Chapter 58 (Patreon)

After earning one hundred system points from killing Kabuto, Naruto carefully considered how to spend them.

In the end, he exchanged all one hundred points for a [Bloodline Upgrade Scroll] and used it on the [Sage Body of the Senju Clan].

He desperately wanted to know what would happen once the [Sage Body of the Senju Clan] also reached the level of a [Divine Bloodline] and combined with his [Sage Body of the Uzumaki Clan].

Would he directly awaken Hashirama Senju’s Wood Release?

Or would the combination produce something even more powerful?

Ding!

[Congratulations, Host. The Sage Body of the Senju Clan has advanced to Level 2.]

Afterward, Naruto resumed his journey to Konoha alongside Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Shizune.

Even while traveling, he continued training without pause.

Naruto’s main body focused on strengthening his physique. Meanwhile, dozens of Shadow Clones practiced taijutsu and studied Jiraiya’s distinctive hair-based ninjutsu: [Ninja Art: Needle Jizō] and [Ninja Art: Wild Lion’s Mane Technique].

Naruto had once wondered whether these techniques had somehow been inherited from Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. He could not imagine how else Jiraiya had learned to manipulate his hair in such an unnatural manner.

Both techniques could be used for attack and defense, making them exceptionally practical. Although their raw power was limited, they activated quickly and were difficult to anticipate. That was why they had become a regular part of Jiraiya’s combat repertoire.

Several other Shadow Clones studied medical ninjutsu under Tsunade.

Naruto already possessed exceptional [Physical Regeneration], but that only solved his own injuries. If he ever needed to heal someone else, he could hardly allow them to bite him.

That privilege belonged to Hinata alone.

Ever since Naruto learned that Rin Nohara had successfully transplanted Obito’s eye into Kakashi under battlefield conditions, he had been deeply interested in the medical ninjutsu of this world.

With the Level 2 [Sage Body of the Senju Clan] and his [Ninjutsu Talent] at the [Proficient] level, Naruto learned both combat ninjutsu and medical ninjutsu at remarkable speed.

His progress made Tsunade and the others admire his talent even more.

…

While Naruto’s main body traveled back to Konoha and continued training, his female avatar secretly followed Orochimaru into a forest.

By tracking him from a great distance with her mastery of [Mind’s Eye of the Kagura] while completely suppressing her own chakra, she avoided even Orochimaru’s notice.

Whoosh!

A sword flew from dozens of meters away with terrifying speed and severed Orochimaru’s head.

The weapon was the Sword of Kusanagi that the female avatar had previously taken from Orochimaru. She had since used a [Ninja Tool Upgrade Scroll] to advance it into a [Sacred Tool].

The Sword of Kusanagi could already be controlled through the air. After its advancement, it could now pursue and behead an enemy anywhere within a range of one hundred meters.

Orochimaru’s severed head fell to the ground, and his body remained completely motionless.

Hidden in the darkness, the female avatar merely sneered.

Had it been anyone else in the shinobi world, they might have assumed Orochimaru was dead. Naruto, however, knew that Orochimaru possessed the [Orochimaru-Style Body Replacement Technique]. Like a snake shedding its skin, he could abandon his damaged body and emerge from his own mouth in a completely new one.

And that was only one of Orochimaru’s many methods of escaping death.

That was precisely why the female avatar had chosen to assassinate him now.

Compared with Jiraiya’s toad-based ninjutsu, which focused largely on support, Orochimaru’s snake-based techniques specialized in direct attacks and survival.

The Hidden Shadow Snake Hands was only one example.

Those were the techniques the female avatar wanted to learn.

After the previous Konoha Crush, Naruto had taken both the Sword of Kusanagi and a summoning-contract scroll connected to Ryūchi Cave from Orochimaru. This time, he intended to obtain even more of Orochimaru’s techniques.

Whoosh!

The flying sword descended again, piercing Orochimaru’s “corpse” before cutting it into eight separate pieces.

The female avatar refused to believe that Orochimaru could still produce a new body from his mouth after being dismembered so thoroughly.

Even so, she had underestimated his cunning.

Without warning, a long neck shot from beneath a nearby tree and lunged toward the female avatar concealed within the bushes.

At the last possible moment, she used the Body Replacement Technique and evaded the fangs.

She reappeared nearby and stared in surprise at Orochimaru as he emerged from the ground.

“How did you find me?”

She found it difficult to believe that Orochimaru had detected her after she had completely concealed her chakra.

“Hmph. I can sense the presence of any snake,” Orochimaru replied as his neck retracted. A cold smile spread across his pale face. “And the aura of Ryūchi Cave clings to you far too strongly to overlook.”

His serpentine eyes narrowed.

“Now then, descendant of the mysterious Uzumaki clan… what business do you have with me?”

Orochimaru did not even mention the fact that she had just severed his head with a flying sword. To him, perhaps that merely counted as a conventional greeting.

“I want your snake-based ninjutsu,” the female avatar answered with a grin. “Especially the technique you use to shed your body.”

“Hmph. Give me a reason to teach you.”

Orochimaru did not reject her outright. If anything, he appeared willing to negotiate.

That reaction alone proved that he was still Orochimaru.

“How about I knock Sasuke unconscious, strip him, and deliver him to you?” the female avatar offered, giving Orochimaru a playful wink.

“Agreed!”

Orochimaru revealed a sinister smile.

In the very next second, two enormous pythons burst from behind the female avatar. Their jaws opened wide as they lunged at her from both sides.

Boom! Boom!

The female avatar pivoted and kicked both pythons away, sending them crashing into the distance.

“It seems you aren’t interested in trading after all.” She shrugged. “Then how about this?”

The Sword of Kusanagi flew forward once more and pierced straight through Orochimaru’s head.

Splat!

His body collapsed into a pool of mud.

It had been an Earth Clone.

Orochimaru’s real body appeared in the distance.

“Sasuke-kun…”

He sneered and began to speak in his hoarse voice—only to discover that a black-and-gold rope had already coiled around his entire body.

He could not move. Even the chakra within him had been completely restrained.

Orochimaru’s smile vanished, and his pale features became solemn.

“It appears you possess far more methods than I expected. I’m becoming increasingly curious about your true identity.”

“Orochimaru, I know that even killing your present body won’t end your life completely,” the female avatar said, staring at him with burning intensity.

“But if you refuse me today, then every time I see you, I’ll kill you again.”

Orochimaru’s snake-like eyes turned glacial.

The woman before him had already exposed one of his most closely guarded secrets. Worse, she appeared to know far more about him than she had revealed.

“If you’re willing to tell me where you came from,” Orochimaru replied coldly, “I won’t mind teaching you every snake-based ninjutsu I have mastered.”

The female avatar considered his offer.

If Orochimaru refused to yield regardless of how many times she threatened or killed him, then escaped through one of his snakes, she had no reliable way to stop him.

An idea entered her mind.

She reached up and lowered her mask.

“It’s you!”

Orochimaru’s pupils contracted into narrow slits. The words escaped him before he could restrain his disbelief.

“Now, give me the ninjutsu scroll,” the female avatar said with a smile. “I promise this will be the last time I trouble you. How does that sound?”

The Sword of Kusanagi floated above Orochimaru’s head, its edge gleaming with cold light.

“Hmph. Very well. You can have it.”

Orochimaru licked his lips, opened his mouth impossibly wide, and expelled an enormous scroll like a python emerging from his throat.

A Shadow Clone stepped forward to retrieve it. After wiping away the revolting slime and confirming that Orochimaru had placed no traps upon it, the clone handed the scroll to the female avatar.

“Thank you for the ninjutsu, Orochimaru. Farewell.”

She smiled at him before her body vanished in a flash.

Orochimaru raised an eyebrow.

“The Flying Thunder God Technique?” he murmured. “Could that person truly be…”

…

…

(Author’s Note: After reading this chapter, some readers may feel that it contains too much exposition, so I would like to explain a few things.

​Whenever Naruto seeks to master a new ability, its origins and effects need to be properly introduced. Summarizing everything in a single sentence would make the story read like an outline rather than a novel.

​The meeting between Orochimaru and the female avatar establishes foreshadowing for later events. If the scene were handled too briefly now, readers might not remember it when that foreshadowing becomes relevant.