Cobra didn't transform into anything bizarre.
"Ta-da! Not bad, right?"
Wearing a khaki camisole dress with bandages wrapped around her arms, her face remaining unchanged, Cobra twirled around.
Motomu nodded. The girl she had transformed into looked to be about twelve or thirteen years old.
She hadn't taken on the exaggerated figure of that female clerk from the ninja tool shop.
Her looks weren't world-shaking, just a bit striking.
Living hidden in Konoha, she wouldn't attract much unwanted attention.
Motomu felt that this was more than enough.
"Can you break Tagitsu Hime's Senjutsu illusions?"
"Motomu, why are you asking such a boring question? If I couldn't break the illusion, how would I have woken up?"
"If it happens again, how sure are you that you can break it?"
"Hmm..."
The black-haired girl replied after a moment's thought.
"It depends on the amount of Senjutsu Chakra the opponent has. If it exceeds my limit, I won't be able to break it."
"But as long as I'm not injected directly, I should be fine."
"In that case..."
"Let's head back to Ryuchi Cave. It's time for some revenge."
"Huh?"
Cobra, who had been answering seriously, was suddenly taken aback.
Back... back to Ryuchi Cave?
'I finally made myself look so pretty, and he wants me to go back to Ryuchi Cave?'
'That place where the Snake Princess is waiting to take my life!'
'How could we go back?'
'If we go back, I'll definitely be turned into snake soup!'
"Motomu, why don't you think about it again?"
"My old territory is gone, let it be."
"Konoha, the ninja world... it's all so big! Why fixate on Ryuchi Cave?"
"It's dark and damp there, without a speck of sunlight."
"I've had enough of that miserable life!"
"Don't go back! No!"
"Summoning Jutsu: Release."
"Stop it!"
Poof!
The black-haired girl vanished in a puff of smoke.
Motomu waited a moment, and the sensation of a Reverse Summoning soon washed over him.
With a pop, another cloud of smoke appeared in the room.
Drip!
Inside the damp and gloomy Ryuchi Cave.
Cobra's cozy little home had been trashed beyond recognition.
The stone nest was smashed, fluorescent plants were torn to shreds, and even the cave itself had partially collapsed.
A few mindless little snakes occupying the area quickly slithered out after sensing the black-haired girl's irritation.
The previously enraged Tagitsu Hime had destroyed her home like a hurricane.
Motomu stepped out of the smoke, breathing in the long-lost air of Ryuchi Cave.
He was going to settle the score.
But before that, he had to protect the summoning anchor.
The two Big Eyeballs flew out, expanding as they caught the air.
In the blink of an eye, they grew large enough to nearly scrape the cave ceiling.
Big Eyeball No. 2 opened its wide mouth, its sticky, drool-covered tongue darting out for a lick.
"Remember to help break the illusions later."
"For now, get inside."
"W-What?"
Invisible Psychokinesis seized the dazed black-haired girl and shoved her straight into the gaping maw.
Big Eyeball No. 2's tongue curled, hiding the black-haired girl deep within its mouth.
"Mmph! Mmph!"
Perfect.
Ignoring Cobra's kicks and muffled struggles, Motomu moved on.
Motomu mounted Big Eyeball No. 1 and flew out of the cave.
His goal in Ryuchi Cave was clear.
Either Tagitsu Hime would drive him away again, or he would finish her off.
Cobra could break Tagitsu Hime's crowd-control techniques.
The barrier of strength between Motomu and his opponent had silently shattered.
The strategy was broken.
When it came to raw stats, he had never feared anyone.
Riding the Big Eyeball, Motomu searched for a while but couldn't find Tagitsu Hime.
So, he began to use Dream Eater to refine the small animals nearby.
Chilling cries of agony from snakes began to echo through the cave.
The sounds reverberated through the tunnels, incredibly piercing.
An hour later.
Motomu, who had been waiting, narrowed his eyes.
In the dim cave, besides the hissing of snakes...
...a sudden rushing wind pressure grew stronger from the cave entrance behind him.
Turning around, he saw the half-human, half-snake Tagitsu Hime emerge from the shadows into the Big Eyeball's field of vision.
Motomu rested a hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist.
Tons of Psychokinesis wrapped around the blade in layers.
The Chakra-conductive sword, forged from recycled materials and a million ryo, began to ring.
It let out a clear, sharp hum.
Motomu intended to hit her hard right from the start.
With the expansion of the Big Eyeball's size, his Psychokinesis could now reach a sudden burst of nearly ten tons.
Although consumption increased, the acceleration distance for the flying sword was significantly shortened.
This allowed the flying sword to achieve impressive speeds even in the confined environment of an underground cavern.
A million ryo for her life.
It was worth it!
In front of Motomu's chest, the longsword slowly levitated.
Flaming Chakra coated the blade, increasing its hardness while significantly improving control.
Psychokinesis gathered and compressed at the base of the hilt.
In the distance, the murderous Tagitsu Hime, slithering closer, seemed to sense something.
An invisible, terrifying pressure surged in her heart.
'Something... something can take my life.'
'Is it this damned human before me?'
'How could that be?'
'Last time, he could only abandon his summoned beast just to escape.'
'How could he kill me now?'
While Tagitsu Hime hesitated, wondering if she should slow down and observe...
...her Senjutsu Chakra Mode suddenly screamed a warning.
'Something is coming!'
BOOM!
A crimson beam of rainbow light lanced through, illuminating the cave.
The beam shot straight out of the cave, piercing the distant cliff face and burrowing deep into the rock amidst a shower of debris.
The sonic boom generated in the confined space instantly killed countless weak snakes.
The cave in front of Motomu looked as if a tunnel boring machine had ripped through it.
A circular tunnel, three meters wide and nearly a hundred meters long, appeared before him.
As a massive cloud of dust was swept out of the cave by the gale, Motomu's Big Eyeball, its Sharingan wide, clearly captured the scene.
In the center of the tunnel, Tagitsu Hime—missing an arm and the right half of her body—stared at Motomu in shock.
"A million ryo, and she dodged it that easily?"
"Tagitsu Hime, you truly are a subordinate of the Ryuchi Cave Sage."
'Dodged?'
'You've got to be kidding me!'
Her ears ringing, Tagitsu Hime listened to Motomu's casual remark.
'If I hadn't anticipated it and barely shifted my body to avoid a lethal blow, the consequences would have been unthinkable.'
'That attack would have flayed the skin off a Tailed Beast.'
'Even a Tailed Beast Bomb wouldn't be much more powerful than that!'
"Since you're not dead, let's start this adrenaline-fueled battle already!"
"I can't wait any longer!"
"Tagitsu Hime! Come!"
"Show me your full strength!"
Motomu's trash talk continued to ring in her ears.
Mortally wounded, Tagitsu Hime stumbled; unable to maintain her human form, she slowly transformed into a Great White Snake.
Though she used Senjutsu regeneration to stop the bleeding, her injuries were far too severe.
A massive chunk of her upper body had been carved away.
Half of her lungs were gone.
If such an attack came again and she failed to dodge, she would certainly die.
Glaring at Motomu, Tagitsu Hime's eyes grew cold as she seemed to realize something.
'Hehehehe...'
'An attack like that... there's no way this kid didn't pay a price for it.'
'It looks like he can't fire it again.'