Before Orochimaru could even finish speaking, Naruto hurled the massive Rasenshuriken downward.
FWOOOOM—WHIRRRR—!
The screeching sphere of compressed wind chakra spun like a saw from hell, aimed not directly at Orochimaru—but at the ground near his feet.
Orochimaru's eyes widened.
He bit both thumbs instantly.
CHOMP—!
Smearing blood across the dirt, he slammed his hands down. Seals erupted outward in a spiderweb pattern of chakra lines.
The Rasenshuriken twisted at the last second, its flight path curving unnaturally as Naruto manipulated its trajectory with chakra control.
It snapped back toward Orochimaru with brutal speed.
"Triple Rashōmon!"
The forest floor violently cracked open.
KRAK-KRAK-KRAK—!
In an instant, three colossal demonic-faced gates erupted from underground, layering themselves between Orochimaru and the incoming jutsu.
Naruto's Rasenshuriken collided with the gates.
BOOOOOOOOM!!!
A titanic explosion tore across the entire forest.
Shockwaves blasted outward, ripping up trees, uprooting boulders, and flattening everything in a monstrous radius. Leaves vaporized mid-air. The bridge where Sakura and Yamato stood buckled violently.
Yamato slammed chakra into his feet. "Hold on!"
Sakura did the same as the entire bridge shook like an earthquake, cables rattling.
The two watched the massive sphere of destruction bloom like a white sun in the middle of the woods—and both were stunned silent.
Yamato's eyes widened.
' So that's the jutsu Lady Tsunade asked me to look into… its structure… it's insanely complex. How did a genin—develop that?' He thought.
A full minute passed before the blast finally died, smoke rolling away like storm clouds.
The triple gates were gone. Completely annihilated. Scattered chunks of metal-like demon faces lay smoldering in the dirt.
Naruto landed on the torn earth, panting lightly.
' That was full power, ' he thought, wiping sweat off his chin. ' Wonder if it actually did anything… though honestly, beating him is kinda wrong since the guy has cancer or sum—'
His thought cut off.
A silhouette emerged through the smoke—thin, tall, snake-like.
Suddenly—
FWIP—THWAAAANG!
A ridiculously long sword shot toward him at blistering speed. Naruto's instincts screamed—he ducked, sliding sideways. The blade sliced the air where his head had been and rocketed past him, embedding itself into a distant hill with a thunderous crack right beside Sakura and Yamato.
"Let's go!" Yamato barked as he leapt high. Sakura sprinted after him.
In the clearing, Orochimaru stood there—completely tattered. Much of his outer skin hung like a torn cloak of pale paper.
He shed it in one grotesque motion.
SHLRRRP—
A pristine but battered Orochimaru slithered out of the ruined layer, his golden eyes glowing with twisted admiration.
"Impressive, Naruto," he hissed.
Naruto smirked. "Well, I did learn from the best."
'That being me'he added internally.
Orochimaru tilted his head. "As fun as this was… I have more pressing matters to attend to."
Suddenly—
POOF!
His entire body collapsed into a cloud of smoke.
A single snake thudded onto the ground, its scales glinting faintly as it slithered away into the rubble.
Naruto stared for a moment. Then sighed.
' He dipped,' he thought, shoulders falling in disappointment.
Sakura and Yamato landed beside Naruto moments later. Their eyes widened at the cratered earth, shredded trees, and lingering chakra burns still sizzling across the clearing. They exchanged a quick, uneasy glance—then looked at Naruto.
"Where did he go?" Yamato asked.
Naruto pointed vaguely toward the woods. "He ran off. Slipped away. What about Kabuto?"
Sakura folded her arms. "We thought you'd know. You punched him halfway into the forest, remember?"
"Oh—yeah…" Naruto scratched the back of his neck. "Haven't seen him since."
"What about Sai?" Naruto added.
Yamato and Sakura both looked confused.
"We were about to ask you that," Sakura said. "He disappeared during the fight. Guess he ran off with Orochimaru. He must've been a spy or something."
Naruto didn't react aloud, but inside…
'Well… he is Root. Danzo definitely sent him. But he'll come around.'
Yamato exhaled. "Either way, we should get moving. Luckily, I planted something on Sai just in case."
He turned to Naruto. "You think you can keep going?"
Naruto smirked. "Yeah. Definitely. Let's go."
They took off through the trees—but as they leaped branch to branch, Sakura suddenly stopped mid-step.
"Wait—look!"
Hanging from a thick branch ahead was a "Sai"—limp, lifeless, strung up like a macabre puppet. Sakura gasped, but Naruto's expression stayed flat.
"That's fake," he said immediately.
They moved closer and found Sai's sketchbook on the ground beneath the decoy.
Sakura knelt and picked it up. "I saw him reading this during dinner. He said he never shows it to anyone…"
She opened the pages, Yamato and Naruto leaning in. The drawings told a silent story—two boys, missions, battles, moments of brotherhood—and then, abruptly… it stopped.
"So… he killed his brother?" Sakura whispered.
Naruto shook his head. "Nah. I'd argue it's unfinished."
Sakura blinked. Yamato raised an eyebrow.
Naruto shrugged casually.
' Future knowledge makes me look smart,' he smirked inwardly.
"Well, whatever it means, it's not our priority," Yamato said, closing the book. "Good thing I gave Sai a tracking seed. Here—"
He held out two more seeds.
"Take these. In case we get separated."
Naruto and Sakura each took one, tucking the tiny beads into their pouches.
' Another tool Kishimoto completely forgot about,' Naruto sighed internally.
They pressed forward again. The forest gradually gave way to barren rock formations, the terrain shifting into a cracked, rocky desert.
Suddenly, a figure stepped out from behind a boulder—a Yamato clone, dispersing into a swirl of leaves before reforming.
Naruto blinked. ' Wow… when did he deploy that one?'
The real Yamato turned serious.
"Alright, team. We're about to enter enemy territory. Stay focused. Be ready for anything."
Naruto and Sakura nodded.
Together, the three approached a jagged rock formation… and slipped into the dark mouth of a cave. The air was cold. Silent. Expectant.
They were getting close.
TO BE CONTINUED