Orochimaru stood in front of Nine-Tails, his hands Hand Seals and pressing them against his forehead.
Lines began to spread from Orochimaru's forehead and then spread throughout his body, adding an eerie quality to his already handsome Orochimaru. His aura also increased several times over.
"Hiss."
Jiraiya gasped Jiraiya looked at Orochimaru in this state. Although Orochimaru usually appeared cold and aloof, he was still a kind person at heart. However, Jiraiya, Jiraiya was in Sage Mode, was extremely sensitive. The last trace of humanity in Orochimaru had completely disappeared, and he looked down upon all living beings like a god.
Orochimaru, are you alright?
For the first time Jiraiya felt Orochimaru was so far away from him, causing a pang of pain in his heart.
"It's alright, leave it to me."
Upon hearing Jiraiya's question, Orochimaru paused for a moment before speaking.
"You ant, you think you can take on me?"
The Nine-Tails- Tails spoke arrogantly to Orochimaru, who was just a little kid. As the strongest Tailed Beast, the Nine-Tails had every right to be arrogant.
"Ha."
Orochimaru ignored Nine-Tails's sarcasm and threw a punch at Nine-Tails, the force of which forced Nine-Tails's body back.
"You."
A true expert's skill is immediately apparent; Orochimaru greatly heightened Nine-Tails's vigilance towards him.
However, Orochimaru didn't give Nine-Tails any time to think and immediately attacked. Nine-Tails was overjoyed to see that Orochimaru wanted to fight it head-on, after all, Tailed Beast all liked this kind of fighting style, and their minds were not as complicated as humans'.
"Bang, bang."
This commotion was even more intense than the last one, completely destroying the surrounding environment. The energy that inadvertently overflowed wherever the man and beast passed directly altered the forest's landscape, causing the ground to sink and boulders to bulge out. Outsiders were completely unable to intervene and could only hope that Orochimaru would achieve victory. Otherwise, Konoha would surely suffer heavy losses.
Orochimaru's markings began to glow, the light enveloping Orochimaru body as if he had transformed into light itself. Orochimaru possesses limitless potential; given a direction, he can bring unimaginable gains. This state is a method of energy utilization similar to Orochimaru Sage Mode, developed by Orochimaru through the application of Karot Ki. He stores energy within his markings, opening the energy valve through Hand Seals when needed. However, it hasn't yet reached Orochimaru's standard of permanent absorption and use. But for now, it's sufficient.
As the light grew brighter, Orochimaru's power also increased. What was originally a close contest now turned into a slight advantage for Orochimaru.
Wow, that's amazing!
Jiraiya couldn't help but speak up. Originally, his strength was not far from Orochimaru's, and having learned Sage Mode, Jiraiya believed that his strength had surpassed Orochimaru's. He never expected that Orochimaru had such a trump card, and that his strength had far exceeded his own. If it weren't for the Nine-Tails' attack this time, Jiraiya might have underestimated Orochimaru.
"Yes! Orochimaru's strength is getting stronger and stronger. As Hokage, the stronger he is, the more beneficial it is for the village."
Hatake, standing next to Jiraiya, spoke up.
"Doesn't this situation of the Lord Hokage seem familiar? It's like we've seen it somewhere before."
Nara spoke up, as a member of Konoha's highly intelligent clan, he was very proud of his memory, and he felt that he had seen this situation somewhere before.
"Now that you mention it, I feel like I've seen this somewhere before."
The same statement was made by the Third Middle School.
Apart from Jiraiya, everyone else looked thoughtful.
"Karot."
"No one knows a son better than his father, "Hatake Sakumo said, because when it comes to understanding Karot's fighting style best, it's only Hatake Sakumo.
"That's right, it's Karot."
Nara Shikaku said with certainty, because once you've seen Karot's extraordinary figure, you'll never forget it.
No wonder.
Choza Akimichi looked on with a sigh. He was one of the witnesses to the scene where Karot was enveloped in a yellow aura and beat the Cloud Ninja so badly that they couldn't lift their heads.
Jiraiya was the only Jiraiya who couldn't get a word in edgewise, because he wasn't there and hadn't seen it before, but that didn't stop him from asking questions.
Where is Karot?
The battle has lasted so long, even if Karot is slow, he would have arrived by now, but there is still no sign of him.
"He left the village."
Hatake Sakumo, as the father, explained why Karot hadn't appeared.
"Karot's gone, and the Masked Man's causing trouble. Coward."
Upon hearing Hatake Sakumo's words Jiraiya, Nara Shikaku, and the others inwardly despised the masked Uchiha Masked Man.
"Ah Qiu."
The Uchiha Minato Namikaze, sneezed.
In a battle between masters, every move can be fatal. Minato Namikaze seized his opponent's weakness and kicked him in the kidneys.
"Bang!"
The Masked Man's face was a deep, liverish color; if it weren't for the mask, he would have been utterly humiliated. The image of a once-powerful figure had crumbled completely.
The Masked Man's strength was comparable to Minato's, but his speed wasn't as fast as Minato's Flying Thunder God Technique. If it weren't for his Mangekyo's ability to travel through space, he would have been defeated by Minato long ago. As the one with the Minato advantage, Minato had helpers: the Uchiha Clan Head Fugaku and the genius Body Flicker Shisui, forcing the Masked Man to focus on defense and preventing him from using his full strength to fight Minato.
The name of the Shadow Tree is not to be underestimated; any ninja who can leave their mark in the Ninja World is not to be underestimated, and the Masked Man was facing three of them.
"Fugaku, Shisui, are you willing to let the glory of the Uchiha Clan fade away like this? Konoha will not allow another Madara Uchiha to emerge from the Uchiha. Your two Mangekyo will definitely be targeted by Konoha. Come to my side! I will make the Uchiha stand above the Ninja World."
The Masked Man has also learned to use psychological tactics. He knows how much Fugaku and Shisui value their families, and if he can get their help, his power will surely increase significantly.
"Brush."
When Water Body Flicker Technique, his speed was almost comparable to Minato's Flying Thunder God. After Orochimaru's research, Shisui's Body Flicker Technique began to develop in the direction of the Flying Thunder God.
Shisui thrust his kunai toward the Masked Man's head, answering Masked Man with his actions.
Fugaku was not to be outdone. As the head of his clan, he found it an insult that this Uchiha was so brazen as to want to take him as a subordinate. Therefore, Fugaku Uchiha 'Fugaku attack was swift and ruthless.