Mizuki caught the cat by the scruff.
"Behave — now."
The group kept heading west and soon disappeared into the night.
After a long while, a python as thick as a bowl slid out from the roadside grass — the unlucky snake the cat had bullied earlier. It stared in the direction Mizuki and the others had gone, then turned and slithered toward Konoha.
When it reached the village outskirts, the python halted and yawned its jaws wide. A withered hand reached out first, then an arm, then a head, then the rest of a body. What emerged was a toothless old woman in her seventies or eighties, but her pupils were vertical slits like a serpent's — cold, predatory, chilling.
"I'm finally back!"
The voice was hoarse — unmistakable. Anyone who heard it once would never forget it.
Orochimaru!
He had run into Mizuki in Kusagakure and had his life force drained, leaving him with only three hours to live. At the time, he wasn't worried. All he had to do was wait for a "fated" person and seize their body.
But he waited and waited, and no one came. Just as the three hours were about to run out and death was closing in, an old woman finally wandered into the house.
Better to live miserably than to die!
Orochimaru was disgusted by how old she was, but if it meant surviving, he had no choice. He used the Living Corpse Reincarnation Technique on her and forced himself to endure. At least this way, he could cling to life for a few more years.
All he needed to do was wait three years for the technique's cooldown, and then he could hunt down a younger vessel.
And so, he became what he was now.
He looked west and murmured, "Mizuki actually came to Konoha and took Neji Hyūga with him. Doesn't he know the Hyūga Clan has the Caged Bird Seal? And that person with the face hidden… I heard Neji call them 'Father'… Hizashi Hyūga… didn't he die years ago? Could it be that Mizuki has already mastered Edo Tensei? But then why did I sense the warmth only the living possess from that person?"
Snakes were extraordinarily sensitive to heat. They didn't misjudge it.
That was precisely why Orochimaru couldn't make sense of it. He understood Edo Tensei well — those summoned were still dead, and their bodies were cold.
"Did Neji take a godfather? Did Hizashi not die? Or… did Hizashi come back to life?"
Orochimaru spun through possibilities, but they were only guesses. He had no way of knowing the truth.
"I have to investigate. If I return to the village and send people immediately, I can still make it in time."
He headed for the village gate. As he walked, he lifted both hands, gripped the skin of his face, and peeled it down like a mask, revealing pale flesh beneath. After only a few steps, he went from a hunched old woman back to his own youthful appearance.
Of course, it was only youthful on the outside. His body was still the old woman's — aged and decaying — so he didn't dare move too quickly.
He returned to Konoha at an unhurried pace and stepped into the Hokage's office.
Danzō arrived at once.
"Orochimaru, as the Fifth Hokage, you were supposed to stay in the village and hold things together. Instead you left without a word and ran off alone. Do you have any sense of responsibility? If something happened to you out there, what would Konoha do?"
Orochimaru replied coldly, "Danzō, what I do is none of your business."
Danzō choked, then forced himself to change tack, "Do you have any idea what happened while you were gone? Something major happened in Konoha. Luckily it didn't become a catastrophe — otherwise you'd be Konoha's sinner."
Orochimaru's tone stayed flat, "If it didn't become a catastrophe, it wasn't that major."
"You…" Danzō opened his mouth, but for once he had nothing to say.
"Enough." Orochimaru said, "If you have something to say, say it. If not, get out."
Danzō swallowed his temper, "Mizuki entered the village and took Neji Hyūga. Issue an order immediately — have Hiashi Hyūga execute Neji Hyūga with the Caged Bird. And Mizuki also took an unidentified person with him. We need a village-wide search to learn who that person is."
Orochimaru glanced at him, "Mizuki-kun isn't stupid. If he took Neji, he must have a way to counter the Caged Bird. Neji is a genius of the Hyūga. If he dared follow Mizuki openly, then he must be confident. So even if Hiashi triggers the seal, it may not be able to kill Neji."
It had to be said — Orochimaru's reaction was quick. From Mizuki's actions alone, he immediately formed a plausible hypothesis.
"What?" Danzō's eyes widened, "A way to counter the Caged Bird? No. Absolutely not. If Mizuki truly has a method to neutralize it, won't every Hyūga branch family member defect to him?"
Orochimaru's expression also darkened.
"Compared to the branch family, there's something else I care about more. On the way back, I ran into Mizuki-kun's group — him, Neji Hyūga, and a third person wearing a hat with their face hidden. But I heard Neji address that person as 'Father'."
Danzō's pupils constricted.
"This is bad. Mizuki has mastered Edo Tensei too? How did he learn it so quickly? He came to Konoha today to enter the cemetery and steal corpses. Quick, Orochimaru — use Edo Tensei to summon all of the village's dead powerhouses first, before Mizuki does. That way his plot will fail." He added, voice low, "I'll provide the sacrifices."
Orochimaru shook his head, "I suspect it isn't Edo Tensei."
Danzō frowned, "If it isn't Edo Tensei, then what is it?"
At that moment, there was a knock. Hiashi Hyūga walked into the office.
"Hokage-sama, you summoned me?"
Hiashi's expression was grim. He had assumed Orochimaru called him here to order him to activate the Caged Bird Seal and kill Neji.
Neji was his nephew — how could he bring himself to do that?
"Hiashi, there's something I need you to confirm personally."
Hiashi froze. It wasn't about killing Neji?
"Please speak, Hokage-sama."
Orochimaru said, "You already know Mizuki took Neji Hyūga. Traveling with them was an unidentified person. I suspect… it was Hizashi Hyūga."
"That's impossible!" Hiashi shouted immediately. Then something seemed to click, and he couldn't help cursing, "That damned Mizuki — playing with the dead's — "
Halfway through, he stopped.
He glanced at Orochimaru and steadied himself, "Apologies. I lost my composure."
Orochimaru: "…"
"Whether it's Edo Tensei still needs to be confirmed." Orochimaru said, "You will go personally. I'll assign ANBU to accompany you for protection. Remember: you can only observe from afar. Under no circumstances are you to approach. I must know whether Hizashi Hyūga is an Edo Tensei body… or whether he has truly revived."
❊❊❊❊❊
Hiashi set out at once, accompanied by three ANBU as an escort.
The four moved west at top speed after leaving the village. Hiashi had already activated his Byakugan. Before long, he spotted three figures a kilometer ahead — two were Mizuki and Neji, and the third wore a hat.
'Little brother… is it really you?'
Hiashi was equal parts hope and dread, but no matter what, he needed the truth. With the Byakugan's gaze piercing through hat and mask, he saw the face beneath.
His whole body trembled. He stopped mid-stride.
'It's him — and he's alive. But… how is that possible?'
"Hiashi-sama, what's wrong?" the three ANBU asked as they halted with him.
Hiashi couldn't calm down for a long time. His face was full of disbelief.
Again and again he confirmed it with the Byakugan, and the result never changed. The man was Hizashi Hyūga — alive and breathing. His heart beat. Blood flowed. His eyes were not the dead black of an Edo Tensei summon.
At last, he exhaled and said, "We're returning to report to the Fifth. The mission is complete!"
A kilometer away, Mizuki held the cat in his arms and casually glanced back without changing expression. The Rinnegan possessed sensory abilities. Even though he hadn't deliberately trained that aspect, he could still feel the gaze from behind.
"Moving fast, huh. Doesn't matter."
Even if Konoha learns he can revive the dead… so what?
❊❊❊❊❊
Meanwhile, Hiashi and the three ANBU rushed back to Konoha at full speed and met Orochimaru.
"Hokage-sama, I have confirmed the person is my younger brother, Hizashi Hyūga." Hiashi drew a deep breath, then added, "He's alive."
Orochimaru's eyes flashed. His long tongue slid out between his lips and curled through the air, as if tasting the news.
"Mizuki-kun… has truly mastered a technique that revives the dead. As expected of someone even I admire."
Danzō couldn't sit still anymore, "Orochimaru, at a time like this you're still admiring him? Mizuki being able to revive the dead is not good for Konoha. Today he revived Hizashi and took Neji. Tomorrow he can revive other shinobi's loved ones — using it as a favor, or as leverage — to make more people defect. He might even revive your parents to threaten you, forcing you to obey him. You are Konoha's Hokage — you cannot be manipulated."
Orochimaru glanced at him, "With Mizuki-kun's strength, does he really need that kind of leverage?"
Danzō insisted, "We have to plan for the worst."
He bore a grudge against Mizuki and didn't want to see Fushigakure grow stronger. Whatever Mizuki wanted, Danzō wanted to sabotage it.
But Orochimaru said evenly, "It's useless. We can't stop him. The only thing we can do now is completely seal off the news that Mizuki can revive the dead. It must not reach the other villagers. Otherwise, Konoha's shinobi will defect of their own accord and head to Fushigakure. When that happens, Konoha will collapse from within."
Danzō still refused to let it go, "We can use Edo Tensei to summon dead powerhouses, then seal their souls to prevent Mizuki from reviving them."
"Absolutely not!" Hiashi objected immediately.
But Orochimaru fell silent, sinking into thought.
❊❊❊❊❊
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
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