The Reason

Orochimaru's regenerative ability ranked among the very best in the Ninja World.

Even if every bone in his body was shattered, his organs turned to mush, and his brain shaken up like tofu pudding... give him just three or four seconds, and the body he had modified through countless human experiments and prepared injections would naturally repair itself.

If he faced a formidable enemy and pushed himself to the limit, he could shorten the regeneration process to just one second.

But...

Lin Qing raised a finger and pointed at Orochimaru.

"Blowing you to pieces won't even take a second."

Endless fear engulfed Orochimaru. "Don't—"

His voice cut off abruptly.

A roar rang across the sky before he could finish begging.

"Ora!"

Star Platinum grabbed Orochimaru by the neck with one hand, its right fist raised high.

Its strength and speed, now at level three, erupted in full.

"Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora!"

"Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora!"

"Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora!"

In less than half a second, Orochimaru's body was completely destroyed. No, it wasn't just his body. A strand of wind and lightning wrapped around Star Platinum's fists—the Ripple and natural energy flowing from Lin Qing.

As Star Platinum's fists struck, these two forces pierced Orochimaru's skin and muscles, acting directly on a cellular level.

Orochimaru realized in horror that the cellular regeneration ability he was most proud of was becoming...

utterly chaotic!

Some of his cells regenerated at a tremendous rate by burning through his lifespan.

Some of his cells suddenly died.

And others mutated as they regenerated, becoming cells capable of multiplying without limit.

If Orochimaru had understood modern medicine, he would have known what they were called: cancer cells.

Even if Lin Qing didn't kill him today, curing cancer with the medical knowledge of the Naruto World would be nearly impossible. Orochimaru already had one foot in the grave. The other would only follow after he had suffered through the torment of cancer.

But that day would never come.

Lin Qing would personally grant Orochimaru death.

According to Orochimaru's own philosophy of life, "Rather than let them suffer, I should grant them death." He should be thanking Lin Qing.

In despair, Orochimaru looked up at Tagorihime.

"How dare you!"

Tagorihime roared. The corners of her mouth split toward the back of her head, and her once-beautiful face took on the features of a venomous snake.

Her body grew long and slender, coiling through the sky. With a jewel in her mouth, she truly resembled a dragon—if not for the fact that she had no legs beneath her body.

Tagorihime hung high in the sky. If she attacked with her body, she wouldn't reach Orochimaru in time to save him, and close-quarters combat wasn't her specialty anyway.

Her greatest skill was genjutsu.

"Sage Art: Heart-Illusion Snake Shadow!"

With the Green Dragon-Snake Orb amplifying it, the immense Senjutsu Chakra took effect almost instantly. One after another, illusions of green snakes ignored distance and defenses, burrowing into the eyes of everyone present.

Star Platinum's fist struck empty air.

Orochimaru disappeared.

So did the village, Jiraiya, and Sasuke.

Lin Qing found himself standing inside a magnificent palace.

He had forgotten many things. His mind was hazy, as if he were dreaming.

He felt unbearably hungry.

If only there were something to eat.

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, all kinds of delicacies appeared in the splendid palace.

Lin Qing walked over and reached out.

Watching from the sky, hidden from view, Tagorihime smiled.

Tagorihime's Senjutsu genjutsu was extremely bizarre. Its power lay in confusing the target's perception. In modern psychological terms, it weakened the superego and the ego while magnifying the id.

Once the "id" gave in to the illusion's temptation, it would violate the "rules." The target's soul and body would both fall under Tagorihime's control, and she could swallow them in one bite, like a delicious little matcha cake.

"Go on, eat!"

But just as Lin Qing's hand was about to touch the food, it stopped.

"This isn't what I want," Lin Qing said.

Tagorihime's smile stiffened, but she immediately released more power, making the table disappear.

A throne appeared behind Lin Qing. Hundreds of ministers appeared before him, prostrating themselves and shouting, "Your Majesty!"

Lin Qing looked at them in silence.

"This isn't what I want, either."

Tagorihime's lips twitched. Her fangs ground together with a grating crunch as the illusion changed again. This time, three naked beauties appeared. They walked over, took Lin Qing by the arms, and pressed their full, round breasts against him.

Tagorihime swallowed, watching Lin Qing nervously, afraid she'd hear the same answer again.

But... she didn't.

"Ha—men are men, after all!"

She waited for Lin Qing to make a move.

But Lin Qing merely glanced at the three women and let out a helpless sigh.

He raised his head. His gaze pierced the illusion and fell directly on Tagorihime, concealed in midair. He said softly,

"Is this... the extent of your taste?"

"W-what?"

"And this still isn't what I want."

Lin Qing reached out. Hermit Purple pierced layer after layer of illusion and wrapped tightly around Tagorihime, who was floating in midair.

Thunder roared as the Ripple's power surged toward her.

"Ah—"

The scorching Ripple made Tagorihime scream again and again. An irresistible force came from the end of the vines, dragging her toward Lin Qing, without mercy or debate.

"What the hell do you want?"

One failure after another, combined with the pain in her body, drove the Snake Sage, who had cultivated for hundreds of years, to curse.

The vines reached their limit. Lin Qing grabbed Tagorihime by the head and pulled her face close to his.

"What I want is something you can't give me."

At such close range, the Senjutsu illusion made their souls brush against each other.

Tagorihime saw fragments of Lin Qing's thoughts, saw his desires—

"Unify the land by conquering the Six Kingdoms... seal the wolf at Mount Langju... visit a thatched cottage three times... entrust the orphan to the White Emperor of Baidi City, and..."

"A single spark can start a prairie fire!"

The contempt for humanity that belonged to a higher life form vanished from Tagorihime's eyes. She was terrified, flustered, and at a loss. As she gazed into Lin Qing's calm eyes, she could almost hear him saying:

Such desires, such ideals—

Could a snake demon like you even touch them? Dare to touch them?

"Ahhhhhhh!!!!!"

Fresh blood streamed from Tagorihime's eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. The entire illusion collapsed.

Lin Qing returned to the village.

The illusion had seemed complex, but it had all taken place in an instant. Orochimaru was writhing like a dying viper, having escaped to more than ten meters away from Lin Qing.

When he saw Lin Qing come to his senses, Orochimaru was so terrified his soul nearly flew out of his body. He opened a hole in the ground and tried to burrow inside.

He was beyond Star Platinum's range. Given Orochimaru's skill at escaping, Lin Qing wouldn't be able to catch him by the time he got there.

"Jiraiya!" Lin Qing shouted.

Jiraiya was only two steps away from Orochimaru. He could definitely kill him before he entered the tunnel. Even if he couldn't, all Lin Qing needed was for him to hold Orochimaru back for half a second.

Jiraiya stood frozen, the Kunai in his hand...

He just couldn't throw it.

Orochimaru burrowed underground. A moment later, Lin Qing arrived amid the roar of wind and thunder, slamming into the ground and making a deep crater.

But Orochimaru was nowhere to be seen.

Then a pained groan came from behind him. Orochimaru emerged from the ground like a snake, bit Sasuke on the neck, and fled underground again before Lin Qing could reach him.

He vanished without a trace.

Everything happened too quickly.

Only after Lin Qing picked up Sasuke and a breeze blew across Jiraiya's face did the legendary Sannin finally come to his senses.

He looked at Lin Qing, about to speak.

Star Platinum appeared and grabbed Jiraiya's face, slowly tightening its fingers.

With his back to Jiraiya, Lin Qing's voice was ice-cold.

"Give me one reason not to kill you."