Orochimaru brought Qianyu to where Sasuke was training, then left on his own, muttering under his breath, "Byakugan, main family, living specimen, pure blood... Interesting, so interesting..."
His back disappeared at the end of the corridor.
Qianyu ignored him.
The training ground was an open space enclosed by a barrier, roughly the size of two basketball courts. The ground was charred black, riddled with cracks scorched by Lightning Release, and a faint smell of ozone lingered in the air.
Sasuke stood in the middle of the field.
He wore a dark gray high-collared training outfit, its sleeves rolled up to his elbows, exposing the pale blue veins on his forearms.
A kunai rested in his hand. He stood perfectly still, like a statue freshly carved from stone.
Qianyu stood at the edge of the barrier without making a sound.
Three seconds later, Sasuke moved.
His body vanished from where he stood and appeared on the other side ten meters away the next instant. His kunai thrust out, withdrew, and he retreated. The movements were so fast that they barely left an afterimage.
A thin, violet-black trail remained in the air.
The Curse Mark.
Qianyu watched the trail slowly fade away.
Sasuke finished the technique.
He turned his head slightly. Three tomoe slowly spun in his eyes.
When he saw Qianyu, the three tomoe stopped for half a second.
"...Did you defect too?"
"First of all," Qianyu explained helplessly, "I didn't defect."
He took a step forward.
"Second, neither did you."
Sasuke's brow twitched.
"I reported it to Lady Tsunade," Qianyu said. "You're carrying out a long-term classified mission, codenamed 'Pangolin,' A-rank. Your file doesn't even have the gray seal for suspected defection."
He pulled out a sheet of paper from his clothes.
"Want to see it? Big red seal, personally