Subduing Orochimaru

He brought Orochimaru to another clearing.

Once Feng Yao released him, Orochimaru immediately kept a safe distance between them.

Feng Yao smiled. "What's wrong, Orochimaru? Do you really need to be so cautious? Or are you afraid you'll die here?"

Feng Yao's eyes had returned to their usual pale blue, but that only made Orochimaru more wary. He already knew that Feng Yao could use his ocular techniques even without activating his Mangekyō Sharingan.

Orochimaru replied, "You're underestimating yourself, Lord Feng Yao. When dealing with you, no amount of caution is excessive. But you're wrong about one thing: I'm not afraid of death. Even if I die, I'll still have a chance to come back to life."

What Orochimaru relied on, of course, was the Cursed Seal. His research into it was already extremely advanced. In the original story, even after being sealed by the legendary Sword of Totsuka, he had still managed to revive.

"Is that so? After I kill those disciples of yours who bear the Heaven and Earth Cursed Seals, you'll still be able to revive, right?" Feng Yao waved his hand and sat down on the ground without the slightest hesitation.

Orochimaru broke into a cold sweat. At that moment, his mind went completely blank.

"Why does he know about this? Even if he knows about the Cursed Seals, I've never told anyone that they can bring me back to life. Could Feng Yao actually foresee the past and future?"

At the thought, Orochimaru felt as if he'd been hollowed out. Everything about him lay exposed.

Of course, Feng Yao had no idea that Orochimaru had let his imagination run wild. He only wanted Orochimaru to understand that he had the power to kill him.

Seeing Orochimaru's expression, Feng Yao was very pleased.

He spoke again. This time, he was going to address Orochimaru's ideals and ambitions.

"Orochimaru, I know you're driven by a thirst for knowledge. Everything you do is in pursuit of the truth of the world. But that takes time, which is why you created the forbidden Living Corpse Reincarnation Technique, allowing you to transfer your mind into another person's body and live forever. You also want to uncover the secrets of my body. That's why you wanted to take it over, isn't it?"

Feng Yao had hit the nail on the head, leaving Orochimaru terrified. He screamed inwardly, "So that's why! No wonder he knows all my plans and thoughts. He actually knows a Ninjutsu that can foresee the past and future!"

Orochimaru had already lost the battle of wills. He felt that Feng Yao understood everything about him, and that those eyes had already seen his future.

For the first time, he spoke in a trembling voice. "You're right, Lord Feng Yao. You captured me but didn't kill me. What exactly do you want?"

At that moment, all he wanted was to know what Feng Yao intended to do. His life and death rested on a single thought from the other man.

"It's simple, Orochimaru. Become my right-hand man! I'll lead you in exploring the source of the world and unraveling the mysteries of the Shinobi World. Together, we'll create the ultimate life-form."

Feng Yao spoke with such bold conviction that even Orochimaru was swept up in it. He lowered his head and thought for a moment.

"If this man can foresee the past and future, then he already knows whether I'll follow him. If that's true, then following him might really let me achieve my dream."

Orochimaru drew several excited, ragged breaths. Until now, he had pursued science alone, like a pioneer leading a revolution. But now he had a guide—someone who could lead him!

He looked at Feng Yao. His eyes were no longer filled with greed and guile, but with genuine respect.

"Whether I'll agree—you must already know, don't you?"

"Huh? How would I know whether you'll agree? If I knew, why would I ask?" Feng Yao wondered to himself.

"I'm willing to become your right-hand man. Lord Feng Yao, I want to see how far we can go together. Please forgive me for what I did before." He finished by bowing deeply.

Seeing this, Feng Yao laughed heartily and helped Orochimaru back to his feet.

"Get up, Orochimaru. You'll be glad you made this choice today. Take this."

He took out a ring engraved with the character for "Earth" and put it on Orochimaru's finger, signifying that he was the second-in-command of the Immortals.

The first thing Feng Yao did afterward was take Orochimaru to see the spoils he'd seized in Konoha: a small mountain of scrolls containing forbidden techniques.

Orochimaru's eyes lit up at the sight. He'd only ever taken a peek at these forbidden techniques before; he hadn't mastered them all. And Konoha must have added plenty of new Ninjutsu in recent years.

Part of the reason Orochimaru had attacked Konoha was to obtain these scrolls. He hadn't expected Feng Yao to have already secured them.

He became even more certain that Feng Yao possessed a Ninjutsu that could foresee the future, and he felt fortunate to have made the right choice.

"Lord Feng Yao, these Ninjutsu are truly marvelous! I think it'll take me a long time to master them all."

Watching Orochimaru's excitement, Feng Yao smiled faintly before replying, "You have plenty of time to master these techniques. I want you to use them to improve the organization's combat strength. You have two years. Can you do it?"

"Don't worry, Lord Feng Yao. There are many secrets here that can increase our strength. It won't take two years before you have a powerful force at your disposal."

Orochimaru agreed without hesitation when he heard what Feng Yao wanted.

Hearing Orochimaru's promise, Feng Yao nodded with satisfaction. He couldn't stay in the Kamui Dimension forever, so he took Orochimaru back to the Sound Village.

When they entered the familiar underground base, they saw Kimimaro standing somewhat listlessly outside Orochimaru's lab.

Perhaps he was remembering Orochimaru that way.

But when he turned around, his eyes suddenly lit up. The long-haired man with golden eyes had returned.

"Lord Orochimaru, you made it out?" Kimimaro was overjoyed. But when he saw Feng Yao, he immediately went on guard and even rushed over to put himself between the two men.

He didn't want to feel that sense of loss again.

"Lord Orochimaru, I'm here this time. I won't let him use that Space-Time Ninjutsu!"

As he spoke, he activated his Cursed Seal.

Seeing Kimimaro standing in front of him, Orochimaru affectionately patted him on the head.

"It's all right, Kimimaro. From now on, I'm Lord Feng Yao's subordinate. You must all treat him as you treat me. Understood?"

Hearing how different Orochimaru sounded from usual, Kimimaro was confused. For a moment, he even wondered if the man before him was someone using the Transformation Technique.

"I've seen my future in Lord Feng Yao. I want you to respect him as you respect me."

Noticing the doubt in Kimimaro's eyes, Orochimaru spoke again in his soft, lilting voice.

Kimimaro looked at Feng Yao in disbelief. He didn't understand why Orochimaru had changed so much, but he would do anything Orochimaru told him.

Kimimaro dropped to one knee and pledged his loyalty to Feng Yao.

"Lord Feng Yao, I was disrespectful to you before. Please forgive me, and thank you for bringing Lord Orochimaru back to me."

Looking at Kimimaro, who obeyed Orochimaru without question, Feng Yao sighed inwardly. He really did like loyal subordinates like Kimimaro, but his illness remained a problem. Since there hadn't been an attack on the Kazekage in this life, his condition hadn't worsened as badly. Still, he probably didn't have long to live.

After helping Kimimaro back to his feet, Feng Yao followed Orochimaru into his laboratory. He took all the Ninjutsu and forbidden books out of the Kamui Dimension and handed them to Orochimaru.

He even included Shisui's eyes and Danzo's severed arm.

Orochimaru was even more intrigued by those, especially Shisui's eyes. He had personally experienced how terrifying that Genjutsu was.

Orochimaru was also moved by the trust Feng Yao had shown him. If he put the eyes in himself and used Kotoamatsukami on Feng Yao, it would be disastrous.

Yet Feng Yao had taken no precautions against him at all. "Did he already see in the future that I wouldn't betray him? Lord Feng Yao, you truly are a terrifying and mysterious man!"

In truth, Feng Yao had simply placed the Flying Thunder God Formula on the eyeballs. With that safeguard in place, he was comfortable handing them to Orochimaru.

Of course, Orochimaru wouldn't find that out until much later.