Room to Choose

Why had Orochimaru appeared here?

And why was he wearing that creepy expression, as if waiting for Lin Qing?

It all went back to a little while ago.

After Itachi Uchiha had refined his entire clan in an instant and joined the Akatsuki with Obito, he teamed up with Orochimaru to carry out the organization's internal missions.

During their many missions, Orochimaru coveted Itachi Uchiha's Sharingan and tried to steal them in a sneak attack. Instead, Itachi nearly killed him and cut off one of his arms, forcing him to flee the Akatsuki.

Orochimaru knew how to adapt.

There were still two other Uchiha out there, after all.

He set his sights on Lin Qing, who was riding high in popularity. But Lin Qing had been in the Land of Water, his whereabouts elusive, and Orochimaru could never find a suitable opportunity—until he heard that Jugo and Kimimaro had encountered Hope Village.

Kimimaro had traveled across the lands with Orochimaru in his youth and knew the customs of many countries. After arriving at Hope Village, it didn't take him long to realize that the people there...

weren't normal.

They had the habits of people from the Land of Water.

Hope Village didn't appear on the village maps of Konoha.

Then there was the human trafficking case in the Land of Water that had caused an uproar some time ago. The survivors who had fled to Konoha for political asylum had clearly stated that a group of people planned to establish a village of their own.

Putting together all this information, Orochimaru deduced that the villagers of Hope Village were those very survivors.

"...So I took advantage of the situation. I killed some people and let others go, all to lure you here."

Orochimaru studied Lin Qing with his snake-like eyes, as if looking at a work of art.

Lin Qing drew the Blade of Ruin. "You killed all these people just to find me?"

Orochimaru chuckled.

His voice was hoarse, but not unpleasant. It had the oddly soothing quality of plunging your hand into a bin of rice at the supermarket.

"Lin Qing, I understand you. We're the same kind of person."

Orochimaru raised a finger. "Life is the most precious thing in the world. But look at them. Their lives are miserable, and every day they worry about food, taxes, and labor.

"If being alive means suffering, they might as well end it early and enter the next cycle of reincarnation. I kill them to free them. I achieve my goal. It's a win-win."

That was Orochimaru's philosophy. Kimimaro looked at him with adoration.

Orochimaru had long since brainwashed him, and he believed in his "liberation theory" without question.

"Arrogant! Disgusting!"

An angry rebuke came from nearby.

Orochimaru turned to look.

It hadn't come from Lin Qing, but from Little Sasuke, who stood beside him.

The notion that the poor were constantly overwhelmed by hardship and lived in misery was nothing more than the "wishful thinking" of those in power about the people beneath them, meant to satisfy their own sense of pity.

Sasuke had once thought the same way.

But during his time in Snowfall Village, he had realized that even the poorest people—even the lame, widows, and elderly people without children—found all kinds of ways to enjoy themselves.

They cried and laughed. They joked around and had their own happiness.

Killing them in the name of freeing them...

Disgusting!

Sasuke wanted to spit out every word in his heart and throw them right in Orochimaru's face.

But when his eyes met Orochimaru's, fear welled up from deep inside him. Cold sweat soaked his back. He even forgot how to breathe, and nearly choked—

A figure stepped between him and Orochimaru.

"I think it's pretty disgusting too."

Lin Qing looked at Orochimaru, Kimimaro, and Jugo. "Whether it's you lot, or—"

He glanced at the five members of Root.

"...you."

Before they'd reached the village, Aero Smith had flown ahead. Lin Qing had noticed the five people hiding on the outskirts long ago.

Nothing Danzo did could surprise Lin Qing anymore.

As for Orochimaru... Lin Qing had thought he was a real man for daring to go after Itachi Uchiha.

Now it seemed he was just another madman.

A figure darted over and landed beside Lin Qing. It was Jiraiya, who had been lying in wait behind them.

Jiraiya's brow was furrowed, his expression grave.

Their enemies were Orochimaru, Kimimaro, and five elite Root shinobi.

Their side had Lin Qing, Jiraiya, and Little Sasuke.

Jiraiya was evenly matched with Orochimaru.

Lin Qing was definitely stronger than Kimimaro and the Root shinobi. Judging by their forces on paper, Lin Qing's group had the advantage.

But...

There was a world of difference between ambushing Orochimaru and being ambushed by him!

"Knowing Orochimaru, he learned his lesson from Itachi Uchiha. He'll have made thorough preparations this time," Jiraiya said quietly. "We should retreat."

Given Jiraiya's personality, if he'd been alone, he would have charged in without a second thought.

But after spending the past two days with Lin Qing and Sasuke, he respected their resolve. Talented young people like them shouldn't die here.

"You two go first. I'll hold them off. Orochimaru and I were classmates, after all. Even if I lose... it's not like he'd kill me."

Jiraiya made it sound easy, but deep down, he had no confidence at all.

Orochimaru seemed to see his old friend's concern. He shook his head as snakes slithered from his pant legs and devoured the flesh of the dead villagers.

"Don't fret, Jiraiya. Anyone can leave today—except Lin Qing."

Snakes encircled the village, spewing poisonous fumes and blocking Lin Qing's escape route.

Orochimaru's lips curled into a smile. "Lin Qing, I don't like fighting. How about this? I'll let Jiraiya and this little friend go. You come back with me and help with my research."

"And if I refuse?"

"Then I'll have to kill them and take you back anyway."

Lin Qing gave a slight nod to show he understood.

"Lin Qing!"

Jiraiya grabbed Lin Qing's arm, signaling him to hurry and leave while he still could.

The Fox Mask Ninja spoke up. "Orochimaru, this wasn't part of your deal with Lord Danzo. Lin Qing is a missing-nin from Konoha. We have the right to take him back."

Without waiting for Orochimaru to respond, the five Root shinobi approached Lin Qing. One of them took out a pair of shackles.

The Fox Mask Ninja said coldly, "Restrain yourself, then break both your legs. I'll take you back to Konoha to face judgment. If you dare resist, we'll join forces with Orochimaru and kill you."

Lin Qing nodded again.

Seeing this, two Root shinobi approached him with the shackles.

The Blade of Ruin rose.

Lin Qing didn't launch a sneak attack. He made sure the two approaching shinobi saw him raise his blade, but when they tried to flee beyond its reach—

It was already too late.

"How dare you!" the Fox Mask Ninja shouted.

Thud! Thud!

Two headless bodies hit the ground.

Lin Qing shook the blood from his blade.

"You people are really strange. Every one of you likes making me choose. If you love choices so much, why don't you leave yourselves some room to choose?"

He stepped forward and charged at Orochimaru.

The other three shinobi rushed toward Lin Qing's back with cold expressions, but Jiraiya blocked them and shouted, "And you call yourselves Konoha shinobi?"

The three shinobi didn't so much as flinch. "Lord Jiraiya, we're protecting Konoha the Root way. Please don't interfere with our work."

"Bunch of idiots!" Jiraiya yelled.

With Jiraiya handling the enemies behind him, Lin Qing didn't bother with them.

He gripped the Blade of Ruin in both hands and unleashed the Sunlight Yellow Ripple with all his strength. Golden bolts of lightning appeared and coiled around the blade.

He swung once. Orochimaru's body melted like liquid and turned into countless little snakes. Thousands upon thousands of them leaped up and pounced on Lin Qing from every direction!

"Star Platinum!"

ORA! ORA! ORA!

Fists blurred like the wind, smashing the snakes out of the air one by one.

Just then, the ground split open, and a straight sword thrust toward Lin Qing's chest.

Orochimaru had hidden underground as soon as he turned into snakes.

Lin Qing didn't dodge. He concentrated the power of the Ripple in the soles of his feet and stomped hard on the ground. A muffled groan came from beneath him, and the thrusting sword went limp, losing all its force.

The earth cracked open, and Orochimaru emerged from the other side. Blood still stained his mouth, but in the blink of an eye, all his injuries disappeared. He opened a hand toward Lin Qing.

"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"

Hundreds of enormous snakes surged toward Lin Qing like a tidal wave.

Orochimaru unleashed the giant snakes with one hand while forming Hand Seals with the other. If Lin Qing dodged, a Fire Release jutsu would be waiting for him the next second.

But Lin Qing didn't move.

Star Platinum stood in front of him.

Hundreds of snakes sank their fangs into its body. A clang of metal rang out as their teeth snapped and shattered, yet they couldn't even pierce Star Platinum's skin.

That was the Platinum Skin it had gained upon reaching level three!

Floating in midair, Star Platinum gazed down at Orochimaru with an awe-inspiring presence that seemed beyond the human world, like a god or Buddha.

Orochimaru swallowed instinctively and nearly took a step back.

Then came a violent tug.

Like a rope in a tug-of-war, Star Platinum yanked Orochimaru toward itself.

Orochimaru immediately severed his connection to the Hidden Shadow Snake Hands.

But it was too late. Inertia still sent him flying toward Star Platinum.

Toward...

the fist it had raised.

"ORA!!!"

Star Platinum punched Orochimaru in the head. With a crack, his skull shattered. Orochimaru let out a "Wagah!" and flew away like a torn sack.

At that moment, Orochimaru remembered how Itachi had once described Lin Qing.

"Don't let Lin Qing catch you off guard. Not even for an instant."

Until now, Orochimaru hadn't understood. Anyone else, perhaps—but with his own regenerative abilities and combat skills, what could one punch from the legendary Evil Spirit really do?

Now he knew.

Orochimaru had more than a dozen jutsu that could accelerate regeneration.

His body had undergone complex modifications, making him nearly immortal on the battlefield.

But there was no time.

Star Platinum was like a real Evil Spirit. It had already caught up with Orochimaru. It drew in another deep breath, gathering its strength in its fist as it prepared to strike.

A snake's tail shot out, wrapped around Orochimaru, and pulled him away.

Lin Qing followed the tail with his eyes.

A stranger with long green hair and a golden crown was holding Orochimaru.

For the first time, reverence appeared on Orochimaru's face.

"Sorry for the trouble... Tagorihime."