Shut Up First, Let Me Guess and See If I'm Right

Orochimaru suddenly let out a sinister laugh, the sound like a snake's tongue scraping the ground. "Looks like you never learned what true ruthlessness is. You want to beat Itachi? Try again in your next life."

Sasuke's voice was ice-cold. "If I face him, I'll kill him without holding back, even if it turns my stomach."

Fortunately, Orochimaru had prepared a fallback long ago. Even without Sasuke as his vessel, he could still bring his experiment to flawless completion.

Just then, Kabuto Yakushi emerged from the shadows and bowed. "Lord Orochimaru, something has happened on Guren's end."

Orochimaru smiled wickedly. "Oh? Has the Three-Tails already been flushed out?"

He swayed slightly, then continued, "But that doesn't matter. For the sake of my experiment, I must capture this wild tailed beast. Kabuto, go get everything ready."

Kabuto Yakushi frowned. "But my lord, what about Sasuke...?"

Orochimaru waved a hand. "It's fine!"

As soon as he spoke, his body collapsed onto the ground like melting wax. Then a clone wrapped in black mist rose to its feet.

The clone's voice sounded exactly like Orochimaru's, but carried an even deeper malice. "Leave Sasuke to me. If I can seize his body, that would be a tremendous bonus."

Orochimaru smiled easily, showing no concern about the clone. "You're right. I'll leave it to you."

Kabuto Yakushi paid it little mind. He knew this was no ordinary clone, but a special being with a complete consciousness, just like Orochimaru himself.

Over the past two or three years, Orochimaru's soul had suffered no further problems after he switched bodies. Instead, he had conducted extensive research and had even stopped obsessing over Sasuke's body. He owed all of this to one person-Uchiha Yi.

The night passed uneventfully. Early the next morning, Uchiha Yi got up feeling refreshed and turned to see Hinata still curled beneath the covers, sleeping soundly.

After obtaining the intelligence from Tsunade, he prepared to leave. He told her he was going to keep a covert eye on Naruto and prevent the Akatsuki from abducting him.

Naruto was fairly strong now, but Tsunade knew that his abilities would be nowhere near enough if he encountered one of the Akatsuki's elite.

What Tsunade didn't know was that Uchiha Yi never went looking for Naruto as she had instructed. Instead, he followed the intelligence straight to a lake radiating terrifying chakra.

Uchiha Yi crouched among the branches of a large tree beside the lake, frowning in frustration. "How do I put this Three-Tails in its place and swipe its source chakra while I'm at it?"

He scratched the back of his head, feeling uncertain. Wood Release naturally suppressed tailed beasts, especially when enhanced with senjutsu, but it would cause far too much commotion. That hardly suited his usual low-profile approach.

"I've got it!" His eyes suddenly lit up, and a smile spread across his face.

Only after his romp with Hinata last night had he discovered that his Transmigration Rinnegan had completed its initial evolution. Although he still couldn't open his eyes, the power inside him had transformed completely.

The natural energy used in senjutsu had fully fused with his chakra. Most importantly, his bloodline had undergone its first mutation. It was no longer purely an Uchiha bloodline.

In terms of bloodline strength alone, neither Indra nor Asura could match him. He was already beginning to approach the Sage of Six Paths' level. Once the evolution was complete, he might surpass the Six Paths and reach the threshold of Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's power.

He had a feeling that once his Transmigration Rinnegan finished evolving and this "quickening" ended, he might truly reach Kaguya's level. That was getting ahead of things, though. For now, this initial evolution had already brought him to the threshold of kekkei mōra.

Although Truth-Seeking Orbs possessed the power of yin, yang, and the five elements, making them far stronger than ordinary kekkei genkai or kekkei tōta, they were ultimately ninjutsu, not kekkei mōra. He still couldn't unleash the full power of kekkei mōra.

Using kekkei genkai abilities, however, was child's play. With all five chakra natures fully developed inside him, he could wield any kekkei genkai as easily as playing a game. Sure enough, an idea immediately popped into his head.

"Ice Release: Ice Age!" Feeling suddenly playful, Uchiha Yi unleashed the technique on the spot.

From this moment onward, Uchiha Yi no longer needed hand seals to cast techniques. All he had to do was release the energy inside him, and the technique would activate automatically. That tedious sequence of hand seals? He could forget all about it.

The moment the words left his mouth, the sizable pool of water froze solid. The Three-Tails hiding inside had barely tried to move before it was locked firmly within the ice. Unlike ordinary Ice Release, Yi's technique had absurdly powerful restraints. The Three-Tails wouldn't be breaking free anytime soon.

Even stranger, as soon as he landed on the ice, a crack opened in the frozen shell all by itself, and the Three-Tails' source chakra slipped smoothly into his possession.

Yi scratched his head, wondering whether the Three-Tails was too weak or he was too strong. He immediately dismissed the first possibility. "No, it definitely isn't that the Three-Tails is weak. I'm just that damn amazing." Still, what had happened to his promise to keep a low profile? How had he already lost control?

"To think you've become this powerful after just over two years apart, Yi." Yi had just stepped back onto the ice when he heard that familiar, grating voice.

Yi looked up and called out, "Orochimaru?" He was a little surprised to see Orochimaru appear out of nowhere. But he soon noticed something different about the aura coming off him.

Orochimaru stared at his closed eyes and suddenly smiled. "Hehe, Yi, it seems your Mangekyō Sharingan took quite a toll. You've already gone blind after such a short time?"

Yi paused, not because of the mockery, but because Orochimaru's words suggested that he knew something significant.

Seeing his reaction, Orochimaru grew even smugger. "What's wrong? Is it so unbelievable that I know the Mangekyō Sharingan's weakness?"

"I haven't been idle these past two years. I've learned everything there is to know about your Uchiha Clan." Orochimaru paused, his grating voice brimming with arrogance. "Now I understand the Uchiha better than you do, and I know more about the Sharingan than you!"

Yi swore inwardly. What the hell? Are you an idiot? You know more about the Sharingan than me? You have no damn idea how I awakened mine back then!

But one glance at Orochimaru's smug expression told him the man was waiting for him to ask. Yi refused to take the bait, especially now that he had recognized the strange aura coming from Orochimaru.

Yi spoke bluntly. "Say, Orochimaru, you didn't transplant one of our Uchiha's Sharingan into yourself, did you?" Orochimaru's expression stiffened instantly.

Yi clicked his tongue and shook his head in disbelief. "Tsk, I really guessed it! Transplanting a Sharingan is one thing, but you even know the Mangekyo Sharingan's weakness. Looks like you found a solution?"

"Shut up first, let me guess and see if I'm right." Orochimaru was about to speak when Yi raised a hand to stop him.

"You must have transplanted Hashirama Senju's cells. Otherwise, you wouldn't be able to summon the First through Impure World Reincarnation. Getting his cells wouldn't have been difficult, right? Then you discovered that integrating Hashirama cells could remedy the Mangekyo Sharingan's weakness and even prevent blindness, correct?"

Orochimaru's face fell instantly. "You... how do you know all this?" He had thought he had finally pulled ahead of Yi, only to discover that Yi knew even more than he did. He was still stuck in place.

Yi rolled his eyes. "Never mind how I know. Just tell me where you got that Mangekyō Sharingan." He could now sense the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan coming from Orochimaru, but where on earth had he obtained it?

Orochimaru having a Sharingan was plausible enough. After all, Danzo had collected a pile of them after the Night of the Uchiha Massacre. Orochimaru might have gotten his hands on quite a few himself. He might even have been responsible for Danzo's Sharingan-covered arm!

Something suddenly occurred to Yi, and he stared at Orochimaru. "Wait, the Night of the Uchiha Massacre... that Mangekyo Sharingan of yours wouldn't happen to be Uchiha Fugaku's, would it?"

Orochimaru was utterly stunned. Where am I? Who am I? What did I do? That three-hit combo left him completely dumbfounded.

One look at Orochimaru's expression told Yi he had guessed correctly. He smiled and thought, Tsk, right again. So Uchiha Fugaku really did have the Mangekyo Sharingan. And he actually didn't resist when his own son turned against him? Yi couldn't understand it, so he stopped trying. It was all in the past anyway.

Yi looked up and asked with a smile, "So what exactly did you come to see me for?" Looking at that punchable expression, Orochimaru clenched his fists.

But Orochimaru quickly regained his confidence and smiled. "Hehe, Yi, you're as mysterious as ever. You even know a secret like Uchiha Fugaku possessing the Mangekyo Sharingan. I really did underestimate you!"

Orochimaru suppressed his shock, a trace of admiration in his voice. Uchiha Fugaku's possession of the Mangekyō Sharingan had been an exceptionally well-kept secret. Even Danzo had never caught wind of it. Not even Uchiha Itachi had known. If Itachi had known his father possessed a pair of Mangekyo Sharingan, he probably wouldn't have left those eyes behind.

Yet Uchiha Yi knew, which was strange in itself. What was more, Yi even knew the secret of how the Fourth Hokage had used the Reaper Death Seal to seal the Nine-Tails inside Naruto.

Orochimaru's gaze turned cold. "Hehe, Yi, I admit you're mysterious enough, but surely you don't know everything about my current condition too?"

Yi raised his eyebrows and asked, "Oh? What condition would that be?"

Orochimaru lifted his chin, his tone faintly teasing. "That's something you'll have to experience for yourself, Yi."

Yi curled his lip. He knew exactly what this was about. After all that circling around, Orochimaru just wanted a fight, didn't he? Yi raised a hand and spoke casually. "Cut the crap. Use whatever tricks you've got. Let me see what you've learned over these past two or three years. Don't disappoint me."

Those words stung, and Orochimaru immediately flew into a rage. Although he said nothing, every move he made was meant to kill.

Orochimaru raised his hands, firing ten finger bones from his fingertips.

Yi paused, then immediately realized what it was. "Shikotsumyaku?"

A strange chakra spread over Yi's body as he raised a hand to intercept them. The finger bones struck it and were stopped cold.

Orochimaru's gaze sharpened, and he growled, "Dance of the Larch!"

He had anticipated that Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets would fail. His second wave of attacks followed immediately.