The black flames did not die out. Instead, they burned ever more fiercely, swiftly engulfing Orochimaru.
Within mere seconds, Orochimaru had been burned into a charred corpse.
Xin stared coldly at the charcoal on the ground.
He knew perfectly well that someone with Orochimaru's absurd tenacity could never die so easily.
Sure enough.
The charcoal's mouth suddenly split open.
An entirely unharmed Orochimaru crawled out, his whole body covered in slime.
Orochimaru panted heavily, his eyes full of wariness, yet his greed only grew more intense.
"Black flames that never go out. What a terrifying Dōjutsu."
Orochimaru slammed both hands onto the ground.
"Summoning Technique!"
Bang!
An enormous cloud of white smoke burst forth.
A terrifying giant snake, twenty or thirty meters long, appeared out of thin air.
Opening jaws wide enough to swallow an elephant, it lunged down at Xin amid a foul-smelling gust.
The giant snake's massive body crushed the surrounding trees, its momentum terrifying.
Xin's gaze turned utterly cold.
He held nothing back, instantly converting the surging chakra within him into a violent lightning nature.
"Lightning Release: Chidori Sharp Spear!"
Xin swept his right hand forward.
A blue spear of light, dozens of meters long and formed from highly concentrated lightning, shot out instantly.
The piercing crackle of electricity tore through the air.
Shhk!
The Chidori Sharp Spear pierced the giant snake's skull without resistance and burst out the back of its head.
The giant snake let out a mournful cry, its enormous body crashing down and throwing up clouds of dust.
At the very instant the giant snake fell.
Xin's right eye spun again.
"Kamui!"
His body instantly vanished from the spot.
Orochimaru had yet to recover from the shock of seeing the giant snake killed in a single blow.
Xin had already appeared out of thin air less than half a meter in front of him.
Violent Lightning Release chakra enveloped Xin's right hand, blue arcs dancing wildly through the air.
"Lightning Release: Lariat!"
Xin slammed an elbow into Orochimaru's chest.
Boom!
The lightning erupted instantly, utterly blasting apart Orochimaru's chest cavity.
Orochimaru's body exploded.
But all that scattered through the air was dirt.
An Earth Clone.
Xin lowered his elbow and turned toward a large tree dozens of meters away.
The real Orochimaru stood on its trunk, his entire body drenched in cold sweat.
Orochimaru gasped for breath, his snake-like eyes filled with incredulous horror.
"Space-Time Ninjutsu, the Flying Thunder God Technique, and even the Lightning Release Nintaijutsu of Kumogakure's Fourth Raikage..."
Even Orochimaru's voice trembled.
His interest had been thoroughly piqued, but he also understood a cruel fact.
The boy before him was definitely no weaker than him, and might even far surpass him.
If he truly kept fighting head-on, he would gain absolutely nothing today.
"Fine. I agree to discuss a deal with you."
Orochimaru discarded all his condescension, his tone more serious than ever.
Xin stood where he was and brushed the dust off himself.
"My demand is simple. You can continue the Konoha Crush Plan, but the Third Hokage must survive."
Orochimaru stared at him, his mind racing.
"You get the Third Hokage's life. What do I get?"
Orochimaru asked tentatively.
"Sasuke Uchiha."
Xin uttered the name without hesitation.
Orochimaru froze for a moment, then smiled, feigning confusion.
"Sasuke Uchiha? What would I want with that brat?"
Watching Orochimaru's insincere performance, Xin gave a mocking smile.
"Stop pretending, Orochimaru."
Xin directly exposed Orochimaru's deepest secret.
"You've set your sights on Sasuke because you want to take his body through Living Corpse Reincarnation."
"And obtain the Uchiha Clan's Kekkei Genkai that way, don't you?"
At those words, Orochimaru completely lost his composure.
The smile froze on his face, his eyes widened, and even his breathing stopped.
Living Corpse Reincarnation was a forbidden technique he had poured untold effort into developing, his greatest trump card in his pursuit of eternal life.
There could not possibly be a second person in the entire Shinobi World who knew this secret.
"You... how do you know about Living Corpse Reincarnation?!"
Orochimaru shrieked, his voice steeped in utter panic.
As he looked at Uchiha Xin before him, he felt that this boy was mysterious in the extreme, impossible to see through.
Orochimaru stared fixedly at Uchiha Xin.
His chest heaved, and an uncontrollable killing intent surged within him.
The secret of Living Corpse Reincarnation absolutely could not get out.
He had to silence him here, wiping out this dangerous brat completely.
With both hands behind his back, Orochimaru quietly gathered chakra, preparing to use his ultimate trump card.
"Put away that laughable killing intent."
Xin kept both hands in his pockets, his tone carrying absolute confidence and disdain.
"Even if you use the trump card you prepared for the Konoha Crush Plan, you're still no match for me."
Orochimaru's movements faltered, and cold sweat slid from his forehead down his cheeks.
He looked at Xin with intense wariness.
This brat even knows about Living Corpse Reincarnation. Could he know everything about the Impure World Reincarnation I've prepared too?
Orochimaru did not dare gamble.
If Impure World Reincarnation was exposed ahead of time, his entire plan would fall apart.
Watching Orochimaru's shifting expression, Xin explained further.
"Uchiha Itachi once entrusted me with protecting Sasuke during his time at the Ninja Academy."
Xin's tone was calm.
"Now that we've graduated, that protection period is over."
"Whether Sasuke lives or dies has nothing to do with me anymore."
Xin looked straight into Orochimaru's eyes.
"As long as you agree to keep the Third Hokage alive, I definitely won't stop you from taking Sasuke."
"I can even pretend I never saw anything."
Orochimaru took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
He carefully weighed the pros and cons.
Uchiha Xin's strength was unfathomable, and his trump cards seemed endless.
If he truly fought him, not only would he fail to seize Sasuke, he might even lose his own life.
Trading the Third Hokage's life for a perfect Uchiha vessel was definitely worthwhile.
"Fine. I accept your deal."
Orochimaru nodded, a sharp glint flashing through his eyes.
He ventured a question.
"Since you want to preserve the Third Hokage's life, do you need me to stop the Konoha Crush Plan?"
"No."
Xin refused unequivocally.
"Konoha has been too peaceful these past few years. It needs an upheaval to purge some of that rot."
"I only require the Third to survive. I don't care how many others die."
Hearing this, Orochimaru revised his assessment of Xin upward once again.
Not only was this brat terrifyingly powerful, his mind was utterly ruthless, completely lacking the naive bonds of Konoha ninja.
"It's a deal."
Xin turned to leave.
Before leaving, he stopped and tilted his head slightly.
"Orochimaru, a friendly word of advice."
Xin gave a meaningful smile.
"When you're reminiscing with the old Third, be careful you don't end up like the Nine-Tails."
Xin had directly hinted at the Reaper Death Seal Technique.
Orochimaru's heart jolted violently, and his eyes instantly widened.