Boom!
The broken torso—now just a mangled form with one remaining arm—crashed onto the rocky ground. A crisp snap echoed as it shattered completely upon impact.
It had already suffered from the petrifying erosion of senjutsu, and then was pierced by countless black iron spikes. By now, the body had long reached its physical limit.
From beneath the shattered debris, a white hand pushed aside some twisted metal and retrieved a small metal sphere.
"Tsk... A seal that can trap the chakra and soul of the dead?"
Tagorihime turned the orb over in her hand, speaking to herself. "Human tricks really are amusing."
"What a shame the sealing technique isolates everything—otherwise, I might've had a chance to talk to him."
She sighed, a touch of nostalgia in her voice.
"It's been over a decade since we last met. Time really does fly."
Boom...
The ground trembled. Roars erupted nearby, snapping her from her thoughts. She turned to glance at Tsunade, who was ruthlessly hammering her opponent, and then at the enormous slug looming in the jungle.
A flicker of unease crossed her eyes.
"Orochimaru wanted me to deal with that...?"
The Slug Sage—equal to, or perhaps even more terrifying than the White Snake Sage herself.
After all, Ryūchi Cave still has smaller snakes living in it. The Shikkotsu Forest, on the other hand, has only one inhabitant: that impossibly massive slug.
"With her around, there's no way I can intervene here."
Tagorihime sighed with regret.
She had hoped to earn a bigger favor from Orochimaru, but that chance was gone.
---
The moon sank low in the western sky. Dark clouds swallowed the last of its light, plunging the forest into shadow.
Amid the thick jungle, several figures darted through the trees like frightened rabbits, their pace unrelenting—as if some great beast were chasing them.
"This is weird. Weird, weird, really weird…"
Killer Bee, leading the Kumogakure team in retreat, muttered to himself in a singsong rhythm.
"It doesn't make sense! Orochimaru didn't go after the two rogue ninjas, but came after us. That's just wrong! We saved Konoha's Tsunade!"
Despite his tone, Killer Bee knew the truth: Orochimaru didn't come just to save Tsunade. He wanted much more.
Shhh...
Wind ripped through the trees as Orochimaru, with the Shisui squad, chased close behind. His eyes gleamed with a cold intensity.
He wasn't interested in petty revenge.
The ninja world was shifting—everything had changed since the Nine-Tails Rebellion. During the attack, Kumogakure's attempt to strike Konoha failed, and the Fourth Raikage was seriously wounded.
Now, Kumogakure was weakened—its strength diminished. And Iwagakure, sensing opportunity, began to stir, hoping to exploit Kumogakure's vulnerability just as Kumogakure once did to Konoha.
But unlike Kumogakure, Iwa was not bold enough to strike openly.
True, Kumogakure's losses weren't as dire as Konoha's had been. And unlike the Hokage's death, Raikage's injuries were easier to hide.
But if something were to happen to Killer Bee—Kumogakure's Eight-Tails Jinchūriki—right in the middle of a standoff with Iwa, it would shatter the delicate balance.
And Orochimaru intended to make sure that happened.
He would confirm Raikage's injury, and even remove another Kage-level asset from the board.
In return, Iwagakure would take to the front lines, turning tension into open warfare.
Compared to destabilizing the entire ninja world, chasing after traitors like Sasori and Kakuzu was nothing more than a distraction—something to make them flee, not fight.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Suddenly, fire erupted through the jungle, tearing the darkness apart in a blazing inferno. Explosions thundered in rapid succession, casting wild shadows across the trees and igniting the forest in chaos.
Both pursuers and pursued were momentarily stunned, their faces lit by the flames.
A sea of fire raged ahead.
Killer Bee and the Kumogakure team skidded to a halt and turned to face Orochimaru's group.
But then—poof—a chain of white smoke burst forth.
All the ninjas beside Orochimaru vanished.
They had been shadow clones. The real team had already circled ahead and ambushed them from the front.
Killer Bee quickly pieced it together.
Orochimaru had deliberately distanced his real forces from the battlefield of the rogue ninjas—Sasori and Kakuzu—to avoid any interference or unexpected chaos.
Ironically, their hasty retreat had played right into his strategy.
Still, Killer Bee had no regrets. Even if given another chance, he'd make the same call.
As the flames quickly faded, Shisui emerged with the real ninja squad, surrounding the Kumogakure team.
He now understood the situation. The Eight-Tails Jinchūriki—Killer Bee—was a strategic key to the brewing storm across the ninja world.
Thinking back on his earlier disobedience, Shisui felt shame rise in his chest.
If Orochimaru hadn't stopped him earlier, Killer Bee might've already escaped. As a seasoned Jinchūriki, he wouldn't hesitate to flee the moment things looked bad.
In the ninja world, war never truly ends. One ends, and another begins.
If conflict between Iwagakure and Kumogakure didn't erupt now, then the warriors who would've died in that war would survive—only to become Konoha's enemies in the future.
And when Konoha's shinobi fell in the next war, whose fault would that blood be?
It could be prevented now.
Shisui's Sharingan flared open. The triple tomoe spun fiercely, red light glowing from his eyes. He had made up his mind.
Even if it cost him his life—he would not let Killer Bee escape.
Across from them, the Kumogakure shinobi were equally resolved. They exchanged glances, then surged forward, charging straight at Orochimaru.
If Konoha wanted to capture their village's Jinchūriki, they would put their lives on the line to give Killer Bee a chance to escape.
With the Fourth Raikage incapacitated, Killer Bee was now the strongest fighter in the entire village. Kumogakure could not afford to lose him.
They had seen firsthand Orochimaru's overwhelming abilities in the previous battle. They knew Killer Bee couldn't afford to be delayed.
Then—BOOM!—thunder cracked across the night sky, tearing through the darkness.
The three remaining Kumogakure jōnin unleashed their full power, casting Thunder Release at maximum intensity. Lightning surged into a blinding net, arcing toward Orochimaru.
Even before it struck, Orochimaru's skin tingled from the electricity. He narrowed his eyes—this combined attack actually felt dangerous.
Only Raikage's kind would be foolish enough to take it head-on.
He quickly formed a hand seal. Dark marks spread over his face, and his mouth split open to reveal four sharp fangs.
"Sage Art: Shaping Body."
Natural energy surged into the trees beneath him, warping and reshaping them. Thick wooden walls rose instantly, absorbing the full force of the incoming lightning.
Wood doesn't conduct electricity well, but it's not immune either. Still, it held an advantage.
Blinding bolts crashed down—but the Sage-enhanced wood resisted them, only charring at the surface.
Control decided everything.
And the jōnin's lightning simply couldn't overpower Orochimaru's Wood Release enhanced by Sage Chakra.
The wooden wall unfolded like petals.
Orochimaru's eye markings faded as he exhaled. He could feel the last of the natural energy leave his body.
That had been his only use of Sage Mode.
But it had done the job.
The three Kumogakure jōnin stared at the barrier—shaken.
Their morale plummeted.