Orochimaru glanced at Naruto, then suddenly leaned down and darted out at an extremely fast speed. At this moment, Orochimaru had mutated into a form with a human body and a snake's tail, quickly slithering close to the ground in a snake-like manner, and instantly reached in front of Naruto.
"So fast!" Naruto didn't have time to react. It seemed that the 1,562 [Explosive Tags] I used had completely enraged Orochimaru, and he had used his real strength.
Orochimaru was truly filled with the intention to kill. Naruto quickly lifted his clothes, exposing the [Nine-Tailed Fox] seal on his abdomen. Orochimaru was greatly shocked.
"The [Nine-Tailed Fox]!" Orochimaru retracted his killing move and spat out a long tongue from his mouth, using the tongue to tie Naruto up.
Naruto was tightly bound by the big tongue, and the [Nine-Tailed Fox] seal on his abdomen was exposed. Orochimaru looked at the seal of the [Nine-Tailed Fox] and found that the seal had started to loosen slightly, and a trace of the [Nine-Tailed Fox]'s [Chakra] had leaked out.
"So you're the [Jinchuriki] of the [Nine-Tailed Fox]. I thought you were already dead," Orochimaru said. "No wonder you have so many [Explosive Tags]. I bet the [Third Hokage] has taken good care of you. Otherwise, as a [Genin], you couldn't have gotten so many [Explosive Tags]."
Naruto thought to himself: I asked Zabuza Momochi to use Gato's [property] to purchase these [Explosive Tags]... My purpose is to give you, Orochimaru, a deep impression so that you won't underestimate me, because in the future, I still need to make a deal with you...
"The Five Elements Seal!" Orochimaru concentrated his [Chakra] on his five fingers, placed his fingers on Naruto's abdomen, and added another seal to Naruto, completely sealing the leaked [Chakra] of the [Nine-Tailed Fox].
After completing the seal, Orochimaru lost interest in Naruto and slowly walked towards Sasuke. At this time, Sasuke was still sitting by the river in a daze. When Orochimaru got closer, Sasuke suddenly emitted white smoke and disappeared into thin air.
"Shadow Clone!" Orochimaru realized that Sasuke was fake. How could Sasuke be fake? Orochimaru had ransacked the entire [Death Forest]. If Sasuke had entered the [Death Forest], Orochimaru couldn't have missed him.
"Hehehe..." Naruto laughed a few times, struggled to get up, and said, "You won't find Sasuke."
Orochimaru was shocked. His pupils shrank, and he instantly teleported in front of Naruto. His gloomy face was full of evil, and he said calmly, "Where is Sasuke?"
"Let's strike a deal," Naruto said. "I'll give Sasuke to you, and you give me Karin."
Orochimaru showed a strange smile because he had no idea who Karin was. At this time, Orochimaru hadn't met Karin yet.
"Karin is a [Kunoichi] from [Kusagakure Village], just like you," Naruto continued. "She took part in this [Chunin Exams]. She has red hair. As long as you bring her in front of me, I'll tell you where Sasuke is."
Orochimaru thought to himself: I just happened to encounter someone from [Kusagakure Village]. I killed her, took her face, and assumed the identity of a [Kusagakure Village] [Ninja] to take part in this exam. It seems that the [Nine-Tailed Fox] mistook me for someone from [Kusagakure Village] and wants to exchange Sasuke for that Karin...
Orochimaru was full of doubts. He wondered who Karin was exactly. Why did the [Nine-Tailed Fox] want to exchange Sasuke for her? What on earth was this [Genin] up to?
Orochimaru's eerie smile distorted his facial features. He said coldly, "Why don't I torture you to get Sasuke's whereabouts and then kill you?"
"If you wanted to kill me, I'd be dead by now," Naruto said fearlessly, taking a step forward. "Either bring Karin to me, or you'll never get Sasuke. Even if you turn the whole of Konoha upside down, I guarantee you won't find Sasuke!"
"Heh heh heh... Interesting..." Orochimaru still wondered in his heart. He couldn't figure out why this genin in front of him was so certain that he must find Sasuke.
"You won't lose out on this deal," Naruto said, but in his heart, he thought, "Normally, both Sasuke and Karin would go with you. But with what I've done, you've lost Karin. You've really lost big."
"I'll bring the person here in half a day. You'd better show me Sasuke," Orochimaru said and turned to leave.
"Wait," Naruto said. "Hand over the scrolls on you first."
"... " Orochimaru was completely speechless. He'd met an extraordinary genin. Not only did this genin have a large number of explosive tags, but he also used Sasuke as a bargaining chip for the deal. Finally, he even dared to ask him for the scrolls for the exams.
Naruto said, "I need the scrolls on you to advance in the Chunin Exams. To show your sincerity, hand them over. Humph." At the same time, he thought, "You're Orochimaru. You're not here for the exams at all. The scrolls are useless to you. You might as well just give them to me..."
"... " Orochimaru stared deeply at Naruto and asked, "What's your name?"
"Naruto Uzumaki!"
"Heh heh heh..." Orochimaru took out a scroll from his bosom. It looked like the Earth Scroll, which would make a pair with the Heaven Scroll on Naruto.
Orochimaru put the Earth Scroll on the ground and then left.
Watching Orochimaru leave, Naruto let out a sigh of relief. Then he jumped up and cheered, "With Karin's special ability to assist me, I can create hundreds of shadow clones at once for training. My training speed will increase by leaps and bounds (advancing at an extremely rapid pace). And with Karin's special ability, I can eliminate fatigue and replenish my chakra."
"With Karin, I'm one step closer to becoming the Hokage!"
Suddenly, he remembered that Sakura had been knocked unconscious by Orochimaru. So Naruto quickly went to check on Sakura. Fortunately, Sakura was just unconscious and not seriously injured, so he felt relieved.
Naruto faced Orochimaru with Sakura and a fake Sasuke, which was a risky move, but he had a narrow escape. Not only did he get the Earth Scroll from Orochimaru, but he also made Orochimaru go look for Karin for him. He really scored big.
Naruto knew that Orochimaru's two goals on this trip were to get Sasuke and to assassinate The Third Hokage. The Third Hokage was very powerful. Orochimaru didn't want to waste too much energy on unimportant people. He needed to focus all his energy on the final battle.
So Naruto used 1,562 explosive tags. The imposing presence created by so many explosive tags intimidated Orochimaru. Coupled with the fact that Orochimaru was an extremely rational person who always considered the overall situation in every move, Naruto successfully played Orochimaru like a puppet in his hands.
Sakura slowly woke up with a start. The first thing she saw was Naruto's face. She asked in a worried, almost panicked voice, "Where's Sasuke? Is Sasuke okay? What about that scary guy?"
"I beat that guy away," Naruto said, grinning from ear to ear, holding up the Earth Scroll. "I even snatched the Earth Scroll from him."
"Great job!" Sakura's face lit up with unbridled joy. Then, quickly, she looked around. Not seeing Sasuke, she asked, "Naruto, where's Sasuke?"
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