Several more days passed.
Orochimaru continued traveling from place to place with Gojo Yoru, and Yoru had not been anywhere inhabited for a long time.
But compared to the scrolls of Ryūchi Cave, this hardship was nothing worth mentioning.
That day, Orochimaru brought Gojo Yoru to a cave on a snowy mountain.
"Release—"
After finding a rock wall carved with mysterious symbols, Orochimaru formed hand seals and pressed his palm against it.
As tadpole-like incantations spread, the section of rock beneath Orochimaru's palm actually sank inward, like a hidden compartment opening.
Orochimaru reached inside, took out a palm-sized scroll, and opened it to read.
Gojo Yoru was already used to this sight.
Though he did not know what was written on those scrolls, Yoru could infer that they had been left here by Konoha spies stationed across the various countries.
Orochimaru's mission was to wait for those spies to deliver intelligence to designated locations, then retrieve it.
But this time, something seemed off about Orochimaru. He stood there, repeatedly reading the scroll in his hand.
Unfortunately, Gojo Yoru did not possess the Observation Haki of the neighboring One Piece World, so he could not sense Orochimaru's emotional fluctuations.
Nearly ten minutes later, Orochimaru finally put away the scroll in his hand. He then took another scroll from his person, placed it inside the hidden compartment, and restored the rock wall to its original state.
"Let's go."
Orochimaru led Gojo Yoru out of the cave, and they left the snowy mountain region that very day.
Even more unusually, Orochimaru did not travel on foot this time. Instead, he used Body Flicker to travel with Gojo Yoru the entire way.
After leaving the snowy mountain region, they should have entered the Land of Iron, yet they still continued onward with Body Flicker.
Eventually, the two arrived in a small town.
After nearly a month, Gojo Yoru finally saw a place where people lived. For a moment, he felt dazed.
Orochimaru brought Gojo Yoru to a shop and said to the owner, "Two sets of raincoats and conical hats."
"One thousand ryō. Thank you for your patronage."
After purchasing the raincoats and conical hats, Orochimaru took Gojo Yoru and left the town.
Along the way, Gojo Yoru accepted his set of rain gear and could not help asking, "Teacher Orochimaru, is our next stop the Land of Rain?"
"We're already in the Land of Rain." Orochimaru's gaze was profound. "Our next stop is... Amegakure."
Gojo Yoru clicked his tongue inwardly.
Amegakure was a small place, but in Gojo Yoru's memories, it was second only to Konoha, the birthplace of the protagonist.
Other than the First Shinobi World War, this place had never lacked a role to play.
It was one of the main battlefields of the Second Shinobi World War. Though it did not participate in the Third Shinobi World War, it was still incited by Shimura Danzō into attacking Yahiko's three-man Akatsuki Organization, causing Nagato to fall into darkness.
After that, it became the headquarters of the Akatsuki Organization, the place where Pain descended like a god.
Even in the Fourth Shinobi World War, Amegakure had its moment, and the Rain Ninja all went to war.
Amegakure's current leader was Hanzo of the Salamander at the height of his power. Viewed by ninja as one of the pinnacles of the Ninja World, he was not among the Five Kage, yet he was unquestionably a Five Kage-level powerhouse.
What did Orochimaru want with taking him into that man's territory?
But the Second Shinobi World War had not yet broken out, and Amegakure had not yet declared war on Konoha, so Gojo Yoru did not dwell on it.
Amegakure was a village filled with steel structures.
Because it rained all year round, the most common sights here were enormous drainage pipes.
Whether they were locals or outsiders, nearly all pedestrians on the streets wore raincoats and conical hats.
Only the patrolling Rain Ninja wore breathing masks over their faces.
Located at the border between the three great nations of Wind, Fire, and Earth, Amegakure had no barrier. Hanzo of the Salamander, who wished for small nations to stand against great ones, had not imposed Closed-door Isolation either.
Because the village's assassination techniques were highly developed, it was greatly favored by villains and gangs.
Thus, Amegakure was now a place in the Ninja World where all sorts gathered, and people could enter and leave freely.
Orochimaru, disguised with the Transformation Jutsu, entered Amegakure with Gojo Yoru, who had merely put away his Genin forehead protector and wore no disguise at all. He then instructed him, "You're free to move around from here. Watch your safety."
"Uh... yes."
Gojo Yoru could not quite understand it. If Orochimaru was not going to take him along this time, why bring him into Amegakure?
Wouldn't it have been better to leave him waiting outside?
But as a good child, Gojo Yoru obediently nodded.
Thus, Gojo Yoru and Orochimaru went their separate ways.
Walking alone through the Rain Curtain, Gojo Yoru saw customs and sights unlike those of Konoha.
The villagers were just as simple and honest, but the conditions here were a hundred thousand miles behind prosperous Konoha.
Most shops were nothing more than crude rain shelters.
There were very few restaurants and stores as well, and almost no one came here to invest.
Many of the outsiders on the streets looked fierce and vicious. If not for the patrolling Rain Ninja and the intimidating reputation of Hanzo of the Salamander, order here would likely have been in complete chaos.
As he passed an alleyway, Gojo Yoru suddenly stopped, his attention caught by the scene at its entrance.
There was another crude little rain shelter there, but its owner was a girl several years younger than Gojo Yoru.
With short, straight blue-violet hair and amber eyes, she looked far younger than the girl in his memories, yet Gojo Yoru recognized her at once.
One of Amegakure's three children, the future White Tiger of the Akatsuki Organization—Konan.
Konan was currently sitting on a small stool, her hands propping up her cheeks.
As though she had sensed Gojo Yoru's gaze, Konan looked over, and a flicker of anticipation appeared in her eyes.
Gojo Yoru walked over and examined what Konan was selling, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.
Because she was seated, Konan could see Gojo Yoru's face clearly when she looked up at him, and she froze for a moment.
What beautiful eyes. He's handsome too, and his skin is so fair... Is he a foreigner?
Coming back to her senses, Konan picked up a bouquet of flowers and said softly to Gojo Yoru, "Big brother, would you like to buy some flowers? They're only ten ryō."
"Selling paper flowers on a rainy day—what were you thinking?" Gojo Yoru finally could not resist mocking her.
"I see. No wonder no one buys my flowers." Konan looked enlightened, a sight that seemed like nothing less than a complete collapse of her character setting in Gojo Yoru's eyes.
But judging by the girl's adorably blank and innocent appearance, she clearly had not yet suffered through the devastation of war. That meant her parents should still be alive.
As for selling flowers at such a young age, that was perfectly normal.
After all, some people dared to wander the streets alone on a snowy night at the age of three.
Gojo Yoru had also lived independently since he was three, and the village had not interfered.
"I'll take everything at your stall. Go home early."
Out of fondness for the Original Work, Gojo Yoru took out one hundred ryō and placed it before Konan, but only took one blue-violet paper flower painted with color.
Then, Gojo Yoru vanished into the Rain Curtain.
By the time the girl came back to her senses, she could no longer find that figure.
But she remembered those icy blue eyes, along with that handsome face and fair skin.
Before you continue