Anko Mitarashi, who was in charge of the second exam, immediately put down the red bean soup in her hand and looked toward the examination site.
Such a powerful explosion, and you're saying it was caused by a Genin? Which village's Genin could be this strong? She called out to two companions, "Something must have happened. Follow me inside to check."
Inside the Hokage building, the Third Hokage also turned his gaze toward the training ground. An Anbu Ninja appeared beside him and reported, "The Root Ninja on duty said that Lord Danzo has taken most of the Root Ninja out of the village on a mission."
The Third Hokage looked into the distance and replied indifferently, "Understood."
Inside the Death Training Ground.
Orochimaru's body was blown to pieces. What was even more terrifying was that the Oil-Infused Chakra continued to burn upon contact with the skin. Back in the day, the Second Tsuchikage had been thoroughly disgusted by this technique and had to wrap his entire body in bandages.
Orochimaru didn't know the Second Tsuchikage's thoughts, but he could somewhat discern the essence of the oilification ability. Isn't this Jiraiya's technique?
The bond between him and Jiraiya was too deep. They had known each other for nearly fifty years. When Jiraiya so much as twitched, Orochimaru knew exactly what he was up to!
Although his body was shattered, he wasn't dead. On the contrary, he was still very much alive.
With a "hmph," his mouth opened wide, and soon a new Orochimaru, covered in mucus, emerged from the shattered remains of his previous body.
Without needing to perform hand seals, he mimicked the way a snake sheds its skin to transfer all damage. This was the most perfect Substitution Technique—the Orochimaru-Style Substitution Jutsu.
After the new body appeared, the empty shell was quickly burned to ashes by the flames. He looked at Ino, who was standing in place, and licked his lips with his long tongue.
"You must have used up a lot of Chakra, right? Can you still use that Water Clone again? Run along, little girl. When I catch you, I'll torture you to death," Orochimaru said through gritted teeth, his face dark as he scanned the surroundings.
Ino, using the Hiding in Mist Technique combined with the invisibility ability of her Summoning Beast, hid nearby. Her voice echoed from within the mist.
"Haven't you also used up your Chakra? That level of Substitution Technique must have cost you even more than it did me. You're the one who should be running," Ino said, relying on her abundant Chakra to endure the mental and physical fatigue as she formed hand seals once more.
Orochimaru was startled and glanced to the sides.
He saw a large amount of water vapor rising into the sky, the cold air causing it to condense. The water vapor then combined with dust in the air, forming hailstones that still contained Ino's Chakra. As she completed her hand seals, the Water Clone reformed, and the chubby explosive clone reappeared.
"Kaa!" Ino shouted.
The chubby Ino dodged two Wind Release Ninjutsu techniques Orochimaru tentatively released, and the two collided once again. The violent explosion was identical to the one thirty seconds prior.
Orochimaru, having expended a great deal of energy, was forced to use the Orochimaru-Style Substitution Jutsu again to heal all his injuries. Before he could even catch his breath, he saw the shrunken chubby Ino preparing to initiate another explosion in the distance.
"Kaa!"
With a deafening "boom," the explosion erupted.
"Kaa!"
Orochimaru was blown to pieces once more.
He felt as if he had swallowed a fly. Normally, it was he who used the Orochimaru-Style Substitution Jutsu to disgust others. Today, however, he was the one being disgusted by this endless cycle of Ninja techniques.
After being bombarded five times in a row, he finally understood the principle of the Vapor Explosion, but he couldn't find a flaw in the technique at the moment. The only solution he could think of was to summon Manda, have it swallow the chubby Ino in one gulp, and then cancel the Summoning Technique to throw that thing into Ryuchi Cave. However, he didn't want to do that. Once that thing entered Ryuchi Cave, who knows what kind of trouble it might cause? He still needed Ryuchi Cave and didn't want to ruin their relationship.
Unable to come up with a better plan, the Orochimaru-Style Substitution Jutsu had drained a lot of his stamina. Seeing the Jonin from Konoha rapidly converging on his location, he decided that the best course of action was to retreat. He fled, and Ino fled as well.
Orochimaru had mastered countless Ninja Techniques and Secret Techniques, and he had plenty of ways to recover his stamina. As the thick mist in the area began to disperse, he changed his disguise and returned.
He didn't believe that the girl had her own means of recovery. This time, he was determined to teach her an unforgettable lesson.
Orochimaru searched the vicinity, but the results left him utterly astonished. Despite his vast experience, he couldn't find any trace of them. He tried three different Secret Techniques for tracking, but still, he saw no sign of them. He was puzzled—where had those Genin gone?
The Jonin from the Hidden Leaf Village were rushing toward this direction, led by his former student, Anko Mitarashi.
Orochimaru pondered for a moment. His plan had been disrupted; he hadn't managed to capture Sasuke, and he had been humiliated by a young girl. He had his pride, and he couldn't bear to face his old acquaintances.
Choosing a direction, he quickly left the area.
Meanwhile, Team 7, Team 10, and Karin were hiding inside Ino's Demon Fortress. The Summoning Beast's stealth ability was top-notch, and even Orochimaru hadn't anticipated that they had been hiding in the same spot all along, never moving elsewhere.
Ino had used the Vapor Explosion multiple times in succession, leaving her body extremely exhausted. Coupled with the immense pressure Orochimaru had put on her, she collapsed to the ground as soon as he left.
"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Sakura quickly supported her, while Karin seemed to want to help but was a step slower.
"I'm fine. What about you?" Ino asked in return.
Sasuke hadn't been bitten, but he had stabbed his own leg with a Kunai. He refused Ino's suggestion to heal him with Medical Ninja Techniques. Sakura wasn't injured, but she had been severely shaken by Orochimaru's killing intent. If it weren't for Naruto and Sasuke, she would have collapsed by now.
The real problem was Naruto.
Orochimaru had placed a "Five Elements Seal" on Naruto's stomach, disrupting the "Four Symbols Seal" that the Fourth Hokage had placed on Naruto at birth.
More seals weren't necessarily better. The Five Elements and the Four Symbols seals were now conflicting with each other, causing Naruto to fall into a deep coma, unresponsive no matter how much they called out to him.
After using the Vapor Explosion, Ino had entered what she called her "Sage Mode" of weakness. Only after this period of weakness ended did she have the time to address Naruto's situation.
Seeing Ino's pale face, Karin thought she was injured. Instinctively, she rolled up her sleeve and placed her hand near Ino's mouth, signaling for her to take a bite to recover.
"What's the matter? I just overused my Chakra. It's fine, I'll be okay after some rest." Ino pushed Karin away, then suddenly remembered something and asked, "Are you a reconnaissance-type Ninja?"
Karin shook her head in a daze.
She hasn't mastered the "Mind's Eye of the Kagura" yet?
Thinking about it, it made sense. Any Ninja with reconnaissance abilities is a rare resource in a Ninja Village. If Karin had such abilities now, the Grass Village wouldn't have treated her so harshly.
Could it be that Orochimaru developed her reconnaissance abilities? That's almost certainly the case.