Hyuga Shin and Orochimaru had a long, in-depth conversation, during which Shin briefly introduced his plans.
Their heartfelt talk brought Orochimaru and Hyuga Shin closer than ever.
It also filled him with admiration for Hyuga Shin's lofty ideals!
Even after spending more than eighty years surrounded by darkness, he still longed for the light!
Though trapped in a cage, he still wanted to change this twisted world.
Hyuga Shin's unwavering convictions moved Orochimaru.
He admitted to himself that he couldn't do the same.
Orochimaru's addition brought Hyuga Shin's plans another step forward.
It hadn't been easy!
Nearly a month of effort had finally paid off.
This had also been the longest time Hyuga Shin had ever spent preaching.
But it had been worth it!
From his conversation with Orochimaru, Shin learned that Orochimaru had lost interest in this war, which had long been arranged according to a script.
He also disdained narrow-minded notions like protecting one's village or clan.
Orochimaru had climbed out of the well and glimpsed the vast sky beyond.
He had also seen the darkness lurking in the depths of the Shinobi World!
At the same time, he pitied those shinobi shrouded in darkness, devoid of self-awareness and ignorant of their own plight.
Orochimaru had even said he wanted to leave Konohagakure and follow Hyuga Shin, sowing seeds of hope across the Shinobi World. But Hyuga Shin had refused.
Hyuga Shin said that he was already a withered body, and that becoming fertilizer for the seeds was his mission.
The hidden hands controlling the Shinobi World would never allow their nursery to be destroyed. They were bound to face fierce resistance and relentless pursuit!
These seedlings still needed a better environment in which to grow.
Until they had enough strength, they would have to develop cautiously for a while longer.
Hyuga Shin's selfless devotion brought Orochimaru's respect and admiration to an all-time high!
Hyuga Shin had gradually fulfilled his original plan to become Orochimaru's spiritual mentor, guiding light, and guide to his ideals.
But the time was nearly right.
Hyuga Shin still had to travel through the Shinobi World, following the Great Teacher of Virtue's path of spreading the Way and sowing seeds of hope across the land.
Orochimaru had taken his first steps along the ideals and journey Hyuga Shin had laid out for him, and the lingering danger within him had also been removed.
A few more days of tending him, feeding him some toxic chicken soup, and organizing his core principles should be enough to secure his resolve.
It was about time to leave.
Under the Sage of Six Paths' script, conflict had never ceased in the Shinobi World—and it continued to this day.
After years of war, countless families had lost loved ones, and countless children had lost their parents.
Sasori was no different. He was a pitiful child, and losing his parents at a young age had left him deeply traumatized.
A genius puppeteer, he had even crafted puppets of his father and mother to keep him company.
Though Chiyo had been there for him, his childhood had lost its color.
Longing for his parents' love, he had gradually become twisted inside, pouring all his thoughts into the study of puppets.
Only puppets would never die. They could stay by his side forever, unchanged.
He also harbored a deep hatred for the Third Kazekage, whom he blamed for his parents' deaths!
He held the Third Kazekage responsible for his parents' deaths.
Sasori believed that as Kazekage of Sunagakure, the Third Kazekage had a duty to protect his fellow villagers.
Yet his parents had died on a mission assigned by the Third Kazekage.
In Sasori's eyes, he was unfit to lead a village.
So in addition to studying the Puppet Technique, he delved deeply into the art of poison-making.
His goal was to one day kill the Third Kazekage and avenge his dead parents!
He would also put an end to the career of a leader he considered unfit.
Sasori worked hard and gradually began to reveal his talent.
The Third Kazekage soon took notice of him and brought him into his personal guard.
That brought Sasori one step closer to his goal!
At last! During a secret mission, Sasori found his chance!
He secretly poisoned the Third Kazekage in advance and successfully killed the still relatively young and strong leader.
He then prepared to turn the Third Kazekage's body into a puppet, making it his trump card.
After all, the Third Kazekage had been powerful. As a wielder of the Magnet Release Kekkei Genkai, few could match his Iron Sand techniques.
Sasori's actions also became the fuse that ignited the Third Shinobi World War, setting off the Third Shinobi World War.
After killing the Third Kazekage, Sasori defected and never returned to the village.
As far as he was concerned, there was nothing left there worth staying for.
Now he would pursue the path to eternal puppets.
But Sasori didn't know that someone had already set his sights on him.
The advance team, the Immortal Duo, had already entered the Land of Wind and begun searching for him.
"Hey, Kakuzu! How are we supposed to find someone with just a name? The Leader should've given us a bit more information! I still need to preach to Lord Jashin and offer up sacrifices!"
The young Hidan kept complaining to Kakuzu.
He really was getting impatient. Running around like this every day meant he couldn't get anything done, and even the Evil God he worshipped was getting annoyed.
"Shut up, Hidan! You've been complaining all day! Can't you be quiet for once?"
Kakuzu was getting annoyed too. This really wasn't a good way to search.
Unlike Hidan, Sasori didn't have any obvious identifying features beyond being a puppeteer, and as a shinobi, he knew how to conceal his identity.
Though Kakuzu had scolded Hidan, he still took his advice and decided to ask Hyuga Shin for help, to see whether Shin could provide any useful information.
He immediately activated the ring with a secret technique and sent a message.
A short while later, a figure appeared as a projection from the ring. It was Hyuga Shin.
"Kakuzu, did you contact me because you're having trouble? Has Hidan joined yet?" Hyuga Shin asked as soon as his projection appeared.
"Hidan joined after I strongly urged him to. We're now searching for the other prospective member you mentioned, Sasori!"
"But we know too little about him, and he's not in Sunagakure right now. He's very hard to find, so I wanted to ask if you had any information about him."
Kakuzu explained what they had accomplished so far and the difficulties they faced.
"Kakuzu, you've worked faster than I expected. You got Hidan to join so quickly."
"As for Sasori, wait a few days. Once I've taken care of things here, I'll come help you in person."
"In the meantime, you can do whatever you'd like."
Hyuga Shin first praised Kakuzu's efficiency, then answered his question.
Hyuga Shin knew Sasori would be hard to find. After doing something so major, of course the guy would hide and lie low!
"Fine. We'll wait for you in the Land of Wind for a few days. We can use the time to get some rest." Kakuzu didn't ask anything else. He ended the call without even telling Shin where they were.
He knew Hyuga Shin could find them, since the rings had real-time tracking.
"Hey, Kakuzu, I can use this chance to preach to Lord Jashin and offer up sacrifices, right?"
"The Leader said we could do whatever we wanted."
Hidan could no longer suppress his urge to preach.
Give him an inch, and he'd take a mile.
"Sure, but don't go killing civilians indiscriminately. Our organization doesn't allow that."
"Find a Black Market and take a job clearing out bandits. You'll earn money and have sacrifices for your Evil God."
Kakuzu had a good head for business. He'd solved Hidan's problem and could still collect a payment—a win-win!
The two then headed for the nearest Black Market.
After receiving Kakuzu's message, Hyuga Shin learned that Hidan had joined and that they were already searching for Sasori in the Land of Wind.
He couldn't help thinking, Kakuzu really gets things done! I don't even have to remind him!
Still, he needed to purge the Will of the Six Paths from them as soon as possible. Otherwise, if the Six Paths noticed and he couldn't reach them in time, all would be lost.
His research into purging the Will of the Six Paths had hit a bottleneck. Though he wanted to give these seedlings a chance to discover things for themselves, for their safety, Hyuga Shin decided to remove the Six Paths' safeguards first.
That was why he needed to go in person.
The situation was developing well overall. His research had a few flaws, but it wasn't a major problem.
Hyuga Shin believed he would find a solution sooner or later.
Another day passed, and Orochimaru came to visit again. He chatted at length with Hyuga Shin; he was starting to neglect his work.
But that was understandable. His worldview had grown so different from that of the other shinobi, caged birds though they were, that they no longer saw eye to eye.
Only with Hyuga Shin could he speak freely and uncover more of the truth about the shinobi world.
Of course, Hyuga Shin was happy to see him too. Every day, he tended him, fed him toxic chicken soup, helped him establish his ideals and convictions, and taught him to strive for a world of unity among shinobi.
But Hyuga Shin still told Orochimaru that he would be leaving.
Orochimaru was reluctant to see him go, but he still said he supported Hyuga Shin's decision.
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