Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!

Perfect coordination!

At this moment, Orochimaru, hidden in the shadow of a tree trunk, suddenly showed a flash of panic and involuntarily stepped back. The ninja's face twisted into a ferocious grin. "Looking for death!"

So close! He had nearly been scared out of his wits. If he hadn't quickly spotted the opponent's flaw, backing down like that would have been utterly humiliating.

A shadow flashed, landing on a thick branch. Just as he grinned viciously and swung his long blade at the seemingly flustered Orochimaru, the latter's face suddenly twisted into a mocking smirk. A chill ran through him—too late.

The hand hidden in his sleeve had already finished forming seals: Boar—Rat—Boar—Rat—Boar. Chakra surged through his body, and in an instant, the panicked Orochimaru's expression shifted to one of cruel amusement as he raised his hand.

"Shadow Snake Hand!"

With a hoarse, mocking laugh, five or six venomous snakes burst from his arm and shot toward him. The fear of Orochimaru, one of the Sannin, surged in his heart. In that moment, the ninja's face twisted in terror.

"Orochimaru!"

A person could be faked—Transformation Jutsu made that easy—but a ninjutsu couldn't be faked! That signature technique shattered the elite chunin's will to fight. He hurled his ninja sword forward, then kicked off hard, leaping backward.

Run!

After seeing that iconic jutsu, he had no doubt it was Orochimaru. All desire to fight evaporated; his mind screamed only one thing: escape!

But just then, a chirping sound erupted behind him—an endless chorus of birds!

"Chidori!"

Squelch! Blood sprayed as the chunin screamed. Lightning turned into a blur that swept past his body, taking one of his arms with it.

"Damn it! Uchiha Yoruro, you still haven't mastered that jutsu!"

The Orochimaru on the branch snapped in irritation, but there was a hint of girlish petulance in his voice. With a puff of white smoke, Anko's figure emerged. The fallen elite chunin, now missing an arm, glared in fury.

"You're not Orochimaru!"

In that moment, the elite chunin realized he'd been tricked. From the start, they'd used Orochimaru's fearsome reputation to bluff and unnerve him. After seeing Shadow Snake Hand, anyone would have believed they were facing the real Orochimaru. Who would have guessed it was a fake?

"Captain!"

The two students rushed over, forming a triangular combat formation. But Anko, now fully revealed on the branch, glared angrily at Uchiha Yoruro, who had landed nearby.

The lightning in Yoruro's hand still crackled and hissed before slowly fading. A single tomoe spun in his eye socket as he gave an awkward laugh. "Anko, he's a taijutsu specialist. He dodged the killing blow at the last second."

He'd aimed for the man's back, but only took his right arm. Still, not bad—losing an arm crippled most ordinary ninjas, especially their ability to use jutsu.

The lightning in his palm dissipated. Feeling his chakra drop by a third, Yoruro grinned at the prey below.

One hundred twenty thousand gold coins! He'd used them to speed up his training in Chidori, an A-Rank Ninjutsu. He wasn't a genius, but he could buy his way into becoming one. It wasn't perfect yet, but it was combat-ready.

In a flash, Yoruro launched a volley of shuriken from above. A dense rain of blades descended. The one-armed elite chunin shouted in alarm, "Quick! Hold him off!"

He was just an ordinary elite chunin. With one arm severed and numbness spreading from the wound, he couldn't use ninjutsu. All he could do was buy time with his subordinates.

Clang! Clang!

Black shuriken were deflected, but then a bald genin cried out, "Dodge!"

It was too late for the two to evade. The one-armed chunin reacted swiftly, leaping high into the air. He stared down in shock—the shuriken were clearly tied to fine steel wires. In the dim forest light, they were nearly invisible.

In an instant, Yoruro yanked the wires on the branch. The thrown shuriken reversed course, wrapping the two genin in a tangle of steel.

The airborne elite chunin roared and hurled a kunai downward, aiming to cut the wires binding his students.

But someone was faster. With seamless coordination, Mitarashi Anko beside Yoruro formed hand seals: Snake—Dragon—Rabbit—Tiger.

"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!"

Anko let out a sharp cry, took a deep breath—her young chest already showing its promise—and spat out a roaring dragon of flame that surged straight downward.

Ahhh!

Screams of agony rang out. In an instant, the fire consumed the two young genin, leaving a sickening stench in the air.

The elite chunin landed, blood still streaming from his severed arm. Sweat poured down his face as he stared in shock at the scene—only he remained after mere seconds. He swallowed nervously.

"You! You're Orochimaru's disciple, Mitarashi Anko!"

His face pale, he stared at the pair in disbelief. Their flawless teamwork and distinctive jutsu matched the intelligence on Orochimaru's student. The female ninja fit the profile perfectly.

Shadow Snake Hand and Dragon Fire Technique were both C-Rank Ninjutsu, consuming little chakra. Anko smirked as she saw the problem resolved so quickly, leaving only a crippled opponent.

"That's right. I'm Mitarashi Anko, disciple of the Sannin Orochimaru. Now, surrender quietly."

Sweating profusely, the man turned to the other figure. When he saw the red eyes in their sockets, he gritted his teeth. "So there's an Uchiha here too. The Sharingan!"

Too cunning. One was an awakened Uchiha, the other a Sannin's apprentice. Even in a straight fight, he couldn't be sure he'd survive. And they were clearly devious—setting trap after trap.

"Heh. Ninjas fight with their brains, especially when it comes to intel."

Seeing the man's gritted teeth, Yoruro smiled, clearly enjoying the provocation.

But he wasn't wrong. Unless you reached the level of power that could challenge heaven and earth, ninjas were a fragile, high-damage profession. A single kunai could kill.

In the early stages, ninjas relied on intelligence and strategy to overcome stronger or more numerous foes. The idea of just facing off and trading jutsu was nonsense.

Huff... huff...

The man's breathing grew ragged. Suddenly, his expression changed, and his body stiffened. His plan to escape was ruined. Feeling the changes inside him, he stared in disbelief at the two absurdly young Konoha geniuses. "When did you poison me!"

He'd been stalling, secretly looking for an escape route. But now his chakra was slipping out of control, and dizziness clouded his mind. Experienced as he was, he knew—he'd been poisoned.

As consciousness began to fade, he realized the only chance for poisoning was when the boy had used Chidori to sever his arm. He looked at the young man and woman, both smiling, and then collapsed with a thud onto the soft grass.

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