In the interrogation room, Naruto propped his chin on both hands, looking at Orochimaru with great interest.
Orochimaru was one of the Konoha Sannin, a genius researcher not inferior to the Second Hokage. Whether it was the development of curse seals, experiments on Sage Mode, or cloning bloodline limits and even souls, he had gone ridiculously deep into all of it.
In a sense, Orochimaru's improvements to the Impure World Reincarnation indirectly led to the outbreak of the Fourth Great Ninja War.
That war, which lasted only a few days, wiped out a massive portion of the ninja population, forced the Five Great Nations into cooperation, and, ironically, ended up achieving something close to Nagato's "peace through pain" plan.
But Orochimaru's flaws were just as obvious—after witnessing too much death, he had turned completely cold-blooded.
He didn't care about enemies, subordinates, or even civilians. A full-on heartless snake. The kind that would sell you out, dissect you, and then complain your organs weren't fresh enough.
Seeing Naruto's gaze, Orochimaru suddenly felt a strange sense of déjà vu.
That look… it reminded him of how he used to look at his experimental subjects.
Cold. Curious. Slightly amused.
After a moment of silence, Naruto spoke quietly:
"Orochimaru… what do you think I should do with you?"
The familiar tone made Orochimaru frown slightly, but he still replied calmly:
"That depends on you, Menma-kun. Do you want an ally… or an enemy?"
He crouched slightly and continued:
"However, if you wanted to kill me, you would've done it already."
Naruto glanced at him, then his smile faded.
"Orochimaru, I need something from you. If you refuse… I don't mind handing you over to Konoha or the Akatsuki."
"I'm sure they'd love that gift."
Orochimaru's expression flickered.
"How domineering… as expected of the leader of Uzushiogakure."
He sighed lightly.
"I accept."
He knew very well—he had no real choice. Refuse, and he'd either end up hunted like a dog… or buried in the sand somewhere in the Land of Wind.
Still, handing over his research just like that? Yeah, that stung.
"I can give you what you want… but you'll have to trade something. Otherwise, I'd rather die than hand it over so easily."
Naruto simply said:
"Come with me."
Following Naruto, Orochimaru was led into a hidden room.
He couldn't help but wonder—is this where I get killed?
Then Naruto opened a scroll.
With a puff, several corpses dropped onto the ground.
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes.
"White Zetsu?"
Naruto nodded.
"These are subordinates of the masked man. Their bodies are completely different from normal humans… and they can use Wood Release."
"You've done Wood Release experiments before. You should be able to get something useful out of them."
The moment he heard Wood Release, Orochimaru's eyes lit up like a kid seeing forbidden candy.
But just as quickly, his guard went up.
This trade… was too valuable.
After examining the bodies, he asked in a low voice:
"What do you want?"
Naruto looked at him meaningfully.
"After your research, I want a full copy of your data."
"And… I want the contract scroll of Ryūchi Cave."
Orochimaru's face darkened slightly.
"Ryūchi Cave? You want to learn Sage Mode?"
Naruto nodded.
"After fighting Pain, I realized something…"
"I'm still not strong enough."
"And Sage Mode is the next step."
Orochimaru fell silent.
Not strong enough?
This guy just fought Pain head-on and walked away like it was a warm-up.
If he learns Sage Mode too… what the hell does that make him? A walking disaster?
Still, after a moment, Orochimaru took out a scroll and handed it over.
"This is the location of Ryūchi Cave."
"But whether the snakes accept you… that's your problem."
Naruto took the scroll and glanced at it.
A remote mountain range—far from the Five Great Nations.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru didn't waste time. He literally opened his mouth and swallowed the White Zetsu bodies.
Yeah… still disgusting as ever.
He turned toward the door.
"The deal is done. I look forward to our next meeting."
Naruto suddenly spoke again:
"Wait."
Orochimaru stopped, frowning.
"You're not planning to go back on your word, are you?"
Naruto shook his head.
"Relax. I just want to ask… do you have low-level ninjutsu scrolls? Civilian-use techniques?"
"I'm planning to build a ninja school for ordinary people in the Land of Waves."
Orochimaru froze.
Then—slowly—he spat out several storage scrolls.
He looked at Naruto like he was seeing a completely new species.
World conquerors? Seen plenty.
Madmen? Even more.
But someone trying to teach civilians ninjutsu?
Yeah… this was new.
After handing over the scrolls, he left without another word, disappearing via reverse summoning.
Naruto watched him go, eyes slightly narrowed.
His invitation wasn't fake.
Uzushiogakure needed people like Orochimaru—geniuses who could push science and jutsu forward.
After all, in the future, Orochimaru could practically mass-produce abilities—Sharingan, artificial enhancements, even pseudo-immortality.
Sure, they were weaker than the originals…
But still terrifying.
Given enough time, that snake might even recreate something close to the Ōtsutsuki path.
But this Orochimaru?
Still unstable. Still dangerous.
Good for trading.
Terrible for trust.
One wrong move, and that guy would bite your throat out—no hesitation.
Shaking off the thoughts, Naruto opened a map and focused on the location of Ryūchi Cave.
Once he mastered Sage Mode…
Age wouldn't matter anymore.
He'd finally step into true Kage-crushing territory.
And next time—
He wouldn't just fight Pain…
He'd beat the hell out of him.
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