Night Visit to Orochimaru

Late at night.

Dressed in black, Katsuo avoided the patrolling Anbu and entered a dimly lit building.

The place was dark and silent, its dampness carrying an oppressive air. It was a two-story house far from the bustle of the village, located very close to Konoha's cemetery.

Standing in the courtyard, feeling the cold chill blowing over from the cemetery, Katsuo broke out in goosebumps!

Suddenly, a series of hissing sounds came from a dark corner, followed by the scraping sound of many bodies dragging across the ground!

Within his sensory "vision," a huge swarm of brightly colored venomous snakes shot out from beneath the building and lunged straight at him in the middle of the courtyard!

Katsuo frowned slightly, pulled a kunai from his Ninja Tool Pouch, and charged head-on into the oncoming snakes!

In just a few minutes, the entire swarm had been slaughtered. A thin pale-blue Chakra cloak around Katsuo's body blocked the splattering venomous blood. He remained completely unharmed, standing where he was without a speck of dirt on him!

As soon as he had killed all the venomous snakes in the courtyard, he suddenly noticed even more snakes pouring out of the building. They were packed densely together, countless in number...

At that moment, he seemed to be standing inside a snake nest!

A massive wave of venomous snakes, their eyes sinister and their fangs bared, rapidly lunged toward him. It was as if they had received some command, attacking without regard for their lives!

Watching this, Katsuo's frown deepened as he sighed toward one of the rooms inside the building.

"Is this how you treat your guests, Orochimaru?"

Katsuo received no answer. He snorted coldly and rapidly formed hand seals!

A Fire Release seal formed in an instant. Just as he was about to unleash it, a soft laugh came from within the building. The snakes suddenly froze, then quickly vanished from sight, retreating into the dark corners!

"Hehe! Breaking into someone's home in the middle of the night and intending to burn it down—what kind of guest is that?"

Someone in the dark room sneered in a hoarse voice.

"For you snakes, daytime is night, and night is daytime. I came to visit during the 'daytime,' so why can't I be considered a guest? As for burning the house... that was merely self-defense."

Katsuo's voice was steady and forceful, as though he were simply stating the facts!

His words made the presence inside the room laugh heartily. Then, in a courteous tone, it invited him in.

"Hehe... come in, Katsuo-kun!"

Seeing the light turn on upstairs and the window open, Katsuo leaped up and jumped straight inside.

Orochimaru was dressed in a white kimono, smiling as he sat formally on a cushion.

"Katsuo-kun really is impatient. Only one day has passed, and you've already come knocking!"

Orochimaru said in a strangely mocking tone, as though he had expected Katsuo to come looking for him.

"I couldn't tell that you were so good at making sarcastic remarks. I'd thought Snake Uncle was an honest man..."

"Let's not waste words. Are you willing to help me solve the problem with my body or not?"

Katsuo asked bluntly.

"This isn't a matter of whether I'm willing to help. It's that I'm powerless to do so... Your body has suffered damage at its very source. This isn't some ordinary illness, internal injury, or external wound. There is no medicine that can heal it—or rather, it cannot be healed at all..."

"I've already explained this to you in great detail. I don't wish to repeat myself, so... I'm sorry."

Orochimaru spoke calmly. Everything he said was true. As for whether Katsuo believed him, it did not matter to him in the slightest.

What did the life or death of a child have to do with him?

Katsuo remained expressionless. Looking at Orochimaru's placid face, he asked a question that made Orochimaru's expression change drastically.

"What if it were the First Hokage's cells? Could they heal my body?"

"!!!"

Katsuo's question made him spring to his feet. Instinctively, he demanded in a cold voice,

"What exactly do you know?"

"Hehe, shouldn't your first instinct have been to ask what the First Hokage's cells are? Yet you weren't puzzled by such an unbelievable question... It seems you really do have a way to restore my body!"

Katsuo said with a light laugh.

Orochimaru was visibly stunned. I was too careless. I actually fell into his trap without realizing it!

Even so, he was still deeply shocked by Katsuo's question. How had he learned about Hashirama Cells? At his age, there was no way he should know such things...

Could someone be behind him, someone who had told him? Did that person know that he had his sights set on Hashirama Cells and deliberately send this brat to pry information out of him?

Orochimaru racked his brains, yet the more he thought, the more something felt wrong... It seemed possible, yet it also did not. He had only just decided to make a move on the First Hokage's corpse. He had not even extracted the cells yet, so how could anyone possibly see through his intentions?

Unable to understand or see through it, Orochimaru could only darken his expression and say coldly,

"Why should I help you?"

"You have your eyes on the First Hokage's corpse. I don't think you'd want everyone to know about that, especially the Third Hokage and Sister Tsunade..."

"Courting death!"

Orochimaru snorted coldly and struck his palm directly toward Katsuo's head. He had made a killing move, his intent to kill fully aroused!

Katsuo flipped backward to evade the palm, but the next moment, his vision blurred. Several slender pythons of different colors suddenly coiled around him and tightly constricted his body!

This was Orochimaru's secret technique, Hidden Shadow Snake Hands. It required no hand seals and was incredibly fast, impossible to guard against!

As he felt the snake bodies gradually tighten around him, not a trace of panic appeared on Katsuo's face. It was as though the one trapped in danger was not himself, but Orochimaru standing before him...

Looking at the brat who had been completely restrained, Orochimaru grinned and chuckled.

"I have to admire your courage. Even with your life hanging by a thread, you can still remain so calm. I'm very curious—how did you learn of my intentions? I truly cannot imagine how you came to know these things!"

"Also, your self-righteousness will do nothing but send you to your death. It poses no threat to me whatsoever... Not to mention that neither Konoha nor Tsunade would believe you. Do you think Konoha would let you off easily after you said such things?"

"Foolish brat!"

Orochimaru's words did not shake Katsuo in the slightest. His gaze toward Orochimaru remained as still as an ancient well...

"Don't you understand yet? You and I think alike. At our core, we are the same kind of people. We can cooperate. I believe you need me, but right now, I need your help even more..."

"Of course, I've said what I needed to say. If you still remain unmoved, then don't blame me!"

Orochimaru had taken the first sentence as a surrendering plea for mercy... but Katsuo's next sentence was a naked threat once more!