Seeking Help from Nonō

At a port town in the Land of Iron, Orochimaru questioned a merchant ship bound for the Land of Snow. Unfortunately, no merchant vessels would be able to reach the Land of Snow anytime soon—not even within the next few months.

The Land of Snow was frozen year-round, and even the surrounding seas frequently iced over. Only from late spring to early autumn, when the weather warmed enough to keep the sea from freezing completely, could ships barely pass through. At other times, especially during winter, the frozen sea made navigation utterly impossible.

But who was Orochimaru?

Just because they said it couldn't be done, did that mean it couldn't be done?

Orochimaru directly used violence to coerce a ship, its captain, and all its sailors into setting sail straight for the Land of Snow.

As for the frozen sea, he did not care in the slightest. If the ice was thin, he could use ninjutsu to break a path through it. If it was extremely thick, he could simply abandon the merchant ship and travel alone.

With Orochimaru's strength, none of that was a problem.

In Takigakure, Houka brought Haku into a room and examined the Cursed Seal of Heaven on his neck.

The Cursed Seal of Heaven had three black Tomoe at its core, surrounded by a ring of dense, nearly imperceptible black seal markings.

Interestingly, those three black Tomoe looked very much like the Tomoe of the Sharingan.

Houka sneered.

Orochimaru had always coveted the Sharingan. Sure enough, even the Cursed Seal of Heaven he developed imitated it.

One could say that his obsession had finally received an answer.

Houka slowly released the Five Elements Seal. In an instant, the three Tomoe of the Cursed Seal of Heaven gave off a scorching glow, absorbing strands of