The overwhelming pressure radiating from Orochimaru's body sent a chill down Kakashi's spine. Cold sweat trickled from his brow. Beside him, Uzuki Yuugao, already paralyzed with fear, collapsed to her knees, her limbs trembling uncontrollably.
Bang! With a sudden crash, Orochimaru's fist struck Kakashi squarely in the face. Kakashi's body was hurled backward by the immense force, launching him several meters through the air.
Such speed...!
At that moment, Orochimaru revealed the terrifying strength befitting one of the Legendary Sannin. His sheer prowess in taijutsu alone already surpassed Kakashi's by several levels.
Kakashi's body slammed into the ground more than ten meters away, but Orochimaru wasn't finished. His hands weaved signs at breakneck speed.
"Sen'ei Jashu!" (Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)
With a puff of smoke, several massive snakes erupted from the ground around Kakashi, fangs bared and hissing viciously. Kakashi, midair and unbalanced, could only watch helplessly as they encircled him.
Orochimaru let out a sinister chuckle. "Explode."
Kakashi's eyes widened. He could feel it—Chakra swelling violently within the snakes. A detonation jutsu!
BOOM!
A thunderous explosion swallowed Kakashi in smoke and fire.
"Kakashi-senpai!" Yuugao cried out, her voice breaking with panic.
Orochimaru paid her no attention. His cold, reptilian eyes stared into the settling smoke. Kakashi's chakra signature remained—faint, but intact.
As the smoke cleared, long silver hair was seen coiling protectively around a crouched figure.
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes. "...Jiraiya?"
The technique was unmistakable. Though far from perfected, Kakashi had used Needle Jizō, a defensive jutsu Jiraiya was known for, to shield himself from the explosion. His hair retracted, revealing his battered form.
"Didn't expect that idiot Jiraiya to teach you that," Orochimaru muttered, amused.
Kakashi lifted his head slowly, one eye glaring at the Sannin. "I'm full of surprises."
Orochimaru clicked his tongue. "A pity... a mere imitation, after all."
Suddenly, a katana slashed down toward Orochimaru from behind, but before it could strike, a snake shot out and coiled around the attacker—Yuugao.
She had moved while Orochimaru was distracted, but her ambush had failed.
"Still struggling?" Orochimaru hissed, as the snake tightened around her. "I have no interest in you. Don't get in my way."
With a cold glare, he raised a kunai, aiming for her neck.
But Kakashi lunged—his right hand swinging Chidori, lightning crackling wildly!
"Too predictable," Orochimaru sneered, parrying the blade with ease.
However, just as their weapons clashed, Kakashi's body flickered—vanished. In his place was a burst of lightning.
The real Kakashi reappeared beside Yuugao, severing the snake's coils with a flash of his blade. He pulled her back just in time.
The Orochimaru hit by Chidori crumbled into yellow mud.
Earth Style: Substitution Technique.
Kakashi grimaced. He had created a lightning clone using transformation and shadow clone techniques, disguising himself as his own blade to close in on Orochimaru. It almost worked.
Almost.
But Orochimaru's reaction speed was terrifying, slipping away with a substitution in the blink of an eye.
From atop a nearby tree, Orochimaru reappeared, arms crossed as if amused.
"I underestimated you," he said softly. "You really are Sakumo's son. That battlefield intuition is sharp."
Kakashi didn't smile. He had used nearly every trick he knew, but Orochimaru was virtually unscathed—aside from a thin cut on his arm.
The sense of helplessness gnawed at him.
He touched his left eye—his Sharingan eye. There's a technique in here that could turn this around, he thought. But I still can't fully control it.
Though his soul had mostly synchronized with the eye, his spiritual energy remained insufficient to properly activate the Mangekyō Sharingan. Even if he could use it, the activation would take time—time he didn't have.
Orochimaru wouldn't allow it.
"You've lasted longer than I expected," Orochimaru said with a cold smirk. "But I'm done playing. Say hello to your father in the afterlife."
Orochimaru's hands blurred into seals.
"Sen'ei Tajashu!" (Many Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)
Multiple snakes shot forth from Orochimaru's sleeves, aiming to crush Kakashi and Yuugao at once. Kakashi grit his teeth. He had no Chakra left. He couldn't move. Was this the end?
Suddenly—
"Fire Style: Flame Bullet!"
A torrent of fire surged from behind Kakashi, engulfing the snakes mid-flight. The heat was intense, the force immense.
"W-what?!"
Orochimaru's pupils contracted. He leapt backward, hands flying through signs.
"Earth Style: Mud Wall!"
A stone wall erupted before him, shielding him from the roaring flames. Fire and earth collided, smoke billowing outward.
Kakashi turned in astonishment. A tall figure stepped forward, hair white as snow, eyes locked on Orochimaru.
"Jiraiya-sama!" Kakashi shouted in relief.
The Sannin gave a brief nod, his expression unusually grim. His gaze never left Orochimaru.
"Well, well," Orochimaru hissed. "I figured you'd show up, Jiraiya."
"You're not surprised," Jiraiya said, voice laced with fury. "Of course not. You knew I'd come. My teammate defected—I had no choice."
Jiraiya's fists clenched. "But why, Orochimaru? Why betray Konoha? Even if you disagreed with the Hokage, this… this is unforgivable."
His voice cracked—not just in anger, but heartbreak.
And Orochimaru, as always, merely smiled.