章 13: Chapter 13
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Two Years after Naruto and Karin's departure from Konoha.
"It's the beginning of the end of the world as we know it."
Madara's voice is almost like a lance through anyone's confidence. His self-assuredness of everything he speaks of is so absolute that he can make the impossible sound like childsplay.
Pain does not like Madara. The prophetic wisdom of the century-old madman had correctly determined that the world would indeed remain in eternal conflict. The freedoms granted to those with power to rule over the weak and make them suffer is unjust and wicked. Something truly evil lies within the core of Shinobi culture.
The Ancient Uchiha had warned them in the past and they hadn't heeded it. Yahiko's death was an inevitable happening if they'd continued to chase Jiraiya's pretty words of peace, and they'd fallen into it foolishly. Yahiko's dream lives on, but it has shed the weakness bound to it by the philosophy of peace through understanding. The Shinobi World would never truly be free from endless hatred unless ruled with a fist and will so mighty that even a God could not twist fate to change it.
Pain hates Madara for planting the seeds of this mess within him. He hates how right the man has always been. He despises him for dragging him away from his ideals and showing him the dark truth of the world. Pain's mind has been irreparably changed and he knows it, but can't for the life of him see what was ever good about what they'd been trying to do so many years ago.
But a God in the making cannot falter. It is far too late to whimsically think that perhaps there is a good in people that can be used to bring peace. There will always be evil souls that cannot accept transcend their desire for ever more.
He is a fledgling God. He has not come into his own power yet. That is the only reason that Madara still secretly has the reins. Pain is but a child compared to the legendary prowess of a virtually mythical warlord. But it wouldn't last forever, and soon Madara would understand that things will go the way that the God of Pain desires them to. If Madara defies him, then he will regret opening Pain's eyes to evil in the first place.
"You know what to do." Madara's every action is an order to those who interact with him. Whether it be a partonizing finger-wag or slippery double-meaning sentence, no-one dares to refuse him. Yet.
Madara vanishes into the rain and lightning of Amegakure's overcast sky.
Out of the corner of his eyes, he sees Konan give a tiny slouch of relief.
Pain activates his communication Jutsu and soon every member of his Akatsuki is spiritually present.
"Akatsuki. We are now a mere few months from enacting our plan to capture the Jinchuuriki and Bijuu. Make your final preparations."
Zetsu's dual-tone voice chirps and growls. "We figured out who's good for getting the Jinchuuriki! Listen closely kids- Pain-sama agrees that the teams are appropriate for your tasks."
"Deidara and Sasori will be taking the Ichibi."
"About time, un!" Deidara gives a dramatic hair flip that can barely be seen through the holographic lens of Pain's Jutsu.
Pain continues without pause. "Hidan and Kakuzu, you will continue to search for the Nibi Jinchuuriki. Do not engage it while Jiraiya is present. Underestimating that man will result in failure."
"Keh!" Hidan practically spits. "Some old war relic shouldn't underestimate the power of JASHI-"
"Shut up Hidan." Kakuzu nearly snarls in annoyance.
"Kakuzu you damn dirty heathen!"
"Enough." Pain orders stoically. Some of them he'd recruited himself and they now know to listen when he speaks.
Predictably, silence echoes.
"Itachi, Kisame. You will go to the east border of Tsuchi no Kuni and capture the Gobi Jinchuuriki. We have received information that his training in the use of the Gobi's chakra has ostracized him from Iwagakure, so he is hiding somewhere in the mountains."
Pain cannot see Itachi's face, but he knows there is something dangerous lurking in those eyes that are oh-so-similar to Madara's. Like a cornered animal ready to fight. Madara has promised to keep him in order.
"Understood, Leader." Kisame speaks for the pair of them.
He drolly gives out the order that they are not to engage the Jinchuuriki until the previous one is sealed.
The fate of the world is banked on this plan. There can be no room for failure.
Land of Hot Water, Forest Outskirts.
Karin doesn't like it when Naruto is frustrated. She knows that he gets frustrated when he hits a block in his training or anything else that's important to him. Everything Shinobi-related came to him with ease, with the exception of the ability to heal. His prowess with the Mokuton had excelled, his Sharingan more refined than ever. His Taijutsu was so monstrous that she honestly doubted anyone could defeat him in the art at this point.
But the things that he couldn't do really mattered to him. He sees her scars as his personal responsibility and for some reason that she can't comprehend, resents himself for his failure to help her.
There hadn't been anything that he could not conquer through his sheer will. Not once did he give up trying to master Senju Hashirama's Jutsu. Never did he pause in his pursuit of mastery of Ninjutsu. He never stops believing in himself, even when the chance of him being successful is to his mind, 'low'.
And without hesitation or fear of rejection, he'd asked her on their first date. The best day of her life, though he insists there are more to come once they're finally home, away from the brutal training regime he's putting the both of them through. Once he's confident that her battle senses are refined enough to protect herself without his or anyone else's help.
Success is what drives him. And now he has met something that he has struggled to find even a smidgeon of success.
So she had been immensely happy to discover that his month-long moping mood had been completely destroyed after they'd gotten into a fight with Orochimaru's henchmen of all people. Although it'd taken a few days to discover why, and even now she didn't really understand. Naruto had rattled off on a ranting lecture about 'chakra interconnectivity' that had flown over her head but it seemed to perk him up so much that she couldn't help but smile at his improved confidence.
"We finally found you, fucking shithead." The absolutely lovely and polite pinkish-red-haired girl.
"Unfortunately you're too late to receive an autograph," Naruto drolls boredly. "Please refrain from using expletives, my interviewer won't be able to record the contents of our conversation."
He gestures to Karin, who rolls her eyes at him winding up his opponents like usual.
"Very funny, dickhead."
Karin inspects the girl. Well, old enough to nearly be an adult at least. Her chakra is almost poisoned. Threaded together with a vile entity similar to the other three chakra signatures dotted around them. Their chakra writhes in synchronised restlessness, not battling its hosts as much as tempting them. As if the chakra is whispering to them, begging them to let it take control.
The face of this girl is as restless as this chakra. Dark bags under her eyes her greasy hair led Karin to believe that she doesn't take much time to take care of herself. Cracked, pale lips and numerous creases on her skin are just a few features that make her look deprived of the self-help that she looks like she needs.
And she's twitchy. Although that could be a side-effect of finding Naruto, a chakra monster in human skin.
"Orochimaru's pets, hmm?" Naruto drones without care. "I suppose it makes sense that you were looking for me. Your owner is too scared of Jiraiya and the Nibi to go after Sasuke, so he thinks that I will be a suitable replacement for his perverse goals."
The Gunbai strapped to his back clinks slightly, tied to his back around his waist with white fabric attached to the hilt.
"Although I suppose that as weak, pathetic and sniveling he is, of course he will seek out my power. He has a long history of failure, and I'll be glad to give him his last."
His taunting has a predictable effect on the rabid and unprofessional strike team. Two more equally gruesome looking men leap out of the trees and the third remains up in the trees. Deathly pale skin and sickly appearances are a bounty, but their demeanor is self-assured. They are truly delusional to think that they might be capable of defeating Naruto. But there's an unusual synergy between their chakra, and Naruto is seemingly curious.
"I'll give you some space." Karin leans up and pecks her enormously tall boyfriend on the cheek. "Don't take too long, I'm getting hungry."
She vanishes from sight, leaving only a small pile of leaves floating peacefully to the ground. And a gigantic arrow where she'd been standing.
"She's getting quite adept with my Substitution Jutsu." Naruto comments, seemingly to himself. He inspects the arrow briefly and sees that it had some impressive velocity to bury itself nearly completely into the earth and leave a web of cracks.
A song on a flute begins to play out and Naruto feels the chakra trying to manipulate his own. He finds some amusement in it. Such weaklings wouldn't be capable of affecting his chakra, not when he has finally perfected his control of it.
Naruto leaps back into the air, deftly jumping over the tall orange-haired one as he tries to take a shot at him from behind.
"It might take more than that to catch me." Naruto's mocking rendition of an encouraging tone resounds loudly.
With his refined sense, he ducks under another arrow.
"That was close." The smile in his voice is equally clear.
"JUST FUCKING TRANSFORM ALREADY!" The redhead screams at all of them.
Without a hand seal or cue, the Sound Four are engulfed by the vile chakra produced from the Juin. Their physical transformation is something fascinating, but more so is that they seem to be drawing strength from each other as well. Their chakra resonates, not unlike his and Karin's do when they're in a good mood and in close contact with each other. It is a phenomena that Naruto had originally chalked up to the natural resonance between them because of their Uzumaki lineage. But these Shinobi are making him think that there might be more to it than that if they can artificially extend a bond to people of completely different blood and chakra types.
'Orochimaru's Juinjutsu. I finally get to see it in action.'
"Doton Kekkai: Doro Domu(Earth Release Barrier: Earth Prison Dome)."
A two-story high earthen dome forms around Naruto, dense and blocking out all sunlight. He feels the tug on his chakra, trying to drain it from him.
Ghostly and demonic phantom worm-like creatures sprout out of the ground. The many mouths bite at Naruto and he feels no pain, but notices that they attempt to grab his chakra and pull it out more viciously than the earth dome is. He smiles, understanding their little game. Drain him of chakra to make it an easy capture, but they should be fully aware that they would need to come at him with intent to kill if they want him brought to Orochimaru. The snake should have come himself, he might put up a fight before Naruto skins him alive.
Naruto uses only his willpower to drag his chakra back into himself. Something like this is juvenile compared to the powers of the Rinnegan, his current goal to awaken.
He sinks into the ground like it's not even there.
The four on the outside observe the dome impatiently.
"It's not working," Jirobo mutters, hands buried in the dome. "He's not giving up a drop."
"Let us in Jirobo. He can't fight us and hold on to his chakra." Sakon stands ready, now seperated from Ukon and both in their fully transformed states.
Sakon and Ukon run into the barrier of earth and it lets them slip in. Unknown to them, Naruto observes this interaction and how the Jutsu didn't need to be deactivated in order to let in the similar chakra-wielders.
The inside is pitch-black but the 'twins' experimentally enhanced eyes allow them some clarity. Not that it did them any good seeing as Naruto isn't in the damn dome.
Kidomaru is still perched in the tree when Naruto's head rises out of the branch.
He doesn't have a moment to speak when Naruto's Sharingan forces him to stop.
"Sharingan: Fuseikoi(Malfeasance)."
Kidomaru tries to scream out to them and protect them but the arrow fires at Tayuya before he can muster any control over himself.
But as it turned out he didn't need to. Tayuya was already sending her Doki summons his way as soon as he was put under the Genjutsu. Not only that but the rest of the team launches into action too. The barrier falls and they all converge on his location.
Naruto is now more curious than ever.
'I'm positive that they couldn't all have sensed me in the tree. This is just a tiny Mokuton Bunshin.'
He lets the Doki shatter his wood clone and observes silently, close but with his chakra clamped down completely.
'They have no idea that I'm here, so they don't have any sensory prowess that goes beyond feeling my chakra.'Naruto assesses their tactics.'But as soon as I put the archer in a Genjutsu, they all knew where I was.'
Naruto places a hand on the branch he's standing on and subtly moves some chakra under the redhead's foot.
A small stick pokes at her foot, unnoticeable to anyone but her but the archer is leaping away before the girl is.
'Does their curse mark make them have some kind of... chakra hivemind?'
It could be plausible. The marks all emit the same chakra but take unique transformations tailored to its bearer's chakra nature, manifesting as a variety of body morphing. None of them have the same horns, skin tone and strange marks. But Naruto doesn't know of any chakra besides a Bijuu's that can not only serve as an extrasensory connection between a number of skilled Shinobi but also physically transform them. And he knows for a fact that this strange and powerful chakra is not that of any Bijuu.
Theoretically, he could apply this knowledge in his attempts to heal Karin's scars. By resonating his chakra with hers, he might be able to take advantage of her own special chakra and force it to heal her on his behalf. A union between their chakra could share the qualities of it. Of course, his chakra would completely swamp hers, but the theory is there for him to attempt.
Now, if only he can figure out what this strange chakra coming from the Shinobi is. There is a tinge of Orochimaru's foulness in there, but it mostly seems to be some kind of augmentation that boosts the power of its wielder. The Sound Four are jittering on the spot, always in motion or using Ninjutsu or Genjutsu. Like they're afraid to stand still. Well, Naruto just so happens to have the tools required to test them.
He grabs his Gunbai, channeling sharp wind chakra to its edge and gives one wide swing.
The Sound Four have a mere second before a colossal gale of wind erupts from behind the trees. A wide net of wind chakra spreads outwardly with tangible blades whisping around in it erratically.
Tayuya is hit first. Her flute shreds into pieces while tree trunks and branches are sent flying at her. The concussive force blasts her away and she receives deep cuts on her enhanced skin before she can get out of the cone of effect. Kidomaru tries webbing himself too but it proves ineffective against the gale. Jirobo proves to be the best at blocking it, creating a thick earthen wall that the razor wind only cuts through so much before being halted. The conjoined twins in the ground merge, and while they're cut up the most it's what happens next that gives Naruto's theory more validity.
"He's gone again. I can't feel him." Spider-guy reveals. He crafts a new flute from his hardened web with practiced ease and gives it to the bleeding redhead.
Tayuya barks out that she needs healing, and Naruto observes in fascination as Sakon and Ukon start healing themselves rapidly.
The three other Shinobi have no healing chakra nature. Naruto has discerned as much with his Mind's Eye of the Kagura, but they all start healing at exactly the same pace.
"You Four are quite interesting." Naruto's voice calls out to them, hidden under the debris of trees made by the veritable typhoon.
"Come out and fight us fair and square you cocksucker!" Tayuya screams at him.
"Be careful what you wish for. This is your chance to flee and live another day. I can't guarantee that I won't kill you once you're at my feet and defeated." Naruto would kill them of course, but he can be merciful if they choose to leave of their own accord.
"Orochimaru-sama does not permit failure." Sakon and Ukon speak in eerie unison.
"What is Orochimaru compared to you?" Naruto nearly coos to them. "You could be so much more than just his slaves. All you need to do is take that power from him. Think of a life without slavery, without the suffering he inflicts on all those who have the misfortune of being associated with him. The freedom to choose your fate is the gift a very wise and powerful man gave humanity long ago. Do you think him to be a god? Do you think that he will not discard you when it suits him best? He sent you to die by my hands, to be nothing more than a distraction to gauge my power. Live for yourselves and you will truly be greater than he could ever imagine."
Naruto feels the curse-marks power completely drown out their own. As he suspected with Sasuke's mark, it affects the mind too.
"SHUT UP YOU DAMN PIECE OF TRASH!"
Jirobo seemingly loses his restraint and draws power from his allies for a Ninjutsu.
"Doton: Domu Goremu(Earth Release: Earth Prison Golem)."
The earth golem is much larger than he was expecting, possibly rivalling the size of his half-body Susanoo. It would have been more impressive if the orange-haired one had created it with his own strength, but Naruto supposes that when he breaks it with ease, it will be demoralizing for this little motley crew. Said group of which are all perched on its shoulders. It stomps forward, with the redheads humanoid summons being beckoned by her new flute to attack him once more.
"How sad." Naruto sighs, rising up out of a branch and stowing his Gunbai. He catches an arrow fired at him with nothing but raw strength and throws it with the same velocity at one of the Doki, killing it and dispelling it for good.
He forms a Snake Seal.
"Mokuton: Mokujin no Jutsu(Wood Release: Wood Human)."
A wooden hand sprouts from the land to block the earth golems punch. It does so effortlessly, and the rest of his wood human begins to rise as well. The chubby humanoid of wood is far wider and distinctly more 'muscular' appearing than the Doton creation. Without pause, the wood creature crushes the earth with veritable ease.
"No-one said that he could use the fucking Mokuton!"
Naruto smiles at that. Of course no-one did. But importantly, his Wood Human is unusually strong against the golem. In fact, it seems to be ravenously eating the chakra of the golem.
He picks up the details with his Sharingan. The Mokujin's arm had grown ever-so-slightly and black leaves hung off of tiny twigs that Naruto knows that this Jutsu doesn't create.
'Only two types of chakra interact with the Mokuton this way.' Naruto narrows his eyes. 'If it's not Bijuu chakra, then it must be...'
"Orochimaru is nothing if not a skilled scientist, it seems." Naruto comments idly. But now that he knows the secret to the power of the curse-mark, there's no point in leaving this lot alive.
Bastardised Senjutsu. All this time, this curse-mark had been a fragment of Orochimaru's power and a weak, easy-to-produce Senjutsu mode. That's why they resonate so well with each other, because they're all using the same pool of power. The curse-mark seems to be designed to provide the benefits of Senjutsu chakra to those without the capacity to learn true Sage Mode. If he can discover the condition at which Sage Chakra is normally absorbed, then he may just have a clue on how to finally learn how to use it for himself.
The creepy jitters that the four are exuding may be the clue that he needs.
"Mokuton: Mokuryuu no Jutsu(Wood Release: Wood Dragon)."
Using the terrain, Naruto forces the fallen trees to meld and become massive serpentine dragons and chase the Oto Shinobi around. He only manages to capture Tayuya, but he calls that a success.
The dragon returns to him, slithering up the Mokujin. The mouth of the dragon becomes a strong set of stocks to hold her completely still.
"NO!" Tayuya screams and tries to flail, but Naruto only tightens its grip on her to prevent any movement at all. Tiny branches worm into her mouth and nostrils, even keeping her eyes clamped open to stop her from blinking.
For a moment, she is completely still. Naruto keeps his Sharingan on her while the Mokujin bats away the other three's attempt to retrieve her, and in that moment he finally understands why his father didn't use Sage Mode against Obito. Her Doki dispel instantly.
She absorbs Senjutsu chakra from nature and it proves too much for her weak body to contain. She turns to stone and dies.
The resonation between the other three weakens.
Naruto's wicked smile is one of a man who has apparently made the greatest discovery of his life. Tayuya's stone statue is released by the wood and it collides with the ground, shattering into pieces.
Jirobo, Kidomaru and Sakon/Ukon all give a final and insignificant stand against him. Without any further use of them, Naruto cuts them all but the big one down.
"You're too late." Jirobo reveals, curse-mark receding as he spits out globs of blood. "You'll cooperate with Orochimaru-sama whether you want to or not-"
"I see." Naruto is unconcerned. "So your owner wants to use Karin against me. He knows that I like to fight alone and thinks I'll give my body to him to save Karin. How naive do you think I am? I wouldn't have let Karin out of my sight if I didn't know she was capable of escaping."
Naruto cleaves his head off with the wind-sharpened edge of his Gunbai.
Karin's face clearly shows her displeasure at the delay.
Kabuto respectfully keeps his distance. Or rather, remains vigil in case Naruto decides to end things quickly.
"Now-now, Uzumaki-chan." Orochimaru soothes. "I'm sure that Naruto-kun will be happy to give me what I want in order to protect you. You are his one weakness, after-all."
"Naruto's already got a girlfriend. Me. So maybe you can go find Jiraiya and beg him to take you back."
"How crude. Perhaps you will be more agreeable in my custody, Sen'ei Jashu(Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)."
Karin weaves around the many snakes sprouting from his shoulders with enviable grace.
Two golden chains sprout from her back.
"Sekiyoujin(Red Yang Formation)."
Crimson chakra forms between the two chains, wobbling like a flag in the wind between them. The chains sweep around and completely disintegrate anything that comes between them, including Orochimaru's snakes.
"That is a Hokage-level barrier Jutsu," Orochimaru observes with a sickly smile. "Getting around the need for several strong Shinobi to cast it is no easy feat and yet you trivialise it with your special chakra. Naruto has trained you well."
Knowing that Orochimaru's snake-style Ninjutsu would be an ongoing problem, Karin creates seven more chains and plants them in the ground around the both of them. The Red Yang barrier shapes like an eggshell, and using these anchors, she supends herself between them before elongating all of the chains until she's well over fifty meters above him. There is a great cracking noise as the chains connect under the surface of the earth, separating the arena from the rest of the ground with the extremely powerful barrier.
"Sekiyou Torikago(Red Yang Birdcage)!" Karin announces, and wills the barrier to close in on the Sannin. The 'walls' get closer slowly, threatening to obliterate him.
"Magnificent!" Orochimaru praises, seemingly genuine this time. He leaps on to the barrier, but launches wind chakra off of his feet to propel himself off of it before he can touch the aggressive red shield. Orochimaru does this several times, getting closer to Karin.
Karin responds by twisting the barrier as if it were a kink in a hose, completely separating herself from the Sannin.
With no more options Orochimaru is forced to allow a snake to swallow him whole before they are consumed entirely by Karin's Jutsu. The snake dispels, taking Orochimaru with it and away from the realm of humans.
Kabuto summons the very same snake on the outside of the barrier.
"Marvelous, truly." Orochimaru says, leaving the mouth of the large snake.
They observe the barrier externally as it dissipates, before the extremely long spider leg-like chains start crawling their way over to them once more. She wouldn't catch him again of-course, seeing as this mode of transport appears to be no faster than running. But it does make quite an intimidating image when he knows how he could have been defeated by that barrier. At least it appears that the chains cannot sprout more chains off of them.
Orochimaru takes off at blurring speed and runs up one of the chains. He is careful to keep on the outside of the effective field for her Jutsu.
"Futon: Kazekiri no Jutsu(Wind Release: Wind Cutter)!" Karin weaves numerous hand-seals.
Oscillating waves of sharp wind chakra pulse down all of the chains in dense halos.
The Sannin hurdles over them with his unnaturally flexible legs, rapidly approaching Karin long-before she can retract the chains.
"Futon: Shinku Tobikomu(Wind Release: Vacuum Dive)!"
Karin plummets to the ground using Naruto's Jutsu.
"Too late, little Uzumaki!" Orochimaru taunts, elongating his neck and shooting an extending blade out of it.
He hears a terrible shrieking noise far too late.
"Futon: Rasenshuriken!"
From the ground, a wildly spinning Wind Jutsu is thrown upwards and whizzes past Karin without touching her. It detonates in the air and creates a massive ball of grinding and shredding wind chakra that Orochimaru simply cannot comprehend for the time being. His blade pings off of the violent ball of chakra, before the shuriken bisects him through the middle.
The one half of Orochimaru's body that isn't turned to fine dust and grool sails down to the ground with wide eyes and lands with a wet slap.
Naruto catches Karin in a bridal-carry and sets her down.
"Thanks, Naru." She mutters, sucking in her lip as she comes off the adrenaline-high of fighting a freakin' Sannin.
"Don't let down your guard just yet." Naruto keeps his eyes on Orochimaru's fallen body, keenly watching as he seems to draw chakra from nothing before regurgitating another version of himself from his mouth.
"You continue to surprise me, Naruto-kun." Orochimaru licks his lips with his long tongue. "It seems you've even mastered the Jutsu that your father could not. I would have died if I were anyone less."
Naruto pays attention to Orochimaru's rising chakra reserves, seemingly absorbing it from nowhere. Too bad he knows better now.
The special link created between Orochimaru and the bearers of the curse-mark allows him to draw power from them at any point. It's not just a discount Sage Mode inducer, it's designed to provide aid to Orochimaru whenever he needs it. If there is synergy between bearers, then it stands to reason that Orochimaru can exploit it better than they can. Perhaps Naruto can exploit it if he has a chat with that Chuunin Exams proctor...
No. It's time to end Orochimaru once and for all. For too long he has been free to cause trouble, and he will continue to be a nuisance if Naruto doesn't put him down now.
"Oh please." Naruto nearly rolls his eyes.
"Too late for flattery? Kukuku~" Orochimaru asks audaciously with a chuckle.
Naruto punches the ground, shattering it open with barely any warning. He drags Kabuto out by his neck and holds him up by it.
"I still haven't paid you back for the Chuunin Exams. You had potential and yet you wasted it with this creature."
"Heh," Kabuto chuckles as well. "Maybe you just don't understand loyalty, Naruto."
Kabuto's chakra scalpel flares to life and Naruto lets it hit his chest, above his heart.
"Predictable." 'Naruto' mutters in contempt, before the wood clone unravels into many flexible but strong branches that wrap Kabuto from head to toe before he can even react.
"Mokuton!" Orochimaru exclaims in excitement. He looks ready to froth at the mouth from the mere thought of possessing Naruto's body.
A light blue sword erupts out of the ground and skewers Orochimaru. He vomits himself out of his own mouth again, drawing power from the other curse-mark bearers across the world.
Finally understanding that Naruto is not to be taken lightly, Orochimaru kicks things off.
"Mandara no Jin(Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes)!" True to its name, thousands of snakes appear from Orochimaru's mouth, seemingly replicating and surrounding him.
Naruto rises up out of the ground, half-body Susanoo armed. "Get going, Karin."
"Right!" Karin dashes off at full speed as opposed to the leisurely walk that got her entangled in a fight.
Naruto considers his course of action. He places his hands in another Snake seal.
"Mokuton Bunshin"
Two of his own head appear out of his broad shoulders, each with a matching pair of arms. Snakes slam ineffectually against his Susanoo but still try to slither underneath.
Each head and pair of arms weaves a Horse seal and lets chakra flow to their lungs and throat.
"Katon: Goka Mekkyaku(Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation)!"
Three great walls of flame blot out any further attack against his Susanoo, but while the visibility is low Orochimaru has taken his opportunity to ramp things up even further.
Naruto reabsorbs his Wood Clone appendages and braces for impact from a large purple snake summon, Manda.
"Summoning me for one measly brat, you're pathetic Orochimaru!" Manda chastises viciously.
"He is no ordinary child." The Sannin narrows his eyes.
Naruto smirks. Maybe Orochimaru can provide some kind of ample challenge after-all.
In Konohagakure, Hokage Tower Meeting Room.
A small assembly of Jounin are discussing the next Chuunin Exams. Everything had been proceeding fairly normally until out of nowhere, one Mitarashi Anko started howling in pain and grasping her neck. She's dry-retching and crying by the time everyone in the room comprehends what's happening.
"Mitarashi!" Tsunade leaps out of her seat. She's diagnosing the Tokubetsu-Jounin before
"He's afraid!" Anko rasps, curling into the fetal position with strain.
"Who's afraid?!" Tsunade asks immediately, finding chakra loss in her but with no obvious source.
Anko wails but says one word before passing out.
"Orochimaru."
"Get me a Fuinjutsu specialist, NOW!"
Land of Hot Water, Border Forest.
Naruto laughs joyously and Orochimaru does not share his appreciation of the battle. The full-body Susanoo stomps forward and meets Manda's attacks blow-for-blow, punching away the snake when it gets too close and throwing it off whenever it gets a tight wrap on the light-blue engine of destruction. Naruto is still suspended in its 'belly' while he weaves a Tiger seal.
"Katon: Goka Messhitsu(Fire Release: Great Fire Destruction)!"
The flamethrower of enormous proportions touches the ground and Manda is forced to stop his attack. The flames burn at the feet of the Susanoo while Naruto remains unharmed and protected by it.
"Perhaps we need to prepare a new assault, Manda." Orochimaru suggests with a scowl.
"Now would be the time if you have any bright ideas!"
Orochimaru waves through a summoning.
"Kuchiyose: Sanju Rashomon(Summoning: Triple Rashomon)!"
Three gates block the line-of-site between Manda and Naruto.
Naruto's grin is near-facesplitting. He clenches his fists and wills his Susanoo to grow in power.
"Behold, Orochimaru! My Perfect Susanoo!"
It grows to the point that it dwarfs Manda entirely, with a wingspan probably equal to Manda's full size. Naruto rises up to the jewel on its head and unleashes a swing of unparalleled destruction. It smashes through the Rashomon with ease, but the concussive damage alone is surprisingly not enough to stop Orochimaru's creative collaboration Ninjutsu.
A giant Sword of Kusanagi sprouts from Manda's mouth, begotten by the same principles that he used to abuse the bond between his subordinates. Naruto bats it away with the left arm of the Susanoo, but the Kusanagi shrinks instantly and spears out again.
"Show me what a master of Snake-Style Ninjutsu can do!" Naruto shouts. Another Snake Seal forms from his hands.
'He's toying with me!' Orochimaru sneers hatefully, feeling fear for the first time since Tsunade had foiled his plans three-years ago.
"Mokuton: Jukai Koutan(Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence)!"
Innumerable massive roots form a bowl under Manda, lifting him up to the eye-level of Naruto's Susanoo.
Manda tries to dive off the cradle of roots, but Naruto quickly draws his other blade and sends another wave of cutting force.
The snake summons' head falls to the ground before its entire body dispels.
Orochimaru decides now is a good time to disengage.
"You're not getting away!" Naruto taunts, taking flight with the Susanoo and swiping with such force that the air drags Orochimaru back down to the ground.
Kabuto realises that the likelihood of Orochimaru-sama surviving is little to none. The shockwaves caused by Naruto's Mangekyou Sharingan power have freed him but even he knows when to quit. Uchiha Naruto cannot be defeated by them right now. It's time to cut his losses and learn to survive on his own. As he always has been.
Naruto retracts his Susanoo and pursues Orochimaru on foot. He is gaining on the Sannin quickly but he knows that given enough time, the pathetic snake will simply absorb everything left from his marked subordinates. He dashes towards him and slams his fingers into the ground, hissing red chakra speeding towards his enemy.
"Uchiha Kaenjin(Uchiha Flame Formation)!"
"You didn't learn from Karin's mistake, Naruto." Orochimaru hisses. "I can simply reverse summon myself out and live another day!"
Famous last words before light blue chains pierce his feet and anchor him to the ground.
Orochimaru's spots flicking chakra at Naruto's feet, making it known that's where the chains are coming from.
"Fuseikoi(Malfeasance)." Naruto mutters, dominating Orochimaru's chakra control with his own oppressive energy and holding him still long enough for The Uchiha to get close.
The Sannin watches with gritting teeth.
"Stop this you fool! You would kill me for Konoha?! A village that reviled your mother for protecting you?!"
"You call me the fool but you brought this upon yourself." Naruto's self-assuredness has Orochimaru shivering. "I might have even left well-enough alone if you hadn't brough Karin into this. But you've been a thorn in my side since I had to flee from you the first time we met and I do not take kindly to an insult against me like that."
"Keiyaku Fuin(Contract Seal)." Naruto slams his open hand against Orochimaru's chest.
Orochimaru looks up. "What did you do?!"
"Exactly what the Jutsu is designed to do." Naruto smiles. "It prohibits you from receiving help from Summons or from anything else that requires a transmission of chakra to or from another being. No clones. No summons. Just you... and me."
One last ditch is what Orochimaru gives, regurgitating the Kusanagi and attacking Naruto with it.
"Amaterasu."
The only things left behind are the Sannin's head and his precious sword.
Twenty minutes later, Naruto catches up with Karin and they finally make their way home to Konoha.
"Yuck! Gross Naruto, get that thing away from me!"
Naruto swings Orochimaru's head around and his elongated tongue slaps Karin on the forehead.
"I'm gonna kill you!"
In Konohagakure, the Hospital.
"She's stable, Tsunade-sama." Sakura breathes a sigh of relief when the inexplicable convulsions finally stop.
Tsunade is still watching Anko closely. The Curse-mark in particular.
Her eyes widen when it starts to peel off of her skin in dead clumps of sickly purple chakra.
"Oh my god..." She trembles.
"Tsunade-sama? What's this?"
Tsunade turns to her apprentice.
"The mark. If it's gone then that means the person who gave it was sealed before they died! They have no anchor to come back to so it's disappearing on its own!."
"So that means-" Sakura is stunned, as are Anko's friends checking on her condition.
"Orochimaru is dead."
Uchiha Naruto. Age: 16.
Threat Level: S-Rank.
Affiliation: Konohagakure no Sato.
Officer Status: Jounin.
Known Relatives: Namikaze Minato(Father, Deceased). Uzumaki Kushina(Mother, Deceased). Uchiha Madara(Maternal Grandfather, Unknown Status). Uzumaki Karin(Partner).
Appearance: Fair skin. Thigh-length spiky black hair parted to cover his right eye. Sharingan active at all times. Muscular physique, approx 195cm tall. Typically seen with a high-collared black coat.
Bounty Issue -
Otogakure: 65,000,000 Ryo.
Kumogakure: 50,000,000 Ryo.
Iwagakure: 62,000,000 Ryo.
*To be paid on delivery of proof of his capture or death.
Reason for Issue -
Otogakure: Assasination of the leader of Otogakure, Orochimaru.
Kumogakure: None Provided.
Iwagakure: None Provided.
Kekkei Genkai -
Mangekyou Sharingan.
Mokuton.
Uzumaki Body and Chakra.
Combat Capabilities -
Katon and Futon Mastery.
Taijutsu Master.
Suspected control over all five basic Chakra Natures.
Barrier-Ninjutsu.
Fuinjutsu Specialist.
Chakra Masking Technique.
Enhanced Sensory Prowess.
Combat Warning: FLEE ON SIGHT. Only engage with large numbers and by surprise. Do not engage with intent to endure. Uchiha Naruto's Chakra capacity surpasses all known Kage. DO NOT LOOK HIM IN THE EYES.
Jiraiya feels his knees give out and he drops the Bingo Book given to him by one of his spies one town over.
"I think it's high-time that we make our way home." He says breathlessly.
"Jiraiya-sensei?" Sasuke questions, holding a stick with a fish on it up to his mouth that'd been cooking on their fire.
Knowing that Jiraiya has been shaken, Sasuke opens the marked page and chokes violently on his bite of fish.
Kakashi sips his sake benignly through his mask. Everyone assembled at the table in the restaurant is annoyed that he has somehow managed to circumvent the common thought that he'd need to take the mask off. Shizune bites her lip in not-so-disguised amusement.
They're having a little get-together for Anko, who demanded a celebration at being free from Orochimaru's Curse-Mark. Weeks of investigation and diagnosis yielded no result but with Anko in a better and happier mood than ever, they were happy to let her treat them to one of the more classy joints in Konoha.
"That's bullshit!" Anko accuses, finger pointed directly at him.
"Ara?" Kakashi drawls, eye curling up in amusement.
"I'll take the damn thing off myself!" Anko leaps over the table, only to be held back by Kurenai, Genma and Gai.
Shizune giggles and leans on his shoulder. Looks like she's had too much tonight, judging by the flushed look. The glance she gives him makes him grateful that Sakura is babysitting tonight.
Kakashi leaps up however when the door to the restaurant is slammed open by Hayate and Yugao, both looking deathly pale.
"Wha's goin' on?" Anko slurs drunkenly, displeased at the interruption of her late guests.
Hayate passes the dog-eared Bingo Book to Kakashi first.
The Copy-Nin scans over the page before looking up with a shaky hand.
"Kakashi?" Gai asks, looking concerned.
He passes the book to Anko. With trepidation, Anko takes it.
Her mouth is moving but not a sound comes out.
There's a minute of worried silence before Anko picks the jug of Sake.
"Here's to you, crazy bastard."
No-one tries to stop her.
"Take my hands." Naruto says softly after promising not to chase her around with Orochimaru's head.
Karin does so, sitting with her legs crossed in front of him.
"I'm glad that we encountered Orochimaru. It was revealing about the nature of Chakra, and now I understand what exactly the religion of Ninshu is. Using our gift of chakra to create, not to destroy."
"What's going on, Naru?" Karin asks him, letting the warmth of his large hands engulf her own.
"Listen." Naruto says quickly. "Listen to my chakra. Listen to it echo within you, and yours within me."
Karin tries to indulge him. She feels phantom tingles in her eyes and on her skin.
"Do you trust me? With your life?"
"Always." Karin hisses at him for daring to question her devotion to him.
"Good. Because this might sting a bit."
Naruto takes a deep breath. Pure white chakra engulfed them both.
"Inochiryoku Saisei(Lifeforce Rebirth)."
Karin blacks out.
She wakes three days later with a worried Naruto hanging over her head.
"Naru?" Karin rasps and Naruto gives her a bottle of water.
"Are you alright? Any pain, blurry spots in your sight? Are you itchy?"
"Yes, no, no and no?" Karin responds confusedly, her hand slapping out clumsily to get her glasses in the same spot that she always puts them.
Only to see that they aren't there. Only to see perfectly that they aren't there. No blurry blobs. Perfect clarity.
She touches her face and finds that no, she isn't already wearing them.
"What?" Karin whispers.
Karin leaps out of bed and runs to the motel room mirror.
She cries and cries, and cries some more.
In her eyes, she sees two perfectly normal scarlet irides, complete with a black pupil in each.
And she truly breaks down when she sees on her skin that there is not one single bite-mark.
Karin doesn't make mention of his ringed, metalic-purple gaze.
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