Pretending to be seriously injured, Naruto staggered toward the battlefield ahead.
Shikamaru's group and the Sand siblings had surrounded Sasuke, who was fighting with the second stage of his curse mark active. For the moment, the two sides were roughly evenly matched.
But Sasuke was beginning to falter.
His body still hadn't adapted to the curse mark's power, and he couldn't maintain the transformation much longer. He was nowhere near as strong as he would become after another three years.
Naruto watched him and chuckled under his breath.
Has he won a single fight since graduation?
As far as Naruto could remember, Sasuke's record in this life had been remarkably poor. He had lost before, he was struggling now, and his prospects didn't look particularly promising either.
Naruto spared him three seconds of sympathy.
Sasuke, meanwhile, was growing furious.
The power coursing through his body was intoxicating. Yet every time he forced one opponent back, another moved in to attack. Their coordination left him little room to exploit that strength.
Shadow techniques, Gentle Fist, Strong Fist, sand, cutting winds, puppets…
The attacks kept coming.
Sasuke drew a deep breath and clenched his teeth.
Black lightning erupted around his right hand as he formed a Chidori. Fury burned in his crimson Sharingan.
Then he charged straight at Gaara.
Gaara stood with his arms folded, watching him calmly. Sand gathered in front of him, ready to intercept the attack.
Before it could close around Sasuke, however, his figure blurred out of its path.
Boom!
His real target was Neji.
Caught off guard, Neji barely managed to twist away from a strike aimed at his heart.
The Chidori pierced his abdomen instead.
Neji hit the ground.
Sasuke immediately turned and fled.
"Hmph. Let's see how you track me now."
He ran faster, putting distance between himself and the others.
Shikamaru's expression tightened.
Akamaru had already been injured in the fight against Sakon and Ukon. He couldn't help them pursue Sasuke, and now Neji was down as well.
"Kiba, can you still track him?"
"Over a short distance," Kiba answered grimly. "But once he gets farther away, I'm not as reliable as Akamaru."
Shikamaru made his decision immediately.
"Naruto, you're injured too. Stay here and take care of Neji. Kiba, Lee—you're coming with me."
He turned to the Sand siblings.
"We're continuing the pursuit."
After a quick exchange with Gaara and the others, he hurried into the forest.
Soon, only Naruto and Neji remained.
Naruto looked down at the wound in Neji's abdomen and sighed.
You've had a miserable life, haven't you? And the ending was worse than anyone else's.
Of all the Konoha Twelve, Neji had been the one who died in the original story.
What happened to being impossible to keep down? Why did you have to be the one who never got back up?
A quiet laugh escaped him as he began treating the injury.
Between his medical ninjutsu and [Physical Healing], saving Neji's life wouldn't be a problem. Restoring him completely was only a matter of time.
As Naruto worked, Neji's forehead protector slipped aside.
The cursed seal beneath it caught his attention.
Like Gaara, Neji had never experienced the change Naruto remembered from the original story. His resentment toward the Hyūga main family remained unresolved, along with his bitterness toward the fate imposed on him.
If I remove that Caged Bird seal, I might be able to win him over.
The idea appealed to him.
Orochimaru had trained capable shinobi such as Kabuto, Kimimaro, and the Sound Four.
There was no reason Naruto couldn't gather a few capable subordinates of his own.
And Neji's talent was exceptional. In another three years, he might reach a level of strength approaching that of a Kage.
Both Naruto and his female avatar possessed exceptional [Sealing Talent]. If he redeemed [Hyūga Cursed Seal: Caged Bird] from the system, they should be able to study its workings and find a way to remove it.
I'll talk to him when I get the chance.
By the time Naruto settled on that plan, the treatment was finished.
Neji opened his eyes. Seeing Naruto crouched in front of him, he frowned.
"Thank you."
His voice was curt.
"It's nothing. I happen to know medical ninjutsu."
Naruto smiled, then glanced at the place where the wound had been.
"Sasuke's certainly gotten stronger again. But how did you let him catch you so badly off guard?"
"Hmph!"
Neji pushed Naruto aside, stood, and hurried in the direction Shikamaru's group had gone.
Both he and Sasuke had been regarded as geniuses in their respective Academy classes. Neji was a year older, and he had even taught himself Palm Rotation—a secret technique reserved for the Hyūga main family.
Yet Sasuke had nearly killed him.
Why is fate so unfair to me?
His fists tightened as he ran.
Or was this always how it was meant to happen?
…
While Sasuke continued fleeing alone, Naruto's female avatar entered an underground hideout deep in the forests of the Land of Rice Fields.
The passages were dark and damp. She avoided one trap after another, her footsteps echoing through the silent corridors.
"You again."
Orochimaru's hoarse voice drifted out of the darkness.
"How persistent."
"I've brought you some bad news," she answered lightly.
"What news?"
His voice turned cold.
"It had better be worth my time. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to kill you. That Flying Thunder God Technique won't save you."
The avatar laughed.
"Then try. Let me see how you're looking now, Orochimaru. Have you already found yourself another body?"
"I don't know what you're implying," he replied evenly. "My body is no longer in the condition it was when you last saw me."
"All right. Then let me ask you something else."
Her tone remained teasing.
"Do you know a man named Gen'yūmaru? I've seen him before."
Gen'yūmaru was the original owner of the body Orochimaru had just taken.
The name struck a nerve.
A huge python lunged from the darkness ahead, its jaws spread wide. A foul stench poured from its mouth as it rushed toward her.
It came too quickly for her to retreat.
The Sword of Kusanagi flashed into her hand.
With a single stroke, its keen blade split the python lengthwise, beginning at its head and cutting through flesh and bone.
Blood and entrails splashed across the passage.
The smell of blood filled the air.
The amusement left her voice.
"For your sake, I hope you've recovered from the weakness that follows [Living Corpse Reincarnation], Orochimaru. Otherwise, I might decide to kill you."
She had considered killing him before.
But Orochimaru had far too many ways to survive. Keeping him dead was another matter entirely. In the original story, he had survived the Fourth Shinobi World War and remained a formidable shinobi afterward.
For now, there was still plenty she could make him hand over.
"You seem to know a great deal about me," Orochimaru said, suspicion sharpening his murderous tone. "Have you placed a spy among my people?"
Despite his anger, he understood something.
She knew he was vulnerable, yet she had chosen to stand there and talk.
That meant killing him wasn't what she had come for.
"Of course," she answered without hesitation. "I call my source 'the story itself.'"
Orochimaru dismissed the answer as nonsense.
Ironically, she had been quite honest.
"Hmph. What did you come to tell me?"
"I'm afraid Sasuke won't be making it to your hideout."
Orochimaru fell silent.
He didn't ask why.
He could make a reasonable guess. Kimimaro must have been killed, and the shinobi pursuing Sasuke were stronger than he had anticipated.
After a pause, he spoke again.
"What do you want from me this time?"
His voice was a low rasp.
The avatar had been right about his condition. He had only recently taken possession of his new body and was still recovering from the transfer.
Nearly half of that body remained wrapped in bandages.
She had no idea why he needed so many, but his weakened state was real.
"I'm interested in elemental ninjutsu," she said with a smile. "All kinds."
Orochimaru sneered.
"I suspect the interested party isn't you."
A trace of curiosity entered his voice.
"Does the man behind you also seek the truth of this world?"
She laughed softly.
"He simply wants to learn more elemental ninjutsu."
Then she added:
"Besides… he is the truth."