Cunning as a Fox, Haku as a Dog

Although Orochimaru's tone had seemed a little off, the moment Jun Tianlin heard him agree to his request, he dismissed that slight sense of discord.

"Actually, the reason I came to see you this time is that I want you to help me look for members of the Senju Clan and the Uzumaki Clan somewhere in the Ninja World. I don't need you to find many—just one member of either clan will do. There's something I want from them, and I have to get my hands on it!

"But there's no hope of finding members of either clan with my abilities alone, so I'd like to borrow your reputation and connections in the Ninja World to help me search for them!"

Looking at Orochimaru with an embarrassed expression, Jun Tianlin slowly explained why he had come back.

"Oh? For all these years, you were first locked up by the Kaguya Clan, and then, after coming to Otogakure, you didn't leave once for seven years. Why are you looking for members of the Senju Clan and the Uzumaki Clan?

"You say there's something you want from them, something you absolutely have to get your hands on. Heh, those two clans have long since fallen into decline. What could they possibly have that a little brat as discerning as you would covet?

"Don't tell me you've set your sights on their Kekkei Genkai? That's the only way I can make sense of why you want to find members of those two clans...

"Looks like letting you go out this time really was a mistake. You seem to have plenty of secrets I don't know about, little brat!"

As he spoke, Orochimaru's yellow-brown snake eyes narrowed slowly. His gaze roamed over Jun Tianlin's body, and the meaning in his eyes was unmistakable...

For a moment, Jun Tianlin felt his heart pounding. Cold sweat began to bead on his small forehead!

He'd miscalculated. Completely miscalculated!

Jun Tianlin had never expected Orochimaru to be this perceptive. He'd merely said a few ordinary words, and Orochimaru had pieced together all his intentions from the information hidden between them.

Such intelligence! With just a few words, he could see through everything and understand it all!

No wonder Orochimaru was always so arrogant, never taking anyone seriously. Across the entire Ninja World, there were probably only a handful of people who could analyze someone's words and reach such conclusions in an instant.

Actually, Jun Tianlin was giving Orochimaru too much credit. There was no denying that Orochimaru was exceptionally intelligent, but saying he could read someone's mind just from the way they spoke was going too far.

After all, as Orochimaru had said, the Senju Clan and the Uzumaki Clan had long since fallen into decline. In fact, a few years ago, the Land of Eddies, the Uzumaki Clan's homeland, had been invaded by other Kekkei Genkai clans. The entire clan had been wiped out, with only a handful of Uzumaki Clan members escaping.

For two clans in such decline, the only thing that could still attract anyone's attention was probably the source of their bloodline power—the Kekkei Genkai of the Senju Clan and the Uzumaki Clan. Nothing else.

That was why, when Jun Tianlin suddenly said he wanted to find just one member of either of these two declining clans, it naturally led Orochimaru to that conclusion. It hadn't taken much thought at all.

Anyone with even a little sense, faced with Jun Tianlin's utterly clueless words, could probably have guessed his intentions from what he'd said.

In the end, it wasn't that Orochimaru was especially perceptive or cunning. Jun Tianlin was simply young and far too naive, with too little life experience. He didn't know how to hide his intentions when he spoke. He was too obvious, too easy to read—a complete greenhorn!