Naruto: The King Behind the Curtain

In the forest clearing, Manda thrashed violently in agony, blood pouring from his left eye as he roared, "Damn brat! I'll tear you apart bite by bite!"

Seiki couldn't help but sigh inwardly, "Indeed, I'm currently lacking effective methods against such large creatures."

Even with the raw power of the original Rasengan, he couldn't pierce through Manda's eyelid—it was only the residual vibrations that managed to damage his opponent. Against other hardened parts of its body, he probably wouldn't even cause the slightest tremor.

"Still, even without those powerful techniques, dealing with this thick-skulled serpent won't be too difficult!" Seiki remained composed and fired another Rasengan.

"Get off me! Get off me!" Manda writhed in pain, shaking wildly trying to throw Seiki off its head.

Yet Seiki's feet seemed rooted to Manda's head. No matter how fiercely the serpent thrashed, Seiki stood firm.

Trees snapped sideways mid-air while rocks shattered and flew in all directions.

The once peaceful forest quickly turned into a battlefield of chaos.

Concerned about collateral damage, Asuma and the others had already retreated to a safe distance.

Obito shouted excitedly, "Incredible! That giant snake stands no chance against our senior!"

Asuma shook his head, "It's not that simple! While Manda doesn't wield ninjutsu like Jiraiya-sama or Tsunade-sama's summoned beasts, its defense, attack power, and speed are second to none. Even a hundred successful strikes from Seiki won't seriously harm it, but just one successful hit from Manda could severely injure him!"

Upon hearing this, Rin looked worried, "What should we do then? Should I forfeit the exam and go find Orochimaru-sama to rescue our senior?"

Kurenai smiled reassuringly, "Don't buy into Asuma's gloom and doom—he actually believes in Seiki more than you think!"

Seeing their gazes turn toward him, Asuma chuckled, "I'm not lying, but 'severe injury' requires at least one successful strike first. Considering this idiot snake's ability, even when exhausted, that moment might never come!"

Meanwhile, Manda had become furiously enraged.

Although the little bug hadn't caused much real damage, it felt just like a mosquito buzzing persistently near your ear—maddeningly annoying.

"If you refuse to get off, then die right here!" Manda flashed a murderous glint and slammed its head into the ground.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

After a dozen forceful impacts that left Manda itself somewhat dizzy, it stopped.

Two of its bulging eyes squeezed together, finally unable to spot that annoying figure on its head anymore.

But before it could even feel relieved for a few seconds, Seiki reappeared in a blink using Swift Dash.

"Aaaaargh!" Manda screamed furiously, suddenly slamming its body sideways into a nearby hill.

Boom!

The mountain was severed halfway through, and Seiki got flung away.

"At last..." Manda exhaled in relief, only to see Seiki stepping on flying debris, using the momentum to leap back toward him.

Now *that* is just crossing the line!

Filled with rage, Manda threw caution aside and used his only snake technique - Cellular Regeneration Ejection. He ejected himself free from Seiki's leaping range, then immediately launched forward and swallowed the helpless Seiki mid-air.

"Ahhhaha! You damned brat..." Manda cackled in apparent triumph, but the laughter froze on his snout-like face the very next moment.

There stood Seiki completely unharmed on the ground, casually flipping a kunai between his fingers.

"A Shadow Clone?" Manda sneered ominously. "Boy, how many more times can your chakra keep dividing?"

Seiki shook his head slightly. "It's already over."

Manda narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Your chakra is exhausted?"

"I mean today's battle is over, Mr. Stupid Snake!" Seiki tossed the kunai behind him. "Didn't Lord Orochimaru ever tell you not to swallow gifts from strangers? Or 'mysterious objects' dropped by unknown entities?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Seiki vanished from Manda's sight. Then just an instant later, he reappeared at the spot where the kunai was falling.

This left Manda completely confused. "You moron, do you think you're putting on a circus act... urgh!"

A muffled bang suddenly echoed. Manda's eyes widened as he spat out a thick plume of smoke. Blood trickled from his mouth, and his massive body crashed heavily onto the ground.

Boom!

The earth trembled slightly from the impact. With what little strength he had left, Manda rasped weakly, "Damn it! What did you do to me?"

"I simply placed several explosive tags inside you," Seiki explained calmly, snapping his fingers again. "Asuma, it's your turn now!"

Asuma jumped out from hiding and handed a stack of explosive tags to Seiki with flamboyant generosity. "Here, take these! Don't hold back on my account."

Seeing that stack of explosive tags made Manda's heart sink.

Under normal circumstances, even ten times this amount of explosive tags wouldn't scare him outside the body. But when detonated internally, he felt like writing his last will and testament was worth considering.

Gritting his teeth furiously, Manda realized, "Was it because of that Shadow Clone I swallowed earlier?"

Seiki smiled faintly. "Shadow Clone Techniques disappear eventually, but some things don't."

As Lord Orochimaru's summoned beast and an ancient lineage originating from Ryuchi Cave, one of the three great summoning contract holders in the shinobi world, Manda quickly figured it out. "That Shadow Clone also carried specially modified kunai? Was it the Second Hokage's Flying Thunder God Technique?"

"In any case, we should be able to have a reasonable conversation now, right?"

Seeing Seiki's gentle smile, Manda inexplicably felt a chill run through his serpent heart.

Under normal conditions, this kid's ninjutsu could never threaten him. His chakra reserves would certainly outlast this opponent's stamina. If they dragged it out, the snake destined to win this fight would definitely be him!

But now he understood - everything the boy had said and done from the very beginning was calculated to provoke his temper, pushing him into losing control and ultimately falling into traps the enemy had set in advance!

"This feeling... as if that brat has completely seen through me! Like every move of mine was being manipulated like a puppet on strings! Compared to those two troublesome kids I sensed earlier, this bastard is the real monster!"

Reflecting on this, Manda could no longer feel even a hint of contempt in his heart. "I understand. I'll release them."

Seiki crossed his arms. "That was the previous condition. Now, I want you to spare every Konoha Ninja you encounter during this exam."

Manda said nothing, just staring fixedly at Seiki.

Seiki smiled lightly. "If you're worried about how it would sound if word spreads about being threatened by me, you could always say you were cautious out of respect for Lord Orochimaru!"

After another long silence, Manda rasped, "Fine, I agree!"

Obito and the others looked at Manda in shock. Since when did this hothead get so agreeable?

"Truly grateful," Seiki said with a smile as he turned around. "Time to get ready to leave!"

Asuma glanced around and deliberately caught up, asking loudly, "Seiki, what if he digests the Kunai with acid and comes after us for revenge?"

Seiki chuckled and patted his shoulder. "Don't worry. The Kunai I used was specially customized. It won't be easy for him to digest it within three days."

Hearing their conversation, Manda's eyes gleamed with icy fury. "Such an annoying brat!"

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