A Gang-Up on the Sannin, the First Battle of a Luxurious Lineup

Thick purple poison mist rolled along the ground. Countless venomous snakes bared their fangs, and the rustle of scales scraping against damp stone slabs filled the entire corridor.

Cruel light gleamed in Orochimaru's golden slit pupils. With the Kusanagi Sword clenched in his mouth, the vast chakra within him poured forth as the Myriad Snake Formation surged in like a tidal wave, enough to swallow an elite Anbu squad at full strength in an instant.

The hem of Ye's black trench coat draped over the stone floor. He sat quietly on a rock at the edge, without even shifting his crossed legs.

Twelve steps away, Haku lowered his gaze. His hands formed a blur of afterimages, completing the intricate hand seals in just two seconds. Ice Release chakra then surged into his palms and violently flooded the ankle-deep water.

Absolute cold condensed into a visible white torrent. Dense cracking sounds rang out from the water's surface as a thick layer of ice spread forward in a fan shape with ferocious force.

The hundreds of venomous snakes at the front had barely touched the cold air before white frost rapidly crawled over their skin. They did not even have time to close their gaping venomous jaws before their bodies froze in place.

Frost-white ice spread along the overlapping snake bodies, sealing the entire churning Myriad Snake Formation in ice within moments. Translucent ice filled the narrow passage, while the snakes remained locked in their savage pouncing poses.

Kimimaro burst out from Haku's side. His boots struck the slick ice and used it to slide forward. His upper body leaned ahead, his spine drove his entire body, and he moved so fast that only a blurred afterimage remained.

Two sharp bone spikes glowing with jade-green light burst from his palms, piercing through the air ahead with a deep howl.

The disdain had yet to fade from Orochimaru's eyes when a jade streak flashed across his vision. He immediately twisted his neck to the side, attempting to evade the killing blow.

No blood splattered. The first bone spike pierced the throat of the afterimage directly ahead, and that figure immediately collapsed into a puddle of slick mud.

Just as Orochimaru's real body appeared three meters to the left, the second jade bone spike had already pierced through the cold air, smashing through the ribs of a second substitute.

Too fast. That speed...

Even his dynamic vision could no longer keep up with the movements of this Kaguya Clan youth. Orochimaru's golden slit pupils abruptly tightened.

This body, which had only just been reborn, had surpassed the limits of ordinary taijutsu shinobi in both explosive power and neural reaction speed.

Before Orochimaru could steady his breathing, a deep cracking sound suddenly came from the rock wall overhead.

Covered by a Water Clone, Zabuza plunged from the shadows above the rock wall. His hulking body descended with crushing killing intent.

Enormous Water Release chakra surged wildly into the damaged Kubikiribōchō. Water swirled around its broad blade, forming a violent vortex as it cleaved down at Orochimaru's head.

Piercing explosions rang out one after another. The air could not withstand that blade pressure.

Orochimaru hurriedly raised his head. He only had time to pour chakra into his legs before throwing himself backward.

Carrying unstoppable momentum, the Kubikiribōchō split apart the third mud substitute Orochimaru had left behind, its edge immediately cutting into the ground.

The entire dungeon shook violently. A crack over ten meters long was torn through the hard dark iron stone slabs, and shattered rocks mixed with ice shards shot wildly in every direction.

The shockwave swept across the walls, sending great patches of moss and loosened rock layers crashing down.

Only after retreating twenty meters did Orochimaru regain his footing.

He opened his mouth and dry-heaved. A mass of blood-streaked mucus poured from his throat, and a brand-new body laboriously crawled out. His hands tore away the outer garment contaminated by the poison mist.

His chest rose and fell violently, rapid breaths squeezing from his lungs. A leaden gray had already spread across his pale face.

Those golden slit pupils stared fixedly at the three figures standing in a triangular formation ahead.

The delicate youth who controlled Ice Release, the Hidden Mist Village rogue ninja wielding a greatsword, and this Kaguya Clan orphan—they were simply inhuman.

The three of them were not even thirty years old combined, yet every attack and every bit of coordination hovered at the threshold of Kage-level combat power.

What kind of monstrous lineup was this?

How long had Uchiha Ye even been in the Land of Water? Yet he had already gathered such terrifying strength.

The flesh along Orochimaru's back tightened in waves as a long-forgotten chill crept up from his lower back.

I have to kill the leader sitting in the back first.

His neck then stretched out in a grotesque fashion. Vicious cold light shone from the depths of Orochimaru's slit pupils as he formed hand seals once more.

His head shot forward, the Kusanagi Sword gleaming with cold light clenched tightly in his mouth. It bypassed the three people ahead and stabbed straight at Ye's face from a tricky angle.

That strike drained more than half of the Yin Release chakra within him. It was so fast that it left only a blurred black line in the air.

Kimimaro's eyes turned bloodshot, killing intent churning within them. He could not tolerate anyone showing even the slightest disrespect toward the god who had granted him a new life.

He turned and raised his hand, his right fingers once again gripping the back of his neck. His fingertips exerted force and pierced flesh.

Before the blood could splatter, accompanied by a piercing tearing sound, he forcibly ripped his entire jade-like spine out of his body. Under the stimulation of chakra, the dense bones crazily grew and transformed.

Clematis Flower Dance.

The jade spine stretched into a long whip covered in barbs. It let out a sharp whistle through the air and accurately coiled around the Kusanagi Sword rushing toward them.

Brilliant sparks exploded in all directions as indestructible jade bone ground violently against the edge of the divine weapon.

Kimimaro planted his feet into the ground, every muscle in his arms taut. With sheer Monstrous Strength, he locked the Kusanagi Sword in midair. Its tip was now less than two meters from Ye's brow.

Veins bulged along Orochimaru's elongated neck as he desperately twisted the sword hilt, trying to sever the bone whip wrapped around it.

Yet terrifyingly dense chakra flowed through that jade-colored bone, making it far tougher than expected. The edge of the Kusanagi Sword could not cut into it in the slightest.

Looking at Orochimaru, whose Kusanagi Sword was trapped by the bone whip and who was now caught between advance and retreat, Ye remained seated on the rock, merely raising his dark eyes.

A mechanical synthesized voice sounded in his mind right on cue.

"Ding. It has been detected that Orochimaru has developed the intention to retreat. Please make a choice, Host."

"Option One: Have your subordinates stop and let Orochimaru go. Reward: Snake Kind-Hearted title."

"Option Two: Personally enter the battle and drive back Orochimaru. Reward: one ordinary Fire Release ninjutsu scroll."

"Option Three: Forcefully seize the top-secret Impure World Reincarnation Scroll from his chest and completely kick him out of the Land of Water. Reward: top-grade countermeasure item, exclusive Susanoo divine weapon—the Sword of Takemikazuchi, with the additional property of sealing space-time."

Ye swept his gaze over the system panel that appeared before him.

Having endured the three men's savage assault, the narrow stone chamber could collapse completely at any moment. Cracks already covered the surrounding rock walls.

Fine ice shards struck everyone's clothing hems as massive rocks continually fell from the ceiling, producing deafening echoes when they smashed onto the ice.

Haku and Zabuza had already cut off all of Orochimaru's escape routes, while Kimimaro firmly restrained the strongest weapon in his hand.

Every exertion only made his situation more miserable, yet Orochimaru, trapped in a desperate situation, still struggled.

The bloodstained scroll in his chest was emitting a cold, sinister Impure World Reincarnation aura.

That was undoubtedly core intelligence capable of determining the future course of the war.

Besides, the exclusive divine weapon offered by the third option was practically a killing weapon tailor-made for Obito.