Naruto: I, Uchiha, Just Want to Die

Chapter 123: Grilled Manda, the Shedding Skin Technique!

When a creature's size reaches a certain magnitude, every movement it makes carries an unstoppable momentum, becoming a forceful attack in itself.

At this moment, Manda's tail lashed down like the whip of a god!

The fierce wind it stirred was like a blade, violently sweeping towards Uchiha Ci. His hair roots were lifted high, and the hem of his high-collared robe flapped loudly.

The wind blew Uchiha Ci's mouth wide open, exposing his gums as the skin on his face was pulled back harshly.

The intense wind pressure made it difficult for him to even stand, let alone form hand seals.

As the tail swept down towards him, regardless of any immortality or forbidden techniques like Body Revival, if this blow landed, he'd be smashed into pulp.

Feeling a shiver run down his spine, Uchiha Ci immediately gathered chakra at the soles of his feet, transforming into a splash of water.

Water Release: Water Surface Cutting Technique.

Using this jutsu, he reduced friction between his feet and the ground, gliding smoothly backward with the wind.

Barely dodging the attack, his body still suffered cuts from the flying debris carried by the fierce wind.

After the strike, Manda straightened its body, its house-sized eyes scanning the battlefield. It soon noticed Uchiha Ci forming hand seals.

"Hmph!" Manda sneered, lowering its head and opening its giant fanged mouth, biting down fiercely!

It aimed to swallow Uchiha Ci along with a large chunk of the ground beneath him in one gulp!

At this critical moment, Uchiha Ci had finished forming his seals. With his hands pressed to the ground, he posed as if initiating a Kamehameha wave.

Then—

"Wind Release: Sky Severing Wave!"

A massive amount of chakra gathered between his palms, erupting into a powerful blast of compressed air and ultrasonic waves directed at the ground!

Whoosh!

The intense wind propelled Uchiha Ci high into the air, narrowly avoiding Manda's enormous mouth.

Manda crashed down, digging into the ground, creating a huge hole as its entire body disappeared into the earth.

For a moment, the battlefield fell silent.

In the next instant, a ferocious snake head burst out from the ground again, lunging towards the sky!

It was as if a skyscraper had sprung up from the ground, snapping at Uchiha Ci, who had no place to evade in midair!

Taking a deep breath, Uchiha Ci realized that this situation was unsustainable. On open ground, Manda's gusts of wind were suppressing his movements, making it hard to mount any effective offense.

He needed to use this momentum!

Activating his Sharingan, blood-red lines formed as his eyes darted around, analyzing his surroundings and calculating his counterattack path.

While Orochimaru's textbooks usually put him to sleep, everything became crystal clear under this adrenaline rush. His mind had never been so sharp.

In an instant, he memorized the entire valley's terrain, forming a 3D model in his head, plotting out intersecting paths for shuriken throws, Manda's reactions, and battle strategies. He even recalled parts of Orochimaru's teachings almost instinctively.

Swiftly, he flung eight shurikens into the air, spreading them in all directions.

"Uchiha Style: Manipulated Shuriken Jutsu - Eight Spider Cracks!"

The shurikens embedded into the valley's cliff walls, their threads interweaving to create a makeshift trampoline.

With a swift pull of his fingers, eight thick threads and sixty-four thinner ones stretched taut!

Uchiha Ci leaped onto the threads, pressing down, creating tension like a bowstring.

Then, like an arrow, he shot back into the air.

Manda's second strike missed again, its expression twisted in a human-like fury.

"Like a flea!" Manda growled, "You brat, how will you dodge this time?!"

Its eyes fixed on Uchiha Ci as he reached the peak of his jump. Manda snapped the threads midair with its tail, positioning its gaping mouth at his landing point, ready to swallow him whole.

Uchiha Ci grinned fiercely. "Dodge?"

"Dodge my ass! You're the first to dare spit your saliva all over me!"

He glared at Manda, slamming his hand into his chest. "Watch this!"

"Today, I'll turn you into—"

"Grilled Snake!"

"Fire Release: Chakra Mode, activate!"

Instantly, a brilliant fire chakra enveloped Uchiha Ci, forming nearly tangible flames around him. He summoned his Kusanagi Sword, pointing the blade downward.

Gripping the hilt with both hands, he twisted it forcefully, channeling the raging fire chakra into the blade.

The flaming sword expanded, forming a 40-meter-long blade of fire!

Using the powerful inertia of his descent from hundreds of meters above, he stabbed downwards with the giant flaming sword.

Boom!

From Manda's perspective, the sword illuminated the surroundings, turning the area as bright as day. It looked like a blazing sun descending from the sky, and it was about to swallow this sun whole!

Manda was dumbfounded.

Who the hell uses a 40-meter blade for a dive attack?!

But its massive body became a burden in this situation, making it impossible to dodge.

In a panic, Manda tightly closed its mouth, trying to use its tough scales to get through this.

Its enormous eyes glared at Orochimaru, filled with fury.

You want me to kill this kind of opponent? And all for just 100 sacrifices? Do you take me for a fool?!

Before it could even curse, the flaming sword smashed down like a hammer, not piercing Manda's scales but slamming its head deep into the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

Then, the giant sword erupted violently!

The entire valley turned into a sea of fire!

"Orochimaru, damn you!!!" Manda howled in agony, engulfed in flames.

Uchiha Ci landed atop Manda's head, shaking off the last ember from his blade before sheathing it.

In front of him, a line of text appeared:

[Ding!]

[You have fiercely retaliated against Manda, who sought to sacrifice you, and obtained a random skill from it: Shedding Skin Technique (Master, B).]

[Your Heartsteel has leveled up.]

Seeing this, Uchiha Ci was stunned. "Heartsteel can even gain skills from summoning beasts? And Shedding Skin Technique? Is this a jutsu?"

Realizing something, he looked up. Darkness enveloped his vision as a massive shadow loomed overhead.

At this moment, Manda burst through the ground again, its bloody maw gaping wide, ready to crush him.

Uchiha Ci drew his Kusanagi Sword, gripping it tightly. In this desperate moment, he could only hope the sword was sharp enough to slice his way out before being digested by stomach acid.

Suddenly—

Bang!

The shadow dispersed into a dense cloud of white smoke.

Orochimaru, dressed in a kimono and wooden sandals, stepped through the smoke with a smile on his face, forming the summoning seal. He had sent Manda back to Ryūchi Cave.

Interrupted mid-fight, Uchiha Ci frowned, clearly displeased. He was about to speak when he felt a chilling sensation on his back.

A double-edged ancient sword shot through the white smoke, piercing him from behind!

Green venom glistened on the blade.

Thud!

Uchiha Ci fell to the ground, lifeless.

Footsteps approached. Orochimaru, with a sly smile, examined Uchiha Ci's body. "This corpse looks just like the real thing."

However, knowing his disciple well, he wasn't fooled. Uchiha Ci's immortality from the Jashin cult meant he shouldn't have a 'corpse.'

"It seems the experiment was a success," Orochimaru remarked. "You really have the talent to replicate any jutsu."

Then, under his gaze, Uchiha Ci's corpse split open. From within, a new, unharmed Uchiha Ci crawled out, covered in saliva.

"You win, Orochimaru-sensei," Uchiha Ci said, his Sharingan glowing.

"Excellent!" Orochimaru's eyes shone with excitement. "With the Shedding Skin Technique as your base, memorize the scroll, and you'll soon master my jutsu."

Orochimaru then pulled out a large scroll from his throat, unfolding it in front of Uchiha Ci. "Now, sign your name on this scroll."

"Then become the summoner of Ryūchi Cave!"