Konoha, reported by the Fourth Hokage at the start.

Chapter 281 Big Snake Wood Escape

"Earth Release - Earth Rising Spear!"

Orochimaru did not sit idly by and wait for his death. After summoning a Rashomon, he immediately pressed his hands into the ground in a rapid series of hand seals, and the surging earth-style chakra instantly disappeared into the ground.

Rumble...!

Huge, house-sized earth spikes burst from the ground in front of Rashomon, stretching towards Shukaku.

high speed.

Before the sand-steel Shukaku controlled by Sasori could react, it was pressed against its belly by a huge earth spike that burst out from the ground and lifted upwards, causing it to lose its balance and fall backwards.

"Water Release-Water Crush Wave!"

Orochimaru followed closely behind, leaping onto Rashomon. A water-style attack that created a hundred-meter-high wave condensed around him and struck Shukaku Sand, completely knocking it to the ground.

"Lightning Release - Myriad Lightning Strike!"

Orochimaru didn't stop. He immediately clasped his hands together and then stretched them out forward. Instantly, countless bolts of lightning flashed in his hands, and bolts as thick as an arm fell towards the sand iron Shukaku lying on its back in the distance.

Crackling sounds filled the air as countless bolts of lightning flowed into the body of Shukaku through the water.

Orochimaru wanted to use lightning to force Sasori, who was hiding inside the Iron Sand Shukaku, out.

Sasori was indeed attacked by Orochimaru's Lightning Release.

It's just a pity that the scorpion is no longer in a physical body.

If he were completely transformed into a puppet, this amount of lightning would be useless against him, not to mention that he could use lightning ninjutsu on his own.

"Um……"

Under Orochimaru's furrowed brow, Shukaku, carrying a wave of lightning, stood up and opened its mouth wide in his direction.

"Wind Release: Storm Blade Barrage!"

Endless wind blades mixed with iron sand flew out from the mouth of the Iron Sand Shukaku, instantly cutting through the waves that swept across a range of several hundred meters ahead.

Orochimaru once again hid behind Rashomon.

Squeak... Bang!

Rashomon couldn't withstand the attack for long before being shredded by countless wind blades mixed with iron sand, leaving deep trenches in the ground.

The Konoha ninjas standing on the edge of the cliff looked down at the battle below and were glad they hadn't rushed down rashly.

A single Wind Release ninjutsu can destroy an area of ​​several hundred meters. Going down there is useless; standing at a distance is more effective.

"Earth Release-Earth Formation Wall!"

"Earth Escape..."

"Earth Escape..."

"earth…"

Four of the eight stepped forward and used Earth Release: Earth Wall Technique to extend a massive earthen wall ten meters thick in front of Rashomon, blocking the endless wind blades released by Sand Iron Shukaku.

As the Ironclad Shukaku rolled its eyes toward this side, preparing to unleash its endless wind blades, the bottom of its belly suddenly split open, and a huge snake head emerged.

"Don't underestimate me, you iron lump!"

Manda delivered a powerful headbutt to Shukaku's stomach, sending the massive creature flying 30 meters into the air.

However, Manda ran out of strength after that one strike.

"Orochimaru, remember to prepare three hundred sacrifices for me, or I won't let you off the hook next time we meet."

After turning his head to warn Orochimaru, Manda turned into a wisp of white smoke and disappeared, returning to Ryuchi Cave.

Orochimaru didn't say anything. Emerging from the ground, he faced the inescapable sand monster Shukaku in the sky and unleashed a powerful fire-style ninjutsu with hand seals.

"Fire Release: Fire Dragon Technique!"

A long, blazing dragon of flames shot out from Orochimaru's mouth, rapidly expanding in the air until it could swallow the entire Sand Iron Shukaku when it opened its maw.

Boom!

The scorching flames exploded on the Iron Sand Shukaku's body, and under the high temperature, some of the iron sand on the Iron Sand Shukaku's body melted.

But it was only a part. Inside, Sasori controlled a smaller version of the Sand Iron Shukaku to burst out of its belly, pass through the flames, and slap Orochimaru below.

Boom!

The earth cracked open, the smoke and dust dissipated, and a pit tens of meters deep appeared. Shukaku raised his hand, but Orochimaru was not inside.

"Earth Escape - Earthquake Core!"

Orochimaru, who had somehow managed to dodge and stand behind Shukaku, pressed his hands to the ground, causing the ground within a hundred-meter radius around Shukaku to suddenly drop.

At the same time, a shadow clone created by Orochimaru jumped into the sky, formed hand seals, and unleashed a Fire Release ninjutsu at the Sand Iron Shukaku below.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

"Wind Release - Great Breakthrough!"

Orochimaru reacted quickly, and Sasori was not slow either. He immediately controlled the sand iron Shukaku and unleashed a powerful wind release at Orochimaru in the air.

The flames were instantly blown back and landed on Orochimaru, who had nowhere to hide in the air.

Bang!

Orochimaru in mid-air vanished in a puff of white smoke; it was a shadow clone.

Seeing this, Orochimaru on the ground smirked slightly.

If you confine the Iron Sand Shukaku to a certain area and then launch a continuous barrage of Fire Release techniques over a wide area, you can melt the Iron Sand Shukaku.

He might not have been able to continuously unleash large-scale fire jutsu in the past, but he can now. He's not the same person he used to be.

Feeling the still enormous amount of chakra within his body, Orochimaru was full of confidence.

And then...what?!

Orochimaru, who was preparing to create two shadow clones to unleash a fire-style ninjutsu, was momentarily stunned when he saw the sand iron Shukaku flying high into the sky, but he quickly recovered.

"not good."

Orochimaru's expression changed drastically; he had completely forgotten that ninjas who could use Magnet Release: Iron Sand Control could fly.

At this moment, Sasori controlled the Sand Iron Shukaku to fly into the air, opened its mouth wide and faced Orochimaru below, and once again launched a wide-range Thousand Needles Rain attack.

With a hissing sound, countless specks of dust rose from the ground.

The group of Konoha ninjas standing on the edge of the cliff could only watch this scene with great anxiety, unable to do anything about it.

"Is he/she dead?"

Sasori controlled the Iron Sand Shukaku to stop its attack, watching the dust gradually dissipate downwind.

Soon, semi-oval objects wrapped in curved pieces of wood came into the scorpion's view.

"What kind of ninjutsu is that?"

Sasori didn't immediately realize what kind of ninjutsu it was until the pieces of wood split open in the middle with a "crackling" sound, revealing Orochimaru inside. Only then did he realize what kind of ninjutsu it was.

"Wood Release!"

"That's definitely Wood Release!"

"Orochimaru actually knows how to use the Wood Release ninjutsu that the First Hokage used to quell the chaos of the world!"

Sasori was shocked. That was the powerful ninjutsu that the First Hokage, recognized throughout the ninja world, used to establish the ninja village's era. He couldn't help but be shocked.

However, after the initial shock, Scorpion quickly became excited.

Sasori was eager to know whether his puppetry skills were more powerful or the First Hokage's Wood Release ninjutsu was more powerful.

"Wood Release: Advent of the World of Trees!"

Below, Orochimaru, who had revealed his Wood Release ninjutsu, no longer concealed his strength and went all out, raising his hand to unleash Hashirama Senju's signature Wood Release ninjutsu.

In an instant, countless towering trees burst forth from the earth like octopus tentacles, reaching towards the Sand Iron Shukaku in the air.

Clang clang... Suddenly, the Iron Sand Shukaku transformed, its two hands turning into two enormous metal tubes, and its mouth opened to its maximum size.

"Fire Release: Flame Stream Explosion!"

Boom... In an instant, the giant pipes formed by Sand Iron Shukaku's hands and its huge mouth spewed out scorching flames, like a waterfall of fire crashing down.

Boom!

The collision between the trees and the flames caused a violent explosion, and the intense heat instantly cracked countless trees apart.

However, Wood Release is indeed Wood Release; it cannot be countered by ordinary Fire Release ninjutsu.

Giant treetops, like vines, broke through the flames and coiled around the Sand Iron Shukaku in the air.

"As expected of the First Hokage's Wood Release ninjutsu!"

As Sasori exclaimed in admiration, a thought struck him, and before the Wood Release vines could wrap around him, the Sand Iron Shukaku suddenly dispersed, forming a cloud of sand iron, and flew upwards through the gaps between the vines.

Orochimaru's Wood Release is very strong, but if he can't fly, he can't do anything to Sasori who can fly.

Thousands of meters in the air, Scorpion stood on a black sphere of sand and iron, revealing its true form for the first time.

(End of this chapter)