However, for Orochimaru, Naruto's progress was still insignificant.
With a mere sway of his body, Orochimaru easily dodged Naruto's attack, while simultaneously swinging his hand back, dispersing countless shadow clones into clouds of smoke that vanished into the air.
Though Naruto struggled with all his might, he was still powerless against Orochimaru's overwhelming strength, and was ultimately sent flying with a heavy punch, tumbling through the air several times before barely landing on the ground.
"Damn it!" Naruto gritted his teeth as he got up, the red chakra around him surging even more violently, a single tail already quietly taking shape, as if on the verge of erupting at any moment.
"I can't have you causing trouble here." Orochimaru's eyes sharpened, and he instantly appeared before Naruto, his hands forming hand seals rapidly as he prepared to cast a sealing technique. "Five Elements Seal!"
With Orochimaru's command, the Nine-Tails' chakra within Naruto was instantly suppressed by a powerful force, and the single tail slowly retracted.
"It would be troublesome if the Nine-Tails got out."
Orochimaru casually tossed Naruto aside and turned his gaze back to Sasuke.
"Accept my gift, Sasuke-kun. This is the power you've been dreaming of."
Orochimaru grinned, his sharp fangs poised at Sasuke's neck, ready to forcibly inject the Cursed Seal into him.
At that moment, despair filled Sasuke's heart as he foresaw the fate awaiting him.
"Damn it, I haven't gotten my revenge yet."
Meanwhile, in the chat group, everyone stared intently at the livestream screen, filled with anxiety and worry.
[This is too strange, this guy is like a snake.]
[Sasuke-kun is in danger.]
[Can anyone save him?]
A smile spread across Orochimaru's face, his sharp fangs glinting coldly as they were about to sink into Sasuke.
But at that critical moment, Orochimaru suddenly sensed a flash of golden light before his eyes.
Immediately after, a lazy voice sounded behind him.
"Ara ara, this kid is under my protection, Orochimaru-san. Could you be so kind as to show some mercy and let him go?"
As the words faded, specks of golden particles drifted through the air, gradually coalescing into a figure—Roy.
He had appeared behind Orochimaru with a casual demeanor, as if completely unconcerned about the imminent danger.
Orochimaru's expression grew peculiar; he couldn't quite gauge this mysterious figure who had suddenly appeared.
Given his own strength, he should have been able to sense anyone approaching, yet Roy had so easily appeared behind him, which shocked him deeply.
"How terrifying, Orochimaru-san." Roy maintained his sardonic tone. "But, could you do this old man a favor and let the kid go?"
Orochimaru observed Roy carefully for a moment, then a strange smile suddenly curled at the corner of his mouth.
"I am Orochimaru, one of the Sannin. Who do you think you are, some nobody, to order me around?" Orochimaru's words dripped with disdain.
He once again aimed his sharp fangs at Sasuke, clearly having no intention of granting Roy any face.
However, after having his request refused, Roy's expression turned troubled.
"How disappointing. I was hoping I could be like that Red-Haired guy and get everyone to show me some respect."
Roy muttered to himself, and just as Orochimaru was about to bite Sasuke, his body suddenly dissolved into particles of light, flickering and vanishing from the spot.
Orochimaru, while still focused on Sasuke, closely monitored everything around him.
He thought to himself: This time, I will definitely see through this strange person's movements!
But Roy's speed far exceeded Orochimaru's imagination.
"Speed is power, Orochimaru-san." Roy's voice sounded leisurely, this time seeming to transcend the bounds of time and space.
Before the words had even faded, a figure moving at light speed had suddenly appeared before Orochimaru, moving so fast it seemed to surpass the passage of time itself.
Roy's leg erupted with tremendous force, a kick striking Orochimaru like a meteor impact, sending him flying like a kite with its string cut.
Roy's attack was so fast that Orochimaru's senses couldn't even register the sound; the afterimage of Roy about to strike still lingered in his eyes, yet his body was already uncontrollably blasted away by that overwhelming, irresistible force.
Before fear could even take root in his heart, that power had cruelly stripped him of his ability to think.
"Boom!" "Boom!"
Accompanied by deafening roars, a dazzling laser suddenly burst forth from the direction Orochimaru had been kicked.
The laser rampaged through the forest, snapping trees in half wherever it passed, sending sparks flying and dust swirling, creating a terrifying scene of devastation.
Finally, with unmatched force, the laser blasted Orochimaru deep into the forest, instantly turning the area into scorched earth, with flames leaping skyward and thick smoke billowing, as if even the sky had been stained a gloomy gray.
A hurricane swept out from the center of the explosion, its destructive force uprooting surrounding trees and hurling them into the distance.
"Ara~lele, seems I overdid it." Roy stood in place, looking at the scene of destruction before him with a somewhat helpless expression.
But as a transmigrator, he was someone who valued respect, and Orochimaru had shown him none. How could he tolerate that?
On the other side, the hurricane triggered by Roy's single strike began to sweep across the entire Forest of Death, felling trees like matchsticks wherever it went.
"Wh-What the hell is going on?" Shikamaru used his arm to shield his eyes, which were nearly forced shut by the blast of heat, a strong sense of unease surging within him.
It wasn't just the young examinees participating in the Chunin Exams; even the slow-to-react Konoha Village now sensed something amiss, looking up toward the sky, shock etched on every face.
"Who is it? Or is it a tailed beast? Has the Nine-Tails gotten out?"
Inside the Hokage's office, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, wore a grim expression, his eyes betraying a mix of surprise, anger, and a flicker of difficult hesitation.
He speculated to himself, "Is it Orochimaru? Or… Danzo?"
The Third Hokage frowned deeply. As the highest authority in Konoha Village, he had already pieced together clues from various sources, but even so, the scene before him exceeded his worst expectations.
After much deliberation, the Third Hokage sighed helplessly.
He immediately ordered the Anbu to relay information at top speed, summoning elite jonin like Kakashi and Might Guy to rush to the Forest of Death to handle any greater crisis that might arise.
Meanwhile, deep within the Forest of Death, Sasuke had witnessed that earth-shattering explosion. Even with his usual calm and composed demeanor, he was left stunned and speechless.
"So this is the strength of an Admiral? Every time I witness it, it fills me with awe and shock."
But just as the shock was beginning to subside, a strange, unnerving hissing sound suddenly arose.
Then, from the wreckage utterly devastated by the explosion, a man whose entire body was scorched by flames began to writhe grotesquely.
With a disturbing twist, Orochimaru emerged from the charred husk like a snake shedding its skin.
"Huff… Huff… What terrifying power! Who exactly are you?"
For once, Orochimaru's usually calm and composed face was now beaded with cold sweat.
Clearly, he too had been deeply shaken by that force rivaling a tailed beast's strike, realizing he might be facing an unprecedented, formidable opponent.
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