Hinata was very satisfied seeing the System points break through the 200,000 mark.
However, she was now more curious about another issue. Sasuke had been hit by Kotoamatsukami, a technique set to change one's will without the enemy even noticing.
But since Sasuke knew about this move in advance, would he be suspicious?
Would he suspect whether he had been hit and instead act contrary to his own will?
Or, if she told him, "You've been hit by Kotoamatsukami," how would he react? What would he do?
Hinata shook her head; she couldn't get an answer for now.
She stopped thinking about Sasuke and prepared to go see Orochimaru... deep underground, inside Orochimaru's cave.
At this moment, this was no longer a quiet experimental site, but the center of a violent energy storm!
"Sage Art: Kebari Senbon!"
Jiraiya, having entered Sage Mode, had his white hair hardened like steel needles, turning into a torrential rain that covered Kimimaro's figure in the field.
However, Kimimaro's figure was agile, weaving through the area and occasionally thrusting out hard bones to deflect most of the needle rain.
"This guy... is he really more perfect than when he was alive, as Orochimaru said?"
Jiraiya was secretly shocked; the opponent's combat instincts, Chakra recovery speed, and bone hardness all exceeded expectations.
On the other side, Tsunade was entangled with Yakushi Kabuto, a large number of modified Otogakure ninjas, and Summoned Beasts.
Every one of her punches carried monstrous strength capable of shattering mountains and rocks, crushing the lunging enemies, but Kabuto was extremely cunning, never clashing head-on, only using terrain, poison mist, and endless Forbidden Jutsu and Summoned Beasts to delay and consume her.
Even more troublesome were the many hidden weapon traps here, causing great difficulty for Tsunade's assault.
Orochimaru himself stood on a raised platform at the edge, arms crossed, watching the battle with interest, especially Kimimaro's performance; this was Kimimaro's first all-out effort since his Rebirth.
"Hehe... Jiraiya, Tsunade, how does it feel?" Orochimaru's raspy voice came through the clamor of the battlefield.
"He's perfect, isn't he? Has he made you old-timers feel the gap between eras?"
"Orochimaru! You madman who toys with life and death!" Tsunade roared, sending two giant summoned snakes flying with a punch.
"Stop this forbidden experiment immediately! Hand over Kimimaro and all related technology!"
"Hand it over?" Orochimaru sneered.
"And then lock this precious knowledge in a dark, sunless secret room? Tsunade, you're still so naive. The value of knowledge lies in its application and evolution. Besides, it's not like you don't have selfish motives, am I right?"
Just as the battle fell into a stalemate, Hinata's figure appeared in an unnoticed spot.
Her eyes swept across the battlefield.
(Oh? They've fought to this extent already.)
She saw Jiraiya in Sage Mode, though at this time Jiraiya lacked the assistance of the Two Great Toad Sages, so his strength was somewhat lacking.
She also saw Tsunade with her monstrous strength in full swing, and Kimimaro, who was in peak condition and more at ease than when he was alive.
(Hmm, it seems the actual combat data after full resurrection is indeed better than expected.)
Her gaze glanced at Orochimaru on the platform. (It seems he has been looking forward to this test for a long time.)
[host, you really love watching the world burn! I bet Tsunade and Jiraiya would never guess in their wildest dreams that you're the one pulling the strings behind the scenes, hehe.]
The System's voice rang out at the right time, filled with the joy of watching a show.
In the field, Kimimaro forced Jiraiya back with a bone blade. Jiraiya frowned; dragging it out like this wasn't an option, he had to end it quickly!
"Sage Art: Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan!"
The Rasengan collided with Kimimaro's bones, filling the laboratory with the sound of friction and dust.
Tsunade took this opportunity to rush towards Orochimaru, intending to capture the leader first.
Orochimaru watched Tsunade's approaching figure and sneered.
He remembered clearly that this former companion, now enemy, had a fatal weakness—Hemophobia.
He raised his hand, not attacking Tsunade directly, but quickly forming a complex and strange seal.
With his movement, several large cultivation tanks at the edge of the training ground, which were previously still and filled with nutrient solution, suddenly vibrated violently, and the tank walls shattered!
Splash—!
Foul-smelling, thick nutrient solution mixed with a large amount of dark red, not-yet-fully-formed flesh tissue and broken bones and organs poured out, instantly staining a large area of the ground red.
Several humanoid bodies, clearly experimental failures, incomplete and hideous, slid out with the liquid and slumped twistedly in the pool of blood. The scene suddenly became like a hellish slaughterhouse!
A thick, nauseating smell of blood hit them like a wave!
The mixture of blood, cultivation fluid, preservatives, and the unique putrid scent of failed experimental subjects had a visual and olfactory impact far exceeding a normal battlefield!
Many of Orochimaru's subordinates couldn't stand it and quickly covered their noses, turning their heads away from the scene.
Even Hinata frowned, disgusted by the sight.
"Ugh~ Orochimaru really has no standards, he'll think of any dirty trick. No wonder they say snakes are cold-blooded animals; he's grossing me out. One look at this and I won't be able to eat for at least three days."
[...Then don't use the heaven and earth primordial qi pot to make delicious food when you go back. I'll supervise you; no eating for three days.]
"Tsk, one thing at a time. Food is the most important thing to people; I still have to eat."
Hinata raised her hand, wrapping herself in spiritual power to block out the disgusting smell.
As for Tsunade, the moment the blood splashed and those hideous, incomplete failed experiments came into view, her body visibly trembled violently.
Her pupils contracted suddenly, and her face turned deathly pale!
A bone-chilling fear, like countless fine ice needles, instantly shot up her spine and through her entire body, making her limbs stiffen and her heart race, almost suffocating her.
The blood-red color in her vision seemed to expand infinitely, overlapping and intertwining with the memories deep in her soul of her brother Nawaki and her lover Dan lying in pools of blood... Tsunade's body suddenly went limp, unable to stand.
"Tsunade!" Jiraiya realized Orochimaru's goal and shouted quickly.
"Hehehe... it seems you're still the same, Tsunade."
Orochimaru stood outside the pool of blood, admiring Tsunade's suddenly dazed and pale face, his voice like a snake's hiss.
"What? Seeing these imperfect works, does it remind you of something unpleasant?"
Fear spread in Tsunade's heart, as physiological disgust and psychological trauma wildly assaulted her sanity.
She clenched her fists, her nails digging deep into her palms, trying to use pain to combat the dizziness and nausea that were almost swallowing her.
(No... I can't fall here...)
(Blood... blood everywhere... Dan... Nawaki...)
(Get away! Get these thoughts away from me!)
Just as her will was teetering on the edge of fear, another even more burning, more persistent thought, like a fire lit in the darkness, suddenly surged up, fiercely crushing that cold fear—
Resurrection!
Orochimaru had mastered the technology of resurrection! True resurrection! Kimimaro was the proof!
They might... they might come back to my side again!
The impact of this thought was even more intense than the impact of the blood smell! It wasn't fear, but a near-desperate longing, a possibility sufficient to make her burn everything and trample over everything to obtain!
For this possibility, what did a mere case of Hemophobia matter?!
"Ugh, aaahhh—!!!"
Tsunade suddenly let out a low growl, forcibly tearing her gaze away from that stinging blood-red and the fragmented bodies, glaring fiercely at Orochimaru.
Instead of retreating, she took a heavy step forward! The ground beneath her feet cracked under her step, and the splashed gravel mixed into the pool of blood.
"Orochimaru..." Tsunade's voice carried fury, every word sounding as if squeezed through her gritted teeth.
"Is this the extent of your tricks?!"
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