You are still slow

Despite Aoto's mastery over magic, the snake-like movements of Orochimaru were too fast, and Aoto found himself on the defensive, struggling to keep up. Drawing upon the mystical arts, Aoto conjured glowing Tao mandalas, hurling them at Orochimaru with precision.

"Tao Mandala Projection!" he envisioned, the discs of light slicing through the air. But the Sannin evaded each attack effortlessly, closing the distance between them with terrifying speed. 

"You think your tricks can stop me?" Orochimaru hissed, his voice echoing ominously through the mirrors.

Aoto's breath came in ragged gasps. He summoned all his strength and invoked a powerful spell, creating a barrier of light.

"Shield of Seraphim!", and the shimmering barrier formed around him. Orochimaru paused, his eyes narrowing as he assessed this new defense. With serpentine grace, he lashed out with his Snake Sword, the blade striking the barrier with a resounding crash. The barrier held, but only barely, and Aoto knew it was a temporary reprieve.

"This bitch has too much power." Aoto snarled as he saw how Orochimaru was hell bent on coming at him. Just as the barrier shattered, and Orochimaru lunged forward for the final blow, Aoto reacted quickly, conjuring another spell.

"Crimson Bands of Cyttorak!", and glowing red bands materialized, wrapping around Orochimaru to restrain him.

But Orochimaru's strength was formidable. He flexed his muscles, and the bands began to crack. With a powerful surge, he broke free, his eyes gleaming with malice. "Sen'ei Jashu! (Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)" Orochimaru yelled, using the same jutsu again, and snakes shot from his sleeves, their fangs bared as they aimed for Aoto.

With a swift motion, Orochimaru struck with his Snake Sword. Aoto barely managed to block the strike with a hastily conjured Tao Mandala. The force of the blow sent him staggering back, his defense faltering. Orochimaru pressed the attack, his movements a blur of deadly precision.

"You're too slow!" Orochimaru taunted, his voice filled with cruel amusement.

"Kusanagi no Tsurugi: Kū no Tachi! (Sword of Kusanagi: Longsword of the Sky)"

Orochimaru extended his sword, its blade lengthening unnaturally as it thrust towards Aoto. Aoto dodged to the side, the blade narrowly missing him. He retaliated with a powerful spell. This spell summoned a host of blazing lashes of fire at Orochimaru. The orange colored lashes caught Orochimaru off guard, pushing him back momentarily.

"Manda no Jin! (Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes)" he called out, and a swarm of snakes erupted from his mouth, flooding towards Aoto in a terrifying wave pausing the lashes in their tracks. And the attack didn't stop there as it came after Aoto too. 

Aoto quickly formed another spell. "Vapors of Valtorr!" he cried, releasing a thick mist that enveloped the snakes, dissolving them into nothingness. However, Orochimaru used the mist as cover, slipping through it to strike at Aoto with deadly precision.

Just as Orochimaru was about to deliver a finishing blow, a blur of motion intervened. Yoruichi, in her black cat form, leaped between them. Orichimaru didn't know what it was and had to take a few steps back. When he had seen Aoto in the mirror dimension, he had noticed the cat before. At first he thought it was a Palicko, but then he noticed that the cat was too small to be a Palicko. 

But now it seemed that the black cat wasn't normal since it was able to easily intervene. The black cat slowly transformed herself and she slowly transformed to a human figure. A slim female figure to be exact. Only this time she had cloth around herself. After the fight in Naruto bridge, Aoto had made a magic that would automatically cover her body in human form. A flash of electricity crackling around her as she faced Orochimaru.

"Who are you?" he demanded, as he looked at this new transformed human. He had never seen this jutsu before nor did he feel it and thus he was again perplexed. 

"Yoruichi Shihouin. And you, snake, have overstayed your welcome." Yoruichi smirked, as she made a run towards Orochimaru. But of course, he wasn't someone to be left behind once he saw the speed of hers. 

The two clashed with incredible speed, their movements a blur to Aoto's eyes. Yoruichi's agility and strength matched Orochimaru's.

"Shunko! (Flash War Cry)" she shouted, her body enveloped in a powerful aura of lightning. Her punches and kicks landed with thunderous impact, pushing Orochimaru back.

They fought physically against each other and her attacks were able to land of Orochimaru but this guy seemed to be physically invulnerable and have loads of chakra to spare.

Despite her efforts, it became clear that Orochimaru could not be easily killed. His body regenerated, and his attacks grew more vicious with each passing moment. Orochimaru retaliated with a venomous strike.

"Hebi Kugutsu: Kurohebi (Snake Puppet: Black Snake)" he called, summoning a massive black snake that lunged at Yoruichi. Yoruichi deftly dodged the snake, striking it down with a powerful kick. The kick wasn't just a normal kick but with Shunko specially made for sealing the physical parts. The attack would make the hit part numb for a few seconds. 

And that was all Yoruichi needed. Orochimaru was hit right at the wrists. He had stopped the attack by putting the wrists in a cross pattern. The attack immediately made his wrists numb. 

"Haaaa.." Orochimaru heard a loud shout and looked up only to see Aoto jumping down on him with a white sword glowing on his hand. The sword seemed like it was made of energy and for some reason his heart beat became fast as he saw that sword. The sword looked like a work of art, something that only a divine being could make.

He didn't know why he thought like that but the beauty for the sword made him feel like that. His arm joints were numb by then and his instinct kicked in. Though he admired the beauty, at the moment he needed to stop the attack of Aoto. 

----

Read 50 chapters ahead on my p@treon.com/thelightedghost