Ryūchi Cave

"Today, I came to deliver a notice and give you a few things while I was at it."

Orochimaru stood with his arms folded as he addressed Uchiha Gen and the other two.

"Because the village is currently under immense pressure on all three fronts, following an appointment jointly decided upon by the Third Hokage and the council of elders, this batch of Genin will also be assigned to combat units. Gather in five days, then depart in batches for different battlefields."

His slightly hoarse voice reached the three of them. Standing above them, Orochimaru observed the expressions of his three students.

Sarutobi Enju was excited, Utsuki Ruri was nervous, while Uchiha Gen wore a thoughtful expression.

As for heading to the battlefield, Uchiha Gen had mentally prepared himself for it the moment he graduated.

No strong person had ever clawed their way up without killing on the battlefield.

For ninja of this era, going to war was something they had to experience sooner or later. It was unavoidable.

"Orochimaru-sensei, which front are we being sent to? Which unit will we be assigned to?" Uchiha Gen asked Orochimaru.

With Sarutobi Enju in the team, and Nawaki's fate serving as a warning, the Third Hokage was unlikely to assign them somewhere dangerous.

"The Land of Rain front. The three of you will be assigned to the Strategic Support Unit. You won't be stationed on the front line, but it is still the front, and it is no less dangerous than the village. When I'm not around, Gen will be responsible for the team's tactical command and coordinate with the other squads," Orochimaru replied.

Though he had yet to reach his peak, he was already a top expert close to Kage level, unlike ordinary jonin.

Combat power of that level would never be wasted. The Third Hokage had other plans for him, so he would not be deployed alongside Genin like Uchiha Gen and the others.

As he spoke, Orochimaru summoned a snake, which spat out a scroll.

"This is Ryūchi Cave's contract scroll. Leave your names on it in blood, and I'll notify the Snake Sage in the cave to use the Reverse Summoning Technique to bring you inside. But before you enter, I need to remind you of one thing: don't trust what you see there. Stay alert at all times. That place is not friendly to ninja with weak wills or insufficient intelligence. Once you enter, it is easy not to come back out."

Compared to Mount Myōboku and Shikkotsu Forest, most snakes in Ryūchi Cave were vicious and cruel by nature. Those Snake Sages were the sort who truly ate people without leaving even their bones behind.

Uchiha Gen would probably be fine, but Orochimaru was still somewhat worried about the other two and needed to warn them a few more times.

"After passing the Snake Sage's trial, you can truly form a contract with Ryūchi Cave. However, the snakes there cannot simply be summoned just because you have made a contract. Most ordinary snakes are manageable—you can tame them through conventional methods, or modify your body with Body Modification as I did. While granting your body greater flexibility and physical strength, it also gives you the ability to directly intimidate and control ordinary snakes.

"But those giant snakes with a certain degree of strength must be defeated personally before they can be tamed. As for the strongest few, even if you have the strength to defeat them, they may not obey you. At most, they will form an equal contract with you, and you will need to offer more sacrifices in exchange before they are willing to act."

At that, Orochimaru took out another scroll.

"Body Modification requires a great number of precious materials. If you are willing, the formula is here. Take it later. Once you have gathered the materials, you can bring them to me for preparation, and I will help you complete the Body Modification."

The scroll was passed between the three of them.

The Body Modification process was extremely intricate and complicated, consisting of multiple stages. Every stage required large quantities of medicinal ingredients, including many rare and precious herbs. Orochimaru himself had only basically perfected this secret technique with the help of his teammate, Tsunade.

Yet after each completed modification, one's flexibility and elasticity would be enhanced to a certain extent. Endurance, explosive power, agility, and other attributes would also improve, while resistance to most poisons would increase as well.

Even Orochimaru himself had not yet fully completed the modifications. If he had, he would be like the Orochimaru in the original story after he passed fifty—able to stretch his neck an absurd distance and lunge more than ten meters forward to bite someone.

The first few stages of modification were manageable. Although they consumed a certain amount of resources, even Utsuki Ruri, who came from the most ordinary background among the three, had a ninja clan supporting her. After becoming Orochimaru's student, she had surely received considerable support from her family. At worst, it would merely take more time.

The true threshold of this secret technique lay in the quality of one's Chakra and the ninja's own will. None of the secret techniques Orochimaru created were simple. Even one without side effects like this could easily fail if the ninja's abilities were not up to standard.

"Now, the time is about right. Are you ready?" Orochimaru suddenly asked the three of them.

Ready for what?

Uchiha Gen froze. Then a pulling sensation washed over him, and he realized it was the Reverse Summoning Technique from Ryūchi Cave.

"Goodbye, Orochimaru-sensei—"

Before he could finish, the pulling sensation suddenly intensified, forcibly reverse summoning Uchiha Gen away.

"Sensei—"

Bang!

A thick cloud of smoke spread out. Uchiha Gen instinctively gripped the hilt of the Ninja Sword at his waist with his right hand and vigilantly scanned his surroundings.

Mist surrounded him, so dense that it obscured his vision. He could only see things close by.

His Sharingan silently activated, and Sensory Ninjutsu spread outward as well.

In an instant, Uchiha Gen found Sarutobi Enju and Utsuki Ruri nearby. They had been reverse summoned before him.

He was stronger than his two teammates now, so his resistance to the Reverse Summoning Technique was naturally greater. He was not completely powerless against it. Only after the other side increased its Chakra output was he forcibly reverse summoned over.

That was also why a thousand-year-old giant snake like Manda had the nerve to demand sacrifices from Orochimaru.

He truly had the ability to refuse Orochimaru's summons.

And the snakes of Ryūchi Cave did not have the good temper of the toads of Mount Myōboku. Thus, even Orochimaru often had no choice but to swallow his pride and accept it.

However, the one who had reverse summoned Uchiha Gen this time was a Snake Sage of Ryūchi Cave who had mastered Sage Art. She was one of Ryūchi Cave's upper echelon, someone even Orochimaru had yet to form a contract with, and her strength far surpassed that of Uchiha Gen and the others.

Not only could she reverse summon them directly here, but she had also kept them from detecting her whereabouts.

But one thing was certain: she was watching them from somewhere within the nearby mist.

Thanks to Orochimaru's warning before their departure, every member of the team had raised their guard.