'White Fang's' hand was like a vise, clamping down on Orochimaru's throat.
The feeling of suffocation surged like a tide. A grating "crack" sound came from his neck, as if it would be crushed at any moment!
"Hah..."
Orochimaru tried to struggle, to make a hand sign, but in this state, his strength was nothing compared to the "mountain" in front of him. Forget raising his hands, his body was completely numb.
He stared intently at the cold indifference in the crimson eyes. This was the second time he had felt such a clear shadow of death!
The last time was because he had underestimated that damn Hyūga kid.
This time, it was because he had underestimated the true power of the 'Hollow Realm.'
Arrogance. Once again, arrogance had put him in a deadly situation.
Just as Orochimaru's vision was turning black, the head of Tagorihime at the end of the thick snake tail behind him suddenly shot out.
"Hiss!"
Accompanied by a piercing shriek filled with shock and fury, Tagorihime's head, like a poisonous snake, opened its mouth full of sharp fangs to its limit and bit down hard on the arm of 'White Fang' that was choking Orochimaru!
'White Fang's' crimson eyes shifted slightly, looking at the snake head biting his arm.
The next moment, on the arm that was bitten, with the bite marks as the center, several black, twisted curse seal runes, which writhed like living things, instantly spread out!
Curse of Binding!
This move was later used by Orochimaru to fight Tobi in the Fourth Great Ninja War. Even with the unique nature of White Zetsu Tobi, he was still bound for a long time.
At this moment, the powerful binding force made 'White Fang's' movements suddenly halt. The grip on Orochimaru's neck also loosened slightly.
This binding might only last for a moment for him, but for Orochimaru, it was his only chance at survival.
"Ugh!"
Orochimaru felt the terrifying pressure on his neck suddenly loosen. His survival instincts and combat experience made him react immediately. His hands completed the hand signs at a speed that surpassed their limits!
"Sage Art: Inorganic Reincarnation!" he roared in a hoarse voice.
Rumble!!
The entire ruins of the underground palace trembled violently, as if some sleeping giant beast had been awakened.
The senjutsu chakra within Orochimaru's body surged wildly. The ground, the walls, the huge fallen rocks from the dome—all inorganic matter was imbued with life at this moment!
The ground beneath his feet undulated like waves. Stone spikes, like bamboo shoots after a rain, burst from the walls and the ground, instantly forming a dense forest of spikes that fiercely stabbed at the bound 'White Fang'!
And the moment the stone spikes shot out, Orochimaru's body suddenly went limp, transforming into countless tiny white snakes.
The white snakes scattered like a tide from 'White Fang's' palm, from the gaps between the stone spikes, disappearing without a trace just as 'White Fang' broke free from the binding!
Soon, the white snakes re-formed into Orochimaru's body behind a distant rock, and Orochimaru took another step back, disappearing into the rock.
Bang! Bang! Bang!!
'White Fang' had now broken free from the curse seal that bound him. He raised his hand and smashed the stone spikes that had trapped him. The next moment, he faced more strangely shaped rocks.
Sage Art: Inorganic Reincarnation uses absorbed natural energy to give life to inorganic matter, transforming it into a controllable organic form.
In this narrow, enclosed underground space, this senjutsu could be used to its maximum effect. It meant facing everything within this space.
Orochimaru moved like a snake within the rock formations, transforming the ground, walls, and dome into various forms to attack 'White Fang,' continuously creating cages with the underground structure.
His chakra permeated the entire space, enough to conceal his presence for a short time so that the damn monster couldn't find him.
"Damn you, Orochimaru! If you want to die, don't take me with you!" Tagorihime's voice, full of lingering fear, rang in his mind. "What is the Hollow Realm? What kind of monster have you provoked?"
"..."
Orochimaru suppressed his gasps. His snake eyes were bloodshot, his face was pale as a sheet, and his neck was bruised and purple. His bones were clearly cracked, and blood continuously trickled from the corner of his mouth.
He didn't answer Tagorihime's question, nor did he feel any relief at having escaped death. Instead, his eyes were filled with a rational coldness.
While he was using chakra to heal his injuries, he also responded coldly in his mind: "Tagorihime, if you want to live, and don't want to die with me here, your only choice now is to cooperate with me. Stop resisting the Grasscutter Sword. Let your soul completely enter it. This is our only chance!"
"You wish!" Tagorihime's voice was sharp. "Let that shabby sword devour my soul? How is that different from death? You're just trying to get rid of me!"
"Yes, I am trying to get rid of you. So what?"
Orochimaru's mouth curled into a cold, mad arc. "Before I get that power, I will never leave."
"I can tell you this: if you enter the Grasscutter Sword and devour the souls of those 'Hollows,' you might be able to retain your consciousness and even gain a higher level of power."
"But if you're caught by that monster..."
He paused, his voice turning cold. "He will devour your soul, along with mine, and chew it to pieces. There won't even be a speck of dust left!"
Just as the two souls were in a standoff in his mind, an extremely faint sound came from a corner.
It was Haido. As the main villain of the movie, he now looked like a dog in front of the power of Orochimaru and 'White Fang.'
He was stealthily crawling toward a collapsed tunnel, wanting to escape this hell while there was chaos.
He no longer cared about the Grimoire!
These two guys were simply two monsters!
The power and abilities they displayed were not human at all!
However, the seemingly subtle sound he made was like a stone thrown into a calm lake in 'White Fang's' ears!
'White Fang' suddenly looked in the direction the sound came from, completely ignoring the obstructions in front of him. He grabbed the broadsword behind his back. Highly compressed white light condensed on the blade.
Then, he drew it!
Tschh!!
A translucent yet incomparably sharp white slash, with a piercing shriek, shot out, raising a blast of air!
The speed of the slash was beyond the limit of visual perception. All that could be seen was that the stone spikes and dust in its path were cut in half, as if by a hot knife through butter!
Pshh!!
With a soft sound, Haido's body froze.
The expression of terror still lingered on his face. A thin line of blood ran vertically down the center of his head, through his brow, nose, lips, chest, and abdomen...
The next moment, Haido's tough body, which he was so proud of after absorbing the "Grimoire," split neatly in half along that line of blood!
Scalding hot blood mixed with his internal organs gushed out like a waterfall, staining the ground a shocking crimson!
The white slash, its momentum unchecked after cutting through Haido, slammed into the rock wall at the end of the palace, leaving a bottomless crack with a smooth edge!
Seeing this, Orochimaru and Tagorihime's expressions changed at the same time, but Orochimaru quickly regained his composure.
"Did you see that?" Orochimaru said with an undeniable tone. "I can tell you, before I defected from Konoha, I already had a contingency plan for revival. It doesn't matter if I die here."
"But you have no choice. Either you take a gamble with me, betting that you can remain dominant after devouring those souls in the Grasscutter Sword, or you die with this body of mine!"
At the same time, 'White Fang' realized he hadn't killed Orochimaru. He raised his broadsword again and swung it around, the condensed slashes cutting everything in their path indiscriminately.
Tschh! Tschh!!
Several slashes barely grazed Orochimaru's body. He barely managed to dodge them by moving through the rocks.
That white slash, which could cut through anything, completely shattered Tagorihime's last bit of hope.
She had no doubt that the white slash would land on her and Orochimaru at any moment, and she had no doubt about what Orochimaru had said.
Their souls were connected. She could feel Orochimaru's emotions and knew he was serious!
"Orochimaru, you're a lunatic! You bastard!" Tagorihime's voice was full of humiliation and anger. "I should never have believed that old geezer's lies!"
He said that Orochimaru was very good at surviving and that he cherished his life. He said that Orochimaru's destiny had changed, and that by following him, she could not only leave Ryūchi Cave but also have a chance to become stronger.
Now, she saw that Orochimaru was just a reckless lunatic!
"I'll take, your gamble!"
With a shriek full of reluctance and fear, Tagorihime no longer resisted the Grasscutter Sword's suction.
She began to actively and frantically pour her soul, along with the part of the soul that had merged with Orochimaru, into the Grasscutter Sword like a bursting dam!
Buzz!!
The blade of the Grasscutter Sword burst with an unprecedented pale blue light. An unimaginably massive mental energy furiously gathered and compressed!
"Cough, cough!"
Orochimaru, having severed a part of his soul, was deathly pale. He coughed violently, and his aura was at its lowest point!
And the moment his aura fluctuated violently, 'White Fang's' crimson gaze locked onto Orochimaru's location.
He slowly raised the broadsword in his left hand, and the fatal white light condensed again!
Tschh!!
A white slash tore through the air, heading toward the exposed Orochimaru.
"Damn it! Just give me a little more time..."
Orochimaru's expression immediately darkened, but he still didn't hesitate to dart out of the hidden rock wall. He made a hand sign and bit his finger in mid-air.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Looking at the slash coming toward him, he slammed his palm onto the ground and shrieked, "Triple Rashōmon!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Three huge gates, accompanied by a loud bang, rose from the ground, standing fearlessly between Orochimaru and the white slash!
On the red, green, and blue gates, grotesque, fanged demon faces were revealed, forming an unbreakable defense!
Whoosh!!
The white slash hit the first Rashōmon. A grating sound of metal being cut instantly exploded. The seemingly unbreakable giant gate was cut open with a huge, smooth, mirror-like crack!
The white slash's momentum was undiminished. It passed through the crack in the first gate without stopping and hit the second Rashōmon!
Clang!!
This time, it was a deafening clash of metal. Dazzling sparks erupted from the surface of the Rashōmon.
The sharpness of the slash was slightly hindered, but it still tore through it! A terrifying, curled-edged indentation appeared on the gate's surface!
The power of the white slash was finally mostly consumed. The remaining sharpness landed on the last Rashōmon!
Thud!!
A muffled sound, like a heavy hammer hitting a giant drum, rang out. The white slash shattered, and the surface of the Rashōmon was also covered in a web of cracks!
The "Triple Rashōmon" successfully blocked the attack. However, these three gates also blocked Orochimaru's vision!
He couldn't see 'White Fang' behind the gates, couldn't predict his next move. He didn't hesitate to try to escape into the depths of the ruins!
However, he had forgotten one thing.
The monster's true power was not its seemingly bulky strength, but its terrifying speed.
The moment Orochimaru turned around, a shadow filled with a chilling aura had already appeared behind him, covering him.
Orochimaru didn't even have time to react. He only felt a chill in his waist, and a bone-chilling pain swept through his entire body!
A pale bone blade, as if cutting through tofu, silently sliced through his waist, cutting him in half!
Pshh!!
Scalding hot blood gushed out of the severed part like a fountain, mixing with shattered fragments of internal organs, instantly dyeing the ground crimson!
Orochimaru's upper body slowly slid from his lower body. With a "plop," it fell into the cold, muddy pool of blood. The scroll containing the secret information also fell from his stomach.
'White Fang' stood next to Orochimaru's lower body, its crimson eyes looking down impassively at Orochimaru's upper body, which was still spitting blood in the pool.
It slowly raised its broadsword, pointing the tip at Orochimaru's head, ready to deliver the final blow and devour this powerful and delicious soul.
But when its peripheral vision caught a glimpse of the scroll, and it felt the familiar aura, the crimson light in its eyes flickered slightly. The broadsword that was about to fall suddenly stopped.
Orochimaru's consciousness began to blur. His golden snake eyes gradually lost their focus, but his left hand instinctively grabbed the scroll.
"So, is this it? I'm going to die? I was so close, just a little bit more..."
Just then, Orochimaru's blood-stained right hand, which was powerlessly limp in the pool of blood but still tightly gripping the Grasscutter Sword, suddenly exerted force.
Suddenly, those golden snake eyes that had lost their focus burst with an unprecedented, burning light. There was no fear or despair in that light.
Only the mad joy of a gambler turning the tables in a desperate situation!
"Hah... hahaha..."
A hoarse, broken laugh came from Orochimaru's throat. He stared intently at his right hand, which was tightly gripping the Grasscutter Sword.
He saw that the Grasscutter Sword, which he held tightly in his hand, was undergoing a monumental transformation!
The blade was no longer a cold, metallic gleam but was twisting and writhing like a living thing. The smooth hilt of the sword peeled off inch by inch like a snake shedding its skin, revealing a layer of fine, cold snake scales underneath!
The shape of the entire sword changed rapidly. It was no longer straight but coiled like a snake. The blade was winding and twisted, and two small, snake-eye-like crystals appeared at the guard!
It's a success!
It finally worked!
This is a Zanpakutō!
Using Tagorihime's and my soul as the guide, and the souls of countless 'Hollows' as the fuel!
"Hahaha!!"
As Orochimaru felt the tremor from the depths of his soul and the resonating will from the sword, he laughed wildly, following his instincts, and shrieked with the last of his strength:
"Devour everything, Hebihime!"
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