Battle was about to erupt.
Orochimaru moved first, but he did not attack directly. Instead, he released a terrifying killing intent.
As one of the legendary Sannin, simply releasing that icy murderous intent was enough to make chunin and genin freeze stiff, unable to move. Even jonin could suffer a collapse of will and lose their fighting spirit because of it.
Yet Naruto seemed completely unaffected by the pressure.
Not only that, Naruto soon radiated a killing intent even deeper and more terrifying than Orochimaru's.
It was the aura of a powerhouse, tempered through life-and-death battles against Six Paths-level ninjas, countless cycles of reincarnation, and accumulated from fighting innumerable strong opponents.
Even Orochimaru was slightly taken aback by that killing intent, a trace of surprise flashing through his golden Serpent Eyes.
In the next exchange, Naruto acted first, instantly vanishing from his original position.
Naruto held a kunai as he closed in like a golden flash, charging straight at Orochimaru.
Orochimaru's gaze sharpened, and the two immediately fell into an intense close-quarters battle.
Drawing on the experience of countless past battles, Naruto had long since seen through all of Orochimaru's techniques and could accurately predict his every movement.
Every counterattack, block, and assault from Orochimaru was effectively restrained and countered by Naruto.
Orochimaru was steadily driven back in their Taijutsu exchange, nearly completely suppressed.
This left Orochimaru deeply astonished.
His Taijutsu was actually inferior to a boy's?
This was a genin?
Unwilling to remain at a disadvantage, Orochimaru leaped lightly backward, widening the distance between them.
Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!
Several venomous snakes shot violently from Orochimaru's sleeves, lunging for Naruto's chest.
Naruto remained unhurried. He lightly gripped his kunai, coating it with Wind-nature Chakra, and with a single swing, severed the entire swarm of snakes.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"