"Nagato, huh? He's doing well," Orochimaru said with narrowed eyes.
He glanced at Minato and reminded him, "Even though you've just returned to the village, you need to be ready. If Amegakure asks us for help, the only ones who can respond quickly enough are you or Jiraiya. But Jiraiya is currently stationed in the Land of Rivers in Nagato's place."
"So that means… only me, then?" Minato nodded in understanding.
His Flying Thunder God technique really did make him the fastest option for support.
And the impact he alone could have far surpassed that of an elite squad.
After Minato left the Hokage's office, Nara Kagetsu didn't leave immediately.
Instead, he walked over to Orochimaru's desk.
"I need you to pass along a piece of intel to the Second Hokage," Orochimaru said to Kagetsu.
"Tell him… Uchiha Setsuna is in the Land of Water."
"Uchiha Setsuna?" Kagetsu's mind immediately recalled the chaos caused in Konoha when Kushina gave birth — the time White Zetsu infiltrated the village.
Even though Konoha had responded well and minimized the damage, it was also clear that White Zetsu and his allies had achieved one of their goals.
And that goal was Uchiha Setsuna.
A rogue member of the Uchiha Clan, impossible to reason with — someone akin to the extremist duo of the Cloud Village, the Gold and Silver Brothers.
A staunch militant and a devoted follower of Uchiha Madara's ideology.
Since his escape from prison, he had never shown himself in the shinobi world again.
And now… he's in the Land of Water?
"Yes," Orochimaru said softly. "It's highly likely he's now acting as Madara's proxy and plotting something. Possibly related to what's written on the Uchiha Stone Tablet — the so-called Eye of the Moon Plan."
"Let the Second investigate it."
"Is there anything else I should let him know?" Kagetsu asked, sensing Orochimaru had more to say.
"Let the Second secretly investigate. We can't alert the enemy."
Orochimaru tapped his fingers lightly on the table as he stood up and replied.
"The reason?" Kagetsu blinked slowly. "Without a proper reason, with the Second's temperament…"
He didn't finish the sentence, but he believed Orochimaru understood exactly what he meant.
Tobirama Senju had always had strong opinions of his own.
Even when Hashirama was still alive, Tobirama often acted according to his own will.
Without a proper excuse or justification now, he might simply act based on how he judged the situation.
Especially now—this Second Hokage in the Land of Water was only a split-off clone of the original. In some ways, he might even be more obsessive than the real one.
"I'm worried he might end up eliminating my pawn as well," Orochimaru sighed.
Yet, his face showed no signs of worry or defeat. In fact, there was a glint of excitement in his eyes.
"You mean… the Soul Cursed Clone?" Kagetsu suddenly recalled the Hōgyoku ability Orochimaru had developed.
"Yes, the Soul Cursed Clone—Hiruko!" Orochimaru admitted openly without any hesitation. "I was the one who let Hiruko escape. I implanted my unique Hōgyoku curse seal into his soul."
"Chimera Technique?" Kagetsu asked.
He knew very well the function of the Hōgyoku curse seal—it was a possession technique, like a cuckoo laying eggs in another bird's nest.
Once the seal was planted, it worked like a seed.
The cursed host would slowly gain a portion of the Hōgyoku's power, their body gradually reshaped, and even their mind would be influenced.
It was as if the seed were being watered and fertilized, given all it needed to grow strong and bear fruit.
Then, when the other party bears fruit, it will be the time of harvest and occupation.
At that time, everything in the cursed seal body will be invaded and devoured by Orochimaru.
During the harvest, it's somewhat like the main and branch families of the Otsutsuki clan, where one can completely devour the other; during the growth period, it's more like the main and branch families of the Hyuga clan, where the cursed seal can influence the other.
What Orochimaru values about Hiruko seems to be only the forbidden technique called Chimera Technique.
This forbidden technique is said to be able to merge multiple Kekkei Genkai and transform a ninja's life form through a leap.
Once successful, it can create a powerful and nearly immortal life form!
But the risks of losing control and death also increase as more Kekkei Genkai are merged.
"He is struggling very hard to survive," Orochimaru sighed lightly.
The Hogyoku's cursed seal can share part of its vision with the cursed seal body.
Although Hiruko tried many ways to seal the cursed seal's power after escaping, the energy quality inside the Hogyoku's cursed seal is far greater than Hiruko's own chakra.
This makes it very difficult for Hiruko's sealing techniques, no matter how refined, to completely seal the cursed seal's power.
This gave Orochimaru space to observe and manipulate.
Although he cannot always focus on that place, and it is difficult to share the other's mental awareness when their emotions are calm, the cursed seal can still send him some images when needed, allowing him to analyze enough information.
This time, when the cursed seal fluctuated, he became curious and sensed Hiruko's location and the people he saw.
Hiruko clearly discovered something, which led him to the Land of Water.
Or rather, it was the side represented by Madara who found him and guided him to go there.
"This reason won't limit the Second Hokage," Kagetsu shook his head.
"Then forget it. Although I really want to see the ultimate form of the Chimera Technique, if Hiruko dies before perfect evolution, it means he can only reach this stage.
The Second Hokage may not put his focus on him, and he will not serve Madara with all his strength. Whether he survives or not depends on his fate."
Orochimaru thought for a moment, then smiled lightly.
As for whether Hiruko could defeat Senju Tobirama by strength alone?
After sparring with Tobirama and seeing his Hogyoku mode, Orochimaru could only say the chance of success was nearly zero.
Tobirama's Hogyoku mode is a natural enemy to all ninjas who fight by relying solely on chakra!
His power suppresses all ninja techniques!
Except for taijutsu, whether ninjutsu or anything else, it is comparable to the Rinnegan's control over chakra!
"Is there anything else you want me to convey?" Kagetsu asked again.
"Remember to remind the Second Hokage that Uchiha Setsuna's eyes are Mangekyou Sharingan," Orochimaru recalled the moment he saw from Hiruko.
It was precisely because Uchiha Setsuna revealed those eyes to Hiruko and invaded his mind with powerful yin-release genjutsu that disturbed the Hogyoku's power that Orochimaru also saw those eyes.
The opponent's ocular power even affected the Hogyoku's strength, at least interfering with its ability to send information and signals to Orochimaru.
Orochimaru clearly felt that the Hogyoku's power on Hiruko was temporarily disconnected from him under the dual seal of sealing jutsu and the Mangekyou's ocular power.
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