Under the veil of night, a brilliant beam of light shot into the sky from a circular building—like a massive lighthouse piercing the darkness.
Perched atop a tall tree, Orochimaru surveyed the forest beyond the reach of the glow. He stood still, silent, waiting for his opponent to arrive.
He had already guessed Kumogakure's intentions: to launch a surprise attack as soon as Konoha reached the fortress. Rather than waste time running around and draining energy, Orochimaru had taken a different approach—he simply wrapped an ordinary roadside building in enchantments and turned it into a giant, glowing beacon.
Better to wait in prepared stillness than to run and be ambushed.
And if the enemy didn't take the bait? Then he'd just create a few more fake signals and quietly capture the real fortress while their attention scattered.
But the Raikage, true to his reputation, wasn't one for deception or subtlety.
BOOM!
A thunderous crash shattered the silence. The Fourth Raikage burst out of the darkness, landing with explosive force that cratered the ground beneath him.
It was exactly the kind of entrance one would expect—loud, powerful, and absolutely fearless.
Orochimaru's lips curled into a sinister smile.
"Detonate."
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A chain of explosions erupted in an instant. Shockwaves tore through the air, smoke billowed, and roaring flames consumed everything in sight. Fire swelled outward in a massive wave, swallowing the Raikage whole.
The Konoha shinobi squinted into the smoke, eyes gleaming with hope.
Even a prepared jōnin would've taken severe damage in that blast. The Raikage had walked in recklessly, completely off guard—maybe he was…
"No," someone said sharply. "He's not dead."
The Uchiha jōnin had already activated their Sharingan. Through the thick haze, they saw it—an enormous chakra signature still pulsing in the smoke.
A high-pitched chirping, like a thousand birds shrieking, rang out. Lightning surged. A crack of thunder split the gloom—and from the blaze, the Raikage emerged.
Lightning crackled around him as he tore off the shredded remains of his shirt, his bare chest revealed—scarred, muscled, and unyielding.
Not only was he alive—he was nearly untouched.
Across from him, Orochimaru's grin deepened, eyes glinting with interest. "It seems Raikage-sama enjoyed the welcome gift."
But inside, he grew more cautious.
Just like the old man had warned—this Fourth Raikage wasn't just brute force. Beneath that fury was careful calculation.
While Konoha lay in wait, fully prepared, the Raikage had walked straight into the trap. Not recklessly—but with unshakable confidence in the strength of his own body.
What looked like madness… was absolute control.
Orochimaru licked his lips, feeling a twinge of trouble.
Now that he stood face-to-face with the Fourth Raikage, he had a much clearer understanding of the man behind the intel.
Raikage was just like Jiraiya—physically overwhelming and quick on his feet. Against someone like that, unless your attack could truly pierce through, there was no hope of bringing him down.
Orochimaru frowned inwardly. His techniques weren't made for overwhelming offense. His ninjutsu was about endurance, experimentation—not killing blows.
This battle wouldn't be about victory.
It would be about survival.
And even then, there were different kinds of "undefeated."
Thoughts barely had time to settle before the Fourth Raikage emerged from the smoke. In response, Orochimaru dropped silently from the treetop.
His hands blurred through seals. "Forbidden Art: Eight-Headed Serpent Technique!"
With a roar, an enormous, white-scaled monster burst forth—eight heads, eight tails, each one a towering serpent. It radiated chakra on par with a Tailed Beast, its massive form writhing like a nightmare across the battlefield.
Without another word, Orochimaru let out a guttural roar. One of the serpent's colossal tails lashed out and smashed the glowing beacon behind him, plunging the battlefield into darkness.
That was the signal.
The clash between Konoha and Kumogakure erupted all at once.
The surrounding ninja steered clear of the monstrous serpent and the Raikage, their skirmishes breaking out in the darkness of the forest. For the Uchiha and other users of dōjutsu, the shadows were an advantage—but Kumogakure had numbers.
For now, neither side could gain the upper hand.
But in the end, it would all come down to the strongest.
The Fourth Raikage stared down the towering serpent. He showed no fear.
He'd fought Tailed Beasts before—especially the Eight-Tails, whom he wrestled nearly daily. Compared to that, this white snake… was just a big target.
"Lightning Release: Liger Bomb!"
With a low growl, blue lightning crackled around him. The Raikage exploded into motion, vanishing from sight and reappearing mid-air—his speed rivaling the Yellow Flash. He struck one of the serpent heads with a powerful hand chop, cleaving through its tough flesh like thunder through clouds.
The blow didn't stop there. It cut deep, cleaving the serpent's neck and sending a spray of blood into the air.
Even Orochimaru, with all his iron resolve, couldn't help but grunt in pain from within the beast. The other snake heads hissed and lunged at the Raikage in retaliation.
Boom!
The Raikage stomped down, narrowly dodging the incoming fangs and landing back on solid ground. He looked up, his expression tight with displeasure.
The serpent head he'd just split in two was already reattaching. The other heads supported it, pulling the pieces back together—and before long, the wound was healing before his very eyes.
He wiped the snake blood from his face and scowled. "What the hell is this monster…?"
The Sannin were legendary, sure—but Orochimaru's resilience was absurd, even by those standards.
A monster with a Tailed Beast's body and a human mind. Orochimaru wasn't just enduring Raikage's blows—he was using this colossal form to batter Kumogakure's forces while shrugging off damage.
Ironically, Kumogakure's own plan had been to unleash a Tailed Beast to crush Konoha's front lines. Now, Orochimaru had flipped the script.
Realizing this, the Fourth Raikage roared into the forest, "Killer B! Get over here and help me take this thing down!"
Their original strategy was out the window. This monster had to be dealt with now.
"Yes, sir!"
From among the chaos, Killer B cut down the Konoha shinobi surrounding him and leapt forward. Eight thick tentacles burst from his back, and his form began to shift and expand.
In moments, the colossal form of the Eight-Tails loomed over the battlefield.
Both Konoha and Kumogakure ninjas scrambled to retreat, desperate to avoid the clash between two titanic beasts.
Orochimaru, watching the transformation, narrowed his vertical pupils. His grin widened.
"So we're bringing out reinforcements? Well then... I suppose I will too."
The central serpent head of Yamata no Orochi opened its mouth—and from it, Orochimaru's upper body emerged. He quickly weaved hand signs.
"Summoning Technique!"
BOOM!
A thick cloud of smoke erupted—and from it, the massive form of Manda, the King of Snakes, emerged onto the battlefield.
Cold, cruel eyes scanned the field, unimpressed. "Orochimaru. Every time you summon me, it's always a mess."
Boom!
A blast from the Raikage interrupted them. Orochimaru quickly retreated back into the Yamata no Orochi form as one of the serpent heads responded, hissing, "Don't worry. I'll make it worth your while."
"I want ten times more than last time," Manda hissed.
With a deafening roar, he launched himself at the Eight-Tails, fangs bared.
____________
Read till chapter 78 on patreon
patreon.com/Silver757