Reshaping the World.

There was not a single moment spent mourning the defeat of Sasori of the Red Sands.

Summoning Jutsu!

Poof!!

Amidst a massive cloud of smoke, a deep purple snake with black stripes manifested.

A pair of small horns sat atop the serpent's head, as if it were shedding its reptilian form to evolve into a dragon.

It was none other than Manda, the great snake from the sacred Ryūchi Cave!

To guard against Uchiha Sora's green serpent summon, Orochimaru had held back from calling upon Manda to assist in the battle.

He had endured and waited, yet he never expected the renowned Sasori of the Red Sands to be finished off so suddenly...

Orochimaru had crossed blades with the Third Kazekage before; that man was truly worthy of the title of the strongest Kazekage.

To think that you, who killed the Third Kazekage, would lose so easily?!

If Sasori knew his thoughts, he would likely retort, "If you're so capable, you do it."

Orochimaru had no idea how stifling the battle had been for Sasori; the impact of intelligence on a fight was simply too great.

This was not an equal fight at all; Sasori had felt as though every move he made was calculated, leading him step by step into a dead end.

Uchiha Sora sealed Sasori's Core into a scroll and looked up at the massive Manda.

In truth, he had the opportunity to shatter it when Sasori was transferring his Core.

But capturing Sasori was naturally more valuable than killing him.

He just had to consider whether Nagato would come looking for him because of this...

Probably not; the current Akatsuki was hardly a happy, loving family.

They did not know that the Core was Sasori's true body; from their perspective, Sasori had been killed, posing no risk of intelligence leaks.

Nagato would not expose his own strength prematurely just for the sake of revenge.

At this point in time... he should have just killed Hanzo not long ago and was currently reorganizing Amegakure.

Pulling his thoughts back, Uchiha Sora said to Orochimaru, "Orochimaru, I'll say it again: retreat now, and I can pretend nothing ever happened."

Orochimaru frowned, seemingly hesitant.

The situation was indeed unfavorable for him, but Uchiha Sora's current state must be quite poor.

If he let Manda stall that guy... perhaps there would be a chance to capture this brat.

Uchiha Itachi's talent already made him drool with envy, but that one was still in his infancy; the person before him was an Uchiha monster who had already realized his potential!

Manda, beneath his feet, spoke up.

"Hey! Orochimaru, I don't care if you want to fight or not, but since you summoned me, the one hundred living sacrifices—not a single one can be missing!"

"Manda, you..."

Just as Orochimaru intended to brush Manda off, a sudden tremor in the earth made him pause.

"Hellhound!!"

Accompanied by the flow of dark red magma and a thunderous roar, it surged forth like a beast from hell.

The sharp, dog-shaped mass of magma carved a scorching trail through the air, burning and distorting everything in its path with a piercing, shrill whistle!

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!

The massive explosion shook the surroundings, leaving a terrifying molten hole in Manda's gargantuan body, through which one could even see the charred internal organs.

Even with Manda's reflexes, it was impossible to dodge such a terrifying strike!

What fearsome speed, what shocking destructive power!!

The Justice cloak fluttered in the wind, the only sound in the area.

Akainu looked up, his gaze locked onto Manda, his scorching power radiating an icy, murderous intent!

"There should be a limit to how much you underestimate Justice..."

"Dog Bite Crimson Lotus!!"

BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!

The magma power around his body surged and gathered like a boiling, raging sea, and as Akainu swung his arm, a magma hound even larger than the last was unleashed.

If Manda didn't dodge in the face of Dog Bite Crimson Lotus, it would truly be finished.

Without a moment's hesitation, Manda dispelled its own summoning, its indignant roar echoing through the air.

"Damn you, Orochimaru!"

"Two hundred... no, three hundred!!"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!!

The magma hound lunged into empty air, streaking high into the sky before detonating with a thunderous roar!

The falling clusters of magma rained down upon the desert, setting even the sand and stone ablaze!

Akainu furrowed his brows, turning his head to look at Uchiha Sora. "A space-time ability... do you have a way for me to catch up to him? I must kill him!"

To dare discuss human sacrifices right in front of a Vice Admiral of the Marine Headquarters!

If he did not hunt him down and exterminate him, how could he live up to the word "Justice" he carried on his back?

"That's a bit tricky. Perhaps you should ask him instead."

Uchiha Sora turned his head to look at Orochimaru, his expression malicious.

Orochimaru remained expressionless, suddenly dropping to the ground as his mouth stretched wide like a serpent's.

Ninpō: Mandara Formation!!

An endless swarm of snakes surged forth like a tidal wave, blotting out the sky as they lunged toward them.

Great Eruption!!

Countless fists of molten lava erupted like a volcanic blast, instantly incinerating the massive swarm of snakes!!

However...

After that momentary obstruction of vision, they could no longer sense Orochimaru's presence.

Uchiha Sora scanned the surroundings and spoke, "He's gone."

Defeating Orochimaru and killing Orochimaru were two completely different levels of difficulty.

Uchiha Itachi could defeat Orochimaru in a single glance, yet even with careful planning and the use of the divine weapon Totsuka Blade, he had failed to truly kill him.

Even with a combatant like Akainu present, Uchiha Sora had never expected to be able to finish Orochimaru off.

Akainu's brows knit even tighter.

Tracking was not his specialty, and there were very few ability users in the pirate world with such bizarre powers.

"Boy, is there really no way to find him?"

In his eyes, Orochimaru's aura was comparable to the most evil of pirates; to encounter such a person and fail to kill him was an incredibly frustrating feeling.

Uchiha Sora shook his head. "To use an analogy you might understand... the difficulty of killing him is roughly equivalent to making Borsalino diligent."

Is that so...

Akainu pondered for a moment. "To have kids your age dealing with a person like that—what exactly is the government of this world doing!"

Upon hearing this, Shisui was visibly stunned.

In his understanding... children going to the battlefield was nothing strange, was it?

The World Government... what did that have to do with the Daimyo?

Uchiha Sora smiled slightly. "We don't have a unified government here."

He looked at the flickering sparks in the desert and said slowly, "I will be the one to establish order. I will reshape this world."

His tone was not high, sounding less like he was speaking of a dream and more like he was stating a fact.

Akainu pulled a cigar from his sleeve and lit it with his fingertip.

"Heh... for an ability user of the same type as me, having such ambition is only natural."

Rarely, Akainu actually cracked a joke.

The massive height difference between the two forced Akainu to crouch down to look Uchiha Sora in the eye. He raised a hand and pressed it against Uchiha Sora's forehead, leaving behind a mark that resembled a red lotus.

Along with the mark came a surge of life energy poured in by Akainu, rapidly replenishing the deficit Uchiha Sora had suffered earlier.

"Grow strong. You owe me one."

"I will come to collect."

"Of course."

Uchiha Sora chuckled, the red lotus mark still visible and flickering with a faint light.

Akainu stood up and turned around, raising a hand to adjust his hat before his figure gradually faded away.

With his back to the two of them, Akainu waved his hand casually, as if bidding them farewell.