Orochimaru, His Teacher

"Sorry for the wait, Rin Nohara, Obito Uchiha. Come with me!"

Minato Namikaze finally appeared and took Rin Nohara and Obito Uchiha away, just as he had in the original story.

For Rin Nohara, who had been staring at the doorway with desperate anticipation, this truly was her lucky day. Her little sun had finally arrived. But for Obito Uchiha, today was every bit as lucky!

He, too, had fulfilled his wish of being placed on the same team as Rin Nohara.

After waiting so long, this day had finally come. After waiting so long, his dream had finally come true.

But Obito Uchiha could never have imagined that he was about to meet his lifelong rival... Kakashi Hatake. Kakashi would teach him exactly how being cool could make up for being clueless: even if he was hopeless with girls, being handsome was enough.

Soon, almost all the students had left, until Chihane was the only one still sitting in the classroom.

Just as I thought. Looks like there's no getting out of this!

Remembering Kurenai Yuhi saying that Orochimaru would be leading a team, and seeing that everyone else had already left the classroom, how could Chihane not realize that he was the one Orochimaru would be taking?

"Chihane, we meet again."

While Chihane was thinking, Orochimaru had already walked in. Though Chihane kept a respectful distance from him, Orochimaru was quite pleased with this student.

"Lord Orochimaru, I really didn't expect you to be my Jonin team leader."

Since it had already happened, Chihane would not run away from it. Besides, as one of the Sannin, Orochimaru would certainly hold an important position on the front lines. He might even be put in charge of an entire front. Following Orochimaru would therefore be a good opportunity for Chihane to improve.

"Come with me, Chihane!"

Orochimaru already had a preliminary understanding of Chihane's strength, but to teach him systematically, he needed to learn more about him. He was even more curious about how Chihane had trained his body, and whether the black aura wrapped around his Wooden Sword was an awakened kekkei genkai.

They then arrived in the Small Woods on the Back Mountain. The birds and insects seemed to sense some terrifying presence and were too frightened to make a sound.

Utter silence!

"Chihane, you really have piqued my interest. But rest assured, Lord Sakumo helped me a great deal in the past, so I won't hurt you. Yesterday, I merely wanted to test your strength."

"Still, Chihane, your strength did exceed my expectations. You're already comparable to an ordinary Jonin. But when it comes to raw strength, even Tsunade can't match you without using ninjutsu! I'm very curious about how you developed that strength!"

After waiting a long time and seeing that Chihane had no intention of speaking, Orochimaru explained why he had attacked him yesterday.

"Yes, Teacher Orochimaru. I've always eaten more than ordinary people, and my physical strength keeps increasing on its own. I also learn taijutsu relatively quickly, no matter what kind it is! Maybe I was just born this way!"

Chihane knew that now that he had become a member of Orochimaru's team, he had no choice but to trust him. At the same time, he became even more certain of the importance of strength.

"Then you really are exceptionally gifted, Chihane! Is that black aura wrapped around your weapon your kekkei genkai, or a ninjutsu you created yourself?"

Hearing Chihane's form of address change from Lord Orochimaru to Teacher Orochimaru, Orochimaru could not help revealing a faint, sinister smile. He then continued asking questions.

"As my body grew stronger through training, I naturally learned to use that black aura. I named it Haki! It can coat weapons to make them tougher! Maybe I awakened my own kekkei genkai."

Faced with Orochimaru's questions, Chihane knew that, in the Shinobi World,

anything uncertain could simply be attributed to a kekkei genkai. With so many different kinds, no one knew what new kekkei genkai might appear next. "A kekkei genkai? Then it really does suit you perfectly, as though it were tailor-made for you. But that enhancement must have its limits! Chihane, you still need a good Ninja Blade. Take this Kusanagi Sword. It should be a great help to you!"

Orochimaru clearly had little interest in a kekkei genkai that increased a weapon's toughness. Even though he knew Chihane was still hiding something, who didn't have secrets of their own?

Besides immortality, his attention was currently on the position of Hokage. He very much needed Chihane to grow stronger and support him. The stronger Chihane became, the better it would be for him, so he spat a sealing scroll out of his mouth and formed a simple hand seal.

Poof!

When the smoke cleared, only a longsword remained on the ground.

He then gave the Kusanagi Sword to Chihane as a gift.

The Kusanagi Sword was forged from the hardest known substance in the world. Even White Fang's short blade incorporated the same material. Although Orochimaru had many of these swords, that did not mean the Kusanagi Sword lacked value. Among Ninja Blades alone, it was still second to none.

"The Kusanagi Sword? Thank you so much, Teacher Orochimaru. A good Ninja Blade is exactly what I need right now."

At the sight before him, the corner of Chihane's mouth could not help twitching slightly, but he quickly accepted the Kusanagi Sword.

Chihane took the Kusanagi Sword and swung it lightly. Feeling its sharpness and the hardness of its material, he was pleasantly surprised. He had never expected to gain a Ninja Blade simply by accepting a teacher. Moreover, he knew Orochimaru had plenty of other good things waiting for him to discover, and he could not help beginning to accept Orochimaru as his teacher.

"Come. I'll take you to my laboratory and examine your body. Let's see what undiscovered treasures it still holds!"

Although he had little interest in Chihane's kekkei genkai, Orochimaru still proposed using his laboratory to measure Chihane's physical attributes so he could teach him better in the future. With that, he started walking and motioned for Chihane to follow.

Chihane had not expected that he would still have to make a trip to the laboratory in the end. But he also knew that this was unavoidable if he wanted Orochimaru to trust him completely, so he followed Orochimaru's retreating figure before it disappeared.

After arriving at a spot on the outskirts of Konoha, Orochimaru formed a Tiger Seal with one hand. A secret passage leading into the mountain immediately appeared in the rock face.

This should be Orochimaru's secret base.

Chihane made that judgment silently, then followed Orochimaru inside.

After entering the laboratory, Chihane found that the entire room was dim and dark-toned. Bottles and jars lined the walls, with all kinds of human and animal organs and limbs soaking inside.

Although Chihane had already killed people and seen the body of the Mist Ninja Chunin he had cut in half, the bottles and jars before him still made him somewhat uncomfortable.

"Chihane, do you dislike the surroundings here?"

Although Chihane had not explicitly expressed his revulsion, how could Orochimaru fail to notice it? Even though he had already expected the answer, he still could not help feeling a little disappointed.