Chapter 43: Uchiha Itachi VS Orochimaru

Swish, swish, swish!

Using his precise shuriken techniques, Uchiha Itachi blinded the eyes of the snakes Orochimaru had summoned in just a few moves. However, even with their eyes severely damaged, the two giant snakes did not disappear but continued to pursue him and Jūzō Biwa, attempting to bite them.

Snakes rely on their tongues to find their prey!

Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!

Faced with the giant snake opening its bloody maw at him, Uchiha Itachi formed hand seals, and a massive fireball, two to three meters in diameter, spewed from his mouth, accurately striking the open mouth of the snake.

Boom~

The Great Fireball Technique exploded inside the snake's mouth, roasting its entire head.

On the other side, Jūzō Biwa swung his Decapitating Carving Knife, slashing at the snake in front of him, creating a huge gash in its head.

Summoning Technique!

Seeing the death of the two snakes, Orochimaru summoned three more snakes, each twice the size of the previous ones.

Uchiha Itachi narrowed his eyes, and the three newly summoned snakes immediately froze in place.

Genjutsu!

Orochimaru grinned and summoned two more snakes, using them to break the genjutsu on the first three.

Determined not to let Uchiha Itachi get close to him, Orochimaru adopted a defensive strategy, continually summoning snakes.

Seeing Orochimaru's uncharacteristically cautious tactics, Uchiha Itachi frowned slightly.

Water Release: Waterfall Technique!

Jūzō Biwa spewed a massive water column from his mouth, creating an opening in the wall of snakes Orochimaru had summoned.

Uchiha Itachi again cast genjutsu, freezing the five snakes in place.

Then, Uchiha Itachi and Jūzō Biwa charged at Orochimaru at full speed.

Remembering Shishou's advice, Orochimaru quickly summoned a large snake to ride on, swiftly distancing himself from Uchiha Itachi and Jūzō Biwa.

Suddenly, both Orochimaru and the snake he was riding on froze in place, unable to move, as if nailed down.

Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique!

This was the advanced genjutsu Uchiha Itachi had used to defeat Orochimaru before.

Recognizing it immediately, Orochimaru turned his head with difficulty, seeing Uchiha Itachi behind him. He was shocked to realize Itachi had silently infiltrated his side. The Itachi beside Jūzō Biwa disappeared with a "poof."

Shadow clone?

Uchiha Itachi looked at Orochimaru, and with a swift motion, he decapitated Orochimaru with a kunai.

Meanwhile, Jūzō Biwa swiftly beheaded the five genjutsu-controlled snakes.

The Decapitating Carving Knife was perfect for dealing with these large monsters.

"Is he dead?" Jūzō Biwa asked, standing atop the now lifeless giant snake, looking at the fallen Orochimaru.

Uchiha Itachi shook his head.

"He's not that easy to kill."

As soon as Itachi finished speaking, the Orochimaru he had killed turned into a pool of dark flesh and blood. Orochimaru reappeared over a hundred meters away.

Defeating Itachi might be difficult for Orochimaru now, but Itachi killing him was no easy task either.

On the mountaintop.

"Truly worthy of being a one-man army."

Watching the first round of battle between Orochimaru and Uchiha Itachi, Shishou marveled at Itachi's battle intelligence.

Orochimaru's defensive tactics were child's play to Shishou, but others would find them troublesome.

Yet, Itachi had effortlessly countered it with a mere shadow clone.

Given Itachi's limited chakra reserves, shadow clones were inefficient for him. Using one halved his already scarce chakra, reducing his combat effectiveness.

However, Itachi had maximized the value of this inefficient technique.

His battle intelligence was truly commendable!

High!

Additionally, that slippery snake was incredibly hard to kill. Even with his Sharingan, Shishou hadn't noticed when Orochimaru escaped.

Thinking these thoughts, Shishou continued to watch.

At the mountain's base.

Orochimaru smirked as he looked at Itachi in the distance.

Though he had lost several snakes, it didn't matter to him.

What was more important was that Itachi had used up half his chakra, making Orochimaru appreciate Shishou's strategy of kiting.

Perhaps now, I can truly defeat Uchiha Itachi!

Excited by the thought, Orochimaru licked his lips.

Summoning Technique: Manda!

Boom!

The enormous, purple-patterned body of Manda suddenly appeared, shocking Jūzō Biwa and Yūgao Uzuki.

The snakes Orochimaru had summoned earlier were already enormous, hard for any ordinary ninja to handle.

But this one was several times larger, nearly the size of a Tailed Beast...

To ordinary people, it was as daunting as an ant facing a giant.

This is the power of one of the Legendary Sannin?

Jūzō Biwa and Yūgao Uzuki were astounded.

"Orochimaru, you dare summon me."

"Have you prepared my offerings?"

As soon as Manda appeared, he arrogantly demanded offerings, not even acknowledging Orochimaru.

"Of course, three hundred sacrifices are ready."

Orochimaru replied, then continued:

"His Sharingan genjutsu is strong. Close your eyes when you get close. I'll stay inside you to help dispel any genjutsu."

Orochimaru then dived into Manda's mouth.

"Heh, Sharingan, huh."

Manda glanced at the genjutsu-bound snakes under Itachi, snorted, and a transparent membrane covered his eyes.

Manda's massive body then lunged at Itachi and Jūzō Biwa with lightning speed.

Boom~

The place where Itachi and Jūzō Biwa had stood was smashed by Manda, the impact sending the snakes flying, causing a thunderous crash.

The snakes, freed from genjutsu, struggled for a moment before dying.

Just one strike from Manda had killed a three to four meters thick, fifty meters long snake.

The terror of Manda was evident.

Seeing Manda's massive size, speed, and constant vigilance against genjutsu, Uchiha Itachi knew he couldn't rely on conventional techniques.

His Sharingan spun rapidly, blood tears flowing from his eyes.

Mangekyō Sharingan: Amaterasu!

"Ah~~~"

Black flames instantly engulfed Manda, causing immense pain before it stopped moving.

"Phew!"

Seeing Manda dead, Jūzō Biwa sighed in relief.

With Amaterasu used, Manda was surely dead.

Against the all-consuming, unextinguishable black flames, no defense could stand.

However, the next moment.

"Got you!"

Manda's massive form suddenly emerged from the ground, snapping at Itachi and Jūzō Biwa.

Shed Skin!

A glance at the burning spot confirmed Itachi's conclusion.

Faced with Manda's gaping maw, a translucent red skeleton formed around Itachi and Jūzō Biwa, blocking the attack.

Susanoo!