I Have a Snake That Can Do Backflips. Want to Come See?

Huayue looked surprised. His casual rhetorical question instantly froze the atmosphere.

After a moment, Orochimaru's voice turned slightly hoarse, and a trace of surprise appeared in his eyes.

"Do you think Minato will be the next Hokage?"

Anko was drenched in sweat, repeatedly signaling Huayue with her eyes to stop talking. He might be strong, but if he faced Orochimaru-sensei in a rage, he definitely would not come out well.

"Isn't that something everyone knows, Orochimaru-sensei?"

He closed the book, while the hand supporting his cheek remained motionless. His eyes were deep, as though they could see through everything.

"Since the Third Great Ninja War began, he has repeatedly turned the tide and saved Konoha's battles. He has achieved feats that even the Sannin working together never accomplished. Isn't he a strong candidate for Hokage?"

"Or does Orochimaru-sensei also want to become Hokage?"

At that moment, Orochimaru, who had never stopped moving, set down his research and turned to look at him, his gaze profound.

"My cutest, most prized disciple, don't forget that the merits you earned on the battlefield can also be counted as mine."

"That is precisely why you cannot become Hokage, Orochimaru-sensei."

Anko, already sweating anxiously at the side, hurriedly tried to mediate. Even her usually bright and spirited tone had become urgent.

"Stop it, Huayue! Why have you become like Rin? Sensei, please don't..."

The autumn wind was slightly cool as it blew through the gaps into the room. It faintly dispersed the smell of disinfectant, but it could not calm Anko's mind.

"When the birds in the sky have all vanished, no matter how excellent a hunting bow is, the hunter will put it away. Once the cunning rabbit is dead, even the loyal hound will be cooked by its master."

"Once an accessory loses its value, its fate is nothing more than being stored away or disposed of, with every last bit of value squeezed from it first."

"Even loyal hounds and weapons are treated this way. Let alone a venomous snake whose master cannot fathom it, one that carries the danger of turning on him?"

At this point, Huayue paused slightly. Anko, meanwhile, was somewhat confused by his meaningful words. She had never been good at riddles.

Orochimaru's eyes flickered, but the smile at the corners of his lips only rose higher, clearly dismissive of those words.

"Wait, what exactly are you talking about? Can't you put it more simply? I hate people who talk in riddles!"

Seeing Anko's baffled expression, Huayue continued with a smile.

"Then let me put it another way. What do you think is the purpose of Konoha nurturing geniuses?"

Without waiting for Orochimaru to answer, Huayue answered his own question.

"To reduce wartime losses, protect the village and other ninja, and end wars as quickly as possible. That is what defines a genius from the village's perspective."

"For someone like you, who was born during wartime, ending the war quickly was your foremost duty. Even if your ideas were somewhat dangerous, your teacher, the Third Hokage, would overlook them."

"But after the war ends, when a new war begins, and a genius even more outstanding than you appears—someone better suited to the Third Hokage's wishes—your role becomes dispensable."

"Once the war ends, your existence becomes a source of instability for Konoha. In other words, you become someone who threatens the village."

"Both your thoughts and your actions are like that, aren't they?"

Smiling without speaking, Orochimaru looked at the experiments before him—those in the open, those hidden away, and forbidden techniques beyond the reach of ordinary people...

"To a ninja, jutsu is everything. Only when one possesses every jutsu in the world will the truth be close to being understood."

"If you want to become Hokage, jutsu and strength are secondary. What you truly need is the trust of Konoha's many jonin and its major famous families, isn't it?"

The atmosphere grew heavy. Orochimaru's eyes flickered as thoughts bubbled up within him like foam, only to burst again and again.

"Can your eyes see the distant future? Can you see through my thoughts?"

"Your goal is obvious at a glance! So, if you want to continue your research in this village, you have only one option: lower your head, bow that snake's head, and rein in your fangs. Other than that..."

"Make this war never end, right? Hehehehe..."

Orochimaru's chilling smile sent a shiver through Anko. The teacher who was usually kind to others, who sometimes let out strange laughs, the friend she had known so well and often skipped class to go shopping with...

At this moment, the two of them seemed close enough to touch, yet impossibly far away—like flowers blooming beside a cliff. Though she wished to reach them, she could never take that step.

"That is your problem, and it has nothing to do with us. As for me, I don't want to go back to the border and chew on Military Ration Pills while facing those troublesome old men. Come on, Anko. Destination: dango shop. Let's go, let's go!"

Before Anko could object, Huayue and Anko vanished instantly. Orochimaru's expression remained calm as the smile on his lips gradually faded.

"Power cannot solve everything? In the end, he is still a child, harboring a certain degree of fantasy about the world. Hehehe."

"The snake symbolizes rebirth and immortality. Once I complete this forbidden technique, what is Konoha? What is the Hokage? What are ninja?"

Immersed in forbidden techniques and imagining himself unraveling the truth, Orochimaru lowered his eyelids. A dangerous light flickered in his eyes.

"Before that, must this war continue without end? Is that what you desire?"

"Those eyes... what exactly are you hiding? An unfathomable disciple. Is that how Sarutobi-sensei sees me as well?"

Rarely experiencing Sarutobi Hiruzen's feelings, Orochimaru stopped moving. The reactions he had anticipated kept appearing, everything proceeding just as expected.

Inside an exceptionally busy Tricolor Dango shop on a bustling street in Konoha.

"As expected, dango really needs Red Bean Soup. Aren't you eating?"

Anko, engrossed in her dango, slowly raised her head. Her face inexplicably reddened, as though she had noticed how she was eating, but she soon put it out of her mind.

This guy had seen her like this countless times anyway. Even if she wanted to change, she could not. She might as well stop trying.

"If you eat too much, you'll need to exercise properly later. Speaking of which, I have a ninjutsu idea I've been working on recently. Want to help?"

Faced with that long-unseen radiant smile, Anko hesitated for a while before leaning close to whisper.

"Actually, Orochimaru-sensei gave me a snake that can do backflips. Want to come to my house and see it?"

A faint ripple passed through Huayue's dark eyes. The girl before him, nervous and expectant with anxiety hidden beneath it, pretended to hold up her teacup as she waited for his answer.

"Forget it. How about going to my place?"

"Huh? Wait, isn't that a little rushed? I still..."

"What is it? We're only testing a new ninjutsu. There's no need to specifically go to your house, right?"

Under that half-smiling expression, Anko was utterly defeated. She said in a huff, "Damn it, fine, I get it, I get it!"