The Legend of Konoha's Shooting Star

The One Who Will Die Is...?!

Orochimaru took a step forward.

"If you get any closer to Sasuke..." Kakashi said, assuming a fighting stance. "Even though you are one of those Sannin..." He gripped his right arm and activated his Chidori. "Right now, I can at least compete with you..."

"Hehe," Orochimaru laughed.

"..." Kakashi furrowed his brow, filled with an uneasy feeling.

"Hehe... Hahahaha," Orochimaru laughed harder.

"!" The crease in Kakashi's brow deepened, and his sense of unease grew. "What's so funny...?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at him.

"What you do, what you say... It's all off," Orochimaru stated confidently.

"What?" Kakashi asked, frowning.

"That seal you did is meaningless," Orochimaru told him.

"!?" Kakashi said, taken aback.

"You understand... to achieve a goal... the heart that will accept even the most evil power... That is the type he is..." Orochimaru said, looking at Sasuke. "An avenger..."

Kakashi glared at him. "So you are using that... but Sasuke is..."

"He will eventually seek me out. To seek the power," Orochimaru said, turning away. "Also... You were going to kill me...?" he asked Kakashi on his way out, pausing for a moment. He didn't bother to look back. "Why don't you try? If you can, that is..."

Kakashi flinched, his eyes widening in shock as he was overcome by a terrifyingly fierce wave of bloodlust that made him see a vision where his own decapitated head was sent flying. He stood there, panting and dripping with cold sweat, while Orochimaru calmly continued on his way, disappearing from his sight. 'Ugh... Compete with him...? Am I... an idiot...?' Kakashi thought, furrowing his brow at his own foolishness. Just because a few years had passed since their last encounter, he got a little cocky. He was lucky to still be alive.

"Ugh..." Zaku groaned, lying collapsed on the floor with blood dripping from the corner of his mouth and wounded arms, while Hayate kneeled down to examine him.

"It's over... it seems," Hayate said, standing up. Severed arm aside, the sound ninja didn't seem to be in a hurry to get up again.

'I would have thought that was pretty obvious...' April thought, a bead of sweat sliding down her face. She wondered if they would be able to reattach it. In some cases, the medical treatments and technology of this world could be more advanced.

"What is he...? Neji!!" Lee said, glancing questioningly at his teammate.

"..." Neji furrowed his brow and performed the hand seals to activate his dōjutsu. 'Byakugan!!' he thought, taking a good, hard look at Shino. "!!" he gasped. A scan of his anatomy revealed a whole colony of insects moving around inside of him. "What a guy... I can understand summoning bugs, but... Bugs are living throughout his body..."

"What did you say?" Lee asked, just as shocked as April was to hear that.

'In his... body!?' she thought, alarmed. Just thinking about it made her feel sick. 'Such a formidable enemy, that Shino...!'

"He must be a member of the bug using clan of Konoha..." Guy said.

"Bug using clan...?" April asked, looking up at him.

"Yes, I have heard of them..." Neji agreed with his sensei, still observing Shino with his Byakugan. "A clan whose members, at the time of birth, give their body to insects to use as a nest. The clan can freely control the insects and use them as their primary fighting technique... By feeding them their chakra, they have established a contract with the bugs."