First Encounter with Orochimaru

Two days later

On the northern border of the Land of Fire lay a small country that shared a border with it: the Land of Fields.

It was also the birthplace of the Sound Ninja and Orochimaru's hideout.

Feng Yao arrived in the Land of Fields. The village looked rather crude from the outside, and two ninja wearing Musical Note Forehead Protectors stood guard outside a building.

The two standing at the entrance were Kidomaru and Tayuya. Each had their own abilities, and both were skilled in Barrier Ninjutsu and Sealing Techniques.

He slowly approached them. The two glanced at Feng Yao, and Tayuya spoke first.

"Stay right there. Who are you? Take off your mask."

Kidomaru, standing beside her, fixed Feng Yao with a hard stare. Feng Yao slowly came to a stop.

"Tell Orochimaru to come out. You're not qualified to ask who I am."

A flash of anger rose in Tayuya. That bastard. Who does he think he is? I'll show this ignorant fool what I can do.

As she thought this, she pulled out a flute.

"Demonic Flute: Phantom Sound Chains!"

A clear, melodious flute tune rang out, echoing on and on. Anyone who became entranced by it would fall into an illusion, and their body would slowly corrode.

But Feng Yao's mental strength was so great that an illusion of this level had no effect on him. Only after Tayuya finished playing did he slowly speak.

"Is it over already? You still have a lot of room to improve."

Tayuya had never been one to back down. How could she tolerate such a sarcastic taunt? She swung her flute and charged straight at Feng Yao.

But the moment she came within five meters of him, her body suddenly went limp. She felt an extraordinarily cool sensation seep into her limbs.

It felt so good she nearly cried out. The anger and bloodlust in her heart vanished in an instant, replaced by a sense of closeness and dependence toward Feng Yao. She even wanted to move closer.

Feng Yao was just as puzzled. Why had Tayuya suddenly slowed down? Still, he didn't hesitate. He grabbed her by the neck with his right hand, intending to use her to force Orochimaru to come out.

But as soon as Feng Yao touched Tayuya, she let out a cry.

"Ah!"

It wasn't for any particular reason. Being this close to Feng Yao simply felt too comfortable.

Even though he was holding her, she inexplicably felt that he wouldn't hurt her. She had even developed a peculiar fondness for this stranger she'd never met before.

"I barely even used any force. Could the Sound Five under Orochimaru really be nothing but a reputation?"

He thought this over, confused.

"It's because your physique affects others too strongly. Your Xiaoyao Wise Heart Body is irresistibly alluring to people who harbor negative emotions, like a starving person suddenly being served a feast. It seems to have an even stronger effect on women, though even I didn't expect that."

Only then did Feng Yao understand. Zabuza had indeed seemed affected by him before, but not enough to get distracted while they were fighting. Did that mean he'd have a natural advantage when fighting female ninja? If he took advantage of their brief distraction, he could seize the upper hand in an instant.

"Tayuya! What kind of illusion did you use on her? Let her go right now!"

Seeing his companion captured, Kidomaru panicked. He shouted and prepared to attack, but Tayuya suddenly stopped him.

"I'm... fine. He... doesn't seem to mean any harm. Go tell... Lord Orochimaru."

Her voice trembled as she said this.

Kidomaru froze. The five of them served under Orochimaru and knew each other well.

Tayuya was competitive and stubborn, and her most prominent trait was her sharp tongue. She was always swearing and picking fights with the others.

For her to be captured without cursing out her captor's family was already a miracle. But now she was actually taking his side.

And what was with that bashful tone? If Tayuya's eyes hadn't looked clear, he would have assumed she was under an illusion.

Feng Yao couldn't help but marvel inwardly.

"This Xiaoyao Wise Heart Body is even more useful than I thought."

Kidomaru couldn't decide what to do. He could only glare angrily at Feng Yao and leave him with a threat.

"Just you wait. If you hurt Tayuya, Lord Orochimaru won't let you get away with it."

With that, he went inside, leaving Feng Yao alone with Tayuya, who was breathing heavily.

A moment later, four figures appeared behind the door.

At their head was Orochimaru. He had black hair, golden, slit-like pupils, and purple eyeshadow that stretched from the corners of his eyes to his nose. His skin was deathly pale, and blue-green, tomoe-shaped earrings hung from his ears. He gave off an immediately sinister, vicious impression.

Behind him were Kidomaru, along with Sakon, Jirobo, and Kaguya Kimimaro.

Feng Yao's gaze lingered on Kaguya Kimimaro for a few moments. He possessed the Kekkei Genkai Shikotsumyaku and was the strongest of the Sound Five. The other four together were no match for him.

Orochimaru walked up to Feng Yao and smiled darkly. "Judging by your appearance, if I'm not mistaken, you're Feng Yao, the S-rank rogue ninja who caused chaos in Konoha a few days ago. I never expected you to come looking for me."

It was no surprise that Orochimaru had recognized Feng Yao. The Land of Fields bordered the Land of Fire, and pictures of Feng Yao in his mask had long since spread among the various countries' forces. Orochimaru also paid close attention to news from Konoha. There was no way he could have missed such a major incident.

The others were secretly shocked when they heard this. They had heard the news too, but hadn't gone out of their way to learn more. They usually stayed by Orochimaru's side and only followed his orders.

Tayuya turned to look at Feng Yao, even more impressed with the man holding her.

"Mr. Orochimaru, I'd like to make a deal with you."

Feng Yao looked calmly at Orochimaru. He wasn't surprised that Orochimaru knew who he was.

Orochimaru's curiosity about Feng Yao only grew. Not only had Feng Yao destroyed Kage Rock in Konoha, but he had also found Orochimaru's location in such a short time. That alone showed how capable he was.

"You want to make what kind of deal with me, Feng Yao?"

Seeing that Orochimaru was willing to hear him out, Feng Yao let Tayuya go to show his sincerity. Orochimaru's expression softened slightly.

Tayuya herself, however, stayed where she was. She didn't want to leave Feng Yao's side; his presence was simply too alluring. In the end, it took an order from Orochimaru to make her walk back behind him, glancing over her shoulder every few steps.

Orochimaru frowned at Tayuya's strange behavior, but didn't think much of it.

"I want to work with you to destroy Konoha Ninja Village. But I have one condition: I want to kill Fifth Hokage Danzo with my own hands!"

Orochimaru shook his head and looked at Feng Yao with amusement.

"Why should I work with you? What do you have to offer me in exchange for destroying Konoha?"

Feng Yao cursed the old fox inwardly. At this point, Orochimaru had already been planning to destroy Konoha.

He was only trying to use Feng Yao's offer to drive up the price and squeeze some benefits out of him.

Feng Yao ignored him, turned his back to Orochimaru, and said calmly,

"Whether we work together is up to you. If you don't want to obtain Konoha's ninjutsu, or deal with the Konoha Ninja Village that's been hunting you, then you can refuse my offer."

Then he started to walk away without turning around.

One step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

Four...

Just as he was about to leave, Orochimaru called out to him.

"Wait, Feng Yao. You win. I agree to your deal. I'm not particularly interested in that old bastard Danzo anyway, so if you want to kill him, all the better."

Only then did Feng Yao turn around. But at that moment, Orochimaru's head suddenly stretched out and lunged at him.

This was Orochimaru's Soft Physique Modification, which let him stretch or twist his body freely.

Orochimaru opened his mouth—twice as large as an ordinary person's—and lunged for Feng Yao's throat.

"Iron Body!"

Feng Yao used Rokushiki and braced against the oncoming snake head with one hand. With the other, he landed a right hook that twisted Orochimaru's entire face out of shape.

Orochimaru's head snapped back to his body, and the injury to his face healed in moments. Feng Yao asked coldly,

"Orochimaru, what was that supposed to mean?"

Orochimaru touched his left cheek, his eyes flashing with a vicious light. He said darkly, "Since we're going to work together, I need to know how strong you are. Let me see what you can do, Feng Yao~"

With that, he charged at Feng Yao again.