What's going on?
How do I still have Senju and Uzumaki bloodlines... Kizuna thought he was on a cheat-code path, but he didn't expect to also have a hidden bloodline path.
Things (tilts head) are starting to get interesting.
"Kizuna-kun, put away those strange thoughts in your head for a moment and listen to me finish."
Kizuna, who had been too engrossed in his role, instantly snapped to attention, straightening his tilted head. Nawaki and Shibi also looked at Kizuna with curiosity.
It was quite normal.
Only Orochimaru, who was facing him, saw everything. From the moment he took out the two bells, Kizuna's expression among the three Genin sprouts was the most varied.
In just three to five blinks of an eye.
From initial surprise to joy, then shock, and finally a tilted head with a hooked smile.
Even Orochimaru, who had seen all sorts of situations, was somewhat... perplexed.
He didn't understand!
What caused Kizuna's such rich emotional changes? It couldn't possibly be the bells in his hand, could it?
He couldn't figure it out.
But Orochimaru didn't dwell on it. It wasn't some novel Ninjutsu, not worth his time to ponder over.
"Next, the three of you must do your utmost, using every possible method to snatch the bells from my hand."
As he spoke, Orochimaru shook the two bells in his hand, the cold metal clashing together with a crisp jingling sound.
"Three people but only two bells, which means one of us is destined not to get one."
Shibi Aburame pushed up his slightly slipping sunglasses, analyzing calmly.
"Mhm."
Nawaki nodded in agreement, then frowned, wondering what the teammate who couldn't get a bell should do.
There's also another possibility, which is that we might not get any bells at all... Kizuna added in his heart, but didn't say it aloud.
After all, talking about failure before even fighting would be too demoralizing.
"Don't worry, there's no punishment for the person who doesn't get a bell."
Though his tone was cold, Orochimaru's words brought a sigh of relief to the three of them.
No punishment? Then let's fight without holding back!
Eh?
Shouldn't he be scaring us, saying that whoever doesn't get a bell has to go back to the Ninja Academy and repeat a year?... Kizuna, deeply influenced by the original story, was puzzled, then quickly realized.
Kakashi and Orochimaru are teachers with different personalities; their teaching methods would naturally be different.
"However..."
The sudden turn made the three of them tense up again, looking nervously at Orochimaru as he slowly began to speak.
"The person who doesn't get a bell also receives no reward."
His husky, magnetic, unique voice combined with the information in his words made the three of them feel a jolt.
Reward!
Thinking in reverse, those who got the bells would receive a reward. Realizing this, their enthusiasm was instantly ignited.
"Ten minutes..."
As he spoke, Orochimaru pulled out an hourglass from the Ninja tool pouch behind him and tossed it casually.
With a 'thwack', it landed precisely on top of a wooden stake, the sand-filled side facing up, fine grains of sand trickling down to the bottom.
"In ten minutes, the test begins."
As Orochimaru's words fell, Nawaki waved to the other two, signaling for them to go to the nearby woods to discuss tactics.
Gazing at the retreating figures of the three little Genin sprouts running towards the woods.
In a trance, Orochimaru seemed to see a scene from the past, discussing with Tsunade and that dead last Jiraiya how to defeat Hiruzen-sensei.
Heh~ A boring moment of nostalgia, isn't it?... Orochimaru slowly closed his eyes to rest.
But his thin lips curved slightly... Time flew by, and the last few grains of sand fell from the top of the hourglass.
Whoosh!
Orochimaru, who had just been leaning against the wooden stake with his eyes closed, vanished as a blur, leaving only two wisps of stirred yellow sand drifting.
The next second, in the woods.
Orochimaru's figure quietly appeared, his feet on a thick tree branch, searching for traces left by the three in the dense forest.
The camouflage of the pitfall traps was too rigid, the tripwire Kunai traps were too crude, and the number of insects used for reconnaissance was a bit too much. None of these could fool an experienced Chunin.
Also, their breathing and heartbeats while hiding, I can hear them all clearly from here.
However, for freshly graduated Genin, it's barely adequate... Orochimaru gave a somewhat satisfied evaluation; he couldn't teach a dead last like Jiraiya.
Hm?
Noticing a sudden increase in a breathing sound, Orochimaru raised an eyebrow.
Couldn't hold back anymore, could they?
Buzz~
In an instant, a large number of parasitic insects suddenly surged, crowding together to form a pitch-black storm, madly rushing towards Orochimaru at the center, attempting to attach to him and drain his Chakra.
Orochimaru, amidst the storm of insects, showed no panic. He gathered Chakra in his chest, forming a hand seal with his left hand near his mouth.
Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!
The Chakra condensed in his chest transformed into a hurricane, suddenly gushing from his mouth. The roaring spiral wind storm instantly tore through the dense black insect swarm, countless parasitic insects swept into the storm and carried away into the distance.
At the same time, Orochimaru's Chakra erupted from his feet, instantly turning into a blurry afterimage as he darted out of the gap in the insect swarm, gaining distance with a few leaps on the branches ahead.
Orochimaru only stopped when he leaned against the back of a thick tree, then turned to observe the insect swarm that had already lost its target.
Your traps and attacks are useless against me. What will you do next?... Orochimaru thought, while crushing a parasitic insect hidden on the back of his neck.
Looking at the wet, squishy insect corpse in his hand, Orochimaru let out a soft laugh.
A small trick, but not bad.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Just as Orochimaru flicked away the insect corpse from his hand, six rapidly spinning Shuriken suddenly attacked, three in front, three behind.
Orochimaru seemed to have anticipated it, instantly ducking down. The three Shuriken missed, embedding themselves with 'thud, thud, thud' into the tree trunk behind him. Then, he gripped a Kunai in a reverse grip, holding it in front of him, and deflected the remaining three Shuriken with clangs.
An inflexible ambush, but the level of Ninja tool throwing is quite good... Just as Orochimaru was about to evaluate, he heard a 'thump' behind him, and a figure appeared in the rising white mist.
It was Nawaki, transformed into a Shuriken, but he knew it was impossible to easily snatch the bells hanging from Orochimaru's waist. Instead, he delivered a roundhouse kick directly at Orochimaru's long, flowing hair.
Transformation Jutsu, interesting... Orochimaru's interest was piqued. Feeling the approaching roundhouse kick, he raised his hand to the side of his face, blocking it while also grabbing Nawaki's ankle.
"Eh?"
The ambush failed, and Nawaki felt regret for his new teammate Kizuna, who had come up with such a brilliant battle plan.
It actually didn't succeed!
As expected, Big Brother Orochimaru is too strong.
"Your taijutsu training has been slacking, Nawaki." Hearing Nawaki's sigh, Orochimaru didn't turn around. He simply grabbed Nawaki's ankle and swung him away.
"Ehh~"
Nawaki, flung away, let out a cry. Unable to brace himself in mid-air, he hit a thick tree trunk with a 'thump', his chest suddenly feeling tight, then slowly fell headfirst due to gravity.
But suddenly, with a 'poof', the falling Nawaki dissipated, turning into a puff of white smoke.
First a Shadow Clone, then a Transformation Jutsu, so that's it... A corner of Orochimaru's mouth curved upwards. This didn't seem like a straightforward tactic Nawaki would come up with.
Was it thought up by the Aburame Clan, or... that Wei Fang Ban Ren?
However, relying solely on small tricks won't get you the bells in my hand... Orochimaru gradually looked forward to what tactics the three of them would employ next.
His dormant snake heart was starting to boil.