Looking at the young man standing before him, Orochimaru forced a smile that looked more like a grimace. "Of course… I love chatting the most! Especially with the bright young talents of Konoha! As everyone knows, whenever I meet the children of Konoha, I always feel the urge to perform a little… acrobatics for them. Didn't I just put on a splendid display with my Latent Shadow Many Snakes technique?"
His yellow eyes darted around nervously as he addressed the group surrounding him. "Sakumo… we're old acquaintances, aren't we? Could you, perhaps, put that dagger away before we continue this delightful conversation? And Yondaime… my dear junior… is it really necessary for your kunai to be pressed against my lower back?"
Then, turning toward the assembled figures—the legendary shinobi of Konoha's past—Orochimaru's voice took on a more desperate tone. "And to all the esteemed seniors here, I, Orochimaru, have admired you all for a long time! There's no need for hostility, right?"
Seeing that Orochimaru had calmed down, the oppressive chakra in the air slowly dissipated. The powerful shinobi surrounding him withdrew their killing intent one by one.
Gulp.
Orochimaru swallowed hard, his body tense, his nerves on edge. I survived…
At that moment, Souta Kazuki, who had been watching the exchange with interest, finally spoke. "Uncle Snake, let me introduce myself first. My name is Souta Kazuki. I'm just an ordinary student who recently graduated from the Konoha Ninja Academy."
Hearing these words, Orochimaru felt an uncontrollable twitch in his face.
Ordinary?!
If you're ordinary, then what does that make the rest of the ninja world?!
Suppressing the urge to scream, Orochimaru cleared his throat. "Ahem… brat—I mean, an outstanding young shinobi of Konoha! Can you explain what exactly is going on here?!"
Orochimaru was desperate for answers. The sight before him made no sense. He was certain he had died, yet here he was. Not only that, but he was surrounded by shinobi who had long since perished.
Souta smirked slightly. "Before I answer that, Uncle Snake, I have a question for you first. How exactly did you die? With your… unique methods of prolonging life, I find it hard to believe that someone managed to kill you."
Orochimaru's expression darkened slightly. He had always prided himself on his ability to escape death. Yet here he was, standing among the dead. After a brief pause, he sighed and began to explain.
"I was in the middle of an experiment. I had developed a curse seal that would allow me to resurrect myself through one of my marked vessels upon death. There was only one final step left before my research was complete… so I conducted the last test. That test was… well, suicide.
"But instead of reviving as planned, I found myself here. I have no idea what went wrong."
Souta nodded slowly as he processed Orochimaru's words. It made sense now. Orochimaru's soul fire must have formed at the exact moment he attempted to resurrect himself. Since Souta had been using his summoning ability at that moment, Orochimaru had been pulled into his psychic space instead of returning through his own resurrection method.
What were the chances of such a coincidence?
If Souta hadn't been summoning at that precise moment, Orochimaru would have likely revived through his curse mark as he had originally intended. But fate had other plans.
And now… Orochimaru, the legendary scientist of the ninja world, was bound to him.
Wait a minute… does this mean I just recruited the greatest inventor in the ninja world?
Souta's mind raced with possibilities. This was no ordinary summoning contract. Unlike traditional summoning jutsu, those he summoned weren't just temporary spirits—they were physically present in the living world. If they died again, their soul fire would remain in his summoning space, allowing him to bring them back as long as he had enough ryo.
Did this mean his summoning space was essentially an alternate version of the afterlife?
Miaomu Mountain had toads.Ryuchi Cave had snakes.Shikkotsu Forest had slugs.And his psychic space… had legendary shinobi?!
Souta let out a low chuckle. This is insane.
Breaking out of his thoughts, he turned back to Orochimaru. "Uncle Snake… I hate to break it to you, but your experiment failed. You see, everyone here was once dead, just like you. Through a stroke of luck, I was able to summon them from the afterlife and bring them back. You just happened to be caught in the process."
Orochimaru frowned deeply. "Are you saying… I am now your summoned creature?"
Souta grinned. "Exactly! And look on the bright side—it's not so bad, is it? You've been searching for immortality your entire life, haven't you? Well, congratulations! You've achieved it.
"As long as I have the ryo, I can resurrect you as many times as you die!"
Orochimaru stiffened. His mind raced with calculations, trying to find loopholes.
This was different from his original plan for immortality. He had always sought control over his own life and death. But now… now he was at someone else's mercy.
Could he escape this? Could he still use his curse seal to return to his old resurrection method?
Before he could voice these thoughts, Souta's gaze sharpened. "Oh, and Uncle Snake… don't even think about dying on purpose to test your old resurrection method. If you die now, your soul fire will remain in my summoning space indefinitely."
Orochimaru stiffened.
Souta smirked. "In other words, if you die, you'll be stuck there until I decide to revive you. And since reviving someone costs ryo… well, who knows how long that might take?"
Orochimaru's face paled slightly. Damn it… this brat is terrifying.
Meanwhile, in the background, a miserable voice suddenly interrupted the conversation.
"Wuwuwu… eight times… eight times!!!"
The group turned to see Uchiha Fugaku lying on the ground, tears streaming down his face. His lips were swollen beyond recognition.
"My wife… where is my wife?! Why hasn't she come out yet?! Eight times!!! That's already the eighth time!!! 800 million ryo gone!!! AHHHHHHH!!!"
His cries echoed through the clearing.
Orochimaru, witnessing this bizarre display, took another cautious step back. "What… what's wrong with him?"
Souta sighed. "Don't mind him. He's just having a crisis."
"Crisis?" Orochimaru raised an eyebrow.
"Yes. A mid-life, post-life, and financial crisis. All at once."
Orochimaru fell silent. What the hell kind of situation have I gotten myself into?!