Becoming a Master

That day, because Shimura Danzō had suddenly appeared, Konoha—with its Kage-level advantage—successfully pushed the front line into the Land of Rain. Seeing his Iwagakure forces suffering heavy losses, Ōnoki grew genuinely furious and mobilized a large army to the Land of Rain battlefield.

Konoha quickly reinforced in response. The Sand Ninja, noticing Konoha was tied down, decisively launched an attack from the Land of Sand toward Konoha, opening a new battlefield. The Land of Rain front became little more than a sideshow.

At that point, the Third Hokage and Ōnoki agreed not to intervene personally and each returned to their village. Danzō, however, had vanished to parts unknown.

Land of Lightning, Kumogakure.

Danzō, his eyes still intact, stood tense, staring hard at the Third Raikage. "Lord Raikage, have you considered my proposal?"

The Third Raikage straightened his towering, mountain-like frame and asked, "Isn't Konoha afraid that Kumogakure will go back on its word again?"

"Hahahaha!" Danzō laughed heartily. "How could that be? I trust that under your rule, Lord Raikage, there will never again be madmen like Kinkaku and Ginkaku."

"Never again, you say? I understand. Go back. If Kumogakure agrees, we will find an opportunity to deploy our forces. You'll know when it happens."

The Third Raikage waved his hand in dismissal.

Danzō walked out of Kumogakure with a dark expression, muttering inwardly: Hmph, Kumogakure. One day, under my leadership, Konoha will trample this place flat.

Meanwhile, Hyuga Ao led a group of Hyuga ninja, pushing their mounts at full speed. Relying on the high mobility of Taijutsu specialists, they quickly reached the Land of Rain battlefield.

Hyuga Ao went to meet Orochimaru. "Konoha chūnin Hyuga Ao, reporting with the Hyuga clan forces."

"Mm." Orochimaru looked up, glanced over them, and said casually, "Good. Go find Jiraiya. He'll assign your next tasks."

With that, he continued scribbling on a scroll. Just as Hyuga Ao was about to step out of the tent, Orochimaru said, "Wait. Hyuga Ao, stay. The rest of you, go on."

Hyuga Ao stopped and looked at Orochimaru in confusion.

Orochimaru studied the wind swirling around Hyuga Ao. It hadn't been his imagination earlier. When in doubt, ask. He spoke: "Hyuga Ao, Nawaki wrote to me about you."

"Oh? What did Nawaki say about me?" Hyuga Ao asked.

Orochimaru recalled the letter's contents, his expression turning odd. "He said that although you're a Hyuga, you're quick to learn and curious, and you even borrowed my notes to read."

Hearing this, Hyuga Ao guessed Orochimaru had a question to ask. She cut straight to the point: "Lord Orochimaru, do you have a question? Rest assured, I'll tell you everything I know, holding nothing back."

Orochimaru's expression softened slightly. He liked people who got straight to the point—no wasting time. "Good. Since you put it that way, I want to ask: what is that wind around you?"

Asking directly about someone else's secret technique was generally very rude, but first, Orochimaru was genuinely curious; second, they weren't total strangers; and third, observing the wind's movement, he felt it could be a great help against Hanzō.

Hyuga Ao's eyes lit up. She wasn't afraid of being asked—she was afraid of being ignored. She'd always wanted to build a good relationship with Orochimaru. After all, he was the master of core technology, and sometimes he even turned into a snake aunt. Who wouldn't love a snake like that?

She countered, "Lord Orochimaru, what price are you willing to pay for this answer?"

"Oh." Orochimaru's eyes narrowed as he reassessed Hyuga Ao. Asking that question showed she had her own thoughts—not one of those Konoha-brainwashed fools.

Still, he didn't dislike that type.

Orochimaru gave a playful smile. "That depends on what you want."

"The Yin Seal."

Hyuga Ao's answer came out without hesitation, catching Orochimaru off guard. What use would a Hyuga have for the Yin Seal?

Involuntarily, his interest in Hyuga Ao grew. He rasped, "Your secret isn't enough for that."

Hyuga Ao smiled slightly, raised her left hand, and pointed her index finger at Orochimaru.

Orochimaru straightened his back, curious to see what new trick she'd pull.

Then, the flesh at her fingertip slowly parted. A bare white finger bone was pushed out, shot forward in a parabolic arc, and landed on Orochimaru's desk.

Orochimaru stared blankly at the finger bone before him. His thoughts seemed to freeze as countless ideas clashed violently in his mind. Many of his long-held assumptions were overturned, and a door to a new world slowly swung open before him.

He carefully picked up the finger bone as if it were a priceless treasure. After a long moment, he looked up at Hyuga Ao's slender, unblemished fingers, his eyes burning with fervor. He said:

"How about becoming my disciple? No, not exactly a disciple—publicly, we'll call it that, but privately, it's a partnership. Still, you'll count as my student, and you can come to me for anything."

Afraid she might refuse, he added, "I want to know how you did that. Since you showed it to me, it means you want something from me too. How about it? Any terms are negotiable!"

Hyuga Ao watched Orochimaru shed his usual cold aloofness, looking no different from an ordinary tech geek. She sighed inwardly, but this version of Orochimaru was indeed safer.

She nodded in agreement. "Why not? Orochimaru-sensei."

"Haha, good!" Incredibly, even someone like Orochimaru let out a hearty laugh.

Then, he composed himself and asked, "Do you have any plans next?"

Hyuga Ao bowed slightly. "Whatever sensei arranges."

"Mm." Orochimaru thought for a moment. "Alright. From now on, you'll be my assistant, but you don't have to do much. You can read my books freely, ask me questions, and arrange your own time. But sometimes, when I need to do research, you'll have to cooperate."

Hyuga Ao tilted her head. Such good conditions—not bad!

"Orochimaru-sensei, I'd like to learn Sealing Jutsu."

Orochimaru looked at her forehead. Though the headband covered it, he suddenly realized that his precious new student's life was still under the Hyuga clan's control. His eyes flickered with an unreadable emotion, and he nodded. "Good."

Soon, news spread like wildfire through the Konoha camp preparing for battle.

The cold, untouchable god Orochimaru had actually taken a ten-year-old child from the Hyuga branch family as his disciple—and a female one at that.

In an instant, everyone was stunned. Men sneered at the dirty dealings between the elite and the great clans. Women cursed the unknown little fox who had seduced their idol, wishing they could take her place.

No one was more shocked than Jiraiya.

Jiraiya's heart ached. Tsunade had run off with someone else, but that was fine—he still had Orochimaru. But now Orochimaru had taken a female disciple, and he himself had only just taken one!

But all of the above was just a joke.

Jiraiya found Orochimaru, planted himself squarely in front of him with a grave expression. As a friend who had grown up alongside him, he knew Orochimaru better than anyone—there had to be some hidden secret behind this.

Jiraiya said in a low voice, "Orochimaru, why did you choose to take Ao'er as your disciple? You need to give me an explanation."

Orochimaru shot Jiraiya a glance. Do I really seem that untrustworthy? He snapped irritably, "Dead last, don't bother me with this kind of thing from now on!"

After being chewed out by Orochimaru, Jiraiya actually felt relieved. "Fine, since you've taken someone as a disciple, you'd better teach them well. Hyuga Ao was in my squad before—if there's a problem, I'll come to you!"

"Hmph." Orochimaru watched Jiraiya leave, then picked up another scroll to read. It contained some data from Hyuga Ao's tests the night before. As he read, he became completely absorbed.

Only a single word, "Stupid toad," drifted away on the wind.