Deep within Amegakure village.
Having been summoned, Orochimaru once again found himself meeting the organization's leader.
Whenever he met the Deva Path, Orochimaru always paid particular attention to the eyes nestled within its sockets. This attitude wasn't even veiled, yet Nagato, hidden behind the Deva Path, seemed to have no objection… Everyone knew Orochimaru had joined Akatsuki with ulterior motives. Deliberately concealing his intentions would only make others suspect he not only had motives but might also be planning action. Thus, Orochimaru always presented his attitude with utter "frankness."
As if he were truly captivated by those eyes.
Nagato couldn't care less about Orochimaru's petty schemes. Taking ten thousand steps back, what if Orochimaru's plot actually succeeded? Could Orochimaru truly seize the Rinnegan from the Deva Path? Impossible. The real Rinnegan resided with Nagato; the eyes in the Deva Path's sockets were merely a projection or a mirror image.
To this day, Nagato himself had never been exposed before the members of the newly formed Akatsuki.
After briefly studying the leader, Orochimaru felt—perhaps it was an illusion—that his opponent's neck seemed somewhat stiff. Although the Deva Path maintained its usual expressionless face and cold demeanor, a slight lack of coordination in its body movements seemed unable to escape Orochimaru's keen eyes.
It seems Habara really is dead, Orochimaru thought. But even for the master of the Rinnegan, could one truly emerge unscathed after completely eliminating an enemy like Habara? It goes without saying that Habara is the type to take a vicious bite out of his opponent before dying… Orochimaru silently mulled over the possibility of the Deva Path being injured, and the potential severity of those injuries.
Is this an opportunity? Should I test the waters?
No. Orochimaru quickly dismissed the thought. Since the leader could still appear before him so openly, it meant he still possessed the confidence to overcome any challenge. Acting rashly now would only render all his previous efforts futile. He needed to continue lying low; a better opportunity would surely present itself.
Orochimaru himself might never admit it, but after having been defeated by the Deva Path once, he was, in fact, somewhat intimidated by the Rinnegan. It was precisely because he had witnessed the Rinnegan, and lost to it, that Orochimaru had joined this Akatsuki organization, playing house with these rogue ninjas from various lands.
Orochimaru was accustomed to taking risks, yet he became conservative at the most critical junctures. If he were to suddenly turn traitor now and launch a lightning-fast attack, perhaps… Well, actually, there was no 'perhaps'. Orochimaru might cause Nagato some trouble, but he had no real hope of actually defeating him.
However, if one were to ask the current Nagato whether he was willing to fight Orochimaru, Nagato, still recovering, would also lean towards avoiding battle… It was the same reason he didn't want to fight Jiraiya right now.
"Jiraiya has entered the Land of Rain," the Deva Path stated upon seeing Orochimaru. "Orochimaru, I have a mission for you. Using your private identity, lure him away. Try your best not to expose the organization's presence. Aside from eliminating certain necessary eyesores, the organization does not currently wish to engage in direct conflict with the major ninja villages."
Nagato and Uchiha Obito had recognized that Habara represented a significant variable and, simultaneously, couldn't allow a ninja of such strength to continue growing unchecked. Hence, they decided to directly eliminate this problem. However, this didn't mean they desired full-scale conflict with the great villages. For their plan to proceed smoothly, their current focus was on accumulating strength and developing discreetly.
Orochimaru and Jiraiya were former teammates, both hailed as members of the "Sannin," and could be considered roughly equal in strength. This was why Nagato instructed Orochimaru to lure Jiraiya away, rather than eliminate him.
"Jiraiya has entered the Land of Rain?" Orochimaru wasn't particularly concerned about Jiraiya, but he had to admit Jiraiya was a nuisance. "Is this matter related to the organization's prior decision to eliminate the Konoha ninja Habara?"
This latter sentence was rather pointedly rhetorical. It was obvious Jiraiya's sudden appearance in the Land of Rain was connected to Habara's death. But how had Jiraiya managed to pinpoint the Land of Rain so accurately? Was the leader so sloppy in his affairs, leaving behind loose ends and clues? Or did Jiraiya possess some knowledge regarding the "eyes"...?
Based on Habara having previously mentioned an understanding of the "Technique of All Creation," he likely recognized the Rinnegan. If he recognized it, then it was highly probable that this information was transmitted back to Konoha before his death.
"Perhaps it is related," the Deva Path responded noncommittally. "Are there any other questions?"
"No, none. I know Jiraiya quite well; stopping him won't be a problem." Orochimaru offered a slight smile, finally retracting his probing gaze.
Meanwhile, Jiraiya was stealthily approaching Amegakure village. An hour later, regardless of how cautious and professional his movements were, he was still intercepted with pinpoint accuracy… Nagato's reconnaissance methods had a feel of "one force overwhelming ten techniques"; no matter how intricate your infiltration skills, you were essentially discovered the moment you set foot in the Land of Rain.
"Your infiltration methods are still so old-fashioned, Jiraiya." The person blocking Jiraiya's path was none other than Orochimaru.
"Orochimaru…"
Jiraiya hadn't expected to encounter Orochimaru at this time either.
Life truly is strange. When you desperately search for nail clippers, they're nowhere to be found. But when you're looking for your door keys, you suddenly stumble upon the nail clippers.
Orochimaru's appearance was overly coincidental, leading Jiraiya to suspect he might once again be involved in some conspiracy targeting Konoha.
"It's rare that we meet like this; I suppose this counts as fate. Coincidentally, Jiraiya, there's something I wanted to show you. In this particular field, you could be considered my senior in life."
Orochimaru seemed relaxed about it. Although he hadn't wanted to see Jiraiya, since their meeting was unavoidable, he adopted a relatively cheerful demeanor.
After speaking, Orochimaru's body began to undergo some kind of transformation.
Jiraiya's expression turned grave with shock. Watching Orochimaru, he whispered softly, "Sage chakra…"
Naruto's nighttime mapmaking activities naturally couldn't be hidden from the kindergarten teachers. Although these teachers wouldn't spread such news widely, an event this glorious was bound to circulate within small circles.
It couldn't be helped; the "physical evidence" always needed washing and drying. Some particularly sharp-minded children were exceptionally skilled at deduction, perhaps even capable of uttering lines like, "There is always only one truth!"
For adults, a child of this age wetting the bed was a normal phenomenon; little kids indeed had poor control over their floodgates. But for Naruto himself, such an occurrence was, of course, unacceptable. Incidents like this were enough to make him "red hot" with embarrassment and anger.
He still had to desperately explain to his friends that this tragedy was absolutely not due to any personal failing on his part.
"Neji, you have to believe me! It wasn't my fault at all! Someone must have controlled me with genjutsu! Late at night, I was pulled into this really dark place, and there were two giant foxes there! I… I fought those two foxes for hours! Only after I beat them did the genjutsu break, but by then, a long time had already passed!"
The more Naruto tried to explain, the less reliable he sounded. Fighting foxes, really? His imagination was certainly rich.
Neji, in reality, paid absolutely no attention to what Naruto was saying. Whether Uzumaki Naruto wet the bed or not, the fact remained the fact. What did it possibly have to do with Hyuga Neji? However, Kakashi, who had just arrived, happened to overhear this conversation. Hearing the word "foxes" from Naruto's mouth was something Kakashi couldn't possibly ignore.
The situation in Konoha and its branch settlement, Shadow Leaf, was currently quite tense. Habara's disappearance remained unresolved, and the identity of the mysterious enemy hadn't been ascertained. For the ninja aware of the recent events, there was a palpable sense of unease. Kakashi himself couldn't offer much help.
Yet, the more critical the time, the less one should panic. Facing major events required inner calm. Regardless of his mood, Kakashi continued his daily tasks, following procedures as usual.
Kakashi had come to the kindergarten to teach a class on ninja tools. Jonin were typically very busy; even Konoha couldn't afford the luxury of assigning Jonin as full-time teachers in the Academy. However, according to the village's new teaching plan, certain high-ranking Jonin were required to complete a set number of teaching hours at the school each year. Failure to do so could potentially lead to demotion from Jonin to Chunin… Honestly, it was a rather strict regulation. The difference in treatment between Chunin and Jonin was significant.
Setting aside the Jonin's grumbling, this regulation would at least drastically improve the quality of teaching at the Ninja Academy, allowing the school to fully realize its educational function.
Even someone with connections like Hatake Kakashi had to abide by these new rules. When it was time to work, one had to work diligently.
Upon suddenly hearing Naruto talk about foxes, Kakashi couldn't help but worry whether something had gone wrong with the Nine-Tails' seal. He quickly walked over to Naruto and asked directly, "Naruto, the fox you mentioned—was it large, orange, and did it have nine tails?"
Naruto finally found someone willing to believe his words. He thought for a moment, then answered seriously, "It had lots of tails, but I didn't count exactly how many. One of them was a big orange fox, but the other one, the even bigger one, wasn't that color."
Kakashi: "…"
Sigh, he thought silently. Can't rely on Naruto for details. Better check the Nine-Tails' seal myself after class…
Poor Naruto. He was speaking the plain truth, yet Kakashi mentally categorized it as evidence of an underdeveloped infant brain, with language expression and logical summarization skills approximating zero… To say Kakashi thought Naruto was intellectually disabled would be misinterpreting him. However, he did occasionally harbor doubts about whether Naruto's intelligence met the average standard for primates. If it didn't, wouldn't that imply all the diapers Kakashi had changed over the previous years were a wasted effort?
After the class concluded, Kakashi called Naruto over to his side again. He first performed an external examination, finding no signs of Nine-Tails chakra leakage. Then, he decided to take a look at the Nine-Tails' situation within the seal.
Kakashi took hold of Naruto, squatted down, placed one hand on Naruto's shoulder, bringing his own eyes level with the boy's, and said, "Naruto, look into my eyes."
His Sharingan eye turned red, revealing three tomoe. Then, the tomoe connected, forming a unique pattern—his Mangekyo.
Using the power of his Mangekyo Sharingan, Kakashi easily peered through the seal on Naruto's body. His consciousness descended, arriving before the giant "prison" gates.
Peering through the iron bars, the scene within the seal truly left Kakashi stunned.
Naruto had been right. There really were two foxes inside. And at that moment, the large fox was… playing with the small fox.
Then, he saw the large fox glance towards him, the uninvited guest. He then heard it speak in human language:
"Kakashi-senpai, have you finished developing the Flying Raijin encapsulation formula yet?"
Kakashi: "…"
Huh…?
Th-this isn't right, Kakashi thought, bewildered. Is the Nine-Tails' fur supposed to be this color? And why would a Tailed Beast care if a Konoha ninja is working overtime?
Wait a second? That tone sounds kind of familiar.
Hmm?Hmm???Holy Sht!*