The Snake’s Token

10 advanced chapters on my Patreon: Fiction Haven

===

Orochimaru was a swift Swordmaster. He could pull back Kusanagi in time before Raijin no Ken's lightning did damage to him. It was quite annoying that Raijin no Ken was reduced to an electrifying baton.

"Fūton: Reppūsho!"

Orochimaru used his Jutsu on Kusanagi, sending multiple wind blades at me. All of them were sharp enough to cut down trees, but I was fast enough to avoid them. Orochimaru flashed through a series of hand seals and then sent a massive fireball at me. I swung Raijin no Ken at it, splitting it in half.

Orochimaru looked flustered. He must not have expected me to cut through his Jutsu with Raijin no Ken. I smirked at him and used Shunshin to get in front of him. The slimy bastard was fast enough to react. As soon as our swords clashed, I enveloped us with black lightning. I was not immune to the lightning, but the lightning didn't hurt me as much as it did Orochimaru.

"Troublesome."

Orochimaru opened his mouth and shot a sword out of it. I was forced to disengage as I would be hit if I remained in my spot. The sword that was just shot out stuck to the tree behind me. Orochimaru disappeared, causing me to immediately turn around and find him standing on the sword's hilt.

"You are explorative, aren't you?" He gestured at Raijin no Ken. "Your knowledge in Fūinjutsu may be on par with me. That is praiseworthy."

I frowned at his comment. Orochimaru was not naturally chatty. Stalling me would be counterproductive as time was not on his side. My teammates would reach the tower in no time and he would be forced to retreat. That means he was planning something. While keeping my eyes on him, I sensed my surroundings to look out for any danger.

I only sensed an ill intent when it was too late. A gigantic mouth emerged from the ground and I was in the center of it. As I was about to trade places with my clone, Orochimaru appeared inside the mouth and swung Kusanagi at me. In a panic, I blocked it with Raijin no Ken's hilt. Kusanagi impacted it a moment before I traded places with my clone.

Shatter!

When I was safely out of the gigantic mouth, Raijin no Ken crumbled. I was furious as I watched my creation break before me. I turned to the gigantic mouth and found it retreating into the ground. Orochimaru stood in its place, looking at me proudly for what he had done.

Creating a shadow clone, I flashed through a series of hand seals along with him. We released the Jutsu at the same time.

"Katon: Goryūka no Jutsu!"

"Fūton: Daitoppa!"

I watched as my combined Jutsu engulfed Orochimaru. The flame my Jutsu produced burned the ground and the trees in the surroundings. I knew it wouldn't take Orochimaru down, but I was sure it would hurt him. I was wrong. His snake, Manda, protected him. I didn't want to take any chance, so I immediately drew Kurama's Chakra.

"So you can already use its Chakra," Orochimaru remarked on top of Manda.

Ignoring his comment, I created a Rasengan and channeled Kurama's Chakra into it, causing the Rasengan to turn red. With my enhanced speed, I appeared before Orochimaru in the blink of an eye. The bastard reacted swiftly, avoiding my Rasengan. The poor snake ended up getting hit on the head. I managed to force his head to the ground, but I didn't do any visible damage to him.

Knowing how sturdy Manda was, I immediately retreated. Orochimaru didn't underestimate me in one bit. Pulling out Manda would make this fight more difficult than it already was. Drawing more of Kurama's Chakra, I got into the Five Tails Mode. My nails lengthened and my fangs sharpened.

Kicking the ground, I dashed to Orochimaru. I thrust my claws at him, but he blocked them with Kusanagi. He tried to push me but failed. I had already surpassed his strength. Treating my hands like swords, I swung them at him forcing him to retreat step by step. An earth pole emerged from the ground, hitting me in the stomach. I was not hurt, but it created a distance between me and Orochimaru.

I destroyed the pole, stopping it from pushing me back further. Kusanagi immediately came at me and I stopped it by trapping it between my palms. Orochimaru was flustered. I pulled it before he could retract it. Unfortunately, he let go of the sword, so I failed to get him right in front of me.

"My. Facing you is a challenge, isn't it?"

Orochimaru's tongue slithered out of his face and licked the cut on his cheek. I knew he was planning something the moment he talked. I was alert the entire time, so I could easily dodge the acid Manda shot at me. For someone hailed as a genius, Orochimaru's tactic was boringly repetitive.

I turned my eyes back to where he was and found him gone. He was once again on top of Manda's head. I guessed he had found out that he could only beat raw power with raw power. Under his command, Manda drove his head toward me. I was about to move out of the way when Kusanagi which was in my hand turned into a white snake and bound me to my place.

"Fuck! I forgot it could do this shit."

Bam!

Manda hit me at the same time I freed myself from the accursed snake. The pain reminded me of the time I was hit by the truck back on Earth. The power behind the hit was remarkable considering that my body was enhanced by Kurama's Chakra. By the time my body stopped launching, I had already destroyed more than ten trees simply by crashing into them. Do you know how massive those trees were?

I felt quite sore, but I could still stand up. I looked to the front and found Manda slowly slithering at me with Orochimaru on top of his head.

"Bitch, I am going to kill you."

I drew more of Kurama's Chakra and used the Seven Tails Mode. I could barely suppress my primal thoughts, but I was coherent enough to create Rasengan. A red, massive Rasengan appeared in my palm. Orochimaru widened his eyes.

"Bijū Dama?"

Indeed; it looked like a Bijū Dama, but it wasn't. As I prepared to dash at Manda, Orochimaru jumped down and commanded Manda to curl around him. I heard the snake was a bitch, but he had been subservient the whole time. Anyway, the bitch of a snake would die.

Crack!

Kicking the ground, I flashed to Manda. My Rasengan hit the earth barrier that Orochimaru had hastily erected, effortlessly shattering it, and then hit Manda. The oversized snake fared quite well for some time, but his skin eventually peeled off. Rasengan soon gouged his flesh, causing him to shriek.

Poof!

I finally understood why Manda was a bitch. He left Orochimaru at a crucial moment. Orochimaru didn't seem to expect it judging by his widened eyes. My smirk widened as Rasengan hit him. It wasn't long, but it was enough to harm him significantly.

As the red Rasengan disappeared, Orochimaru's mangled dropped to the ground and then slid for a few meters. I immediately withdrew Kurama's Chakra and panted heavily. My body was extremely sorry. I quickly rushed to Orochimaru to see my masterpiece. His flesh was exposed and the skin that remained on his body was scorched. He looked like shit.

"Eat that, shithead!" I exclaimed with bated breath. "Fuck; my muscles hurt!"

Orochimaru's eyes flickered at me. I sneered at him and then immediately retreated the moment I noticed the amusement dancing in his eyes. At the same time, another Orochimaru emerged out of the mangled Orochimaru. He was significantly weaker but unscathed. I forgot that the bitch could also do this.

"That was an interesting fight, Naruto-kun. However, this is goodbye. My clone has held Sasuke-kun back enough."

I widened my eyes at that piece of information. I created a shadow clone as soon as Orochimaru disappeared with Shunshin. My clone immediately chased after him while I was trying my best to move my strained muscles. Left with no choice, I reinforced them with Chakra which strained them even more. I easily ignored the pain and chased after my clone.

I went through a series of Shunshin and then traded places with my clone when he was in the range of Kawarimi no Jutsu. I was already close to the bloodied Sasuke when Orochimaru's elongated neck was coming for his neck. I pushed Sasuke out of the way and drove my elbow at Orochimaru's neck. Unfortunately, my delicate muscles broke, causing me to freeze.

Poke!

"What the…"

"Fuck; I got bitten!"

Orochimaru's neck retreated as I clutched my left shoulder with my right hand. Orochimaru looked at me with a dumbfounded look. I was sure my face mimicked his expression. None of us expected it to happen.

"Well, that was interesting," he remarked, recovering from the fiasco first. "I guess I have to put my plan on hold. It was unfortunate, but seeing how my seal affect you might also be interesting."

I would have said something to Orochimaru if I wasn't fighting the seal that was trying to take control of my consciousness. My vision quickly dimmed, but I could see Orochimaru's smirk as he escaped. I scowled but couldn't say anything. Just before I lost consciousness, I heard Sasuke's frantic call.

Weird; Sakura should be the one to freak out like that.