"Who is 'Body Flicker Shisui'?"
At Orochimaru's question, the Uchiha elites turned their gazes toward a young man in the crowd with a sword strapped to his back.
Shisui paused for a moment, then flashed forward. When he reappeared, he was standing before Orochimaru. He knelt on one knee. "Lord Orochimaru."
"Worthy of the name 'Body Flicker.' Your speed is truly remarkable."
Orochimaru licked his lips and sized Shisui up, his eyes narrowing as a dangerous curve formed at the corner of his mouth.
The boy had taken part in the Third Shinobi World War at the age of eleven and made quite a name for himself in the Shinobi World. His ocular prowess was formidable, and his strength rivaled that of an elite Jonin. Even Orochimaru had heard of him.
Yet on their first meeting, what impressed Orochimaru most was Shisui's demeanor. He was so gentle that he hardly seemed like an Uchiha.
Just as the Genie said, he's awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan?
Accustomed to the Uchiha's arrogance, Orochimaru couldn't help feeling puzzled when faced with Shisui, who was so different from the rest.
Judging from the Second's experimental records, the more forceful and extreme an Uchiha's personality, the stronger their Sharingan.
This boy seemed gentler and kinder than ordinary people. How could he have awakened the Uchiha's Forbidden Eye?
Still, the Genie had never been wrong so far.
And even without the Mangekyō Sharingan, the boy's talent and ocular prowess surpassed those of ordinary Uchiha. He was a better candidate for the First Hokage Cells experiments.
The question was how to get him to agree willingly.
Orochimaru's thoughts turned over as he smiled. "This Tailed Beast simulation exercise will be somewhat dangerous. I'll need you to rely on your speed to carry injured Uchiha off the battlefield while avoiding the aftermath of the fighting."
"How about it? Are you confident you can do that?"
Shisui considered it for a moment, then agreed.
He was confident in his speed, and he liked the task Orochimaru had assigned him.
"Good. The exercise is about to begin. Clan Head Fugaku, as we discussed, you don't need to take part in the fighting. You'll be in charge."
Fugaku nodded. Itachi realized what was about to happen and carried Sasuke away with Shisui, putting plenty of distance between them and the others.
For a moment, only Orochimaru and the elite members of the Konoha Military Police Force remained on the training ground. The atmosphere gradually grew tense..
Under everyone's gaze, Orochimaru smiled, a cold curve forming at the corner of his mouth. "What are you expecting? I can't produce a Tailed Beast."
"But... letting you experience the power of one is easy enough."
Orochimaru formed Hand Seals. "Forbidden: Eight Branches Technique!"
On a large tree some distance from the battlefield.
Itachi crouched on a branch, reaching out to soothe the restless Sasuke as his expression grew increasingly grave.
"What is that monster?"
Beside Itachi, Shisui had already activated his Sharingan. He gazed toward the battlefield in the distance and exclaimed, "As expected of a shinobi on the level of the Sannin. That much Chakra... Is he really human?"
As the smoke cleared, a monster nearly as large as the Nine-Tails appeared on the training ground.
Its entire body was snow-white, like eight giant snakes tangled together. Its eight heads coldly surveyed the shinobi around it, as if they were nothing but a swarm of insects.
"Itachi, looks like I can't stay and chat with you. I need to get over there right away."
After making sure Itachi was settled, Shisui vanished on the spot.
"Is that really a technique a person can use? You've got to be kidding."
On the training ground, more than twenty Jonin and nearly a hundred Chunin stood scattered around the Eight-Headed Serpent. They stared up at the colossal creature, swallowing with difficulty.
You couldn't understand the visual impact of a giant beast without seeing it with your own eyes. For a moment, they felt as if they had returned to the night of the Nine-Tails Incident.
The difference was that they were no longer responsible for dispersing the crowd or watching from afar. This time, they had to face the terrifying Nine-Tails at close range.
Fugaku shouted orders. "Restrict its movements and create openings for our attacks!"
Fugaku's cry sounded the charge. The Uchiha elites, spread out in a square formation, began forming Hand Seals.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
"Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique!"
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
"..."
They hurled all kinds of Ninjutsu at the Eight-Headed Serpent, some powerful, some less so. Overall, their attacks were quite impressive.
But just as Orochimaru had said, they were used to fighting in squads or one-on-one. They had no experience hunting a Boss with an army, and their coordination was crude. Some even used Earth-Style Wall to block their teammates' Fire Release Ninjutsu... These obvious mistakes threw the battlefield into chaos.
The Eight-Headed Serpent lashed out with its eight massive tails. The powerful gusts of wind they generated scattered any Ninjutsu that posed a threat, while the rest landed on its body without causing so much as a sting.
"What a pitiful display of teamwork."
One of the serpent's heads spoke, its booming mockery shaking them to the core. "Would you like me to give you some time to hold a little meeting?"
There was no way they were holding a little meeting. Not in this lifetime.
The Uchiha elites felt their faces burn with shame.
After the Nine-Tails Incident, they had been criticized and treated with suspicion. Amid their anger, they had secretly thought that they could have done better, that the heavy losses were due to everyone else's incompetence.
But reality had slapped them hard. The Eight-Headed Serpent hadn't even begun attacking, and their coordination was already a complete mess.
Fugaku's face burned, too. He was responsible for eighty percent of their terrible coordination just now.
Suppressing his unnecessary emotions, Fugaku spoke again. "Adjust your positions. Return to your respective squads. First squad of the Military Police Force, due south..."
As he issued one order after another, figures darted through the forest, the air ringing with the sound of their movement. The Eight-Headed Serpent didn't take the opportunity to attack, even though doing so would have been quite effective.
After all, this was only an exercise.
Once they had formed up, the Uchiha elites began releasing Ninjutsu in organized waves, and their attacks gradually became more coordinated. Now they could actually affect the Eight-Headed Serpent.
Uchiha Fugaku was a capable clan head. At the very least, he knew the members of the Military Police Force very well.
He was familiar with everything from the Ninjutsu they had mastered to the fighting styles that suited them.
A considerable number of the Uchiha elites fought on the battlefield with their fierce Taijutsu and swordsmanship. With the Sharingan, they were nearly unstoppable.
Fighting a Tailed Beast, however, erased much of their advantage. No matter how exquisite their swordsmanship, it would leave only a small cut on the Eight-Headed Serpent. Given its demonstrated regenerative power, the wound might heal as soon as the blade pulled away.
Fortunately, most of these elite shinobi had plenty of Chakra, so coordinating their Ninjutsu was easy enough.
"Third squad, use Fire Release to pin it down! Fourth squad, support them with Wind Release!"
After several failed attacks, Fugaku's command of the battle became increasingly effortless.
"Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame!"
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
"..."
The wind fanned the flames. A red glow spread, setting a large stretch of forest alight in the blink of an eye. The fire surrounded the Eight-Headed Serpent.
But even flames of this intensity posed little threat to it. It didn't even use a Ninjutsu; it simply rolled across the ground a few times and used the dirt to smother the flames spreading over its body.
That wasn't all. The snake began shedding its skin, rapidly sloughing it off along with its burn scars.
Fugaku wasn't discouraged. This was no worse than what they had already seen, and he had expected it.
He waved his hand. "Squad leaders, prepare to cast genjutsu!"
While the Eight-Headed Serpent was recovering from the damage caused by the Fire Release, eight figures leapt into the air. Tomoe spun in their eyes as they locked gazes with the snake eyes assigned to each of them.
Before you continue