Swish, swish, swish.
Night fell, and light rain tapped against the rooftops. The falling water traced arcs through the air before large drops shattered on impact, leaving the lights of Konoha blurred and distant. From afar, the village looked unreal under the rain.
Dark figures moved across the roofs like birds of prey. They wore light gray tactical vests, with sheathed short blades or straight swords strapped to their backs. Their movements were fast and precise as they leaped from tile to tile.
Many of them still carried the smell of blood that had not yet faded. Beneath their white masks, their eyes were calm and cold, enough to make villagers on the streets avoid them without hesitation. No one dared to meet their gaze.
They passed through busy streets and reached the quiet edge of the village. There, they stopped in front of a building marked with the character for darkness. This was the headquarters building of ANBU in Konoha.
Almost all members of ANBU had been urgently summoned from their homes. The crowd was dense but orderly, and not a single sound could be heard. The atmosphere felt heavy, like a gathering for a funeral.
Among the assembled ANBU, Kakashi Hatake was clearly present. His forehead was wrapped in bandages, his brow tightly furrowed. One dull, unfocused eye showed clear confusion.
Those Explosive Tag, who had placed them there? Was it the Third Lord?
Kakashi had not seen the strange black cat at all. He only saw Orochimaru burst out from underground and get blasted away midair by the Explosive Tag detonating beneath his feet. The scene replayed in his mind again and again.
Kakashi was close enough to be affected, but his injuries were nothing compared to what Orochimaru took head on. Even after using ninjutsu to weaken the blast, the force was still enough to tear off one of Orochimaru's arms. The damage was horrifying.
But earlier, the Third Lord did not seem to have set anything like that up.
Creak.
The large doors of ANBU Headquarters were pushed open, and the harsh sound broke the silence. Kakashi shook away his doubts, pulled his mask into place, and looked up. Two figures walked out one after the other.
One was Hiruzen Sarutobi, wearing the red and white robes and hat of the Hokage. Beside him was an elderly man in a black kimono, with his right arm and right eye wrapped in bandages. His narrow eyes and the scar on his chin made him look grim.
The founder and leader of Root, the man who controlled the darkness of Konoha, and the most powerful figure beneath the Hokage. That man was Danzo Shimura.
"This emergency mobilization is to capture Orochimaru, who escaped during the earlier operation."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped forward, his gaze sweeping over the gathered ANBU. His voice was calm and direct as he continued, "According to reports, Orochimaru is already seriously injured. Given his condition, leaving the Land of Fire in a short time will not be easy."
"The knowledge, intelligence, and techniques he possesses are extremely valuable to Konoha. I hope you will bring him back alive if possible."
"If he defects from the Land of Fire, it will deal a fatal blow to Konoha. At that point…" He paused briefly before continuing. "We must race against time before Orochimaru crosses the border."
"Everyone, conduct a full search."
With that, Hiruzen Sarutobi raised his head. His expression was cold and he wasted no words as he spoke in a low voice. "Dismissed."
Swish, swish.
The ANBU scattered into the night like shadows. They would hunt that cunning snake with everything they had, whether in the sky, underground, or underwater. There would be no escape.
After all the ANBU had left, Hiruzen Sarutobi turned and walked back toward ANBU Headquarters. As he passed by Danzo Shimura, a voice carrying a hint of mockery reached his ears.
"You really dote on your dear student."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stopped and lowered his head slightly. His face was hidden in the shadow of his hat, making his expression impossible to see. He did not respond at once.
"Someone like you actually let things slip," Danzo Shimura continued. "I heard you saved a kid from the Hyuga Clan from Orochimaru's hands?"
The two had known each other for decades, and Hiruzen Sarutobi could easily hear the implication. He let out a tired sigh in his heart. There was no need to spell it out.
"He was just a pitiful boy," Hiruzen Sarutobi said quietly. He added, "A branch family member of Hyuga Clan."
The meaning was clear. Give it up.
No matter what kind of results Orochimaru might have achieved on that boy, someone branded with the Caged Bird Seal could never be used. The branch family would never be an asset.
Otherwise, based on the Will of Fire Ryuji Hyuga had shown, Hiruzen Sarutobi would have already tried to guide and recruit him. Even a talentless failure would have been acceptable.
Even if he were a civilian with no background, a teaching post at the ninja academy could have been arranged. But that was not the case.
A branch family member of Hyuga Clan could only serve the main family. They held no real value. With a single activation of the seal, the main family could easily destroy the brain of the branch member.
Compared to that, the Tongue Curse Seal used by Danzo Shimura only prevented information leaks. It caused paralysis and silence, but did not kill. By comparison, it was almost merciful.
"…"
Hearing this, Danzo Shimura merely faced the distant night sky and closed his eyes. He seemed to abandon whatever plan he had been considering, and his tone returned to its usual calm and cold state. "No matter what, I will assist fully."
"For the sake of Konoha, I will do everything I can."
"…Then I must apologize," Hiruzen Sarutobi said flatly, glancing at him. "For making you put in so much effort."
With that, he no longer paid Danzo any attention and walked into ANBU Headquarters. The doors closed behind him without another word.
Danzo's words were full of sarcasm, accusing him of favoring personal feelings over the interests of Konoha. Danzo may even have had secret dealings with Orochimaru in the past. But the moment Orochimaru defected, everything changed.
From that point on, Hiruzen Sarutobi knew his old friend would truly act as he claimed. To eliminate the threat Orochimaru posed to Konoha, Danzo would spare no effort. In that sense, his resolve was never in doubt.
Perhaps the explosion that severely wounded Orochimaru had been a contingency Danzo prepared in advance, hidden even from Orochimaru. That was why Hiruzen Sarutobi had repeatedly ignored Danzo's small moves over the years. In his view, everything Danzo did was ultimately for Konoha.
Just as the Hyuga boy had said, for the great tree of Konoha to grow, it did need roots hidden from the sun. But it only needed roots that stayed in the dark.
After Hiruzen Sarutobi left, Danzo Shimura opened his eyes. A low croaking sound followed. A crow circling above landed on his shoulder and dropped a small scroll into his raised hand.
He looked down and opened the scroll. Lines of dense writing filled his vision, written in Root's unique cipher. His eyes moved quickly as he read.
The scroll recorded the follow up cleanup of the experimental base. Unfortunately, most of Orochimaru's equipment and research records had been destroyed by the blasts from the Explosive Tag. The damage was extensive.
Based on the analysis of the explosion traces, the Explosive Tag had been laid along the entire underground pipeline system. It had practically wiped out the whole facility. Nothing usable remained.
Those experimental tools had cost Danzo enormous sums, acquired through special channels. Some of them were items even Root did not normally possess. The loss was not small.
"Was it that guy Orochimaru?" Danzo Shimura raised his head, his narrow eyes filled with dark emotion. "Did he destroy everything rather than leave it to me?"
He quickly rejected the idea. Orochimaru himself had lost an arm to the explosion. With his modified body, recovery might be possible, but his chakra had been nearly exhausted at the time. There was no reason for him to go that far.
Moreover, given Sarutobi's guilt and hesitation toward Orochimaru, he would never act with such ruthless finality. Danzo knew him too well. In fact, Sarutobi might even believe Danzo was responsible.
"Then who else could it be?"
Danzo's brows drew together tightly. He felt as though an invisible hand was manipulating everything from the shadows. The thought left him deeply uneasy.
He thought of the only surviving boy, but reason immediately denied it. Such clean execution, leaving no traces, and ruthless enough to trap both Orochimaru and Sarutobi at once was beyond a fifteen year old.
It was even more impossible for a timid orphan from the branch family of Hyuga Clan. There was no way someone like that could pull this off. The logic did not hold.
"Damn it, who is it?"
Danzo crushed the scroll in his hand. He hated the feeling of an unknown threat hiding in the dark while he could do nothing about it. That sense of powerlessness gnawed at him.
This unseen enemy was extremely dangerous. To Konoha, the threat might even exceed that of Orochimaru. Danzo, known as the darkness of the shinobi world, would not allow such a person to exist.
Better to kill by mistake than let them go.
With that thought, Danzo recalled the Hyuga branch boy. His eyes narrowed slightly as he took another scroll from his robes and wrote several lines of coded text. He handed it to the crow, which took flight at once.
Just a useless branch family member of Hyuga Clan. If he died in some accident, no one would care.
At the same time, within the Land of Fire, hundreds of kilometers away from Konoha, deep in a forest.
Crack.
The sound of a dry branch snapping echoed through the trees, startling birds sheltering from the rain. A figure stumbled out from the shadows, barely keeping his footing.
"Hah, hah."
Orochimaru leaned against a tree, gasping for breath. A metallic taste filled his mouth as blood bubbled up from his throat and burst between his teeth. Each breath was agony.
His left arm was severed at the forearm. Torn red flesh and exposed white bone were clearly visible, and half his clothes were soaked through with blood. The injury was horrific.
This was the most severe and life threatening wound he had suffered since modifying his body. Even with all his preparations, he had underestimated the situation.
He had long anticipated this day, and of course he had left contingencies within the Land of Fire. One of them was a clan called Iburi. They possessed a bloodline ability that allowed them to turn into smoke.
In smoke form, they could enter another person's body and control their movements. However, they had a fatal weakness. If scattered by wind while in smoke form, they would disperse and die.
Because the ability was hard to control, many Iburi clan members died. With his help, they stabilized their power and even extended their lifespans. In return, their blood could heal injuries.
He kept them as living blood supplies. If not for the final blast from the Explosive Tag, even after being injured by the old man, he could have endured long enough to reach them.
"Damn it, damn it, it's all because of that brat!" Orochimaru growled, his hoarse voice filled with hatred.
He reached to his chest and touched the scroll hidden there. Fortunately, the scroll recording ancient secrets was still with him. That alone was a relief.
As long as he could continue deciphering the sealing techniques on it, he would learn more about the Otsutsuki clan. He had also taken a piece of flesh from that Otsutsuki body. If the Impure World Reincarnation could be perfected…
For now, the only way was to have Manda use Reverse Summoning. Only then could he escape the Land of Fire safely. There was no other option left.
But given that beast's nature, seeing him so badly injured would likely make Manda swallow him whole. On top of that, the White Snake Sage of Ryuchi Cave and her subordinates were not easy to deal with either.
Cough, cough.
Orochimaru suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, completely breaking his train of thought. His vision blurred, and a ringing filled his ears as his senses slipped out of control. His body no longer obeyed him as it should.
The distorted shadows of trees looked like claws, and the vines underfoot felt like restraints. All of it told him his body was failing. His condition was collapsing fast.
Fear of death drove him to dig his fingers into the tree trunk. Moss crushed beneath his palm, leaving a foul green paste on his skin. He forced himself to stay conscious.
He still had to take revenge on that brat. He still had to grasp all the truths of this world. No matter what, he could not die here.
Just as Orochimaru made up his mind and began forming signs to summon, a loud bang rang out. White smoke exploded outward, and his figure vanished from the spot.
A few seconds later, a tall figure appeared. Long white hair hung down to his waist. It was Jiraiya, who had been in pursuit.
"Reverse Summoning?" Jiraiya frowned. "Orochimaru, what are you planning now?"
At the same time, in a space formed from a natural cavern. Barbed stalactites hung from the ceiling, sharp and uneven. The floor was paved with green stone carved with snake patterns.
Dark green ghostly flames burned quietly in wall niches. Blue and purple minerals glimmered faintly within the rock. The air was heavy and unfamiliar.
"Where is this?"
Orochimaru opened his eyes with a frown. When he recognized the scene before him, surprise crossed his face. "Ryuchi Cave?"
He had not summoned Manda yet, so how had he been pulled here by reverse summoning? The situation made no sense to him at all.
"Orochimaru."
Before he could understand what was happening, an aged and hollow voice reached his ears. He instinctively looked up toward the source. What he saw made his breath catch.
Coiled atop a stone throne was an enormous white scaled serpent. It was the White Snake Sage, ancestor of Ryuchi Cave, a being that had lived for over a thousand years. Her power was far beyond what Orochimaru could measure.
Normally, she appeared as an elderly woman in white robes. But this was the first time Orochimaru had seen her true form. The calm presence was gone, replaced by the foul stench from her open jaws.
"How is this possible?"
The white serpent stared straight at Orochimaru with amber eyes. Her face showed a humanlike expression of shock and doubt. The reaction was unmistakable.
"Your fate…" she said slowly. "It has been rewritten?"
At the same time, back in Konoha, within the Hyuga Clan compound. In a dilapidated house on the edge of the clan grounds.
"Meow."
A soft cat's cry mixed with the chirping of crickets. Ryuji, who had been lying on the bed, slowly opened his eyes. His gaze was calm and alert.
"Finally gone."
He sat up and looked out the window at the quiet night. Reaching up, he touched the bandage around his neck. A faint smile appeared on his face.
Such severe and fatal injuries had mostly healed in just one day. The recovery speed was astonishing.
While it did not match the extreme power of Hashirama's cells, it was more than enough to rid him of the usual fragility of a mortal body.
And this was only one of the benefits this body had given him. Many more advantages were yet to come. The thought pleased him.
With that, Ryuji looked at the panel that appeared before his eyes.