Orochimaru's Intuition

Land of Fields, Orochimaru's secret base.

A massive observatory stood deep within the base like a black beast...

Its form looming there...

At the top of the observatory, Orochimaru stood before a huge observation instrument, his gaze fixed intently on the distant Starry Sky.

Ever since his last encounter with Danzo, a faint unease had lingered in Orochimaru's heart.

Thinking back to that meeting, he had vaguely sensed a strange aura emanating from Danzo.

That aura was anything but ordinary, as though some force was silently influencing Danzo's consciousness.

As an expert who had long studied the realms of souls and the mind, Orochimaru keenly sensed the issue.

Without a doubt, it had to be the power of the Sharingan.

But the question was, what kind of powerful Sharingan could silently control or even guide someone like Danzo without anyone noticing?

Thinking of the many recent events, Orochimaru formed a bold hypothesis...

Though Uchiha Yuan was already dead...

His Sharingan, his chakra consciousness...

Were influencing the entire Shinobi World in some bizarre way, stirring up the situation.

Then what was his purpose?

To destroy the Shinobi World?

Or something else?

Just as he was absorbed in thought, a low, hoarse voice suddenly sounded behind him without warning. "Orochimaru..."

The abrupt voice seemed to crawl out of hell itself, putting Orochimaru instantly on guard.

He turned to look and saw a black figure appear...

Moonlight streamed through the cracks in the observatory and fell upon that eerie mask, making it appear especially cold and sinister.

Once he saw who it was...

Orochimaru gave a smile that did not reach his eyes...

"Isn't this Tobi from Akatsuki?"

"Tobi?"

Obito's voice behind the mask was low and calm as he slowly shook his head...

"I am not Tobi. I am Uchiha Madara."

Orochimaru's smile faded somewhat at those words.

Uchiha Madara?

Who was he trying to fool...

"That joke isn't funny at all."

Before his words had even faded, a dense mass of venomous snakes surged from Orochimaru's sleeve, rushing at Obito like a black tide.

At the critical moment, Obito's figure suddenly turned intangible, and every snake passed straight through his body...

As though what stood before him was merely an insubstantial illusion, impossible to touch as a real entity.

The next instant, Obito had already appeared at Orochimaru's other side, the kunai in his hand aimed unerringly at Orochimaru's throat.

Orochimaru swiftly turned, intending to counterattack.

Yet just as he was about to launch his assault, his eyes unexpectedly met Obito's Sharingan.

In that brief instant of eye contact, Orochimaru's entire body abruptly froze.

The moment his gaze met Obito's!

A powerful and strange sense of familiarity surged from the depths of his heart...

The feeling was exceptionally clear and profound, even making his skin crawl.

He had personally felt this peculiar mental fluctuation on Danzo before.

At that moment, Orochimaru finally realized that this mysterious person claiming to be Uchiha Madara...

Possessed a Sharingan that had some hidden yet powerful connection to the force he had sensed from Danzo last time.

Could it be...

"You..."

For the first time, Orochimaru's voice revealed undisguised shock and doubt...

"Who exactly are you?"

At that moment, he actually believed that the person before him might be the real Uchiha Madara...

Perhaps only Uchiha Madara could control Danzo...

But the facts told Orochimaru that this person was most likely the same as Danzo, deeply trapped in it without realizing it...

Uchiha Yuan...

How could such a powerful Sharingan possibly exist in this world?

Or had the information about his Sharingan been false from the very beginning...

Unable to make sense of it all, Orochimaru fell into a strange silence.

Obito stared at him coldly, his voice low and calm. "I am Uchiha Madara, Orochimaru."

"Is that so... Lord Madara..."

Orochimaru lowered his head. "I am very curious..."

"Just what ability does your Sharingan possess, to silently influence a person's mental consciousness?"

This was his final probe, meant to see whether he knew about Danzo...

The question was extremely vague...

If he were the one truly controlling another's consciousness, he would naturally understand what Orochimaru was asking.

Why was Orochimaru asking that?

Influencing someone else's consciousness?

I'm not Shisui...

Obito tilted his head slightly at those words and directly changed the subject...

"I think you should explore that answer yourself. But I came to find you for another, more important matter."

"What exactly do you want?"

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes.

He had no idea what Obito thought he had been asking about...

"Cooperation."

Having completely calmed down, Orochimaru swiftly asked in return, "...What do you want from me?"

Seeing Orochimaru behave himself, Obito withdrew his kunai...

"The Impure World Reincarnation technique. I hear it can revive dead shinobi and grant them combat power close to what they possessed in life."

At the mention of Impure World Reincarnation, Orochimaru's expression changed at once as he studied Obito with great interest.

He knew the power of Impure World Reincarnation, and he also understood the technique's flaws...

"That's right. Impure World Reincarnation can summon and control powerful dead shinobi, but the prerequisite is preparing sufficiently powerful and suitable sacrifices."

"Otherwise, even if they are summoned, the more powerful the shinobi, the harder it is for them to display their full strength."

Orochimaru had no desire to refuse Obito's offer of cooperation. After all, he did not want to remain in Akatsuki either.

The mysteries behind this strange masked man only made him want to investigate further.

Hearing this, Obito seemed to have been prepared all along.

Without any hurry, he pulled a white humanoid body from his space and tossed it before Orochimaru. "Then tell me, does this qualify?"

At first, Orochimaru merely gave it a careless glance. The next second, an intense desire to study it and excitement burst into his eyes.

"This is...?"

Orochimaru carefully examined the white body on the ground, the excitement in his eyes growing stronger and stronger until it was impossible to conceal.

"This is a special artificial body called White Zetsu. It possesses powerful life energy and chakra adaptability."

Obito sounded somewhat smug as he continued, "It should perfectly suit the requirements of Impure World Reincarnation, shouldn't it?"

There were not many White Zetsu, but he could still steal a batch...

Black Zetsu must be furious, right?

Orochimaru did not answer immediately. He reached out and lightly touched the White Zetsu's body.

Its delicate, vibrant, peculiar texture instantly stirred a powerful interest and desire within him.

"It truly is interesting..."

Orochimaru murmured softly, "I have never seen such a special artificial body before."

He then raised his head, his expression gradually turning solemn as he looked seriously at Obito. "However, I will need some time to study it carefully and confirm its feasibility."

Obito nodded faintly, his tone calm and confident. "Study it however you like. I have plenty of these."

After all, Kamui made stealing things very convenient...

At that moment, Obito frowned, having sensed a familiar chakra outside Orochimaru's base...

"Uchiha Itachi is here..."

Upon hearing that Uchiha Itachi had appeared, Orochimaru's eyes gleamed with intense greed.