"I'm not a child anymore!"
Uchiha Hikari's face burned red with anger and embarrassment. She grabbed Orochimaru's collar with both hands, pulled him down, rose onto her tiptoes—and kissed him.
…?!
Orochimaru's pupils shrank.
In two lifetimes, this was the first time he had ever been kissed against his will.
And by a child.
No—by a girl who insisted she was no longer a child.
His mind froze for a moment.
Was I just… forcibly kissed?
Why did Hikari do this?
To prove she's an adult?
That can't be right… can it?
A dangerous thought crossed his mind.
Has she been secretly reading erotic novels?
At that instant, Orochimaru felt an overwhelming urge to cover his face and repent. He had written far too many questionable manuscripts at home. If this was somehow his fault, then he deserved every ounce of karmic retribution.
What he had never considered—what truly unsettled him—was the possibility that Uchiha Hikari might actually like him.
"I'm not a child anymore!"
Hikari repeated stubbornly. Only after the words left her mouth did she fully register what she had done. Her delicate face flushed an even deeper crimson. Without daring to look back, she fled the living room, shut herself into her bedroom, threw herself onto the bed, and wrapped herself tightly in her blanket.
"Hikari, wait—"
Orochimaru took a step forward, but before he could follow her, the doorbell rang.
The front door opened.
"Tsunade, is that… battle armor?"
Hyuga Mio stared at the two sets of armor Tsunade was holding. One glance was enough to tell that one set belonged to Tsunade herself.
"Yes," Tsunade replied, her face twisted in open disgust. "It's ugly, but I have no choice."
"There's no alternative," Hyuga Mio said softly. "You and Orochimaru are being sent to the battlefield."
Mio knew very well how powerful both Tsunade and Orochimaru were. Rationally, she understood that little could threaten them—but worry was not something reason obeyed easily.
Even though Tsunade was her rival in love, Mio did not wish for anything to happen to her.
Her parents had died during the First Shinobi World War, protecting the main family.
"Mio, don't worry about us," Tsunade said, lightly tapping Mio on the shoulder. She then took the armor and headed inside to find Orochimaru.
"The defensive capabilities of this armor aren't even as good as my robe," Orochimaru said coldly, staring at the armor in Tsunade's hands.
He was genuinely unwilling to wear it.
Compared to the white dress he was wearing, the armor offered no meaningful advantage. With a thought, he adjusted his clothing. The loose white garment tightened instantly, transforming into a form-fitting robe.
"How can ordinary battle armor compare to the snakeskin of the Snake Princess Sage?"
Tsunade could hear the disdain in his voice. Truth be told, she didn't like the armor either. But this was war. Personal preferences were meaningless in the face of duty.
"Yes… it's impossible," Orochimaru muttered.
Reluctantly, he put on the armor, adjusting the bracelet on his arm. At best, it could block ordinary ninja tools. Against chakra-enhanced weapons, it was nearly useless.
"Orochimaru, help me."
Tsunade removed her outer clothing and changed into black undergarments. The tight-fitting material was breathable and designed to wick away sweat, ensuring she wouldn't feel suffocated beneath the armor.
"I'm coming, I'm coming."
Orochimaru pushed aside his lingering confusion about Hikari. There would be time to ask her later—if the opportunity arose.
"It looks ugly," he said frankly, helping Tsunade put on the armor. "But at least it doesn't clash with you."
He gathered her long, pale-blonde hair into two ponytails and tied them neatly behind her head. Finally, he secured her forehead protector in place.
"Orochimaru," Tsunade said suddenly, "I want to give you something."
She removed the necklace she had worn since childhood.
"Isn't that a keepsake from your grandfather?" Orochimaru asked, genuinely startled.
This necklace was no ordinary ornament. It was a chakra crystal capable of resonating with Senju Hashirama's chakra—more accurately, a crystal condensed directly by Hashirama himself as a gift for his granddaughter.
When Tsunade's grandfather had wanted to give her a present but had nothing else prepared, he had condensed his chakra into this crystal and fashioned it into a necklace.
"This is my grandfather's memento," Tsunade said softly. "And also his gift to me."
Her bright, light-brown eyes fixed on Orochimaru, filled with quiet expectation.
"I don't have any grand dream of becoming Hokage," Orochimaru said, lowering his head so she could place the necklace around his neck. "Is it really right to entrust this to me?"
"What a coincidence," Tsunade replied with a grin. "I don't want to be Hokage either. We're exactly the same."
She looked at the necklace resting against Orochimaru's chest and smiled—a smile uniquely her own.
"Come on," she said. "It's almost time to assemble."
Orochimaru pressed the necklace closer to his body, then turned to Hyuga Mio.
"Mio, I'm leaving everything at home to you."
"Yes," Mio replied, nodding.
She hesitated, then stepped forward and hugged him. Her gaze fell on the necklace around his neck, and she immediately recognized it as Tsunade's.
For a brief moment, she felt embarrassed about what she had prepared. After hesitating, she still placed the amulet she had sewn herself into Orochimaru's hand.
"Orochimaru," she said quietly, "you and Tsunade… please be careful."
"I will."
Orochimaru examined the amulet. The stitching was unmistakably Mio's. He tucked it close to his body.
Tsunade grabbed Mio's hand and pulled her away.
If I'd known… if I'd known… I would've prepared one too.
Tsunade glared resentfully at the spot where Orochimaru stored the amulet.
—
In the forest outside Konoha, a Kamizuru Clan vanguard unit lay in ambush.
"So that's Konoha? I didn't expect it to be this easy to approach."
"This is the strongest of the Five Great Shinobi Villages? That's all?"
"Let our adorable bees give Konoha a little surprise!"
The Kamizuru ninja hadn't expected to get this close so effortlessly. Under their control, countless special bees gathered into a swarm, forming dark clouds as they surged toward Konoha.
Before they could even approach the village, a writhing wall of insects rose into the sky, intercepting the swarm.
Massive Chimera Insects emerged one after another. Alongside them were slightly smaller variants, their bodies marked with vivid, multicolored patterns.
"What… what is that?!"
The Kamizuru ninja had never seen insects of such monstrous size.
Members of the Aburame Clan stood calmly atop the Chimera Insects, arms folded as they looked down from above.
"This is bad!"
"We've been discovered!"
"Retreat! Retreat!"
Realizing they had been exposed, the Kamizuru vanguard understood that continuing the mission was meaningless.
"Kamizuru Clan…"
A middle-aged man dressed in refined robes raised his hand.
"Iwagakure sent you as a vanguard," Aburame Shisuke said calmly. "Unfortunately, you've encountered Konoha's Aburame Clan. As fellow insect users, your luck is truly terrible."
"Chimera Insect," he commanded, "show Konoha's enemies your power."
The Chimera Insect charged, its massive claws and scorpion tails tearing through the battlefield. Kikaichu swarmed around it, ensuring its safety.
Against the Chimera Insect, ordinary insect swarms were meaningless.
Every attack launched by the Kamizuru ninja was devoured by the Kikaichu. Even the summoned queen bee was pierced clean through by a single strike.
"This… how is this possible…?"
Their fighting spirit collapsed.
The Chimera Insect rampaged like a force of nature. Though some Kamizuru ninja managed to escape, the vanguard was annihilated.
With their ambush failed, Iwagakure's main force chose a direct assault.
Konoha responded by deploying large numbers of jonin and chunin in three-man squads.
—
"I never thought we'd be assigned to the same team," Kato Dan said, smiling warmly at Orochimaru.
"Stop staring," Tsunade snapped, stepping between them. "We're moving."
She had finally realized something alarming.
Her rivals weren't limited to women.
Jiraiya… where are you? Why haven't you come back yet?
For the first time in a long while, Tsunade missed him dearly.
And the man she missed was already on his way back to Konoha.
—
The battlefield erupted into chaos.
Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Kato Dan were tasked with intercepting Iwagakure units attempting flanking attacks.
The medical supply unit remained at the rear. Though the battlefield lay within the Land of Fire, returning to Konoha for supplies was impossible. Protecting the rear was critical.
"Stop," Orochimaru said, raising his hand.
He crouched and placed his palm against the ground.
"Twelve o'clock: ten enemies. Nine o'clock: three. The chakra at nine o'clock feels different—likely a special Iwagakure unit."
"Could it be the Destruction Unit?" Dan asked.
"A Bloodline Limit?" Orochimaru murmured.
That explained the anomaly.
"Prepare for engagement."
Shadow clones formed beside him.
"I'll use the Rebirth Technique," Dan said calmly. "I'll leave my body to you."
"I'll protect it," Orochimaru replied.
As Dan's spirit separated from his body, Orochimaru activated the Barrier: Heavenly Sense Formation.
Watching carefully, Orochimaru quickly grasped the technique's fatal flaw.
When the Yin Release chakra was exhausted… returning would not be easy.
A dangerous technique.
Who created it?
…Did Kato Dan develop it himself?
In the entire ninja world, no one else knew this technique.
And Orochimaru had just found something worth studying.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)