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"Her?" Tsunade drew a deep breath, her brows furrowing tightly.
If she weren't thoroughly familiar with Midorima's character, she would have already introduced her fists to his face after hearing what he'd just said. She glanced over at Shizune and found her face deathly pale, her fingers rubbing anxiously against one another—clearly, the memory of what had happened back then was flooding back.
"This... this decision of yours is far too reckless," Tsunade said, her brow still creased. "Resurrecting Orochimaru involves far too many consequences..."
"I know what you're going to say. In short, you don't trust that Orochimaru, once revived, won't pose a threat to the Hidden Leaf Village. Am I right? But if the Leaf Village has to live in fear of Orochimaru, does it even deserve to continue existing? If you're worried about him harming Shizune, let me say this: the moment I learn he's even entertaining such an idea, I will hunt him down to the ends of the earth and kill him with my own hands. That is my solemn promise to Shizune," Midorima pledged.
In truth, Tsunade had no reason to be concerned. Even if Orochimaru needed a new vessel, he would only ever choose someone of extraordinary innate talent, like Sasuke Uchiha. By every conceivable measure, he would never set his sights on Shizune.
Upon hearing this, Tsunade looked at Shizune once more. Despite the hesitation written all over her face, Shizune eventually nodded her consent. Tsunade rubbed her forehead wearily and said, "You will bring her back to me safe and sound by tomorrow morning."
"There's no need to wait. You should just come with us. You and Orochimaru are old acquaintances; I'm sure you have things to say to each other... If you're still uneasy, you can even bring Jiraiya along."
Tsunade shook her head. "He has a mission."
"Oh?"
"Shikaku Nara has already set out to track Pain. But on their own, they're completely incapable of confronting him. Jiraiya needs to go and provide support."
Midorima clicked his tongue quietly. Jiraiya truly seemed cursed with a harsh fate, forced to face Pain yet again. He could only hope that Shikaku wouldn't actually find Pain, otherwise Jiraiya would be in grave danger.
"In that case, you can still come along. You haven't seen Orochimaru in so long—surely you have things you'd want to say to him, don't you?"
Tsunade gave it serious thought for a moment, and in the end she nodded her agreement.
Outside, Tayuya had been waiting for what felt like an eternity. She was just about to complain to Kabuto when she spotted Midorima emerging from the medical facility.
"That took so—"
Her words died in her throat. Tayuya caught sight of Tsunade walking right behind Midorima, and the shock nearly made her jump. She thought to herself, 'I told you to find someone with the Cursed Seal of Heaven—not to drag Tsunade of all people into this.' But with Tsunade now standing directly before her, even if she harbored some aversion toward the woman, she had no choice but to grit her teeth and face her.
However, Tsunade showed no interest in making things difficult for her. She merely glanced at Tayuya briefly before turning to Midorima.
"Where to?"
"Pick a place. This is your village, after all. If nothing else works, we can even go to the cemetery," Midorima suggested.
Tsunade had no objection to the plan itself, but the thought of Shizune being the one to endure the ordeal was genuinely hard for her to stomach. Ultimately, she led Midorima and his group back to her own residence.
Shizune knelt on the tatami mat, her entire body rigid with tension, her hands clenched tightly together.
Midorima crouched down beside her and said, "With me and Lady Tsunade here, even if Orochimaru is genuinely resurrected, we can guarantee your safety."
Shizune nodded. "Lady Tsunade, Lord Midorima... I'm ready."
Midorima turned to Kabuto. Kabuto pulled a scroll from within his vest and unfurled it. A culture dish emerged from the seal, and inside it rested a piece of flesh.
"Is that... Orochimaru's flesh?" Midorima asked, startled. The mass in the dish weighed at least half a pound. Orochimaru was already dead, so obtaining his corpse should have been nearly impossible. After all, he had died in the Hidden Rain Village, and Nagato had likely used the body as a new vessel for one of his Six Paths of Pain. The odds of Kabuto getting his hands on the actual corpse were practically nonexistent.
"No. During his experiments with the Living Corpse Reincarnation jutsu, Lord Orochimaru infused his own chakra into the bodies of various test subjects," Kabuto explained succinctly, clarifying the source of the flesh.
Midorima nodded and signaled for him to proceed.
Kabuto placed the piece of flesh directly over Shizune's Cursed Seal of Heaven and then performed the Evil Releasing Method. The mass of flesh began to gradually merge with Shizune's body, only to suddenly bulge upward dramatically. An enormous serpent burst forth from Shizune's shoulder, sprawling across the room and stretching several meters in length. Tsunade's brow furrowed, and her fists clenched tight.
Then, the great serpent opened its jaws, and a figure with long, black hair crawled out from inside its mouth, slowly rising to his feet.
"Lord Orochimaru..." Tayuya stepped forward, tears brimming in her eyes. Remembering her station, she hastily dropped to one knee.
"Was it you who brought me back?" Orochimaru asked.
"It was Kabuto. Lord Midorima also helped—"
"Midorima?" Orochimaru turned around. His eyes first landed on Tsunade, who was staring fixedly at him. He paused, slightly taken aback, then smiled. "I never expected to run into you here."
"I did," Tsunade said flatly. "Your life now belongs to Shizune. If you dare harm her in any way, I will not let you go."
Orochimaru cast a glance at Shizune, still kneeling on the floor. The emergence of the serpent from the Cursed Seal of Heaven had left her body utterly drained. Had Midorima not been supporting her, she likely would have collapsed onto the tatami.
"I would hardly choose her as a target," Orochimaru remarked with a smirk.
Midorima helped Shizune to her feet and was about to escort her out of the room when Tsunade took over. Shizune needed rest, and when it came to caring for patients, no one was more skilled than Tsunade.
After seeing Tsunade and Shizune off, Midorima closed the door behind him and turned to face Orochimaru with a smile. "It's been a long time."
"I never expected to meet you here," Orochimaru said, the smile on his face unnervingly rigid.
"Don't be so tense," Midorima said, waving a hand. "We share a rather deep bond, after all. I witnessed the entire process of your death at the hands of Madara—and I guarantee you, fewer than ten people can claim to have seen that."
Orochimaru's smile slowly faded, his eyes turning as cold as a serpent's. "How do you know that?"
"I was there... Oh, I forgot to mention, I also briefly joined the Akatsuki. My name back then was Shin Yoshida."
The moment he heard the name "Shin Yoshida," Orochimaru's brow tightened. He mentally rifled through his memories and finally, in the deepest recesses, unearthed an image of the man: a masked figure. "So it was you."
"That's right. Strictly speaking, we were once comrades. As for what our relationship will be going forward... that depends on the choices you make now."
"Let's hear it," Orochimaru said.
"At this moment, all five great shinobi villages have gathered to discuss how to deal with the Akatsuki. And as for me—well, you already know I want to see the Akatsuki completely wiped out. So I'm hoping to secure your assistance."
Orochimaru let out a laugh. "Help you? And why exactly would I do that?"
"You were killed by the Akatsuki... Here's my offer: if you're willing to help, the Akatsuki's Byakugan will be yours," Midorima said with a smile.
Whether that Byakugan could actually be recovered was a fifty-fifty proposition at best. But making promises on credit? Who couldn't do that? Besides, he had made the offer personally, but Mei Terumī certainly hadn't agreed to anything.