Naruto Takes One Too, Dual Curse Marks of Heaven

"Explosive Tags!!"

Orochimaru cried out in shock, his Snake Eyes narrowing as he burst forward at incredible speed...

He was more than ten times faster than before, evading the blast radius with lightning speed before viciously biting down on Sasuke's neck.

"It's over, uh??"

Orochimaru's smug smile had barely formed when he suddenly sensed something wrong with the taste and froze in place.

The next instant—

The Sasuke beneath his snake jaws vanished with a bang, turning into a Substitution Log...

And that log was covered in hundreds of Explosive Tags.

"Boom..."

In the instant Orochimaru stared in shock, every Explosive Tag flashed with white light and detonated...

A mushroom cloud rose into the air, shredding every living thing within dozens of meters.

[Thirty thousand ryo worth of Explosive Tags. That ought to make you suffer...

It hurts, my little savings just went to waste like that!]

Sasuke's eyes flickered as he stared at the mushroom cloud.

He had only prepared three of these Explosive Tag Substitution Logs, just in case...

He had not intended to use one on Orochimaru. He had only planned to play around with him using the Sharingan Windmill Triple Blade...

But Orochimaru's killing intent earlier had left him unable to stand by!

He could only take a gamble and see whether he could badly wound Orochimaru...

"Binding Genjutsu..."

Just as Sasuke considered whether he should play it safer, Orochimaru suddenly charged out of the smoke, forming Hand Seals as he spoke in a low voice.

In almost an instant, Sasuke felt his body become completely immobile!!

Unlike the killing intent suppression from before, this time he truly felt the oppressive force of Genjutsu.

Even his Two-Tomoe Sharingan could not break through this Genjutsu!

His mind was awake, but his body could not move...

"Interesting...

"That series of attacks earlier was all meant to cover up the final explosion.

"Honestly, even a Jonin would have been either dead or crippled by that move!

"But unfortunately, you ran into me..."

Orochimaru, whose body was now tattered and torn, spoke excitedly, startling Sasuke once again.

Because half of Orochimaru's face had revealed a feminine true form!!

That was the true appearance of this body's Living Corpse Reincarnation, and the true meaning behind Snake Auntie...

"Your performance has satisfied me...

"So, as a reward, I won't kill that girl just yet...

"Accept my parting gift, Sasuke!!"

Watching Sasuke's furious expression, Orochimaru gave a sinister, savage grin.

As his words fell, his neck suddenly stretched out as he bit toward Sasuke again...

[Though I knew that with my current strength, I couldn't dodge the Curse Mark of Heaven at all.

Getting the Cursed Seal would also give me some breathing room to grow steadily...

But actually accepting it still feels way too damn unpleasant...]

Watching the snake mouth rush toward him, Sasuke could not help sighing helplessly.

Although the Cursed Seal itself was a type of Sage Mode, the thing was just too ugly...

Seal One was barely acceptable, but Seal Two was a freaking humanoid monster!!

It was way too undignified...

"Sasuke..."

At the critical moment, Naruto's voice suddenly exploded through the air.

Sasuke only saw a blur before Naruto stood in front of him...

Caught off guard—

Orochimaru, who had charged straight in, bit down on Naruto's shoulder, and the Cursed Seal he had been preparing instantly activated...

"This..."

"Nani??"

Sasuke and Orochimaru both stared dumbfounded at the sudden turn of events...

Orochimaru especially could not believe that a mere Genin brat had blocked his path.

"I—I absolutely won't let you hurt Sasuke...

"You disgusting snake monster!!"

Enduring the piercing pain and corruption ravaging his body, Naruto raised his head and roared defiantly.

In an instant, a pair of scarlet beast eyes filled Orochimaru's vision...

"This is...

"So that's it. You're that Nine-Tails brat!!"

Looking into those ferocious eyes, Orochimaru suddenly smiled meaningfully.

Nine-Tails plus the Cursed Seal—he was not sure what kind of terrifying creature that combination would create...

But that was not his problem to worry about.

The ones who should be worried were Akatsuki, who were collecting Tailed Beasts...

At the very least, his Curse Mark of Heaven had not gone to waste!

The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki could still be used as a spare piece...

"Ugh... Sasuke...

"I..."

Naruto, who had erupted with Nine-Tails Power in his excitement, did not even last two seconds before his vision went black and he passed out.

The Cursed Seal's corruption was not something he could resist at his current level!

"Though that was a little unexpected, you're still my favorite target.

"Sasuke, now it's your turn..."

Looking at the unconscious Naruto, Orochimaru spouted Bold Words again as his neck stretched out and bit Sasuke's neck.

This time, nothing unexpected happened!!

[Damn... what the hell was that...

I thought Naruto showing up would trigger something, like him unleashing the Nine-Tails and maiming Orochimaru...

Who knew he'd just come over to offer himself up for nothing??

Well, great. Now I have to be ugly together with my brother...

What is this, matching brother tattoos?]

Feeling his body being violently corrupted, Sasuke's pupils trembled as he collapsed to the ground.

"Kehehehe...

"I'm looking forward more and more to watching you grow!

"Sasuke, if you want to gain the power to defeat Itachi Uchiha,

"then show yourself to your heart's content in these Chunin Exams...

"Only then will I take notice of you!

"Between you and Naruto, I will choose the stronger one and grant him even greater power..."

Looking at Sasuke's unfocused eyes, Orochimaru smiled mockingly as he sowed discord.

Bonds were protective power, ties that bound people together!

But when used properly, they could also become a force that accelerated Sasuke's growth...

[Orochimaru's malicious suggestion detected. Triggering a 10x C-rank Reward.

Mission: Surpass Naruto in the exam; Reward: Summoning Technique...]

Before he passed out, Sasuke heard the System Prompt through his haze.

It jolted his mind, and then he completely lost consciousness...

"Boom..."

Just after Sasuke fainted, scarlet Nine-Tails Chakra erupted from Naruto's body...

It spiraled rapidly around Naruto's body, suppressing and driving away the power of the Cursed Seal with even more violent force.

This change made Orochimaru, who had been preparing to leave, halt in his tracks...

He reached out and lifted Naruto's shirt, revealing the Eight Trigrams Seal that had surfaced.

"The Nine-Tails...

"Though he was an accidental creation, I'm also looking forward to his growth!

"Don't ruin my interest..."

Orochimaru's gaze sharpened as he murmured coldly. In an instant, gold, wood, water, fire, and earth Chakra appeared on the five fingers of his right hand.

"Five Elements Seal..."

Without any hesitation, Orochimaru slapped his right hand onto Naruto's abdomen and applied the seal.

The next instant—

White Smoke rose from Naruto's abdomen, and the surging Tailed Beast Chakra rapidly withdrew and vanished!

The fox-like transformation on Naruto's body also immediately returned to normal...

"Sasuke-kun, Naruto..."

Just as Orochimaru finished all this, Sakura, drawn by the explosion and worried for them, rushed over.

Seeing Sasuke and Naruto both lying on the ground, she swiftly drew a Kunai and threw it at Orochimaru...

"Perfect. I'll leave them in your care..."

Ignoring the Kunai attack, Orochimaru smiled calmly and sank into the ground, disappearing.

"Sasuke-kun, Naruto...

"What on earth happened here!!"

Sakura could no longer care about anything else. With a whoosh, she rushed to their side, her beautiful eyes contracting as her voice trembled.

Irregular black markings had appeared on both of their bodies, while steam rose from their foreheads...

"No, the battle here will definitely draw the attention of enemies.

"We have to leave first..."

Before long, Sakura calmed down and made her decision.

Though her own Chakra was exhausted and her entire body weak, she still resolutely helped Sasuke up and moved him dozens of meters away first.

Then she returned to carry Naruto...

Like a hamster moving house, she repeated the process over and over as she rotated them to safety...