"You...!!"
What made Inari Kakashi's expression twist in alarm was not Orochimaru catching his wrist as Purple Electricity pierced his chest... it was the Prayer Beads that appeared around his neck after that grasp!
Whoosh! In a flash, Inari Kakashi used Flying Thunder God to return to his original position. The violet lightning in his palm dissipated, and he grabbed the Prayer Beads around his neck, trying to rip them off... but no matter how hard he pulled, they clung firmly to his skin!!
Fury blazed from his eyes!
"That bastard Orochimaru used that bell to make me impatient, then let my attack pierce him because he had this waiting for me! In that mode, all he needs to do is touch me, and these Prayer Beads will force themselves onto me!"
Indeed... those Prayer Beads were another of the Shinigami's ritual implements, called the "Cursed Beads." When the Shinigami of the Reaper Death Seal extended his soul-devouring hand, he first passed it through a string of Prayer Beads—the larger-scale version of these very Cursed Beads!
A gaping hole lay in Orochimaru's chest beneath his white Haori.
“Purple Electricity really is vicious and troublesome!”
If Shinigami Mode had one flaw, it was that he could not use the Orochimaru-Style Substitution he relied on to preserve his life while in that state!
But... a mere wound through his chest and back would not kill Orochimaru immediately. As long as he defeated Inari Kakashi while still conscious, he could release Shinigami Mode and use his Substitution Technique afterward!
Orochimaru wiped the blood from his lips and smiled.
"But... it's over!"
He formed a two-finger Seal!
Beneath the Cursed Beads... a phantom arm of the Shinigami materialized and clamped around Inari Kakashi's neck!!
The other end of that arm... was connected directly to