Tsunade listened to the shriek and said calmly, "He's here!"
Orochimaru looked toward the door with a puzzled expression.
Clack—
The wooden door was opened by a trembling hand holding a basket of fruit. Then, Jiraiya walked in with a miserable face. On his other hand, Yamata was hanging, biting down on his index finger.
Tsunade said with a strange tone, "Jiraiya went to the bookstore these past few days and found out that snakes eat toads. He said that to overcome the fear and pressure in his heart, he needed some 'training,' so he borrowed Yamata from me!"
Orochimaru was again speechless at the reasoning of this buffoon.
When Jiraiya entered the room, Yamata instantly released its bite and shot like lightning onto Orochimaru's body, its head constantly rubbing against Orochimaru's face to show affection.
Jiraiya, who had also heard Tsunade's words upon entering, rushed over with a look of triumph. He placed the fruit basket on the cabinet next to Orochimaru's bed. Noticing the sleeping Maji, he lowered his voice and said, "That's right, Tsunade is correct! How can the brave and handsome Lord Jiraiya be afraid of a mere snake?"
Yamata's head snapped around, and its scarlet eyes stared coldly at the smug Jiraiya.
Jiraiya's triumphant expression instantly froze on his face.
It must be said that Jiraiya possessed a natural ability to lighten the mood. As soon as he arrived, the atmosphere in the sickroom eased up.
Jiraiya then softly recounted what happened after he and Tsunade left.
It turned out that shortly after they left, they ran into Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had come out looking for them out of anxiety. What followed was a natural sequence of events.
Sarutobi arrived in time, rescued the severely wounded Orochimaru, and rushed him to the Leaf Village Hospital for emergency treatment. Even the attending medical ninja said it was a miracle that Orochimaru was able to fight and defeat such a formidable team—a Special Jōnin, three Chūnin, and one Genin—and then survive the subsequent massive hemorrhage!
After reviewing the scroll that Tsunade brought back, Sarutobi was enraged and immediately ordered the swift elimination of all bandit and robber groups in the Land of Fire. However, it was said that no further valuable intelligence was gained.
Nevertheless, Orochimaru's contribution was undeniable. The heroic story of him bravely staying behind alone to intercept the powerful enemy for the sake of his comrades and crucial intelligence, and successfully slaying them all, quickly spread among the village's ninja. He even gained numerous admirers among the younger generation. If noisy gatherings weren't forbidden in the hospital, Orochimaru's admirers would probably have burst the door to his room!
Moreover, the many fruit baskets and flowers sent by those admirers had to be blocked by the hospital. Otherwise, even getting through the door would be a problem now!
After Jiraiya finished speaking, both he and Tsunade looked at Orochimaru with gratitude. If Orochimaru hadn't risked his life to cover their retreat, it was doubtful whether they would have survived the encounter with so many powerful ninja and be lying in a hospital bed now.
Orochimaru remained silent after hearing their words, then offered a casual, utterly unrestrained smile.
As it was getting late, Jiraiya and Tsunade soon left, promising to return the next day with Lord Sarutobi.
After a warm dinner in the hospital room with Chi and Little Maji, Orochimaru sent them back. Watching Little Maji lead Chi away, turning back to look at him repeatedly, Orochimaru felt a warmth in his heart. They are my bonds!
As night fell, Orochimaru lay in bed and began to sense the chakra within his body. Upon realizing that his entire chakra network was like a broken water tank, riddled with holes everywhere, Orochimaru felt a wave of frustration. He knew that with such injuries, he shouldn't expect to recover for several months!
Yamata seemed to sense Orochimaru's mood. It slithered out from the side, its head rubbing against Orochimaru's face, conveying its deep affection.
This unique method of "comfort" from Yamata helped soothe Orochimaru's mood.
After "comforting" Orochimaru for a while, Yamata began its "work."
Watching Yamata's actions, Orochimaru was reminded of the scene after he killed the bandit leaders. With a faint suspicion, he was now filled with pleasant surprise.
Yamata, its half-meter white-and-pale-gold body slithering, first moved to Orochimaru's right hand.
Its triangular snake head aimed at Orochimaru's white-bandaged right hand and let out a puff of breath.
A slightly richer stream of pale-gold, peculiar air, compared to the last time, was expelled from Yamata's mouth.
Orochimaru's heavily bandaged right arm, like an extremely dry sponge, quickly absorbed this pale-gold, strange air that Yamata had breathed out.
Unlike the previous time, Orochimaru's body, which was now somewhat familiar with the process, reacted by having every cell violently surge, like starving children, eagerly receiving this strange air as it permeated him.
Orochimaru carefully sensed the state of his body and the nature of this pale-gold air.
Supported by his powerful, almost abnormal, spiritual energy, he discovered that this pale-gold, peculiar air expelled by Yamata contained an extremely rich and pure sense of natural energy. In other words, this pale-gold air that Yamata was breathing out was Sage Jutsu!
At this realization, Orochimaru became even more curious about the origin of this strange little creature!
The little creature worked until midnight, finally exhausted. It slithered back to Orochimaru's chest and fell into a deep sleep.
Orochimaru subtly checked his body and found that his injuries had healed significantly in this short time. His internal chakra network was completely repaired, and his chakra had recovered by about half.
Filled with greater gratitude for this miraculous little creature, Orochimaru immediately began condensing the Yamata Seal to restore the creature's "nest."
Once the seal was condensed, Orochimaru immediately began restoring his chakra. When his entire chakra network was surging with a boundless flow of chakra, Orochimaru realized that he had inadvertently crossed the threshold of a Chūnin. He faintly felt that this was a result of his near-death experience combined with the final soul integration.
Over the next few days, Yamata would slither out every night when all was quiet to perform its healing process on Orochimaru. In just a few days, Orochimaru's injuries, which originally required several months of recovery, were almost completely healed!
Every morning, Little Maji would drag Chi to Orochimaru's room and stay until dark. Sarutobi, Jiraiya, and Tsunade also visited him from time to time.
Everyone was naturally astonished by Orochimaru's incredible recovery speed. Since Orochimaru kept the reason secret, everyone was left confused, though pleasantly surprised. Tsunade vaguely suspected something but did not voice it.
During one of the check-ups, Orochimaru's attending medical ninja, Yakushi Tenshu, saw Little Maji's talent and wanted to take her on as an apprentice. This was an unexpected surprise for Orochimaru. Little Maji, after asking about Yakushi Tenshu's abilities, readily agreed. In her words, she wanted to become a powerful medical ninja to specifically treat her brother's injuries. While Orochimaru was touched, he could only offer a wry smile!
Orochimaru had confidence in the ability of Yakushi Tenshu, the father of Yakushi Kabuto. After all, Yakushi Tenshu was arguably the strongest medical ninja in the Leaf Village at the time, and since Little Maji agreed, Orochimaru reluctantly consented.
Three days later, Orochimaru, completely healed with not even a scar remaining, was discharged from the hospital, much to the astonishment of the medical ninja staff. He went to the door of Lord Sarutobi's office and knocked on the door!
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