Long black hair, golden slit pupils, purple eyeshadow extending to the sides of his nose, pale skin, blue-green tomoe-shaped earrings, and a pale yellow outfit with a rope belt tied in a light purple knot at the back.
Orochimaru, the man known as the Wind of Calamity, remained as otherworldly as ever!
He studied Naruto intently, his expression devoid of the disdain he had shown years ago.
That was inevitable. While inside Anko, he had already witnessed what Naruto could do now.
"Naruto Uzumaki, the boy who once clumsily trailed after Sasuke-kun, seems to have become something of a shinobi... So, why did you go to such lengths to meet me, a man who once had ill intentions toward you?"
Naruto cut straight to the point. "Mr. Orochimaru, I'll be frank. I want to obtain unparalleled power and build an entirely new Shinobi World... To that end, your knowledge and jutsu are indispensable."
Orochimaru's gaze deepened at those words. "I thought you wanted something I could accomplish with little effort, such as letting you meet your father, Minato Namikaze. I never imagined your ambitions were so grand..."
"You don't seem very willing," Naruto said.
"My goal is to uncover every truth that exists in this world, not to serve some individual or organization," Orochimaru said. "Villages, the Akatsuki-they would only become shackles holding me back!"
"I won't become your shackles," Naruto said. "You can continue your research while helping me, as long as..."
Orochimaru smiled and finished for him. "As long as what? I don't harm this Shinobi World?"
Naruto's answer was unexpected. "Doing no harm at all is impossible. I only ask that you stay within certain limits..."
"Oh?" Orochimaru looked mildly surprised. "To hear such pragmatic words from you... Now I'm rather curious about what happened to you..."
"If you're interested, I can tell you all about it later," Naruto said lightly.
"On second thought, never mind," Orochimaru said with a smile. "Reason tells me not to dig too deeply into this..."
At that moment, Konan lent her support. "Orochimaru, you need a stable place to stay right now. If you're willing to assist Naruto, Amegakure will spare no effort to provide you with laboratory facilities and protection."
"That does sound rather appealing," Orochimaru said. "But I'm afraid I must decline..."
"I see. What a shame." Konan's gaze turned cold. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Naruto's reaction. He had lowered his head and was deep in thought.
Orochimaru seemed intent on making Naruto abandon all hope. "To tell you the truth, Naruto, I've long studied the Uzumaki Clan's power. Their tremendous vitality, strong enough to suppress tailed beast chakra, and their array of powerful Sealing Jutsu hold potential no less than that of the Senju. But compared to all that, the Uchiha's power is far more beautiful and captivating."
The shock Itachi had once dealt Orochimaru had left far too deep an impression. That was why this man held such an unusual fixation on the Uchiha's power.
Naruto raised his head. "So you still can't let go of Sasuke, can you?"
"The pursuit of truth requires unwavering dedication," Orochimaru said. "Naruto, even if your current power surprises me, I won't give up on Sasuke. He is the finest vessel I've found! He has the potential to surpass Itachi-no... even Madara Uchiha!"
Unlike in his previous life, Orochimaru had been revived before witnessing Kabuto's fate, so he still intended to seize Sasuke's body.
Naruto's gaze grew slightly colder. "Then no matter what you say, I can't let you leave..."
"That isn't for you to decide..."
With a rustle, Orochimaru's legs turned into a snake's tail, and he darted toward the cave's exit!
Whoosh!
Naruto appeared at the Flying Thunder God mark he had placed at the cave entrance, blocking Orochimaru's path!
"The Flying Thunder God Technique..." Orochimaru's thoughts raced. My arms are still inside the belly of the Reaper Death Seal's death god. I can't use any jutsu that requires hand seals. I saw it all while inside Anko. Naruto's basic combat abilities are now on par with an elite jonin's. If he enters Sage Mode as well, I'll be at a severe disadvantage...!
Ninja Art: Soft Body Modification!
With a whoosh, Orochimaru's neck suddenly lengthened as he sped forward. It wound around Naruto once, then his two sharp fangs sank precisely into Naruto's neck!
I'll restrain his body with the Cursed Seal for now!
Bzzzt!
Black Cursed Seal markings spread from Naruto's neck across his entire body.
But just then, Naruto suddenly raised his arm and clamped Orochimaru's neck tightly in the crook of his elbow, preventing him from pulling his head back!
"Hm!?" Orochimaru realized with a start. Could it be... he deliberately let me bite him without dodging!?
"You used your teeth to inject chakra into my body. In the same way... I can do this."
Naruto closed his eyes and, remaining perfectly still, began meditating to enter Sage Mode.
Whoosh!
The power of nature surged in, and Orochimaru's beautiful face twisted in pain. "Ugh... Natural energy is flowing backward into my body through the connection between us. Aaaaargh...!"
Naruto opened his eyes and smiled. "How does Mount Myōboku's sage power differ from Ryūchi Cave's? Mr. Orochimaru, would you care to share your impressions?"
Rip!
Orochimaru abruptly opened his mouth. First, an arm thrust straight out, followed by a head and body... Several seconds later, a fresh Orochimaru landed on the ground and put distance between himself and Naruto.
Ssssss!
Naruto suppressed the Cursed Seal, forcing it back. Looking at the shriveled snakeskin in his hand, he said, "Your style of Substitution Technique truly is unparalleled..."
"It seems you won't let me leave so easily..."
Many-Snake Formation!
Smiling, Orochimaru dropped onto his stomach. Hundreds upon thousands of snakes poured from his mouth. Once out, the snakes opened their own mouths and spat out hundreds upon thousands of Kusanagi Swords, forming a surging torrent of blades!
"Konan, I'll leave Miss Anko in your care!" With that, Naruto abruptly leaped back, moving outside the cave!
Konan picked Anko up and left the danger zone.
Poof!
The Shadow Clone Naruto had stationed outside the cave dispelled, sending senjutsu chakra back to his original body. Orange eyeshadow appeared, and the exposed right eye took on a toad's horizontal pupil. He had entered Sage Mode!
Poof!
A fresh Shadow Clone appeared in midair and helped Naruto apply a change in chakra nature to the Rasengan he had formed with one hand [Naruto could form Rasengan one-handed later on]!
Bzzzz!
A shrill cutting noise rang out as wind blades protruded. Gathering power in midair, Naruto hurled the lethal weapon in his hand toward the torrent of snakes and swords below!
Sage Art: Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!
BOOM!!!
A white storm field erupted, shredding every snake sweeping across the ground. The cave teetered on the verge of collapse beneath the storm!
BOOM!!!
Suddenly... with an even more violent crash, the cave collapsed completely. Towering before him stood an enormous eight-headed serpent!
With a slithering rustle, Orochimaru's slick, slimy torso emerged from the central snake head. He laughed hoarsely. "Heh heh heh. What a shame, Naruto... Your jutsu is powerful, but it can't defeat me completely!!"
"So that's Orochimaru's ultimate technique, the Eight Branches Technique..."
Naruto landed, his expression solemn.
Ever since I came back, Kurama has refused to speak to me. Should I summon a giant toad to deal with this? But explaining the situation would be difficult...
From midair, Konan asked, "Naruto, do you need me to step in?"
"No. Even if we take Orochimaru away by force, it won't mean much unless I can win him over sincerely..."
With a swish, he pulled off the bandages covering his left eye as he finished speaking. When he opened it, three concentric ripples shone with a sublime light against a pale purple iris!
The Rinnegan, the symbol of the Six Paths!
Orochimaru's pupils abruptly contracted. "Hm!? That left eye... Could it be..."
The corners of Naruto's mouth lifted. "This should make things a little more interesting..."
Before you continue