Orochimaru's Unexpected Gain

Deep in the sinkhole, the light was dim, and the air was thick with the heavy stench of burning, sulfur, and steaming groundwater.

The massive, lifeless corpse of a white serpent lay crooked at the bottom of the pit like a collapsed mountain of flesh.

The giant serpent's body was covered in terrifying wounds left by scorching heat and the impact of chakra energy. Great swaths of its scales had been burned black and peeled away, exposing equally charred flesh beneath.

Suddenly, the giant serpent's tightly shut maw twitched slightly. Then the muscles around its mouth were forced open from within, and a drenched figure, covered in viscous saliva and blood, staggered as it "crawled" out.

It was Orochimaru.

His appearance at the moment was rather wretched. His white outer robe was soaked through with mucus and torn in many places, while the exposed skin beneath was smeared with all manner of filth.

His long black hair clung wetly to his cheeks and neck, adding another touch of eeriness.

But he seemed to care nothing for his current state. His golden, slit-pupiled eyes glittered with an unusual light in the gloom.

The first thing he did was lower his head and carefully examine this new body of his.

"Mm... Looks like I'll have to switch bodies again once I get back..." Orochimaru murmured to himself. The voice had the tone of a young man, yet it was especially sinister, completely at odds with his youthful appearance.

Clearly, he was not especially satisfied with this "new vessel."

Only after inspecting his body did Orochimaru raise his head and look toward the black "Sealing Cauldron" high in the sky.

His gaze seemed able to pierce through every obstacle and see the two figures suspended above the sinkhole.

In his golden, slit-pupiled eyes