That bastard Akihara Kagura killed his own people to intimidate Kabuto. After Orochimaru understood this fact, he no longer cared. He was well aware of Kabuto's relationship with Akihara Kagura.
"I still have to host the Chunin Exam."
Akihara Kagura glanced back at Orochimaru: "Make sure your people behave during the Chunin Exam. Don't let them make any mistakes that land in my hands, or I won't be able to protect them..."
"Those brats are all expendable."
Orochimaru didn't care at all about the Hidden Sound Village ninja attending the Chunin Exam. He chuckled lightly: "You can deal with them however you like. Killing them outright is fine. They have no hope of climbing to higher stages anyway..."
"Understood."
Akihara Kagura looked at Orochimaru and also smiled: "After this Chunin Exam ends, I'll go destroy the Hidden Sound Village and make them homeless."
"You really do understand those kids under me!"
Orochimaru understood his children very well. He knew that those kids couldn't bear to leave his side. He shook his head and said: "To make them leave me is more cruel than killing them... Not everyone can leave me as easily as Kagura-kun."
As for destroying the Hidden Sound Village, Orochimaru didn't care much, because the village was always in exile due to the Akatsuki's relentless hunting.
"The days by your side..."
Akihara Kagura recalled his time with Orochimaru and sighed: "It's like a sugar pill wrapped in poison. Those little guys have suffered so much that they think there's only one sugar pill in life and love licking the sugar coating outside..."
"But I've had other candies since I was a child. When eating candy, I don't lick like them. I like to chew, and accidentally bit through the sugar pill you gave me, revealing the poison hidden inside."
"I see..."
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes. He could understand Akihara Kagura's metaphor.
Akihara Kagura had stayed at Konoha Orphanage and received much love, so he cared more about the dangers he encountered rather than supposed warmth.
Orochimaru seemed to unintentionally ask: "Kagura-kun, you haven't wanted to become my vessel for a long time, have you?"
"To cooperate sincerely, perhaps I should tell you one thing..."
Akihara Kagura looked at Orochimaru and said softly: "Actually, I've been provoking you to conduct the Hashirama Cell Transplantation experiment on me all along, since I was already your lab material anyway..."
"On the day our experiment succeeded, I never lost my mind. When I wanted to ambush and kill you, you escaped. The distance between us was too far, and I couldn't find a proper opportunity, so I pretended to be in a state of madness..."
"..."
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed slightly.
At that time...
Did Akihara Kagura want to kill him?
This guy Akihara Kagura never truly pledged loyalty to him. At that age, he already rationally wanted to escape the fate of being a test subject?
It must be said...
Akihara Kagura's endurance is terrifying.
No child in the entire Ninja World could have broken the situation at that time, yet this little guy Akihara Kagura had thought about how to break it early on, even from the moment when Orochimaru was conducting the Immortal Rebirth experiment, risking his life to break free.
"I underestimated you."
Orochimaru's fingers clenched into a fist, and his voice became somewhat eerie and hoarse: "I always thought Kagura-kun was smart enough. I didn't expect that I underestimated your cunning. Did you think of escaping your fate from that time?"
"That's right."
Akihara Kagura raised his head and looked at the sky. The overcast sky let fall a few raindrops: "At that time, I hoped Lord Orochimaru would help me with the Hashirama cell transplant, because Lord Orochimaru had just undergone an Immortal Rebirth. Even if my body was successful, Lord Orochimaru would need to give me three years to grow..."
"I knew Lord Orochimaru wouldn't be willing to kill me, a successful experiment. He would definitely want me to acquire more knowledge and power, to be ready for the next Immortal Rebirth..."
"Unfortunately."
"There is nowhere else in the Ninja World to learn Wood Release Ninjutsu."
Akihara Kagura looked at the drizzling rain falling on Konoha and said softly: "Only in Konoha, where Wood Release Ninja once appeared, is there such an opportunity... I knew Lord Orochimaru had planted spies in Konoha, but I didn't expect Lord Orochimaru would hand me over to Danzo-sama."
"Impressive..."
Orochimaru couldn't help but smile and applaud. The anger in his eyes disappeared, replaced by a hint of appreciation: "I never thought a child who stayed with me for so long could hide better than I imagined. I thought all abandoned children would need warmth..."
"You treat all children as your tools."
Akihara Kagura exposed Orochimaru's lie and softly retorted: "What abandoned children need is warmth, not the warm water that boils a frog."
Orochimaru shook his head, still not believing he was wrong: "For them to experience a period of comfort in this Ninja World is already their fortune. If I hadn't taken them in, they would have died long ago in some unknown corner..."
"For that, I am grateful to you."