Nightfall.
Three shinobi emerged from the Intelligence Division's building. They were part of the interrogation team, tasked by the Hokage's Office to interrogate Orochimaru in the secret prison tonight.
Within the safety of the village, the three were somewhat relaxed, casually chatting as they walked toward the secret prison.
But as they reached a secluded stretch of road, a sudden swish swish sound pierced the air.
"Enemy attack!?"
The three froze, instantly on edge.
Two of them assumed defensive positions, while the third reached for the ninja tool pouch at their waist, preparing to fire a signal flare into the sky.
However, at that moment, three dark figures shot out from different directions, accompanied by the sound of rushing wind, closing in on them in an instant.
The clash was immediate—and just as quickly, it ended.
No question about it.
The ones who launched the ambush were none other than Yakushi Kabuto, Guren, and Jugo, who had been lying in wait.
Their strength far surpassed that of the interrogation team's shinobi, and with the element of surprise on their side, the three interrogators didn't even have a chance to fire a flare before Kabuto's group swiftly took them down.
After searching one of the interrogators and retrieving the pass to access the secret prison, Kabuto glanced toward a nearby shadow. "Now, how we get the code depends on your methods."
From the shadows, a figure stepped forward.
It was, of course, Karin, operating under the Akatsuki's 'B' identity, guiding Kabuto and his group to infiltrate Hidden Leaf and rescue Orochimaru.
Without a word, she approached the interrogator from whom the pass had been taken and placed a hand on their forehead.
"What's she doing?"
The same question flashed through the minds of Kabuto, Guren, and Jugo.
Interrogation—whether through torture, drugs, or genjutsu—typically required the target to be conscious. If the target was completely unconscious, many genjutsu techniques wouldn't work.
Moreover, these were Hidden Leaf interrogation team shinobi. Having handled numerous interrogations, they were privy to many secrets and thus had multiple seals and restrictions placed on them to prevent sensitive information from leaking if captured.
As Kabuto's group puzzled over this, they saw 'B' lift her hand slightly from the interrogator's forehead, drawing out a humanoid chakra silhouette from their body.
"What is that!?"
The sight sent a chill through Kabuto, Guren, and Jugo.
Having followed Orochimaru, they had seen all sorts of strange and forbidden techniques, so they immediately suspected the humanoid chakra silhouette extracted by 'B' was likely the interrogator's soul.
This realization shook them to their core.
Even Orochimaru, obsessed with secret and forbidden techniques, rarely dabbled in matters involving souls. Yet here was this figure, casually extracting a soul from a body right before their eyes—it was enough to make their blood run cold!
What Karin was using, of course, was a dojutsu of the Rinnegan—specifically, the Human Path's Soul Extraction Technique.
She had initially intended to use the gentler Mind Reading Technique to probe the interrogator's memories, but she found their mind guarded by multiple barriers, impenetrable even to her technique. Thus, she resorted to the Soul Extraction Technique, pulling the soul out to read its memories directly.
Naturally, Karin didn't kill the interrogator. After obtaining the code, she released the Soul Extraction Technique, allowing the soul to return to its body.
Even so, it was likely this interrogator would never function as a shinobi again.
After relaying the temporary code to Kabuto, Karin said coldly, "You don't need me to tell you what to do next, do you?"
"Don't worry!"
Kabuto adjusted his glasses with a smile.
He then hid the unconscious interrogation team in some bushes, cleaned up the scene, and, along with Guren and Jugo, used the Transformation Jutsu to take on the appearances of the three interrogators. With calm composure, they headed toward the secret prison.
Karin leaped onto a tree, keeping watch over Kabuto's group from a distance.
True to his reputation as a seasoned spy, Kabuto, armed with the pass and code, easily passed the guards at the secret prison's entrance and strode confidently inside.
Following Karin's intelligence, he navigated deeper into the prison, facing various checkpoints and hidden sentries without flinching. Thus, they reached Orochimaru's cell without incident.
The Anbu guarding Orochimaru's cell had already been notified of the interrogation team's arrival. With the pass and code matching, they promptly opened the cell door.
As Guren and Jugo, barely containing their excitement, prepared to enter the cell, Kabuto turned to the Anbu at the door and said, "The upcoming interrogation involves classified matters. Please step away."
The Anbu frowned slightly but nodded and moved away from the cell.
With a faint smile, Kabuto watched the Anbu leave before leading Guren and Jugo into Orochimaru's cell. Inside, he knelt on one knee before the heavily bound Orochimaru. "Lord Orochimaru!"
Orochimaru, unsurprised, curled his lips into a slight smile.
Poof poof poof. With three puffs of white smoke, Kabuto, Guren, and Jugo dispelled their Transformation Jutsu, revealing their true appearances before Orochimaru.
As Kabuto began undoing the seals on Orochimaru, he said, "It was the Akatsuki's 'B' who guided us in. She's likely keeping watch outside right now."
"That one…"
Orochimaru's gaze sharpened.
Having suffered a major loss to Itachi, Orochimaru held a deep wariness of Mangekyo Uchiha. And the Akatsuki's 'B' had a formidable reputation, likely no less powerful than Itachi.
Before long, most of the seals on Orochimaru were undone, though some special restrictions remained, which Kabuto couldn't remove immediately.
Guren spoke up. "Lord Orochimaru, what do we do next?"
They had entered disguised as the interrogation team, but leaving wouldn't be so easy. The Anbu guarding Orochimaru's cell alone would be impossible to fool, and with sentries posted throughout the prison, slipping out unnoticed was nearly impossible.
Orochimaru smiled. "Open every cell!"
Guren was shocked. "You want to release all the prisoners here?"
"If we don't cause some trouble for Hidden Leaf, how will we get out?" Orochimaru paused, then added, "Don't worry. The Akatsuki went to all this effort—they won't let us get cornered by Hidden Leaf here."
"Yes, sir!"
Kabuto, Guren, and Jugo responded in unison. They rushed out of the cell, swiftly incapacitating the Anbu guarding Orochimaru's cell, then proceeded to unlock every cell door along the way.