Making Friends, Not Alliances

Even Orochimaru looked somewhat surprised. "You're telling me just like that?"

Shamu spread his hands. "What's the big deal? We're making friends, not forming alliances."

"What matters is sincerity. What you're called, where you come from—what does it matter?"

Orochimaru looked at Shamu and smiled as well.

This was Shamu. He had always been this honest with him.

"Where did you come from?" Orochimaru asked curiously.

Shamu shook his head. "It seems I'm not from this universe, nor from this time and space."

"Anyway, I'm not from this world."

Orochimaru understood. "No wonder you never considered reviving Shamu's parents or anything like that."

"And you don't resemble an Uchiha at all."

Shamu shrugged. "It doesn't matter. As long as I'm 'Uchiha Shamu' now, that's enough."

"Where a person comes from isn't important. Where their heart lies is what matters."

Orochimaru nodded in deep agreement.

Shamu often said things that were quite interesting.

Yet when one thought them over carefully, they all made a certain kind of sense.

"Has there always been a god helping you? Were some of the things you did meant to satisfy that god's preferences?" Orochimaru continued.

This time, Shamu was genuinely surprised.

"Though it isn't exactly a god, it means roughly the same thing as what you said."

The system was practically no different from a god.

Still, those were not a god's preferences, but the regrets of people who shared his interests.

"Orochimaru, I've always thought you were the smartest person in this world."

"Now it seems that's indeed true."

"You didn't infer all that, did you?"

Whenever Shamu praised Orochimaru, he did so sincerely and directly. Even though Orochimaru was not vain, it still pleased him immensely.

He smiled in satisfaction.

"Hehehehe..."

"Your actions are far too strange. Some of your investments and returns