside it.
Wanshi blacked out instantly. Blood sprayed from his eyes, nose, and mouth. His aura faded fast.
The summoning threshold shattered. Wanshi poofed into a massive cloud of smoke, giving Orochimaru one last bit of cover.
Far off, Orochimaru finished his seals. His body swelled, outer skin splitting to reveal a writhing mass of tiny white snakes. By the time he hit the ground again, he'd transformed into a massive serpent.
Ninja Art: Orochi Subjugation!
"Kid, ninja battles aren't about flash! One lethal strike—that's our style!"
Countless snakes writhed and flowed, forming a sleek, streamlined body. Orochimaru shot toward Sakura like a bullet.
"Oh yeah? I think the kids these days prefer my style!"
Sakura dropped into stance. Her Observation Haki spread like a net through the forest.
She could sense his approach, but with natural energy in play, the caster's speed hit terrifying levels.
Just like Pain vs. Jiraiya—not that they didn't want to instant-kill him, but even with all six bodies, they couldn't out-speed the toad sage.
Unable to predict precisely, Sakura thrust a palm toward the white-scaled serpent. Cold condensed into ice spears, raining from the sky.
But the white serpent slithered like it had eyes in the back of its head, twisting in S-curves, weaving through the gaps without slowing.
As it closed in, countless snake mouths opened. Kusanagi blades shot out, turning the serpent into a spinning porcupine of death, barreling at Sakura.
"You can use Kusanagi like that?!"
Sakura raised an eyebrow and met the meat-grinder head-on.
"There's a lot you don't know, kid!"
The white serpent grinned, every blade standing on end.
Sakura's slender palm was slashed open. Blades pierced her body.
But her five fingers clamped down—Armament Haki locking onto Orochimaru's true form.
"Slippery bastard—got you now!"
Inside the blade storm, Sakura raised her right fist, crackling with dark lightning. Chakra boiled off her, steaming with the power to melt anything.
Armed Boil Release: Unrivaled Strength!
"Oh no—!"
Orochimaru's pupils shrank to pinpricks. He thrashed wildly.
But Armament Haki could trap even Logia types. No way he was slipping free.
"RAAAGH!!"
With a roar, Sakura's chakra- and Haki-charged fist swung.
It shattered the Kusanagi armor, then punched clean through Orochimaru's chest.
KABOOM!!
Haki roared. Raw power erupted.
Orochimaru nearly passed out, rocketing backward, cratering the earth, and carving a long trench.
For hundreds of meters behind him, ground and ancient trees exploded into dust from the shockwave.
Sakura yanked out the Kusanagi blades stuck in her body. Her white skirt was soaked red.
But the wounds closed fast under Yang Release chakra and Life Return.
cough cough cough!
Orochimaru crawled from the rubble, clutching his chest, blood pouring from every hole in his face. He looked like hell.
Sensing the tiny bit of chakra he had left, he knew he couldn't keep this up. The trump card he'd saved for "the old man" would be wasted on this monster of a girl.
His cold gaze swept over Sakura—the unkillable pink-haired freak with insane damage. A thought flashed through his mind.
"Looks like we're done for today. But before I go, a word of advice from your elder!"
"Don't you dare run!"
Sakura activated the Flying Thunder God mark she'd planted on his head during their clash.
But Orochimaru was faster—one of his smaller snakes spat a Kusanagi blade, slicing through his own head and the mark with it.
Sakura's jutsu failed. The space-time backlash made her stagger half a step.
Orochimaru used the Great Snake Substitution, melting into the soil with his body.
"Konoha's rotten into a man-eating monster! One day, the people you cherish will be chewed up and swallowed whole!"
"When that day comes, how will you face the village you've given everything for? Heh heh heh heh!"
With a chilling laugh, Orochimaru turned into sludge and seeped into the earth, using high-level Earth Escape to vanish.
That level of earth jutsu…
Sakura punched the ground, flash-freezing hundreds of meters with heat-draining cold.
But her Observation Haki reached deep underground—no life signs.
"He got away. That damn snake."
Who could've guessed a famous powerhouse dumped all his skill points into running and surviving?
Shaking her head, Sakura glanced at the approaching jonin and ANBU in the distance.
Golden text flashed in her vision—system notification.
[Achievement Unlocked: "Snakes Like Me, We Live Forever~" – 110 points awarded.]
"Hey, you stingy system—are you seriously blocking my achievement farming?!"
Grumbling, an exhausted Sakura leaned against a tree and closed her eyes.
Orochimaru's parting words still echoed. Finally, she sighed.
"Ugh, that guy… I'll just report it. Not my headache in the end."