Orochimaru Appears!

The burly man's eyes widened. He turned around in a daze and saw someone in a gray robe wearing a Land of Rain Forehead Protector!

"It's you!"

The burly man sucked in a sharp breath. He recognized the person before him—the one who had caught Anko's attack with his bare hands!

Orochimaru!

"Heh heh! How interesting. I got to pick up the leftovers. Thanks, Uchiha!"

Orochimaru gave a sinister smile and flicked his hand. The burly man fell to the ground, dead on the spot.

Orochimaru's gaze had already locked onto Uchiha Sora!

Damn! You've got to be kidding me. I ran into him this quickly?

Uchiha Sora took a deep breath, grateful he hadn't fired just now.

He still had a trump card!

Shikamaru twitched his ears.

"Look! I heard fighting over there just now!"

Choji's eyes widened, and he was about to take off running.

"People are fighting. Shouldn't we hurry and get away? What if we get caught up in it?"

Shikamaru looked at him as if he'd never learn.

"Idiot! There's fighting, but it doesn't sound too intense. That means it's two teams!"

"And they're not far away. If we go over there, we might be able to reap the rewards!"

Ino's eyes lit up.

"Yeah! Those two teams must have different scrolls, or they wouldn't have started fighting so easily. We can just pick up one of the scrolls and win!"

Shikamaru nodded, looking excited too.

"Exactly! No time to waste. Let's go take a look!"

With that, the three of them changed direction and headed straight for the distant commotion.

Meanwhile, Naruto and Sasuke also widened their eyes.

"Sounds like someone's fighting! Should we go check it out?"

Naruto rubbed his hands together, itching to go right away.

Sasuke thought it over calmly.

"We can go take a look. Maybe we can pick up the leftovers. If we can get the corresponding Earth Scroll, that'll save us some trouble!"

With that, the three of them also headed toward the spot.

Before long, the two groups happened to end up on the same path.

They arrived at the same time, one after the other!

Sasuke saw Shikamaru, while Choji saw Naruto and Sakura Haruno.

The two groups exchanged glances, then quickly backed away from each other, eyeing one another warily.

"Why are you here too?"

Shikamaru was on guard.

Sasuke snorted.

"We're all here to reap the rewards. I assume you heard the fighting nearby too?"

Shikamaru's eyes darted around.

"That's right. Since we're all here, why don't we team up and go take a look?"

"If we can take advantage of the chaos, we'll split the scroll between us!"

Sasuke considered it for a moment, then nodded.

"Fine!"

Although he agreed, the two groups didn't get too close. They continued forward while keeping their distance and staying alert.

Soon, they reached the very center of the battle and immediately spotted Uchiha Sora and Orochimaru!

"Whoa! Is it always this lively around here?"

Choji's mouth fell open, and he looked excited.

"Well, well! I finally caught up with you! I'm not going to say anything else—today, I'm definitely stealing Uchiha Sora from you!"

It was obvious that Shikamaru and the others had no idea just how dangerous Orochimaru was.

Even now, they were still thinking about going after Uchiha Sora.

Sasuke, on the other hand, looked grim.

"Bro! He's from the Land of Rain!"

Even Naruto and Sakura Haruno drew in a sharp breath.

"No way! Your brother said those three were not to be messed with!"

For a moment, the entire exam grounds were in an uproar.

It was rare for four teams to gather in one place.

Elsewhere, in the Hokage's office in Konoha.

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched the crystal ball with a peculiar expression.

"So many people have gathered in one place?"

Asuma burst out laughing beside him.

"This is going to be good. Maybe we'll get a huge brawl!"

Kurenai glanced at Orochimaru and suddenly asked, "Who's that? He's so old, and he's still taking the Chunin Ninja Exams? Is there a limit?"

Asuma looked a little puzzled.

"Looks like he's from the Land of Rain. It's normal for him to be old. Some people are in their seventies or eighties and still haven't passed. There's no age limit, anyway."

Kurenai shook her head.

"No, that's not it! I keep sensing something unsettling about him. This person might be dangerous!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze deepened.

"Good timing. With so many people there, let's watch for a while. If there's anything suspicious about him, we'll send someone to apprehend him immediately!"

Asuma nodded solemnly.

"I'll get in touch with Kakashi right away!"

And so, Konoha's leadership began keeping an eye on the battle.

"Heh, heh, heh. I didn't expect it to be so lively! What a shame. I don't want so many people knowing about this."

Orochimaru glanced sinisterly around.

To his delight, both Sasuke and his brother were there.

He was thrilled. He felt that coming here had been well worth it.

"Heh heh! Listen, weirdo, you're not our target. We're after Uchiha Sora. Get lost, and maybe we won't attack you!"

Choji looked at him with disdain.

He thought Orochimaru was as skinny as a monkey, nothing like his own nicely rounded figure.

He probably couldn't even withstand one slap from him.

Sasuke and the others also snorted.

"Don't get too cocky. Both of us brothers are here. What can you do, even if all of you attack?"

By now, Sasuke had brought his teammates closer to Uchiha Sora.

Naruto and Sakura Haruno exchanged glances. They didn't dislike Uchiha Sora.

After all, he had helped them once.

Sakura Haruno, in particular, thought Uchiha Sora was incredibly cool.

Without hesitation, she voiced her agreement.

Just like that, Uchiha Sora somehow gained three more teammates.

Choji and the others also realized the situation had turned against them.

Shikamaru frowned tightly.

"This looks like trouble... Maybe we should leave?"

Ino was having second thoughts too.

But Choji still wasn't backing down.

"Yeah, those two brothers have teamed up. We can't get involved with them, but the people from the Land of Rain—"

There was no doubt about it: he still wanted to pick up the leftovers.

But before he could say anything more, Orochimaru gave a cold snort.

"Heh heh! You're all young and fearless. Today, I'll teach you a lesson!"

Orochimaru moved in an instant, but he didn't lunge at Naruto.

Instead, he appeared right in front of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio!

"Damn it! Fall back!"

Shikamaru's expression changed. Though he didn't know that the man before him was Orochimaru, he understood that anyone who made the proctors wary had to be strong.

He quickly retreated as the Shadow Control Jutsu sprang into action and shot toward Orochimaru.

Nearby, Choji's arm swelled several times in size, and he brought a punch down on Orochimaru.

Ino, meanwhile, released the Mind Transfer Jutsu and took control of Orochimaru's two teammates.

This combination of control and attack should have been highly effective.

But it had no effect on Orochimaru whatsoever.

Orochimaru's body twisted. The moment the punch hit him, his neck stretched incredibly long, extending more than ten meters.

Like a python, he lunged forward and snapped at Choji's face!