"Adamantine Sealing Chains!"
Countless golden chains shot out from behind Night's back. Like living creatures, they coiled around Orochimaru, binding him tightly in an instant.
Strange runes flickered on the chains, not only restricting the body but also forcibly suppressing chakra flow.
Orochimaru's snake-like pupils constricted violently. For the first time, genuine shock appeared on his face.
This series of tactical maneuvers—from the ninjutsu exchange to the Eight Gates assault, then feigning vulnerability to the genjutsu, and finally using the Flying Raijin for the checkmate—was linked together so perfectly it was terrifying.
For a moment, only the clinking of chains echoed in the training ground.
Night stood behind Orochimaru, feigning panting as if he had exerted all his strength.
"Lord Orochimaru..."
Night spoke softly, but before he could finish, the scene in front of him changed abruptly.
The "Orochimaru" bound by the bone chains revealed an eerie smile. "Flying Raijin combined with the Uzumaki secret technique? Not bad. But..."
The next moment, the skin of the bound "Orochimaru" suddenly cracked and peeled off like a snake shedding its skin. A perfectly unharmed, true Orochimaru emerged from within.
It was the bizarre Orochi-Style Body Replacement Technique!
"To think you forced me to use this jutsu."
Orochimaru stood several meters away, lightly patting his sleeves. The interest in his golden pupils had turned into an intense desire for exploration.
Despite his calm surface, his heart rate had quietly accelerated. That momentary chakra suppression just now was far more dangerous than he let on.
---
Meanwhile, in the Hokage's Office.
The image of the training ground in the crystal ball gradually blurred. Hiruzen Sarutobi slowly exhaled a smoke ring, a wicked smile playing on his face.
"I deliberately didn't tell Orochimaru about the Flying Raijin... I wonder if I managed to startle my brilliant student."
He muttered to himself, his smile fading into awe at Night's combat intelligence.
To use the Flying Raijin so fluidly in combat, creating a perfect closed loop from baiting the enemy to the final strike—this combat talent far exceeded his expectations.
Fortunately, Orochimaru lived up to expectations. If he had actually been taken down, that would have been a huge joke.
Spinning his pipe in his fingers, Hiruzen's gaze deepened. "This is good. Letting Orochimaru confirm this potential personally is more effective than anything I could say. But..."
He recalled Night's combat wisdom, which was completely inconsistent with his age, and frowned slightly. "Danzo's suspicion isn't entirely without merit. Where exactly does this level of scheming come from?"
---
Back at the training ground.
The atmosphere was subtle.
Orochimaru gently adjusted his sleeves, his golden eyes scrutinizing Night as if examining a precious experimental specimen.
"The assessment ends here."
He announced hoarsely, his voice filled with unconcealed excitement. "Your performance... was quite a pleasant surprise."
He emphasized the words "pleasant surprise," clearly still lingering on the Flying Raijin ambush.
Night dropped his combat stance and responded calmly, "Thank you for your guidance."
"Guidance?"
Orochimaru let out a low chuckle. "It seems Sensei Hiruzen has arranged quite an interesting student for me."
He turned to the dumbfounded Nawaki on the side, a trace of playfulness in his eyes. "Nawaki, it seems you need extra training. Your performance today was completely unworthy of the Senju name."
Nawaki opened his mouth to defend himself, but under Orochimaru's icy gaze, he lowered his head.
"From now on, train your ninjutsu release against resistance."
Creating a Shadow Clone to spar with Nawaki, Orochimaru said flatly, "No dinner until your chakra is exhausted."
Watching Nawaki being chased around by the Shadow Clone, Orochimaru turned his attention back to Night.
"The Flying Raijin Technique..."
He murmured softly, the tip of his tongue inadvertently licking his lips. "The Second Hokage's forbidden space-time jutsu. I didn't expect anyone else to master it."
Night understood immediately. Hiruzen had deliberately withheld this intel. The Third Hokage was indeed an old fox who enjoyed watching a show.
"I merely learned the basics by luck."
Night replied humbly while secretly observing Orochimaru's reaction.
"Basics?"
Orochimaru let out a meaningful low laugh. "Being able to use Flying Raijin so proficiently in actual combat is far more than just basics."
He walked closer slowly, lowering his voice so only the two of them could hear. "It seems Sensei Hiruzen has assigned me an incredible student... Night Namikaze."
This sentence not only acknowledged Night as a student but also contained a deeper meaning that made Night's heart tighten.
Orochimaru had clearly realized that this so-called "Guiding Jonin" arrangement likely had deeper implications behind it.
"I am just an ordinary Chunin, Lord Orochimaru." Night maintained his superficial respect.
"Ordinary?"
Orochimaru looked like he had heard an amusing joke. "An 'ordinary' Chunin who simultaneously masters Flying Raijin, Eight Gates, and Adamantine Sealing Chains?"
His golden eyes narrowed slightly. "I am becoming more and more interested in you, Night Namikaze. I look forward to our future... master-student relationship."
The hint in these words put Night on high alert. Being of interest to Orochimaru was never a good thing.
"I also look forward to learning from you, Lord Orochimaru," Night responded impeccably.
Orochimaru drew out his tone meaningfully. "Coincidentally, I've been conducting research on Kekkei Genkai recently. I'm lacking some experimental materials. If you're interested..."
"Uh, I can be your assistant. I actually have some ideas regarding such research."
Night hurriedly cut off Orochimaru's train of thought, afraid that if this continued, his status would shift from "disciple" to "lab rat."
Simultaneously, he used a roundabout way to express interest in Orochimaru's experiments, hoping to participate rather than be the subject.
Orochimaru naturally heard the rejection in Night's words but didn't seem to mind.
As for being an assistant, since the research had just begun and results were limited, letting Night participate wouldn't hurt.
He didn't respond directly, only saying in a deep tone, "This world is filled with ignorance and stupidity. Only the pursuit of the truth of life is an eternal endeavor."
With that, he and his Shadow Clone vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving only instructions to continue training tomorrow.
Night watched the direction where Orochimaru disappeared, his gaze distant.
At this moment, Nawaki, whose chakra was nearly depleted, crawled up from the ground and patted the dust off his clothes. "Night-nii, don't mind him. Teacher is always weird and mysterious like that."
Interrupted by Nawaki, Night shook his head and returned to his normal state. He said lightly, "Let's go. I'll treat you to ramen."
Internally, he pondered his next moves. Orochimaru was both the best umbrella and the most dangerous partner.
But perhaps this kind of life was more interesting, wasn't it?