"It seems agreeing to your proposed deal would just be a waste of time."
Naruto appeared to have lost his patience, his overwhelming Haki spreading outwards.
The surrounding guards collapsed almost instantly, while the Sound Four were forced to activate their second-stage Cursed Seals just to remain conscious.
Seeing that the talks were about to break down and they were about to fight, Kidomaru and Sakon and Ukon from the Sound Four were the first to attack.
Meanwhile, Tayuya and Jirobo, who had slower attack wind-ups, lagged slightly behind.
However, that slight delay ended up saving them.
Kidomaru, the strongest of the four, barely had time to fire a single arrow before Naruto caught the projectile and hurled it straight back.
The arrow formed by the hardened mucus instantly pierced through his body and nailed him to the wall, leaving his fate unknown.
Sakon and Ukon split into two and rushed Naruto from both sides.
But these guys were still far too slow.
A flash of sword light later, the two brothers collapsed to the ground.
In just one exchange, Orochimaru's elite Sound Four had been reduced to a duo.
"Stand down!"
Orochimaru's command came belatedly, but Tayuya and Jirobo, the lucky survivors, sighed in relief and quickly retreated.
Right in front of Orochimaru, Naruto calmly stored the Kusanagi Sword, which he had confiscated from Orochimaru earlier, back into a sealing scroll.
Orochimaru's expression darkened.
Not just because Naruto had so blatantly disregarded his authority, but also because this clone body was nearing its time limit.
Perhaps due to being exposed to Naruto's Haki earlier, the skin on his face had already begun to peel.
Silently, Orochimaru locked eyes with Naruto.
Just moments ago, Naruto had forcefully reminded Orochimaru exactly who held the upper hand in this so-called negotiation.
It certainly wasn't Orochimaru, who didn't even dare to reveal his true form.
Naruto, seemingly having vented his anger through that brief display of power, now stood waiting for Orochimaru to continue.
Of course, he still wanted the information Orochimaru has.
But that didn't mean he would let himself be manipulated.
Just as he himself said, without the information provided by Orochimaru, the most he could do was to delay the time of his revenge.
Naruto wasn't some hot-blooded youth who could be swayed by a few words.
Orochimaru's usual targets were those who were desperate, insecure, or powerless, but none of which applied to Naruto.
"...It seems I was too hasty."
After a long while, Orochimaru finally said.
"If this method of cooperation doesn't suit you, Naruto-kun, we can try another."
This statement was essentially Orochimaru's way of backing down… for now.
Realizing that Naruto wasn't someone he could easily manipulate like his usual pawns, he immediately shifted tactics.
If he could directly corrupt and take over Naruto's body through the Cursed Seal, that would be ideal.
But even if he failed, he won't lose anything.
The worst outcome of this test would be Naruto going on a rampage and destroying the entire island.
But at most, that would just mean losing a branch base and a clone body, and for Orochimaru, it is a price he was more than willing to pay.
"If I recall correctly, Naruto-kun, you recently captured an 'Immortal Ninja', didn't you?"
It wasn't surprising that Orochimaru knew this. In fact, he probably even knew about Naruto's encounter with Tsunade.
"That's right."
Naruto pulled out two sealing scrolls labeled 'Head' and 'Body' from his travel pack.
With a puff of smoke, Hidan's dismembered body appeared on either side of him.
"Ahhh! You bastard! I'll kill you!"
After seeing the light of day again, Hidan was still as energetic as ever. It seemed that not eating for more than a day didn't affect him much.
Both Naruto and Orochimaru ignored Hidan's outburst and focused on each other.
"So, what new ideas have you come up with?"
Naruto crossed his arms, showing some interest in whatever plan Orochimaru might come up with.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru slowly approached Hidan's dismembered body on the ground, poking at the lifeless yet still animated limbs.
Ignoring Hidan's furious screams of "I'll kill you!" and "I'll sacrifice you to Jashin-sama!", Orochimaru picked up the severed head, examining it like a piece of art.
"Hmph… A crude modification… But not without its merits."
As a researcher obsessed with eternal life, Orochimaru easily saw through the truth behind Hidan's so-called 'immortality'.
From an academic standpoint, he dismissed this false eternal life as 'shoddy work'.
"Naruto-kun, if you refuse the Cursed Seal, how about simply carrying a sealing scroll containing this body instead?"
"Go on."
"I'll need you to stay here a little longer. I'd like to perform some… minor modifications on him."
As he said this, Orochimaru held up Hidan's still-cursing head to the side.
"He can become another vessel for me… just like this clone body I'm using now. Once sealed inside a scroll, you'd only need to… swallow a specially prepared miniature version of it."
"That way, you'd have full control over when to release me, with no risk of me interfering behind your back."
Orochimaru's compromise seemed sincere, and his proposal was indeed feasible.
Before this, Naruto hadn't even considered the idea of ingesting a sealing scroll.
Perhaps this was the kind of twisted logic only a biology researcher could come up with.
But Naruto wasn't about to trust him completely.
"Use my sealing scroll."
Orochimaru was stunned when he heard this, and then quickly understood Naruto's suspicion.
This is because Naruto was afraid that he would tamper with the scroll.
"...Very well."
As for how Naruto planned to swallow an entire sealing scroll… Well, it wasn't like he'd trained in Life Return for nothing.
"Tayuya, show Naruto-kun to a room to rest. My experiment may take some time."
As if completely unbothered by the deaths of Kidomaru and Sakon-Ukon, Orochimaru's face twisted back into that grotesque yet hospitable grin once negotiations were settled.
"Don't keep me waiting, Orochimaru."
"Of course, Naruto-kun."
Naruto dismissed Orochimaru's words as nonsense but allowed Tayuya to lead him away.
Only once Naruto was completely out of sight did Jirobo move to free Kidomaru from the wall.
Unlike the twins, who had been bisected in one slash, Kidomaru had only been impaled by his own mucus arrow. This kind of injury was not fatal due to the empowerment of the Cursed Seal.
Of course, this is also related to the fact that Naruto couldn't be bothered to finish him off.
Sakon and Ukon were just unlucky. Their abilities were too revolting, and Naruto had no intention of letting those two touch him.
While this discussion concluded, another conversation was also coming to an end elsewhere.
"Are you certain?"
"Yes. Uzumaki Naruto has left the island. We've sent tracking summons after him."
"Good. Move out."
Similar orders were being issued in multiple locations.
The Southern Hideout is in danger.