Chapter 313: Hidden Danger

Chapter 313: Chapter 313: Hidden Danger

Hyuga Kagami calmly watched Orochimaru, waiting for him to name his terms.

"My condition is Uchiha Itachi. Bring Uchiha Itachi to me, and I’ll give you everything you want—the Chimera Technique, Dark Medical Ninjutsu, all of it."

Orochimaru’s tone sounded casual, but Kagami could clearly detect the subtle change in his voice when he mentioned Uchiha Itachi.

"Yeah, I knew this guy was already completely obsessed..."

Kagami grumbled inwardly.

Previously, Orochimaru had coveted Uchiha En more than Uchiha Itachi. But after having his face slapped by Itachi’s Mangekyo Sharingan, given Orochimaru’s personality, there was no doubt that Itachi would now hold far greater appeal to him.

Kagami had already expected as much.

After mulling it over for a moment, Kagami gave a wry smile. "You’re really making things difficult for me. If even you couldn’t deal with him, how could I possibly succeed?"

Orochimaru sneered. "Kagami, I know what you’re capable of. As long as you’re willing, you’ll find a way."

Kagami curled his lips. "I have a piece of advice for you, though you probably won’t like hearing it."

Orochimaru stared at Kagami. "Let’s hear it."

"I advise you to give up on Uchiha Itachi." After a brief pause, Hyuga Kagami continued, "You setting your sights on him is like a mouse setting its sights on a cat. It’s not going to end well."

Kagami wasn’t saying this to mock Orochimaru. It was sincere advice.

If Orochimaru wanted to seize Uchiha Itachi’s body, the final step—the devouring of his soul—was unavoidable. And clashes between souls just happened to be the specialty of dojutsu Kekkei Genkai shinobi, particularly those of the Sharingan bloodline.

Even if Orochimaru managed to subdue Uchiha Itachi through some other means, when it came to that final battle of souls, there was absolutely no way he could defeat an Uchiha Itachi who possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan.

In the original timeline, Orochimaru had even lost a battle of souls against Uchiha Sasuke when Sasuke possessed nothing more than the three-tomoe Sharingan. Orochimaru had gone from the one doing the devouring to the one being devoured.

So if Orochimaru insisted on going down this path, his fate might be even worse than in the original timeline.

After all, Itachi was different from Sasuke.

He wouldn’t leave Orochimaru’s soul lingering within his consciousness.

When that happened, Orochimaru’s soul might very well be completely annihilated.

Naturally, Orochimaru didn’t accept Kagami’s well-intentioned advice. His expression darkened. "Kagami, it seems even you have begun to underestimate me."

Kagami shook his head. "No. I would never underestimate you. I just think you shouldn’t waste so much time on this. Or perhaps you could choose an easier target instead. There are so many Uchiha out there—why insist on going after the handful who are the hardest to deal with?"

"Hmph! I don’t need you lecturing me!" Orochimaru snorted before continuing, "If you want those techniques, then bring me Uchiha Itachi’s body in exchange!"

Kagami silently stared at Orochimaru.

He knew that unless Orochimaru truly smashed his head against this wall and took a trip to death’s doorstep, he would never understand that Kagami was genuinely trying to help him.

Seeing Kagami remain silent, the corner of Orochimaru’s mouth curled upward as he said with a half-smile,

"Of course, you could always try taking them from me by force...

If you’re capable of it!"

Hyuga Kagami shook his head again. "You were the one who guided me onto this path, and you’ve protected me in the past. I still have at least that much of a bottom line."

With that, Kagami stopped wasting words, turned around, and simply left.

After Kagami was gone, Kabuto Yakushi slowly emerged from the shadows.

"Lord Orochimaru, you were right. You really did manage to intimidate him!"

"Cough, cough..."

Orochimaru suddenly broke into a violent coughing fit before spitting out a mouthful of blood.

It took him quite a while to recover. Then, with a dark expression, he said, "No. He already saw through my bluff. Never underestimate the Byakugan. He can see far more than we can!"

Kabuto froze for a moment before asking, "Then why didn’t he make a move?"

Orochimaru replied faintly, "Even I’m beginning to have trouble seeing through him now."

Kabuto then asked, "Lord Orochimaru, Danzo sent another message asking when you intend to make your move."

A trace of melancholy entered Orochimaru’s voice. "As much as I’d like to test myself against the old man, now isn’t the time. I need a new body—one capable of allowing me to wield my full strength!"

Although the forbidden technique Living Corpse Reincarnation allowed Orochimaru to achieve a form of immortality, not every reincarnation allowed him to retain one hundred percent of his strength.

Moreover, there had to be an interval of at least three years between each reincarnation.

Thus, while Orochimaru appeared capable of living forever, his strength was by no means constant. Instead, it fluctuated wildly across an enormous range.

At present, because his new body was incompatible with him, his strength had fallen to rock bottom.

Meanwhile, after leaving Orochimaru’s base, Hyuga Kagami began considering his next move.

Since things weren’t going to work out with Orochimaru, he would have to take what he needed by force.

And he had two targets in mind.

The first was Hiruko, the creator of the Chimera Technique.

The other was Hiruko’s assistant, Shinno.

Comparatively speaking, Shinno would be easier to deal with than Hiruko. On top of that, the threat Shinno posed to Shion was simply too great. If Kagami eliminated him first, it could also be considered a small way of making amends to the Priestess.

Having made his decision, Kagami summoned Shozaimaru and sent Shinichi a letter.

...

Land of Rain, Hiruko’s base.

"AAARGH...!"

"AAARGH...!"

"AAARGH...!"

At regular intervals, bloodcurdling screams echoed from Hiruko’s secret chamber. Even hearing them from a distance was enough to make one feel as though their own heart was being torn apart!

In a corridor not far from Hiruko’s secret chamber, Shinno stood silently outside the sealing formula Hiruko had erected, carefully listening to every sound coming from within.

Staring at the hour hand on his pocket watch, Shinno’s gaze sharpened.

"It’s already been more than four hours. Looks like the hidden problems with Hiruko’s body are even worse than I imagined."

At present, only Shinno, who had the closest relationship with Hiruko, had noticed the hidden problems within Hiruko’s body.

Everyone else in Akatsuki—including Pain and Obito—believed that after surviving the Kekkei Genkai fusion ritual, Hiruko’s physical condition had completely stabilized and there would be no further complications.

"The Chimera Technique still has flaws... No, it’s Hiruko’s ritual itself that was flawed..."

As an outside observer, Shinno could see the situation more clearly than Hiruko, who was caught up in it himself. Thus, Shinno quickly realized that the problem wasn’t a flaw in the Chimera Technique itself.

The flaw lay in the Kekkei Genkai fusion ritual Hiruko had designed.

Tap... tap...

Just as Shinno was lost in thought, the sound of footsteps suddenly echoed through the corridor.

Shinno immediately became vigilant and barked, "Who’s there?"

Shinichi stepped around the corner and smiled.

"It’s me!"

The moment he saw Shinichi, Shinno’s expression immediately turned cold.

Uchiha En, the one who had ruined his plans this time, was none other than the spy Shinichi had planted in Konoha. Naturally, Shinno wasn’t about to show Shinichi a friendly face.

"AAAAARGH...!"

Just then, another of Hiruko’s heart-rending screams echoed from the secret chamber...