Shinichi Hyuga's power was beyond Orochimaru's expectations, but Orochimaru still didn't feel that the battle had escaped his control.
Apart from the Impure World Reincarnation forbidden jutsu, he had plenty of other forbidden techniques saved as trump cards that he hadn't used yet.
However, one of Orochimaru's subordinates was suppressed by Might Guy, and the other was knocked down by Shinichi Hyuga's Gentle Fist, which prevented Orochimaru from focusing entirely on Jiraiya.
While Orochimaru wasn't the kind of person who cared about the life and death of his subordinates, Kimimaro and Kabuto held a different significance for him.
Kimimaro was one of his most ideal vessels for the Living Corpse Reincarnation, and Kabuto was his excellent assistant in researching the human body and Ninjutsu.
If he were to lose these two individuals, Orochimaru wouldn't be able to find suitable replacements in a short time.
Orochimaru, standing atop Manda's head, fixed his gaze on Shinichi Hyuga. Watching Shinichi calmly handle the combined attacks of Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju, a hint of greed and fervor rose in his eyes.
The Byakugan of the Hyuga Main Family, huh....
It seemed he had underestimated this great Konoha clan... If he could obtain Shinichi Hyuga's body, his own potential ceiling would surely be greatly increased, right?!
The reason Orochimaru researched the Living Corpse Reincarnation was not only to gain eternal life. More importantly, Orochimaru had long realized the importance of lineage for a ninja.
The existence of Kekkei Genkai destined some ninjas to be powerful from birth. The effort and sweat ordinary ninjas needed to put in to rival Kekkei Genkai users were simply unimaginable. Furthermore, in the more common scenario, even if an ordinary person worked hard their entire life, they might not even reach the lower limit of a Kekkei Genkai user.
This was the cruel side of the ninja world. Lineage... was a genuine factor that significantly influenced a ninja's power and potential.
The Living Corpse Reincarnation jutsu provided Orochimaru with the opportunity to acquire a Kekkei Genkai. The limitations of lineage no longer existed for him.
Over the years, Orochimaru had been searching for excellent Kekkei Genkai users across the world, but after seeing many, his most favored one was still Kimimaro's Shikotsumyaku (Dead Bone Pulse).
Now, seeing the exceptionally powerful Shinichi Hyuga, Orochimaru's mind conceived other ideas.
Previously, he was a Konoha ninja. On one hand, the Hyuga clan hadn't produced any outstanding ninjas that made Orochimaru covet the Byakugan. On the other hand, the Hyuga clan's protection of the Main Family was also very strict. For Orochimaru at the time, there was no necessity to steal the Byakugan.
But now, he had already become a missing-nin of Konoha. No matter what he did, the title of missing-nin would never be erased. Moreover, Shinichi Hyuga made Orochimaru vaguely see the potential of the Byakugan.
From every perspective, acquiring the Byakugan seemed like a very excellent choice.
Upon this thought, Orochimaru immediately took action. His neck elongated rapidly like Luffy's Gomu Gomu no Mi, shooting towards Shinichi Hyuga, who was currently under the combined attack of Hashirama and Tobirama.
"Shinichi! Look out!"
Jiraiya, seeing Orochimaru suddenly attack Shinichi Hyuga, immediately shouted a warning. At the same time, he quickly formed hand signs. The long white hair draped behind him rapidly encased his body, and countless strands shot out like needles, striking at Orochimaru atop Manda's head.
Ninjutsu: Needle Jizō!
"Chii chii chii chii—"
The hair needles, like senbon, instantly tore Orochimaru's body to shreds. However, Jiraiya's attack did not affect Orochimaru's offense.
Shinichi Hyuga, who was fighting the First and Second Hokage, naturally noticed Orochimaru's movement. The field of vision provided by the Byakugan was not "free," and he was already wary of Orochimaru.
Blocking Hashirama's and Tobirama's attacks with his punch and palm, respectively, a kunai inadvertently dropped from Shinichi's sleeve, falling towards the ground.
Just as the kunai was about to land, Shinichi raised his foot and kicked the blade tip. At the same time, the kunai instantly changed direction, shooting directly toward the head of the attacking Orochimaru.
The kunai Shinichi launched was imbued with powerful Lightning Release Chakra, making its speed far exceed that of an ordinary kunai.
However, facing Shinichi's powerful attack, Orochimaru's face showed a hint of a smile. His neck twisted in the air, and his head instantly changed position, easily avoiding Shinichi's attack and closing in on Shinichi, opening his mouth to bite Shinichi's neck.
Orochimaru's body was strangely modified, but in actual combat, this bizarre characteristic made him incredibly difficult to deal with.
Seeing that he was about to be bitten, Shinichi remained calm. Noticing Orochimaru's greedy eyes, Shinichi's expression turned sharp.
"Hmm?!"
Just as Orochimaru thought he would succeed, Shinichi Hyuga's figure vanished from his sight without warning.
At the same time, Orochimaru felt a flicker before his eyes, and his vision unconsciously started to rapidly fall. Realizing what was happening, Orochimaru quickly turned his head back, only to see that Shinichi Hyuga, who had disappeared from in front of him, had somehow appeared behind him.
The place he appeared was where the kunai was moving in mid-air. The moment Shinichi caught the kunai, he immediately slashed it across Orochimaru's elongated neck. The kunai, infused with Lightning Release Chakra, instantly severed Orochimaru's neck.
As blood sprayed out, Orochimaru's head, along with several meters of his neck, dropped to the ground.
Blood continuously gushed from the severed end. The moment Orochimaru's blood came into contact with the air, it transformed into an unknown neurotoxin. Simultaneously with the severing of his neck, a faint purple mist also began to spread.
Shinichi Hyuga had always been a cautious person, and he knew about Orochimaru. Was Orochimaru truly killed by severing his neck?!
How could it be that easy? Was a man like Orochimaru so easily killed?!
Therefore, Shinichi, having successfully landed the attack, didn't stay in place for even a moment. After severing the opponent's neck with the kunai, he immediately used the Flying Thunder God to teleport next to Jiraiya.
Orochimaru's presence was quite pressuring for Shinichi. To be safe, staying with Jiraiya felt much more secure, and Jiraiya could draw the majority of Orochimaru's attention, giving him a chance to capture Orochimaru alive.
"Bang!!!"
As Orochimaru's head and long neck hit the ground with a muffled thud, Kabuto, who had struggled to get up, finally stood up. Seeing Orochimaru lying in a pool of blood, his face instantly changed dramatically, letting out a painful, low cry: "Orochimaru-sama!"
However, before Kabuto could fully process his grief, Orochimaru suddenly opened his mouth, and a slimy hand emerged from his mouth, slamming heavily onto the ground. At the same time, Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju quickly moved to Kabuto's side, subtly forming a defensive perimeter around him.
Under the gaze of Kabuto and Shinichi's group, Orochimaru's mouth opened wider and wider. Simultaneously, an Orochimaru covered in slime slowly crawled out of the severed body section.
"Heh heh heh heh..."
"What are you shouting about, Kabuto?"
Orochimaru slowly stood up, glanced at the sorrowful Kabuto, and spoke with a chuckle. Just as he was speaking, the severed body section behind him, which Shinichi Hyuga had cut, transformed into a pale snakeskin shedding.
And there was absolutely no trace of injury on Orochimaru's body. Neither Jiraiya's previous Needle Jizō nor Shinichi Hyuga's slash had managed to hurt Orochimaru in the slightest.
Although Kabuto had been by Orochimaru's side for many years, this was the first time he had seen an enemy force Orochimaru to shed his skin. Naturally, this was also the first time Kabuto saw this jutsu of Orochimaru's.
Seeing that Orochimaru was completely unharmed, Kabuto's face immediately lit up with joy, his emotions changing very quickly.
Kabuto was undoubtedly loyal to Orochimaru, and Orochimaru naturally felt this. Although Kabuto might have some personal ambitions, he was still largely dependent on Orochimaru.
Orochimaru was naturally extremely lenient toward this loyal subordinate. He slowly walked to Kabuto's side and placed a hand on Kabuto's shoulder. A small snake then poked its head out from Orochimaru's sleeve and bit Kabuto's shoulder.
The slight pain made Kabuto frown slightly. However, due to his trust and fear of Orochimaru, Kabuto, sensing the anomaly, stood still, only asking with a hint of confusion: "Orochimaru-sama, this is..."
Just as Kabuto felt confused, an unusual chakra surged into his body. A black Curse Mark spread rapidly across Kabuto's body, centered around the snake's bite mark.
"This is a weakened version of the Curse Mark. Your body cannot withstand too much power. The power of the Curse Mark will allow you to break free from the Hyuga's Gentle Fist ability."
Orochimaru explained while looking up at Shinichi Hyuga and Jiraiya atop Gamabunta's head in the distance.
At the same time, the two reanimated bodies of Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju also moved to Orochimaru's side, remotely locking onto Jiraiya and Shinichi in the distance.
Listening to Orochimaru's explanation, the joy on Kabuto's face deepened. He had longed for the power of the Curse Mark for a very long time. However, regrettably, Orochimaru never seemed to have the intention of engraving the Curse Mark on him....
There was no helping it, as everything about Kabuto was simply too ordinary!
Aside from Kabuto's intelligence, Orochimaru saw absolutely no other value in Kabuto.
The Curse Mark was a variant of natural energy, and even Orochimaru found it challenging to create a controllable version. Such a precious thing naturally wouldn't be wasted on someone with Kabuto's talent.
Now, to help him break free from the effects of the Gentle Fist, Kabuto finally had the opportunity to personally experience the power of the Curse Mark.
His personality, in some ways, was very similar to Orochimaru's. Due to his lack of innate talent, Kabuto was also seeking various ways to increase his own potential.
However, the joy on Kabuto's face only lasted for a moment.
After the power of the Curse Mark infiltrated his body, Kabuto could clearly feel the soreness and swelling disappear, and several of the tenketsu points had been breached by the Curse Mark's natural chakra.
However, after only a few breaths, the power of the Curse Mark disappeared, but the tenketsu points sealed by Shinichi Hyuga were not completely unsealed.
"Lord... the effect of the Gentle Fist... was not completely lifted."
Kabuto's tone was low, his face full of disbelief as he spoke. This was the first time he realized that the Hyuga clan's Gentle Fist effect was actually so strong.
"Hmm?"
Orochimaru was somewhat surprised to hear this. He silently glanced at Kabuto, then withdrew his gaze. When he looked at Shinichi Hyuga again, the fervor in Orochimaru's eyes intensified.
Ignoring Kabuto, Orochimaru licked his lips. Without any visible action or command, Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju immediately charged rapidly towards Gamabunta.
The Summoned Toads of Mount Myōboku could easily handle ordinary ninjas and Summoning Animals, but the weakness of these "giant beast" type Summoning Animals was actually very obvious: their excessively large size made them easy targets for certain large-scale Ninjutsu.
Hashirama Senju merely clasped his hands together, and countless thick tree roots and trunks surged from the earth, wrapping around Gamabunta.
Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!
Even with only half of his strength in life, Hashirama Senju's Wood Release Ninjutsu was still an extremely difficult Kekkei Genkai to deal with. And a giant Summoning Animal like Gamabunta was perfectly countered by this type of Wood Release jutsu.
Since even the Nine-Tails couldn't handle the Wood Release, there was no need to mention Gamabunta.
The thick branches tightly bound Gamabunta, making it impossible for him to jump away.
Seeing his Summoning Animal restrained, Jiraiya decisively released the summoning, then sped along the branches, rushing towards Orochimaru and Kabuto.
Orochimaru noticed Jiraiya's movement, a slight curl of mockery on his lips. Then, he opened his mouth and spat out a sword hilt. After drawing the Kusanagi Sword, Orochimaru pointed the sword tip at the ground, waiting for Jiraiya's arrival.
At the same time, Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju charged toward Jiraiya.
"It's over... Orochimaru!"
"Stop this."
However, just as Orochimaru's attention was focused on Jiraiya, a sharp kunai was suddenly lightly held against Orochimaru's body.
Shinichi Hyuga had somehow appeared behind Orochimaru, holding him hostage with the kunai.
Shinichi's silent appearance caused Orochimaru's pupils to contract sharply. After a brief hesitation, he slowly turned his head to look at the handsome Shinichi behind him, and a hoarse voice came from his throat:
"The Flying Thunder God Technique..."
"When?"
Being from Konoha himself, Orochimaru naturally knew some information about Shinichi Hyuga. He wasn't surprised that Shinichi Hyuga mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique; he was just puzzled as to how Shinichi used the Flying Thunder God to return.
He didn't recall Shinichi leaving a Flying Thunder God kunai here.
However, Shinichi did not answer, only meaningfully turning his head to glance at Kabuto.
Orochimaru's eyes widened upon seeing Shinichi's gaze. He naturally realized how Shinichi Hyuga used the Flying Thunder God to appear behind him.
Perhaps...
When Shinichi Hyuga attacked Kabuto with the Gentle Fist, he had already placed a Flying Thunder God marker on the opponent!
He was completely outmaneuvered!
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