First Contact with Orochimaru

Jin had never expected to run into Orochimaru here, and for him to appear so suddenly.

Come to think of it, among everyone in Konoha, Orochimaru was the one he most wanted to meet.

Just not Orochimaru from this period.

At this time, Orochimaru was wholeheartedly devoted to the village and had yet to awaken from the brainwashing of the Will of Fire.

He kept changing in the later years, only truly settling into his final form after losing to Minato Namikaze and failing to become Hokage.

If Jin handed his Basic Inner Cultivation over to Orochimaru, the man would definitely turn around and submit it to the village.

That would throw all of his plans into disarray.

If Basic Inner Cultivation were handed over to the village, it would surely spread faster than if he sought people out one by one. The ones able to cultivate it might even all be elite ninja.

But the crucial point was—

His surname was Uchiha. He had no idea what attitude the village would take toward him, but it most likely would not be a kind one.

The higher-ups of Konoha were the ones who least wanted the Uchiha to produce exceptional talents.

As Jin fell silent, his thoughts racing.

Orochimaru's snake-like pupils fixed on him. The killing intent spilling from him seemed to warn that any abnormal reaction would invite Orochimaru's attack.

Even though Orochimaru had not yet reached his peak, he was still an Elite Jonin.

Jin, who possessed only the strength of a Special Jonin, was no different from an ant before him.

Orochimaru asked in a casual tone, as if he did not care in the slightest.

"Can you tell me why you, who are said to be incapable of using ninjutsu, can so freely use Shadow Clones and Fire Release?"

Damn it.

The man before him had not only witnessed him using ninjutsu, but had even figured out who he was.

His reputation was widespread, but very few people knew what he looked like. How had Orochimaru recognized him?

Suppressing the unease in his heart, Jin spoke calmly and respectfully. "I didn't expect Jonin Orochimaru to know a nobody like me."

Being recognized by Orochimaru like this—wasn't that practically suicidal?

Didn't that amount to telling the village that there was something suspicious about him?

"Danzo's handiwork. To undermine the Uchiha's prestige."

Orochimaru's tone remained flat.

He also revealed why Uchiha Jin's reputation had spread so widely.

After all, so long as it could damage the Uchiha's standing, that man lurking in the shadows would stop at nothing.

"Damn Danzo."

Jin gritted his teeth inwardly. Without that troublemaking bastard, his reputation would not have become so rotten that everyone on the streets knew about it.

He would put this debt on the tab for now.

Orochimaru looked at Jin with a trace of curiosity and puzzlement. Though Jin maintained the same expression, Orochimaru still noticed the subtle changes.

"You seem to know of Danzo's existence."

Although Danzo was one of Konoha's higher-ups, he was also Konoha's shadow. Other than Jonin, ordinary ninja were not qualified to know of his existence.

Otherwise, why would it be called Root? Naturally, it was buried deep beneath the great tree.

It was the kind of organization whose death would not cause the slightest stir on Konoha's surface.

Of course Jin knew Danzo—the future 5.5th Hokage, the first Pot Kage.

But because of that, Orochimaru's killing intent surged even more fiercely.

Jin's body stiffened. Having spent all these years in a completely peaceful environment, he could not break free from the pervasive killing intent.

He could only begin explaining, word by word.

"My parents' diary. It... recorded it."

Not a trace of information could be read from Orochimaru's face. Hiding one's facial expressions was a ninja's basic skill.

But Jin understood that the other man had not believed even a single punctuation mark.

Because the killing intent grew even more intense.

"I think... Lord Orochimaru... doesn't think the Uchiha would become spies, does he?!"

Jin practically shouted the words. That single sentence seemed to drain all the strength from his body.

The effect was obvious. The killing intent weakened.

Orochimaru considered it for only a moment before reaching a conclusion.

Indeed.

If there was any clan in all of Konoha least likely to betray Konoha, it would undoubtedly be the Uchiha.

To Orochimaru, any clan in the village could betray it if the benefits were great enough. The main reason was that the old relics from the Warring States era had not all died off yet.

Only the Uchiha were different. From relics of the Warring States era to the new generation, they all regarded Konoha as their own possession.

According to the Uchiha Radical Faction, Konoha had belonged to the Uchiha from the start.

Naturally, they would never hand over what was theirs.

In Orochimaru's view, although these Uchiha had something wrong with their heads, they were also the allies least likely to stab him in the back.

Even if they did stab him in the back, they would do it openly. Yet Konoha's higher-ups guarded against such allies as if they were enemies.

He truly couldn't understand it.

"Are you afraid of war, then?"

Orochimaru lowered his eyes, making the emotions within them impossible to read.

If only Nawaki had avoided things because he feared war as well.

"No!"

Once Jin could no longer sense any killing intent, he dropped onto the ground and hurriedly defended himself—no, explained himself.

"Both Ninja Exams tested ninjutsu. Back then, I really couldn't use any ninjutsu. I only recently succeeded in becoming able to use it."

Orochimaru had no interest in hearing Jin's explanation. He turned to leave.

"Lord Orochimaru, have you ever considered that ninja can live forever?"

Jin's words stopped Orochimaru in his tracks. He turned his head to look at him, his eyes profound.

The dream of immortality had only just sprouted in his heart. For now, he was more focused on pursuing ninjutsu.

No one could possibly know about the thought that had only just been born within him.

Ignoring Orochimaru's reaction, Jin continued.

"I developed a ninjutsu that can grant immortality. Without causing harm to the body, it continuously accumulates the Chakra within the body. In theory, if one has enough Chakra, immortality is possible."

And it had to be one's own Chakra. Jinchūriki, for example, borrowed Tailed Beast Chakra, which could even endanger their lives.

Orochimaru considered it seriously. The idea was theoretically feasible. The main reason ninja did not live long lives was because they died in battle.

They also constantly drained their own Chakra, which was equivalent to consuming their life force. Even so, plenty of ninja lived into their sixties or seventies.

"Can you let me see this technique of yours?"

Orochimaru walked over, his tone almost pleading as he spoke to Jin.

Unknown knowledge deserved respect.

"I happen to have a copy on me." Jin grinned, revealing his white teeth as he pulled a small notebook from his ninja tool pouch.

"But in exchange, could you take me as your disciple?"

After his rapid train of thought just now, Jin realized he could not wear the label of someone afraid of war. It would affect what he did in the future.

Besides, an opportunity like Orochimaru was far too rare. He did not want to miss it.

Perhaps Orochimaru would have a different understanding of Basic Inner Cultivation and be able to improve it.

Then he could establish himself as a genius ninjutsu researcher. As for the higher-ups' future hostility, if he became Orochimaru's disciple, it would alleviate much of the pressure.

Jin's plan was beautiful, but unfortunately, things would not develop as he imagined.

Orochimaru's hand paused on the notebook. As he flipped through it, he said, "For the time being, I have no intention of taking on disciples."

The shadow of Nawaki's death still hung over him. For now, he had no plans to accept another disciple.

As he read through its contents, he saw three stages composed entirely of Fūinjutsu. After only a glance or two, he realized that these seals were actually the dismantling and recombination of a single seal.

The moment he saw the first seal that had been separated out, he understood why Uchiha Jin had been unable to use ninjutsu before.

No further explanation was necessary.

This was not something a child who had yet to come of age could have created.

His profound eyes looked at the disappointed Jin, whose face wore a sorrowful expression as though he were about to burst into tears.

But inwardly, he was digging up Orochimaru's ancestors for eighteen generations and whipping their corpses.

You can't just do that.

A genius at researching ninjutsu? He truly is an Uchiha. Orochimaru murmured inwardly.

An Uchiha who resembled the Second Hokage had actually appeared. He did not know whether that was good or bad for the village.

"I will help you keep your secret."

Orochimaru closed the notebook and looked at Jin meaningfully.

"I cannot be your teacher, but I will find one for you."

Poof! Orochimaru turned into smoke and vanished from the spot.

Jin looked utterly bewildered. Things had developed completely differently from what he had expected. Orochimaru had actually chosen to help him conceal it and even intended to find him a teacher.

"Who? At least tell me clearly."

Tsunade would be best—she was beautiful, had a great figure, and was an expert in human medicine.

It better not be that Jiraiya who chased after destiny!!

He couldn't get along with a charlatan!

Inside the Ninja Academy.

Minato Namikaze stared at Jin, whose dark circles were practically turning him into a panda, his face full of confusion.

"What happened to you? You look completely drained."

They had only been apart for one day. How had he ended up like this? He looked like he had... overindulged in something.

"Don't mention it." Jin sighed.

In his exhaustion, he completely failed to notice the strange look in Minato Namikaze's eyes.

He had been exhausted all day yesterday, then stayed up all night after getting home. He had originally been quite happy to trade for the Eight Gates Formation.

But then he ran into that bastard Orochimaru.

If you wanted him to find himself a teacher, at least say something.

Instead, the man vanished without a trace. Jin did not even know where to find Orochimaru.

After returning home, he absorbed the clone that had been studying ninjutsu memories, then continued researching ninjutsu, hoping to complete his Light Footsteps.

But later on, he truly figured out where the flaw lay.

It was a matter of scale. His body was only so big, yet he had to make the Eight Trigram positions enormous. Forget shifting around to evade attacks—even the deceptive nature of Light Footsteps itself could not be achieved.

In the end, he could only helplessly abandon Light Footsteps and turn to developing something else.

Qinggong was good, but it all began with one's own body. Ordinary martial arts worlds simply could not reach the level of ninjas.

Unless it was a high-martial world like Fengyun, where surpassing ninjas was possible. But the descriptions of martial arts there were too vague, without any specific steps.

Even if he wanted to create something, he had no idea where to begin.

So he could only choose another approach. After spending the entire night on it, he had finally succeeded.

He would not create something like Basic Inner Cultivation again, something that needed to be improved step by step.

Jin used Deduction to reach a level where he could unleash its full power with his body alone.

"I didn't sleep at all last night." Jin yawned.

"I'm going to sleep for a while. Wake me after school."

After saying that, Jin flopped onto the desk and fell asleep.

At the front of the classroom, Satoru Inoue's face darkened like the bottom of a pot.

Was this repeater student not showing him any respect at all?