Conversation, Directly Targeting Danzo. Orochimaru Underestimated His Enemy

The two drank more and more, going from a single pot to an entire jar...

Itachi had not eaten this heartily in quite some time, so while eating meat, he drank to cut through the greasiness.

As they kept drinking, he began to feel numb.

Even though he retained some clarity of mind, he still felt somewhat dazed.

If Orochimaru made a move now, his chances of success would truly be quite high.

But if even Itachi, who had been eating meat, had drunk himself into this state, then Orochimaru, who had been urging him to drink and had a fairly good tolerance himself, was also a little muddled. The two were more or less evenly matched...

"Take him to the best guest room. Have someone wait outside and make sure that if anything happens, you deal with it immediately."

After the last cup of wine was finished, Orochimaru called someone over and had Itachi taken away to rest.

After the servants led the somewhat muddled Itachi away, Orochimaru watched their figures disappear from sight before rising and heading toward his room. His posture, however, was truly hard to describe, swaying crookedly from side to side.

After being taken to a clean room and the servants had gone outside...

Itachi opened his eyes.

Though his face was completely flushed, his remaining eye was incomparably clear.

Having suffered a loss once before, Itachi naturally could not possibly be so careless again. Everything before him had merely been a test of what kind of person Orochimaru was.

He looked over the furnishings in the room, wriggled around on the bed a little...

Then, somewhat satisfied, he drifted into a light sleep.

Orochimaru returned to his room, drank a cup of tea, and sat for a while before getting up and heading toward the laboratory.

He was going to see whether there were any suitable eyes he could put on Itachi first.

As for Little White, it had been taken away by the servants to play while they were eating.

The night passed without a word...

When Itachi woke up, the outside was still brightly lit, and he had no idea what time it was.

He got out of bed, walked to the table, sat down, poured himself a cup of tea, and drained it in one gulp to soothe his throat, which felt dry enough to smoke.

"My lord, you're awake?"

Just after Itachi drank two large cups of tea in a row, a woman entered from outside the door.

"Mm, I'm awake. What time is it now?"

Looking at the beautiful woman before him, Itachi replied softly.

He found it somewhat strange that Orochimaru had women here, and his taste was not bad either.

"My lord, it is already morning. Lord Orochimaru said that once you wake up, you may wash up and then go enjoy breakfast."

The woman spoke softly, neither servile nor arrogant.

Her voice was gentle.

"Mm, you may leave."

Hearing the woman's words, Itachi spoke softly.

His voice was slightly hoarse; his throat had yet to recover.

"Itachi, did you sleep well last night?"

When Itachi followed the woman into the living room, she stopped. Itachi looked at the door that opened on its own and strolled inside.

The moment he entered, he heard Orochimaru's voice.

"I slept quite well. What about you?"

Looking at Orochimaru, who was teasing Little White, Itachi smiled faintly and asked.

Only after sitting down did Itachi notice that Orochimaru had somehow already replaced one of Little White's eyes.

"Not bad. It's been a long time since I was this happy."

At the sound of Itachi's voice, Little White, which had been playing with Orochimaru, immediately broke free from Orochimaru's hands.

It flew toward Itachi.

"Little fellow, the moment your master arrives, you immediately abandon me."

Looking at Little White, Orochimaru said somewhat wistfully.

"Thank you. I was just thinking of asking you to put an eye in for it."

Itachi smiled faintly at Orochimaru's somewhat disappointed tone.

"Caw, caw, caw..."

Little White moved close to Itachi, stood on his palm, and kept calling.

"What is it, Little White?"

Itachi reached out and stroked Little White's feathers, somewhat puzzled.

When Itachi extended his other hand to pet Little White, Little White instead pushed its newly replaced eye toward Itachi's fingers.

Itachi hurriedly pulled away, afraid of hurting Little White's eye, then paused slightly...

Orochimaru fell silent at the sight.

"Caw, caw, caw..."

Seeing that Itachi did not move, Little White became anxious and flapped its wings as it flew toward Itachi's right eye socket...

"Caw, caw, caw..."

"Little White, I no longer need your eye. You have to watch over the other half of the world for me..."

Itachi gently picked up Little White, stroking its head as he spoke softly.

"Little White, rest assured. I will find a suitable eye for your master."

After a moment of silence, Orochimaru spoke softly.

As expected of Itachi. Even with a crow, he could be this loyal and affectionate...

"Caw, caw..."

"Let's eat, Itachi. Little White."

Seeing the atmosphere grow slightly silent, Orochimaru spoke to break the silence.

"This is really nice. Orochimaru, I never expected you to be so wealthy. You're living quite the good life."

After finding a seat not far from Orochimaru and sitting down, Itachi sighed with emotion.

"Hehe, Itachi-kun, why not stay here with me? We can create a village together. What do you think?"

Hearing Itachi's remark, Orochimaru smiled.

"Not a bad idea, but I still have quite a few matters to take care of."

Orochimaru's words moved Itachi somewhat, but when he thought of all the matters that still needed handling, it was clearly not suitable for him to remain in one place year-round.

"Itachi, when are you planning to return to Konoha? I'll go with you then."

Hearing Itachi's words, Orochimaru's eyes lit up slightly as he continued.

"Soon, I suppose. It's not just for the Mangekyo Sharingan—I also want to go see my foolish little brother."

Hearing Orochimaru's words, Itachi took a sip of milk as he replied.

He had no intention of refusing. With Orochimaru's help, the chances of success would undoubtedly increase greatly.

"Hehe, I already came up with an idea last night." Seeing that Itachi had no intention of refusing, Orochimaru smiled faintly, stuck out his distinctive tongue, and skillfully licked his lips. His expression, however, was slightly hard to describe...

"Oh? What idea?"

Orochimaru's words piqued Itachi's interest.

The man before him was not merely a scientific genius, but also a great general capable of leading troops into battle.

"Danzo's strength only fluctuates around Kage-level, and I know where his base is. When the time comes, we can infiltrate it and directly behead him. With our strength, it should not be difficult."

Orochimaru's words made Itachi pause slightly.

Orochimaru's suggestion left him somewhat confused. He did not know whether Orochimaru was underestimating his enemy or testing him.

But since Orochimaru was going to contribute, no matter what, Itachi, as the host, still had to analyze Danzo's strength for Orochimaru. Otherwise, they might end up suffering a setback.

"From what you said, Danzo's right eye is Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan. This matter is probably not that simple."

Itachi gently analyzed Danzo's strength, using those words as an opening to see whether Orochimaru would take the bait.

If he did not, then Itachi could only reveal the ocular technique of Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan.