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His wooden sandals crossed the redwood floorboards.
Orochimaru had unusually put on his Konoha Forehead Protector today and come to the Uchiha Clan Compound.
A few years ago, when he still cared somewhat about the Hokage Position, he would never have done something that would upset the elders and displease his teacher. But none of that mattered to him anymore.
Now he had to be more single-minded, living only for himself and his ambitions.
Today, the shinobi from the Eastern Front returned. He hadn't gone to welcome them at the village gates; instead, he had chosen to wait for Uchiha Chen at the Uchiha Clan Compound.
Whoosh!
"This is... There should be limits to how recklessly you train!"
Orochimaru's expression suddenly changed. In a flash, he appeared outside a training room.
Inside, a small child threw two kunai, triggering a trap. Dozens of kunai shot toward him from every direction almost at once.
Orochimaru knew this child: Itachi, the Uchiha Clan Head Fugaku's eldest son. He was only seven years old.
Orochimaru was already preparing to save him.
Clang, clang, clang!
A red tomoe suddenly appeared in Uchiha Itachi's black eyes. He flung several kunai in every direction, then danced through the air like a butterfly, dodging every incoming blade before landing back where he had started.
Even the spot where he stepped was exactly the same.
"This really is... This really is..."
Orochimaru extended his long tongue and licked his lips. His golden, slit-pupiled eyes, colder and more merciless than a snake's, narrowed as he gazed greedily at the black-haired child inside the training room.
"What astonishing talent!"
Orochimaru was a genius among geniuses. He had seen plenty of gifted shinobi, both from other villages and from Konoha, yet Uchiha Itachi's talent still left him astounded.
Perhaps there was some truth to the Uchiha's repeated claims that they were descendants of the Sage of Six Paths.
Otherwise, why would the gods favor the Uchiha Clan so? First Chen, then Shisui, and now this child?
"Itachi..."
Orochimaru murmured the name, then suddenly furrowed his brow.
In nature, weasels were snakes' natural enemies. Ha! As if that were possible—he was only a child!
Orochimaru shook his head and chuckled, his gaze finally settling on Itachi's Sharingan.
One look, then another. The more he looked, the more he admired and liked them.
If only he could use the immortality jutsu he had envisioned on this child...
"Pss, pss, pss!"
Orochimaru flicked his tongue out again and again before finally leaving the training room, reluctant to go.
"Was someone here just now?"
After finishing his training, Uchiha Itachi felt that someone might have been there. But when he reached the doorway, he found no one outside—only a few drops of strange liquid on the ground.
On April 6, the main force from the Eastern Front returned to Konoha.
After enjoying the villagers' cheers at the gates, the returning shinobi naturally split up to go home to their families.
On the way back to the Uchiha Clan Compound, Uchiha Inabi naturally gravitated toward Uchiha Chen and Shisui.
The three of us are all geniuses. I'm proud!
He glanced sideways at the unfamiliar clan member called Hikari. Rather than asking her to move aside and making room at Chen's left, Uchiha Inabi simply squeezed in on Shisui's right.
"Isn't the Hyuga Clan going too far? No one even came to welcome Senior Hizashi back?"
Uchiha Inabi was indignant, his face full of scorn for the rotten Hyuga Clan.
"Was Hinata Hyuga's hundred-day celebration really more important than welcoming their victorious clansman home?"
"That's just how the Hyuga Clan is!"
"So these Hyuga grave-keepers..."
Uchiha Inabi looked around, then lowered his voice a little. "...grave-keepers' dogs will never measure up to us Uchiha. If you ask me—"
"Lord Orochimaru!" Shisui suddenly called out, interrupting Inabi's lengthy tirade.
"Mr. Orochimaru!"
Uchiha Chen also nodded to Orochimaru, who stood quietly beneath a peach tree just beginning to bloom.
Orochimaru smiled warmly.
But a smile like that always looked strange on him, carrying a chilling, spine-tingling menace.
"Chen, Shisui, and... you two. Thank you for your efforts!"
Orochimaru grinned, licked his lips, and looked at Uchiha Chen and Shisui with admiration.
Chen, Shisui, Itachi—which one should I choose?
What a delightful dilemma for a snake.
"Mr. Orochimaru?"
"Nothing!" Orochimaru, who had been standing there in a daze, came back to himself and gave Uchiha Chen a long look.
"Chen, wait a moment."
Orochimaru suddenly stretched out his neck and opened his mouth. A viper slithered out, carrying a scroll covered in saliva.
"Chen!" Orochimaru narrowed his eyes as he took the scroll and held it out to Uchiha Chen with a sinister smile. "A belated birthday present. Your birthday is in February, right? You were on the battlefield then, so I couldn't give it to you until you came back."
A birthday present?
In this life, Uchiha Chen had lost his parents early and almost never celebrated his birthday. This might be the only birthday present he had received in years.
Uchiha Chen stared blankly as he took the scroll, then thanked Orochimaru a few times.
Could a cold-blooded animal really be this kind?
What's more, the scroll bore a line of bold, forceful handwriting, each stroke sharp and elegant: Introduction to Five Elements Ninjutsu, annotated by Senju Tobirama.
Like Sarutobi Hiruzen and Orochimaru, Senju Tobirama had mastered all seven chakra natures. As for why Water Style was his specialty and the technique he was known for, everyone knew the answer.
This gift was incredibly precious!
Uchiha Chen's inner alarm bells began ringing.
Uchiha Chen knew Orochimaru. He was emotionally detached, with little affection for anyone apart from three or four people, such as Jiraiya. Beyond that, he might have had a bit of an "intellectual crush"—or, more accurately, a "genius fetish."
He admired geniuses and liked talented people, and he treated them well. Uchiha Chen had been among them until now.
But his relationship with Orochimaru had always been mostly about "exchanging favors" and "exchanging knowledge." Why was Orochimaru suddenly being so nice?
When a man inexplicably treats you well for no reason, you should know he wants your body!
"Mr. Orochimaru, want to take a walk together?"
Uchiha Chen tucked the scroll away and invited his biggest benefactor.
Orochimaru had plenty of good stuff.
If Sasuke could turn Orochimaru into a lovesick fool, making him practically worship him as a "snake dad," then Uchiha Chen could do the same.
Get ready to cough up the cash, old man!
"Sure!"
A sly smile tugged at Orochimaru's lips. He glanced up at the sky and said,
"How about the forest behind Kage Rock? It's always beautiful there in spring."
The woods were large and dense, and there were very few people around.
His envisioned jutsu wasn't finished yet, but it would be even better if he could first leave his mark on Uchiha Chen!
Uchiha Chen had no objection. He turned and made arrangements.
"Hikari, you can stay at my house for now. Shisui, show her around. I'm going for a walk with Mr. Orochimaru."
The two men, each harboring their own schemes, chatted as they headed toward Kage Rock.
"Shisui!"
Once the two had walked away, Uchiha Inabi, who Orochimaru had ignored the entire time, gazed up at the towering, imposing Kage Rock and suddenly said,
"You two go on ahead. I just remembered something—I have to go outside the compound."
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