Chapter 14: The Ludicrous Forest
This wasn't Naruto.
Sasuke flashed in front of the fraud before striking him with a hard right hook, sending the fake Naruto into the trunk of a tree. Then the Uchiha finished his quick assault with a vicious knee to the gut, making the fake genin cough up a mouthful of saliva/blood before slumping to the ground.
Sakura watched the event unfold in shock, "Sasuke-kun, why would you do that?!"
"This isn't Naruto," The Uchiha said plainly, making Sakura gasp, before she realized key differences as well.
"What the hell are you doing?" 'Naruto' asked while wiping the blood from his mouth, trying to play dumb.
"Your shuriken holster is on your left side," Sakura said with a glare.
"You probably attacked the Dobe when he was going to the bathroom," Sasuke said with a look of disgust. "How cowardly."
"How unlucky that you figured it out!" The 'Naruto' in front of them transformed himself back into a rain shinobi. The male had shaggy black hair, and wore a mask over their mouth. "Which one of you has the scroll? I'll just have to take it by force if you don't tell me!"
Sakura and Sasuke both got into a defensive stance, and scooted closer to each other. Kakashi had been drilling them about watching the other person's back, and now it only took seconds for them to follow through with the order.
Sasuke's hands started to move quickly as the rain shinobi ran toward them.
"Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu," Sasuke muttered as he leaped into the air.
The Kiri-nin smirked before taking a deep breath, and shooting upwards towards the airborne Sasuke, avoiding the flames.
Sakura quickly covered him from the ground and watched as the rain ninja rolled out of the way.
However, Sakura would not let that happen and appeared in front of Sasuke, blocking the kunai strike with a senbon before lashing out with a kick that stammered the shinobi and stopped him in his tracks.
Sakura ruthlessly slammed her elbow down on his shoulder, disorienting him. She followed with a low kick to the back of his knees, flipping him before she grabbed him and jumped off the branch she was on, plummeting towards the ground. The pile driver was successful as her opponents neck snapped on contact with the ground.
CRACKKKK!
Sakura nodded to herself before checking him, frowning when she realized that he did not have the scroll on him.
Meanwhile, another Kiri-nin jumped into the fray and engaged Sasuke in combat.
"Damnit," Sakura heard Sasuke exclaim as he appeared behind her in a blur and pulled her along with him. His grip was tight around her waist as he led her to a tree a few yards away.
"You need to find Naruto. Knowing the dobe, he should've been back by now."
"Got it," Sakura said with a nod as she quickly started to head in the direction the now-deceased rain ninja had appeared from.
The most important thing to do at the moment was to find Naruto. She had complete faith that Sasuke could take out the other ninja by himself.
Seeing Sasuke and the other shinobi engage in battle, Sakura quickly went to work on finding the Uzumaki.
Although she wasn't very proficient at it, sensing a chakra as immense and erratic as Naruto's would be nigh-impossible to miss. With her impeccable chakra control, it wasn't long before the rosette managed to find her teammate.
Finding him tied up and gagged, Sakura frowned before she carefully used her kunai to untie him.
"Thanks Sakura-chan," Naruto said with a grin as he dusted himself off and immediately launched himself back into the fight.
Sasuke was currently using his kunai and was fighting the other shinobi who was using a katana. He clearly had the upper-hand while the other shinobi had numerous deep scratch marks on his face and one on his side.
Naruto quickly made a squad of Kage Bunshin before they all raced toward the rain shinobi, causing him to be launched into the air in alarming agony.
Sasuke capitalized by appearing on top of the shinobi - his Raiton laced kunai digging into the rain shinobi's brain and effectively killing him.
Sakura came forward to check for the scroll.
She went through his kunai pouch and was discouraged to note that he didn't have a scroll with him.
"Nice of you to join dobe," Sasuke said with a smirk as he replaced his kunai. "I was afraid Sakura and I were going to pass by ourselves."
"Shut up teme," Naruto said, even though he was also grinning.
Naruto dismissed all of his clones but the one holding the shinobi down. "The bastard tied me up as I was zipping down my pants…I didn't even get a chance to go to the bathroom, so I still need to pee."
"I'll close my eyes this time," Sakura said smartly while she turned away from the blonde after she had stolen all of the rain nin's weapons. "Make sure you don't lose sight of him Sasuke-kun."
"Hn," Sasuke said with a nod as his eyes stayed on Naruto's hair only.
- Sometime Later -
"What are we going to do if we get separated again?" Sakura asked quietly as the group of three sat in a circle.
It had been a good two hours since anyone could be detected by either Naruto's clones, Sasuke's sharingan, or Sakura's imperfect sensory.
"We can't trust anyone even if it is us," Sasuke said with a frown.
"Maybe we need a code word?" Sakura suggested. "Or a code phrase?"
"Exactly what I was thinking," Sasuke acknowledged with a nod. "We'll make one just in case. If they get the pass-code wrong we'll assume they're our enemy."
"I don't feel anyone's chakra right now," Sakura said with a frown. "But since I'm not perfect at it, you should say it only once, just in case."
"Ask: When does a ninja strike," Sasuke started while looking at both Naruto and Sakura. "And answer with: A ninja waits until the enemy sleeps. When their guard is down, when their weapons lie forgotten in the stillness of night. That is the moment when a ninja should strike."
"That's hella long, teme," Naruto said with a frown as he began to try recalling what had been said. "Can we do something shorter?"
"It was easy Naruto," Sakura said with a shrug. "We said we'd only repeat it once."
"Alright," Sasuke said with a nod. "Let's head toward the tower."
ZIPP!
In that moment, both kunai and senbon were launched at them from one direction.
Team 7 quickly dodged the projectiles as Sakura tried to feel for any chakra signatures.
"Damnit," Sakura said with a frown as she ducked under a kunai. "I can't sense their chakra at all, not a trace."
Sasuke and Naruto both looked alarmed at her statement, and the group continued to dodge kunai. The projectiles were separating them slowly; Sakura noticed this as Naruto dodged a kunai and went out of view.
Sakura tried to jump to where Sasuke was headed, but got grazed by a senbon for her trouble.
When she finally got to the Uchiha, Sakura nodded to the male who grabbed a kunai in reply. "When does a ninja strike?"
"A ninja waits until the enemy sleeps," Sakura began to reply easily. "When their guard is down, when their weapons lie forgotten in the stillness of night. That is the moment when a ninja should strike."
"Hn," Sasuke nodded, as his eyes turned toward a sound a few feet behind them. Sakura almost jumped as Naruto appeared in front of them.
"The code phrase?" Sakura asked quickly while she raised her dagger upward. She just needed to confirm this wasn't Naruto.
"A ninja waits until the enemy sleeps," the Naruto impersonator began, and Sakura knew immediately this wasn't their teammate.
She actually appreciated the blonde, but his memory wasn't the best and she knew he wouldn't have been able to remember the first sentence of the pass phrase let alone the whole thing Sasuke had come up with. "When their guard is down, when their weapons lie forgotten in the stillness of night. That is the moment when a ninja should strike."
It took only a second afterward for Sasuke to send a kunai at the impersonator.
The Naruto impersonator dodged Sasuke's kunai easily, and Sakura frowned at the speed in which the impersonator dodged. The person in front of them was obviously fast, possibly even faster than the real Naruto.
Sakura gulped as the two stood next to each other in a defensive stance. How the hell did Team 7 always end up with these impossible odds?
"Impressive that you knew that," the voice that came out of Naruto's body was creepy.
A poof of smoke was all that alerted Sasuke and Sakura to the canceling of a jutsu.
"I'm impressed that you were able to tell," the female grass nin said as she grabbed the top of her straw hat. She stood tall with confidence, and Sasuke felt his abdomen tighten at the aura surrounding this person. "How did you know that I was fake?"
"Sakura and I thought someone was following us around," Sasuke spoke tensely. "So we came up with a code that we knew Naruto would never be able to remember."
"I see," the woman said as she took off her straw-hat. "Neither tired nor ill prepared are we? This will be more fun than I thought."
Sakura's mind ran to the awful situation she and Sasuke were in. Where was Naruto? She truly hoped he was okay.
"You want my earth scroll, don't you?" The woman teased as she wrapped her tongue around her earth scroll. "I know you have the heaven scroll."
The woman swallowed her scroll whole, causing the genin to both freeze. The only way to get the scroll was to kill her and gut her for it. The woman was on a whole different mind-set if this was the way she was going to play it.
"Now let's begin," the woman said with a grin. "The battle for each other's scrolls with our lives on the line."
With the last sentence, a wave of fierce killing intent made the duo both freeze. Both of them fell to their knees, with Sasuke throwing up as soon as his knees connected with the ground.
"Sakura…" Sasuke said shakily as his head turned toward her. "What the hell…"
The only movement her body allowed her was to quiver in fear.
"It's not even a genjutsu," Sakura found the will to move her lips. Her eyes turned to see Sasuke in a similar position to her - he too could barely move.
"Gotta...MOVE!" Sasuke said to himself as the grass nin got out a pair of kunai. Sasuke's eyes widened as the nin flung them at Sakura and himself. "Sakura!"
Sasuke's hand inched toward his own kunai, and he slammed it into his thigh without a second thought. Sakura cringed at the blood spatter, but knew she had to do something... Sasuke wasn't going to get to her in time with a wound like that. Biting her lip hard enough to draw blood, Sakura was able to jump out of the way of the kunai just in time.
Sakura quickly launched herself over to her teammate and shouldered his weight as the two leaped away. She needed to stop that bleeding and give him the antidote to the poison that was in his kunai, but to do that she would have to go somewhere safe.
She was doubtful the genjutsu Kakashi-sensei had taught her would be enough to draw the nin away, but she did it anyways. And thus, Sakura quickly made two Kage Bunshin and had one Henge into Sasuke-kun. She sent the two clones in the opposite direction of where she was heading to.
- With Naruto -
Naruto frowned as he looked at the massive snake in front of him.
He cursed as it hissed before charging, however the blonde jumped over the snake, throwing a kunai before weaving through handseals.
"Kunai Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
The kunai suddenly multiplied into 100, all piercing the snake's tough scales. The snake hissed, trying to slither back towards Naruto, however he appeared below it, his hands holding two kunai that he threw into its eyes, easily piercing them and going towards the brain, killing it instantly.
The Uzumaki frowned though as the snake disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing that it was summoned.
"A summoned snake?" Naruto didn't like the names that came to mind when he thought of it. "I need to get back NOW!"
"Not so fast, Naruto-san..." A voice hissed behind him.
- With Sasuke and Sakura -
After that was done, Sakura and Sasuke both climbed to the highest tree branch possible, and got to work.
"Take a sip of this," Sakura said as she handed Sasuke the antidote container while she got out a tea bag, some water, and a bandage. She had remembered when a teabag was mixed with water it would stop the bleeding of a cut. Dipping the teabag into her water, Sakura held it tightly against Sasuke's gash. Counting to ten, Sakura took the teabag off and was a little happier to see that the blood was beginning to clot. Wrapping the bandage around the cut, Sakura looked to Sasuke with a frown.
"What are we going to do Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked as her eyes darted all around them.
Sasuke's hand quickly flew over her mouth, and Sakura felt her cheeks redden at the close contact. The two of them were in a life or death situation and her body was still reacting to him this way.
Pushing Sasuke's hand off of her, Sakura was alarmed to see a snake appear out of nowhere.
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled as she gripped a few kunai. Thinking quickly, Sakura flung multiple poison laced lunai into the neck of the snake. It caught the bottom of the snake's throat and it hissed in discomfort.
Sakura and Sasuke leaped away, Sasuke also sending a barrage of kunai as they went. The snake was much slower than it had been earlier and was not able to dodge the kunai.
Instant death.
- With Naruto -
"To hell with this," the blonde uttered, knowing he didn't stand a chance. "You're clearly Orochimaru of the Sannin. Drop the disguise."
"Oh?" The sannin in question muttered in "surprise."
Naruto did what any sane person would do in that situation.
Haul ass.
He ran from the Sannin as fast as possible, evading the constant Katon jutsu that would've killed him on contact.
Naruto dodged another Katon jutsu, frowning as he did so. He couldn't continue like this. The snake Sannin was gaining on him, and the rapid use of Katon jutsu didn't even seem to be tiring him. He frowned, jumping again to dodge a fireball that burnt the branch he was going to land on. The branch fell to ash, and Naruto cursed, falling. He heard a chuckle behind him before he felt a kick impact itself into his side. He flew towards a tree, slamming through it before landing on the ground roughly. Orochimaru laughed as the tree fell towards him, but it was mysteriously cut in half before it reached him.
Naruto stood slowly, a frown on his face. He glared at Orochimaru. The sannin smirked.
The blonde cursed, flipping and sending a knee strike towards Orochimaru's head, however the man raised his other hand, grasping the knee before his body contorted in ways that were not natural, a knee slamming into Naruto's chest and making him slam into the ground. Orochimaru reached down, grasping towards Naruto before lashing out with a kick behind him that impacted with Naruto's crossed arms, just as his hand phased through Naruto.
Naruto was thrown backwards, his feet almost touching the ground although he smirked, catching himself on a tree and ricocheting off of it. He had blocked the strike and recovered from it. He could keep this up until help came. Even if it was only because Orochimaru was underestimating him.
Taking him like an average genin. He was no average genin, he was an elite genin.
Orochimaru easily avoided Naruto's axe-kick, spinning and slamming a punch into his face that distorted his face for a brief moment. However, before Naruto could fly away several more punches slammed into his chest. The combination was finished with a kick to the chin that made him shoot into the air, floating above the gigantic trees. Naruto groaned, flipping and glaring at the vague form that was Orochimaru. What he was planning was risky, but if he was to alert every surrounding person to his location, at least Sasuke and Sakura would find him, and the large use would definitely attract some attention from Anko who was no doubt monitoring the exam with cameras.
Naruto gathered as much chakra as he could, even drawing on the Kyuubi's chakra which made his nails turn into claws, and his whiskers thicken. His eyes turned crimson and his pupils slit. Naruto snarled, his muscles enlarging. He wove through hand seals before smirking. This was his most powerful jutsu he was about to unleash.
"Fuuton: Renkudan!"
Naruto took a deep breathe, his stomach enlarging, before he slammed his hand down onto his stomach, applying external pressure. This shot a highly compressed ball of air from his mouth. The ball was the size of a large mirror. The ball shot forwards, ripping through the trees before it finally exploded, just as it reached the snake Sannin. The man made no move to dodge it that Naruto could see, simply standing there.
- With Sasuke and Sakura -
Sasuke and Sakura paused, both with wide eyes.
"This chakra," Sakura mumbled, yet Sasuke heard her. "It's almost like-"
"Like Naruto on the bridge," Sasuke finished, looking at Sakura, a hardened look on his face.
She nodded and shot off, preparing for the worst, followed closely by the Uchiha in the group.
- With Naruto -
As the explosion finally ended a large crater could be seen, with Orochimaru standing in the vertex of it. However, the man looked unharmed, with a large smile to boot.
"Yes, you will do nicely," Orochimaru said as he looked at the unconscious Naruto. He reached down to pick him up before he glanced to the left, just in time to dodge a kunai that would have lodged itself into his skull otherwise. His smile however did not falter as he looked at his main prize.
"Ah, Sasuke-san, how nice of you to join us," Orochimaru said. "However, due to time I'll have to be quick about this."
Orochimaru disappeared in a burst of speed, reappearing in front of Sasuke with his fangs open.
Sakura quickly weaved through seals, aiming right in front of Sasuke before the sannin could even take off. "Suiton: Hahonryu no Jutsu!"
He was about to sink them into Sasuke's neck before he was sent flying from the Suiton jutsu, which happened to be chakra-laced water-balloon bomb. And then he was impacted by a kick to the back, that lurched him into an entirely different direction.
Orochimaru flipped in midair, a wide-eyed look on his face before he realized he was hit by two people.
One was the civilian girl that was with the Uchiha and the Uzumaki, but the last was someone who was undoubtedly more awe-inspiring.
Not to mention terrifying.
A dense shroud of chakra was around the jinchuriki. The shroud was a translucent red with bubbles of chakra forming all along it. His physical appearance during his initial state was enhanced. The shroud that encompassed the jinchuriki vaguely resembled the corresponding tailed beast, paws of chakra formed around his hands. The most significant manifestation was the tail that sprouted from the jinchuriki's body.
A single tail swung behind Naruto's back made of pure crimson chakra.
- With The Main Character -
"Is that who I think it is?" Goku asked aloud, abruptly sensing a massive spike in energy throughout the forest. "No way..."
- With Team Seven -
"I'll kill you!" Naruto roared, shooting forward.
Orochimaru's eyes widened before he shot towards Naruto, their fists connecting at their intersection point. A shockwave of power that longed to be released shot outwards, blowing Sasuke and Sakura away. The two flipped and landed on two different trees, although Sakura looked at the new Naruto with eyes full of fear and Sasuke's with intrigue.
"Naruto? Is that you?" Sakura mumbled in awe and terror.
However Naruto heard her, turning in his distraction. In this moment of distraction Orochimaru flew through hand-seals, blue fire forming on each of his fingertips. He thrust his hand forwards, however Naruto reacted just in time, barely dodging the strike and forcing it to slam into the tree.
The Sannin turned around with another one of the same type of jutsu with blue fire on the fingertips, and hit Naruto.
The Sannin then appeared before Sakura, lashing out with a kick that slammed her into the tree before disappearing, seemingly from midair. He reappeared in front of Sasuke his neck already in motion.
Sasuke's three tomoed sharingan already saw this coming, allowing him to jump and evade Orochimaru.
"Stay back Sakura, I'll hold him off as long as I can!"
The Sannin however had other plans. In almost an instant, Orochimaru's neck was going towards a petrified Sakura.
"Doton: Doryuheki!"
The kunoichi tried to protect herself, however it was in vain as Orochimaru's head ripped through the wall as if it were paper.
Sasuke caught sight of this and gathered his chakra as quickly as possible, unlocking a floodgate in his brain. "Sakura!"
"Kaimon!" The Uchiha felt his body receive a great boost in that he was much stronger and faster, as well as a visible emerald chakra aura.
In a flash, he shot near Sakura, grabbed her and pushed off in the span of two seconds.
Just in the nick of time too, or else Orochimaru would've killed the pinkette on the spot. Sasuke released Sakura and stood resolute in his convictions, ready to fight tooth and nail for their survival.
The Sannin in retaliation shot up his Kusanagi blade.
Orochimaru charged the Uchiha, swinging his legendary blade. Sasuke evaded swiftly and narrowly, thanking Kami for having a dojutsu as great as the Sharingan.
"Kukukuku you're better than I expected as well. You will make excellent additions to my plans."
"Not a chance in hell," muttered Sasuke as he jumped away, flying through hand-seals.
He smirked as he was preparing to unleash his own ultimate Jutsu on the Sannin. And Orochimaru was blindly walking into it.
"Raiton: Hachidori no Mure!"
Blue-ish sparks of lightning began to appear in the air. Within moments, they transformed into humming birds, giving off a loud humming sound. The humming birds then rushed his opponent, spreading out to hit Orochimaru in all sides with all eight birds.
The snake was impacted almost immediately after the Jutsu was fired, charring him into a crisp as a result.
"Sasuke-kun, you did it!"
"No, an attack from a genin would never finish a Sannin. He's still alive," Sasuke warned, Sharingan eyes peeling.
Suddenly, he fell on one knee to the tree branch. The fatigue and pain that was put into effect after use of the Hachimon caught up with the Uchiha. He wasn't used to using the first gate. Luckily, it only left him a little bruised and tired, nothing too major.
And just like that, snake-like fangs sunk into the Uchiha, a significant amount of chakra and venom being deposited into his system. Sasuke roared in agony but stayed conscious, hitting the ground with a thud, his Sharingan blazing. He glanced at where the slight puncture wound was, noticing three tomoe sitting on his neck.
He grimaced at it before glaring at the retreating form of Orochimaru, who had easily dispatched of Sakura.
- Sometime Later With Team Seven -
"Uchiha, what the hell happened here?" Anko inquired in a tone that meant business. "It looks like a war-zone out here."
"Orochimaru of the Sannin," Sasuke muttered, still in obvious pain from the curse mark.
Anko froze at the name. "Are you positive that you faced S-rank criminal, Orochimaru of the Densetsu no Sannin in battle Sasuke Uchiha?"
Sasuke narrowed his eyebrows in annoyance at the repeated question. "Of course I'm fucking sure! You think I wouldn't recognize Orochimaru, Orochimaru! He left some weird hickey on me, before he ran off."
Anko's eyes narrowed as well. "He ran off? How could runts like you invoke him to do that?"
"Yeah," Sasuke confirmed. "He attacked Sakura and I after he split us up, but after taking us out he went after Naruto. When we killed this snake and recovered, we left to help Naruto but he was unconscious with Orochimaru looming over him when we arrived. I assumed that the massive burst of chakra was him and Sakura confirmed it. We then fought Orochimaru and then Naruto was pinned down and then he bit me."
Anko frowned, remembering the feel of the chakra. That was not Naruto's. He was either drawing on the Kyuubi's strength, or he had lost control. Neither were good. Then again with Orochimaru returning…
"Don't worry about it. It won't matter as I'm officially withdrawing you from the Chunin Exams."
Sasuke's eyes widened before he snarled. "Like hell you are."
Anko shook her head. "This is something important. You were attacked by an S-ranked rogue ninja. The Hokage needs to hear about this immediately, especially when a jinchuriki was unleashed as a result."
Sasuke noted the word she used to refer Naruto. Jinchuriki. He would ask him about that later when he recovered.
"I refuse," Sasuke asserted.
"Excuse me?"
"I didn't stutter."
"That will be a violation of a direct order. Are you sure you want to deal with that Uchiha?"
"Naruto is our teammate," Sasuke said. "I don't care what this jinchuriki thing is. Naruto was in perfect control and he was aiming solely for Orochimaru. You will willingly get your information, but only after the end of this second exam. It means too much to us."
Anko gritted her teeth at his stupidity. "You are putting your own team's well being above the well being of the village."
Sasuke nodded. "And? I can handle the heat."
"Can you?" she asked, before sighing in frustration. "I'll let the Hokage handle you. ANBU, go to the Hokage and tell him what has happened. Also position yourselves around the forest, we need to be watchful."
The ANBU nodded before the presumed leader looked at Anko. "And you Mitarashi?"
"I'll be chasing after the traitor."
The ANBU vanished as Anko walked away.
"I approve of your decision Sasuke. But it's also foolhardy," she claimed before shooting off.
Sasuke nodded, walking over to Naruto and putting him on his back. "Hn."
And then with great effort, he scooped Sakura into his arms and carried her bridal-style.
Now to find a hiding spot so he could rest himself...
- With Team Four A Short Time Later -
"Something's coming!"
Goku was barely able to finish his sentence as a serpent appeared from a few trees in front of them and flung itself at him. The genin jumped out of harms way and landed on a branch high above the snake. Said behemoth turned towards him, hissed, and rushed again.
"So giant snakes live in the forest," Goku observed hungrily. "Might taste good."
The snake charged upwards at him, this time moving faster.
Goku's without thinking formed a sphere of ki and shot it into the snake's mouth. He immediately opened his hand, causing it to explode just before the snake could reach him. The giant snake's head was blown off, leaving nothing but gore in its place.
Merciful towards humanity? Yes. Merciful towards the animal kingdom? Not when his survival depended on it.
Then his food disappeared in a burst of smoke.
"A summon?" Goku asked, trying to comprehend why his meal disappeared.
Before he could ponder further, applause could be heard echoing in the vicinity. The boy whipped around only to see a pale faced man standing on a tree branch with a sinister smirk.
Upon seeing this, Goku...smiled.
"I must say, defeating a summon with such ease is most impressive," The man spoke with an amused grin. "Let's see how you do against a more terrifying snake."
"So you were the one who took away my food?" Goku inquired in surprise. "Just who and what are you?"
"It seems my reputation does not precede me," The man juxtaposed with fake disappointment in his voice. "All you need to know is my name...is Orochimaru."
Goku shrugged. It was clear he gave zero fucks about who he was.
"So now that you know who I am," Orochimaru's grin grew wider and more sadistic. "I've been very curious about what you can do, Goku-san. Care to demonstrate?"
The Sannin gave him no time to respond — he released a large fireball from his mouth and fired it towards him.
The Saiyan jumped out of the way and then attempted to block the follow up kick, but ultimately failed. This attack made Goku skid backwards a few feet, but it did no damage?
"Is this really all you can do? I'm disappointed…" the snake noted deceitfully.
A metallic blue aura surrounded the Saiyan as he relinquished his guard, an insane grin on his face.
His Saiyan blood felt incited by the power before him. It was the closest thing he'd get to a decent challenge.
"Let's go Orochimaru!"
Goku charged at Orochimaru, leaving afterimages in his wake. His speed and strength increased as he was able to keep up with the casual Sannin and parry his attacks.
The Sannin noted the impeccable taijutsu skills with a grin on his face.
'Oh? He hit's awfully hard for a shinobi — genin or not!' Orochimaru thought. 'Maybe this is secret weapon dear Sensei tried hiding from us.'
After a dozen seconds of straight taijutsu, Orochimaru backed away from Goku and raised his left hand.
Snakes shot out from it and latched onto an off guard Goku. Wincing, the Saiyan pulled his punctured arms back with his immense strength, dragging the Sannin closer. Just as the snake was about to land a hit directly on his face, the Saiyan blasted his head off.
Or so he thought.
Orochimaru turned to mud, reappeared behind the Saiyan, then pulled Goku's body towards him. Right before impact however, the son of Bardock unleashed a burst of ki, blowing the Sannin away from him.
'To be that explosive despite being in pain…' The snake summoner noted. 'This is not normal at all!'
Orochimaru was about to approach, but stopped when he noticed something.
A crazed looking Son Goku.
"LET'S GO OROCHIMARU!" The Saiyan roared with a primal vigor, intensity seething throughout his entire being.
The palm-tree haired warrior charged at Orochimaru in a scintillating metallic blue flame. Moving at beyond hyper-sonic speeds, he threw a right hook that the Sannin put his arms up to block.
CRACKOOOOOM!
The traitor underestimated the force behind the punch and he was blasted off his feet and launched through tens of trees.
The echo created by impact of the strike extended even beyond the Forest of Death.
Upon his opponents disappearance into the sea of darkness manufactured by the forests depths, the boy stood there awaiting the inevitable reemergence. The Saiyan knew his attack wasn't enough to kill him.
"Stop hiding, it's no secret you're still alive."
There was a moment of silence, before a heavy chuckle echoed through the air, seemingly having no origin. The laughter seemed to be coming from all around the lone shinobi of Team Four.
Goku slipped into a Kame stance before he turned to the sound of leaves crackling.
He smiled, his blood yearning for this opportunity. Maybe he could inch closer to going full throttle and not worry about killing his foe?
"Fuuton: Daitoppa!"
A great wind shot through the forest canopy and hit the Saiyan with the force of a freight train moving at hypersonic speeds. Caught in the gust, Goku couldn't move his body forward. It felt too good on his body, like a fan blowing during slumber. Or a calm breeze on a regular, pleasant day.
This temporary stagnation allowed Orochimaru the opportunity to charge in with another set of hand seals, "Doton!"
The soil from the ground clumped together around the snake Sannins right arm, giving him an earth gauntlet. Orochimaru promptly smashed his hand into the Saiyan's steel-like face, shattering his hand upon contact. The rock fist transmuted into a million tiny fragments, and while the blow forced Goku to do a backflip, it did absolutely zero damage whatsoever.
Before the sannin could do anything else, Goku blasted him with a short range ki blast meant to create separation. It worked.
The Sannin was unfazed by the sneak attack, as he waved off the ash and dust particles that littered his shirt as the smoke cleared. He seemed to have an amused and curious look etched to his features.
"What sort of ninjutsu are you using?"
"Don't worry about it."
"No matter, I'll be sure to experiment on your corpse," The sannin disappeared into the ground below.
Goku flinched and glanced around, searching for any sign of the sannin. Feeling a presence behind him, he raised both of his arms just in time to block a powerful strike. As he parried the blow and then countered with a swift roundhouse kick, the opponent he touched turned into dust.
Before he could move, a cluster of chakra-enhanced snakes slithered out from behind the Saiyan and tightly constricted him, trying to crush the life out of him.
Something that would prove to be a fruitless endeavor.
These weren't average snakes, they were chakra-enhanced to the point that he was supposed to hardly be able to breathe let alone escape. And yet, it was as if Goku was allowing this to happen for the sake of entertainment.
Commanding his snakes to draw blood via fang bites, the heavily suppressed Goku's skin was barely able to leak any blood. However, Orochimaru got the job done. Whether or not Goku died here or became his subject later, he had his DNA.
Now he could play with his prey or escape to enact further plans.
The first one was more fun for the story, so he opted for that option.
Big mistake.
"All that raw power but an even bigger ego, how pathetic." Orochimaru taunted, weaving through quick hand seals. "Katon: Endan!"
With only a few seconds to react, Goku violently tore the snakes off of him. Afterwards, he launched a yellow ki blast into the attack and disrupted the stream of fire, granting him the opportunity to leap away from the immediate explosion.
In the air, Goku shot numerous ki blasts in hopes to damage the snake. As target practice, because this was a training session for him rather than life or death.
Orochimaru moved in a blur on the forest surface, evading any and all blasts. Right before one of them came close to hitting him, the traitor vanished into the ground.
The Saiyan landed on a tree branch. He knew Orochimaru could spawn from anything other than the air itself.
And before he knew it...
"Suiton: Teppodama no Jutsu!"
Bullets made of enhanced hydrogen oxygen assaulted Goku like hail, the velocity they were moving at being fast and strong enough to shred any non-exceptional shinobi to absolute ribbons and pieces.
For Goku however, the chakra-amplified bullets felt like being shot with a water gun (relative to his durability) all over his frame.
"Ahhhh." Felt really damn good.
-Elsewhere-
Anko's curse seal was on fire. The deeper into the forest she went the more she could feel of her old sensei's presence. As she trekked closer to the area where her old sensei's chakra was the strongest, she noticed that the forest grew increasingly more destroyed.
Eventually she had to come to a stop, and when she did she gasped at the aftermath of the battle. Uprooted and destroyed trees, smoking and smoldering craters, and wood pulp littered the forest floor.
"Goodness, what happened here?" The tokubetsu jonin mused, examining the surroundings.
"I guess SOMEONE ELSE threw down with Orochimaru," Anko concluded, more intrigued than angry at the fact that the snake bastard was still out there, "If they're alive, they're either really strong or really damn lucky."
- Back To The Fight -
Orochimaru smiled at the Saiyan and snickered. "I must hand it to you Goku-san, never has a genin given me such a fight. I appreciate the entertainment. But still, we both know that you cannot beat me, so why continue?"
"Did you really just ask me that?" Goku inquired rhetorically, slipping into a Kame stance, a hardened expression in his demeanor. It was time to play for real.
"Get this through your head Orochimaru: you don't get to tell me what my limits are."
"Well it's clear you've chosen death as your fate." He started to take steps forward. "It's a shame, you might've become the strongest shinobi of all time had you became my pupil. What a waste of potential."
"Don't say I didn't warn you," the boy replied. And then he vanished.
"What?!"
What ensued next would have absolutely flabbergasted the ninja world if it was recorded live.
Orochimaru's head was snapped back via a strike that crushed his neck into numerous fragments.
Not registering the high-speed movement, he was blasted into the sky by a double kick to his back, causing a stream of venom to escape his mouth.
And then he found himself eviscerated by strike. After strike. After strike.
He could not move. He could not react.
He could not conceivably initiate the patented Orochimaru-Ryū no Kawarimi no Jutsu.
A fractured tooth. A fractured bone. A broken rib. Heavily bruised skin cells. A broken face. Ripped muscle fibers. Torn tendons. Devastation.
All by a genin who decided to somewhat cut loose.
Orochimaru couldn't fathom just how someone this powerful could be so young and green. The gears in his brain were only functioning due to the pain he was feeling, unlike anything he had ever experienced.
He might hit harder than Tsunade!
"Told you!"
Upon a display of acrobatics, Goku's heel smashed into the back of Orochimaru's mangled head with a roundhouse kick, catapulting the snake head first into the dirt.
BOOOOOOM!
The ground gave way, a rising steam of dust and rubble filling the air from the crater the Sannin's body had created.
"How?!" Orochimaru said in a desperate position, the typical demeanor of assurance absolutely fading into nonexistence.
His patented substitution was absolutely required within the next few moments. Despite the priority being his restoration, he could not help but marvel at who the boy had absolutely annihilated him in only seconds.
Luckily, the boy's DNA was in his grasp due to his laissez fare approach earlier in the "fight."
It would come back to haunt the boy so long as he survived today. Which was not a guarantee.
"I thought you would be stronger than this," Goku pouts, "Go away and train some more. And then come fight me."
Okay, maybe he would survive.
Orochimaru grimaced. He took this opportunity to undergo his Orochimaru style substitution jutsu, which was given an "ewwww" response from one Son Goku.
"Let's see how strong you really are!" The Sannin insisted in a raspy tone, slamming his palms together. "Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei."
And before Goku could even ponder what was going on, two zombie-like figures emerged from caskets that also emerged from the pits of nowhere. Both of them wore armor, one red and the other blue. One had brown hair and the other grey.
Who were they supposed to be? Goku could care less.
"Kukukukuku!"
Goku stared in curiosity at the man as he produced two yellow slips from his sleeves, sinking the seals into the back of their heads.
"Meet the Shodaime and Nidaime Hokages, brought back from the dead just to fulfill your urge to fight."
Goku facepalmed.
"I said YOU needed to train," he started, anger rising. "Where's the honor in fighting without using your own strength? Using the dead is as low as it gets."
"Silence," Orochimaru said with renewed confidence, pointing a wobbly finger at the boy in front of him. "Kill that brat!"
Hashirama Senju's corpse slammed his palms together, expression riddled with a shell of his former emotional self. From every side of him, enlarged roots grew quickly, slithering out of the ground like a snake uncoiling itself.
"Mokuton Hijutsu: Jukai Kōtan!"
A deep forest emergence indeed.
Orochimaru could finally relax and escape his nightmarish combatant. With the God of Shinobi on his side that child will finally be killed off-
And then he looked to the sky, and saw said child airborne over two thousand feet in the sky.
What?
"KAAAAAAA..." The Saiyan cupped his hands together, one on top of the other.
Orochimaru horrifyingly watched in awe.
"MEEEEEEE!" Goku proceeded to reel his arms back into a charging position.
The Sannin had a sinking feeling that if he did not summon his ultimate defense, he might not survive after all.
"HAAAAAAA..." The son of Bardock then channeled cerulean ki into the palms of his hands.
Yup, summon the gates!
"MEEEEEEE!" He intensified the amount of ki placed into the sphere until it was launch ready.
"Kuchiyose: Sanjū Rashōmon!" The gates of hell rose up from the ground via the devil's blessing.
Three gargantuan demon-faced blockades stood before the might of Roshi's ultimate technique.
On top of an ever charging Edo Tensei God of Shinobi and his late brother riding the wave of the forest to try to reach Son Goku. "Ahhhhhh."
With all of those elements combined, Orochimaru should be able to escape...alive-
"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
- Elsewhere -
"What the HELL is that?" Anko questioned, changing directions momentarily in order to avoid consumption by the cerulean blast of imminent death.
The ANBU that tagged along with her could only marvel as they too retreated, knowing that if they were too close it would annihilate them.
- Elsewhere -
"Incredible..." A pair of pale eyes read the power embedded within the blast. "Goku-kun's talked about the Kamehameha before, but to see it at full power..."
Hinata could only stare in awe at the amassed ki that illuminated the entire Forest of Death in its menacing blue light.
To think that Goku, the once most innocent boy she had the pleasure of knowing, could be capable of producing such destructive power was chilling. The fact that he was even pushed to this extent spoke volumes about whoever he was fighting.
All of this told her that despite the amount of training she and her team had done over the months - she was still absolutely nothing compared to the strongest genin in the world. She recognized the fact that Goku was at a level no other genin had ever seen - far outstripping the likes of Naruto, Sasuke, and Neji.
It was humbling.
And infuriating all the same. If she ever wanted to stand next to him properly, she needed to reach the next level.
Whatever the next level was supposed to mean.
"First it was Gaara," Kiba interrupted the muse, his eyes trained on the fight from a safe distance. "And now Goku might be even more of a monster than him?!"
Shino maintained his composure despite the impending competition. "Indeed. My kikaichu suggest he is outrageously strong."
- Back To Fight -
The gargantuan blast of the 'Turtle Destruction Wave' created by Master Roshi illuminated the entire village in the night time scenery.
The beauty of such an attack almost undermined the amount of destructive power packed into it. Almost.
Needless to say, the Sannin traveled underground at full speed, not taking any chances with the legendary power this genin possessed.
Both the first and second Hokage were the first to try.
And the first to die.
The wave washed over them and the entire forest generated by the jutsu, every last remnant of their existence in the second exam being wiped clean. There were no particles, ashes, or cells to utilize as evidence of their being there. How could one regenerate if there was nothing to regenerate from? Make that make sense.
And thus, the Edo Tensei were evaporated back to Heaven.
Next, the gates were the second to try.
And the second to die.
The blast annihilated the gate and then decimated everything in the vicinity.
Every unknowing genin team within the diameter of three kilometers was wiped from existence. Every tree, mega fauna, fauna in general, debris, or anything other than deep parts of the Earth itself was obliterated. The thunder resulting from the clash between the Earth and the Kamehameha deafened everyone in the forest and was heard throughout the entirety of Konoha. The brilliance of the explosion also flashed throughout Konoha, and could be seen from beyond the gates of the village itself.
And despite the semantics...
Orochimaru was alive. Barely.
The thought that a mere genin managed to utterly kick his ass was enough to make him quiver in fury. A brat managed to take him, one of the sannin, on and live to not only tell the tale, but rave about it braggadociously.
What a ludicrous shinobi.
He stopped and chuckled in his unknown location.
"I should thank you, Goku-san. With your DNA, I will become a God and have my revenge. Leaves will burn."