He didn't know how long he had been unconscious. Uchiha Kazuhiko woke up, feeling as if his body was bound by something.
He struggled to open his eyes and found himself completely wrapped in medical bandages, lying like a mummy in a dimly lit cave.
"Hehehehe, awake so soon? What an astonishing body."
A slightly hoarse yet captivating voice came from outside the cave.
Immediately after, a tall and straight figure slowly walked towards him.
Hearing the voice, Uchiha Kazuhiko strained to turn his neck.
After great effort, he managed to turn his head and saw the person now standing before him.
A moon-white kimono robe, long black hair hanging down to the waist, a pale purple long tongue lightly licking lips, and a pair of golden snake-like eyes examining him with keen interest.
Uchiha Kazuhiko's pupils constricted sharply; he clearly recognized the other's identity. A chilling coldness that made his heart freeze swept through his entire body, and his calm heartbeat accelerated violently.
Orochimaru seemed to see right through him. He licked the corner of his mouth and said slowly,
"Oh? It seems you know who I am?"
"Orochimaru of the Sannin, the Cold-Blooded One."
Though he didn't know why Orochimaru appeared here, the current Uchiha Kazuhiko was in no condition to resist.
He could only take things one step at a time and try to figure out Orochimaru's purpose in saving him.
"Hehehehe, the Sannin..."
Orochimaru's hoarse voice held a trace of melancholy, then returned to normal. He narrowed his eyes and teased,
"Since you know I'm Orochimaru, you should also know I'm a missing-nin from Konoha. So, what should I do with you? Kill you? Or let you go?"
"Orochimaru, state your purpose. If you wanted me dead, you wouldn't have saved me in the first place."
When dealing with someone like Orochimaru, only by displaying sufficient strength or intellect would one gain his attention and recognition. Therefore, Uchiha Kazuhiko directly pierced through Orochimaru's pretense and asked about his motive for saving him.
"Hehehehe... A clever boy."
After hearing Uchiha Kazuhiko's words, Orochimaru's eyes softened slightly. He laughed and said,
"What's your name? How about becoming my subordinate? I can grant you power, power far greater than that toy you fought before."
"My name is Uchiha Kazuhiko. The toy you mentioned, is that the scaled monster?"
Uchiha Kazuhiko asked in surprise, never imagining that the one-eyed jonin's mutation was actually Orochimaru's doing. It seemed he was likely an early test subject for Orochimaru's Cursed Seal development.
"Correct. What he had was merely the lowest-grade, defective version of the Cursed Seal. I, however, will bestow upon you the highest form the Heaven Cursed Seal."
Orochimaru chuckled lightly, quite proud of the Cursed Seal he had developed. Compared to steady, slow cultivation, the Cursed Seal could integrate natural energy into the body, more quickly activating a person's potential and achieving a partial Sage Transformation state.
"I am willing to work for Lord Orochimaru. But forget about the Cursed Seal. I have no desire to become neither human nor monster. Moreover, I only trust power cultivated by myself."
The Cursed Seal was one of the mediums Orochimaru used for reincarnation. Uchiha Kazuhiko naturally wouldn't agree to it and could only try to make Orochimaru abandon the idea of implanting one in him.
"Hehehehe, interesting."
Whether it was because the Heaven Cursed Seal was currently too precious or for another reason, Orochimaru didn't insist after Uchiha Kazuhiko refused.
His neck elongated like a python's, and he left a black curse mark on Uchiha Kazuhiko's right arm, which quickly faded into his skin.
"Return to Konoha once your injuries are healed. Someone will contact you when your services are needed. Of course, you can choose to betray me... if you believe you can resolve the Sleeping Snake Cursed Seal I've placed."
Orochimaru was supremely confident in his curse mark. After teasing Uchiha Kazuhiko with these words, he left the cave.
Only when Orochimaru's presence had completely vanished did Uchiha Kazuhiko know the immediate crisis was over. Finally relaxing, the cold sweat he had been holding back began to pour out.
After a while, Uchiha Kazuhiko regained some strength. He barely sat up and began cultivating to recover his depleted energy, using his psychic power to treat his injuries.
It took Uchiha Kazuhiko half a day to initially repair his wounds and barely recover about thirty percent of his combat strength.
He then left the cave, simply identified the direction, and began heading towards the Land of Fire.
Three days later, a travel-worn Uchiha Kazuhiko returned to Konoha.
He truthfully reported the mission failure and the team's casualties to the relevant officials and was then sent to Konoha Hospital for treatment.
Under the careful treatment of the medical-nin for nearly a week, Uchiha Kazuhiko's injuries completely healed.
Aside from the additional curse mark inside his body, there were no other changes.
During Uchiha Kazuhiko's hospitalization, Konoha had also dispatched an Anbu team to investigate this mission.
They confirmed that Uchiha Kazuhiko had not falsified information and also uncovered the mastermind behind the incident.
According to the investigation, the mastermind was Daichiro, the son of the president of the Omoki Chamber of Commerce, which held a long-standing grudge against the Kashima chamber of Commerce due to business competition.
Daichiro was the young playboy Uchiha Kazuhiko had encountered earlier in the Land of Hot Water. Disregarding his steward's dissuasion, he had privately hired rogue ninja from the Land of Rivers to attack Mr. Kashima, intending to burn the goods being transported back to the Land of Lightning.
"Daichiro of the Omoki Chamber of Commerce..."
Uchiha Kazuhiko tore up the copy of the intelligence report and headed towards the Hokage Building. After applying for a meeting, he saw the Third Hokage in his office.
The Third Hokage was reviewing a document. Uchiha Kazuhiko politely did not disturb him. Only after he finished his work, picked up the pipe on the desk, and took a puff did Uchiha Kazuhiko bow and say,
"Lord Hokage."
"Hehe, no need for formalities," the Third Hokage said amiably, looking at Uchiha Kazuhiko. "Go on, what brings you to me?"
"Lord Third, I request your permission to participate in the operation to eliminate Daichiro," Uchiha Kazuhiko said in a low voice, stating his purpose. "I wish to personally avenge Captain Toma and the others."
The Third Hokage slowly took a drag from his pipe, his eyes flickering uncertainly. He gave Uchiha Kazuhiko a deep look, then proposed, "Such missions are always carried out by Anbu ninja. If you insist on participating, your only option is to join the Anbu."
"I am willing."
Joining the Anbu was one of Uchiha Kazuhiko's future plans anyway. Now that the opportunity had arisen, he naturally wouldn't refuse. He agreed immediately without the slightest hesitation.
"Good. White Elephant." Seeing Uchiha Kazuhiko agree to join the Anbu, the Third Hokage immediately called out towards a corner of the room.
Shun!
An Anbu ninja wearing an elephant mask appeared from the shadows, kneeling on one knee and saluting. "Lord Hokage."
"Take him for the Anbu entrance exam. If he passes, permit him to join the Anbu team executing this mission tomorrow."
"Yes, Lord Hokage."
Seeing that the Third Hokage had made the arrangements and resumed his work, Uchiha Kazuhiko saluted along with White Elephant and exited the room.
He followed behind White Elephant, heading to the Anbu headquarters to take the exam.