Caught

But in the face of overwhelming strength, charging in again and again only left her body more battered. Faith and all that was laughable.

Hui collapsed in a heap not far from Orochimaru, unable even to open her eyes. She could imagine how pathetic she looked—probably like a stray dog.

Her whole body hurt so much. Countless questions circled in her mind, dragging her down as if into a field of corpses.

It seemed there was only one voice echoing in her mind.

I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die!

Orochimaru watched the girl who had once again been beaten into a miserable state. The fear and resentment in her eyes seemed almost tangible, and he felt a strange excitement. It was as if he were watching Hui get devoured bit by bit, drawn over to his side without realizing it.

He would take the power of the Uzumaki Clan into his own hands without hesitation, and put it to good use. Thinking this, he stretched out his long tongue and licked his lips.

Interesting, he thought.

Hui still struggled to get up, but found that her body wouldn't stop trembling. Even her face seemed to be quivering, and the muscles all over her body were twitching. She fell back against her will, losing control of her body.

She was so unwilling to give up, so miserable, so terrified. She wanted to cry so badly—but would it do any good?

If she backed down now, she would only die, wouldn't she? She would be swallowed into a snake's belly, slowly corroded by its digestive juices, and finally suffocate. She didn't want to die. Someone, please save her.

But coming here and becoming his student had been entirely her own choice. No one could save her. No one could help her.

One thought kept echoing in her mind: If only I were stronger. I don't want to die here!

Orochimaru stood in the distance, silently watching. He could no longer hide the smile at the corners of his mouth. Hui turned her head toward him, glaring with resentment.

She had never hated anyone so much. The hatred in her eyes seemed ready to cut him to pieces, yet she was confused. Why? Why was she like this?

Only when the words left her mouth did she understand. It was as if she had fallen into darkness. "I want to get stronger. I don't care if I have to accept someone else's power!"

When had she started thinking in such extreme terms? She had clearly decided from the beginning that she wouldn't follow Sasuke's path.

But countless reasons filled her mind, telling her that she had no chance of breaking out of her shell. She didn't have the power of the Uchiha Clan. She would only become one of Orochimaru's pawns—an irredeemable pawn.

Orochimaru's smile spread. "Hahaha. That can be arranged."

Hui's eyelids trembled. Her lips had gone pale, and her eyes felt painfully dry. It wasn't hurt or despair she felt, but confusion and a sense of having fallen. She no longer understood what she was doing.

It seemed that from this moment on, she had abandoned her former self. She couldn't even tell whether what she felt was resentment or fear. Unable to see any hope, she only wanted to clutch tightly to the little light in her hands.

Hui thought Orochimaru would place a Cursed Seal on her, but instead he brought her to meet someone familiar from her memories: Kimimaro. The whole thing felt like a joke.

After seeing Kimimaro, for some reason, the reason that had been swallowed up returned all at once. Her eyes held nothing but shock, and a heartache she couldn't put into words.

But Kimimaro didn't even recognize her. It was as if she had just been imagining things. They were searching for meaning in their own lives. What right did she have to feel sorry for him...

And yet, why was she so unwilling to accept it? She had thought she could change other people, but instead she had changed herself. Now she was pathetic and weak, stubborn and timid.

When she looked at Kimimaro, she saw no confusion or pain in his eyes. The truly confused and tormented person was her—the fool who had imagined she could save others.

"Heh." That was the only thought Hui had.

How stupid. How stupid. How stupid. No matter how many times she went through this, how could she forget that people's hearts could change with power? Maybe only if she could truly speak to him as an equal, truly understand him—maybe then she could change something.

Orochimaru's voice was still hoarse as he said, "Hui, from now on, Kimimaro will be in charge of your training."

Hui turned her head toward Orochimaru, whose eyes were still filled with mystery. She had given up trying to figure out his intentions. She only found the corners of her mouth lifting for some reason. Kimimaro, the strongest of the Kaguya Clan, whose absolute power inspired fear—she looked forward to learning from him.

Kimimaro showed no expression. Only after hearing Orochimaru's order did he glance at Hui. "Yes!" His reply was as formal as ever...

Hui noticed the disdain and coldness in his eyes, and her heart gave a hard shudder. She followed Kimimaro away in a daze, as if she had lost her soul.

Walking behind him, she felt the cold aura surrounding him would swallow her up. Only now did she wonder why Orochimaru had suddenly brought her to Kimimaro. These people were the Sound Ninja Village's shinobi from the Chunin Ninja Exams. Why?

Hui looked back at Orochimaru in the distance, only to see him turning away. It was strange. It was as if she had forgotten something...

Hui's training changed. Kimimaro seriously taught her ninjutsu and combat techniques. Fighting against someone with a Kekkei Genkai really was different. These techniques were ingrained in their bones, as natural as breathing.

He seemed to know exactly how his opponent would attack and what move they would use. His body and mind reacted instantly, deflecting the attack and striking back at the same time.

He attacked her while also reminding her how to respond, but even so, she was still like a rookie.

He kept her pinned down, leaving her no way to fight back. But Kimimaro knew how to hold back, so he never struck her with a blow that would seriously injure her.

Kimimaro withdrew his bone spikes and watched Hui Youling without joy or sorrow. To him, she was nothing more than one of Lord Orochimaru's test subjects—one of slightly greater importance.

Hui didn't dare meet his gaze, but her heart sank inch by inch. She had seen her own strength clearly and accepted how weak she was, yet she still couldn't get rid of the resentment in her heart.

Her hands trembled the moment she clenched them. Orochimaru's dangerous, snake-like eyes filled her mind. She couldn't stop here. If she stopped, she would die. If she stopped, she would end up like Karin.

Hui lifted her eyes to Kimimaro and said earnestly, "Sorry to trouble you again, but could you teach me one more time?"

Kimimaro gave Hui a cool glance, and bone spikes sprouted from his body once more. Hui clenched her teeth and quickly formed Hand Seals, but she no longer dared to look into those eyes.

Over the next few weeks, she still got beaten like a punching bag, but Hui could feel herself improving. She increasingly understood that these battles would change her in a fundamental way.

It was as if the only thing in her mind was Kimimaro's advice: how to fight, how to attack. Her mind kept rehearsing the scene, and her use of the Three Body Technique finally stopped feeling so stiff.

She didn't notice that, from that day on, her eyes focused solely on Kimimaro's attacks every time they fought. When the battle ended, she seemed to drift off, her gaze unfocused and distant.

One day, Orochimaru came to watch from the sidelines, as if he were enjoying an entertaining show.

When Kimimaro's bone spike wounded Hui yet again, Orochimaru called out to them, "That's enough."

At the sound of Orochimaru's voice, Hui's body trembled for an instant, though she didn't notice. She looked up at Orochimaru, her eyes distant and expressionless.

Orochimaru chuckled and slowly walked toward Hui. Kimimaro's face remained as emotionless as ever as he withdrew his bone spikes.

Orochimaru looked at Hui and said in his characteristic hoarse voice, "It's time for you to learn ninjutsu, Hui Youling."

Hui's distant eyes flickered, and a small smile blossomed at the corners of her mouth. Inside, she was cheering. It was as if her efforts had finally paid off, and the light in her palm was no longer just a firefly.

Orochimaru kept his gaze fixed on Hui Youling, chuckling inwardly. Hehehe... Hui Youling...

Hui followed Orochimaru to a larger outdoor training ground. He handed her a sheet of chakra paper to test her chakra nature.

Hui looked at the paper in her hand. She should have been excited, even full of hope, to discover her nature and understand what path lay ahead for her.

But now she felt nothing.

The chakra paper split apart. Orochimaru narrowed his cool eyes, and the smile at the corners of his mouth slowly widened. "Wind, of all things. How interesting."

Hui stared blankly at the chakra paper in her hand. Then she suddenly opened her fingers.

The two halves of the paper fell, only to be caught by a gust of wind. They drifted lightly upward, slowly floating out of Hui's sight, as free as the wind.

Her gaze followed the two scraps as they flew away, and her pupils slowly came into focus. For some reason, she thought of a saying: wind was the sharpest element in attack, and the most destructive.

She spoke without even thinking. When Orochimaru heard her, he smiled, his excitement growing.

"I hope the ninjutsu you teach me can destroy the world," she said.