Chapter 62 : Smart Way
The leading ninja observed the approach of four individuals and felt the mounting pressure. Orochimaru moved steadily towards him, catching the ninja off guard, leaving him hesitant to attack.
Finally, gritting his teeth, the ninja retrieved a scroll and tossed it over. "We take responsibility for our actions this time, but I hope you'll show mercy," he addressed Orochimaru behind his iconic purple eyeshadow mask. "You're Black Snake, right? I'm codenamed Lizard. Let's get acquainted."
Orochimaru calmly caught the scroll and inspected it, confirming its authenticity. "White Rooster, go and restrain him," Orochimaru commanded, his icy snake eyes fixed on the two ninjas. "Even though you've surrendered the scrolls, I can't be certain you won't pose a threat in the future. I hope you'll be more honest."
As Hyuga Kazuki and Orochimaru remained watchful, their two teammates were securely bound. Lizard struggled and protested but eventually gave up.
With two and a half days still ahead of them, time was enough for them to recover from the loss.
"You belong to the Aburame clan, right?" Orochimaru addressed the remaining individual, codenamed Wasp. "I don't mind if you keep your bugs in your body." The bug from the Aburame clan, now surrounded by the four ninjas, let out a resigned sigh as his bugs began retreating.
Hyuga Kazuki struck Wasp several times, closing his acupuncture points to prevent him from using chakra and controlling the bugs.
The four unfortunate individuals were captured without having the chance to display their true strength. This demonstrated the significance of having sensory-ninja detection abilities.
With their eyes covered and bound together in a circle, they remained silent as a group.
"Captain, Hyuga's guy only temporarily sealed my acupuncture points. In an hour, my gold-devouring beetle will be able to chew through the ropes and free us," Wasp whispered in a low voice.
"Alright, then we must retrieve the scrolls and find a safe destination," Lizard said.
"Haha, forget about retrieving from them!" Fox jeered.
Wasp: "..."
"Captain, should we leave them here?" Hyuga Kazuki asked.
"Hehe, and then let them come back to trouble us?" Orochimaru glanced at the four ninjas and sneered.
"Did you dig a hole to bury them?" Nightingale giggled, but to the four ninjas her laughter sounded like the devil's.
"No! You can't do this! We've already surrendered, and we're all Anbu. Even if you incapacitate us, some ninja beast could jump out from here, and our lives would be in danger! We promise not to cause any trouble!" Captain Lizard pleaded with fear.
"But why should I believe you?" Orochimaru quietly picked up a inconspicuous bug from Hyuga Kazuki's clothes. "An interesting little bug."
"No-!!" Wasp let out a hoarse shout.
However, with a "click," Orochimaru crushed it, and the bug let out a pitiful whine before dying.
That was the Wasp's most valuable tracking bug.
"Black Snake! I'll never forgive you!! Ah! My little darling!" Wasp seemed to have lost his sanity and began rolling on the ground.
"Who told you to be dishonest? I can only resort to extreme measures!" Orochimaru indifferently gazed at Wasp, which was now screaming. He then bit his thumb and slapped it on the ground.
"Summoning jutsu—!" Three massive snakes emerged from the smoke.
"It's up to you!" Orochimaru chose the largest snake and dispelled the other two.
This enormous snake was nearly seven to eight meters long, adorned with thick and sturdy brown scales, and it stared coldly at its surroundings.
"Captain, what do you want me to do?" Nightingale asked.
Orochimaru took out a small yellow glass bottle and gazed at the large snake. "This is a useful creation of mine, and I don't have many in stock."
Using a syringe, Orochimaru drew the yellow liquid from the bottle and injected it into the snake.
"Secret Art: Serpent Giant Soldier"
Orochimaru called out loudly, slapping his palm where the injection was made, and the chakra surged violently.
"Roar—!" The snake bellowed fiercely, far from the sound one would expect from a typical snake.
"It's just utilizing some of the chakra and lifeforce to increase it's size." Orochimaru stroked the rough scales of the snake and gazed blankly at the others. "As long as the cells are stimulated by chakra to divide and multiply rapidly in a controlled manner, that's all. It's a byproduct of medical ninjutsu."
The three team members nervously watched Orochimaru. For the first time, they understood the horror of the legendary white-coat. The syringe in Orochimaru's hand seemed like a deadly poison.
"Don't worry, this is a hormone modulated by snake genes. For you, it's just a nutrient solution." Orochimaru smiled at his anxious subordinates, but Nightingale and the others remained skeptical.
So, the gentle Orochimaru was actually such a terrifying person.
"Guys, what are you doing?!" The four blindfolded ninjas sensed something amiss. A pungent gust of wind blew towards them, accompanied by a massive roar. Something dreadful had suddenly appeared!
"Don't worry, just get a good night's sleep!" Four snakes slithered out of Orochimaru's sleeves and bit the individuals. The four of them felt increasingly drowsy.
"Could it be...!" Nightingale realized a possibility and broke into a cold sweat.
The giant snake now targeted one of the bound individuals and swallowed him whole!
"Ah—" The individual screamed as he disappeared into the snake's belly.
"No—!" Lizard and Wasp, who were in close proximity, exclaimed before being devoured themselves.
"Help!" The most terrifying thing was not seeing it happen. Rather, it was the sensation of their friends vanishing. The remaining ninja broke down, and even the scent of urine filled the air as one of them wet his pants due to fright. They had been so scared that they lost control.
This marked the second time Orochimaru had scared someone to the point of wetting themselves.
"Perhaps it'd be better for them to just pass out," Orochimaru remarked. The large snake swallowed the last person in a single gulp.
"Captain, did you just...?" Hyuga Kazuki felt cold all over but bravely asked.
"I've made them sleep in the snake's stomach for three days. There won't be any danger. This way, they won't bother us. Next time we encounter other teams, I'll handle it the same way—safe, fast, and worry-free," Orochimaru laughed.
"Bang!" Orochimaru released the summoning, and the four living people temporarily vanished within the Forest of Death.
Falcon's hand trembled as he held the sword's handle. He had killed some robbers or fugitives before, chopping them down, but this was the first time he had seen living beings being swallowed.
Although it seemed like they were alright, if those four weren't Anbu, then what would happen next...
"Captain, there won't be any problems, right?" Nightingale's voice was also hoarse.
"Of course, why are you all so nervous?" Orochimaru didn't intend to cause trouble, but seeing everyone's wary gazes, he couldn't help but show a helpless smile.
Am I really that scary?
Meanwhile, on the other side, Hyuga Shiro had four scrolls hanging from his waist. His task was simple—spot the other squads, attack, and defea them.
With Hyuga Shiro's strength, one person could handle an entire team easily. Since this was just training, no one put up a fierce resistance.
However, once he obtained the scrolls, Hyuga Shiro's next move angered the others. He sealed all the defeated ninjas' acupuncture points and tied them up.
The trapped ninjas shouted loudly, but Hyuga Shiro's three teammates kept a close eye on them.
"Ninjas only care about the results, not the process. You're all just a bunch of losers. What right do you have to yell here?" Hyuga Shiro sneered. "The instructor will know, and he has already explained that ninjas are ruthless. I haven't harmed you, but I'm under no obligation to release you. If you were truly the enemy, you'd already be dead."
Hyuga Shiro was a smart person. As he had heard from the Anbu's from his clan, teams that retrieved the scrolls and let others escape were often ambushed by the same groups later on. Not willing to lose in the test, they would fight until the last day, leaving even the most powerful individuals scarred.
With sufficient strength on their side, why leave any troubles behind to cause problems later? Hyuga Shiro had no intention of leaving troubles for future.
From this perspective, Hyuga Shiro and Orochimaru had surprisingly similar ideas.
Only the first day had passed, and there were now only two teams left with scrolls.
"Damn! Those two little brats."
The bull-headed masked ninja in the distant camp seethed with anger, having understood the situation through a secret method. Orochimaru and Hyuga Kazuki had completely ruined his plans, and he had even invested considerable resources in setting up suppression enchantments to train them in wilderness survival for a week. All for this outcome!
If not for certain restrictions and rules, he would have liked to teach them a lesson.
The four Anbu standing beside him remained unfazed.
Cold-blooded and efficient, using all available means to achieve their goals—this is what true Anbu ninjas needed to be.
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