Deep underground, about a hundred meters outside Konohagakure, a group of people was gathered, eating, drinking, and watching TV.
Orochimaru had also sent a shadow clone while his real body was in the village, trying to manipulate Sarutobi and the others.
After watching the scene of Danzo's death, everyone started discussing.
Zabuza, being an outsider, was the first to speak. He sighed and said, "Sharingan really deserves its reputation as the strongest eye technique in the ninja world. Its abilities are so strange… Izanagi can actually control the boundary between illusion and reality, casting the ultimate Genjutsu on oneself to escape certain death!"
But Orochimaru wasn't surprised at all. As Danzo's long-time partner, he knew exactly what Danzo was capable of.
It was Orochimaru who had transplanted the Wood Release cells into Danzo and also created that arm full of Sharingan using Shin's body for experiments.
Now that Danzo was dead, Orochimaru had already made plans. He had left a backup plan on Danzo's arm from the very beginning.
"Leader, now that Danzo is dead, what's your next move?" Orochimaru was already thinking ahead.
"Hmm, let Minato handle the mess. He should see the truth for himself."
At that moment, Yang Tao turned to Orochimaru with a question. "Orochimaru, you were able to make that arm for Danzo, so why didn't you make one for yourself? Didn't you always want the Sharingan? And Hashirama's cells too?"
After the Uchiha massacre, Orochimaru had obtained a large number of Sharingan through Danzo. He had used Shin's unique ability to accept any bloodline to create Danzo's Sharingan arm, while the remaining eyes were installed in Shin.
"And you even gave him Mangekyou Sharingan," Yang Tao suddenly revealed a big piece of information.
Orochimaru was visibly shocked. "Mangekyou? You're saying Shin has a pair of Mangekyou Sharingan?"
It wasn't entirely his fault. At the time, Orochimaru didn't fully understand the Mangekyou Sharingan. Since its abilities had to be manually activated, he had assumed all the eyes were just normal three-tomoe Sharingan.
"I don't have Uchiha blood, so even if I transplant the Sharingan, I can't make it evolve any further. The best ones I have are just three-tomoe, which are useless for me at my current level. That's why I wanted Uchiha Sasuke's body—so I could fully inherit the Sharingan."
Orochimaru explained his reasoning.
"Yeah, that makes sense. By the way, Shin's Mangekyou Sharingan came from the Uchiha clan leader."
Orochimaru suddenly realized, "Uchiha Fugaku? No wonder!"
Yang Tao saw Orochimaru as a rare scientific talent and considered recruiting him. After some thought, he asked, "Orochimaru, do you still want Uchiha Sasuke's body?"
Orochimaru hesitated for a moment but admitted, "I do have some interest in Sasuke. Are you interested in him as well?"
He was trying to probe Yang Tao's thoughts. If Yang Tao didn't want him to go after Sasuke, he would drop the idea.
After being revived by the totem, Orochimaru's body had fully recovered, and even the soul damage from multiple reincarnations was healed.
Seeing Yang Tao's overwhelming power firsthand, he had no desire to make an enemy out of him.
"I don't really care about the Uchiha. I'm just a passing traveler. As long as you don't harm my people, I won't stop you from doing what you want. But you won't be able to take Sasuke's body. Even if you manage to possess him, he'll just respawn in the Pure Land, get some overpowered upgrades, and come back stronger."
Sasuke was one of the two chosen protagonists of the Naruto world. There was no way he'd die so easily. The Sage of Six Paths was still in the Pure Land, waiting to hand out power-ups to him and Naruto.
Orochimaru believed Yang Tao's words. There was no reason for him to lie. And after witnessing greater power, his obsession with the Uchiha had lessened.
Yang Tao then asked, "Orochimaru, do you want to follow me and see a much bigger world?"
Orochimaru hesitated. His goal had always been simple—after seeing too much death and separation, he had been chasing immortality. But so far, all he could do was barely survive by constantly switching bodies. If he stayed in one body for too long, it would collapse. And the repeated reincarnations had taken a toll on his soul.
But now, after encountering Yang Tao, he had finally found a way to truly live forever.
"Group Leaderrd, can you give me some time to think about it?"
Yang Tao said generously, "No problem. Just give me an answer after the Chunin Exam!"
"Kabuto, the exam is tomorrow. Keep going with your plan."
"Understood!"
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