Return to the Village

"You, how, how..." Inside the cave, Nakashita So, who had been sent flying, shakily stood up and stared at Uzumaki Naraku with an expression of disbelief.

As expected, ignorance is truly the most terrifying thing! Naraku thought to himself.

As for the Spirit Sealing Prohibition that Nakashita So had just used, it was merely a simple sealing technique capable of suppressing chakra; to Naraku, a sealing technique of this caliber was on the same level as a D-rank ninjutsu.

He himself even possessed higher-level sealing techniques of the same type, which could not only seal chakra but also bind the physical body.

Otherwise, if it only sealed chakra, it would not be very effective against ninjas who excelled in taijutsu.

After slicing through all the ropes on Akimichi Yamaichi, Naraku turned his gaze to the side.

That was where the unconscious Yamato lay. He used the same hand-blade motion to cut the ropes on him, but Naraku frowned when he saw the gruesome wounds on Yamato's back.

"What a troublesome guy."

As for Akimichi Yamaichi, the moment he regained his freedom, he rushed toward the interior of the cave.

Nakashita So tried to stop him, but he was blocked by Naraku.

Looking at Nakashita So before him, Naraku wondered whether to kill him or let him live. By now, he could be certain that the man had some connection to Orochimaru.

In truth, Naraku did not want to provoke Orochimaru proactively, as his own strength was still quite weak.

"Kid, you'd best not do anything reckless. Lord Orochimaru will arrive here soon. If he finds out what you've done to me, he will certainly not let you off," Nakashita So, knowing he could not escape his predicament on his own, brought up Orochimaru's name.

"Is that so?"

Naraku was slightly taken aback by these words, but then he wore a look of disdain.

Perhaps this man really did have some connection to Orochimaru, but to suggest that Orochimaru would avenge him was pure nonsense.

Naraku knew better than anyone what kind of person Orochimaru was: a staunch solipsist.

Nakashita So's words struck Naraku as highly amusing, and he made his decision. Connection to Orochimaru or not, what did it matter? He would just kill him.

Naraku fixed his gaze on Nakashita So. The moment their eyes met, his originally pitch-black pupils shifted instantly, his scarlet eyes radiating a mysterious aura.

The next moment, Nakashita So's eyes went vacant, as if he had lost consciousness.

Naraku held a kunai and vanished from the spot with a Body Flicker. When he reappeared, he was already in front of Nakashita So, and he immediately drew the kunai across his throat.

With a thud, Nakashita So's body collapsed to the ground.

Naraku closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, they had returned to normal.

Just then, Akimichi Yamaichi walked out of the cave, supporting someone.

Upon seeing Nakashita So lying on the ground, both of their expressions shifted, but it lasted only for an instant before they returned to normal.

"A member of the Hyuga clan!"

Seeing Hyuga Hi's pale pupils, Naraku recognized his identity; after all, in the entire ninja world, only the Hyuga clan would stare at people with their Byakugan for no reason.

After a brief exchange, Naraku gained a rough understanding of what had happened.

He looked at the body of Nakashita So on the ground with a complex expression.

In this world, right and wrong, justice and injustice—who could truly say?

After sealing Nakashita So's corpse into a scroll, Naraku turned his gaze toward the two snakes controlled by the Adamantine Sealing Chains.

He started with the black snake. Naraku hesitated for a moment, then increased the pressure of the chains. Under this force, the already bound black snake instantly dissipated into a puff of smoke.

As for the remaining white snake, Naraku sealed it into a scroll because it was somewhat special; it could change the size of its body to a certain extent, which was somewhat similar to the secret techniques of the Akimichi clan.

Naraku was curious about this and decided to study it when he had the time.

As for whether he would offend Orochimaru, he no longer considered that a problem. Even if he were truly hated by Orochimaru, that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing; after all, having an Kage-level powerhouse constantly spurring him on would only make his strength rise faster.

Naraku helped Yamato up from the ground, and the four of them left the area together.

Nakashita So's corpse was kept by Naraku in a scroll.

The four of them first went to Frost Town to rest for a day, as everyone except Naraku was in poor condition.

"Oh, so that fellow Nakashita really did fail!" Pale golden pupils slowly opened, and Orochimaru flicked his tongue to lick his lips.

"However, to think he ran into Uzumaki Naraku," a look of surprise appeared on Orochimaru's face.

"Never mind, these things are not important to me right now," he thought to himself.

"He was just a member of a Hyuga branch family anyway; even a true Byakugan cannot be mentioned in the same breath as those eyes."

As if thinking of something, Orochimaru's eyes were filled with excitement.

The next day, Naraku and the other three left Frost Town and headed toward the Land of Fire.

Naraku had not originally intended to travel with them, as his and Yamato's mission was merely to rescue them, but considering that Hyuga Hi and the others were still very weak, it would be a loss if they encountered any accidents on the way back.

Therefore, Naraku decided to return to the village with them.

Because Hyuga Hi and the others were not in good shape, their return journey was not very fast, and it took them four days to reach the village.

Fortunately, because Yamato was with them this time, they were basically able to get a good rest every night.

Hokage's office.

Although he was extremely reluctant, Naraku still had to report the mission in person this time. Even though he had wanted to let Yamato handle such things, the man had passed out early, so he had no choice but to do it himself.

He first recorded the general details of the mission onto a scroll and handed both that and the scroll containing Nakashita So's sealed corpse to the Third Hokage.

"Hmm? There are even traces of Orochimaru here. Could Nakashita So's defection also be related to Orochimaru?"

Looking at the contents recorded on the scroll, the Third Hokage spoke in a deep voice.

"Yes, Lord Hokage. According to Nakashita So himself, he and Orochimaru have known each other for many years and have always maintained close contact, which is why he chose to defect as well upon learning that Orochimaru had become a rogue ninja."

Hyuga Hi stepped forward and said.

Naraku felt somewhat speechless at this; he felt that although Nakashita So's strength was nothing to write home about, his skin was certainly thick enough.