Orochimaru

Sakura's words immediately made the three arrogant Rain Ninja's faces turn ugly. Before, seeing that Sakura and her companions were young and looked immature, they guessed they were newbies who had just graduated and thought they could take advantage of them, thinking that as long as they were slightly intimidated, Sakura and her companions would obediently hand over the scroll. Unexpectedly, this pink-haired girl in front of them was not as weak as she looked, and her words were such a strong expulsion right from the start.

Was he a reckless newcomer, fearless like a newborn calf, or did he have something to rely on? The leader of the Rain Ninja suddenly had a bad feeling.

"You bastards, you're so arrogant even though you're incompetent! Let me teach you a lesson!" The tall young Rain Ninja in the lead suppressed his unease and said fiercely. Then he threw the umbrella on his back into the air, put his hands together, and quickly Hand Seals!

"Ninja Art: Rain Shower Senbon!"

The umbrella opened and spun in the air, and in Sakura's perception, a large amount of Chakra gathered and condensed into countless Senbon, which poured down like a torrential rain as the umbrella spun! The endless Senbon instantly enveloped Sakura's vision.

A devastating number! Senbon came crashing down on the three of them.

Sasuke sneered, turned and exchanged a glance with Naruto, then simultaneously Hand Seals in perfect unison:

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!" "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!" -- "Wind and Fire Great Breakthrough!"

This combined attack technique was used by the two of them when they faced the Demon Brothers last time. However, after all that time, Sasuke and Naruto are no longer the same as before. This move is far superior to that one in terms of both momentum and power!

The gale, sharp as a knife, howled and cleaved the ground, carving deep furrows and whipping up countless flying sand and stones. The fireball suddenly expanded in the wind, its blazing flames burning even brighter, as if the air itself had been dried up! The fireball, twenty meters in diameter, accompanied by the gale, met the oncoming Senbon with a ferocious force that seemed to consume everything!

The clash of Ninjutsu was decided in an instant. Thousands upon Senbon could not shake the massive fireball. The Senbon that entered the fireball were instantly vaporized, while those that passed by were swept back by the gale and rushed towards the three Rain Ninja along with the raging fireball!

The Rain Ninja was stunned by the insane Great Fireball, and only at the last moment did they remember to block it.

Boom--!

"Aaaaaah--!" The hastily erected Water Formation Wall couldn't even block the fireball for a second. The fireball slammed into the three Rain Ninja, and the three screamed as they were burned to ashes!

No, not three. Her emerald eyes indifferently surveyed the two corpses lying on the ground. Sakura's brows furrowed slightly; she sensed that the leader of the Rain Ninja had escaped Substitution Technique at the last moment. Her slender hands silently Hand Seals, and Sakura said calmly, "The last one, I'll handle it."

Rain Ninja landed awkwardly on a hidden tree, her hands and body covered in burn marks, her once arrogant hair now a tangled mess from the high fever.

Gasping for breath, Rain Ninja tried to calm the fear and anger in her heart. "Huff, huff! Damn demon! I must kill him--"

Rain Ninja's words came to an abrupt halt, for he was suddenly horrified to find a chilling Kunai pressed against his neck!

"Who are you going to kill?" A beautiful figure had already quietly appeared behind Rain Ninja.

Rain Ninja trembled all over, his eyes wide and shaking as he turned around to see the Water Clone staring blankly at him with indifferent eyes. The beautiful face that had once looked so delicate and vulnerable had now become a vengeful ghost! Rain Ninja clasped his trembling hands together, wanting to make a final struggle, but then he saw the Water Clone's thin, bloodless lips tremble slightly, and a faint voice reached his ears.

"Goodbye."

Blood blossoms, blooming in the air as the final radiance of life.

Having ended the battle with the Rain Ninja in a resounding victory, Sakura felt no excitement whatsoever. In her eyes, the Rain Ninja trio's clumsy strength wasn't even a dangerous appetizer. Perhaps they displayed sufficient power during training—at least the leader's Ninjutsu was passable—but they severely lacked practical combat experience. Perhaps they thought their Senbon Rain Technique could handle everything; when faced with the enemy's counter- Ninjutsu, they acted like rookies on their first battlefield experience—they really were novices—responding utterly foolishly!

Sakura herself deeply understands this. Before Kakashi's first exam, she believed she had reached the level of Special Jōnin based on her training performance. However, when it came to actual combat, she found that she might not be able to defeat an ordinary Chunin.

Unfortunately, the three Rain Ninja will probably only be able to experience this insight underground.

After killing the Rain Ninja trio, the intense unease in the air didn't lessen; instead, it intensified. Silence descended; suddenly, even the chirping of birds and insects ceased. None of the three dared to search for the Rain Ninja's scrolls. Instead, they stood back-to-back, holding Kunai, vigilantly watching their surroundings.

"Come out! We've found you!" Sakura said through gritted teeth.

Boom! The attack suddenly started from underground. A giant snake, as thick as four people could hug, burst out of the ground beneath Sakura's feet, opening its blood-red maw to bite the three of them!

In a flash, Sakura kicked Naruto had lost his balance and fallen into the snake's mouth, away, then grabbed Sasuke's hand and used the momentum to jump far away!

Naruto!

Sakura and Sasuke landed on an open area, while Naruto was nowhere to be found. The giant snake's enormous body blocked Sakura's view, dividing the battlefield into two parts!

"Instead of worrying about others..." A ninja in a kimono suddenly appeared on the giant snake's head, looking down at Sakura and Sasuke, and said coldly, "I think you should worry about yourselves first!"

The sheer volume of Chakra, as deep and unfathomable as an abyss, and its cold, insane quality made Sakura's heart skip a beat! Without a doubt, this man, whose aura Zabuza and terrifying than Zabuza's, was Orochimaru!

He simply stood casually on the giant snake's head, radiating his murderous aura, which terrified Sakura and her companion, rendering them unable to move, like frogs being stalked by a snake!

In an instant, Sakura felt as if she were in a deep, suffocating ocean. The surrounding air seemed to have turned into seawater, pressing down on her with immense pressure, rendering her unable to move! The murderous aura permeating the open space transformed into countless needles piercing her brain and body, causing a painful, piercing sensation on every inch of her skin! Uncontrollable, endless fear assailed Sakura, and she felt her body go limp, collapsing to her knees!

It took Sakura a full two seconds to recover from the mental pressure of the murderous aura. Those two short seconds felt like an eternity to her!

Although she had already witnessed Zabuza's killing intent, compared to Orochimaru, Zabuza's killing intent was child's play. The difference between Kage Level and non- Kage Level was an insurmountable gap! Moreover, this time, instead of Kakashi acting as Sakura's emotional support, Sakura herself had to become Sasuke's emotional support. Because at this moment, Sasuke was even more pathetic than Sakura, who had already recovered from the shock; he was kneeling on the ground, dry heaving!

In contrast... after adapting to this aura, Sakura's spirits actually became high! No matter how calm Sakura usually appeared, deep down she harbored a profound pride and could not accept her brief submission to Orochimaru's murderous intent! The extraordinary mental power within her body, like a tightly compressed spring, would rebound violently once the pressure was reduced!

An indomitable fighting spirit began to burn fiercely!

"This aura... you're far more powerful than Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura's pale face gradually regained its color. Facing the world's strongest ninja, she found herself surprisingly calm. "A powerful ninja who wields snakes... there's only one person left in this world! You must be Sannin, one of the Orochimaru!"

"Hahaha! How interesting! There are so many qualified ninjas!" Orochimaru licked his lips, a smile of interest spreading across his face.

Interesting! Really interesting! This seemingly naive girl before him possesses such a resilient spirit! Orochimaru gazed with amusement at the girl who stood tall amidst his murderous aura, recalling the information Kabuto had given him. Sasuke was a body he coveted, Sharingan had always been something he coveted. However, this girl named Sakura could actually surpass the talented Sasuke in both strength and spirit! This piqued even the Kage Level Genin.

Unfortunately, it was eventually discovered that Sakura Haruno didn't possess any extraordinary talent in terms of physical attributes. Her talent lay in her Yamato and the bursts of inspiration in her mind. In Sakura, Orochimaru saw a rare glimpse of a kindred spirit. From her stubborn eyes, Orochimaru saw a similar untamed spirit, a disdain for traditional Ninjutsu, a tireless pursuit of new Ninjutsu, a desire to explore the world, and an impressive talent for developing Ninjutsu!

In a sense, Sakura and Orochimaru are the same kind of people: they are full of curiosity to explore the truth and scoff at tradition and authority.

Orochimaru didn't know was that for Sakura, a transmigrator and someone who had studied physics in her previous life, having such a mindset was perfectly normal. After all, the history of physics she had learned from beginning to end told her that the theoretical systems of the past were meant to be overthrown, no matter how ingenious they were! The common point of the two greatest theories of the last century was that they shattered, destroyed, and then rebuilt the common sense of billions of people on Earth!

The trembling in her body had gradually subsided. Sakura, supporting Sasuke, coldly stared at Orochimaru and said, "As one of the Sannin Orochimaru the Cold-Blooded, you have long since betrayed the village! What is your purpose here now?"

"What I want is here!" Orochimaru stared at Sasuke with burning eyes, making no attempt to hide his desire!

"Things? What things?" Sasuke asked uneasily under Orochimaru's almost tangible gaze.

"So that's you—" Orochimaru laughed wildly and maniacally!

" --Uchiha, Sasuke! You're the one I want!"

With his body writhing like a snake, Orochimaru swiftly attacked Sasuke!