Orochimaru and Scorpion

In the Land of Fire, on the road leading to the Land of Wind.

Hyuga Makoto and the other three moved extremely fast. According to the latest intelligence, that Mysterious Person seemed to have accepted a mission through the Black Market.

They had to reach him before he completed the mission. Only then could they determine his identity as accurately as possible.

"I really didn't expect Orochimaru to have actually joined an organization."

As he ran, Tenzo couldn't help sighing in amazement.

"And Hokage-sama said they were companions. Could it be that he joined them?"

"It's unclear. If that's really the case, then it's extremely dangerous."

Kakashi pondered for a while before sighing as well, and Uchiha Itachi nodded along.

"Someone as arrogant as Orochimaru would never join without an extraordinary reason."

"Indeed."

Tenzo stroked his chin and looked curiously at Hyuga Makoto.

"Makoto, what do you think?"

"..."

I'll use the Byakugan to look!

Hyuga Makoto pursed his lips. He was carefully considering the necessary details of this operation.

He had thought things through repeatedly before stealing from Danzo, and now he had to be even more careful!

Still, he had already considered most of what needed to be considered. All that remained was figuring out how to carry it out.

Thus, he shrugged before finally speaking.

"I was thinking about one thing. Exactly what could have attracted Orochimaru to join this organization?"

"Attracted him?"

Makoto's words left the other three stunned for a moment, and he continued speaking.

"Yes. After all, rumors say that Orochimaru is devoted to researching ninjutsu and kekkei genkai. He's also extremely arrogant, so he must have had a reason for joining them."

"If you look at it that way..."

Kakashi subconsciously touched his own eye as he recalled the moment Orochimaru had defeated him.

At the time, Orochimaru had stared at his eye, but in the end, he had disdainfully shaken his head and called him a "fake," saying he wasn't interested.

Besides, the Third Hokage had once said that one of them "possessed extremely strong insight"!

At that thought, Kakashi's gaze subtly changed.

"It seems something truly extraordinary must have attracted him and made him join."

"Indeed."

Tenzo nodded. He himself had been one of Orochimaru's test subjects, and he had even carried out the mission to retrieve Kakashi's Sharingan.

Makoto's words reminded him that although Orochimaru wasn't Danzo, it was hard to say whether he was also interested in the Sharingan!

Only Uchiha Itachi remained silent. He understood these words as well.

He couldn't help thinking of that man from back then. Even though he hadn't seen his eyes clearly, he had vaguely felt that the man seemed to be an Uchiha...

"It seems we'll have to report this properly once we return."

Kakashi pondered for a long while before speaking and interrupting everyone's thoughts.

"But for now, let's focus on the mission at hand. We'll deal with this after we've taken care of it."

"Yes!"

The three answered in unison, then began to speed up as well.

The Land of Rivers lay between the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind, serving as a buffer zone between the two great nations.

During wartime, it was, like the Land of Grass, also a battlefield where the great nations clashed.

However, unlike the Land of Grass, this place had no shinobi village. The ninja here were mostly wandering ninja, rogue ninja, and spies from the various villages.

"But this godforsaken place is unexpectedly prosperous."

Outside a small town in the Land of Grass, within the woods, Hyuga Makoto looked at the dazzling casinos, izakayas, and brothels in the distance and couldn't help sighing.

"It's normal. This is one of the Black Market's trading points."

Kakashi also looked toward the town and spoke softly.

"These ninja have money after completing their missions. Without a village to restrain them, they'll naturally run wild. That's why there are so many messy businesses here."

So you only read dirty books because you have no one restraining you?

Makoto glanced at Kakashi and wondered whether he should give Kakashi a copy of Icha Icha Paradise.

That was merely what he was thinking. As far as the mission was concerned, Makoto was taking it very seriously.

"Captain, I think we should split up and establish separate observation posts."

"Split up?"

Tenzo was stunned for a moment, while Uchiha Itachi nodded thoughtfully.

"I can see that this Black Market trading post is protected by barriers. They seem quite advanced. Even your Byakugan can't see through them?"

"Yes, they really are highly advanced barriers."

Makoto nodded. Konoha also had barriers designed to prevent observation. Otherwise, wouldn't all its secrets be dug out by the Byakugan?

Although the cost was extremely high, the Black Market was naturally willing to invest in protecting its secrets and privacy.

Besides, according to Makoto's memories, in the future, smoke bombs that the Byakugan couldn't see through would even be developed to deal with the Otsutsuki's Byakugan...

"Moreover, this trading post connects in all directions, and it can be entered from any side. With it blocking our view, it's easy to miss some information."

"Looks like we'll indeed have to split up and set up separate observation posts."

Kakashi thought it over before making the decision.

"Makoto, mark the areas you can see. We'll stay within your line of sight. If anything happens, we'll notify you immediately. And if you run into trouble..."

"I understand. I'll protect myself."

Makoto immediately nodded. He couldn't wait for these good teammates of his to leave!

He had already thought through all those messy details. What he wanted to do now was make a big move.

This was the perfect chance to see how much his main storyline progression could change!

"Exclusive missions are obtained by advancing the main storyline. I wonder how far I have to advance it before a new exclusive mission appears..."

Hyuga Makoto truly hoped to see a new exclusive mission appear. That was the key to becoming stronger!

"We can start preparing..."

After he finished drawing a simple map, Kakashi and the other two quickly split up. Makoto also concealed himself in the bushes and quietly took out a mask and a set of clothes.

He had made this mask himself. With Orochimaru's Sealing Jutsu added to it, he had personally tested it. The Byakugan couldn't see through it!

The clothes were a white robe. Imitating the Sage of Six Paths, he had printed black magatama on both sides of his chest.

"That should do it."

After activating Tsukuyomi and slightly drawing on the Lunar Tenseigan's Chakra, Hyuga Makoto used Yin Release and Yang Release to create another Shadow Clone.

After completing all these preparations, he nodded in satisfaction.

Now he only had to wait for Orochimaru and Scorpion to appear. He also intended to test the limits of the people from the moon this time!

However, he had one problem now.

What should I call myself...?

"I heard you suffered a setback at the hands of the Konoha ninja last time."

"More or less. After all, I had to preserve my assets. They're not like your puppets, which can simply be discarded when they're shattered in battle."

Elsewhere in the forest, Scorpion and Orochimaru were heading toward the Land of Grass.

They didn't speak much along the way, but every time they opened their mouths, they confronted each other.

"How amusing. Every body of yours is discarded once it's used up, while my puppets are eternal. How dare you say something like that?"

Scorpion snorted coldly. His gaze toward Orochimaru was extremely hostile, but Orochimaru didn't care in the slightest.

"Eternal? Turning decaying flesh into eternal puppets is no match for the eternity of the spirit."

"What a disgusting rotten snake."

Scorpion's voice grew colder and colder. Their conflicting philosophies meant that they were destined not to get along.

If Pain hadn't been keeping them in check, the two of them would probably have started fighting long ago!

"Say whatever you want. Let's complete the mission quickly."

Orochimaru licked his lips, his face filled with disdain as well.

"I have things to do too. Besides, speaking of which, I really would like to study you."

"You can try."

"There will be a chance in the future..."

Their exchange ended there. Neither of them could be bothered to speak to the other anymore. Both wanted to finish the mission quickly and go their separate ways.

However, as they drew closer to the trading post in the small town, their footsteps gradually slowed.

They were both powerful and possessed keen senses. At last, they stopped in the forest.

"If I'm not mistaken, this is the tail you left behind last time. You're truly an idiot."

Scorpion spoke mockingly, while Orochimaru gently licked his lips.

"Perhaps. Although there's something unclean here, still..."

"This time, we can clean them all up!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Orochimaru instantly formed hand seals.

Earth Release: Earth Flow!

In an instant, the ground shattered into countless grains of sand, which surged toward the forest like a raging tide...