NOVEL NEXT Chapter 66: Monkey Pursues Snake
Chapter 66: Monkey Pursues Snake
(A/N: Accidentally posted the wrong chapter xD…)
With the forty-five minutes allotted for the first nine questions passing, Ibiki gave everyone in the exam hall an ultimatum. Stick around, and you would get a chance to answer the question. However, get it wrong, and you would be disqualified from participating in all future Chunin Exams ever again.
As could be expected, those from small villages and those who had their confidence shattered by the first nine questions quickly left the exam hall. Then, once all the trash had been sorted, Ibiki revealed that there was no tenth question. All that mattered, as Shinobi, was that they were willing to risk their lives and careers to complete their mission. Thus, by refusing to give up, the twenty-four Team remaining had all passed.
Though several people groaned about the ‘trick,’ especially those that had gone to great lengths to acquire the answers through cheating, they were silenced when the window to the exam hall was abruptly crashed through by a figure shrouded in a piece of beige cloth. As it reached the center of the room, two kunai shot out from the fabric, unfurling it to reveal a petite woman with a slender frame, pale-brown eyes, and violet hair done up in a fanned-out ponytail. What most people noticed, however, were her tits, large, round, and poorly concealed behind a transparent mesh. She also had on a beige overcoat, orange mini-skirt, and pale-grey shin guards, but most of the boys in the class had their gazes fixed firmly on her breasts.
As the banner behind her made apparent, the short stack’s name was Mitarashi Anko, a Tokubetsu(Special) Jonin and the Proctor for the Second Stage of the Chunin Exams, a survival test within the Forest of Death…
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“Man, what’s the point of hosting something like an intervillage Chunin Exams when Jonins and literal Kage can infiltrate the participants and kill with abandon? Where the fuck are the Sensors…?”
Though he hadn’t been paying too much attention before, primarily due to being sandwiched between Hinata’s breasts, Wu became alert when he sensed that three of the participating Genin had been replaced between the First and Second Stage of the Exam. He didn’t recognize two of them, but one of them was none other than the Otokage themselves, disguised as a fucking Genin.
Since there was still more than a month until the Chunin Exam Finals, Wu couldn’t understand why Orochimaru would risk exposing himself at such a critical juncture. Konoha may be unable to cancel the Exams due to the loss of trust that would follow, but that sentiment would change pretty fucking quickly if some lunatic went around killing the heirs and heiresses of the various Clans.
As twisted as Orochimaru’s mind was, Wu knew the man wasn’t the type to kill wantonly, nor was he an idiot. He wouldn’t imperil the invasion plan to torment a few Genin, so Wu concluded he was searching for something or, more likely, someone. It was the only answer that made any sense, so Wu reluctantly climbed from Hinata’s cozy cleft of warmth and softness to whisper into her ear, explaining, “I’m going to be tailing somebody else for a short while. I’ll have clones to watch over you, but my main body will be elsewhere for a bit.”
Though she felt strangely disappointed to learn that Wu was leaving her clothes, Hinata gave a slight nod to indicate she understood. She knew it must be something reasonably important if it required his true self, so she just wished him luck in her heart and mind before regaining the resolution to do her best…
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Shortly after Teams began entering the Forest of Death, each carrying one of two scrolls required to pass the Exam, Orochimaru, disguised as a woman from Kusagakure, turned to her subordinates and said, “Eliminate as many Teams as possible but try to avoid those from Konoha and Suna. No one will care if you kill a bunch of fodder from the smaller villages, but it will impede my plans if you get too carried away. We wouldn’t want that, now would we~?”
Though they tensed like mice in front of an enormous snake, Orochimaru’s subordinates managed to respond in the affirmative before hurrying off to carry out their assigned tasks. In the wake of their departure, Orochimaru used her inordinately long tongue to lip her lips before narrowing her eyes in the direction of her actual prey, musing, “I’m curious to see how strong Itachi’s little brother has become…”
“So that’s how it is…”
Hearing the familiar voice, the pupils of Orochimaru’s eyes briefly shrank to the size of pinholes before she spread her senses through the area and remarked, “I didn’t expect to meet ‘you’ here, Dadi-sama…”
Noticing the subtle changes in Orochimaru’s expression and tone, Wu’s brows perked up as he refuted, “You’re lying…though, considering I did little to conceal myself, it’s not surprising that you were able to discover my identity. Was it the cyclops who told you, or did you finally figure it out on your own…?”
Understanding who Wu was referring to when he said ‘cyclops,’ a low and amused chuckle emanated from Orochimaru’s throat as she replied, “What an amusing nickname…” before giving up on perceiving Wu’s location and simply asking, “Do you intend to remain hidden? There is quite a lot I wish to discuss, and it’s hard to do so without being able to see you…”
Manifesting a few meters away from Orochimaru, a teasing smile adorned Wu’s face as he asked, “Happy now?”
Nodding in affirmation, Orochimaru offered a curt “Indeed.” before getting straight to the point, asking, “Have you ‘really’ been deceiving me all this time, Dadi-sama. Or perhaps I should call you Wu-kun? Senju-sama? That last one caught even me by surprise…”
Shrugging his shoulders, Wu responded with a non-commital, “Yes, but not really. I didn’t even know for sure who you were before Temari’s old man spilled the beans. When I joined Otokagure, it was completely on a whim. The same can be said for my travels between the other villages. I may be ‘affiliated’ with Konoha, but I’m not a slave to the Shinobi system you despise. Hell, I even see eye to eye with you on certain matters…”
Adopting one of her characteristically predatory smiles, Orochimaru softly mused, “I see…” before asking, “Then will you join me? I genuinely believe we can ‘fix’ this broken world if we work together, Dadi-sama…”
Shrugging a second time, Wu replied, “Konoha will become a part of my territory, regardless of the outcome, so I have no plans to interfere with the invasion. However, just as I’m no slave to the Shinobi System, I have no intention of abiding by anyone’s orders. Unless someone manages to kill me, I will continue to live a relatively free and unfettered life. So long as they don’t interfere with that, I honestly don’t care what other people do.”
Though Wu’s response wasn’t what s/he was looking for, Orochimaru gave an understanding nod, replying, “It’s a shame…however, so long as you do not interfere with my plans, I have no intention of interfering with yours. In fact, I still believe we can work together on certain matters…”
Narrowing his/her snake-like eyes, Orochimaru openly revealed, “I intend to place my Cursed Seal of Heaven on Uchiha Sasuke. I am aware of his hatred toward his brother, Uchiha Itachi, and plan to facilitate his growth so that we might both be rid of him…”
Nodding his head, Wu crossed his arms and replied, “Well, if it’s just that, I don’t have a problem letting you run rampant for a bit. However, I’m sure you’re aware of Sasuke’s teammates, correct? Both are on-and-off-again students of mine, so I would take it personally if anything were to happen to them…”
Understanding that Wu was threatening her, Orochimaru’s eyes narrowed further. If Wu were anyone else, she wouldn’t have tolerated such a slight. Unfortunately, she wasn’t entirely confident she would be able to defeat Wu if they came to blows. She was certain she could repel him or escape if things got dicey, but killing someone who could conceal their presence and flee from the Raikage was easier said than done…
After a brief moment of consideration, Orochimaru asserted, “I never had any intention of killing the young Uzumaki or Sasuke’s pink-haired ‘friend.’ I may have to get a little rough with them, but I assure you no permanent harm will come to them. And once I have completed my objective, I will leave the Forest of Death immediately…”
Since he had already developed a means to reconfigure the Cursed Seal of Heaven, Wu didn’t hesitate to step aside, responding, “Sounds good. Just remember, I ‘did’ warn you. Betray my expectations, and I will pursue you to the ends of this world and beyond.”
Returning a nod of his own, Orochimaru’s usual smile was nowhere to be seen as s/he solemnly replied, “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind…farewell, Senju-sama…” before rushing past him and toward the location of Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto…
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Despite making it seem like he was permitting Orochimaru to do as he pleased, Wu wasn’t the type to leave things to chance. Shortly after the disgraced Sannin took off, he shrunk down and quickly followed suit. His small size drastically decreased his speed, but Wu simply viewed it as a form of training as he raced to try and keep up.
Fortunately for Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, Orochimaru considered the possibility that Wu would be following him. He initially intended to ‘play’ with them for a bit, but the unexpected encounter had made him realize it was probably better to be ‘safe’ than ‘sorry.’ If he took things too far and Wu decided to blindside him in the middle of his playing, he wouldn’t even be able to sense it coming.
After blasting Naruto away with the Wind Release: Great Breakthrough Jutsu, Orochimaru immediately blitzed Sakura, slamming the girl into a tree and knocking her out with a bone-cracking punch to the abdomen. Sasuke activated his Sharingan on instinct, but due to the tremendous bloodlust exuding from Orochimaru’s body, he ultimately collapsed to his knees and vomited. At that moment, Orochimaru’s neck extended, fangs protruding from his mouth as he bit into Sasuke’s neck over a distance of more than twenty meters. It was a bizarre sight to behold, but the entire incident wrapped up in under twenty seconds, leaving Sasuke and Sakura unconscious while Naruto manhandled a massive snake nearly a kilometer away…
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Waiting until Orochimaru had departed, followed closely by two of his clones, Wu appeared next to the barely conscious Sakura and remarked, “You got your asses handed to you…”
Reacting to the voice, Sakura forced her eyes open a little further as she weakly croaked, “Wu…kun…” in a pained yet hopeful voice. In response, the latter rolled his eyes, responding, “Yeah, yeah…” before bending down and placing his palm on the girl’s back. He was tempted to caress her ass, as it had developed nicely over the past few months, but figured it would invite more trouble than it was worth.
Feeling the pain permeating her body fade, replaced by a gentle warmth, Sakura exhaled a sigh of relief before frowning as Wu remarked, “This is going to set back your physical development even further. Six of your ribs have been fractured, and you sustained considerable damage to your liver and the muscles of your diaphragm. I can give you a lighter treatment, but you would have trouble continuing the exam…”
Turning her face in the direction of Sasuke, Sakura didn’t hesitate before responding, “Just do it…” in a gloomy tone. She didn’t want to become a hindrance to Naruto and Sasuke, and, as frustrating as it was to develop at a slower rate than other girls, it wasn’t exactly a bad thing. At the very least, Sasuke currently liked the way she looked. If there was one thing she wanted to complain about, it was the fact Wu had to roll her over and massage the area beneath her chest for several minutes before she was fully healed…
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(A/N: Trust me…I’m a Doctor…)