Cursed Seal

Hidezawa smiled as he watched Yugao, who still seemed slightly dazed, then turned his gaze forward.

Though she wore a mask, Hidezawa knew that this young senior, only a year or two older than him, was quite pretty.

"Are you... are you okay?"

Yugao had no idea that this "junior" of hers was violating Inverted Heavenly Principles by thinking all sorts of nonsense. She asked with some concern.

"And where's Orochimaru?"

"Orochimaru didn't want to waste too much time. He was probably worried about our reinforcements."

Hidezawa spoke softly. Their squads had been stationed close together, which was why they had served as the vanguard. Of course, this was also "part of Danzo's plan."

"So I got lucky and managed to hold out against him."

"That's good, that's good."

Yugao sighed in relief. Though she was somewhat disappointed that Orochimaru had escaped, surviving an encounter with one of the Legendary Sannin was already something worth celebrating.

"Are your injuries serious?"

"Don't worry, I'm fine."

Hidezawa lowered his head and glanced over his body. These "injuries all over him" only made him look a little battered; they were not actually serious.

After all, he had inflicted them himself.

Besides, his physical constitution was strong, and he recovered quickly.

Bang—

As the two spoke, the earthen wall Hidezawa had erected was finally breached. The sound of crumbling stone and roars echoed through the underground laboratory.

Yugao immediately tightened her grip on her ninja blade, but Hidezawa caught her hand.

"Senior, leave this to me."

"You can't. You're injured right now, how could—"

Yugao tried to refuse without a second thought, but Hidezawa shook his head.

"I only just joined, so I'm not familiar enough with working alongside you. I'm worried we might make mistakes. Besides, I don't want you to get hurt again."

"You..."

Hidezawa's words made Yugao's heart race slightly. Did this guy really not care about the occasion when he spoke?

Fortunately, Hidezawa released her hand and headed toward the roaring "Monsters." These people had become neither human nor ghost!

"But I'll still need your support, Senior. Please make sure to help me at the critical moment."

A seasoned hand knew how to handle social graces. On one hand, he pointed out their lack of coordination; on the other, he expressed his need for support.

This would let Yugao save face while still giving her a sense of involvement. Most importantly, Hidezawa could properly test the power of the Cursed Seal!

"And this laboratory was probably researching Cursed Seals too, wasn't it?"

He looked at the Monster-like figures before him, especially the black markings appearing on their bodies and the chaotic, violent aura of natural energy surrounding them.

"Roar!"

As Hidezawa observed them, one of the Monsters roared and charged at him viciously.

"Watch out!"

Yugao immediately called out a warning, but Hidezawa moved at that very moment.

The Cursed Seal on the back of his hand flickered faintly, and in an instant, an aura of natural Chakra emerged around Hidezawa.

Just as described, Hidezawa was not eroded by that violent natural aura. He still retained his own rationality.

"Still, the boost doesn't seem as great as I imagined."

As a Numerical Monster, Hidezawa had an excellent grasp of his own condition. Naturally, he could tell exactly how much this Cursed Seal enhanced him.

"It can probably raise me to the level of an Elite Jonin. If I want to go any further, either I need to improve myself or the Cursed Seal needs to evolve."

The Cursed Seal was comparable to Sage Mode, but Hidezawa could not say which was stronger.

After all, one was gained through external means while the other came through personal cultivation. But Hidezawa knew that this natural power was meant to counter the Mangekyo!

"Roar!"

While he was thinking, a Monster-like ninja suddenly dashed in front of Hidezawa.

His hands had turned into claws, which slashed madly at Hidezawa with terrifying sharpness.

But Hidezawa, also in a "Cursed Seal state," reacted with astonishing speed. The natural power enhanced his perception.

In an instant, he shifted aside and dodged the strike. At the same time, the kunai in his hand stabbed fiercely toward the Monster.

"He's even faster than before?"

Yugao had been watching the battlefield tensely, and she immediately noticed Hidezawa's abnormality. At that moment, she seemed to understand more.

"No wonder he could hold off Orochimaru."

Hidezawa's attack forced the Monster-like ninja to change moves, but Hidezawa did not pursue. Instead, he suddenly tilted his head slightly.

In an instant, another figure appeared behind him, and several tangled threads were severed, drifting through the air.

But Hidezawa paid them no mind. As he twisted away, he formed hand seals one-handed.

"Earth Release: Ant Lion Technique!"

Fueled by natural Chakra, the ground instantly softened and began to spin. One ninja did not even have time to react before being dragged underground.

Seeing this, Hidezawa immediately pressed his index and middle fingers together as Chakra erupted once more.

"Earth Release: Earth Mausoleum Spear!"

Sharp Earth Spikes burst from the once-soft ground. One ninja was covered almost entirely in Cursed Seals, but he could not react in time and was pierced clean through.

At the same time, Hidezawa's kunai suddenly shot out. Accompanied by the whistle of tearing air, a figure strangely slammed right into it!

The kunai pierced straight through the artery in his neck. Blood sprayed past Hidezawa's mask, but at that moment, the last of Orochimaru's test subjects had already pounced.

"Roar!"

With a howl, the test subject smashed a fist viciously toward Hidezawa's head. Yet Hidezawa showed no panic at all.

The instant the fist struck his head, his body shattered apart, leaving only a pile of hardened clods on the ground!

"An Earth Clone? When did he make it? That fast?"

Yugao was completely dumbfounded. This dazzling style of combat had utterly exceeded her expectations.

She felt both happy and helpless. Happy because the situation seemed to be resolved, but helpless because it seemed she really had nothing left to do.

"Mm, they're here?"

On the battlefield, Hidezawa's concealed figure underground suddenly sensed something.

Outside the laboratory, another group of Anbu had rushed in. They were clearly the reinforcements for this operation.

"That works too. It's time to end this."

As he thought, Hidezawa moved sharply. In an instant, he burst from underground. The Level 3 Cursed Seal clearly would not last long.

Bang—

The ground cracked as Hidezawa burst from the earth, his hand seals already complete.

"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"

The howling water dragon crashed fiercely into Orochimaru's final test subject. With a miserable roar, the test subject was violently smashed into the ground.

But the test subject clearly had no intention of surrendering. He flung several kunai at Hidezawa as Hidezawa charged toward him.

Yet Hidezawa was incredibly nimble in his Cursed Seal state. He lightly evaded the desperate counterattack while sprinting forward, and in the next moment, his kunai stabbed viciously into the test subject's head!

At that moment, Hidezawa's retina flickered once more.

Mission completed: Rescue Anbu members