As soon as Anko saw Candy, her eyes lit up. She picked up Candy and began rubbing her face against it as if it were a towel.
She was a hardcore cat addict.
"Candy, how long has it been since we last met? Ever since you went to the Uchiha Clan compound, I haven't been able to find you."
Candy patted Anko's head with its cat paw and explained, "I went to Sora-ku, to Cat Granny's territory, to make scrolls and Shinobi tools for the Uchiha Clan."
(; ´ ༎ ຶ Д ༎ ຶ ` ).
With a shoulder to cry on, Anko's tears finally couldn't be held back and rolled down her cheeks: "Wahhh—Candy, I had a very realistic nightmare."
"I dreamed that Master Orochimaru abandoned me. When he defected from Konoha, he didn't take me. He would rather have taken his dog with him when he defected than take me along."
"I was completely abandoned!"
Ryou didn't show a shred of sympathy for Anko and ruthlessly attacked her weakest point: "So it really is Anko ranked behind the dog!"
"Anko, just admit it! Orochimaru never cared about you at all; he only cares about himself."
"Uchiha Ryou, you jerk!"
Anko hissed, let go of Candy, opened her mouth, and bared her fangs to bite Ryou.
Candy hurriedly stopped Anko: "Anko, don't do it. Be careful, or he'll bite you."
"Candy—Wahh—"
Candy patted Anko's head, comforting her: "Alright, alright, don't be afraid of this Uchiha who doesn't act like a human. I will protect you."
Anko asked: "Candy, would Master Orochimaru really abandon me?"
Candy said: "What you just experienced was a dream, and dreams are uncertain. However, Orochimaru has already abandoned you."
Anko was somewhat skeptical: "Why? What did Master Orochimaru do to abandon me? He gave the two most precious trial spots to me and Yamato."
"Master Orochimaru hasn't even mastered Senjutsu himself, but Yamato and I were able to enter Ryūchi Cave to train it. This is a Sage opportunity!"
"Something others couldn't beg for in their entire lives!"
"Hahaha..."
As soon as Anko said that, Ryou clutched his stomach and laughed out loud, and Ichikishimahime couldn't help but laugh nearby either.
Candy looked at Anko speechlessly. Orochimaru really fooled her completely! He could even say such things to deceive people.
Candy explained to Anko: "Anko, there are no 'trial spots' in Ryūchi Cave. As long as you can make it here, you can participate in the trials."
"This—"
Anko was stunned. Seeing Ichikishimahime next to Ryou nodding in agreement, she was shocked.
Could Master Orochimaru have really deceived her?
Candy continued: "Anko, the success rate for mastering Ryūchi Cave's Senjutsu is very low, basically zero."
"And there is a huge risk; in every trial, there is a possibility that you will be eaten by the Snake Sage."
"Even if you pass the three great trials, you only gain the opportunity to meet the White Snake Sage."
"Its Senjutsu is very direct; it's not a gradual process, but an all-at-once achievement."
"The White Snake Sage will inject natural energy into you using its own fangs. You have a Cursed Seal, so you should know how violent natural energy is!"
Anko nodded: "Before, when Master Orochimaru implanted the Cursed Seal into Yamato and me, we almost died!"
Candy continued: "Because the balance of natural energy depends on talent. Mount Myōboku and Shikkotsu Forest will teach you step-by-step how to balance natural energy."
"But Ryūchi Cave won't. The White Snake Sage doesn't care about all that fancy stuff; it gives you a bite, and if you can survive it, you are a Sage."
"If you can't survive it, sorry, you'll be eaten by the White Snake Sage."
"Only lunatics who are single-mindedly seeking power come to Ryūchi Cave!"
Anko looked at Ryou.
Ryou explained: "I had no choice. I had no connections to Mount Myōboku, and the Slug Sage of Shikkotsu Forest said I was too evil. Only a heretical sect like Ryūchi Cave could bestow Senjutsu upon me."
Anko nodded: "That's true, only Ryūchi Cave would take in a monster like you!"
Ryou bared his teeth slightly and reached out to pinch Anko's face.
Anko immediately hid behind Candy.
"Alright, why are both of you, big and small, acting like children?"
Candy stopped Ryou and Anko's fooling around and continued to say to Anko: "Anko, do you now know how difficult it is to learn Ryūchi Cave's Senjutsu?"
Anko nodded: "But I still don't think Master Orochimaru would abandon me."
Candy finally threw out a cruel fact: "Anko, your master has a Forbidden Jutsu called Living Corpse Reincarnation."
"This Forbidden Jutsu can turn his soul into an alien entity, thereby taking over someone else's body to obtain everything they have."
Anko's pupils constricted, and there was shock in her eyes.
Candy pointed at the Cursed Seal on Anko's neck and said: "That Cursed Seal is the proof; it contains Orochimaru's chakra."
"Its purpose is to transform your body, making your body adapt to Orochimaru's soul."
"If you successfully learn Senjutsu, Orochimaru can use this Cursed Seal to possess your body. By then, your soul will be suppressed by him."
"He doesn't have to take any risks; by using you and Yamato, he can obtain Senjutsu!"
"Impossible—"
Anko shouted loudly: "Master Orochimaru is not like that; he wouldn't treat me this way."
Ryou grabbed Anko's head: "Anko, how dare you yell at my cat? I really need to control you!"
Candy wanted to stop him, but Ryou stopped it.
"Anko, face reality! Orochimaru loves himself more than he loves his disciples!"
Ryou injected his Life Spore into Anko's body, right where the Cursed Seal was.
Relying on the powerful Yang Release energy to remove Orochimaru's Cursed Seal.
In the original work, Orochimaru's Cursed Seal was terrifying; Sasuke couldn't remove it after being bitten by him.
It wasn't until Itachi used the Totsuka Blade to seal the soul of Orochimaru within the Cursed Seal...
...that Sasuke was able to remove the Cursed Seal.
Orochimaru's Cursed Seal is very difficult to remove, but when encountering some special people, the special effects of Orochimaru's Cursed Seal are useless.
For example, Tobi.
During the Fourth Shinobi War, Orochimaru's team encountered Tobi blocking their path.
Orochimaru bit Tobi, briefly restraining it, but then Tobi easily removed Orochimaru's Cursed Seal.
Although it was just a simple Cursed Seal, it also showed that the Cursed Seal didn't have much effect on Yang Release beings.
This mechanism is Yin-Yang mutual neutralization.
Yin and Yang are like Taiji; they are both in opposition and complementary.
Orochimaru's Cursed Seal counts as Yin Release power, while Tobi is a Yang Release being; its Yang Release can eliminate the debuff brought by Orochimaru.
At this moment, it is theoretically feasible for Ryou to use Yang Release energy to remove Anko's Cursed Seal.
As Ryou thought, under Ryou's powerful Yang Release energy, the chakra of Orochimaru within Anko's Cursed Seal was forced out.
Anko's neck showed an abnormality; the Cursed Seal spread significantly, and the head of a large snake emerged from Anko's neck, and then Orochimaru crawled out from the snake's mouth.
It was Orochimaru's chakra, which could also be called his soul fragment, his clone.
Regardless, relying on this clone, even if Orochimaru's main body died, he could be resurrected from the Cursed Seal, provided there was a special Ritual Formula and enough chakra.
Orochimaru's clone was forced out, and Ryou grabbed his neck with one hand.
"See that! Anko, this is the proof!"
Anko tilted her head and looked at the clone of Orochimaru that had grown out of her neck. She froze in place, unable to speak for a long time, her eyes filled with disbelief.
It was true, it was really true; Anko was really being used by Orochimaru as a sacrifice for his reincarnation.
"Why—"