Natsume didn't know the entry to Orochimaru's secret base.
But he had his ways.
Sage Art: Water Release—Water Severing Wave!
Natsume formed seals and spat a column of water.
Highly compressed, it was sharper and tougher than a blade.
In an instant, it sliced into the ground like tofu, carving out a tunnel.
…
"What's that sound?"
Jūgo turned his head instinctively.
In the original timeline, he met Kaguya Kimimaro first, then joined Orochimaru.
But because of Natsume, he was found early and missed that friend.
As for Kimimaro, Natsume had spent Fate Points to look for him.
Unexpectedly, he was in Uzushio.
His earlier plan to take over that country with Terumī Mei wasn't unrelated to Kimimaro.
"I'll go check."
Jūgo glanced at the massive glass wall structure.
"Go."
Guren nodded.
Jūgo was young, but ridiculously gifted.
He possessed an innate Sage Transformation constitution.
Under Orochimaru's tutelage, he'd gotten more stable and stronger rapidly.
Guren, meanwhile, wielded a special Crystal Release.
She had lost her home and family early and only survived after meeting Orochimaru.
Thus she was his diehard follower and even willingly a vessel for his Living Corpse Reincarnation.
In the original, she'd even gotten jealous of Sasuke because his arrival knocked her from top candidate vessel to second.
Their main role here was to guard the base.
Especially the dozens of children.
The orange-haired Jūgo walked toward the sound expressionlessly.
The moment he noticed Natsume, he clutched his head and his skin rapidly darkened.
Strange features sprouted across his face, back, and arms.
He didn't look human.
Jūgo's heart clenched, his pupils shrinking.
Because of his constitution, he couldn't control his curse state freely. In areas with high natural energy, he would automatically go into a Sage-like transformation.
Which meant the man in front of him had Sage chakra so dense it was overwhelming.
"Hoh, a Xenos."
Natsume blinked.
So ugly!
Curse transformations could be many things—but they were ugly.
With what little reason he had left consumed, Jūgo snarled and charged his enemy.
Natsume clenched his fist.
Sage Art: Monstrous Strength!
Boom.
Jūgo flew back even faster.
He shot across half the hall and slammed into the glass wall.
"Wha—Jūgo?"
Guren was shocked.
Jūgo in curse state hadn't even lasted a minute?
She rushed forward.
Jūgo fell to the floor, a trail of blood on the glass.
He spat out a mouthful of blood with bits of organ in it.
"R-run!"
Jūgo shoved Guren hard and barked, "Take Uchiha Shin and get out of here!"
Too strong!
Way too strong!
He and Guren were absolutely no match. The only option was to flee with Orochimaru's most important test subject, Uchiha Shin.
"Sorry, anyone can go—but Uchiha Shin can't."
Natsume stepped into the glass hall.
In the distance was an arena-like structure.
He could make out children inside.
Guren didn't hesitate—her hands flew into seals.
Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Prison!
Crystals sprouted at Natsume's feet, clear with a pink tint, encasing him.
Seeing him trapped, Guren quietly exhaled.
Just as she was about to help Jūgo retreat, the crystal suddenly cracked.
"How is that possible?"
It was her first time seeing someone brute-force break her crystal.
Crystal Release: Brilliant Dragon's Light!
She madly wove seals, pouring out all her chakra.
A massive crystal encased her and Jūgo.
But just defending was meaningless.
A bright laser lanced from the crystal's core.
In the original, she'd blinded the Three-Tails with this jutsu.
Natsume's body blurred and he appeared behind them.
No need to clash head-on.
Sage Art: Water Release—Water Severing Wave!
The water stream slit the crystal.
Before Guren could react, Natsume kicked her, slamming her into the wall.
"Where is Uchiha Shin?"
Natsume looked down at the fallen Guren.
"Kill me! I won't tell you!"
Guren showed no fear, displaying her loyalty to Orochimaru.
Infiltration, interrogation, captured kunoichi—
Put those three together and it's dangerous.
Natsume shoved the thought away.
He was a proper man.
No weird stuff.
Ahem.
He crouched, Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan opening.
Guren went slack.
"He's in Arena Room No. 1."
"Thanks for the intel. But you'll have to forget you saw my eyes for a while."
Natsume activated Yomi-no-Izumi memory seal.
This dojutsu could make someone forget a specific memory for a set time.
The duration depended on ocular power.
Natsume set it to a year.
He had plenty of juice.
Upgrading to Eternal Mangekyō had removed the side effects—no blindness.
Which let him use ocular jutsu more freely.
"Guren, what are you doing?"
Jūgo, facing away, hadn't seen the Eternal Mangekyō, but he'd heard her.
"Traitor! You betrayed Lord Orochimaru!"
"No, I didn't!"
Guren came to, but couldn't recall what had just happened. She stared in horror. "What did you do?!"
Natsume didn't answer.
He considered whether to take Guren.
But she was too loyal to Orochimaru. Without Kotoamatsukami, she'd be hard to turn.
Forget it—don't waste Kotoamatsukami.
He already had Shisui and Izumi as subordinates; he wasn't short on people.
And, to be honest, he didn't find Guren particularly pretty.
Natsume turned to the glass wall.
Orochimaru had invested a lot—this glass was tough.
But everything has limits.
Sage Art: Monstrous Strength!
He shattered the glass with a punch.
Standing before Door No. 1, his eyes narrowed.
In the next moment, a figure appeared behind him, thrusting a kunai at extreme speed.
Natsume turned to see a pair of three-tomoe Sharingan.
He casually caught the attacker's wrist and, with a sage-powered kick, sent Uchiha Shin flying.
"Die!"
Wracked with pain, Shin glared with his Sharingan and shouted.
Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes!
"Three tomoe isn't enough."
Natsume snapped the genjutsu like a twig.
"How… how is that possible?!"
Shin looked shattered.
Natsume paused.
He suddenly remembered that although Shin wasn't a Uchiha clansman, he was a spiritual Uchiha.
He worshiped—no, was obsessed with—Itachi.
Natsume's casual dismissal had crushed him.
Kinda funny.
Natsume knocked Shin out with a tap and strolled out of the base.
He didn't use Flying Thunder God.
Otherwise, Orochimaru wouldn't be able to trace him.