"Itachi-kun… you really are ruthless."
Orochimaru lay sprawled on the ground, yet there wasn't a trace of fear on his face. Instead, the madness in his eyes burned even brighter.
"The more I see it… the more convinced I become. As long as I obtain you—"
In Orochimaru's mind, only by acquiring the body of an Uchiha could he reach an even higher realm.
"Orochimaru," Namikaze Kirito said coldly, stepping forward and looking down at him.
"You've turned yourself into this mess. One of the Sannin? What a joke."
"The Sharingan… the Rinnegan… is that what you're chasing? Or immortality?"
"Kirito-kun," Orochimaru replied, a feverish gleam in his eyes,
"you're still young. You don't understand what eternal life truly means."
"Immortality means time. Endless time to study the secrets of this world."
His expression twisted further as he spoke.
"If the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, had lived forever, the world would still be in the Age of Shinobi Gods. Even my teacher—Sarutobi Hiruzen—"
"When he was young, he was called The Professor. A man who never showed mercy to the outside world."
"And now?" Orochimaru sneered.
"He's nothing more than a half-dead old man clinging to the past."
"So in the end," Kirito said calmly,
"all you want… is eternal life?"
As the words fell, Kirito raised his hand.
Thick black mist surged forth, rolling and twisting unnaturally.
The sight instantly captured Orochimaru's attention. Even Itachi, seeing it for the second time, couldn't help but feel a quiet shock.
"What… is this?"
Orochimaru's pupils shrank.
"A Bloodline Limit? No—this doesn't belong to any chakra nature at all! This is something entirely new!"
As someone obsessed with the essence of power, Orochimaru recognized it immediately.
This wasn't ordinary ninjutsu.
This was discovery.
And the excitement it sparked surpassed even his obsession with immortality.
"Kirito-kun…" Orochimaru laughed softly, voice trembling with anticipation.
"It seems you can give me a far greater surprise than I imagined."
"No wonder Itachi-kun follows you."
From everything he had seen, it was obvious—
Uchiha Itachi acted under Kirito's command.
"So?" Kirito asked calmly.
"Orochimaru, follow me."
"I'll let you research this power as much as you like. All I ask is that you share the results with me."
Kirito understood Orochimaru perfectly.
For a scientist, nothing was more tempting than the unknown.
Immortality was merely a means to continue exploration.
"Hehe…" Orochimaru chuckled.
"Then it seems we'll become companions."
"But the people watching from the shadows won't let us leave so easily."
"You mean Akatsuki? Pain?" Kirito replied indifferently.
"It doesn't matter. Even if they don't come for me now, I'll find them eventually."
"Oh?" Orochimaru's smile widened.
"It seems you're far more mysterious than I thought… my lord."
With that, Orochimaru stood and took his place beside Kirito.
Though Kirito's leadership was clear, Orochimaru was never someone easily controlled.
Kirito wasn't afraid.
Their relationship was mutual exploitation—and as for Orochimaru's habit of jumping bodies?
One Uchiha Itachi was more than enough to keep him in check.
"Leader," Itachi said quietly, his Sharingan sweeping the surroundings.
"What about the people hiding nearby?"
They had known about the watchers all along.
To them, they were already dead.
"Not just Akatsuki," Kirito replied with a gentle smile.
"There are Root… and ANBU as well."
Observation Haki made it easy to distinguish their identities.
"Most of them are Konoha shinobi," Kirito continued.
"Some should even be old acquaintances of yours. It'll be troublesome for you to act."
"I don't mind," Itachi replied without hesitation.
"If it's the leader's order, I'll deal with them."
Satisfied, Kirito nodded and began walking forward.
Orochimaru and Itachi followed.
Then...
Something strange happened.
The spies hidden in the shadows suddenly went mad.
They attacked one another without reason—crying, laughing, screaming—
their minds completely shattered.
The three continued walking.
Behind them, the forest turned into hell.
"What a terrifying genjutsu…" Orochimaru muttered, snake-like pupils contracting.
"I can feel the chakra… but how did it activate?"
Uchiha genjutsu required eye contact.
Kirito's didn't.
Simply passing by was enough.
"Boss," Orochimaru asked slowly,
"is this also one of your abilities?"
Kirito smiled faintly.
"This is the genjutsu of the Kurama Clan."
"The Kurama Clan…?"
Both Orochimaru and Itachi knew that name well.
A declining family—
yet one whose genjutsu surpassed even the Uchiha.
And yet Kirito wasn't a Kurama.
That fact alone made this even more fascinating.
Orochimaru's thirst for knowledge burned hotter than ever.
This choice was right, he thought.
Neither the Sharingan nor the Rinnegan ever gave me this kind of excitement.
The three disappeared into the distance.
With their speed, crossing the Land of Rain took less than half a day.
Soon, yellow sand filled the horizon.
They had reached the border of the Land of Wind.
Rain fell behind them.
Sandstorms raged ahead.
Two worlds divided by a single line—
a breathtaking sight.
No one stopped them.
Under Uchiha Obito's judgment, Akatsuki had abandoned Orochimaru completely.
Not because Kirito could frighten Akatsuki—
—but because it wasn't time for them to be exposed.
Premature conflict would disrupt their future plans.
Along the way, Kirito had already revealed part of his plan.
Their primary objective—
to obtain Chiyo's Reanimation Technique.
This was no simple task.
Chiyo was Sunagakure's greatest puppet master, a legendary shinobi of the older generation.
And more importantly—
All three of them were from Konoha.
The hatred between Sunagakure and Konoha could never be erased with a few words.
Chiyo's son and daughter-in-law had both died by the hands of Konoha's White Fang.
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