Chapter 78: Orochimaru's Defeat

Orochimaru walked slowly from a distance and sneered, "You have indeed impressed me, but this is far from enough!"

Naruto said nonchalantly, "Then keep trying."

The two men started a fierce confrontation again, and it was difficult to tell the winner for a while.

Naruto concentrated his mind, and the chakra in his body surged wildly, "Ice Release? Absolute Zero!" The temperature around him dropped sharply, and Orochimaru's movements became slow.

Naruto took the opportunity to rush forward, "Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation!" The powerful flame enveloped Orochimaru.

Orochimaru screamed and transformed into a giant python, trying to escape.

Naruto chased after him relentlessly, "Shave!" He caught up with him in an instant, "Ice Release? Ice Spikes to Chase the Soul!" Countless sharp ice spikes shot towards Orochimaru.

Orochimaru was seriously injured, but he still tried his best to escape.

Naruto growled, "You can't get away!"

He quickly formed seals with his hands, "Fire Style: Large Flame Bomb!" A huge fireball flew towards Orochimaru.

Orochimaru quickly twisted his body to avoid it, but was still affected by the residual power of the fireball and his speed slowed down.

Naruto took the opportunity to launch "Shave" again, and in the blink of an eye he appeared in front of Orochimaru, blocking his way.

"Ice Release? Ice Sky Hundred Flowers Burial!" Countless ice flowers fell from the sky, blocking all of Orochimaru's escape routes.

Orochimaru was exhausted by now, with despair in his eyes.

Naruto didn't give it any chance to breathe, "Fire Style: Phoenix Fire Jutsu!" Countless fireballs shot towards Orochimaru.

Amidst a roar, Orochimaru was no longer able to resist and fell to the ground.

However, just when Naruto thought the battle was over and relaxed his vigilance, a thin white snake emerged from the big snake and went directly into the crack left by the battle. Just as Naruto wanted to continue chasing, the breath of Mitarashi Anko came from afar.

Naruto suppressed the urge to continue chasing and sighed helplessly: "As expected of you, Orochimaru, your life-saving skills are first-rate." Then he disappeared from the spot with a teleportation.

Less than 10 minutes after Naruto left, Mitarashi Anko hurried to the place where Naruto and Orochimaru had fought.

Hongdou looked at the giant snake corpses scattered all over the ground, her brows furrowed tightly. She said in a low voice: "Orochimaru, it is you! What are your intentions in returning to Konoha again?"

It turned out that an hour ago, as the invigilator of the second exam, she was leisurely eating meatballs. At this time, several members of the security department found the bodies of three candidates from Kusagakure Village in a remote and quiet place. When she rushed to the scene, she was shocked to find that the faces of the three candidates had been cruelly dug out. At that moment, in Hongdou's heart, she instantly thought of that terrifying man. Then, she immediately searched around the examination room without hesitation and without stopping.

However, when she realized that someone was fighting here, she rushed over here as fast as she could. Unfortunately, she was still a step slow.

But when she saw the mess at the scene, besides the dead snakes on the ground, there were also traces of Fire and Ice Release. At this time, Hongdou couldn't help but wonder: "It seems that the person fighting against Orochimaru is also very strong, and what's more terrifying is that he is an Ice Release Kekkei Genkai user. I'm afraid there are not many people in the whole ninja world who can use Ice Release. What is the purpose of these two people, or what conspiracy do they have?"

Hongdou's eyes kept scanning the chaotic battlefield, trying to find clues from every detail. The charred marks left by the fire escape seemed to tell of the fierceness of the battle; the frost crystals caused by the ice escape reflected a strange light in the sun. She squatted down and carefully observed the wounds on the giant snake corpses, and her doubts became more and more serious.

Mitarashi Anko knows that the appearance of Orochimaru is no accident, and the fierce battle between this mysterious Ice Release user and Orochimaru in Konoha Village must be hidden behind a huge secret. Is it a new round of conspiracy against Konoha Village? Or a secret contest with other ninja villages? Or some unknown personal grudge?

She stood up, took a deep breath, and immediately ran towards the Hokage Building without stopping.

Somewhere in the examination room, a slender white snake suddenly jumped out from a crack in the stone. Then with a "bang", it transformed into a man with a pale face and long flowing hair.

The man's eyes were cold and deep, as if he was hiding endless secrets. His pale face looked particularly eerie in the shadows, and his long hair fluttering in the wind added a lot of weird atmosphere. This man was the terrifying Orochimaru.

He was seen holding his chest with one hand and holding the tree with the other hand, panting violently. The fierce battle with Naruto left him seriously injured.

A trace of blood slowly flowed from the corner of his mouth, but his eyes still revealed that horrifying cruelty. Every difficult breath seemed to indicate that his body was on the verge of collapse, but his indestructible willpower stubbornly supported him and he never fell.

Orochimaru cursed in his heart: "This guy who can use ice escape actually possesses such a strong power. It is really beyond my expectation." He clenched his teeth and tried his best to adjust his internal breath, hoping to recover some physical strength. However, the pain in his body was like a surging tide, invading him wave after wave, making him almost unable to bear it.

He looked up at the sky, a hint of gloom suddenly flashing in his eyes: "I, Orochimaru, will remember this grudge." He endured the severe pain, slowly straightened his body, and walked out of the examination room with heavy steps.

Each of his steps seemed extremely heavy, and the ground beneath his feet seemed to silently bear his anger and unwillingness. The whistling wind around him seemed to be wailing for his departure, as if expressing his inner unwillingness and firm determination for revenge.

Orochimaru's figure gradually walked away, but the gloomy atmosphere he left behind could not dissipate for a long time. He carefully planned in his mind, and as soon as his injuries healed, he would make the guy who frustrated him pay a very painful price. And Konoha Village would definitely be destroyed because of his raging anger.

In the forest, the moment Naruto appeared, the two of them surrounded him quickly like arrows.

Sakura's face was full of concern, and she asked anxiously: "Naruto, you are finally back, are you okay?" Her eyes were full of worry, her brows were slightly furrowed, and her hands were unconsciously clenched tightly.

Sasuke stared at Naruto with a calm look in his eyes and said seriously, "You didn't catch him and let him get away?" His sharp eyes seemed to be able to penetrate Naruto's soul, and he was eager to find the answer from it.

Naruto shrugged helplessly, the corners of his mouth raised, and responded with a smile: "That guy slipped away too fast, but I have already taught him a lesson." His extremely relaxed tone, as if what he had just experienced was not a fierce life-and-death fight, but just a fun chase and play.

Sakura heaved a sigh of relief when she heard this, and her tense body relaxed a little: "I'm glad you're okay. I was really worried that you might get hurt."

Naruto looked up at the sky which had already darkened and said, "Let's rest here today." After that, he took out a black scroll of earth from his pocket and threw it to Sasuke.

Sasuke took the Scroll of Earth and looked at Naruto blankly. His confused expression seemed to be silently shouting: Explain to me how this came about.

Naruto understood and quickly said, "This scroll belongs to the ninja just now. I got it back when I was fighting him."

Sasuke nodded slightly, carefully put away the Scroll of Earth, and then asked, "Now that we have collected these two items, what should we do next?"

Naruto looked at Sasuke and Sakura with a smile: "What else can we do? Go to the middle tower to report. Of course, if you want to play more, you can wait until the fifth day to report. But I think this exam opportunity is rare, I suggest you fight more with these people, especially Sakura."

Sakura widened her eyes, her face full of dissatisfaction, and said loudly: "Naruto, don't underestimate me!"

Sasuke fell into deep thought, and after a moment he said: "Naruto is right, actual combat can indeed help us grow faster."

Naruto crossed his arms and said teasingly with a smile: "Yeah, Sakura, please don't hold us back."

Sakura stamped her feet in anger and retorted angrily, "Humph, I won't!"

As night fell, the bonfire grew, and soon Naruto had the grill set up.

The dancing flames illuminated his focused face, the roasted meat sizzled on the fire, emitting an enticing aroma. He turned the roasted meat skillfully, keeping a close eye on it, fearing that it would burn if he was not careful.

Sasuke and Sakura watched quietly at the side, their stomachs growling at the temptation of the aroma.

"It's almost done, don't worry!" Naruto said with a smile, a look of satisfaction on his face.

As the grilled meats gradually became golden and crispy, Naruto took them off one by one and shared them with Sasuke and Sakura.

The three of them sat around the campfire, enjoying this rare delicacy, the warm firelight reflecting their smiles. At this moment, the fatigue from the battle seemed to have dissipated a lot.