Betrayal

Deep within the Land of Rice Fields, in a base hidden underground.

Orochimaru and Kabuto were walking slowly through the underground passage.

The information about Sound Nest Town has just reached Orochimaru.

He casually flipped open the scroll, which contained coded information about Sasuke and Sakura's appearance—he already knew this.

After all, these two had brazenly barged into his territory and were openly searching his base.

"Lord Orochimaru, these people from Konoha seem to be coming on strong..." Kabuto, standing behind him, pushed up his glasses and said, "Should we avoid them?"

"Should we step aside?" Orochimaru suddenly stopped, turned his head, and glanced at Kabuto.

The flickering lights in the corridor cast an unpredictable shadow on the snake-like man's profile.

Those orange-yellow eyes were as cold and sinister as a venomous snake in the darkness.

Kabuto's heart tightened. Orochimaru's hoarse voice carried a faint but palpable killing intent, gripping his heart and suffocating him.

Orochimaru's strength has increased again, he thought.

A single glance, a single word, was enough to send shivers down his spine.

The bespectacled youth's expression was stern, but his face still held a nonchalant, fake smile, "I think... Kakashi dares to search for us so brazenly here not just because Sakura Haruno is backing him up, right?"

Orochimaru gave him a meaningful look, and after a long while, he turned his head away.

He smiled slightly, and as he strolled deeper into the narrow, gloomy passageway, he coldly said, "That good-for-nothing with a reputation for talent dares to act so arrogantly here. He probably made a breakthrough in his eyes, which he obtained by luck!"

"The Mangekyō Sharingan?" Kabuto followed up and asked at the opportune moment.

"That's right," Orochimaru replied coldly, repeating each word carefully, "The Mangekyō Sharingan..."

The Sharingan... this name holds special significance for Orochimaru.

He was once defeated by Uchiha Itachi in a humiliating defeat, and the proud Orochimaru became obsessed with the Sharingan from then on. He coveted the Uchiha's physique and for a time actively plotted to obtain Sasuke Uchiha's body. Unfortunately, in this ninja world, he failed to successfully abduct Sasuke as he did in the original story.

The Mangekyō Sharingan was indeed his weakness, a sore spot that would forever remain in his heart.

But... Orochimaru thought to himself, his eyes growing increasingly cold. "What are you, Kakashi Hatake? What does it matter to you that Uchiha Itachi could defeat me?"

Ultimately, the Mangekyō Sharingan can only unleash its true power when paired with someone worthy of it. To put it bluntly, is Kakashi... truly worthy of the Sharingan? Orochimaru clearly doesn't think so. Of the entire Team 7, the one he values most is Sakura Haruno, followed by Sasuke, whom he has long admired.

As for Kakashi?

He's not even worthy to carry his student Sakura Haruno's shoes.

Kabuto could probably guess what Orochimaru was thinking. He knew Orochimaru didn't think much of Kakashi.

But Sakura Haruno, whom Kabuto has been avoiding mentioning, is the real threat.

Having served under Orochimaru for so many years, Kabuto has come to understand his character well. Aside from his weak moral compass and lack of empathy, he is actually a decent leader, at least on the surface. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to so easily gather a bunch of cannon fodder and even talented individuals willing to risk their lives for him.

The real Orochimaru was arrogant, emotionless, indifferent to past relationships, and disregarded worldly constraints; he was a true cold-blooded animal.

Surrounded by formidable enemies and facing a critical situation, Orochimaru's mood had begun to agitate. If Itachi or Sakura were mentioned at this moment, potentially provoking Orochimaru's emotions, even Kabuto himself might be targeted with his anger.

"I know you're not thinking of Kakashi, Kabuto." Orochimaru squinted at the bespectacled man behind him and said calmly, "Sakura Haruno... and of course, there's Sasuke Uchiha, who might have already awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. The former alone is already troublesome enough; if we add a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan, no matter how you look at it, we're doomed to lose."

"I can help you stop Sasuke," Kabuto quickly offered. "My Dead Soul Technique is perfectly immune to the Sharingan!"

Orochimaru did not respond.

The two walked on like this until they reached the end of the passageway.

In the dim Amaterasu, it was clear that there was no way forward.

"Lord Orochimaru, this is a dead end," Kabuto warned.

"You see it? This is a dead end, a dead end... How do we get out of here?" Orochimaru stopped, as if asking Kabuto a question, or perhaps talking to himself.

Dou frowned slightly.

"I don't understand, sir," he replied after a moment's hesitation.

"No, you understand, Kabuto. We were just confronted by Akatsuki, and now, powerful enemies from Konoha are blocking our doorstep." The man in the kimono said quietly, "We're surrounded by tigers in front and wolves behind. I'm not confident I can handle any of them. Isn't this a dead end? What should we do?"

After a moment's thought, Kabuto still had some doubts. "My lord, I still don't understand... Konoha's visitors were indeed hostile, but before, Akatsuki... seemed to have only invited you to rejoin the organization, without any threat. This shouldn't be considered a dead end, right?"

Orochimaru sneered, "No threat? That's only because they don't have the power to threaten me... You don't think Akatsuki is some kind of charity organization, do you? That's more absurd than thinking the Third Hokage was a good person! Joining that organization means you have to work for them, and in the end, they'll most likely discard you after they've used you... Otherwise, why do you think I betrayed Akatsuki before?"

Dou fell silent for a moment, speechless.

"So, what should we do?" Orochimaru continued, "If I were you, Kabuto, I'd already be thinking about how to betray myself... This is a golden opportunity, don't you think, Kabuto? Aren't the offers Akatsuki made tempting enough?"

Dou broke out in a cold sweat in an instant!

Whoosh whoosh!

With a few cold whistles, before the bespectacled youth could react, he was tightly bound by several pythons, instantly turning him into a fish on a chopping board, unable to move!

"Lord Orochimaru, I have not betrayed you!" Kabuto didn't try to struggle or argue, but shouted immediately, "I chose to follow you because I agree with your ideas, how could I betray you because of some empty promises!"

"Of course you didn't betray me, otherwise you'd be a corpse by now."

Orochimaru turned around, looked at Kabuto, and said coldly.

"But you hesitated, didn't you?" He stared with his orange-yellow vertical eyes, a chilling murderous aura slowly emanating from his beast-like pupils and seeping into Dou's body.

"Lord Orochimaru..." Kabuto gasped for breath, groaning in pain as he struggled to speak, "I can explain!"

"Then I'm all ears." The man in the kimono gave a cold laugh.

Meanwhile, outside one of Orochimaru's underground bases.

The girl's figure appeared suddenly, her slender black sandals stepping on the ground, her light footsteps stirring up a light dust that settled on her fair feet.

Sasuke Uchiha arrived, landing steadily beside Sakura.

"According to intelligence, there's also an Orochimaru underground base here." He exchanged a glance with Sakura and said, "Shall we do it, or should I?"

"I'll go! You save your energy..." Sakura Uchiha clapped her hands and said, "Hopefully this time we won't come back empty-handed like the last few times!"

"Get out here, Orochimaru!"

She snorted coldly, her hands quickly Hand Seals, and her Chakra surged violently.