When Byakuya saw Orochimaru stop just a short distance away, a chill ran down his spine.
Orochimaru had said back in the underground Root base that he had memorized Byakuya's scent.
But catching a flicker of surprise in Orochimaru's eyes, Byakuya realized the Sannin hadn't expected to run into him here either.
Byakuya relaxed slightly.
"Shuten-doji ... Heh. Lord Danzo certainly spoils you, giving you a codename from such a famous legend."
"Greetings, Lord Orochimaru." Byakuya kept his gaze locked on Orochimaru. Even as he bowed respectfully, he didn't dare lower his guard for a second.
Orochimaru chuckled with a hiss, deliberately moving slowly toward Byakuya.
The pressure coming off him was like a mountain, making Byakuya afraid to make any sudden moves.
"You fought Pakura of the Sand in the Land of Rivers?"
"Yes. I was lucky to escape with my life."
Orochimaru admired the Shuten-doji mask with interest, speaking softly, "Pakura has been fighting non-stop in the Land of Wind. Her injuries haven't fully healed. If she were at her peak, it would have been very difficult for you to return to the Leaf."
Listening to him, Byakuya secretly focused on sensing his Flying Thunder God seal. If Orochimaru showed any killing intent, Byakuya would teleport out immediately, even if the chakra drain caused severe physical backlash.
"Tell me about Pakura's Scorch Release."
Byakuya held nothing back, describing her Scorch Release: Extremely Steaming Murder in detail.
Orochimaru frowned. "In your opinion, is there any possibility of recruiting Pakura?"
"Not for now."
"Heh. Interesting. What do you mean by 'not for now'?"
"Currently, Pakura is still completely loyal to the Hidden Sand."
Orochimaru's brow smoothed out. "You mean she might become disillusioned with the Sand in the future?"
Byakuya nodded.
"Haha..." Orochimaru threw his head back and laughed as if he'd just heard the funniest joke in the world.
He laughed for a long time before finally managing to stop.
"Shuten-doji , what about you? Are you loyal to the Hidden Leaf?"
"Why ask, Lord Orochimaru?"
"Oh, I almost forgot. You once told me you were interested in power. Right now, the village's rules can't hold you back. But once you reach my level, you will have to abandon the village to pursue power wholeheartedly. Shuten-doji , you... you are even colder than I was when I was young!"
Orochimaru seemed to see his own reflection in Byakuya—not his younger self, but who he was now.
He continued, "But it's not enough. Cold-bloodedness alone won't get things done."
"I will take your teachings to heart, Lord Orochimaru."
"Are you afraid of death?" Orochimaru asked suddenly.
Byakuya knew he was referring to the Ryuchi Cave Sage Jutsu. "I am afraid of death. Very afraid."
"Interesting. If you're afraid of death, why gather intelligence on Ryuchi Cave?"
"That? I just got curious after encountering that giant black snake in the Land of Rivers."
"Curiosity kills the cat, kid. Where did you hear the name Ryuchi Cave? Very few people in the Leaf know it these days."
Byakuya's expression behind the mask didn't change, and his tone remained steady and exceptionally sincere. "I heard it from some ninja in the Anteater Bounty Hunter Group."
"Anteater Bounty Hunter Group? An organization from the Bounty Station?"
"Yes. My first mission after joining Root was to kill two of their members."
"I see."
This explanation barely convinced Orochimaru. The ninja at the Bounty Station came from all over, so it was possible they knew about Ryuchi Cave. But he only "barely" believed it.
Orochimaru stepped closer. Byakuya could almost feel the heat of his breath.
He had assumed Orochimaru's body temperature would be cold like a snake's, but surprisingly, he had human warmth.
"What did they say?"
"The location of Ryuchi Cave."
"Quickly! Tell me! Tell me every single word they said, don't leave anything out!"
Seeing Orochimaru's urgency, Byakuya wondered to himself, Does Orochimaru not know where Ryuchi Cave is right now?
Then where did his summon come from?
Was all that talk back in the Root base just to bait me?
Seeing Byakuya fall silent, Orochimaru knew he wanted something in return. "What do you want?"
Byakuya said, "Root missions are dangerous. I want to have as many trump cards as possible to deal with the danger."
"Heh. You asked the right person."
Orochimaru glanced at the forest. "Someone's coming. Wait a moment, let me kill him first."
Byakuya knew it was Kakashi. "Please show mercy, Lord Orochimaru. That person is useful to me."
"Oh? One of yours?"
"Minato Namikaze's student, Kakashi Hatake."
"Ah, it's Kakashi. He's useful to you? Kid, I like you more and more. You really are interesting."
Then, both of them vanished from their spots.
Both used the Body Flicker Technique.
But Orochimaru seemed intent on killing Kakashi. He flickered into the darkness, his vertical pupils fixing on the boy...
"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
As if anticipating Orochimaru's move, Byakuya grabbed Kakashi and used his Storm Release: Body Flicker again to dodge the snake attack. However, the snakes had tracking capabilities. Byakuya was forced to stand in front of the bewildered Kakashi and weave hand signs.
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!"
Countless venomous snakes slammed into the water wall one after another, splashing water everywhere amidst crackling thunder.
Orochimaru watched the barrier protecting Byakuya and Kakashi from all angles and murmured, "The Second Hokage Tobirama Senju's Water Formation Wall. I didn't expect this kid to know that jutsu. No... he's even added Lightning Release nature transformation to it."
Even when the snakes stopped hitting the barrier, Byakuya didn't dare lower it. Who knew what jutsu Orochimaru would use to ambush them the moment it fell?
Byakuya whispered to Kakashi, "What was that jutsu you used to hide underground when we were sparring?"
Kakashi was still shaken but answered quickly, "Earth Style: Hiding Like a Mole."
"How does it work?"
"You use chakra to turn the earth around you into a liquid state, allowing you to swim through the ground like a fish."
"Can you use it to escape?"
Kakashi shook his head. "I'm sorry, Senior. I can't."
"Understood."
Byakuya suddenly shouted, "Senior! Is the joke over yet?"
There was no answer, only the faint chirping of insects and unknown birds in the forest.
Cold sweat trickled down Byakuya's forehead.
If he had to choose between Pakura and Orochimaru as a mortal enemy, he would choose Pakura without hesitation. Hesitating for even a second would be disrespectful to Orochimaru's danger level.
"Kakashi, do you realize I just saved your life?"
"May I ask, Sen... Senior... who... who wants to kill me?"
"Doesn't matter who. Do you acknowledge that I saved your life?"
The killing intent from the forest darkness was palpable. Kakashi nodded immediately. "I acknowledge it. Senior definitely saved my life. I owe you a huge favor."
"Good. Grab my hand."
"Yes."
Byakuya hesitated no longer.
He focused his chakra, sensing the Flying Thunder God formula he had left on the outskirts of the forest.
He began converting a portion of his chakra into spatial energy.
Kakashi's heart pounded in his throat. He didn't know how his Senior planned to save him... or if he would just leave him there to die at the hands of the unseen enemy.
When the spatial energy was sufficient to transport two people...
Byakuya immediately activated the Flying Thunder God.
Kakashi's vision blurred, and the next moment, he was somewhere else.
Although they were still on the outskirts of the forest, they were far from where they had just been.
"Quick... go..."
"Senior!"
Kakashi hurriedly picked up Byakuya, who had passed out immediately after speaking, and rushed back to the Hidden Leaf as fast as he could.
---
Orochimaru slowly walked out of the darkness.
His expression was uncharacteristically serious.
"That kid is as cunning as I am. I thought I could grab Kakashi Hatake and force him to spill some intel I didn't know."
It had been a spur-of-the-moment idea.
Of course, it wasn't about Ryuchi Cave.
Ryuchi Cave was nothing; Manda came from there, after all.
What Orochimaru really wanted to know was why Danzo valued the boy so much!
That was the important part.