"What are you talking about?"
Obito reacted, his brow furrowing beneath his mask.
Seeing the other party's genuine-seeming confusion, Orochimaru's racing thoughts began to slow down.
'It wasn't him.'
'If this guy had acted against the sand boy, there'd be no reason for him to come here. It seemed I have let my anger cloud my judgment.'
Seeing Orochimaru remain silent, Obito's patience wore thin.
His Sharingan slowly opened, locking onto Orochimaru.
"Orochimaru, you've certainly caused us a great deal of trouble."
In the next instant, wooden spikes sprouted from his hand, shooting directly toward Orochimaru.
Such a straightforward attack naturally had no chance of catching Orochimaru off guard.
"To be perfectly honest, the Akatsuki is also on my list of potential collaborators."
Even as he spoke, Orochimaru's cold, serpentine eyes never stopped analyzing his opponent's movements.
Thus, the moment Obito moved, Orochimaru unleashed his Hidden Shadow Snake Hands to impede him.
For the most part, Orochimaru was a rational and detached individual.
Unlike his teacher or former comrades, he wasn't prone to emotional decisions or sentimentality.
What drove Orochimaru forward was always his thirst for unknown knowledge.
Even his pursuit of immortality was merely a means to grant himself more time to acquire that knowledge.
The dense swarm of snakes nearly flooded the small room.
Kabuto, recognizing the danger, had already seized the chaos to make his escape.
The man had truly absorbed ninety-nine percent of Orochimaru's philosophy.
Because Orochimaru himself was thinking the same thing.
Restrict the enemy's movements first, then find an opportunity to escape.
Orochimaru had a very clear understanding of his own capabilities.
Dealing with Itachi alone was challenging enough. While this was his first time facing the masked man directly, he had long been aware of him.
This opponent's strength was likely even greater than Itachi's.
Reality proved Orochimaru's assessment largely correct.
Obito's form passed straight through the dense snake swarm, his speed undiminished as he charged toward Orochimaru.
'What is this?'
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes, rapidly analyzing the possible nature of this ability.
'A Genjutsu? Or perhaps...'
Obito was incredibly fast. A moment's hesitation was all he needed to close the distance.
The wooden spikes generated by his Wood Release: Cutting Technique stabbed directly into Orochimaru's chest.
"Orochimaru, unstable elements like you are better off removed from the board early."
In the next moment, countless sharp wooden spikes erupted from all over Orochimaru's body, turning him into a human pincushion.
"Is that all?"
Withdrawing the spikes, Obito looked down at Orochimaru's motionless, seemingly lifeless body. As if struck by a thought, he suddenly activated Kamui upon it.
Unlike Kakashi's Kamui, Obito's current Mangekyo Sharingan was more defensive in nature.
Beyond making himself intangible, he could only use Kamui to draw others into his pocket dimension at close range.
Just as the spatial distortion was about to consume the body, the previously inert form of Orochimaru violently burst open.
A new Orochimaru, still slick with fluid, slid out rapidly as if shedding a skin.
He didn't know the exact mechanics of that strange technique, but seeing half of his former body get pulled into the Kamui Dimension gave him a rough idea.
'A Space-Time Ninjutsu?'
Until a certain level of power was reached, battles between Ninjas were primarily battles of intelligence.
The one with more information held the advantage.
Now aware of the masked man's space-time capabilities, Orochimaru had no intention of engaging him in close quarters.
"Summoning Technique: Snake Mouth Bind!"
Instantly, the surrounding walls transformed into dark red flesh.
The very space around them had been replaced by the stomach of a giant snake summoned by Orochimaru.
The moment Obito's feet touched the soft, fleshy ground, tendrils of tissue began to coil around his limbs.
Worse still was the stomach acid. A mere drop instantly ate a large hole through his clothing.
Obito immediately phased into his intangible state, effortlessly pulling his limbs free from the grasping flesh.
The Rinnegan hidden behind his mask opened. Obito intended to use Shinra Tensei that Nagato had employed so effectively.
But his body lacked the stamina of an Uzumaki. Even with transplanted Hashirama's cells, he couldn't perfectly replicate the technique, at least not with only one Rinnegan.
He had to resort to his backup plan.
"Summoning Technique: Gedo Statue!"
Instantly, the terrifying giant statue materialized, its immense form bursting through the room and demolishing most of the Northern Hideout in the process.
Ever since sealing the Three-Tails, summoning the Gedo Statue no longer required Obito to supply the Chakra himself.
Even before Obito finished the hand seals, Orochimaru felt a deep sense of foreboding.
He had always trusted his instincts.
The Gedo Statue's appearance outright obliterated his hideout. Most of the prisoners inside, the ones with the [Pseudo-Sage Transformation] abilities, were killed or severely injured in the collapse.
Ironically, this also meant they successfully escaped their cells.
However, these individuals, their minds warped and rendered highly aggressive by the experiments, were far from sane.
Even after witnessing the Gedo Statue's terrifying visage, fleeing didn't cross their minds.
Instead, a few foolhardy souls actually launched attacks against the statue's ankles.
Their fate was predictable… they were instantly crushed into paste.
"Die."
Seemingly having lost interest, Obito directed the Gedo Statue to begin indiscriminate attacks on the area below.
Water gathered atop the several protruding protrusions on the statue's back, then shot forth in high-pressure streams, sweeping across the landscape like lasers.
Anyone struck by the torrents died instantly. Perhaps it was a mercy… at least it was quick.
Boom-
The ground suddenly erupted as a massive purple-and-black snake burst forth, sinking its fangs deep into the Gedo Statue's head.
Simultaneously, its colossal body coiled around the statue's limbs like living shackles, constricting with immense force.
It was Manda.
"Orochimaru, you'd better give me-"
Manda's typical demand for payment was cut short before it could even begin.
The Gedo Statue's power far surpassed its own. With a terrifying rip, the serpent's body was torn asunder.
The severed head and upper half of Manda's body thrashed on the ground for a moment before disappearing in a puff of summoning smoke.
With injuries that severe, whether Manda survived was a matter of pure chance.
If it ever were summoned again, it would likely never answer another of Orochimaru's calls.
Last time, it got beaten up. This time, it was nearly killed.
By now, Orochimaru, having used the chaos to put significant distance between himself and the statue, took one last look at the Gedo Statue wreaking havoc and mentally wrote off the entire hideout and everyone left inside.
-Including Jugo, the possessor of the innate Sage Body.
'The Cursed Seal was still too unreliable. Finding a suitable vessel for my next reincarnation was the only true path forward.'
With that thought, he turned to make his final escape.
Squelch-
In the next instant, Obito, who had somehow appeared directly behind him, thrust his hand through Orochimaru's chest, piercing his heart.
Not taking any chances, he swiftly followed up, severing Orochimaru's head from his shoulders.
Still seemingly unsatisfied, Obito unleashed a Fire Release Ninjutsu, completely incinerating Orochimaru's remains until nothing but ash remained.
Only then did the simmering resentment in his heart, born from his plans being repeatedly disrupted, finally ease somewhat.
'I might be helpless against that Uzumaki Naruto for now, but was I supposed to be powerless against this old snake too?'
''Damnable fool, daring to interfere in my plans.'
After commanding the Gedo Statue to unleash a few more destructive sweeps across the ruins of the Northern Hideout, Obito suddenly felt a wave of emptiness.
What was the point of venting his fury on these small fries? The real problem was still Naruto.
Poof-
With a dissipating cloud of smoke, the Gedo Statue's summoning ended.
Obito stood atop a pile of rubble, looking down at the lifeless ruins of the Northern Hideout. He scoffed quietly, then turned and left.
Half a day after his departure, a hand pushed aside some debris from within the wreckage.
It was Jugo.
"Wh-what happened here...?"
His eyes were dazed and confused.
He had been sleeping peacefully in his cell, and then suddenly, the world had collapsed around him.
If not for his resilient Sage Body, he would have been crushed to death long ago.
He looked around, lost and disoriented, unsure of where to go now.
At that moment, a small white snake slithered out from what remained of Manda's corpse.
The snake's mouth then unhinged, and a new, smaller Orochimaru was 'coughed' out from within.
"Jugo..."
"Orochimaru-sama!"
Seeing his master in such a pitiful state, Jugo rushed over to help, carefully extracting him from the snake's mouth and supporting the visibly weakened Orochimaru to his feet.
"Go... to Otogakure..."
Orochimaru's voice was frail. Utilizing this last-ditch survival technique had drained him significantly.
But in his mind, a single thought echoed.
'So, that was the true power of the [Gedo Statue]...'
'It seemed the Rinnegan that once belonged to Pain had now found a new owner in that masked man.'