Chapter 43: The Attack of Sunagakure

Orochimaru knew of Ebizō, largely thanks to Shimura Danzo. Both of them specialized in espionage, and naturally, their paths had crossed in the past. According to Danzō, Ebizō was a man on par with him in skill and cunning.

"Orochimaru-kun, could I trouble you to turn back?" Ebizō asked calmly. He was clad in his usual loose-fitting clothing, his head wrapped in bandages, and his hands tucked into his wide sleeves.

Orochimaru didn't respond right away. Instead, he scanned the enemy ranks—around ten visible figures. He couldn't be sure how many more were hiding in the forest. His own side had a few hundred ninjas, outnumbering the enemy, but it was clear that the enemy were elite forces.

Even though they held the numerical advantage, the Sand shinobi had targeted their weakest members, and Orochimaru knew that at least 30% of their forces would be decimated in a prolonged conflict. Such a loss would severely impact the war in the Land of Rain, where Konoha was already struggling.

But Orochimaru smirked, pulling out a handful of shuriken. "And what if I refuse?"

"In that case, I will have to make sure you only leave with a portion of your forces," Ebizō replied, removing two scrolls from his sleeves and unfurling them. In an instant, a cloud of smoke appeared, and ten black puppets materialized at his side.

The Black Pine Ten. These puppets were modeled after the legendary puppet master Monzaemon's creations.

Orochimaru's eyes narrowed. It was clear that Ebizō intended to reduce Konoha's combat strength before they could reinforce the Land of Rain, where the situation was growing more dire by the day.

No more words were necessary.

Orochimaru threw his shuriken, quickly weaving signs with his hands. "Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!"

The air filled with a barrage of shuriken, darkening the sky as they rained down on the Sand shinobi. The Sand ninjas scrambled to defend themselves—some using their puppets, others hiding behind trees or using jutsu to block the onslaught.

A single shout pierced the air. "Attack!"

The battle had begun.

Ebizō did not engage immediately. He watched with his hollow, recessed eyes as Orochimaru emerged from underground, brandishing his sword. One of his puppets, a large ox-head model, swiftly intercepted Orochimaru's attack, its arms crossing to deflect the blade.

Orochimaru's head tilted slightly, his mouth opening as he extended his arm. "Striking Shadow Snake Jutsu!"

His arm split into countless snakes, darting around the ox-headed puppet toward Ebizō, who leapt to another tree to maintain his distance.

With each moment, the battle intensified. Ebizō commanded his ten puppets like a whirlwind, sending them after Orochimaru with relentless precision. Orochimaru moved like a serpent, weaving between the puppets' attacks, all while trying to get close to Ebizō. But every time, Ebizō would pull back, using his puppets to maintain the gap.

Time passed, and it became clear that something was wrong. Ebizō noticed it first—out of the corner of his eye, a green figure was tearing through the ranks of his forces. His puppets and the other Sand shinobi were being obliterated. The sheer physical power of this green-clad man left no room for his enemies to retaliate, puppets collapsing upon contact, and shinobi sent flying before they could even cast a jutsu.

Meanwhile, there was another Orochimaru in the midst of the fray, summoning a massive purple snake to wreak havoc among the Sand forces.

"Is that a clone?" Ebizō wondered, shifting his gaze to the Orochimaru standing before him.

"You'll just have to guess," Orochimaru taunted with a sly smile, advancing once again. Ebizō maneuvered backward, but one of his puppets managed to fire a barrage of shuriken, which tore through Orochimaru's form—only to reveal that it was filled with snakes.

But that only confirmed to Ebizō that the Orochimaru in front of him wasn't a clone. He quickly glanced back to the other Orochimaru, still causing destruction with the giant snake. "But that one's real too…"

Before he could figure it out, one of his puppets erupted with a loud, high-pitched noise. "Genjutsu: Mirage Sound!"

Suddenly, many of the Konoha shinobi fell under the genjutsu's effect, attacking trees and rocks as if they were enemies. Only a few elite remained unaffected, including Orochimaru and Might Duy.

The remaining Sand shinobi quickly retreated into the dense forest, disappearing in the blink of an eye. Might Duy, seeing no need for pursuit, turned to regroup with Orochimaru and the others, who now surrounded Ebizō in a tight circle.

With a puff of smoke, the other Orochimaru and his snake vanished, leaving only the real one standing before Ebizō.

"So, that was the real body," Ebizō muttered, his face darkening. This new clone technique Orochimaru had used was a problem—allowing him to create a duplicate with all the abilities of the original.

"Now, it's just you," Orochimaru said with a smile, giving no further explanation of his technique but clearly enjoying the moment.

In his mind, Orochimaru couldn't help but admire the new jutsu he had learned from Uchiha Jin. By converting chakra into yin and yang elements, and continuously cycling it through sealing and unsealing, Orochimaru could absorb stray chakra from his opponents' jutsu. When used by a clone, it ensured that the clone always had enough chakra to fight, and in large battles, it could even allow the user to maintain an endless supply of chakra. And this wasn't even the full extent of the technique—it also included detection abilities and a form of genjutsu to confuse enemies. It was an ingenious combination of functions Orochimaru had never considered possible.

"I wonder what goes on inside Jin-kun's head…" Orochimaru mused, half-smiling to himself.

Ebizō sighed, realizing the fight was lost. He glanced at the number of Konoha ninjas still standing—hardly any had fallen. The mission had failed.

But he had at least learned two vital pieces of information.

"We will meet again, Orochimaru," Ebizō said quietly, before vanishing in a puff of white smoke.

"Orders, Orochimaru-sama?" one of the Konoha shinobi asked, awaiting instruction.

"We continue to the Land of Rain," Orochimaru said, his face darkening as he pondered the situation. The battle in the Land of Rain was currently defensive, focusing on tracking enemy movements. Root agents guarded the area, so no major forces should have slipped through unnoticed.

But now, with these Sand elites having come from the direction of the Land of Rivers, something clearly wasn't right.

"Hatake Sakumo is stationed in the Land of Rivers, along with Jiraiya. Did something happen on their front?" Orochimaru thought, concerned. Though he believed in Sakumo's strength, Orochimaru doubted the man's ability to lead forces effectively. Something had shifted the tide, and he needed to find out what before it was too late.

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