Feeling a tug at his clothes, he looked up and saw it was Anko, that little girl.
Not only her, but also Guren and Kimimaro did not leave.
"Teacher, please teach us cultivation again! You haven't personally guided us in so long!"
"We also have some doubts about the Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack!"
"Yes, teacher, we really want to improve!"
Ajisai chimed in, and Orochimaru looked at Anko, then at the others, all of whom looked eager for knowledge and power.
His disciples seem to have been quite shaken by what they just witnessed.
"Look, he's in a hurry again!"
As he spoke, he rubbed Anko's head, and Anko obediently lowered her head so that it would be easier for him to rub it.
"I've told you so many times, use your job title when you're at work!"
"Oh dear... my lord, please teach us!"
Instead of being intimidated by Orochimaru's serious demeanor, Anko hugged his shoulder and acted coquettishly.
The other disciples also rushed forward, some massaging the legs, others pounding the shoulders.
"You've really grown bold, daring to make fun of the teacher now."
As he spoke, Orochimaru gently tapped her head three times.
Anko rubbed her head against his chest, looking like she would cling to him if he didn't agree.
"Alright! You're all grown up now, yet you still act like this. Where's your authority as your senior sister?"
In a daze, Orochimaru recalled the scene when he first met Anko. Back then, she was a little girl who would carry his homework and follow him around shyly.
Six years have passed in the blink of an eye, and the girl next door has grown into a young woman! She's sixteen now, a young lady in the making.
My chest is getting bigger and bigger, what will happen in two more years?
They're still acting so disrespectfully, pulling and tugging at each other. If others see this, not only will Anko lose her dignity, but Orochimaru will probably ruin his reputation in his later years.
"We are always children in front of our teachers!"
Anko didn't care. Why put on airs in front of Orochimaru? In her eyes, Orochimaru was her only family in the world.
"Cut...!"
Guren, who was massaging Orochimaru's shoulders, couldn't help but roll her eyes when she heard Anko's sassy words.
Anko had no interest in paying attention to her and was busy acting cute and charming in front of Orochimaru.
But they're almost adults now, how can they compare to the adorable five or six-year-olds like Bai and Ajisai?
Orochimaru pinched the Ajisai's little face again before reluctantly speaking:
"Meet at the practice field at 3 PM this afternoon, so we can see if you've made any progress lately!"
Anko and Guren have reached the level of Jonin, and after activating their Curse Mark, they can easily deal with ordinary Jonin.
Guren is a year older than Anko and is also stronger than Anko, which is why she lives up to her title as the eldest sister.
After receiving Orochimaru's permission, the group immediately smiled and worked even harder.
"Oh, and remember to bring Fu along. You all need to take good care of her!"
The Seven-Tails Jinchuriki has been under close scrutiny ever since Orochimaru brought him back.
He didn't want to find a Jinchuriki was just a mascot, nor did he expect her to reach the level of a Perfect Jinchuriki.
However, it shouldn't be difficult to use the power of the Tailed Beasts in battle.
While they are still young and have a childlike mindset, it is very important to cultivate a relationship with the Seven-Tails from a young age.
The Seven-Tails doesn't exhibit the same level of aggression as the other Tailed Beasts; otherwise, it wouldn't have gotten along so well with Fu in the Original Work.
With Orochimaru's involvement, it's even less likely that it will cause any trouble.
No matter what waves he stirs up, Orochimaru can suppress him. The Third Raikage could suppress the Eight-Tails, so how could Orochimaru not be able to handle a Seven-Tails?
"Great! Sister Fu has been wanting to cultivate with us for a long time!"
Ajisai happily added that she had just been wondering whether or not to bring Fu along.
After all, the two were about the same age, and they had been following Kimimaro and the other two around for a while, so they got along quite well.
If this kind of ritual weren't unsuitable for her, Orochimaru wouldn't mind bringing her over to watch.
After resting for a while, Orochimaru returned to the Golden Shadow Office.
The clone was already processing documents in the office. Orochimaru dispelled the clone and sat down in the boss's chair with an air of authority.
This is the latest chair developed by the Snow Ninjas; it's quite comfortable to sit in.
After the separation was broken, many messages came back, all about trivial arrangements in the Northern Land City.
Since the population of the six small ninja villages was relocated here, along with many people from their own country, the number of villagers in the Northern Lands has suddenly surged to 15,000.
As the reputation of the Northern Lands grows, even more people will come to join us.
The village now has nearly a thousand ninjas, which is less than one-tenth of the number of major ninja villages, but it's still a good start.
After the residents of various countries migrated here, apart from the Daimyo clans with daimyo backgrounds like the Kazahana Clan of the Land of Snow, the rest of the common people were disrupted.
Orochimaru wouldn't allow them to create any factions; wouldn't that just be asking for trouble?
Although their group was disrupted, they still lived in groups, only their assigned habitats differed.
However, whether it was fortunate or tragic, none of the ninja clans he subdued could compare to the powerful clans in Konoha.
"If I had known, I shouldn't have let the Kaguya Clan be wiped out in the first place!"
Orochimaru rubbed his temples helplessly. He was dead, and what's done is done. There was no point in thinking about it too much.
If we lack the strength, we'll make up for it with technology!
Since there are no powerful bloodline ninja clans, let's equip the ninjas with the Chakra Armor of the Kazahana Clan.
However, developing technology requires investing money. The economic base determines the superstructure; without money, how can you even play with enchanting?
The technology in this Ninja World is quite advanced; they have televisions, airships, and in the Original Work, Orochimaru even saw Kabuto using a computer.
But why is the country still so poor?
To put it bluntly, it's all due to the inaction of the higher-ups. They haven't focused their energy on improving people's livelihoods, and in the eyes of the Daimyo, there's no benefit in it.
All they care about is training ninjas and building an army. The village takes a cut of the ninjas' pay when they take on missions, so the village is also exploiting the ninjas.
Haven't you noticed that Konoha has fought so many wars, yet instead of becoming poorer, it still has money to rebuild? They're all profiting from the wars!
Capitalists extract money from the villagers and then spend it on the villagers, creating a vicious cycle.
This situation only improved in Boruto, but Orochimaru doesn't intend to do that in the village.
Just kidding. Uncle Snake has mastered core technology and all those skills, yet he doesn't use them and still resorts to that kind of nonsense. When will the Northern Lands ever rise up?
Exploiting the residents to train combat power is like drinking poison to quench thirst.
Orochimaru isn't without ways to make money, so why does he need to develop the country through internal competition?
Orochimaru's goal was to revitalize the entire Northern Lands through the injection of external funds.
Just as he was deep in thought, there was a sudden knock on the door.
"Come in!"
As soon as she finished speaking, a graceful and alluring figure pushed open the door and entered. The newcomer was dressed in black stockings and high heels, a typical professional woman's attire. It was Pakura.