Kabuto, ever attuned to Orochimaru's thoughts, pushed up his glasses upon seeing his master's disappointed headshake. "Compared to that person, anyone would seem ordinary, wouldn't they?"
Having saved Orochimaru from Itachi's grasp, Kabuto understood his master's complex feelings toward Itachi. Elevating Itachi also helped dispel some of Orochimaru's gloom from his crushing defeat.
Orochimaru chuckled lightly, accepting Kabuto's flattery.
Kabuto pressed, "You didn't take Sasuke's Mangekyo Sharingan. Do you have other plans?"
"Without Uchiha blood, wielding the Mangekyo Sharingan is nearly impossible. Danzo went to extremes, yet he still had to keep the implanted Sharingan sealed to maintain the fragile balance of his chakra."
Orochimaru shook his head, a trace of disdain for Danzo on his face.
Kabuto immediately grasped his intent. "You want to take Sasuke's body directly? He's still too young, so you plan to observe him longer?"
Orochimaru neither confirmed nor denied.
The emergence of the Upper Moons had shown him the possibility of achieving immortality with his own body, and his studies of sage techniques had sparked hesitation about using Living Corpse Reincarnation to seize another's body.
Moreover, Sasuke, at only eleven or twelve, was not yet fully developed. Taking his body now wasn't ideal, so Orochimaru made the same choice as in the Forest of Death years ago—he spared Sasuke!
Of course, his decision was also influenced by Kimimaro withholding the fact that Sasuke was Akatsuki's 'E.'
If Orochimaru knew Sasuke was part of Akatsuki, he would have, at the very least, abducted him or taken his Mangekyo Sharingan, even if he was unsure about seizing his body.
Kabuto said, "Orochimaru-sama, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha are key figures for the Hidden Leaf. Their attack will surely provoke a strong response. If you have no further plans, we should leave the Land of Hot Springs for now!"
Orochimaru smiled. "No rush. I left Sasuke a little gift. I want to stay and see if he can handle it!"
Kabuto froze, realizing something. "You placed a curse seal on Sasuke? Which one?"
Orochimaru's lips curled. "The Curse Seal of Heaven, of course!"
In the abandoned mine, Sasuke lay flat, lips pale and face drenched in cold sweat.
Surrounding him was a circle of medical ninja, with Shizune, the Jonin in charge of medical operations at headquarters, conducting a thorough examination.
As Kabuto predicted, upon receiving the distress signal from Kakashi's team, Jiraiya personally led an elite squad to the scene.
A full-scale search and sweep followed.
The Hidden Leaf ninja scoured a ten-kilometer radius around the mine but found no trace of the attackers.
Frustrated, Jiraiya returned to the mine, looking at the still-unconscious Sasuke. "How's he doing?"
Shizune shook her head. "He's badly injured. The wound on his shoulder hadn't healed and reopened during the fight. His chakra is severely depleted, and there are signs of poisoning."
Jiraiya frowned.
Kakashi, standing nearby, asked, "Jiraiya-sama, any trace of the attackers?"
Jiraiya sighed. "They left no clues. They were clearly prepared and retreated calmly."
"That's strange," Kakashi muttered, puzzled.
The attackers had clearly been watching Sasuke for a while, yet after succeeding, they neither abducted him nor took his Mangekyo Sharingan, instead simply leaving. It made no sense.
"Hm?"
Shizune let out a soft gasp as she examined Sasuke.
Jiraiya and Kakashi asked in unison, "What is it?"
Shizune pointed to bite marks on Sasuke's neck. "Look, there's a bite mark here, like some beast attacked him."
Sakura hurried over, inspected it, and said, "That's new. Sasuke didn't have that before the attack!"
Naruto nodded vigorously. "It must be that weirdo's bite!"
Kakashi murmured, "Was the whole point of attacking Sasuke just to bite him after watching him for so long?"
Shizune said, "I can't yet determine what was done to him. We'll need a full examination back in the village to know for sure."
With Sasuke in such bad shape and bitten by an unknown assailant, he clearly couldn't continue the assessment. Jiraiya said, "Then send Sasuke back to the village!"
Kakashi nodded. "I'll escort him."
"No!"
At that moment, Sasuke stirred, letting out a hoarse roar.
"Sasuke, you're awake!"
Sakura and Naruto rushed to his side.
Sasuke forced himself to sit up, coldly scanning the room. "The assessment isn't over. I'm not going back!"
Shizune was speechless. "Are you crazy? Do you know how bad your injuries are?"
"So what?" Sasuke glanced at his reopened shoulder wound. "Just heal it!"
Shizune pressed, "You're poisoned! And the attacker bit you. Your body—"
Sasuke suddenly smirked. "Poisoned? Why do I feel like my body's brimming with power?"
"This—"
Shizune was at a loss for words.
Not just her—Jiraiya and Kakashi thought Sasuke was just being stubborn.
"I haven't broken any rules or forfeited. You have no right to stop my assessment!" Pausing, Sasuke turned to Naruto and Sakura. "Hey, you two scared?"
Sakura shook her head immediately.
Naruto rolled up his sleeves, fuming. "That jerk was so sneaky, attacking you while I was gone! This time, I'll find him and teach him a lesson!"
Sasuke's eyes turned icy. "Yeah, how could we let that guy off so easily?"
Having suffered such a humiliating loss, Sasuke wasn't about to let it go! Besides, he felt a strange power brewing within him!
Watching the determined Sasuke, the fired-up Naruto, and Sakura—worried but resolute—Jiraiya and Kakashi exchanged a glance, both sighing helplessly.