Watching Rasa's face alternate between pale and ashen under the impact of Naruto's words, his dignity shattered while he stubbornly struggled not to fall apart completely, Orochimaru's golden slit pupils did indeed flicker with amusement and interest.
It was rare to see a lofty Kage-level powerhouse pushed to the brink of psychological collapse in such an unconventional way.
These people were all tough nuts to crack.
Yet that amusement was soon replaced by another, stronger emotion.
Disdain, coupled with a fresh reassessment.
Orochimaru suddenly felt that his earlier enthusiastic invitation for Naruto to join the Martial Pacification Office might have been somewhat ill-considered.
At that moment, he was intensely curious about just what the hell that white-haired idiot Jiraiya had taught Naruto over all those years after finding him, taking him in as his adopted son, and teaching him martial arts and lessons about life.
Had he raised the boy steeped in a wine barrel?
Or had he spent every day telling him absurd street tales and dirty jokes?
"Imprisoned in a cesspit for a hundred years."
That punishment went beyond ordinary cruelty or ruthlessness and soared straight to the pinnacle of sheer disgust!
Not only was it the ultimate assault on the victim's body and mind, it also tested the psychological endurance of everyone watching.
Orochimaru considered himself well acquainted with countless dark and twisted experiments, but a punishment so pungent and humiliating still made him feel physically ill.
A tactic like that was meant as a deterrent. If actually used, it would either work immediately or create a feud that would end only in death.
Rasa was a Kage-level powerhouse who possessed the rare Magnet Release kekkei tōta, an exceptionally scarce, top-grade specimen worth studying in depth, perhaps even worth "salvaging."
How could they casually waste him in