Four dark-red figures fled in four different directions, running like rabbits caught in the open by a predator—none dared to glance back even once.
Saitama glanced at the direction where the Stone shinobi had escaped, then smirked slightly, a faint smile forming on his lips.
Without making any noticeable movement, his figure flickered like lightning and vanished from the spot.
As those Stone shinobi ran, they each felt a cold slash against their necks before plunging into darkness.
In their final moments of vision, they saw their comrades' heads separating from their bodies.
Yet, due to the inertia of running, these severed parts continued moving forward for a short distance, maintaining an eerie parallel motion.
Eventually, they dropped to the ground and slid down the steep slope.
After eliminating the enemies, Saitama found himself puzzled about how these people had located him.
Were they searching specifically for him? Had Iwagakure really not given up yet?
Looking down, Saitama noticed his right hand glowing with [Chidori Current]—a manifestation of his chakra nature transformation.
His growing strength and mastery over various elemental transformations had made him rarely rely on his sword nowadays.
Though he still wore it at his hip, he now drew it for battle fewer than one in ten times.
With so many powerful ninjutsu techniques available, Swordsmanship had lost its prominence in his arsenal.
"They must've come looking for me... What nerve they have!"
After the battle, Orochimaru approached slowly, stepping forward with measured pace.
First glancing at the four decapitated Stone shinobi, he seemed to realize something and spoke to Saitama.
He hadn't expected that momentary mercy would make these Stone shinobi believe they could continue pursuing him.
"Ah!"
Saitama nodded slightly, gradually dispersing the ninjutsu on his right hand.
"What do you plan to do next?"
Looking at Orochimaru a few meters away, Saitama asked softly.
"Me? Continue my unfinished work!"
Orochimaru's eyes darkened as he gazed into the distance, seemingly seeing countless extraordinary things sparkling within his vision.
This trip had confirmed many of his suspicions, so he intended to return and resume his research.
That was the very purpose of his life—that was what he had always longed to see come true.
If such feats were achievable a thousand years ago, he—Orochimaru—could achieve them again in this age.
After hearing Orochimaru's words, Saitama remained silent for a long time.
"And you? What has always been your goal?"
Orochimaru showed curiosity, since Saitama's actions had always amazed and baffled him.
Was collecting Tailed Beasts simply for power enhancement?
"Me? I want to bring change to this world. So before that, I need to become even stronger!"
Saitama shrugged indifferently, openly revealing his thoughts.
"Is that so..."
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.
"Oh, by the way, while I was out, I also collected some things for you!"
Orochimaru's gaze went past Saitama, settling on a spot atop the mountain behind him.
There seemed to be someone suspicious over there, though the distance was too great for him to be certain.
"Oh? Then thanks for that!"
Saitama nodded, understanding exactly what Orochimaru referred to.
Earlier, he had offered to help gather materials for an Impure World resurrection ritual, but hadn't expected Orochimaru to remember.
...
"Captain, there are two enemies total. One should be a member of that Organization we've heard about in intelligence reports. The other is Orochimaru, one of Konoha's former Sannin!"
A scout ninja held a telescope in one hand, looking through it toward the two figures stationed halfway up the distant mountain before reporting to his comrade beside him.
They were precisely the reinforcement squad summoned by that earlier four-man team—but they'd arrived too late since the entire squad had already been wiped out.
"Didn't expect things to get this complicated!"
A middle-aged ninja nearby frowned as he looked in that direction, although naturally saw nothing through the vast distance.
"Since we're near Konoha, send out calls for aid to both the Land of Rain and Konoha itself!"
Because their location lay close to the Land of Fire within the Land of Rain, requesting assistance from Konoha made perfect sense.
Especially considering that among them was Orochimaru—one of Konoha's top rogue ninja.
Though the identity of the other person remained unknown, anyone willing to associate with Orochimaru must surely be no minor character either.
Moreover, this second individual was also a recent member of that mysterious Organization creating waves throughout the Shinobi World.
"Understood!"
One ninja at the back nodded.
"We'll keep our distance and just make sure not to lose sight of them! With someone as dangerous as Orochimaru involved, we can't afford to take them lightly!"
The captain finally addressed his subordinates behind him.
"Understood!"
...
Back in Konoha Village.
"Cheers!"
Jiraiya raised a wine glass, gesturing forward to those seated around the table.
This was quite a large table with many people seated around it.
Seated here were today's honored guests Tsunade and Rin Nohara, along with Jiraiya and Shizune, plus Minato's family—making seven people at the table altogether.
"Jiraiya, there are children present! Could you at least keep it down a little?"
Tsunade sat next to Naruto Uzumaki, her left arm gripping him like a stuffed animal she refused to let go of—the boy who had dared call her "hag" moments ago.
Naruto never expected when his dad said they'd be going out for barbecue tonight, it would be with Lady Tsunade.
Since he'd accidentally called her 'old hag' before, Naruto couldn't shake the feeling that Lady Tsunade kept giving him weird looks ever since, so he had carefully avoided being around her whenever possible.
At only six years old and standing barely over a meter tall, sitting in the chair placed him only halfway above the tabletop.
He clutched his chopsticks with one hand, eyes locked onto the sizzling meat on the grill as drool began pooling in his mouth.
"Take it easy, take it easy!" Jiraiya blinked, realizing he'd been getting a bit too worked up.
Then he noticed Naruto tightly pinned under Tsunade's left arm, making him twitch slightly at the sight.
That kid Naruto, of all people, actually dared to provoke Tsunade, who was clearly in a difficult phase.
"Naruto, at your age, you should eat more fatty meat—it'll help you grow! Lean meat's no good for you!"
Tsunade noticed Naruto staring nonstop at the sizzling barbecue and picked several of the fattiest pieces, placing them into the small bowl in front of him.
"This..."
The little boy was totally confused. It didn't match what his mom usually said at all!
Nearby, Minato and Kushina were sitting together. Seeing Tsunade teasing Naruto, they exchanged a glance and smiled.
Back home, that kid Naruto was like a little king—always getting his way. It was actually good for him to get disciplined by Tsunade once in a while. Maybe it would help him tone down that personality of his.
"But I don't want fatty meat! I want the grilled tenderloin over there!"
Naruto stretched his neck out from under the table, glancing back and forth between the fatty meat in his bowl and the tenderloin on the grill.
"Still, you must finish the fatty meat in your bowl before you can eat anything else!"
As she spoke, Tsunade added several more fatty pieces into Naruto's bowl.
Naruto slightly opened his mouth and turned his head sideways, looking at Tsunade with uncertainty, not sure what to say.
"Eat quickly! These are all carefully selected delicacies of mine. If you don't eat them, I'll really be upset!"
"You know what happens when I'm upset... don't you?"
Tsunade tightened her left arm around him, keeping him from leaving his seat as she pulled him a bit closer.
"Fine!"
Naruto first turned his face toward his mother, only to find his own mom seemingly ignoring him as she focused intently on her food.
He made a bitter face, then used his chopsticks to pick up a piece of fatty meat, looking at the greasy oil droplets glistening on it before slowly bringing it to his mouth.
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