Playing Tricks Before Leaving?

"Arghhhhh!"

The remaining mass of white flesh from the Yamata no Orochi writhed frantically, like a venomous snake tossed into a vat of boiling oil.

Orochimaru pushed the upper half of his body out from the center of the rotting meat, clutching his head with both hands. Black blood seeped from his seven orifices simultaneously, and his entire face was twisted into something no longer human.

"It hurts... it hurts so much!!!"

His shriek shifted in pitch, sounding as if someone were scraping his bones with a dull blade.

To have one's soul forcibly torn from another's body, only to be scorched by the Sage Mode lightning of Ryūchi Cave—the agony was a hundred times more intense than any physical pain.

"What kind of monster are you?! You are not human at all!!!"

Orochimaru glared with blood-red eyes, staring fixedly at Lin Zi, who stood atop the ruins, his voice filled with terror and venom.

Lin Zi hopped down from the limp snake head with a leisurely air, dusting the snake blood and rotting flesh from his pant legs with a relaxed expression.

"Doesn't feel good to have your soul torn apart, does it? You, a monster who chops your own soul into pieces, being forcibly expelled from a body by my Sage Art—it must be quite painful, right?"

He walked up to the writhing mass of flesh, crouched down, and looked at it with golden vertical pupils filled with mockery.

"Who told you to be so greedy, trying to barge into someone else's house without even knocking? You deserve it."

"What... you're alright?!"

Tsunade was the first to react; she grabbed her recently dislocated right arm with one hand, her eyes wide.

"You... you scared the hell out of me! This lady thought you'd actually been swallowed by that bastard!"

Jiraiya sat straight down on the ground, unable to even maintain his Sage Mode, and wiped his face.

"Damn... you're okay? That damn Orochimaru... as long as you're okay... as long as you're okay..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned on his Adamantine Staff, standing up shakily. His gaze swept over Lin Zi three times, as if confirming whether he was missing any limbs.

He opened his mouth, but in the end, he only managed to choke out one sentence.

"You kid... forget it, as long as you're fine."

Minato Namikaze tucked his Flying Thunder God kunai back into his belt, the cut on his palm still seeping blood.

He gave a bitter smile, a sense of relief finally appearing in his deep blue eyes.

"You scared me, Orochimaru-senpai. Please don't do that again; we were all very worried about you."

Lin Zi stood up, brushed the dust off his knees, and shrugged at the four of them.

"I told you, I'm not the Orochimaru you know. That guy wanted to swallow me? Not a chance."

"Alright, everyone back up."

Lin Zi raised his right hand, palm facing upward.

Lightning, intertwined with gold and emerald, danced between his fingers like a group of tamed, living snakes, emitting a faint crackling sound.

He stared at the mass of white flesh still squirming on the ground, his lips curling into a dangerous arc.

"This guy wants to run? It's time for me to seal him away for a good long while."

"Sage Art: Snake Imperial Thunder!"

BOOM!

The golden lightning transformed into countless thin snakes, crazily darting across the ground toward the mass of white flesh.

This time it was different; the lightning was laced with a trace of scarlet Nine-Tails chakra, piercing into Orochimaru's body like red-hot chains and pinning him firmly to the ruins.

"Arghhhhhhh!"

Orochimaru shrieked as he was jolted from the flesh, his body convulsing, his pale skin scorched black and peeling from the electricity.

"You... you absolute monster! Why does your Sage Art carry the power of the Nine-Tails?!"

"I didn't expect you to have studied the Tailed Beasts as well. You have a unique eye."

Lin Zi tilted his head, his black ponytail swaying in the night breeze.

"It's a pity I can't take your life right now, but sealing your chakra and ninjutsu for a while is doable. Consider it a lesson."

The lightning surged in frantically, causing Orochimaru's white flesh to spasm violently, emitting a nauseating, acrid smell of burning.

A pale green soul-projection was forcibly squeezed out of the physical body, fluttering in mid-air like a moth trapped in an electric net.

"Damn it! Damn it!"

The soul-projection suddenly exploded into a cloud of green mist, broke free from the lightning net, and turned into a streak of light, fleeing into the night sky like a stray dog.

Several seconds later, his venomous voice drifted back from the distance, filled with bone-deep resentment.

"I will find out... what exactly you are... we will meet again!"

"Sure, I'll be waiting for you."

Lin Zi waved at the night sky, a calm smile still hanging on his lips.

But suddenly, Lin Zi's body swayed. He looked down at his palm, his brow furrowing slightly. His fingertips were turning transparent, like ink bleeding into water, fading bit by bit into tiny specks of light that drifted away into the night breeze.

"Alright, stop crowding around."

He looked up at the four of them, his tone indifferent.

"My soul was bitten by that guy, damaging my foundation. I... can no longer maintain this form."

Minato stood frozen in place, the Flying Thunder God kunai still clutched in his hand.

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said."

Lin Zi shook his wrist, which was already dissipating, sending a faint arc of light particles trailing through the air.

"The Orochimaru of this world used Living Corpse Reincarnation to tear at my soul. Although I didn't let him succeed, I was still wounded, so I have to go..."

"Go? Go where?!"

Jiraiya was the first to rush forward, reaching out to grab Lin Zi's shoulder, but his hand passed straight through.

He only grasped a handful of warm light; those golden fragments, like Fire Flys that could not be held, rose from between his fingers and drifted toward the night sky.

"Hey!!"

Jiraiya's voice turned instantly hoarse, his eyes rimmed with red, his entire body trembling.

"You... explain yourself! What do you mean you can't maintain it?! Are you dying?! Huh?!"

"Idiot, stop shouting."

Tsunade turned her face away, her voice muffled, her uninjured left hand pressing against her wounded right arm.

"His body... is disappearing..."

She gritted her teeth, the rest of her sentence stuck in her throat, unable to force it out.

Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned on his Adamantine Staff, walking over step by step.

He looked at Lin Zi's face, which was becoming blurred, and watched the light-dust overflowing from his limbs, suddenly remembering the black-haired boy from many years ago who had watched butterflies outside the forest.

The bloodshot veins in his eyes had not yet faded, and now they were veiled by a layer of murky moisture.

"You..." Hiruzen Sarutobi opened his mouth, "are you leaving too?"

Lin Zi looked at him and suddenly smiled, a smile so faint it seemed ready to dissolve into the light particles.

"Old man, I told you, I am not the Orochimaru of this side."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the four tear-streaked faces, and sighed softly.

"But... thank you for believing in me from the very beginning."

Minato stood at the very back; he suddenly bent at the waist and bowed deeply, his forehead nearly touching his knees, the hem of his Hokage Cloak trembling in the night wind.

"Thank you."

Minato's voice came from below, muffled and thick with an irrepressible sob.

"Thank you for saving Kushina... and for saving me."

Lin Zi looked at the four of them, watching the light particles drifting away from his body, and suddenly felt this scene was somewhat familiar.

"Alright, stop acting like this is a funeral."

He waved his hand, his body already more than half transparent, even his black ponytail beginning to turn into light-dust.

"I'm just going back to heal, it's not like... I'm not coming back."

The last few words were as light as the wind, yet they still reached everyone's ears.

Jiraiya stood stunned, still kneeling on the ground, the few specks of light in his hand not yet dissipated; he blinked, tears still hanging on his face, snot nearly running into his mouth.

"What?! Healing?! Not 'not coming back'?!"

He jumped up abruptly, wiping his face while cursing loudly.

"You could have been clearer! Damn Orochimaru! You scared the life out of me!"

As he cursed, he suddenly let out a snort of laughter, his shoulders shaking uncontrollably.

Tsunade had been looking down, but upon hearing this, she slowly raised her head; a flash of relief crossed her pupils, immediately replaced by fury.

"Next time we meet! You'd better be ready for a beating! You bastard!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi let out a long breath, the murky moisture in his eyes slowly receding; he straightened his face, deliberately making his voice deep and stern.

"Orochimaru! As a ninja, ensuring clear communication is the first requirement! This vague way of expressing yourself—what kind of behavior is that!"

"Ma ma..."

Lin Zi watched his increasingly transparent body, smiling with an indifferent expression.

"Don't worry so much about it... old man..."

He turned his head to look at Minato, who was standing at the back, his golden slit pupils glowing faintly amidst the dissipating light, like two stars about to burn out.

"Fourth Hokage,"

His voice grew softer.

"You felt it just now, didn't you? I borrowed the power of a blond kid."

Minato froze, then nodded, his azure eyes fixed on him with earnest focus.

"Yes, I felt it. That chakra... it was very warm. What about it, Senior Orochimaru?"

"I have fulfilled his request."

Lin Zi's smile turned somewhat mysterious, and a touch gentle.

"Next... he might be coming over for a while. Try your best to get along with him."

"He?"

Minato's pupils constricted slightly, as if he had realized something, his lips moving almost imperceptibly.

"Could it be..."