Poisoned!

Lihuo had never fought such a grueling battle, facing an elite Jonin in his prime and a gifted puppeteer all by himself.

Lihuo knew clearly that his current strength was insufficient to go head-to-head with them; the best strategy was to stall.

Conserve his strength and hold out until Orochimaru arrived!

Yet, as simple as that sounded, Lihuo found it incredibly difficult to execute.

Oniichiro excelled in taijutsu, and even with Lihuo's body having undergone multiple enhancements, he could barely parry the attacks.

Bang!

Oniichiro landed a heavy whip kick that sent Lihuo flying, and Sasori, standing to the side, was not idle either.

He manipulated the puppet "Crow," which was equipped with countless mechanisms and poisons, launching one lethal attack after another.

Faced with this situation, Lihuo understood that if he dragged this out any longer, things would only get worse.

He had to use his trump card!

Lihuo's hands moved in a blur of seals, and with a puff of white smoke, three shadow clones appeared beside him.

"No matter what you're planning, I won't let you succeed."

Sasori said indifferently, immediately manipulating Crow to sweep across with its poison-coated mechanical blades.

At the same time, Oniichiro erupted with ghostly speed.

He appeared before Lihuo and his shadow clones like a phantom.

Yet, Lihuo shed his previous disarray, his eyes filled with cold composure.

Facing the simultaneous assault, Lihuo began to respond without a hint of panic.

Two shadow clones rushed toward the puppet, which was whistling through the air like a cannonball.

"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"

With a roar from one shadow clone, his sleeve suddenly expanded.

Five thick, white giant pythons shot out from his cuff, instantly binding Crow tightly, threatening to crush the puppet into wood shavings.

Sasori's pupils constricted; he hadn't expected Lihuo to have been holding back until now.

But after only a moment of hesitation, Sasori's puppet began to fall apart.

Sasori quickly snapped back to reality, his fingers flicking lightly as if a pianist playing a trembling movement.

The previously sluggish puppet seemed to gain a soul in that instant.

Countless rotating blades popped out from every part of Crow's body, and in just a few seconds, it sliced through all the giant pythons that had been binding it.

Just then, Lihuo's other shadow clone moved!

"Rasengan!"

With a roar, the clone leaped high into the air and slammed the Rasengan in his hand hard against the puppet.

Crow, which had just displayed such formidable power, instantly suffered a massive impact.

Bang!

The high-speed rotating chakra shredded the puppet's chest, scattering wood splinters everywhere.

Crow crashed to the ground like a kite with a broken string.

Meanwhile, Orochimaru's battle was also drawing to a close.

With the addition of three Anbu, the Fire Snake Squad's disadvantage became even more pronounced, and they were soon thoroughly defeated by Orochimaru and his team.

"Alright, the mission is now successfully completed."

Orochimaru said with a relaxed expression, looking nothing like someone who had just been through a major battle.

"Well then, time to head back to the village with Lihuo."

Orochimaru released his sensory perception, carefully searching for Lihuo's location.

The next second, his brows furrowed tightly. Lihuo had vanished?!

In an instant, an aura as heavy as a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood poured out like a flood, constantly battering the three Anbu present.

The three Anbu knelt on one knee in unison, and Captain Xiang said with a slight tremor, "Lord Orochimaru, is there anything you need us to do?"

Orochimaru acted as if he hadn't heard Xiang at all, continuing to expand the range of his perception.

When he probed the border of the Land of Wind, his pupils constricted.

He sensed that Lihuo was currently engaged in battle with an elite Jonin and a Chunin!

"How did this brat end up all the way over there?"

With no time to think carefully, Orochimaru reached into his ninja tool pouch, pulled out the secret scroll carried by Sha, and tossed it to Xiang.

"Return and report."

Xiang caught the blood-stained scroll and opened his mouth to say something, but upon seeing Orochimaru's cold, stern face, he swallowed all his words instantly.

"Yes!"

Following a gesture from Xiang, three Anbu dashed toward Konoha Village like ghosts, striving to deliver the scroll to the Hokage as quickly as possible.

As the Anbu departed, Orochimaru's expression grew increasingly grim.

If Jiraiya and Tsunade were here, they would surely recognize this look as the one Orochimaru wore when he was prepared to kill.

The next second, Orochimaru bolted forward like a cannonball, his target being the location where Lihuo was engaged in battle!

Faster!

This thought echoed in Orochimaru's mind.

He recalled the young boy who had been blown to pieces by an Explosive Tag on that rainy night.

Ever since that moment, Orochimaru had deeply understood the frailty of humanity!

Thinking of this, Orochimaru quickened his pace even further.

Don't you dare die... little Lihuo.

Meanwhile, on Lihuo's side, just as two shadow clones heavily damaged Sasori's puppet, Lihuo's main body and one shadow clone confronted Oniichiro.

Without any wasted words, Lihuo chose to engage Oniichiro in hand-to-hand combat. Even with the shadow clone assisting in the harassment, Oniichiro's Sand Village Taijutsu was simply too strong, and Lihuo's attacks failed to land any significant blows.

Yet, even so, Lihuo did not show a hint of frustration or anger; instead, his eyes remained perfectly clear.

Suddenly, Oniichiro seized an opportunity, slamming a heavy, powerful punch into Lihuo's stomach.

Lihuo made no move to dodge, leaving Oniichiro momentarily stunned. As he looked at Lihuo, he read an endless madness in the boy's eyes.

Thud!

As Lihuo spat out a mouthful of blood, his hands managed to touch Oniichiro's head.

"Ding! Touched A-rank ninja: Oniichiro. Please select three of the following rewards."

In an instant, Lihuo flew backward, and a Flying Thunder God Mark was left on Oniichiro's body.

Ptui!

Lihuo spat out blood, glared coldly at Oniichiro, and chanted silently in his heart.

"Extract rewards."

"Physical fitness significantly enhanced."

"Sand Village Taijutsu mastery."

"100,000 Yen."

"Reaction speed significantly enhanced."

"Coordination significantly enhanced."

Lihuo did not hesitate, choosing the three "significantly enhanced" effects.

Thump!

In an instant, a piercing pain surged through Lihuo's limbs and bones, and then, he felt as if his body were melting away.

Oniichiro did not give Lihuo any chance to catch his breath, appearing before him once again like a persistent curse.

His fist, heavy as a sledgehammer, smashed fiercely toward Lihuo's chest.

Bang!

The scene of Lihuo being crushed to pieces that he had expected did not occur. Instead, Lihuo dodged the lethal attack with the agility of a hare.

"That was close."

Lihuo brushed the dust off his body. At this moment, he could clearly feel that his physical fitness had reached the level of a Jonin!

"Damnable brat."

Oniichiro didn't waste words, rushing forward again to tangle with Lihuo.

But as they fought, he increasingly realized that the boy before him seemed to have grown stronger in an instant!

He had originally possessed an overwhelming advantage, but now, the two were evenly matched!

Oniichiro's expression grew increasingly grave, while the light in Lihuo's eyes grew brighter.

However, just as the two were locked in combat, Sasori, who had been struggling to resist while controlling his tattered "Crow," suddenly moved!

His eyes were as calm as an ancient well, his fingers dancing in the air as thin chakra threads manipulated the movements of his puppet soul.

Bang!

The two shadow clones that had been holding the upper hand exploded instantly. A sharp, intense pain flooded into Lihuo's mind, causing his movements to falter for a split second.

It was that crucial split second that Oniichiro seized, his lethal iron fist striking Lihuo's body without mercy.

Thud!

A Kunai shot from the arm of the Crow like a bolt of lightning, its blade reflecting a ghostly green light, clearly quenched in deadly poison.

Lihuo's body flew backward like a discarded sandbag, and Sasori's Kunai struck Lihuo's shoulder with unerring precision.

The situation took a sharp turn for the worse.

Lihuo felt his condition deteriorating rapidly, his body gradually succumbing to the numbing, weakening effects of the poison.

He summoned every ounce of his strength to stand, using Life Return to forcibly suppress the toxins within his body!

Exploding with all his might, he rushed toward Sasori at a speed that even Oniichiro failed to react to.

Although Sasori was a puppeteer, his physical fitness had reached the level of a Chunin, yet he could not escape Lihuo's grasp, nor did he even have time to retract the Crow for defense.

As Lihuo's palm touched Sasori's head, the virulent poison within his own body erupted completely, and he collapsed before Sasori.

Thud!

With a soft landing, Orochimaru appeared before the three of them.

Behind Orochimaru, the entire forest had been devastated by his high-speed sprint!

After catching sight of the newcomer, Oniichiro used all his remaining strength to turn his head and shout at Sasori.

"Run!"

Orochimaru looked down at the fallen Lihuo and slowly raised his head.

"None of you are getting away!"