"Hey, Kyoichi brat, you okay?!"
Jūzō Biwa, resting his beheading sword across his shoulder, steadied himself on the rocky giant's head and called out boisterously to Kyoichi.
"I'm fine."
Kyoichi stood up, patted the dust from his clothes, and offered thanks:
"Jūzō-senpai, I appreciate the help."
"Heh! No need for all that—companions don't stand on ceremony. I just did what needed doing."
Jūzō waved it off casually.
His temperament, truth be told, was very unlike most Kirigakure shinobi.
If it had been one of the cold-blooded Kiri-nin, instead of deflecting the Kusanagi Sword to save Kyoichi, they likely would have taken advantage of Orochimaru's attack to strike him down. That's the usual Kiri way. Shinobi like Jūzō Biwa… there weren't many in Kirigakure.
Looking at the easygoing Jūzō, Kyoichi's lips curved faintly.
For now at least, his impression of the Kiri had been a good one. Whether it was the doting grandfather Masakazu of the Kirigumo clan, the proud but not arrogant Mei Terumī, or this fierce yet oddly warm Jūzō—they'd all left him with a favorable feeling.
Perhaps, life in Kirigakure would be far more comfortable than expected.
Of course, that depended on guarding against Uchiha Madara and whatever unseen pieces he was moving into the Kiri to stir up chaos.
But first, there was the immediate problem.
"Let's take care of you first!"
Orochimaru retracted his long tongue back into his mouth, twisting his unnervingly supple body as he landed lightly atop the rock giant's head. His gaze slid over Kyoichi, Mei Terumī, and Jūzō one by one, before finally settling on Jūzō.
In his eyes—murderous intent surged.
His hands flashed through seals.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!"
From Orochimaru's mouth spewed a slicing torrent of air, sharp as a sickle. He turned his head as it swept across, the arc of death racing toward Jūzō. Fortunately, Jūzō had been watching him closely—he reacted instantly, raising the Kubikiribōchō to block.
Clang!
The sword snapped in half, now a broken blade in truth. But it had saved Jūzō from being bisected outright.
The wind blade didn't stop there—it kept sweeping on, heading straight for Kyoichi and Mei Terumī. Thanks to Jūzō's interception, the two had time to react; both ducked low, letting the blade whistle past.
Even Kyoichi chose not to counter with his hardening technique.
Wind Release doesn't counter Earth Release directly, but facing Orochimaru's mastery, there was no need to risk a direct clash when evasion sufficed.
And Orochimaru wasn't done.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!"
Seeing Jūzō still standing, Orochimaru wove seals again.
His mouth spat out wind bullets—sharp, compressed blasts like invisible projectiles. Not one, but over a dozen, in a single breath, all aimed at Jūzō.
This was no half-hearted attempt. Unlike before, when he sought to capture Kyoichi alive, now Orochimaru's killing intent was naked.
The bullets were blindingly fast, devastatingly strong.
Jūzō swung the half-blade desperately to guard his vitals, but he couldn't block everything. His shoulder, arm, and leg were torn open with wounds of varying depth. The shallow ones were scratches—no more than flesh wounds. But his left shin was cut to the bone, blood pouring out in rivulets.
Only by propping himself up with the broken blade did he avoid collapsing outright.
One had to admit—the Sannin's reputation was well earned.
Just these Wind Release techniques alone placed Orochimaru in a league few could rival. Even the Kazekage himself was better known for Magnet Release than pure Wind Release mastery. Orochimaru's speed and precision made him terrifying—two Wind Release assaults, executed seamlessly back-to-back, were enough to grievously wound a jōnin of Jūzō's caliber.
And just as Orochimaru poised to finish Jūzō with the final blow—
"Earth Release: Tearing Earth Turning Palm!!"
Kyoichi slammed his palm into the rock giant's head.
Crack—crash!
The immense stone creature shattered apart, boulders raining down under gravity's pull. With the ground beneath them gone, everyone lost footing—Orochimaru included, his killing stroke interrupted.
But the advantage still lay with Orochimaru.
"Manda!"
He shouted.
The giant serpent, also destabilized by the collapsing rock, strained to regain balance. Its massive head lunged down, catching Orochimaru before he could fall.
"Orochimaru, these enemies are too troublesome. A hundred sacrifices won't cut it this time—you'll double it!!"
Manda hissed, demanding more tribute.
Unlike other snakes of Ryūchi Cave, Manda never lifted a fang for free. Every summoning required payment—human sacrifices, no less. After much haggling, they'd settled at one hundred corpses per summoning.
Now, mid-battle, Manda chose to extort his partner.
"Two hundred sacrifices. You'll have them once this fight is done."
Orochimaru agreed without hesitation.
Two hundred corpses was no small number, but they needn't be shinobi—any ordinary humans would suffice. Buying them off the black market was trivial. For Orochimaru, such a price was negligible compared to the value of securing his prized research subjects.
"So be it!"
Manda bared its fangs in what might've been a grin—though on its monstrous face, it was more grotesque than mirthful.
Its massive eyes turned down toward Orochimaru's prey below.
Its tail rose high, ready to whip down with devastating force.
But then—something changed.
Manda froze.
The sensation was familiar—he had seen it before. In Ryūchi Cave, when the White Snake Sage stirred nature's energy… and again, when fighting alongside Orochimaru, he had felt it from that toad-stinking human.
"This is—"
Manda's pupils contracted sharply, locking onto one figure among Orochimaru's quarry.
A flicker of shock crossed his predatory gaze.
"This is… Sage Arts?"