"Shinichi, did you really drive the Reaper away?!"
Orochimaru's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
Though his naked eyes couldn't see the mysterious white light that had repelled the Reaper, he knew perfectly well that Shinichi had driven it away.
As the sole witness who had watched the entire process, Orochimaru couldn't figure out how Shinichi had done it, no matter how hard he racked his brain.
"Ahem!"
Seeing Orochimaru staring at him as though he were a monster, Shinichi gave an awkward chuckle. "My constitution is a little special, actually. Even the Reaper can't do anything to me. Just like I said before, I can ignore the cost when I use these forbidden jutsu."
"Magnificent!"
A feverish look returned to Orochimaru's face. He gazed at Shinichi as though admiring a flawless work of art and spoke with utter reverence. "Shinichi, you truly are no ordinary mortal! I knew I'd never be bored at your side. You're definitely the one who can lead me in my search for the truth!"
If not for the fact that he hadn't been given permission, Orochimaru would have liked nothing more than to dissect Shinichi right then and there.
He was desperately curious about what secrets Shinichi's body held that allowed him to disregard even the Reaper.
"Orochimaru, stop looking at me like that."
Shinichi looked utterly helpless as he relented. "We're all on the same side. You just want to study my biological data, don't you? Fine. Once this is over, I'll let you draw a vial of my blood for research."
Under Kotoamatsukami's influence, Orochimaru had long since become one of his people.
Even setting Kotoamatsukami aside, after spending all this time together, Orochimaru had already decided that Shinichi was the one who could lead him to countless truths and mysteries.