Chapter 27: Is That It? This Is Kage-Level Killing Intent?
The sea of fire surged once more, the heat waves distorting the air.
Anko Mitarashi maintained her hand seal posture, her chest heaving violently as her eyes remained fixed on the center of the explosion.
"Is it over..."
But Anko didn't feel relieved; instead, her heart tightened, and a sense of unease grew stronger. Could that man really be taken down so easily?
Suddenly, at the bottom of the still-burning crater, a human form charred black as coal abruptly disintegrated.
An Earth Clone!
Anko's pupils shrank suddenly.
"Damn it! His real body was never here!"
She whipped her head around, looking toward a surge of Chakra rapidly moving away several hundred meters away.
"Dammit! His target is Sasuke!"
Ignoring the restless Cursed Seal in her body, Ankoturned into an afterimage and charged into the dense forest.
"Hold on... you audacious brat!"
Meanwhile, in the deep woods several hundred meters away.
The three members of Team 7, who were just getting ready to watch the show, froze without warning.
On a towering tree directly in front of them, a massive python was coiled, and atop the snake's head, that man was looking down at them with the gaze of a predator eyeing its prey.
Orochimaru no longer hid himself. After shaking off Anko, he didn't want to waste any more time.
"What disobedient prey..." Orochimaru's raspy voice rang out, a lethal killing intent erupting from his golden, slit-like pupils.
Killing Intent: Vision of Death.
Boom!
In an instant, for Uchiha Sasuke and Sakura Haruno who bore the brunt of it, the world before them turned blood-red. Their vision distorted, leaving only a giant python that seemed ready to swallow heaven and earth, its venom-dripping maw wide open, biting down savagely toward their necks.
"Can't... can't move..."
Sasuke's teeth chattered violently, cold sweat soaked his clothes, and a strong wave of nausea surged up his throat. He wanted to pull out a Kunai, he wanted to activate his Sharingan, but every cell in his body was screaming in surrender, making him want to kneel and beg for mercy.
Beside him, Sakura's legs went weak, and she collapsed directly onto the ground, her eyes losing focus.
"Heh heh heh... still too green, Uchiha brat..." Orochimaru's figure slid down from the tree, approaching step by step, "These eyes have not yet been baptized by blood and hatred."
He enjoyed the prey's fear, his slender hand slowly reaching toward Sasuke's neck.
However.
In the middle of this deathly silence, a lazy yawn suddenly rang out.
"Haaa—ah..."
Naruto stood in front of Sasuke with his hands in his pockets, even picking his ear. That terrifying killing intent washed over him but had absolutely no effect.
Orochimaru's reaching hand jerked to a stop, a flash of bewilderment crossing his slit pupils.
What's the situation? This Nine-Tails Jinchurikibrat... is actually immune to his killing intent?
The next second, Naruto's inner monologue, filled with disdain, rang out like a broadcast precisely in the minds of several special listeners.
[Oh boy, this is the legendary Kage-level killing intent? Is that it? Is that it?]
[Uncle Snake, your professional skills have seriously regressed. When I was pinned against the wall by Anko-sensei just now, my heart was beating twice as fast as this, okay? This low-level illusion meant to scare kids can only fool someone like Two-Pillar who hasn't seen the world.]
[And also... I say, Uncle Snake, can you have some professional ethics?]
Naruto's gaze swept over Orochimaru's body without any restraint.
[Under that human skin mask of yours right now, you should be a woman, right? Am I right? I remember in the original story at this time, you were using the body of a pretty young girl.]
[You, a guy occupying a beautiful girl's body, insist on pinching your throat to put on this greasy uncle's smoker voice—don't you think the sense of dissonance is overflowing? It's like a soft, delicate lolita suddenly opening her mouth to sing Peking Opera's painted-face role... Eww—disgusting!]
[Either turn into a beautiful big sister to seduce us, and I might cooperate with your acting; or turn back into your giant snake true form to scare people. This half-man, half-woman style where the voice and visuals are seriously mismatched... Uncle Snake, your aesthetic really needs Anko-sensei to retrain you.]
Crack.
It was as if something had shattered in Sakura's mind.
Sakura Haruno, whose brain had been blank from fear, had an extremely vivid expression on her pale little face. It was mainly because the imagery in Naruto's thoughts was too strong—an Orochimaruwith a young girl's body, deliberately pinching his throat to act all profound.
That icy fear, under Naruto's roasting, was instantly replaced by emotions called "disgust" and "speechlessness."
[Ding!]
[Detected key character Uzumaki Naruto ignoring "Kage-level Pressure" and performing a double mental humiliation of "Gender and Aesthetics" on the Ninja World's big boss villain.]
[Your teammate (Sakura Haruno) has forcibly broken free from "Fear Intimidation" due to the sudden shift in atmosphere.]
[Sakura Haruno has received a heavenly curtainreward: Enhanced Dynamic Vision.]
"Huff... huff..." Sakura panted heavily. She glanced at the broad back in front of her, the fear in her eyes receding, replaced by a strange sense of reliance.
This guy really does know everything!
In the center of the battlefield, Orochimaru was truly a bit dazed right now.
He looked at the blond brat who was pointing fingers at him, and for a moment, he didn't know how to react. This kid not only had no reaction to his killing intent, but the look in his eyes now was actually full of pity and contempt?
Why? He, Orochimaru, had roamed the Ninja World for decades, and the looks he received were always fear, hatred, or awe. When had he ever been looked at like a piece of filth?
"Brat... you don't seem to be afraid of me?" Orochimaru reined in his pressure, his excessively long tongue licking his cheek, "Don't you know that the one standing before you is a Shinigami?"
Naruto curled his lip, starting his inner roast of the upcoming plot again.
[Here we go again, the long tongue play. I wonder how Sasuke will stand having to face this tongue for special training every day in the future; is he going to practice French kissing? Blech...]
[Isn't this technique broken as long as you don't look into his eyes! These two are really stupid for not knowing that!]
[Oh right, and Two-Pillar's neck! This perverted old thing wants to give you a bite, to plant a hickey that says 'you'll die if you don't work hard'!]
[That's the Cursed Seal of Heaven. If you get bitten, you'll turn ugly! You'll turn into a grey-black monster with wings! There's no aesthetic value at all! It's basically a disfigurement technique!]
Hearing the voice in her mind, Sakura's newly enhanced pupils suddenly brightened, and her vision instantly captured the fleeting ripple of Genjutsu in Orochimaru's eyes.
"Sasuke-kun! Don't look at his eyes! Look down! Protect your neck!"
Sakura found strength from somewhere and lunged over, pressing down the head of the still-dazed Sasuke, forcing him to avoid Orochimaru's aggressive gaze.
"Hmm?" Orochimaru's brow furrowed for the first time.
If Naruto wasn't afraid of him because he had the Nine-Tails backing him up, then what was with this pink-haired girl? How did she know the signs of the Paralysis Jutsu? She even knew his target was Sasuke's neck?
Orochimaru's gaze instantly turned cold; he was finally starting to get serious.
"It seems this year's brats are hiding some quite remarkable surprises," Orochimaru chuckled softly.
Boom!
Orochimaru stopped playing around, his figure instantly turning into an afterimage and vanishing from the spot. That was speed beyond the limits of a Genin's naked eye, so fast that even Sasuke's not-yet-fully-awakened eyes couldn't keep up.
But in Sakura's eyes, which were buffed by the heavenly curtain, a distorted trajectory was attacking from the left.
"Naruto! Watch your left!"
Sakura shouted out, her body instinctively throwing two Kunai in an attempt to block that trajectory.
Naruto's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but whistle in his mind.
[Broad Forehead isn't bad, being able to see through this. Although she's still a flat-chest, her potential is good!]
Though he didn't speak, his reaction was lightning fast. Facing the pale white snake fangs that suddenly appeared from the left, Naruto didn't retreat; instead, drawing on an unknown power, he met it with an explosive whip kick.
Bang!
A dull sound of collision rang out.
Orochimaru's weak "disguise" arm was actually shaken slightly numb by this brute force.
"Is this... the power of the Nine-Tails?" Orochimaruleaped back, landing on a branch, looking at the boy who was flashing a bright smile at him, his golden slit pupils narrowing completely.
This kid's strength and speed, along with that pink-haired girl's prediction, had completely deviated from his script.
And what felt even more bizarre to him was that not far away, an extremely familiar, violent Chakracarrying a "personal grudge" was approaching at an incredible speed.
"Hmph, is that child Anko catching up..." Orochimaru licked his lips, his gaze becoming dangerous, "It seems if I want to take Sasuke, I'll have to clean up these annoying little bugs first."
His hands slowly formed seals, and the truly terrifying aura belonging to a "Sannin" finally erupted without any further concealment.
"Come then, brats, let me see what other fun you can bring me!"
Looking at this momentum, Naruto didn't back down; instead, he squeezed his fists, his eyes burning with excitement.
[Finally getting serious? That's more like it!]
[System! Equip all those rewards you just gave me! Conqueror's Haki, Master Commander, whatever! Today, I, Uzumaki Naruto, am going to beat this skin-shedding mangy snake so hard even his mother won't recognize him!]