Chapter 78: Real Ninjas Don't Train Slowly
Hiss hiss hiss—
Snake Auntie flicked her tongue, her lower body transforming into a serpent tail.
She moved at terrifying speed, slithering from one tree to another in just a few moments.
"Sakura—run!"
Sasuke shouted.
The two began sprinting desperately.
But no matter how fast they ran,
how could they outpace a snake-form opponent?
Moreover, Orochimaru's primary target was Sasuke.
No matter where Sasuke fled,
it was futile.
After all—the current Sasuke hadn't fully developed yet.
Beating a weak genin
was as easy as lifting a finger.
Knowing escape was impossible, Sasuke
stopped running and turned to face his fear head-on.
The instant Sasuke halted,
Orochimaru also stopped her serpentine advance.
She looked at her prey with great interest.
"Not running anymore?"
Sasuke ignored Orochimaru's taunt and took a deep breath.
He drew several kunai from his waist once more
and hurled them straight at Orochimaru.
"Hey—why haven't you learned your lesson?"
Orochimaru twisted her body lightly.
The kunai missed completely.
Thinking that was the end of it…
Sasuke charged forward.
He leaped, using his momentum,
and kicked straight toward Orochimaru's head with both legs.
Orochimaru extended her arms, blocking the attack with her elbows.
The corners of her mouth curved upward.
If Sasuke had kept running mindlessly,
she would have truly looked down on this vessel.
Fortunately Sasuke came back fighting.
This gave Orochimaru the perfect chance to test the new vessel's strength.
Seeing his attack land,
Sasuke flipped backward multiple times in mid-air,
putting distance between them.
Orochimaru didn't let him rest.
Now it was her turn to counterattack.
For a brief moment, the two exchanged blows evenly.
Mainly because Orochimaru was holding back.
Plus Sasuke's Sharingan let him perceive attacks several times slower than normal.
"Heh…"
In the next instant, Orochimaru decided to raise the difficulty.
She wanted to test the limits of Sasuke's Sharingan.
Her body blurred around Sasuke at high speed.
In the blink of an eye—only afterimages remained.
She moved so fast it was impossible to track.
Wherever she passed, dust clouds rose.
Classic snake-skin footwork!
Cold sweat dripped from Sasuke's forehead. He focused intensely, treating this like a life-or-death enemy.
Fortunately his bloodline limit was powerful enough.
"I can see it!"
Immediately after, he retreated without hesitation,
opening several meters of distance.
The spot where he had just stood
was pierced straight through by Orochimaru.
Her ten-meter-long tail struck terror into the heart.
While retreating, Sasuke formed hand seals and placed them in front of his mouth.
His chest puffed out.
His cheeks ballooned like inflated balls.
Several blazing red fireballs
shot from his mouth,
heading straight for Orochimaru.
Boom boom—
The fireballs struck Orochimaru and exploded on impact.
Massive flames erupted, instantly raising the surrounding air temperature.
The shockwave from the explosion carried scorching heat.
Fire child vs. snake demon!
But this was far from over.
Sasuke gathered power again and unleashed another unrelenting wave of flame.
The searing heat surged forward.
Orochimaru—standing in the sea of fire—only curled her lips slightly.
She raised her hands to shield her head.
Completely unaffected.
Of course!
Orochimaru's strength had long reached Kage-level.
A genin's Fire Release technique
couldn't possibly harm her.
Of course—Orochimaru wasn't just going to stand there and take hits.
She counterattacked.
In the next moment the flames dispersed.
A violent whirlwind swept through.
Wherever it passed, thick dust clouds rose.
It charged straight toward Sasuke.
Sasuke seemed to have anticipated it—he kept retreating.
The spot he had just vacated
was torn open by Wind Release.
Meanwhile—outside—the Konoha proctors
discovered three dead Grass ninja.
Realizing the gravity of the situation,
the Konoha examiners immediately took action.
"Someone has infiltrated the exam grounds—report this to the Third Hokage immediately!"
"Normally proctors aren't allowed inside the grounds—but the situation has changed."
Back to Sasuke—
seeing himself constantly forced into corners,
Orochimaru lost interest.
"As expected… he really doesn't live up to the Uchiha name…"
She muttered halfway,
then—
Bang bang—
Miniature explosive tags that had somehow been attached to her back
detonated instantly!
The backward push from the explosion
caused Orochimaru to stumble forward two steps from inertia.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh—
Sharp sounds of breaking air!
Several steel wires with threads attached flew out.
Sasuke inwardly shouted: Got her!
But his face showed no trace of triumph.
The wires quickly wrapped around Orochimaru,
binding her tightly!
"What kind of technique is this?"
Orochimaru's expression showed rare surprise.
Honestly—
this move from Sasuke
instantly changed her opinion of him!
"Sharingan Wind Blade – Three Swords Style."
Once the wires finished binding,
Orochimaru was nailed to a massive ancient tree.
Completely immobilized.
Her expression twisted!
Sasuke bit down on one end of the wire and formed hand seals!
"Fire Release: Dragon Flame Technique!"
In an instant—
a roaring fire dragon spiraled forth.
It followed the wires straight toward the bound Orochimaru.
Flames blotted out the sky.
Anyone watching would think they were seeing the sun itself.
This time the fire dragon's power was even more ferocious.
It pierced straight through the thick tree trunk.
Not only that—
the entire tree was rapidly reduced to charred ash.
A sharp, piercing scream rang out.
The high-intensity battle
and rapid chakra consumption
left Sasuke drenched in sweat, body completely drained.
He panted heavily.
Sakura—who had been hiding nearby—ran over.
"Sasuke—are you okay?"
Honestly—she had been slacking the whole time.
Seeing the light of victory,
it would look bad if she didn't do something now.
Besides—Sasuke had deliberately stayed behind to block Orochimaru for her.
Actually…
Orochimaru's original target
had always been Sasuke.
Sakura was just unfortunately dragged into it.
Hmph—how could I possibly be in trouble?
This move—even Naruto couldn't imitate it.
Looks like I'm still the superior one.
Just as Sasuke shamelessly thought this in his heart—
Bang bang—
The wires binding Orochimaru snapped apart.
She was completely unharmed.
Half of her human skin mask had been burned away.
Revealing that sinister, terrifying face.
Her eyes were like venomous serpents.
Just one glance
was enough to send chills down the spine.
No one dared meet her gaze.
"Im… impossible…"
Sasuke panicked.
But Orochimaru gave him no time to think.
Her neck stretched out crazily.
This scene might be unthinkable for others.
Even unimaginable.
But for Orochimaru—
it was child's play.
Sakura was so frightened she forgot to counterattack.
And Sasuke—already physically exhausted—
could only stand frozen,
waiting to be slaughtered.
But Orochimaru bit down on his neck.
She held for a moment.
Then retracted her neck. No further action.
But in that instant—Sasuke clearly felt
some kind of power enter his body!
The sensation was strange.
And incredibly pleasant!
All of this was witnessed by Naruto hiding in the corner.
"As expected—Snake Auntie didn't kill Sasuke. She gave him the Heaven's Curse Mark? Good."
"Little guy—keep powering up. That's the only way to have a future."
"Real ninjas don't train slowly."
Naruto grinned and muttered to himself.
The wind stopped. The sky cleared. Sasuke was ready to get back in the game!
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