Orochimaru, I Have a Commission for You

A moonless, windy night—perfect for murder.

The year-round fog shrouding Kirigakure not only provided natural cover for the Kaguya Clan's assault, but also concealed spies from every faction as they gathered intelligence.

Kimimaro searched the civilian district with a bone spike in hand, showing no interest whatsoever in villagers who were not even ninja.

He had no desire to kill right now. All he wanted was to complete the task Kazama Kaguya had given him before leaving the dungeon.

"Will I really meet the person Lord Kazama mentioned?"

As he ran, he scanned his surroundings.

Soon, he spotted a man wrapped in bandages, accompanied by a delicate and pretty child.

The two sides faced off briefly before Kimimaro took the initiative to leave.

This was not the person he was looking for.

Before leaving the dungeon, Kazama Kaguya had told him that while carrying out his mission, he would encounter someone from another village.

He had long black hair, golden vertical pupils, purple eyeshadow, pale skin, and magatama-shaped earrings.

If he encountered this person...

"Huh?"

Kimimaro abruptly stopped, blinking as he stared at the man ahead in astonishment.

"Golden vertical pupils, purple eyeshadow, magatama earrings. He really looks exactly as Lord Kazama described."

Kimimaro was overjoyed. He had not expected to truly find this outsider within Kirigakure.

"Orochimaru?" he called the man's name tentatively.

"Hm?" Orochimaru turned his head, his golden vertical pupils settling on him as icy killing intent burst forth.

"So strong!"

Kimimaro trembled, every hair on his body standing on end. It was as though countless venomous snakes had surrounded him, filling him with the sensation of impending death and devouring.

Shadow Snake Hand.

Orochimaru used Body Flicker to appear before Kimimaro. A giant snake surged from his right sleeve and coiled around Kimimaro, its foul-smelling tongue hissing.

"Brat, you know me?"

Orochimaru licked his lips, his long tongue slick and wet, making him seem utterly sinister.

Gulp...

Kimimaro's heart turned cold, and he could not help swallowing.

Bound by the giant snake, he remembered Kazama Kaguya's instructions and hurriedly said, "Lord Orochimaru, Lord Kazama sent me to find you."

"Lord Kazama?" Orochimaru frowned. After thinking it over, he realized he did not know the name. The intelligence said Karatachi Yagura once fought members of the Akatsuki Organization. Could they have discovered that I was investigating the Akatsuki Organization? Is this a warning?

He had come to Kirigakure this time based on reliable intelligence.

Before implementing the Blood Mist Policy, the Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura, had once fought three members of the Akatsuki Organization wearing black robes patterned with red clouds.

Now that he had infiltrated Kirigakure to gather intelligence, there was a very high chance that the other side had already discovered him.

However, even if he had been discovered, Orochimaru was not afraid. Instead, he grew even more excited.

He had been tracking this mysterious organization for half a year, even going so far as to suspend construction of Otogakure.

"Did the Akatsuki Organization send you?" Orochimaru asked.

"No." Bones erupted all over Kimimaro's body as he broke free from the giant snake's restraints. Gritting his teeth, he said, "I don't know any Akatsuki Organization. Our organization is the Alliance. Lord Kazama sent me to find you."

"The Alliance?" Orochimaru paused, then said disdainfully, "What trash organization did you crawl out of? How did you obtain intelligence about me?"

"Our organization isn't trash!" Kimimaro's face flushed red as he shouted in rebuttal, "Don't talk about the organization Lord Kazama established like that!"

The moment those words left his mouth, Orochimaru's expression became even more disdainful.

"Heh, a green little brat who doesn't even understand the importance of keeping intelligence confidential. An Alliance founded by Kazama? That information came far too easily."

Kimimaro realized what he had done, and his face immediately turned red with embarrassment.

He had been locked in the dungeon for too long and had never received systematic instruction at the Ninja Academy. The moment he opened his mouth, he had exposed everything.

Orochimaru, however, became interested when he saw the bones protruding from Kimimaro's body. "Shikotsumyaku? Interesting."

He flicked out his tongue and licked his lips, inwardly considering how to lure this child to Sound Village.

He had only recently defected from Konoha, and the Sound Village he had created was still in its infancy, with barely any talented people. It was precisely the time when he needed bloodline users to join.

Moreover, the child before him was extremely naive. He believed that with just a few small tricks, he could make the boy give him his heart and soul.

Under the gaze of those golden vertical pupils, Kimimaro felt a chill run through him and hurriedly said:

"Lord Kazama said he knows information about Eternal Life. If Lord Orochimaru wants to know, then meet him at the edge of the Cliff."

At those words, Orochimaru's pupils constricted violently.

"Eternal Life!" He seized Kimimaro by the throat, blazing desire erupting in his eyes. "You said he knows clues about Eternal Life? He even knows my goal?"

If there was anything that could stir Orochimaru's greatest interest, it was undoubtedly Eternal Life.

He had conducted so many human experiments and developed forbidden techniques all for this purpose.

Cough, cough, cough...

Kimimaro's neck was clutched in his grip, his entire face flushed bright red from suffocation.

Before immortality, Orochimaru's curiosity about Kimimaro had dropped to its lowest point. He released Kimimaro's throat, and the blazing desire in his golden eyes was ignited.

"Come on, kid. Your Lord Kazama has piqued my interest."

He cast a distant glance at the battle erupting in the Mizukage Building, with no intention whatsoever of getting involved. Even his plan to seek out the Akatsuki Organization had been cast aside.

Now, information about immortality was his primary objective.

"Stop looking. They can't win. Let's go."

After leaving the Kaguya Clan's grounds, Kazama Kaguya led the others in a nonstop sprint toward the cliff. Yet the battle erupting in the Mizukage Building still drew the six children's attention, making them stop and stare into the distance.

The six children's eyes brimmed with hopeful light. They desperately wanted to see their clansmen win.

As for Kazama Kaguya, he already knew the outcome. After one glance, he withdrew his gaze and urged them onward.

"Now is the best time to escape. If our clansmen win, they'll naturally send someone to bring you back."

The six were quick-witted and intelligent, so they easily understood such simple logic. Realizing they had delayed everyone, they bowed in unison. "We're sorry, Lord Kazama."

"Hurry up. We'll meet up with Kimimaro at the cliff first. Whether you survive depends on whether he encountered that person."

The six exchanged glances, not understanding what he meant, but they did not ask further.

A few minutes later, the group arrived at the edge of the cliff.

From afar, Kazama Kaguya spotted Kimimaro at once, along with the sinister-looking man standing beside him.

"Orochimaru."

As Kazama Kaguya called out that name, he carefully examined Orochimaru's attire and appearance.

When he saw that Orochimaru was not wearing a black robe patterned with red clouds, and that his face still bore those familiar golden vertical pupils and purple eye shadow, he could not help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness, thank goodness. It's Konoha Year 54 now. Orochimaru should have only just defected. Otogakure is still in its infancy, he hasn't joined the Akatsuki Organization yet, and he probably hasn't developed that bizarre ninjutsu, Living Corpse Reincarnation."

Information was the most valuable thing in the world of Naruto, without exception.

If Orochimaru's Sound Village had gotten on track, if he had joined the Akatsuki Organization, or if he had begun reincarnating, then the value of the information Kazama Kaguya possessed would be greatly reduced.

Fortunately, there was still time.

On the other side, Orochimaru was also examining Kazama Kaguya and the few burdens behind him.

The longer he looked, the greater the confusion in his eyes grew.

But before he could speak, Kazama Kaguya spoke first. "Orochimaru, I have a commission for you. Take it."

"As for the payment, I'll use information about immortality, along with all the Kaguya Clan's money and supplies."

[Talk no Jutsu: Strike Weakness Technique] activated!