Konoha Notes

Chapter 147 The Snake's Attempt
Before Orochimaru's voice had even faded, two thick snakes shot out from his sleeves, one on the left and one on the right, towards Shuji, who was standing on the back of the dead snake.

However, just as the two giant snakes were about to touch Xiu Si's ankles, the branches on the lifeless, splinter-covered corpse of the giant snake beneath his feet, which had been still, suddenly came to life, sprouting even more new branches.

These newly sprouted branches coiled upwards at an astonishing speed, entangling the two large snakes. Sharper thorns on the branches grew rapidly, mercilessly piercing the snakes' soft bodies through their gaping mouths opened in the attack.

The two large snakes fell to the ground, bound and pierced by the branches brimming with life energy, following in the footsteps of the giant snake.

Despite the initial failure of his probe, Orochimaru showed no sign of frustration; instead, his golden snake eyes blazed with even more intense and excited light.

This vitality, this greed—this is the Wood Release he has been waiting for.

Orochimaru's body underwent a bizarre transformation at that moment. His legs instantly merged and lengthened into a tail, and he became a blurry afterimage, rapidly approaching Shuuji in a gliding motion close to the ground!

"Latent Shadow Snake Hands!"

During the high-speed movement, Orochimaru's sleeves bulged violently again, and more than a dozen venomous snakes shot out, skillfully avoiding the thick tree branches that blocked their way, and biting at Shuuji's vital points at tricky angles.

Such speed, coupled with that bizarre software modification, makes his movement trajectory unpredictable, making it even more difficult to catch his movements.

Shuji inwardly admired him slightly. In terms of all-around ability as a ninja, Orochimaru had no weaknesses except for his inability to deal with the Mangekyou Sharingan's genjutsu.

With his hands forming the Si Mudra and his heels gently pushing back, Shuji leaped gracefully backward, perfectly avoiding the area where the venomous snakes were most concentrated for their initial attack.

At the same time, the ground around him rumbled again. Several thicker, dark brown tree roots, much larger than before, burst from the earth, violently slapping down and crushing the attacking venomous snakes!
Immediately afterwards, these raging tree roots continued to strike Orochimaru from all directions as he moved at high speed.

Orochimaru weaved through the onslaught of tree roots, narrowly avoiding the deadly entanglements and piercings. But his space was being rapidly compressed by the ever-emerging new roots, becoming increasingly confined.

In this seemingly perilous dodge, Orochimaru seized a tiny opening and used the momentum to leap into the air.

He opened his mouth, and a small snake emerged from it. The snake opened its mouth and spat out a sword. The blade grew rapidly the moment it appeared, stabbing straight at Xiu Si.

Kusanagi Sword...

Shuji landed atop a thick, upturned tree root, facing what was said to be the hardest sword in the world, without dodging or evading.

Before him, countless resilient vines instantly intertwined and coiled, forming a thick shield.

The tip of the Kusanagi sword viciously pierced the vine shield, penetrating the outermost layer of defense. Immediately afterward, the pierced vines coiled back from different angles, tightly binding the sword and its extensions, rendering it completely powerless to move forward and leaving it suspended in mid-air.

Just as Shuji was absorbing natural energy and preparing to enter Sage Mode, Orochimaru suddenly stopped all his offensive actions, sheathed his Kusanagi sword, and retreated a distance, landing at a relatively safe distance.

"Hehehe... How rude of me." Orochimaru dusted himself off. "That was just a little joking around before the cooperation officially begins. After all, I need to personally confirm the general level of my future partner."

Shuji quietly watched Orochimaru talking to himself, his hands still forming hand seals, maintaining a posture ready to respond at any moment, but the restless, poised trees around him had temporarily calmed down.

Orochimaru's tone softened: "You didn't simply suppress or contain Hashirama's cells, but completely and thoroughly mastered their power, and successfully unearthed and reproduced the true power of Wood Release." He spread his hands, indicating that he had no intention of fighting anymore: "For someone with such strength as you, the previous crude method of obtaining research materials is obviously no longer appropriate, and it can no longer achieve my true goal."

Faced with this Wood Release technique, summoning Manda would likely cause Manda to dispel the summoning jutsu and escape. If the Kusanagi Sword is ineffective, then other forbidden techniques will have to be used.

The encounter with Shuji returning to the village was purely coincidental; he hadn't made any thorough preparations. Since the initial attempt to obtain a small sample of flesh and blood had failed, a different form of cooperation wasn't unacceptable to Orochimaru.

"Then, Mr. Shuji,"

"To show my sincerity..."

He tilted his head back, opened his mouth, and spat out a scroll.

"These are my research findings on some characteristics of intercolumnar cells over the years, as well as some interesting experimental data."

"As the person who currently has the deepest understanding of Hashiro cells, the information here should be able to help you further grasp and develop this power."

Orochimaru looked at Shuji, assessing the young man. This young man not only possessed astonishing strength, but also exceptional action and judgment.

With just one encounter with him, she keenly sensed the potential danger that the Uchiha might face while on a mission and took immediate action.

When facing his own S-rank rogue ninja, he did not show the usual impatience or urge to fight, but maintained a calm assessment.

Furthermore, given Shuji's relationship with Tsunade, he could very well become a rising force in the shadows of Konoha as Tsunade gradually gains power.

Since Shuuji has demonstrated the ability to protect his secrets and his body, it proves that he has greater value and is worth investing in.

After leaving Konoha, Orochimaru did indeed acquire some precious resources that he could easily obtain in the past but were now difficult to obtain.

In the past, it could be obtained indirectly through Danzo Shimura, but now it seems that Danzo's line is no longer so reliable.

Orochimaru held the scroll and tossed it onto an open space not far in front of Shuji.

"This is compensation for Shuji-kun, after all, I dirtied your clothes and disturbed your vacation."

"If you are interested in more and want to contact me... there is a special spell on the scroll that will guide you to a temporary contact point."

With that, Orochimaru stopped and slid backward as if blending into the shadows, eventually disappearing completely into the depths of the dark forest.

Shuji frowned as he looked at the scroll on the ground.

It came out of Orochimaru's mouth, it was covered in saliva, tsk...

(End of this chapter)