Orochimaru (Naruto)
Template:Infobox Naruto character Orochimaru (大蛇丸) is a fictional character and a major antagonist in the anime and manga series Naruto.
Orochimaru borrows heavily from Japanese literature — his name, as well as those of Jiraiya and Tsunade come from the Jiraiya Goketsu Monogatari (児雷也豪傑物語, "The Tale of the Gallant Jiraiya"), and the Orochimaru in that story was originally Jiraiya's student until he was corrupted by snake magic.
Orochimaru is male, but speaks with a very formal female tone in Japanese to make him seem more sinister. Because this cannot be reproduced in English, he is instead given a masculine but quiet and high-pitched voice.
Background
Orochimaru is a former student of the Third Hokage. Orochimaru and his former teammates, Jiraiya and Tsunade, are known as the "Legendary Three Ninja" (伝説の三忍, Densetsu no Sannin) or simply the "Sannin". His parents died when he was young, leaving him to fend for himself for much of his life. While under the Third's tutelage, the Third recognized Orochimaru's natural talent, often telling Jiraiya to be more like Orochimaru. The Third was aware of a malice and a lust for power within Orochimaru, but chose to pretend not to notice for he hoped he could quell this part of Orochimaru's personality. As the years went by Orochimaru formed a friendship with Jiraiya, and all the while his desire for strength grew.
After spending many years learning under the Third, Orochimaru began acting upon his inner desires of obtaining immortality in the hopes that he could learn every jutsu in existence as a result. To accomplish this goal, Orochimaru began abducting villagers and experimenting on them, trying to better understand how the body works and what modifications it could handle. In one such experiment, Orochimaru branded ten children with his own unique cursed seal in an effort to see what its success rate was. One of the ten was his own student, Anko Mitarashi, and she was the only one to survive. In another experiment, he injected the First Hokage's genes into sixty babies in the hopes of replicating the First's ability to use Mokuton techniques, as well as the First's ability to control tailed beasts. Orochimaru would not be able to see this experiment through to its completion, though he believed all of the test subjects had died. In reality, one subject, Yamato, survived, and retained the First's abilities that Orochimaru had desired.
While Orochimaru carried out his experiments in secret, he also tried to acquire the position of Hokage in the hopes that such a position would allow him easier access to secret jutsu. As the Third approached retirement, he attempted to teach Orochimaru about the concept that shinobi are only truly strong when protecting others, and that all members of a village should be seen as a family. Orochimaru, however, scoffed at these ideas, only desiring the title for the privileges it would provide him. Disappointed in his student's viewpoints, the Third passed the title of Hokage to one of Jiraiya's students who became the Fourth Hokage, denying Orochimaru the position he coveted.
Robbed of his only reason to keep face in Konoha, Orochimaru began to be less discrete with his abductions and experimentations, allowing the Third to eventually discover what Orochimaru was doing. Upon being found out, Orochimaru gave his former master the chance to kill him, but the Third couldn't bring himself to do it, thus allowing Orochimaru to escape. As he fled the village, Jiraiya, having come to think of Orochimaru as a dear friend, tried to stop him and persuade him to return to Konoha, though Orochimaru refused and turned his back to Konoha forever, acquiring a hate for his former home.
After leaving Konoha, Orochimaru joined Akatsuki, where he was teamed with Sasori. While what he did while a member of the organization is unknown, it is known that he tried to take control of Itachi Uchiha's body so as to gain the Sharingan. Due to the Sharingan's abilities, Itachi was able to counter Orochimaru's attempt and sever the hand that Orochimaru wore his Akatsuki ring on. Having failed to take Itachi's body, Orochimaru left the organization. When leaving the group, Orochimaru took his ring with him, and Akatsuki has, perhaps as a result, attempted to capture him ever since. At some point in time, Sasori inserted Kabuto Yakushi into Orochimaru's ranks as a spy, though Orochimaru soon became aware of this and persuaded Kabuto to side with him. Orochimaru would go on to take over the Land of Rice Fields. There he would create his own ninja village, Otogakure, filled with ninja loyal to him. Orochimaru has also created a number of secret bases throughout the Naruto world that he switches between on a weekly basis. As he goes from base to base, Orochimaru takes his severed hand with him, the Akatsuki ring still on its finger.
Being one of the Legendary Three Ninjas as well as a former member of Akatsuki, Orochimaru is a very talented ninja. While he has only displayed a limited amount of jutsu, it stands to reason that in his quest to learn all existing techniques his array of abilities has become vast. Since his leaving Konoha he has done many modifications to his body, resulting in his natural form being that of a giant white snake composed of many smaller snakes. This form has the advantages of allowing him to stretch any part of his body to great lengths, regenerate any wound inflicted upon him, and otherwise use the snakes that he is composed of for attack. He even wields the legendary Kusanagi sword of Japanese legend, producing it with the Kusanagi Sword: Long Sword of the Heavens (草薙の剣・空の太刀, Kusanagi no Tsurugi: Kū no Tachi, English TV "The Grass Long Sword") technique. The culmination of his research in immortality can also be found in this form, as it allows him to transfer his soul into a new body via the Living Corpse Reincarnation (不屍転生, Fushi Tensei, English "Immortality Jutsu") once every three years and escape the effects of old age. At the start of the series, Orochimaru claims to have used the ability twice, though a look within his subconsciousness later on suggests he has used it more than that. His apparent interest in snakes has also caused him to apply the snake summoning contract to his arms, allowing him to summon snakes with great ease.
Orochimaru relishes conflict and unrest, becoming bored when neither is in motion. Ibiki Morino, when first seeing Orochimaru as a child, claims to have been terrified at the sight of Orochimaru, believing him to be a monster in human skin. Despite this, Orochimaru has a knack for winning otherwise desperate people to his cause, filling the void in their life with loyalty to him. He brands some of his most powerful subordinates with a cursed seal that corrodes their body and free will in exchange for power. While many of Orochimaru's subordinates seem to admire and respect him, the reverse does not seem to be true. Orochimaru generally treats his subordinates as pawns, caring only for their ability to further his interests. The only ones he shows any sort of care for are those he intends to use as a host, and this too is only because they can prolong his existence.
Part I
Chunin Exam arc
Prior to the start of the Chunin Exams, Orochimaru approaches Sunagakure with a proposition of joining forces in invading Konoha. After killing the Fourth Kazekage, Orochimaru disguises himself as the Kazekage so as to give the illusion of approval by the village's leader, and Sunagakure agrees to join Orochimaru's Otogakure in Konoha's invasion.
Before the invasion is set to begin, Orochimaru kills and impersonates a Grass Genin entering the exams in the hopes of getting to observe Itachi's brother, Sasuke Uchiha. During the second phase of the exams, Orochimaru attacks Sasuke so as to test the latter's ability. During the battle, however, Orochimaru is forced to deal with Naruto Uzumaki, whose fox chakra makes him an intervening nuisance. Recognizing Naruto as a potential future threat, Orochimaru seals the demon fox's chakra, preventing Naruto from accessing it and knocking him unconscious at the same time. After Orochimaru's attention returns to Sasuke, Sasuke is able to hold Orochimaru back due to Naruto's example. As a reward to Sasuke for holding his ground against him, Orochimaru brands Sasuke with his Cursed Seal of Heaven, and disappears into the surrounding forest.
Orochimaru continues to monitor Sasuke's progress through the exams disguised as the Jonin leader of the Sound Genin. Uninterested in his own followers' progress, Orochimaru begins to worry about Naruto's influence on Sasuke. Because of this, Orochimaru decides that he should remove Sasuke from Naruto as soon as he can.
Invasion of Konoha arc
Disguised as the Fourth Kazekage, Orochimaru watches the final matches of the Chunin Exam with the Third Hokage, who has since reacquired the position of acting Hokage. When the invasion of Konoha starts, Orochimaru grabs his former master and sheds his disguise, revealing that he planned the invasion for the sole purpose of getting to kill the Third, as well as kidnapping Sasuke. As the two begin their battle, Orochimaru resurrects the first two Hokages so that the Third can experience what it's like to fight a former master.
As the two dead Hokages fight the Third, the Third, in his old age, runs out of options and is forced to use the Dead Demon Consuming Seal to seal their souls. After the two Hokages are defeated, the Third turns his attention to Orochimaru and tries to seal his soul as well. Sensing what the Third is trying to do, Orochimaru stabs the Third in the back with his Kusanagi, sapping the Third of the strength needed to fully seal Orochimaru's soul. Doing what little he can, the Third seals Orochimaru's arms in an attempt to make up for his allowing Orochimaru to escape years earlier. In doing so, he takes away Orochimaru's ability to use jutsu, giving him what Orochimaru sees as a fate worse than death. As the Third dies due to the use of the seal, Orochimaru calls on his subordinates to help him flee the village, the Third's last act making Konoha's destruction impossible for him.
Search for Tsunade arc
As a result of the sealing of his arms, Orochimaru is left in great pain, and seeks his former teammate, Tsunade, in the hopes that she can heal his arms. Upon finding her, Orochimaru offers to revive her dead loved ones in exchange for her helping him. Although she considers the offer, after meeting Naruto, she declines, knowing that Orochimaru will destroy Konoha if his arms are healed. As such, she attempts to kill Orochimaru, though Kabuto Yakushi is able to prevent her from attacking him. In time, however, Kabuto is defeated, and Orochimaru is forced to face not only Tsunade, but Jiraiya as well. In his weakened state, Orochimaru is unable to put up much of a fight against the two and is defeated. He flees the battle, deciding to resort to his last option: taking a new host.
Sasuke Retrieval arc
In a final effort to reattain the ability to use jutsu, Orochimaru sends his Sound Four to bring Sasuke to him so that he can take over the latter's body. As he waits in earnest for Sasuke's arrival, the pain caused by the necrosis in his arms, induced by the Third's seal, becomes unbearable and makes his body unusable. Although he puts it off as long as he can, hoping that Sasuke will arrive in time, Orochimaru is eventually forced to change to the body of Gen'yumaru, a prisoner Kabuto had prepared for him. Sasuke eventually arrives, though Orochimaru is stuck in his new body for the next three years, and so he begins to train Sasuke to live up to his promise of giving Sasuke power.
Part II
Sasuke and Sai arc
Orochimaru reappears after the timeskip as he joins Kabuto in trying to kill his former Akatsuki partner, Sasori. As the two attack Sasori, Sasori is shown to actually be Yamato, Orochimaru's former test subject, in disguise, the actual Sasori having been killed by Team 7 ten days prior. As Yamato calls the rest of his team in for assistance, Orochimaru finds Naruto to be among them, and he offers to tell Naruto if Sasuke has gotten stronger than him. Enraged by Orochimaru's words about Sasuke, Naruto enters a four-tailed demon fox form and attacks Orochimaru. Although Orochimaru seems to enjoy the battle, Naruto's attacks are extremely potent and he is frequently faced with near-death situations. After blocking Naruto's most powerful attack with three Rashomon gates, Orochimaru manages to repel Naruto with his Kusanagi, which is barely able to push Naruto back.
Having exerted a great deal of effort in his battle with Naruto, Orochimaru's body begins to fail him due to it being pushed to its limit. As he tries to pull himself together, he is approached by Sai, who proposes an alliance on behalf of his organization, Root, in destroying Konoha. Orochimaru accepts, and brings Sai with him to his hideout, where, upon arrival, he rests his body. As he rests, Sai turns on Orochimaru in favor of allying with Team 7, and Orochimaru confronts him in an effort to determine where Sai's loyalties really lie. Being outnumbered, and still tired from his fight with Naruto, Orochimaru is forced to let Sai go. Orochimaru later reappears to stop Sasuke from killing Team 7, saying that by allowing them to live they may kill more members of Akatsuki, making Akatsuki weaker. Sasuke, willing to do whatever is necessary to make killing Itachi easier, agrees, and disappears with Orochimaru.
Current arc
Orochimaru appears with Sasuke after the latter has defeated a large group of ninja. Admiring Sasuke's ability to defeat the sheer number of ninjas unscathed, Orochimaru thinks to himself that Sasuke's talent has surpassed even his own at Sasuke's age and is delighted by the fact that Sasuke's body will soon be his.
As Orochimaru later lies in bed, the body he inhabits beginning to fail him, Sasuke attacks him. Stating that he has nothing left to learn from Orochimaru, Sasuke activates his cursed seal and his Sharingan. Having anticipated this, Orochimaru reveals his true form in preparation of taking Sasuke's body. After advancing to level 2 of his cursed seal, Sasuke is able to dismember Orochimaru, seemingly killing the latter. As his cursed seal recedes, Sasuke finds himself to be paralyzed by Orochimaru's poison, and Orochimaru reassembles himself so that he can take Sasuke's body.
Transferring Sasuke to a dimension within himself, Orochimaru begins to take control of Sasuke's body, though Sasuke attempts to use his Sharingan to stop the process. When Kabuto enters the room, he finds Sasuke standing over Orochimaru's dismembered true form. As Sasuke leaves the room, Kabuto asks if he is Orochimaru or Sasuke. Sasuke then uses his Sharingan to show Kabuto the final confrontation between the two in Orochimaru's dimension, from which Sasuke arose the victor. As Kabuto comes to grips with Orochimaru's death, Sasuke states that he's merely retained control of his body. Template:Endspoiler
Sources
- First Official Data Book (秘伝・臨の書キャラクターオフィシャルデータBOOK, Hiden: Rin no Sho Character Official Data Book)
- Second Official Data Book (秘伝・闘の書キャラクターオフィシャルデータBOOK, Hiden: Tō no Sho Character Official Data Book)
- Jump's 2nd Great Hero Book's Mini Data Book (秘伝・翔の書オフィシャルキャラクターデータBOOK mini, Hiden: Shō no Sho Official Character Data Book mini)
- Naruto anime and manga Guidebook (秘伝・翔の書オフィシャルキャラクターデータBOOK mini, Hiden: Shō no Sho Official Character Data Book mini)
- Taken directly from the Naruto manga chapters and anime episodes.
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