"With... just one strike?"
"Did he really take down that colossal creature with a single slash?"
The surrounding ninjas who had come to assist were frozen in place.
The sheer size of Manda had left them utterly shocked!
Its mere movements were enough to shake the battlefield, making it a terrifying "anti-army weapon" of immense might!
Yet, this overwhelmingly oppressive monster couldn't even withstand a single strike from the tiny-in-comparison Danzō.
This stark contrast truly made everyone feel the extent of Danzō's power.
Amidst the blood-soaked battlefield, Danzō stood calmly atop the giant snake's head.
His expression was as composed as ever, as if slaying Manda was nothing more than a trivial task.
Not even a speck of blood stained his clothes...
It was perfection, truly perfection.
Orochimaru stood on Manda's corpse, his face grave as he looked up at Danzō.
Even he hadn't expected that the strength of the "Darkness of the Shinobi" had grown to such an extent!
"But even this is far from enough to kill me."
A sinister smile crept back onto Orochimaru's face.
His golden serpentine eyes narrowed, and he raised his hands, his chakra surging inexplicably.
It seemed he was preparing to unleash some formidable forbidden technique!
But at that moment, a branch suddenly sprouted from the surface of Manda's head beneath Orochimaru's feet.
In an instant, it transformed from a branch into a human, quickly taking the form of Danzō.
It turned out to be a Wood Clone that Danzō had planted on Manda's body during their earlier struggle.
Now, catalyzed, it immediately appeared behind Orochimaru.
The clone swiftly raised its hand, preparing to use a Wood Release technique to interrupt Orochimaru's jutsu.
However, Orochimaru's reaction was swift. The moment he noticed the clone, his neck elongated like a snake.
His cold, serpentine face quickly appeared before the clone.
With a cold smile, the sharp glow of the Kusanagi Sword flashed!
The blade's light effortlessly sliced through the Wood Clone, scattering wood chips everywhere.
But suddenly, a sense of foreboding struck Orochimaru.
"Not good!"
He thought to himself.
But it was too late.
As the Wood Clone shattered, dark curse markings spread along the Kusanagi Sword, reaching Orochimaru's face and neck.
Finally, like invisible ropes, they tightly bound Orochimaru in place!
This was a sealing technique Danzō had pre-embedded in the clone—
Self-Cursing Seal Technique!
Knowing he was out of options, Orochimaru opened his mouth wide, preparing to use the Great Snake Substitution Technique to break free from the seal.
But Danzō wasn't about to give him that chance.
His true body arrived in an instant, one hand gripping the hilt of his sword, the other lightly raised.
In the next moment, a mass of chakra rapidly condensed and began spinning at high speed in his palm.
It quickly formed into a massive, spinning chakra orb, half the size of a person.
"Giant Rasengan."
Without hesitation, Danzō slammed the Giant Rasengan into Orochimaru's face.
The high-speed rotating chakra orb smashed into the ground with tremendous force.
To prevent Orochimaru from escaping through some bizarre means, Danzō immediately followed up with another sealing technique, firmly locking him down.
"As expected of you, Elder Danzō."
Orochimaru, now restrained, didn't seem particularly panicked. He even had the composure to compliment Danzō.
"However, if you think this is enough to capture me, you're being naive."
Orochimaru licked his lips, seemingly confident in his escape plan.
Seeing this, Danzō slightly furrowed his brow and said calmly,
"If your reliance is merely on those snake clones hidden in your base, you can give up now."
"By my calculations, the people I sent should have already dealt with those little snakes."
Danzō's words caused Orochimaru's previously mocking expression to change drastically.
"How do you know about that...?"
Orochimaru's face turned grim.
Those clones were the key to his "resurrection"!
As long as they weren't killed by Konoha's forces, he could be reborn through them!
Yet, Danzō had seen through this.
To this, Danzō simply smiled faintly.
"I told you, your every move is under my watch."
Ever since confirming Orochimaru's impending defection, Danzō had kept his Byakugan active, covering a radius of fifteen kilometers.
Thus, Orochimaru's every action was within his sight.
Ryoma, Shisui, Kakuzu, and En Oyashiro were the backup he had sent to eliminate Orochimaru's clones.
By now, they should have completed their mission.
—————————
Just as Danzō had predicted.
After Orochimaru lured away the majority of the pursuers, four clones identical to him sneaked out of the base.
They looked around, ensuring the coast was clear, and then scattered along pre-planned escape routes.
These clones were specially designed by Orochimaru.
They contained his body tissues and were marked with cursed seals.
As long as one of them escaped Konoha, Orochimaru could be reborn.
It was an almost foolproof survival mechanism.
But under Danzō's arrangements, Orochimaru's plan didn't go as planned.
The fleeing clones quickly encountered ambushes.
"Elder Danzō truly lives up to his title of 'Heavenly Eye.' His predictive abilities are unmatched in the shinobi world."
En Oyashiro emerged from a forest, quietly marveling.
He had come to understand the origins of Danzō's titles, "Darkness of the Shinobi" and "God of War."
Today's events further solidified his respect for Danzō's "Heavenly Eye" title.
To predict the enemy's escape routes so accurately—even the Hyūga clan's ninjas might not be capable of that.
With this in mind, his reverence for Danzō's strength grew even deeper.
Back to the matter at hand.
Code-named "Dragon," he had already unsealed the blood gourd on his back, looking down at the Sannin's... clone.
To be honest, if it were the real Sannin, En Oyashiro wouldn't stand a chance.
But since it was just a clone, he felt confident.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru's clone, seeing the dragon-patterned mask, grew serious.
He had some knowledge of this—it was likely a member of a special squad Danzō had formed.
Known as the Earthly Branches.
They only undertook dangerous S-rank missions.
Each member was said to possess near-Kage-level strength!
Under normal circumstances, Orochimaru wouldn't care.
He might even capture them for experiments.
But now...
He was just a clone, on the run.
A fight would only draw more attention.
Most importantly, judging from this encounter, the Root—or rather, Danzō—was well-prepared for his clones.
If he had been caught, what about the others?
The more he thought, the heavier Orochimaru's mood became.
But En Oyashiro didn't care about any of that. Danzō's orders were clear: kill or capture Orochimaru's clones, nothing more.
Without hesitation, he activated his Blood Dragon Eye.
As a terrifying ocular power erupted, countless streams of blood surged from the gourd.
They flowed at high speed, forming razor-sharp slashes that quickly wove into a dense blood net, closing in on Orochimaru.
"Blood Release: Blood Net Kill!"
Seeing En Oyashiro's Blood Dragon Eye, Orochimaru was momentarily stunned, falling under a genjutsu.
By the time he broke free, the blood net was already upon him.
————————
The situation was similar elsewhere.
To divert the pursuers, Orochimaru had allocated most of his power to his main body.
As a result, the strength of his clones had significantly diminished.
While still at the level of a jōnin, they were no match for the Earthly Branches squad Danzō had assembled.
For instance, Kakuzu was chasing Orochimaru's clone through the forest using the forbidden technique Earth Grudge Fear.
Four masked creatures, each representing a different element, cornered the clone, leaving it no chance of survival!
————————
Meanwhile, Ryoma, code-named "Horse," had his steam-infused kikaichū swarm ready.
They were like miniature jet fighters, launching suicidal attacks at Orochimaru under Ryoma's command.
Modified by Hiroko's Chimera Technique, these kikaichū had incredibly tough exoskeletons.
Propelled by steam, they could easily pierce through thick tree trunks.
Most importantly, they could self-destruct.
At Ryoma's command, the boiling chakra within the kikaichū would instantly convert into high-pressure steam.
This would shatter their bodies, sending shrapnel-like fragments flying in all directions!
The force was enough to penetrate steel plates, let alone human flesh.
Under such an assault, Orochimaru's clone stood no chance.
————————
As for the last clone, Danzō had assigned it to Shisui.
Compared to the others, Shisui's approach was straightforward.
Without a word, he used the Body Flicker Technique to close the distance the moment he saw Orochimaru's clone.
A genjutsu followed, immobilizing the clone.
Finally, he finished it off with Amaterasu, sealing the deal!
The entire battle was swift and efficient, without a single wasted move!
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