"Three corpses?"
"What kind of ninjutsu is this? It's brutal..."
At that moment, on the outskirts of the Forest of Death, three Konoha Village examiners discovered three faceless corpses—all of them candidates who had passed the first round of the Chunin Exams.
"Report this to Examiner Anko immediately."
"Yes!"
At this time, Mitarashi Anko was sitting at the entrance to the Forest of Death, happily eating meatballs and red bean soup.
If Menma were around, he would have definitely confiscated her snacks—"Eat like that, and you'll end up a fat woman with nowhere to cry," he would say.
(Mitarashi Anko: I don't care.)
Menma: You're ruining your youth ┭┮﹏┭┮
"After I finish eating, I'll head to the tower and wait for the ones who make it through the checkpoint. Those who are quick should be finishing the survival round about now," Anko murmured to herself.
Just then, one of the examiners who had found the bodies rushed up to her, about to speak.
Anko frowned. "Huh? Why are you running up on me like that?"
She was clearly annoyed at having her mealtime interrupted.
"It's nothing trivial, Examiner Anko. We found three bodies... very strange ones. Please come have a look."
"Bodies? Strange ones?"
Anko immediately followed the examiner to the scene.
The examiner on-site saw her approach and quickly reported, "From their possessions and ID documentation, it appears these were Kusa-nin who officially registered for the Chunin Exams, just as you can see."
"No faces…" Anko gritted her teeth, clenching her fists. Her hands instinctively moved toward her neck.
"Yeah, it looks like their faces were melted off by something. Completely flattened," the examiner continued, unaware of Anko's reaction.
That bastard…
Why is he here for the exam? Isn't that—
Anko turned to another examiner urgently. "Get me the registration photos of the three Kusa-nin. From the application forms."
"Yes!"
The examiner quickly pulled out a stack of forms, found the correct ones, and handed them to her.
Anko's expression changed immediately after reviewing them.
"This is bad—very bad. Report to Lord Hokage right away! Request two ANBU units be dispatched to the Forest of Death immediately. I'm going after them myself. Understood?"
"Yes!"
The three examiners raced off toward the Hokage Building.
Anko dashed into the forest without hesitation.
"Orochimaru, I'm really curious. Why are you still trying to attack Konoha Village?" Menma asked. "Right now, Konoha is stronger than ever—back to its prime. The Uchiha Clan is here, the Hyuga Clan has returned, and Tsunade is leading the village!"
"And the Third Hokage you want revenge on? He stepped down six years ago."
If Orochimaru still wanted to kill the Third Hokage, Menma would stop him. Though Menma found many of the Third's decisions distasteful, they weren't enough to warrant death.
In one sentence: The Third Hokage may not have been outstanding, but he worked hard for the village.
Orochimaru stared at Menma, wide-eyed.
Who is this kid? Why does he know so much?
It was as if nothing was hidden from him.
He examined Menma's red hair more closely—Red hair? In Konoha, only the Uzumaki clan has red hair.
Is he Minato's son? Or a new Uzumaki from the village?
Even though Kabuto had been planted as a spy in Konoha, they knew very little about Menma.
Menma continued:
"You already have your own village—Otogakure. It may be small, but it's functional. So what's your goal here?"
"Let me guess… You're using the Sand Village to weaken Konoha while strengthening your own? Or maybe you want to use the chaos to retrieve your experimental data from Konoha? Or perhaps... you're after something else entirely?"
"Enough!" Orochimaru snapped.
He hated being seen through. It felt like he was a mere pawn on someone else's chessboard.
He had never lost control like this before.
Pointing at Menma, he growled, "Who the hell are you!?"
"Oh? Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Menma Uzumaki. You've probably already guessed—my father is Minato Namikaze, and my mother is Kushina Uzumaki."
"Oh, and I've got one more identity... Come out, Kurama!"
…But nothing happened.
Menma: ￣□￣｜｜
"Kurama, what are you doing? Come out."
Kurama: No pay, no work.
Menma: What do you want as a reward?
Kurama: Two novels—one fantasy, one urban.
Menma: "..."
You glutton... now you want genres too? Your demands keep getting bigger. But fine.
Menma: "Deal."
Kurama: Pleasure doing business.
With that, the Nine Tails closed his novel, took off his reading glasses, and emerged from Menma's body.
"Nine Tails Jinchūriki?" Orochimaru was shocked.
Not just a Jinchūriki—a perfect one!
How?!
Back then, Lady Mito could control the Nine Tails only due to her immense strength and expert sealing techniques.
Could this boy already be on her level?
Orochimaru was shaken—this boy had seen through everything and possessed terrifying power.
"That's right. I'm the Nine Tails' Jinchūriki—and a perfect one," Menma said with a grin.
After a moment, Orochimaru composed himself. His calculating mind kicked in.
If this kid truly knows the full plan, then surely others in Konoha do too… But what if only he knows? What's his aim?
If he wanted to capture me, he could do it right now. But he hasn't. That must mean... he wants something from me.
Orochimaru let out a small smile.
"So, what do you want from me?"
"That's right," Menma nodded. He wasn't surprised. Orochimaru was the only major villain in the original story who didn't die.
"Let's hear it first. Then I'll decide whether I want to help," Orochimaru said with a sly smile, licking his lips. This is my way—I hold the initiative.
Menma chuckled. "You won't need to decide. If you say no, I'll beat you until you say yes. And don't bother trying to run—you can't escape me."
Orochimaru: "…"
He clenched his fists for a moment, then relaxed. Looking Menma in the eye, he said, "Then speak."
"I want you to help me bring back my parents—Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki."
(End Of Chapter)
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