Chapter 106 Kaito’s Dominance: The End of the Serpent

As Kaito swung his sword to chop off the snake heads, he momentarily exposed his front to Orochimaru.

But even if Orochimaru wanted to take advantage of the opening, Kaito could instantly reposition himself to block the attack! However, Orochimaru was no ordinary opponent.

Suddenly, Orochimaru's head shot forward, his neck stretching like a serpent! At the same time, he opened his mouth, spitting out a small snake.

The snake, in turn, opened its mouth to reveal the hidden Kusanagi sword! Under the dim light, the long and narrow blade shot straight toward Kaito's neck!

"You're still too inexperienced!"

Orochimaru grinned wickedly.

But in the next moment, his expression froze.

The seemingly unavoidable attack was missed! Kaito's figure had vanished without a trace.

"What are you thinking?"

Kaito's teasing voice came from behind Orochimaru.

Orochimaru's eyes widened in alarm. Before he could react, pain shot through his waist. He looked down—he had been cut cleanly in half!

"Lord Orochimaru!"

Kabuto, who had been observing from a distance, shouted in shock. He quickly hurled several kunai at Kaito.

Though they posed no real threat, they managed to momentarily disrupt Kaito's follow-up strike.

Not that it mattered—he had no intention of finishing Orochimaru off. Killing him would be pointless.

But just then, Orochimaru's bisected body began to change! From the severed halves, countless small snakes slithered out, intertwining before pulling together forcefully! In an instant, his body was whole again.

Kaito sighed. "As disgusting as that technique is, I have to admit—you're a genius."

Orochimaru slowly rose to his feet, still shaken.

"I didn't expect Lord Kaito to have mastered space-time ninjutsu..." He clenched his fists. "Speaking of talent, how could I ever compare to you?"

Kaito shook his head. "I wasn't talking about that kind of talent."

He then narrowed his eyes. "It seems you're still bitter about Minato Namikaze."

Silence fell. Orochimaru's fists tightened even more.

Of course, he was bitter. The position of Hokage had been within his grasp—until Minato had suddenly appeared and taken it. That man, with his unpredictable and nearly impossible-to-counter Flying Thunder God technique, had defeated him so decisively.

Orochimaru had been hailed as a prodigy since childhood, yet in both power and prestige, Minato had surpassed him.

He had tried to master the Flying Thunder God technique himself, but reality had been cruel—it was simply beyond his capabilities. The failure had left a deep scar. Eventually, he abandoned his ambitions and threw himself into forbidden experiments, even sacrificing children in his pursuit of knowledge...

"So… are you going to admit defeat?"

Kaito's voice was calm as he watched him.

Orochimaru's gaze darkened. "How foolish. No space-time ninjutsu can defeat me!"

With that, he slammed his hands together and opened his mouth unnaturally wide.

"Formation of Ten Thousand Snake Burials!"

The atmosphere grew suffocating.

From Orochimaru's mouth, an overwhelming swarm of venomous snakes poured out, slithering and writhing as they surged toward Kaito in a horrifying wave.

The sheer number made Kaito's scalp tingle.

"I take back what I just said…!"

"You're not just a little disgusting… you're revolting."

As he spoke, Kaito leaped into the air, forming the Yin seal with his left hand near his mouth.

"Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku!"

A sea of flames erupted, engulfing a hundred meters below in an instant.

Orochimaru and Kabuto's expressions twisted in shock. They had never seen a Fire Release technique of this magnitude before. There was no way to block it—they could only evade.

But Orochimaru was still mid-formation, unable to move.

With no other choice, Kabuto abandoned him and fled.

The moment he disappeared, the firestorm consumed the battlefield. The sheer heat ignited everything in sight. The writhing mass of serpents hissed and curled up as they burned, their bodies charring before they could even struggle. The air filled with the sickening scent of roasted snake flesh.

Kaito exhaled, relieved.

"Hah… much better."

He turned toward where Orochimaru had been, only to find a blackened, humanoid lump of charcoal in his place.

"Come on out. I know you're not dead."

At his words, the scorched figure twitched.

Then, slowly, it stood. A mouth cracked open in its charred face, and from within, a pale hand emerged. Then another.

Orochimaru slithered out of his burnt remains, his body fully intact once more.

Kaito narrowed his eyes.

"Do you still want to continue?"

By now, he was completely unfazed by Orochimaru's grotesque techniques.

Orochimaru scowled.

"You insolent brat… I am Orochimaru of the Sannin!" he roared. "Don't look down on me!"

His body began to shift again. His pale skin was soon covered in gleaming white scales, his face elongating into something inhuman.

"Yamata no Jutsu!"

Swelling bulges formed along his body before bursting open.

Seven massive snake heads emerged, hissing as they joined Orochimaru's own. His body expanded into an enormous white serpent, its tail crushing the ground beneath it.

"Tremble before my power, boy!" Orochimaru's voice thundered from the central head.

The colossal serpent advanced, demolishing everything in its path. Boulders crumbled to dust under its sheer weight, and towering trees were flattened as though they were mere twigs.

Kaito remained unimpressed.

"Comparable to a Tailed Beast, huh? That's still not enough."

He raised his hand. In an instant, a towering Susanoo formed around him, reaching its third stage of development.

Orochimaru's eight heads lunged simultaneously.

Susanoo met them with a single powerful slash—severing one head clean off.

The remaining heads coiled around Susanoo's body, tightening their grip in an attempt to immobilize it. Three more heads lunged at once, their fangs bared, but Susanoo blocked them with its armored forearm.

With another swing of its blade, it cleaved through three more heads.

Now, only one remained—the center head, where Orochimaru resided.

Susanoo leveled its blade against Orochimaru's throat.

Kaito's voice was calm, yet commanding.

"Your choice. Live or die."

Orochimaru clenched his jaw. He loathed it—hated to admit it—but the power gap was undeniable.

"...I surrender."

Kaito scoffed.

"Smart decision."

Without hesitation, Susanoo's fist crashed into Orochimaru's skull. The massive serpent crumbled instantly, shrinking back down to Orochimaru's human form.

Now back to his normal self, Orochimaru found himself exposed to the open air.

Kabuto quickly rushed over, draping a cloak over his master's shoulders.

Kaito stepped forward, looking down at him.

"It's over. Time to uphold your end of the bargain."