Orochimaru: Something Annoying

"My father is a gambling addict, my mother is gravely ill, my husband has gone missing—how am I supposed to go on living? This is all just too hard, waaah~"

Inside an izakaya in the Land of Hot Water, Kitagawa Gen kept dead-fish eyes the entire time as he followed Jiraiya and listened to a waitress pour out her woes.

He and Jiraiya had been in the Land of Hot Water for several days now, and during that time, they had been investigating Orochimaru's trail.

Shimura Danzō had indeed provided intel, but the information was somewhat vague. It had only given them a rough area.

Fortunately, Jiraiya was fairly professional—though the way this guy gathered intelligence left Kitagawa Gen utterly dumbfounded.

"Don't cry, don't cry, I—"

Seeing the pretty waitress in tears, Jiraiya immediately wanted to comfort her.

But he quickly froze, then looked stunned.

"Wait, you have a husband?"

"Y-yes..."

The waitress's eyes brimmed with tears. She had no idea why Jiraiya reacted so strongly.

"My husband disappeared. It was a month ago. I had no choice but to come work at the izakaya to make ends meet."

"I... I understand. You've had it rough."

Jiraiya rubbed his brow, looking as if all interest had drained out of him, which amused Kitagawa Gen beside him.

Only after the waitress walked away did Kitagawa Gen finally fail to hold back and speak.

"Isn't that pretty good? A gambling father, a sick mother, a missing husband, and a broken her. And she's a married woman, too."

"You brat, where did you learn that kind of thing?"

Jiraiya raised his brows, seeming a little tempted, yet he looked at Kitagawa Gen with open disdain.

"Have you forgotten the Ninja Three Prohibitions?"

"From you. And it doesn't look like you follow them either, does it?"

Kitagawa Gen directly raised a finger and pointed at Jiraiya.

"And lately, every day you're either running off to pleasure quarters or hot spring resorts and dumping me alone at the inn. Isn't that a bit much?"

"Hey, hey, hey, don't slander me!"

Jiraiya immediately waved both hands and said, neck stiff with indignation.

"I'm gathering material. I'm investigating. Do you understand?"

"Yes, yes, of course. I didn't say anything else."

Kitagawa Gen nodded, looking as if to say, don't worry, I won't talk nonsense, and it made Jiraiya laugh in exasperation.

"Forget it. I can't be bothered to argue with a brat like you. But I think we're getting closer and closer to Orochimaru."

"That missing husband of hers—Orochimaru did it?"

"Barring any surprises, he probably did."

Jiraiya's expression grew somewhat grave. He took out a notebook, glanced at it, and said.

"Several people have already gone missing around this little town, and supposedly, strangers often come here to buy large amounts of food and water, so..."

"There are quite a few people, and plenty of trouble."

Kitagawa Gen naturally picked up the thread.

"Looks like he really is nearby. But the key issue is how to find them."

"That's where the results of my investigation come in."

Jiraiya chuckled and looked at his notebook as he continued.

"Didn't that waitress just say it happened a month ago?

"And they often purchase supplies. I calculated the timing, and it's roughly once every month or so.

"So, unless something unexpected happens, we should be able to discover something soon. That's why I've already arranged for little toads to stake out the surrounding area in advance.

"The moment they notice anything, I'll act at once. Kid... sigh, you've still got a lot to learn. Heh heh."

Seeing Jiraiya's smug expression, Kitagawa Gen could not help but shrug.

Jiraiya was probably just like that. He looked completely unserious, but he would seriously do every task well.

That was true when he taught Naruto, and it was true when he gathered intelligence on the Akatsuki. He was genuinely reliable.

"All right, since it's all arranged, kid, you should wander around the streets lately and see if you run into anyone interesting."

But right then, Jiraiya suddenly stood up and stared fixedly at a woman passing by outside, his throat letting out a strange, foolish chuckle.

"I still need to take my intelligence gathering one step further. For now, it's better if we go our separate ways and don't disturb each other."

"..."

Kitagawa Gen felt he had defined him too soon. This guy was just an outrageously ridiculous bastard!

But right at that moment, he suddenly sensed an inexplicable aura stirring. The feeling seemed somewhat similar to when he had encountered Hinata before.

Without showing anything, he turned his head. In the distance, he seemed to see a white-haired boy within the crowd!

"Am I..."

Kitagawa Gen's expression turned a little strange. He lightly scratched his cheek.

"About to become a radar?"

"Kimimaro, Jirobo and the others have pretty much bought everything."

In a forest in the Land of Hot Water, Jugo glanced at the birds in the sky, then smiled and said to Kimimaro beside him.

"By the way, how's your body?"

"Don't worry."

Kimimaro was as calm as ever, even when facing his best friend.

"I said I would become your cage. I will always stay with you as we go forward."

"Of course."

Jugo smiled. Because of his special circumstances, he had a split personality. He was usually very stable, but once enraged, he would become incomparably crazed.

It was precisely because of Kimimaro that he could lock away that frenzied personality of his, and it was also because of Kimimaro that he had come under Orochimaru's command.

Although Orochimaru had also studied his condition and provided some medicine to suppress it, he still liked being with Kimimaro.

Only when he was with Kimimaro could he feel peace in his heart.

"By the way, are those two guys behind us still there?"

Suddenly, Kimimaro lowered his voice and quietly asked Jugo.

Jugo possessed the ability to communicate with animals, and whether for reconnaissance or transmitting information, that ability was extremely discreet and convenient.

When they were still buying things in town, they had discovered that someone seemed to have followed them. According to the animals' reports, it was a middle-aged man with a head full of white hair.

In addition, there was also a boy about their age following them. Barring any surprises, both of them were ninja.

"They're still following."

Jugo subtly raised his head and glanced at the birds in the sky, then nodded and said.

"They're probably wandering ninja or bandits who got greedy for money again. The Land of Hot Water never lacks people like that."

The chaos in the Land of Hot Water far exceeded ordinary people's imaginations. What this place lacked least was desperadoes, and Orochimaru did not mind these desperadoes following them.

There was no reason to refuse materials that delivered themselves to his door!

"Then that's fine."

Kimimaro nodded. Orochimaru had asked him to bring back some interesting people, which had truly put him in a difficult spot.

But now things were fine. Someone had taken the initiative to deliver themselves to their door, which truly saved them a great deal of trouble.

The two continued forward. Before long, they had returned to the underground laboratory and met Orochimaru, who was preparing for a new round of experiments.

"You're back this early?"

Orochimaru did not react much upon seeing the two of them. He merely asked casually.

"Did you not find any new materials that satisfied you?"

"Lord Orochimaru, we already have."

Kimimaro had now completely returned to his respectful state. He bowed slightly before lowering his head and speaking.

"Two ninja followed us. We will entertain them shortly."

"Mm. Since they've come, let them stay."

Orochimaru nodded and casually asked.

"By the way, are those two wandering ninja, or are they from some village?"

"Lord Orochimaru, according to the birds' description, they did not seem to see them wearing ninja village forehead protectors."

Kimimaro glanced at Jugo, and only then did Jugo lower his head and speak.

"One of them has white hair. What he was wearing was also the character 'oil.'"

"..."

Hearing this, Orochimaru, who had originally looked completely unconcerned, seemed to sense something annoying, and even his expression changed slightly.