Chapter 452: Tenji
Inside Konoha Village.
Masahiko followed Hiruzen and Jiraiya as they slowly stepped into a low-rise building near the Hokage Office, heading underground through a concealed passage.
"I've actually never been here before."
"Senior..." Jiraiya paused, giving a bitter smile and shaking his head. "Calling you Senior like this right now feels incredibly awkward. You're saying Orochimaru... isn't dead?"
"You two should know him best. He got blasted onto the Four Red Yang Formation and burned to ash by the barrier, just like that? Dead, simple as that?"
"It does feel a bit bizarre. We maintained the barrier and checked carefully back then, and Karin Uzumaki also confirmed that his chakra vanished at that exact instant. If he's not dead... how did he slip away?"
Masahiko pondered for a moment. "Maybe he used the Transformation Jutsu to turn into a fly, and you guys just missed it?"
Jiraiya: "..."
Masahiko was also racking his brain over Orochimaru's method of escape, but he was completely clueless... It was a pity he hadn't been right next to him at the time.
Could he really turn into a fly and fly out... No, even if he turned into a fly, he wouldn't know how to fly anyway. It's not like he's Sun-chu-maru... Or maybe he really died, and then resurrected using some kind of method?
Before they even reached the bottom of the stairs, the three ran straight into Ibiki and Inoichi Yamanaka coming the other way.
"Lord Third, Lord Jiraiya!" The two bowed in greeting, while stealthily sizing up Masahiko.
Feeling helpless, Masahiko transformed back to his older self with a loud poof. "It's me."
"Senior!" The two wore eccentric expressions, completely unable to fathom what Masahiko was trying to achieve by turning into a child...
"Did you successfully extract the intelligence?" Hiruzen asked.
The two exchanged a look, and Inoichi nodded. "They are ninjas from the Hidden Sound Village in the Land of Rice Fields, and the Hidden Sound Village is a village established by Orochimaru."
"A village established by Orochimaru?" Hiruzen and Jiraiya looked at each other in surprise.
"The four of them are the high-ranking executives of the Hidden Sound Village. There are only three people whose status ranks above theirs. A female ninja named Guren who uses Crystal Style, a long-winded chatterbox named Hidan... and a mole Orochimaru planted deep within Konoha. The large-scale Genjutsu from earlier was released by him."
"A mole inside Konoha?" Hiruzen knit his brows slightly. "What is this person's identity?"
Ibiki shook his head. "It wasn't in their memories."
Masahiko hesitated briefly but didn't utter Kabuto's name. He had already screwed Orochimaru over pretty badly this time; kicking him while he was down further would make even him feel a bit embarrassed...
"Furthermore, Orochimaru's purpose for this trip was to assassinate you, Lord Third."
"Is that so?" Hiruzen's expression grew complex.
Masahiko let out a light cough, interrupting Hiruzen who was about to reminisce about the past. "You know how to confirm whether Orochimaru survived or not now, right? Send people to the Hidden Sound Village. As long as Guren and Hidan aren't there, but everyone else is, it basically proves Orochimaru isn't dead."
Jiraiya nodded. Based on Orochimaru's style of doing things, he would indeed do that... Unimportant people would be cast aside.
"I'll lead the squad over. Adding Itachi and Kiba will be more than enough."
Hiruzen paused, turning to Masahiko. "Senior, what is your stance?"
"Go ahead... But if you really encounter that guy named Hidan, be careful not to let him injure you. He has an immortal body and can use curses."
"The one from the Jashin Cult?" Jiraiya showed a hint of surprise. "Back then, Orochimaru... I understand!"
Jiraiya vanished via Body Flicker. Facing Masahiko, Hiruzen looked as though he wanted to say something but was holding back, which made Masahiko laugh inwardly.
"Want to ask how I know so much? Or want to know if Orochimaru coming to Konoha has anything to do with me?" Masahiko shook his head. "I can't tell you the specifics. You just need to know that Orochimaru didn't intend to kill you. Also, the destruction in the western residential district earlier was from the clash between that silly cat and Shisui Uchiha. I can pay for the damages. Using the money I won from the Chunin Exams!"
Hiruzen was startled, and a bold thought suddenly popped into his mind. Masahiko couldn't have invited Orochimaru to Konoha to cause trouble just so he could win money, right...
However, he only dared to think it. Speaking it aloud... wouldn't be good for anyone.
"I understand, Senior." Hiruzen nodded, his expression unreadable. "Shisui, who has been missing for so long, has returned. If Obito finds out how much he has suffered, I'm afraid he might lose his composure... I'll go check on him."
The Sound Four were locked up, waiting for Jiraiya to send word back from the Hidden Sound Village before a final decision regarding their disposal would be made—whether to use them as bait to lure Orochimaru out, or to keep them imprisoned.
Since the founding of Konoha, the village hadn't executed the death penalty very many times, and these four weren't considered high-profile criminals either.
The cute little fat kid Jirobo from back then had grown up rather horribly. Masahiko appraised him for a while, shaking his head without requesting his custody; getting Orochimaru's subordinates to 'defect' wasn't an easy task either.
These four did remind Masahiko, though; he could have Kimimaro assemble a Land of Whirlpools Five Sound Ninjas, which would definitely fetch some Witness Points.
But right now, Masahiko threw all those matters to the wind. Heading straight to Kushina's house, he flopped down onto Naruto's bed and plunged his consciousness directly into the spiritual space...
Inside the Spiritual Space, at the tea house.
Aside from Hashirama, who had gone to catch up with the 'untamed beast', everyone else was smiling broadly as they gathered around Chiyo Uchiha, listening to her recount tales of the Warring States period, with Masahiko's grandnephew occasionally chiming in to supplement her stories.
Masahiko's figure slowly coalesced. First, he evaluated his own appearance...
My soul hasn't changed? True, if this Genjutsu could even reduce the age of my soul, it would be far too terrifying.
"Granduncle!" Tobirama noticed his arrival, and the others systematically greeted him, though their expressions... were all a bit eccentric.
Masahiko let out a sigh. His elder authority was completely gone this time, though it wasn't like he really had any before anyway...
"Chiyo, are you satisfied with the new environment?"
"It's alright. Masahiko Uzumaki, did you capture that person's real body?"
Masahiko looked at her ash-white eyes, knitting his brows as he focused his mind, surging his spiritual energy toward her, only to withdraw it a moment later.
Ocular power cannot be easily transmitted even inside my spiritual space? If I want to restore Chiyo's sight, I'll have to think of another way.
Pondering for a moment, Masahiko shook his head and spoke: "I didn't catch him; he slipped away. I only managed to drag an Uchiha turtle inside... Have you been to his hiding spot over these past few years?"
Chiyo shook her head. "He is extremely cautious and never fully trusted me, even up until the very end. I only know that his name is Tenji."
"Tenji?" Masahiko let out a chuckle. What a grand name. Eh? Tenji? That seems to be... Kaguya's husband, right? The Land of Ancestors or something...
His memories were a bit hazy, but Masahiko could still recall the general storyline.
Tenji, so it was actually him. No wonder he wants to revive Kaguya! Masahiko blinked. For him to hate the other version of me this much, could it be... that? Hehehe, beautifully done!
"Granduncle, what's wrong with you?"
Masahiko rapidly wiped the grin off his face, looking at the crowd in front of him, then at Chiyo...
"It's nothing. Chiyo doesn't know much about my past. Since you're all so curious, let me personally tell you about it!"
Masahiko prepared to narrate his grand and glorious youthful experiences to them, rather than the 'flawed, incorrect version' Chiyo had been sharing...
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