Orochimaru's smile faded slightly, though he didn't seem disappointed.
Even if he could only acquire the magical world's specialties through trade, that would still be enough for Konoha to reap major rewards.
But human desire is insatiable. Having just discovered a loophole in the dimensional chat group, it was no surprise that Orochimaru began entertaining other ambitions.
However, Kizaru promptly cut off his ambitions. Until Orochimaru gained strength that could surpass Kizaru, he would fully cooperate with the latter's decisions.
With Kizaru setting the tone, the atmosphere in the headmaster's office immediately relaxed. The three confused Gryffindor students had no idea how close Hogwarts had come to disaster—only Professor McGonagall, whose palm beneath her sleeve was slick with cold sweat, pursed her lips even tighter.
Though she had initially been skeptical about the existence of people from other worlds—after all, Hermione couldn't produce concrete evidence—when Dumbledore decided to invite people from the chat group for a meeting, she had opposed the idea without hesitation.
Even if Hermione's descriptions painted these off-worlders as not evil, inviting unknown beings from another world into Hogwarts still seemed far too dangerous to Professor McGonagall.
But she had been swiftly persuaded by Dumbledore.
After all, it was safer to meet them under their supervision than to risk Hermione secretly bringing them over on her own.
Knowing the reckless tendencies of Gryffindor's young lions, McGonagall had to admit that Dumbledore was right.
In the end, it wasn't until she met these visitors that McGonagall realized she had underestimated how dangerous they truly were.
That towering young man—almost as tall as Hagrid—seemed to radiate warmth and didn't look dangerous at all. But the snake-like man who appeared after him nearly made her cry out.
If Orochimaru hadn't clearly had Asian features, McGonagall might have thought the Dark Lord himself had appeared before her.
He was just as dangerous and powerful—and in his snake-like eyes shone both ambition and confidence.
This man was even more terrifying than Voldemort!
And yet, this frightening man became completely well-behaved after a few words from that handsome youth. It wasn't hard to guess who was truly in charge between them.
---
"Then let's continue with introductions,"
Kizaru said lazily. "I'm Kizaru, Admiral of the Marine Headquarters. Like little Hermione, I'm also a member of the dimensional chat group."
He wasn't worried that Orochimaru's ambition hadn't been fully crushed. As long as Kizaru remained the strongest member in the chat group, Orochimaru—who had succeeded in becoming the Fourth Hokage—would never dare challenge his authority.
"Orochimaru. Fourth Hokage. I hope to establish cooperation with Hogwarts and the wizarding world."
Orochimaru spoke calmly, with no sign of the danger he had exuded just moments before.
"Minerva McGonagall. Transfiguration Professor at Hogwarts."
McGonagall kept her introduction brief. She knew her strength wasn't enough to stand on equal footing with these off-worlders.
"Hermione Granger, Gryffindor student!"
Hermione mustered her courage and spoke up—far more composed than the two stammering boys beside her.
"I... I'm Harry Potter."
"R-Ron. Ron Weasley…"
With Dumbledore's encouraging look, Harry and Ron finally forced out their introductions.
"I imagine little Hermione has already mentioned our intentions," Kizaru said with a smile. "Since you've invited us for a talk, I assume there's room for negotiation?"
He wasn't particularly fond of Harry or Ron, but seeing their familiar faces still put him in a good mood.
Philosopher's Stone, Time-Turners, Felix Felicis, wands, Polyjuice Potion, flying brooms...
He had to admit: the unique treasures of the Harry Potter world were undeniably tempting. No wonder Orochimaru had acted slightly out of character upon arriving.
Even though he had obtained pure gold that could theoretically grant eternal youth, anything related to immortality still piqued Orochimaru's interest.
Not to mention miraculous artifacts like the Time-Turner—if not for Kizaru's presence keeping him in check, Orochimaru might really have attempted to invade the wizarding world.
At most, he would start by securing control over Hermione, then slowly expand his influence until full occupation.
While it was still unclear whether the average wizard was stronger than a Genin, it was undeniable that Konoha had Chūnin, Jōnin, and even several Kage-level ninjas like Orochimaru.
Wizards, having long grown used to peaceful lives, would likely be no match for shinobi hardened by war.
After all, Voldemort, the so-called Dark Lord of the wizarding world, was little more than a serial killer with a cult following.
Compared to shinobi who sent six-year-olds to the battlefield, Voldemort simply didn't measure up.
"To be honest," Dumbledore began, "the Philosopher's Stone has already been destroyed. As for Time-Turners—they're strictly forbidden from misuse…"
"However, the Felix Felicis, Polyjuice Potion, as well as werewolf fluids and dragon blood—those we can provide you."
Dumbledore slowly placed a series of potion bottles on his desk. The smallest bottle contained Felix Felicis—a potion that could bring its drinker a streak of good luck with just a single drop.
Next to it was Polyjuice Potion, which, when combined with a strand of a target's hair, allowed the drinker to take on the appearance of that person.
As for the werewolf bodily fluid, that had been specifically requested by Orochimaru, who intended to see whether it could be used as a substitute for Zoan-type Devil Fruits.
After all, each cross-world transfer required consuming one of these extremely valuable fruits. Using them in bulk seemed like a terrible waste.
McGonagall's mouth twitched at the sight. She could accept trading the Polyjuice Potion, but Felix Felicis was notoriously difficult to make and incredibly rare. And the bodily fluids of werewolves? That was an extremely dangerous substance, absolutely prohibited for sale.
Yet here Dumbledore was, openly bringing them out as bargaining chips. But since their counterpart was from another world, even the strict McGonagall knew better than to object now.
Compared to truly dangerous things like the Philosopher's Stone or Time-Turners, even werewolf fluids seemed minor.
"We'll need a lot of this," Kizaru said with great interest as he picked up the Felix Felicis and examined it.
The Philosopher's Stone and Time-Turners weren't particularly attractive to him—he already had something better than the Stone: pure gold.
As for Time-Turners, even if he managed to get one, Kizaru didn't believe he—or any of the researchers in the chat group—could unravel the secrets of time so easily.
Otherwise, wizards wouldn't be using such a powerful item just to let students make up missed classes.
But Felix Felicis intrigued him. Just how powerful was the "good luck" this potion granted? Could it allow a weaker fighter to defeat a stronger one, if only they had this potion and their opponent did not?
"Both Felix Felicis and Polyjuice Potion are difficult to brew. Werewolf fluids are also hard to obtain,"
Dumbledore said with a faint smile.
"But trade always goes both ways. Can you offer us something of equal value?"
If off-worlders wanted more potions, they could certainly have them—provided they could produce something wizards couldn't refuse.
Otherwise, even if the wizards were forced to comply once due to overwhelming power, no one could expect them to remain willing partners.
Dumbledore, shrewd as ever, had already gathered plenty of information about the chat group from Hermione.
Even if there was a power gap, Hermione clearly had a voice in the group.
"What about gold? Equal volume in exchange for Polyjuice Potion, and as for Felix Felicis... how about a hundred times the volume in gold?"
Kizaru's offer nearly made Dumbledore's heart skip a beat.
The potion was indeed valuable—but a hundred times its volume in gold was even more tempting!
Even master potion brewers needed to make a living, and Dumbledore wasn't entirely sure if even Snape could resist the allure of such an offer.
As for Polyjuice Potion—though it took a month to brew—any skilled brewer could produce several cauldrons simultaneously. In fact, any competent sixth-year Hogwarts graduate could make it. The question was never skill, but necessity.
If Kizaru's offer ever became public knowledge, the wizarding world would almost certainly plunge into a potion-making frenzy.
If werewolf fluids and dragon blood were valued the same way—by weight in gold—then those poor werewolves might very well be captured and drained until death.
Dragons would fare slightly better. Their blood was more abundant and renewable. But even so, dragon breeders would likely expand operations drastically, raising more dragons just for their blood.
"You're very generous, Kizaru-kun,"
Orochimaru said with a mildly troubled expression.
"But Konoha is a 'poor' village, you know. If your side needs someone assassinated—or help against an enemy force—we can offer interdimensional mercenary services soon enough."
Of course, as the main military power of the Land of Fire, the Hidden Leaf Village wasn't actually poor.
Still, as Hokage, Orochimaru couldn't just dip into village funds.
Not that he was noble—he simply wanted to prove to Lord Hiruzen that he was a worthy Fourth Hokage.
"So soon? I haven't even begun collecting Zoan-type Devil Fruits yet,"
Kizaru said with a bit of surprise.
Even if he did collect enough of them, he'd still have to prioritize using them himself.
There were already many talents in the One Punch World he had his eyes on—and if they were willing, he'd absolutely bring them back to the Marine HQ.
"Heh, for now, only the snakes of Ryuchi Cave can fight. But I've already raised a large number of serpents affiliated with Konoha. I'm working on getting every Chūnin and Jōnin to form a summoning contract with at least one."
Orochimaru explained calmly.
In the past, even with the mission commissions from the Land of Fire, Konoha barely had enough resources to feed its shinobi—let alone raise armies of summoning beasts.
°°°
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