"That's Orochimaru we're talking about. Even with his arms disabled, he's a dangerous man."
As he watched Sasuke approach Anko Mitarashi and begin forming hand signs, clearly intending to revive Orochimaru, beads of sweat began to form on Suigetsu Hozuki's face.
He leaned in close to Sasuke and lowered his voice, his expression full of reluctance.
"We finally managed to take him down. If Orochimaru comes back, we'll be dragged into all sorts of trouble. He'll just try to take over your body again. Are you really okay with that?"
"Besides, you've already obtained those new eyes. Even if you break the deal now, that mysterious guy won't be a match for you. Let's just leave."
"Suigetsu, shut up. Don't break my concentration," Sasuke said coldly, completely unmoved by Suigetsu's persuasion.
Seeing Sasuke remain indifferent, Suigetsu walked over to Jugo. Before he could even speak, Jugo cut him off.
"I will follow Sasuke's will."
Jugo extended his hand, his entire arm transforming into a hard, keratinized shell that he pressed against Kabuto Yakushi's chest.
With a squeeze, the flesh on Kabuto's body turned into a slurry, which Jugo easily pulled away as a lump of meat.
Watching this, Suigetsu's eye flickered. "Jugo, you're weird too. What kind of ability is that?"
"In my village, we call this Sage Transformation. It is the essence of my change. You should be familiar with its copies—the Cursed Seals," Jugo explained. He held the lump of flesh, walked to Sasuke's side, and placed it over the Cursed Seal on the back of Anko's neck.
Upon contact with Anko, the flesh spread out and merged into her skin. The Cursed Seal at the center seemed to come alive, burning through the flesh.
The seal began to pulse, but it didn't react violently, as it was clearly still suppressed by a seal.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes, recalling how Kakashi had once sealed his own Cursed Seal. He already had the solution in mind.
"The reverse of that technique—Evil Releasing Method!"
His hands moved rapidly through signs, then he pressed his palm over the seal.
As the seal broke, a red glow emanated from it. Feeling the heat beneath his palm, Sasuke slowly withdrew his hand.
A bulge formed on the back of Anko's neck, and a massive snake head emerged, rapidly growing thicker than a human torso.
The snake's head rested on the ground, its mouth hanging open as a figure slowly emerged from within.
First came the head and hands. The hands gripped the sides of the giant snake's mouth, pulling the rest of the body out. Slime dripped onto the ground as the figure emerged.
Pale skin, wet long hair, purple eye shadow extending to the bridge of the nose, and amber slit pupils like a serpent's.
It was Orochimaru.
Terrified by Orochimaru's appearance, Suigetsu scrambled behind Jugo, his body nearly liquefying in fear.
Jugo and Karin also tensed up, wary of Orochimaru's next move.
Standing on the ground, Orochimaru looked at Sasuke and instinctively licked his lips.
His raspy, low voice echoed.
"I didn't expect it would be you who revived me, Sasuke."
"This is a deal I made with someone else," Sasuke said, his expression neutral and his voice cold, showing none of the tension his companions felt.
"You've just been revived, so you probably don't understand the current situation. Do you need an explanation?"
"No need."
Orochimaru chuckled.
"My chakra was inside Anko. I saw everything through her eyes, including the invisible attack she suffered and how she was brought here."
As he spoke, Orochimaru looked at the mysterious man standing to the side.
His snake-like eyes stared straight at the Sharingan behind the mask. He narrowed his eyes slightly, a dangerous smile playing on his lips.
"Another pair of Mangekyo Sharingan. So, you're from the Uchiha clan."
"Orochimaru, your entrance is as disgusting as ever."
Fugaku felt a sense of relief seeing Orochimaru successfully revived. This meant the original plan had a chance of success, and they could finally obtain the souls of the four Hokages.
However, seeing the man covered in slime made Fugaku's brow furrow.
Shisui and Setsuna felt the same, their faces showing a hint of revulsion.
"I asked Sasuke to revive you because there is something I need you to do," Fugaku said concisely.
"And if I refuse?"
"No, you won't! You don't have the power to refuse right now!" Fugaku stared at Orochimaru and said coldly, "After all, by undoing the Reaper Death Seal, you'll be able to regain your arms."
"It seems you know a lot about me."
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes again, sizing up the mysterious man as his eyes glinted with an unreadable light.
After a moment of thought, he nodded slowly.
"Fine, I'll do it for you."
Hearing this, Fugaku pulled a small vial from his robes and tossed it to Orochimaru.
"Now, I want to see your skills."
"Summon this person's soul from the Pure Land."
Orochimaru caught the vial. A name was written on it, and a piece of flesh was preserved inside.
He understood immediately.
"You want me to perform the Reanimation Jutsu."
"Since you know me so well, you must know that when that old man, the Third, used the Reaper Death Seal to seal my arms, he took his own soul along with the First and Second."
"You've gone to such lengths to revive me, knowing I can use the Reanimation Jutsu, and you even brought Kabuto Yakushi along as a backup in case I didn't cooperate..."
He glanced at the dazed Kabuto Yakushi nearby.
"Then... your purpose is clear. You're planning to revive the former Hokages, aren't you?"
Fugaku said coldly, "That is none of your concern."
"If you don't want to say, then fine. Let me ask another question." Orochimaru shook the small vial. "Who is this inside?"
"You don't need to know."
"But the Reanimation Jutsu requires a living sacrifice. Here..."
Before Orochimaru could finish, Fugaku interrupted him.
"A rebirth is not necessary!"
"I told you, just summon the soul from the Pure Land."
Orochimaru frowned, looking at the mysterious man in confusion.
Summoning only the soul without reviving them...
What was the plan?
Various thoughts crossed Orochimaru's mind, but he couldn't find a logical reason.
Although he could see through Anko's eyes, his vision was limited to her perspective.
He lacked enough information to make an inference.
Orochimaru suppressed his curiosity and glanced at the dazed Kabuto.
"I've just been revived and my body is weak. I need to reclaim the chakra within Kabuto. Is that a problem?"
"Do as you wish."
With permission granted, Orochimaru walked over to Kabuto and placed a hand on his shoulder.
Kabuto had performed various surgeries on himself, and his body was filled with a large amount of Orochimaru's chakra.
Under Orochimaru's touch, the snake-like features on Kabuto's body began to recede at a visible rate.
His Sage Mode deactivated. His skin returned to its normal color, the purple eye shadow and horns faded away, and his amber slit pupils became normal eyes. Even the snake at his abdomen vanished.
As the chakra returned to him, Orochimaru's eyes narrowed. A strange look flashed across his face, but he quickly suppressed it.
In a realm invisible to the living, Shisui stood next to Orochimaru. His Mangekyo Sharingan was active, staring intently at Orochimaru, capturing every micro-expression.
Shisui turned to Fugaku and Setsuna. "It seems he learned something from Kabuto."
"It doesn't matter if he noticed. We intended for him to know some of it eventually. It's just a bit sooner than planned."
Setsuna chuckled, his voice filled with certainty.
"Orochimaru is a rare talent who thinks he has returned to the ninja world upon his revival."
"Little does he know that from the moment he was brought back, his soul no longer belongs to him."
Fugaku didn't speak, only offering a barely perceptible nod.
Seeing that Orochimaru had reclaimed his chakra and his expression had returned to normal, Fugaku asked, "Why not absorb your subordinate's chakra as well? Wouldn't that help you recover faster?"
"Reclaiming my own power is enough."
Orochimaru looked around the courtyard and asked, "Shall I perform the Reanimation Jutsu here?"
"Right here."
Orochimaru said no more. Clutching the glass vial, he walked to a nearby open space.
He crushed the vial, took out the piece of flesh, and placed it before him.
He then looked at Sasuke. "Sasuke, my hands cannot form signs. Help me."
Sasuke looked at Fugaku, thought for a moment, then walked to Orochimaru's side. His hands moved in a blur of signs.
"Reanimation Jutsu!"
Orochimaru shouted coldly. He slammed his hands onto the ground, and the black formula for the Reanimation Jutsu surfaced.
Invisible to everyone else, a sleeping soul emerged from the center of the formula.
He wore black robes similar to those of the Akatsuki but without the red cloud pattern. He had short orange hair, looking exactly like the Deva Path of Pain that Shisui had seen.
Shisui immediately pulled out an orb, channeled Spiritual Pressure into it, and sucked the soul inside.
After completing the sequence smoothly, he nodded to Fugaku and the other, then tucked the orb into his robes.
Yahiko's soul had been successfully retrieved.
Seeing this, Fugaku said to Orochimaru, "That's enough, Orochimaru."
Orochimaru immediately canceled the technique, and the markings on the ground faded away.
He looked at Fugaku. His pale face had grown significantly more solemn, and a flicker of uncertainty crossed his amber eyes.
Fugaku ignored Orochimaru's reaction and said with satisfaction, "Well done. Next, we go to undo the Reaper Death Seal."
Orochimaru said, "To undo the Reaper Death Seal, we must return to the Hidden Leaf."
"The Hidden Leaf?" Fugaku frowned beneath his mask. "Why?"
Orochimaru explained, "The Reaper Death Seal is a secret sealing technique from the Uzumaki clan. After the Land of Eddies was destroyed, these sealing techniques, along with the Uzumaki descendants, were taken in by the Hidden Leaf. You should know this."
After a pause, seeing Fugaku nod slightly, Orochimaru continued, "When the Uzumaki clan entered the Hidden Leaf, they built a shrine on the outskirts of the village called the Mask Storage Temple."
"To break the Reaper Death Seal, we need a Reaper mask enshrined in that temple. It is the key to the seal."
"I see."
Fugaku had heard of the Mask Storage Temple.
His wife, Mikoto, was close friends with Kushina Uzumaki, and he had heard things from her.
"Then we leave for the Hidden Leaf immediately!"
"Wait!"
Sasuke's cold voice rang out.
His crimson Sharingan reflected Fugaku's silhouette.
He still hadn't figured out the mysterious man's identity, and he wouldn't let him go so easily.
"Take me with you."
"Sasuke..." Fugaku's brow furrowed. "Your part is done. Why do you want to come?"
"War has broken out outside. This conflict was started to capture the Nine-Tails. Aren't you going to help your Jinchuriki friend?"
'Although that blond kid's feelings for Sasuke were clearly unusual—perhaps even overwhelming for most—for an Uchiha, they were just right.'
Regardless, he was the Fourth Hokage's son. As long as the two didn't cause any trouble, Fugaku had no complaints.
With Sasuke so deeply mired in darkness, having a friend like that might at least pull him back when it mattered most.
"The Hidden Leaf is my enemy. Naruto is a ninja of the Leaf, so he is also my enemy. Why would I help my enemy?"
Sasuke's expression grew cold, but the image of Naruto's determined face involuntarily flickered in his mind.
He quickly suppressed the rising emotion and looked at the mysterious man.
Before dealing with Naruto, he had to uncover this man's true identity!
"Aren't you going to break the Reaper Death Seal?"
"I remember the Third Hokage sealed Orochimaru's arms along with his own soul."
"I have things to ask the Third about what happened that night with the Uchiha."
Seeing this, a smile touched Orochimaru's face as he tested Fugaku. "Since Sasuke wants to go so badly, why not bring him along? It's not like he'll be in the way, right?"
Fugaku studied Orochimaru and the determined Sasuke. After a moment of consideration, he finally nodded.
"Fine. Come along."
Seeing Fugaku agree, Orochimaru's gaze flickered between Sasuke and Fugaku, his eyes glinting with thought.
'He actually agreed?'
'I only made the suggestion to test the relationship between this mysterious man and Sasuke. I didn't expect it to be accepted so easily.'
Combined with those Mangekyo Sharingan and the information he got from Kabuto, a theory began to form in Orochimaru's mind.
Similarly, Sasuke could sense that the mysterious man had special feelings for him.
'His true identity must be someone related to me.'
He looked back at Karin and the others. "Bring my companions too. They might be useful later."
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]