"Forget it, I give up. Orochimaru, I admit you're incredibly strong now!"
Itachi didn't hesitate at all.
The current Orochimaru was indeed absurdly powerful, unreasonably so.
However, Itachi's surrender wasn't to Orochimaru, it was to Naruto's bestowed power.
The abilities Naruto granted to Orochimaru would make anyone a supreme Demon King.
"Blastoise, Blastoise!"
Blastoise stepped forward, nudging Itachi aside, and pointed its dual water cannons at Orochimaru.
Out of the five challengers, Kisame, Hidan, and Kakuzu lay unconscious on the ground, and Itachi had chosen to surrender. So now, Blastoise stood alone, ready to fight.
Blastoise didn't let the previous defeats deter it. In its eyes, retreating without a fight was unthinkable.
However, what awaited it was cold reality, devoid of any miracles.
"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
Orochimaru didn't even bother using his Rinnegan's powers. From his sleeve, several snakes shot out, swiftly binding Blastoise, leaving it unable to move.
Seeing this, Naruto frowned slightly.
Orochimaru had held back because he knew Blastoise was Naruto's partner.
Naruto's concern stemmed from Blastoise's mindset, 'Knowing it was outmatched, Blastoise was still resisting… if it had been a real enemy, Blastoise might not have survived.'
Naruto had originally intended to let Blastoise venture into the Naruto World to train alone and grow stronger. But seeing this, he realized it was impractical.
Every battle so far had Naruto as its safety net, making victory seem trivial to Blastoise. It was taking things too lightly.
Of course, this wasn't entirely Blastoise's fault. Naruto had protected it too well. But keeping it close without sending it to train would stunt its growth. What could he do?
Sensing Naruto's unease, Orochimaru approached and asked, "There's that look again. What's troubling you this time?"
After Naruto put Blastoise into the Poke Ball, he shared his concerns openly.
Hearing this, both Orochimaru and Itachi chuckled.
"What are you laughing at? I'm being serious here." Naruto was a little annoyed.
Orochimaru chuckled and said, "Naruto-kun, you're overthinking because you care too much."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Naruto could vaguely sense there was more to this, but as the person in question, he couldn't see it clearly.
Itachi explained calmly, "Naruto-kun, Sasuke was also very naive when he was a child, but the last time I saw him, he had grown."
Orochimaru added, "Now that Sasuke is with me, he's matured even further."
Hearing this, Naruto suddenly showed a look of realization, "You're right! So that's how it is. What I need is to let go."
As he said that, he was about to take out the Poke Ball.
"What are you doing?" Orochimaru frowned.
Naruto explained, "Of course, I'm going to explain the situation to Blastoise and leave it with you for training."
Orochimaru said helplessly, "Naruto-kun, you're missing the point. Think about Sasuke, would he have developed the way he has if you had simply told him to train? Would there have been any need for all the theatrics back then? You need to let them fall into dire situations and emerge stronger to achieve true transformation!"
"This…"
Naruto hesitated.
He wasn't stupid, and he understood what Orochimaru was implying. But sometimes he feigned ignorance, deliberately avoiding harsh truths.
The reason why Naruto had been ruthless with Sasuke was partly because of the Sharingan's need for emotional turmoil and partly because of Sasuke's journey in the original work… defecting from Konoha and following Orochimaru. That's why Naruto had no qualms about playing his part in Sasuke's journey back then.
But Blastoise was different. Unlike Sasuke, it was a companion Naruto had captured from the Pokemon World, a foreign land completely unfamiliar to this world. Naruto already felt he owed Blastoise for bringing it here. He had watched its evolution from Squirtle to Blastoise, step by step. This combination of guilt and nurturing had long made Naruto treat Blastoise as his own child.
Although this was all a performance, the emotional toll on Blastoise when pushed to its limits would be real, and Naruto genuinely couldn't bear it.
After a moment of thought, Itachi said, "Everything is for the sake of it being able to stand on its own in the future. Would you rather raise it to be useless?"
Itachi spoke from experience. For Sasuke, he had sacrificed so much. Why? Simply to ensure that Sasuke could grow into an exceptional person!
"I genuinely admire you!"
Naruto sighed as he looked at Itachi.
Although Itachi is an unforgivable heinous criminal in the eyes of others, he had done everything a brother possibly could for Sasuke.
Now, Naruto finally understood the difficulty and emotional strain behind such decisions.
Watching Sasuke and Itachi had once been an entertaining spectacle for Naruto, but now, faced with a similar situation himself, he realized how painful and challenging it was. Making such a decision truly required enormous resolve.
"Leave it to me." Orochimaru stretched out a hand and said, "I'll handle the rest."
"Tell me your plan first," Naruto said, not immediately handing over the Poke Ball.
Orochimaru pondered for a moment and said, "No need for explanations. I'll keep it confined. To escape, it'll have no choice but to train desperately."
"No way. That's too cruel," Naruto shook his head vehemently.
Naruto knew Orochimaru's plan would subject Blastoise to prolonged torment.
Hearing this, Itachi spoke coldly, "Naruto-kun, in Sasuke's eyes, you were someone I had captured. Wasn't that cruel to him as well?"
"Uh…"
Itachi's words struck a chord, leaving Naruto momentarily speechless.
After thinking for a while, Naruto groaned and said, "Even setting that aside, there's still an issue. Blastoise knows Orochimaru is one of my followers. It would expose everything."
Orochimaru formed hand seals, and a person completely different from Orochimaru appeared beside him.
He then explained, "This is a clone created with the power of creation. Even with the Sharingan, it would be hard to detect any flaws."
Itachi activated his Sharingan and carefully observed the clone, then nodded slightly and said, "Indeed. Without witnessing the creation process, I wouldn't associate this clone with you."
"Uh…"
Seeing Orochimaru and Itachi singing the same tune, Naruto was somewhat speechless and said, "Why go to such lengths?"
Neither Orochimaru nor Itachi said anything.
For Orochimaru, this was his way of repaying Naruto for the power he'd been given.
For Itachi, having let go of Sasuke once, seeing Naruto struggle with similar decisions gave him a sense of balance… and, admittedly, a bit of satisfaction.
Naruto, however, mistook their silence as an admission that they couldn't argue against his hesitation. He also realized he might have been overthinking things too much.
"Forget it, it's not like this is a final farewell. It's all for Blastoise's future. Take it!"
Naruto hardened his heart and resolutely slapped the Poke Ball into Orochimaru's hand.
"That's more like it."
Orochimaru chuckled and said, "But Naruto-kun, your concerns reminded me of something. To avoid any direct interaction with me or Sasuke, it's better if the clone takes it on a journey around the world."
As he said this, he handed the Poke Ball to the clone.
The clone, a one-eyed, one-armed samurai, accepted the Poke Ball and said to Naruto, "Naruto-kun, I'll claim that I saw its talent and took it as my disciple. Once it has completed its training and mastered its abilities, it can return to find you."
Hearing the clone's words, Naruto finally felt a little better. Though the plan was still a forced trial for Blastoise, it at least gave the Pokemon a glimmer of hope.
As the clone opened a black portal and vanished into the void, Naruto was overwhelmed by a wave of worry, akin to a mother watching her child embark on a long journey.
But before he could sigh in relief, his body suddenly tensed.
"Is it him? Why is he here..."