Outside of the Hidden Cloud Village, Kimimaro had found the person responsible for the earlier ambush while escorting Yūkimaru.
That person was Guren, who had been waiting outside.
As soon as Yūkimaru saw her, a smile lit up his face, and he threw himself into her arms.
"Guren-nee! I finally found you. After I woke up, I was captured by her and locked in a strange prison. I thought I would never see you again."
Seeing Yūkimaru's innocent and cheerful demeanor, Guren's heart softened.
"It's okay now, you're back with me."
"Mm!" Yūkimaru nodded happily.
Guren then looked at Kimimaro.
"I can't believe you actually pulled it off. Is your transformation technique really that effective? The people of the Hidden Cloud Village didn't see through you?"
Guren's curiosity was piqued by Kimimaro's current form.
"Now's not the time for compliments," Kimimaro responded seriously.
Even though they had rescued Yūkimaru and met up with Guren, Kimimaro's expression remained tense.
His lookout clone had just been dispelled.
Information flashed through his mind.
"We're not in the clear yet. For some reason, Yugito Nii went to the prison just now and discovered Yūkimaru's absence. She's already heading this way. We need to leave, fast."
Guren's face shifted.
She knew very well how strong Yugito Nii was.
"Let's go!"
Guren immediately took Yūkimaru's hand, ready to flee, but noticed that Kimimaro hadn't moved.
"What's wrong?"
"We won't be fast enough with Yūkimaru. At Yugito Nii's speed, she'll catch up soon."
Kimimaro stepped toward Yūkimaru.
He extended both hands, pretending to form hand seals, then lightly tapped his right hand and whispered, "Mirror Technique!"
A mirror appeared out of thin air.
The Mirror Clow Card activated!
Its ability: replication!
Yūkimaru's reflection emerged from the mirror and stepped out, standing beside the original, indistinguishable from the real one.
"This…"
Guren was taken aback.
It was similar to her Jade Crystal Clone Technique, but hers could only replicate herself, not others.
How does this person have so many strange abilities?
"So, you two go ahead. I'll stay behind and cover your escape."
"Are you insane? Yugito Nii is incredibly strong. You'll die!"
"Don't worry. I have no intention of dying here. Defeating her isn't possible, but delaying her and getting out alive? That, I'm confident I can do. Now go, quickly."
Seeing Kimimaro's determination and then glancing at Yūkimaru, Guren quickly made a decision.
"Fine. But don't you dare die here. I still need to challenge you to prove to Lord Orochimaru that I'm the only one worthy of being his vessel!"
With that, Guren grabbed Yūkimaru and hurried off.
"You're the only one who wants to be Orochimaru's vessel. I have no interest," Kimimaro muttered under his breath before a burst of white light enveloped him.
His appearance changed from Yugito Nii's to a more androgynous man—Orochimaru!
Facing Yugito Nii in his own form wasn't the best idea. Using Orochimaru's face, however, might have a deterrent effect.
Kimimaro erased the traces Guren had left and led the mirror clone of Yūkimaru in another direction.
At the Hidden Cloud Village gates...
Yugito Nii, having realized something was wrong, rushed over.
"Huh, Lady Yugito? What are you doing here? Weren't you just chasing after the attackers?"
The gatekeeper ninja was puzzled to see her.
Yugito's face darkened. As she suspected, someone had impersonated her and taken Yūkimaru.
"Idiots, I never left! You've been tricked!"
The two gatekeepers exchanged shocked glances, realizing the truth—Yugito Nii from earlier had been a fake!
But how had they not noticed a single flaw?
These gatekeepers were stationed here not only for their combat prowess but also for their sharp perception, which should have allowed them to easily see through any disguise.
But earlier, they hadn't detected anything.
"Which direction did the imposter go?"
"That way! Just ten minutes ago."
Yugito was about to give chase but paused for a moment.
"Don't spread the word for now. I'll capture them as quickly as possible. Damn them for impersonating me and freeing the person I captured. I won't let them get away with this!"
With that, Yugito took off.
The two gatekeepers exchanged nervous looks.
"Should we report this?"
"Are you stupid? We let the prisoner escape. If we report this now, we'll be punished immediately. But if Lady Yugito catches them, we might be able to smooth things over. The big problem will turn into a small one."
"Oh, right. Why didn't I think of that? We just have to wait for Lady Yugito to bring them back. But… do you think she can succeed?"
"Of course she can! Lady Yugito is incredibly powerful. Our only hope is with her now."
The two gatekeepers could only pray that Yugito would succeed.
Yugito, using the power of Matatabi, the Two-Tails, gathered chakra beneath her feet, increasing her speed to the maximum.
Matatabi was a cat, and naturally, cats were incredibly fast.
With Matatabi's chakra, deep blue flames erupted from Yugito's feet, boosting her speed even further as she raced ahead!
Soon, she spotted two blurry figures up ahead.
One of them was Yūkimaru!
And beside him, the person who had taken him.
Clad in a gray cloak, they weaved through the rocky terrain while pulling Yūkimaru along.
"Found you!" Yugito growled, forming hand seals.
"Fire Rat Ball!"
She spat out deep blue, rat-shaped flames that flew directly toward the figures.
Kimimaro turned around, revealing Orochimaru's face.
Yugito was momentarily taken aback.
She knew that face, of course.
It was the face of one of the most infamous figures in the ninja world—Orochimaru, one of the legendary Sannin who had made his name decades ago.
Was he the one who took Yūkimaru?
Without hesitation, Yugito moved her hands, and the rat-shaped flames transformed into a barrage of blue flame-seeking projectiles.
The blue flames swirled around, closing in from all sides!
Kimimaro grabbed the "Yūkimaru" beside him, tapped his foot, and suddenly sped up, narrowly avoiding the blue flames.
But the flames didn't simply fall to the ground—they pursued him relentlessly.
Tracking flames!
Kimimaro frowned. It seemed impossible to avoid them.
He reached for the bone sword he had prepared at his waist and swiftly drew it!
The Sword Clow Card activated!
Two years of training had enhanced the power of the Sword Card.
The white bone sword transformed into a pitch-black blade, giving it an even more mysterious appearance.
Four-Directional Slash!
Four sword beams materialized in front of him.
In an instant, the blue flame projectiles were all sliced apart!
"Heh, attacking without warning? That's a nasty habit," Kimimaro chuckled, wearing Orochimaru's signature grin.
Of all the people he could imitate, he had perfected Orochimaru's mannerisms the most.
After two years of living with Orochimaru, Kimimaro had studied every detail of his expressions and gestures. Even Orochimaru's closest allies would be hard-pressed to notice any flaws in his disguise.
(End of Chapter)