The moment he equipped the [Sasuke Uchiha (Shippuden)] template, Uchiha Jun felt as if the entire world had changed.
First, his vision.
His Sharingan activated, and the three tomoe slowly spun in his pupils. Everything around him became incredibly clear.
To his Sharingan, the giant snakes' movements seemed to play out in slow motion.
Next, his chakra.
The chakra reserves the Sasuke Uchiha template gave him far exceeded those of the Senju Tobirama template!
They were easily at the Elite Jonin level!
The equivalent of three Kakashis!
Most importantly, the Sharingan could see through chakra!
Uchiha Jun opened his Sharingan and looked around.
This time, he saw something different.
Faint traces of chakra lingered in the air, like the remnants of some kind of jutsu.
The traces stretched from the giant snakes, eventually pointing toward a grove of trees on the east side of the training ground.
"Found you!"
A cold smile tugged at Uchiha Jun's lips.
But he didn't rush over immediately.
Instead, he switched back to the [Senju Tobirama (Young)] template first.
The Sharingan was useful, but if he revealed his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, Uchiha Jun would surpass Uchiha Shisui and become Konoha's "super-genius" in a single leap.
Then pressure from all sides would come at him, both openly and behind the scenes!
After switching back to the Senju Tobirama template, Uchiha Jun used his sensory ability again.
With the "direction" he'd seen through the Sharingan, his sensory ability now pinpointed Orochimaru's location!
On a large tree about three hundred meters away, east of the training ground.
His chakra was hidden, but the faint disturbances in the air couldn't fool Uchiha Jun's senses.
"If you're going to put on an act, you have to commit to it."
A glint of cunning flashed in Uchiha Jun's eyes.
He didn't charge straight at Orochimaru. Instead, he pretended to be forced back by the giant snakes, inching toward him bit by bit.
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!"
A curtain of water surged from the ground, blocking the giant snakes' attack.
Uchiha Jun took the chance to retreat dozens of meters.
"Water Style: Water Wave!"
He drove back several more giant snakes and continued retreating.
Fighting as he fell back, Uchiha Jun spent five minutes closing the distance to a hundred meters.
Only a hundred meters from Orochimaru!
"That should do it."
Uchiha Jun took a deep breath, his gaze turning wild.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
"Poof—!"
A golden Shiba Inu appeared before Uchiha Jun in a cloud of smoke.
"Mofang, ram the biggest one!"
"Got it!"
Mofang blurred into motion, charging toward the giant snake closest to Orochimaru.
"Bam!"
The giant snake was sent flying, crashing through several trees.
The collision disrupted the snakes' attacks and left Orochimaru's view obscured for a brief moment.
Now!
"Secret Scroll: Chakra!"
Using a summoning scroll and a chakra scroll together—my rank just keeps climbing!
Uchiha Jun activated the scroll, and a warm current surged through him. His nearly depleted chakra reserves instantly recovered by half!
"Water Style: Water Wave!"
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!"
Without hesitation, he used both jutsu at once!
Water Wave became a raging torrent that rushed toward Orochimaru's position.
Water Formation Wall raised a barrier in front of Uchiha Jun, blocking the other giant snakes' attacks.
The water churned, trees toppled, and everything within dozens of meters was left in ruins.
But Uchiha Jun knew that two C-rank jutsu alone couldn't hurt Orochimaru.
This was just the appetizer.
The real killing move was yet to come!
"Multiple Explosive Tags Jutsu!"
Uchiha Jun brought his hands together, and chakra erupted from his body!
In an instant, countless Explosive Tags flew out from around him like white butterflies, sweeping toward Orochimaru's position in a vast swarm.
A blinding red light flickered on every tag, and each radiated a terrifying surge of chakra.
"Explode!"
"Boom boom boom boom boom—!!!"
Explosions rang out one after another. Flames soared into the sky, and shock waves rolled through the air!
The entire grove was engulfed in explosions, and the shock wave sent all the surrounding giant snakes flying.
The explosions continued for several full seconds before finally dying down.
When the dust settled, the ground before Uchiha Jun had been reduced to scorched earth.
The grove had vanished, and a crater dozens of meters across had been blasted into the ground.
All the giant snakes had been thrown aside. Some lay gravely injured, while others had vanished in clouds of smoke.
The tree where Orochimaru had been standing had also been blown to pieces.
But there was no one in the tree.
Only a badly mangled lump of earth lay quietly in the center of the crater.
That was—an Earth Clone.
"Clap, clap, clap—"
A round of applause came from behind him.
Uchiha Jun spun around. Orochimaru was standing a short distance behind him, a playful smile on his face.
"Not bad, not bad." Orochimaru's voice rasped like a snake rubbing against something. "You managed to find me while under attack, then used a clever trick to get close before launching a deadly strike."
"Though all you destroyed was one of my Earth Clones, that was an excellent performance for a Genin."
Uchiha Jun put on a wary expression and tightened his grip on his Ninja Blade.
At the sight, Orochimaru chuckled and took a Konoha Headband from his sleeve, tossing it to Uchiha Jun.
"Congratulations. You passed the test."
Uchiha Jun caught the headband and breathed a sigh of relief, though he kept his expression cautious.
"That's... all it takes to pass?"
"What else?" Orochimaru tilted his head. "Want to fight another round? I wouldn't mind!"
"No, thank you." Uchiha Jun hurriedly shook his head.
"Clap, clap, clap—"
Another round of applause rang out.
Uchiha Fugaku emerged from the grove, a satisfied smile on his face.
"Jun, well done."
Uchiha Shisui also jumped down from a tree, his eyes full of astonishment.
"Jun, that last move of yours... wasn't that a bit much? How many Explosive Tags did it take?"
"It's a family secret." Uchiha Jun kept making things up.
Uchiha Shisui: "...Does your family have a lot of secrets?"
"That's what you call a rich heritage." Uchiha Jun answered with perfect confidence.
Uchiha Fugaku looked at Uchiha Jun with clear admiration.
[Ding! [Uchiha Fugaku] Affection +5, current 70 points (admiration)] [Ding! [Uchiha Fugaku] Affection reached 70 points. Randomly obtained 10 A-Rank Ninja Fragments!] [Uchiha Shisui Affection +10, current 50 points (fondness)] [Orochimaru Affection +10, current 20 points (interest)] [Sarutobi Hiruzen Affection +5, current 15 points (attention)]
What a haul!
Uchiha Jun was overjoyed, but kept his delight off his face.
"Jun," Uchiha Fugaku said, "from now on, you're Lord Orochimaru's student. Follow Lord Orochimaru and learn from him. Don't let Lord Hokage down."
"Yes!" Uchiha Jun replied firmly.
Orochimaru looked at Uchiha Jun, curiosity gleaming in his snake-like eyes.
"Uchiha Jun... interesting."
"In three days, I'll come find you for your first mission."
With that, Orochimaru vanished in a flash.
Uchiha Fugaku left with Uchiha Shisui.
Uchiha Jun was the only one left in the training ground.