### "Huh?" Even with Orochimaru's intelligence, he could not make heads or tails of Danzo's reaction.
"Don't play dumb with me!" Danzo was furious. In his view, if Orochimaru had not deliberately leaked the information, how could that bastard have arrived so conveniently?
Moreover, he had never heard of any connection between Orochimaru and Chiaki Setsuna before. Now that the other party had come calling late at night, it was obvious this had been premeditated.
"It won't be so easy to catch me." Danzo left behind those harsh words, then hurriedly threw down a smoke bomb and fled.
"What the hell is wrong with that old fool?" Orochimaru blew away the smoke in irritation, but he knew Danzo's overreaction was most likely related to the visitor outside.
"Anyone who can scare Elder Danzo that badly is certainly no ordinary person." Orochimaru licked his dry lips. When the voice outside sounded again, he said, "Come in."
Setsuna pushed open the door, looked around, and sighed regretfully. "I thought I heard Elder Danzo's voice just now. Was that my imagination?"
Orochimaru neither confirmed nor denied it, merely asking, "Shouldn't you introduce yourself first?"
"Oh, how rude of me." Setsuna belatedly realized. "My name is Chiaki Setsuna. I'm a Genin who admires Lord Orochimaru, and I came here to recommend myself as your assistant."
"An assistant?" Orochimaru's expression turned strange. "I heard that you, Setsuna-kun, seem to have no talent for ninjutsu."
Setsuna nodded. "I truly have no talent for ninjutsu, but what I want to learn from Lord Orochimaru isn't ninjutsu. It's technology."
"Technology?" Orochimaru's expression became even stranger. Although technological products like televisions and refrigerators were not uncommon in Konoha, technology was still quite a niche term among ninja.
Setsuna continued, "I heard from Elder Danzo that Lord Orochimaru seems to have conducted quite a few experiments involving human cell transplants. I would very much like to take part."
Orochimaru frowned. "He told you that?"
Setsuna spouted nonsense with a perfectly serious face. "I heard him mention it while I was beating up Elder Danzo."
"Beating him up?" Orochimaru's mouth twitched slightly. Then he asked, "And what do I gain from this? An assistant who cannot use ninjutsu doesn't seem particularly valuable to me."
Setsuna said sincerely, "I can give Lord Orochimaru an opportunity to study me."
"Study you?" Orochimaru was quite surprised. It was his first time seeing someone actively invite another person to study them.
"I believe I have some research value." Setsuna extended his right hand. "Could Lord Orochimaru help me cut my palm?"
Orochimaru did not refuse Setsuna's self-harming request. A small snake suddenly shot from his sleeve and lunged at the web between Setsuna's thumb and forefinger.
With a crisp crack, the snake's fangs broke, and the little snake twisted its body in pain.
Orochimaru's expression became serious. This was a venomous snake he had specially bred, with a bite force comparable to that of a tiger or leopard, yet it could not even pierce Setsuna's palm.
After a brief thought, the Kusanagi Sword slid from his sleeve. He gripped the blade and stabbed at Setsuna's palm, using considerable force before finally cutting a shallow wound into it.
Then, the wound healed at a visible speed.
"This kind of vitality..." Orochimaru's eyes burned as he finally understood why Danzo had been so obsessed with obtaining Setsuna.
It was not just his vitality. Setsuna's defense was also comparable to Steel Release.
Such a body truly could become the perfect vessel for Wood Release.
Most importantly, this cellular activity might be of help to his immortality experiments. Eternal life was his greatest pursuit.
Orochimaru swept a greedy gaze over Setsuna and asked with ill intent, "What if I am not satisfied with merely studying you and wish to conduct some experiments on your body as well, Setsuna-kun?"
"Then Lord Orochimaru should be careful." Setsuna smiled ingenuously and said with utter sincerity, "Because before that happens, I'll beat you to death."
Rather than becoming angry, Orochimaru laughed. "It seems the two of us will both need to be more careful from now on."
Setsuna smiled. "It is truly an honor to become Lord Orochimaru's assistant."
Orochimaru took out a scroll. "It seems you haven't contracted any Summoned Beasts yet, Setsuna-kun. Would you like to sign a contract with Ryūchi Cave?"
Setsuna hesitated slightly. "The Summoning Technique should be more difficult than the Three Body Technique, right?"
Orochimaru smiled. "Of course. No ninjutsu is simpler than the Three Body Technique. But the key to the Summoning Technique lies in the response. If you can negotiate an offering with a Summoned Beast in advance, then even if your summoning signal is weak, it will answer your call."
"That can be done?" Setsuna became interested. He did not particularly care what kind of Summoned Beast he could summon. Unless he could summon the White Snake Sage, the other Summoned Beasts would not even be stronger than he was.
What he truly cared about was the Reverse Summoning Technique. Although the Reverse Summoning Technique had many restrictions, without prior preparation, he first had to summon a Summoned Beast and tell it his intention, then end the summoning and let it return before he could finally use the Reverse Summoning Technique.
Using this move to evade ninjutsu was basically impossible, but that was only for ordinary ninja.
Ordinary ninja had bodies too weak to hold out until the Reverse Summoning Technique took effect. But with his physical strength, taking several rounds of powerful attacks would not be a problem. Not to mention, he had Senzu Beans. He could definitely hold out until the Reverse Summoning Technique worked.
Orochimaru smiled. "Of course it can, but the prerequisite is that you have enough offerings. Snake Summoned Beasts are very cold-blooded."
Setsuna naturally understood what Orochimaru meant by offerings. It was most likely like Manda, who demanded living people as sacrifices whenever it went into battle.
Naturally, he would not agree to such a demand. Besides, not every snake Summoned Beast was as vicious as Manda. There were also beings like Aoda, who revered the strong.
"Anyway, you can try it first. Perhaps a weak Summoned Beast will take the initiative to respond to the contract." Orochimaru smiled, clearly looking forward to the show.
It was only because snake Summoned Beasts did not have a tadpole stage like toads did. Otherwise, he would have liked to see Setsuna's embarrassment when he summoned a tadpole.
Setsuna signed his name on the scroll, then bit his finger and began forming hand seals to summon.
The next moment, a massive purple serpent appeared before them, directly bursting apart the wooden house.
"Hiss, what delicious blood!" The gigantic venomous python let out a delighted moan, and the saliva dripping from its mouth corroded the ground.
"Huh, it's actually Manda..." Setsuna was no stranger to the giant snake before him, and he secretly guessed, Could it be because my blood carries Shenron's aura?
Manda said greedily, "The one who summoned me is just a little brat? Your blood is quite good. If you're the one summoning me, you only need to provide fifty sacrifices."
Orochimaru's eyelid twitched wildly. Manda had actually taken the initiative to answer Setsuna's summons, and the offerings it demanded were only half of what it required from him. It made him feel as though someone had poached right in front of him.
Meanwhile, Danzo, who had sprinted more than a dozen kilometers in one go, finally stopped. Looking back, he muttered with a frown, "They didn't pursue me. Could that brat really not have been plotting against me?"
Recalling Orochimaru's reaction at the time, Danzo found it increasingly suspicious. "Could it really have just been a coincidence? But no matter what, that brat sought out Orochimaru late at night. He truly isn't as innocent and kind as Hiruzen claimed. Everyone has been deceived by him."
Danzo judged others by his own standards. How could anyone capable of taking the same actions as him possibly be a good person?
Yet the more he thought so, the more wary he became of Setsuna. After all, he knew very well how terrifying someone like himself could become once they abandoned all bottom lines, especially when that person possessed such formidable strength.
Thinking of this, Danzo sighed. "Forget it. Orochimaru is no longer trustworthy either, so I can only give up for now. Once the war begins and Konoha suffers defeat, Hiruzen will naturally understand my advice."
Before you continue