Chapter 66 : Ghost Mode

Today is the final day of the training exercise. Hyuga Shiro, with his eyes closed and resting, was quietly sitting on a large rock. He was accompanied by three slightly awkward team members and sixteen backup Anbu members who were practicing diligently while their bull-headed instructor yelled and scolded fiercely.

The events of the previous night were still fresh in Hyuga Shiro's memory. Despite all the thorns and obstacles, he had rushed to the central assembly point. Using his Byakugan, he saw Instructor Bull and four black-robed Anbu members waiting for him there.

"This year's young ones have a lot of ideas," one of the Anbu said with a smile.

"Though a bit excessive, it doesn't violate the rules," added another Anbu.

"Humph! Those two are just exploiting loopholes and completely sabotaging the trial I designed!" Instructor Bull seemed very angry.

"Picking out the strong and eliminating the weak?" Anbu sneered, "The strong has already been determined, and it's quite easy. The weak have also been eliminated, but there haven't been any casualties, so it doesn't meet your expectations, right?"

"Humph...!" Instructor Bull glared at Anbu angrily but didn't argue.

"Ninjas can't be judged by common sense, especially the exceptional ones. You might never know what their next move will be." This Anbu seemed to hold a high position and suddenly looked in the direction of Hyuga Shiro, "Yes, Shiroko!"

"What?!" Hyuga Shiro saw the scrutinizing gaze of the Anbu from several hundred meters away. Although he didn't know what they were talking about, he realized that he had been discovered just like that.

Feeling startled, Hyuga Shiro lifted his eyes. The Anbu's perception was incredibly strong, and he must possess remarkable strength.

Was he being too conspicuous?

However, since he had been discovered, there was no point in hiding. He decided to go directly to meet the instructor.

"Okay, Elephant, you did a great job. I'm really—" Instructor Bull saw Elephant and the others rushing over with a large number of "captives" and his anger surged, but he refrained from saying anything due to other Anbu's presence.

"Boy, although your method is a bit unorthodox, you're still quite clever," the Anbu said to him. "And you're not the only one who has the same thoughts."

"Is it Black Snake?" Elephant asked, though he already had an idea.

"You little brats, get back to your physical training. Don't let others watch. Your assessment is over!" the bull-headed instructor shouted at the miserable ninjas who were taken aback by the training.

Why were the others showing better results after receiving the same training for so long?!

The ninjas were also helpless. Playing hide-and-seek with a Jonin possessing the Byakugan was practically forcing them to do the impossible.

Thus, the current scene unfolded: Hyuga Shiro and the others waited quietly for Orochimaru and his team to approach. His teammates were finally freed from guarding the "prisoners," and the Instructor Bull pushed them hard in their training.

"Hey, everyone is already here. What's going on?" Orochimaru's team asked, puzzled, as they sensed a large group of people, including an instructor.

"Could the test have been suddenly terminated?"

At that moment, Elephant suddenly raised his head and said, "Here comes the Black Snake."

After a while, Orochimaru's team arrived together.

"Why are you all here?"

"And where are the other teams?"

Both parties asked nearly simultaneously.

Instructor Bull glared at Orochimaru and explained the situation to him.

"Release those two teams," Instructor Bull demanded, probably having realized what Orochimaru was up to through the ninjutsu he used.

"Summoning Jutsu!" Orochimaru summoned the large snake.

"What's going on?" The group stopped their training and looked at Orochimaru curiously.

Nightingale and the others turned around.

"Come out." Orochimaru lightly patted the belly of the large snake, causing it to raise its head, and then...

"Ouch—!!"

"What the heck?!" The group was left dumbfounded by the "earth-shattering" scene, making them unable to eat for three days. Many even vomited on the spot and developed a lifelong aversion to snakes. Just the sight of them would make them shudder.

They witnessed eight people being regurgitated one after another by the snake, all covered in its body fluids and emitting a pungent fishy smell. However, they remained unconscious.

"You...!" Instructor Bull and several Anbu members were equally stunned.

"So, being Orochimaru's teammate is quite a daunting experience," Nightingale whispered Gentle ly.

Orochimaru calmly retrieved a snake from his sleeve, opened its mouth, and pointed it at the fallen individuals on the ground, using a hand seal.

"Water Release - Water Style: Waterfall Basin Jutsu!"

"Crash~"

The snake's head acted like a water spray head, spraying water over the unfortunate victims on the ground, cleaning them up.

"Ahem... where are we...?"

A few of the unfortunate individuals woke up, and everyone around them offered caring glances.

Several people who knew the truth turned solemn and vowed to stay away from Orochimaru in the future.

Looking at these individuals, the ninjas who were previously prisoners under Hyuga Shiro felt slightly comforted.

Without contrast, there is no warmth, and Elephant appeared to be more humane.

"Black Snake, since everyone is here, let's determine the outcome!" Hyuga Shiro suddenly spoke up.

"Oh? I thought it was over." Orochimaru looked at him with surprise.

"How could it be? I've been waiting for you for a long time." Hyuga Shiro stared at Orochimaru with a mix of awe and fury, with blood vessels bulging on his face under the mask.

"But aren't we fighting as teams?" Orochimaru looked at his teammates.

"It's just the two of us. The outcome can only be decided between us." Hyuga Shiro stared intently at Orochimaru.

He had never thought he would face someone much younger than himself, but he felt that Orochimaru, known as the Black Snake, was qualified to be his opponent.

"Let's do this," Anbu gestured for them to begin, and the Instructor Bull snorted and turned his head away.

"Come on, Captain~!" Nightingale shouted enthusiastically.

Hyuga Shiro glanced at his brother with a complicated expression.

"Let's get started. I won't hold back," Hyuga Shiro put away his mask, revealing a clean and handsome face.

Orochimaru also removed his mask, revealing a delicate and slightly feminine face.

"Be careful!" Orochimaru launched a few hand seals and quickly prepared.

"Ninjutsu: Snake Shadow Clone Technique!"

A rain of snakes emerged, dense and numerous, flying towards Hyuga Shiro. It was Orochimaru's customary ninjutsu technique.

"Gentle Fist!"

As soon as Hyuga Shiro waved his arm, a chakra cyclone formed, resembling an invisible wind blade that transformed all the snakes into white smoke on contact. They couldn't break through this defense at all.

"Thousand Shadows Snake Hands!" Orochimaru continued with his hand seals.

Orochimaru had long understood the ninjutsu of the Hyuga clan. Few individuals in the ninja world could rival them in close combat, so he could only engage them from a distance.

"Double Lion Fist!"

Hyuga Shiro lowered his fists to his waist, and two groups of chakra enveloped them, becoming stronger with each passing moment. An electric cocoon even appeared, eventually taking on the appearance of a lion's head as he charged towards Orochimaru.

"As expected, it's the Hyuga clan's ninjutsu." Orochimaru calmly observed Hyuga Shiro charging towards him. Countless snakes opened their mouths to bite him, but they were torn into pieces that scattered through the air and couldn't hinder his advance.

"Bang!" Hyuga Shiro delivered a powerful blow to Orochimaru's chest, and the latter was sent flying, transforming into multiple snakes.

"Do you think this move will work on me?"

Hyuga Shiro kicked away the flying snakes, fury evident in his bloodshot eyes. Orochimaru, who reappeared on a tree, felt like he had suddenly stepped into a deadly situation.

"Oops!"

Chakra in Hyuga Shiro's hand condensed into a strong gust of wind, and he swiftly turned around and struck at Orochimaru.

"Eight Trigrams Empty Palm!"

"I can't escape!" Orochimaru realized that he was locked in by the Byakugan. As long as he was within its perception range and the range of Hyuga Shiro's ninjutsu, he couldn't use movement techniques to escape.

"Gentle Fist is truly a taijutsu of profound meaning. Hyuga Shiro's combat power should be at the Jonin level."

Orochimaru could only protect his chest with both hands, and he was knocked into the air by the shockwave of chakra.

"Boom!" Orochimaru struggled to control his landing posture. The sleeves on both arms turned into rags, revealing his white arms, which seemed uninjured.

"I was too careless." Orochimaru's expression darkened as he realized that although his hard arms appeared unharmed, the Gentle Fist moves could damage his chakra acupoints, and both arms felt slightly numb. His chakra wasn't flowing smoothly.

"You can't resist his techniques, Captain!" Nightingale said, her expression worried.

"Is that so? You're running out of steam so quickly?" Hyuga Shiro sneered at Orochimaru, his expression fierce, with blood vessels popping on his face.

At this point, Hyuga Shiro didn't solely target Orochimaru because he had taken care of his clan member. He genuinely believed that Orochimaru was a worthy opponent.

"Haha, you're overthinking it."

There were many ways Orochimaru could recover. Even if he lost both his hands, it wouldn't be a big issue. But it would undoubtedly be a bit troublesome. Hyuga Shiro might not give him time to recover, and what would happen if he was struck again? The consumption of the Snake Sloughing Technique was also substantial.

Orochimaru took a deep breath and concentrated all his chakra in his abdomen, his dantian, pushing with all his might. This was the main path for the generation and circulation of chakra.

"Roar!" Orochimaru roared, the chakra at the Jonin level rapidly condensed and concentrated. A trace of white smoke emerged from his body, and his blood flowed faster. The previously stagnant acupoints were washed away.

"Tiger's Apex Body Technique is indeed useful."

Orochimaru's chakra still couldn't be as condensed as Tiger's, which could form a chakra cloak to resist various attacks. But it seemed to be effective against the Hyuga's acupoint sealing.

The scattered chakra coiled around Orochimaru, ascending like smoke, and he used the "Apex Body Technique" to increase the power of his physical techniques.

For others, accomplishing this in such a short time would be impossible, but for Orochimaru, who possessed a powerful spiritual power, it wasn't. He even activated his Super-Sensing mode for this purpose!

"This feeling! So powerful!"

Orochimaru looked at his chakra-enhanced hands and, in the state of Super-Sensing, he felt invincible.

Orochimaru stared at Hyuga Shiro with fiery eyes.

"Quick reaction speed, increased strength, and speed. This state is called the Ghost Mode!"

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