Chapter 176: Naruto's Blood, Sakura's Rampage [Continued] (Patreon)

Chapter List: Naruto: Sakura Blizzard

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The body of Orochimaru, suspended from a tree trunk, suddenly began to wither below the head, shrinking like a sheet of paper. From Orochimaru's mouth, a pale hand extended.

"The so-called Shedding Snake Technique?"

Sakura shuddered, finding the scene quite nauseating, especially with Orochimaru covered in sticky fluids, making it even more unsettling.

"Wind Release - Vacuum Great Ball..."

Immediately after using the Shedding Snake Technique, Orochimaru launched an attack. A massive Wind Release chakra projectile sped toward Sakura like lightning, tearing apart anything in its path.

Sakura was no fool to stand her ground against Orochimaru's ninjutsu attack. She lightly tapped her foot and leaped to the side with incredible speed.

However, at that moment, Sakura noticed a cunning smile on Orochimaru's face. Before she could dwell on it, a rush of wind came from behind.

Splurt

The sound of a longsword piercing through a body filled the air, and warm blood sprayed onto Sakura's cheek.

"Sakura, are you okay? Wow..."

Naruto tightly gripped the sword tip that had pierced through his chest from the left side. He couldn't hold back and coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Behind Naruto, a small white snake crawled out of a severed snakehead on the ground. It was this very snake that Orochimaru controlled to summon the Kusanagi Sword, intending to catch Sakura off guard. But at the critical moment, Naruto arrived in time, pushing Sakura aside. He took the sword through his chest, right into his heart.

"Naruto..."

Sasuke rushed over and swiftly killed the white snake that controlled the Kusanagi Sword. He gazed at Naruto, who was now barely clinging to life, and the three tomoe Sharingan in his eyes began to merge into one.

"What an enviable bond, willing to sacrifice one's life for a comrade," Orochimaru sneered repeatedly. Yet beneath that sneer, a faint trace of sadness lingered. There was a time when the Konoha Sannin had been like this too. In a past battle, Jiraiya had suffered severe injuries, but faced with nearly a hundred ninja from the Hidden Rock Village, both he and Tsunade had persisted, refusing to abandon Jiraiya and flee. Only, over countless reincarnations, those emotions had nearly been worn away.

"Orochimaru, you're asking for it..."

Wiping the blood from her face, Sakura's hand trembled slightly. Despite knowing that Naruto would be fatally wounded by pushing her away, he had done it without hesitation.

A red radiance appeared in Sakura's pupils, as if it possessed a tangible substance. Her once emerald-green eyes, resembling grandmother's emeralds, had turned deep crimson. A profoundly suppressed aura emanated from Sakura, and in the sky, countless dark clouds began to gather. In an instant, the sun vanished without a trace, a gentle breeze turned into a howling wind, and leaves rustled in the fierce gusts. The oppressive aura rapidly expanded, shrouding the entire village of Konoha.

On the streets of Konoha, the once cheerful crowds now wore expressions of sheer terror. This ominous and foreboding atmosphere was far more terrifying than the infamous Nine-Tailed Fox Incident from years past. In fact, the feeling it invoked was a hundred times more intense.

"What on earth is happening?!"

Orochimaru forcibly suppressed the fear deep within his soul, his eyes filled with astonishment and uncertainty. Why did he sense a looming danger emanating from this girl, as if he were an ant facing an entire universe? The sense of insignificance, the feeling of being easily crushed, made Orochimaru's heart race uncontrollably.

"Reality..."

With a soft snap of his fingers, lightning struck from the clouded sky without warning. The lightning, a force of nature, left Orochimaru with no time to react. In an instant, the lightning completely engulfed Orochimaru's location, reducing the once towering trees to nothing but rubble.

When the oppressive aura emerged, the Third Hokage had a foreboding sense of trouble. Seeing the colossal lightning bolt, his expression grew even graver.

"Yuu, assemble the ANBU. Conduct an immediate investigation in the Forest of Death..."

He prayed that nothing disastrous had occurred. Thoughts of Sakura and her team, currently in the middle of an exam, filled the Third Hokage with deep unease.

On the streets of Konoha, countless ninja could be seen running across rooftops. Nervous expressions adorned every face. Even the villagers who had been out for a stroll started evacuating towards Konoha's shelters in an organized manner.

Within the Forest of Death, most Genin were hiding in fear. The oppressive atmosphere made them break out in a cold sweat. However, Hinata, Ino, and the Uchiha clan, despite their innate fear, boldly moved towards the impact site of the lightning. Within this oppressive atmosphere, they all sensed a familiar power. Their bodies and souls instinctively felt fear, yet they pushed it down with their sheer willpower.

Please, let nothing go wrong!

As they felt the anger mixed within the force spreading throughout the world, the group rushing forward became filled with worry.

The lightning gradually dissipated, revealing the colossal snake's lifeless body. The snake was beyond dead; half of its body had been shattered by the lightning, while the remaining half was charred to a crisp.

Orochimaru's incomplete form emerged from the mouth of the spirit-controlled snake. After a trembling fit, Orochimaru, weak and pale with a trembling body, crawled out from the mangled remains.

Cough, cough, cough...

Orochimaru, who narrowly escaped thanks to the Shedding Snake Technique, coughed as blood dripped onto the ground. The lightning from nature was nothing to be compared with a Ninja's Lightning Release. If it weren't for the spirit-summoned giant snake intervening at the critical moment, combined with the miraculous effect of the Shedding Snake Technique, Orochimaru would have been beyond salvation by now.

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Next Chapter >>Chapter 177: Naruto's Blood, Sakura's Rampage [End]