"Better not keep me guessing, Naruto-kun."
Orochimaru looked at the lasers getting closer to him and Kabuto, sweat streaming down his forehead.
If they dragged this out another couple of minutes, they'd be finished!
"Heh."
Naruto chuckled. "Just give me your improved Edo Tensei technique."
Orochimaru looked deeply at Tsunade, then told Kabuto to bring an empty scroll and write down the instructions for Edo Tensei as he dictated.
"That's all there is for Edo Tensei. How should I give it to you?" Kabuto asked with a smile, holding up the scroll toward Naruto.
There was no way to escape from the birdcage—not even by transforming into another object to slip through.
If Naruto wanted the Edo Tensei scroll, he would have to open the birdcage.
But Naruto didn't do that. Instead, to everyone's shock, he simply walked through the laser birdcage with his own body and went inside.
"Give it to me," Naruto said, holding out his hand to Kabuto.
Kabuto didn't hand over the scroll right away, but looked at Orochimaru instead.
It was clear he was asking whether they should make a move—after all, Naruto was now inside the birdcage, the perfect chance to strike!
Orochimaru also hesitated. He didn't believe that just because he gave Naruto the Impure World Reincarnation, Naruto would let them go.
After living in this world for so many years, he knew all too well how foolish it was to expect mercy from an enemy.
But right now, could the two of them really take on Naruto?
With Kabuto's strength, there was no way he could beat Uzumaki Naruto.
And the moment they fought, Naruto would have no reason to keep his promise.
"Naruto, why not take down this barrier? Could it be you never planned to let us go?" Orochimaru asked, testing the waters.
"How do I know the scroll you gave me is real?" Naruto shot back. "I have to make sure it's real before I let you go."
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes slightly.
The only reason Naruto was still talking to them was because he wasn't sure if the jutsu in the scroll was genuine.
Otherwise, he would have already taken it by force.
After thinking for a moment, Orochimaru told Kabuto, "Give it to him."
Kabuto didn't question Orochimaru's decision and tossed the scroll straight to Naruto.
Naruto took the scroll, stepped out of the birdcage, glanced at it himself, then handed it to Tsunade to look at.
"To know for sure, we'd need to test it with one living person and one dead person," Naruto told Tsunade.
Although Tsunade had long known this jutsu was evil, now that she actually had to use it, she still felt conflicted inside.
As a ninja, she had killed many before, but to kill an innocent person for personal gain was something she couldn't bring herself to do.
Naruto could see what she was thinking. "If you can't do it, I can help you," he said.
Tsunade hesitated, then shook her head. "I need to think about it."
With that, she walked off on her own.
Seeing this, Naruto knew she wouldn't be able to make up her mind any time soon, and that meant he couldn't confirm if the scroll was real.
He glanced back at Orochimaru and Kabuto in the birdcage, waved to freeze the cage in place, stopped it from shrinking further, and then left as well. "I'll bring you your meals!"
Orochimaru: "..."
Kabuto: "..."
Watching Naruto and Tsunade leave one after the other, Kabuto couldn't help asking Orochimaru, "Orochimaru-sama, are we just going to stay here until they come back?"
"Of course not."
Orochimaru grinned. He had never expected Uzumaki Naruto to actually let him go.
Whether it was writing the scroll or telling Kabuto not to resist, it had all been to create a chance to escape.
And now was that chance.
"Kabuto, help me form the seals!"
"Yes, Orochimaru-sama!"
Kabuto cut Orochimaru's palm, drew blood on it, then formed hand seals in his place before slamming a hand to the ground.
Summoning Jutsu!
Boom!!!
As the huge cloud of smoke cleared, a massive purple snake appeared beneath Orochimaru and Kabuto.
"Orochimaru, looks like you've been locked in a cage."
Manda glanced at the glowing golden birdcage around them and teased, "Summoning me to help you escape? You really are hopeless."
"Manda-sama, this golden barrier is extremely strong. Please be careful," Kabuto said quietly.
"I wasn't talking to you, brat!"
Manda snapped at him. "Don't talk to me again, or I might just eat you, got it?"
Kabuto's face stiffened.
He knew Manda had a bad temper, but he hadn't expected the snake to completely ignore his position as Orochimaru's subordinate and scold him outright.
If Manda found out Orochimaru couldn't form seals or use jutsu right now, it might swallow them whole on the spot.
"Manda, get us out of this barrier. I'll give you a hundred live sacrifices afterward," Orochimaru said in a low, hoarse voice.
"Hmph, that's more like it."
Manda snorted. "You two, get in my mouth."
Without changing his expression, Orochimaru slid right in. Kabuto hesitated a little.
Would he even be able to get out after going in?
Still, if he didn't, there was no way to escape the barrier. So he swallowed his fear and followed inside.
Once Orochimaru and Kabuto entered Manda's mouth, Manda shut it tight.
Kabuto: "???"
"Orochimaru-sama…"
"Keep your mouth shut, Kabuto."
Kabuto was about to say something when Orochimaru cut him off. Right after that, they heard Manda's painful roar from outside.
Not long after, Manda opened his mouth. Orochimaru and Kabuto came out and saw Manda's purple scales had turned pitch black.
"Damn it! This barrier is even tougher than I thought! You owe me, Orochimaru!"
"I know. Let's get out of here for now."
Orochimaru's face stayed calm, but he was still shaken inside.
Without Manda, they probably wouldn't have been able to escape that barrier.
Meanwhile, Naruto had no idea Orochimaru had already escaped.
But even if he knew, he wouldn't care much.
After all, he already got the jutsu. No matter what, Tsunade had to keep her promise and return to take the position of Fifth Hokage.
As for whether the jutsu in the scroll was fake… Naruto wasn't too worried anymore.
Because even if it was fake, it didn't matter.
Tsunade was soft-hearted — or rather, merciful. She had already decided to only experiment on the bodies of Dan and Nawaki.
She didn't want to waste the lives of the living, nor did she want to desecrate the bodies of other dead people.
And as long as she returned to Konoha, Naruto believed the old geezers and jonin there would find a way to keep her.
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