Chapter 11: Secret Meeting with Orochimaru
Seeing the undisguised excitement on Mei Terumi and Ao's faces, Chōjūrō blinked in confusion.
"Wait… isn't Orochimaru a rogue ninja from Konoha? What does he have to do with us?"
"Originally, nothing," Ao replied with a faint smile, his eyes gleaming sharply. "But now… everything."
Chōjūrō glanced at Ao, then at the Mizukage, who wore the same look of quiet agreement. His heart sank. They were definitely hiding something from him.
Mei's voice cut into his thoughts. "Enough, Chōjūrō. I have a task for you."
At once his posture straightened, face solemn.
Mei's eyes softened with a hint of amusement, though her tone stayed calm. "You'll oversee Kirigakure in my absence. If anyone asks where Ao and I have gone, give them any excuse you like."
Before he could protest, Mei and Ao vanished, two flickering shadows heading for the village gates.
"Wha—!"
Chōjūrō's face turned pale. He rushed to the window, catching sight of their figures fading swiftly into the distance.
———
In a dense forest, two figures streaked forward at high speed.
"Lady Mizukage, why not bring Chōjūrō or the Anbu guards?" Ao asked, doubt written across his face.
"If all three of us left, who would steady the village? Leave it to those old geezers on the council?" Mei's tone was cool, her eyes flicking toward Ao before facing ahead again.
"And besides, everyone in Kirigakure knows you and Chōjūrō are my closest aides. If both of you disappeared, the council would know instantly I'd left the village, and that would stir up trouble. Meeting Orochimaru—a rogue from Konoha—must be kept quiet. The fewer who know, the better."
They darted onward, trees flashing past. An hour passed before Ao finally slowed, his Byakugan already open, scanning the terrain.
"We're here."
Perched on a broad branch, Mei's eyes were cold as she asked, "Anything?"
"Only a few ants." Ao smirked, then called out toward a patch of forest, his voice sharp.
"No need to hide, Orochimaru."
Rustle. Rustle.
The leaves parted.
A pale-skinned man in a kimono stepped out, a massive purple rope tied at his back. His golden eyes gleamed with snake-like coldness, and his smile was languid.
"Well, well… the Mizukage herself, and the infamous Byakugan Slayer. For the two of you to come in person—how very… flattering."
Orochimaru's golden eyes flicked toward Mei Terumi, his tongue darting across his lips with barely restrained excitement.
"Orochimaru, I don't have time for pleasantries. What you wanted is here—now keep your promise."
Mei spoke with sharp impatience, pulling a scroll from her pouch and tossing it casually toward him, utterly unafraid he might renege.
Catching the scroll, Orochimaru's smile widened. This Mizukage was more decisive than he had imagined. And truly, if the seal of that legendary man could be undone, what was a mere trinket or secret compared to that?
Yūdō.
The very name was taboo beyond Kirigakure. Nearly every record of him had been erased, even within the village itself. Much was destroyed during Yagura's reign. Yet even fragments of that history were enough to drive Orochimaru into obsession.
True immortality.
A kekkei genkai that devoured all forms of energy.
A man who required both Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha together to suppress.
Each fact alone was enough to consume Orochimaru's curiosity. Combined, they were irresistible.
"If the famed 'Byakugan Slayer' is already here," Orochimaru hissed, "then I see no reason to keep my own companions hidden."
He clapped his hands lightly.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Four figures burst from the shadows, reappearing at his back in an instant.
The Sound Four—Sakon and Ukon, Tayuya, Kidōmaru, Jirōbō.
Ao's face remained steady, his Byakugan long since aware of their presence. Still, he scanned them once more, frowning. Chūnin level? He could not understand what purpose they served here.
Mei, however, barely spared them a glance, her irritation plain. To her, only Orochimaru mattered. The rest were gnats.
Orochimaru's grin lingered. Even without Kirigakure's cooperation, he would not pass on this chance. To encounter the legend tied to the Warring States—one spoken of alongside Hashirama and Madara—was irresistible.
He had studied Hashirama's cells in his own laboratory. If mere fragments could grant such terrifying results, what kind of being was the man himself?
And if both Hashirama and Madara together had been required to strike Yūdō down… what terror, what majesty, must he have embodied?
(End of Chapter)
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