Settling Old Scores

So as soon as he found a place to hide, he immediately summoned a Danzo clone, then silently followed behind the main group, waiting for Orochimaru to take the bait.

If I can't beat you with my real body, then I'll have Danzo take you on!

Having Danzo protect Naruto and Sasuke was such an absurd, bizarre thing to happen that even Keiichi found it amusing.

After some time had passed, Keiichi suddenly opened his eyes. A faint smile touched his lips, but he quickly shut his eyes again and focused entirely on the clone.

Before his eyes, a strange scene unfolded. Naruto had clearly given the correct password, but Sasuke still slapped him hard, startling Sakura beside them.

As it turned out, this was a Rain ninja disguised as Naruto. With Sasuke's formidable fighting ability, taking him down was naturally a piece of cake.

Not long after, Naruto returned from hunting. Sasuke asked him for the password again, and this time Naruto stammered, unable to answer. Yet he still got punched in the face by Sasuke.

"That makes no sense. How did you see through me?" the Kusagakure ninja asked, eyeing Sasuke with amusement, as if he didn't care in the least that his trick had been exposed.

"Hmph. I just suddenly felt like punching that idiot. Do I need a reason?" Sasuke replied.

"So that's it. How interesting." The Kusagakure ninja stuck out his long tongue and licked his lips, intrigued by Sasuke.

"Where did Naruto go? Let him go!" Sakura was frightened, but she still mustered the courage to speak.

"Hehe, my darling is playing with him. Don't worry." The Kusagakure ninja looked in a certain direction. His pupils suddenly narrowed to slits, and his gaze effortlessly pierced countless obstacles, revealing Naruto being swallowed by a giant snake.

He was interested in the Jinchuriki too, but that wasn't the purpose of his visit.

"Now then, let's begin. A fight to the death with all our strength. You'd better do a good job of entertaining me." The Kusagakure ninja declared the start of the battle.

In an instant, Sakura and Sasuke were badly injured. Even with two against one, they couldn't fight back at all!

I'm done for!

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, a Kunai had already pierced his forehead. Blood soaked his eyes, and Sasuke was overcome with despair.

Sakura slowly fell beside him, the light fading from her eyes.

Yet the next moment, he suddenly came to his senses and realized he was completely unharmed. Everything that had just happened had been an illusion.

A genjutsu?!

No, his Sharingan told him this wasn't just a genjutsu!

It was killing intent!

An intense killing intent unlike anything he had ever felt!

The sheer force of it had made him involuntarily imagine all the ways his opponent could kill him!

Who was this guy? He was even more terrifying than Zabuza!

Hidden nearby, the Danzo clone watched the two tremble under the force of the killing intent but made no move to help.

He was still assessing Orochimaru's strength, preparing to act later.

For now, let the main group struggle a little. They're destined for greatness, after all. A few injuries won't kill them.

Yes, Keiichi was certain that the person disguised as a Kusagakure ninja was Orochimaru. Who else could possess such a chilling killing intent but someone at Kage Level?

Orochimaru walked slowly toward Sasuke, all the while firing Kunai from his hands, looking as relaxed as if he were taking a stroll.

Sasuke could only dodge using his Sharingan. Even so, he was cut by the blades several times.

The difference in strength couldn't have been more obvious.

"So this is the Sharingan? I have to say, it's a little disappointing."

"Don't you dare insult the Uchiha Clan!" Though Sasuke was thoroughly outmatched, he refused to back down.

"Unfortunately, it seems this is only an unripe, immature fruit. I came a little too soon." Orochimaru spoke as if he weren't addressing Sasuke at all, merely talking to himself, a hint of disappointment in his eyes.

If the time for Living Corpse Reincarnation hadn't come, he would have been willing to wait longer, until the day Sasuke matured.

"Take this!" Just as Sasuke was about to reach his limit, several Shuriken suddenly flew at Orochimaru from behind, forcing him to dodge.

Sasuke looked closely and saw Naruto standing on a tree, covered in snake blood and striking a heroic pose, making quite a show of himself.

That idiot!

Without another thought, Sasuke accelerated with all his might and appeared in front of Naruto in an instant, shoving him away.

The next moment, a deadly Kunai pierced his chest, and blood gushed out, leaving Naruto—who had nearly been killed—stunned.

"Sasuke!" Sakura's face turned deathly pale. She couldn't bear to imagine Sasuke dying right before her eyes.

"Dying for your comrade—your bond is truly touching!" Though he said this, Orochimaru showed no intention of stopping. He moved in a flash and lunged at Naruto.

But the next moment, he stopped in front of Naruto, his Kunai only a few centimeters from the boy's throat.

It was Sasuke who had stopped him.

"Here, you win!" Sasuke held the Scroll of Heaven high and spoke with great reluctance.

Admitting defeat was harder for him than dying, yet in that moment he had said it without hesitation.

Even he didn't know why.

Orochimaru laughed. So the proud Uchiha could admit defeat after all?

But they were still too young. Did they really think handing over the scroll would make him let them go?

Just as he stretched out his tongue, intending to snatch the scroll from Sasuke's hand, he seemed to sense danger and abruptly drew it back.

A hunched figure had appeared there. He slowly reached out, picked up the scroll, and tucked it into his robes.

"Since when did you take to bullying youngsters?" The old man's voice was hoarse, yet carried an air of authority.

"Why are you..."

"It's been many years, Orochimaru."

"Danzo!"

Chapter 38: Settling Old Scores

Orochimaru had imagined all sorts of possibilities, but he had never expected to run into Danzo under these circumstances. Had Danzo known from the very beginning that he would infiltrate the second exam?

Even if Root was the most powerful intelligence agency on the continent, it was still far from being able to track his movements.

The old man looked like he was on his last legs, but even Orochimaru didn't dare act rashly.

After dealing with Danzo for so many years, he considered himself fairly familiar with the old man. Danzo had never been one to walk into danger without good reason. If he had appeared here, he must be absolutely certain of success.

"Danzo, it's been years, and you've gotten so much older. You're practically in your grave. What are you still trying to do?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that, Orochimaru?"

While the two were talking, Naruto and the others cautiously edged away, intending to seize the chance to make a quick escape.

Orochimaru saw through their plan at once. He moved in a flash and appeared in front of Naruto, using Hidden Shadow Snake Hands to restrain him.

But Danzo was just as fast. Before the snake hands could touch Naruto, he grabbed them and, with a little force, tore them clean in two.

The next moment, however, the snake hands all turned into mud. Orochimaru let out a quiet, triumphant laugh as his body melted away too.

An Earth Clone!

A feint!

The thought had barely crossed Danzo's mind when a figure suddenly emerged from the tree trunk near Sasuke. It lunged toward him at lightning speed, mouth stretched wide to reveal sharp, venomous fangs aimed at his neck.

Yes, Danzo's appearance had disrupted Orochimaru's plans. He had now abandoned his playful mood and was ready to carry out his plan immediately.

Otherwise, once the Root ninja finished surrounding the area, it would be much harder.

But just as Orochimaru's fangs were about to touch Sasuke, he realized his body had been completely immobilized. He couldn't move at all.

He was only a hair's breadth away, yet he couldn't get any closer.

Turning his head, he saw that at some point, vines and branches had wrapped tightly around his entire body, with even more winding around him like pythons.

Damn it, Danzo had mastered Wood Release?!

Seizing the opportunity, Naruto and the others didn't hesitate. They took off running and vanished in a matter of seconds.

With such an overwhelming difference in strength, even someone as proud as Sasuke knew what to do.

Seeing this, Orochimaru glared furiously at Danzo, murder in his eyes.

The vines couldn't hold him for long. He opened his mouth wide and, like a snake shedding its skin, spat out his "old self."

But the moment had passed. With Danzo blocking his way, catching up to Sasuke would be far too difficult.

"The Jinchuriki was never my target. I was after Sasuke. Why are you stopping me?" Orochimaru rose to his feet and demanded.

He had correctly read Danzo's intentions, so he had pretended to attack the Jinchuriki from the start, hoping to fool him. He hadn't expected to fail!

"That remnant still has a use to me."

"Oh? So you're after his Sharingan?!"

"Hmph. I have plenty of those here. Don't underestimate me."

As he spoke, Danzo unwound the bandages around his right arm, revealing an extremely hideous limb, studded with eleven Sharingan eyes. It was a horrifying sight.

Orochimaru looked startled at first, then began to laugh. His mouth stretched wide, as if he had seen something particularly hilarious.

"What's so funny?" Danzo's expression darkened.

"So you really did take my advice, using the Yin Power of the Sharingan to balance out Hashirama's Yang Power. No wonder you can control Hashirama's power. No wonder the Uchiha Clan was wiped out. I was right all along—the whole thing was under your control!"

"Hmph. The Uchiha Clan deserved to die. I didn't do this just to complete Wood Release."

"Yes, yes. Lord Danzo only ever acts for the good of the village. He would never do anything so self-destructive, would he? Hehehe." Orochimaru's laughter was grating, his tone dripping with mockery.

Danzo, however, wasn't moved by the taunt. He simply said, his gaze sharp, "Orochimaru, whatever your purpose, get out of Leaf Village right now. Go back to your Sound Village. Leaf Village isn't a place where you can stir up trouble."

"Oh? You know about my connection to Sound Village. You old fossils may be rotten, but your instincts are sharp." Orochimaru wasn't remotely fazed by Danzo's threat.

"You won't leave? Then don't blame me for being ruthless!" Danzo said, tossing aside his cane and beginning to form Hand Seals.

Seeing this, Orochimaru rushed toward Danzo at full speed, apparently hoping to interrupt him before he finished forming the seals.

"Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves!"

Danzo formed only a few simple seals before unleashing his signature technique. Blade after blade of wind swept toward Orochimaru like a violent downpour, forcing him to retreat again and again.

"Abbreviated Hand Seals?" Orochimaru paused. These old men might be past their prime, but their experience with jutsu could outclass anyone's.

Judging by the force of those wind blades, they were almost indistinguishable from the full sequence of Hand Seals.

In fact, Orochimaru had completely misunderstood. Keiichi, who was controlling the Danzo clone from behind the scenes, had no idea how to use any of Danzo's techniques. The system had simply provided him with a thoughtful "one-button service." All he had to do was form the right seal, and the corresponding jutsu would be released.

There was even a "move list" in the upper-left corner of his view, with a gauge beside it showing his chakra level. It was just like a fighting game.

After that exchange, Orochimaru showed no sign of retreating. Within the narrow space, he used the tree trunks to change direction again and again, trying to confuse Danzo and seize the chance to land a fatal blow.

Orochimaru's figures filled the air, making it impossible to tell them apart.

At the same time, his voice came from all directions. "Danzo, we still have a score to settle. You came here alone. Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?"

"A score to settle? I helped you compete for the Hokage Position, but you were the one who couldn't cut it. Don't tell me you're going to blame me for that too?"

"Heh, do you really think I don't know anything? You wanted me to become Hokage only so you could have a puppet. We were using each other, each getting what we wanted. That's not what I'm talking about."

"Then what are you talking about?"

"I mean what happened ten years ago!"

Keiichi raised an eyebrow. Ten years ago?

What had happened ten years ago?

Hadn't Orochimaru already defected from Leaf Village by then?

Oh, right. He must have meant the time Hiruzen discovered his human experiments.

Orochimaru was bringing up the old score with Danzo over that matter. Could it be...

"I had no choice but to resort to that back then," "Danzo" said carefully, doing his best not to say anything that might give Orochimaru reason to suspect him.

"So it really was you! You were the one who reported me ten years ago, weren't you?"

"Yes... so what?" "Danzo" played along and admitted it outright.

"It really was you!"

"Hmph. Given the situation back then, if I hadn't reported you, I'd have been the one forced to leave Leaf Village. Sacrificing a pawn to save the king is only natural, isn't it?" Danzo said, unconcerned.