Draco attacked Kabuto from behind with the small knife, hoping to silently kill him off, creating no turmoil. He activated [Berserker] and coated his attack in mana.

However, luck wasn't on his side, and Kabuto dodged at the last moment, the knife scratching his cheeks. There was a surprise in his eyes, which didn't last long, as Draco propelled a kick at Kabuto's face.

Tilting his head back, Kabuto managed to dodge by a brink of a hair, but Draco took this moment to redirect the knife in his hand towards Kabuto's neck.

'I got him.' Draco smiled, pushing even more mana towards the little knife, seeing as Kabuto frowned, not being able to dodge away from the attack. As Draco almost finished the deadly onslaught, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his wrist, as the knife slipped away from his hand. Glancing down, he saw Kabuto having a little smile on his face.

'I have been had. Damn it.' Draco took a few steps away, grabbing onto his wrist. A strange white light emanated from Kabuto's both hands, one of them holding a kunai. Draco glanced around the room. There were tires spread all around, which would set off multiple kunais at Draco at just a simple flick of a finger.

"You pretended to be unconscious and tried to kill me? This is actually not that bad, but you overestimated your abilities." Kabuto stated, putting his glasses back in the place. "Surrender."

Draco stood still for a few moments. Surrendering meant death, and he couldn't let himself die. However, defeating this guy wasn't possible either. Just from their exchange alone, he understood he was no match, especially since Kabuto hadn't shown the full extent of his abilities.

If Draco had a sword, maybe he would have a chance to win, but he didn't dare to check. His plan to kill Kabuto had failed, hence prolonging the fight would just bring him to his demise. The longer they fought, the more likely that the reinforcements would come.

"General's Ambiance," Draco mumbled, a domineering aura escaping from his body. For a second, Kabuto thought he was standing before Orochimaru as an imaginary snake circled around him. Despite so, Kabuto promptly regained his composure, but no longer saw Draco standing there.

That one second was more than enough to break through the wooden doors. Some would say that running away was cowardly or stupid, but Draco cared only for his own skin, not the opinion of others.

However, it was still just a gamble.

He didn't know the exact structure of this building, nor did he know the number of forces inside. Hell, he didn't even know how to get out of here, but that was his last choice.

'Damn it. I need to be faster.' Draco heard a figure running behind him as he coated his legs in red mana, veins popping on his legs. Breathing heavily, like a wild beast, he exploded to form the spot, cracking the ground beneath him.

Kabuto wasn't prepared to witness such speeds, but it was still manageable for him to catch up. He could only see Draco's back in the distance as they run through the identical corridors.

While running, Draco tried his best to remember all the turns he took. Though, all of them were exactly the same, the only difference in their distance. It was very confusing, honestly.

"Damn it." Draco cursed, seeing that they were nearing a dead end. Though, there was another door in the distance, the only leftover hope for Draco. He increased his speed, even more, stopping beside it and kicking it open.

His eyes shook at what he saw.

Tens of bodies hung on ropes, their own flesh dismantled. The place reeked of a strong scent of blood - it was a more atrocious sight than everything he had ever seen so far. His eyes shook once again when he saw a figure standing in the middle, licking up the blood from its face.

It was Orochimaru, who was already aware of Draco's presence, as he appeared right before him. Draco took a step back, glancing to the side and seeing that Kabuto was already there, looking at him with complex eyes.

He was trapped.

There was no escaping.

'What now?' Draco frowned as he had never. He really didn't know what to do. Should he have just waited for Kabuto to open him up, and pretend like he was dead? Draco really didn't know.

Out of all the choices, he made the ones that seemed the most logical, yet he was still caught. Draco thought he had to say something, but nothing came to mind. Begging or proposing any deals was out of the question.

"Kabuto, it seems that everyone makes mistakes once in a while." Orochimaru smiled, appearing behind Draco in a blink of a second. It was impossible to react, for Draco didn't even understand how he fell to the ground, his consciousness fading away. Was he going to die again? Was his strength still so insignificant?

"I am sorry, Orochimaru-sama. It won't happen again." Kabuto bowed respectfully.

"Though I have to admit, you picked up something interesting here." Orochimaru noticed blood on Kabuto's cheek as he licked his lips like a mentally ill person. Amusement was clearly visible in his eyes. "He tricked one of the greatest spies and even managed to run away. Though he is a failure, he still has some potential."

"Orochimaru-sama, you don't mean..."

"Kabuto, throw him into the octagon. Let's see whether he will survive in this bunch." Orochimaru's head loosened from his body, falling against the ground with a quiet thud. Like a snake, it moved towards Draco's neck and bit into it, leaving behind a curse mark. "Maybe he will become not a bad addition to my forces."

"I see, Orochimaru-sama. I will put him there immediately." Kabuto bowed respectfully, once again grabbing Draco by the collar and throwing him on his shoulders. He took a few more seconds to scrutinize Draco's appearance, engraving it deep inside his mind. That little moment of fear he felt definitely wasn't a coincidence.

Kabuto double-checked Draco's pulse and used much more strength in his grip.

He won't make the same rookie mistake.