Uchiha Akaishi Tour

Chapter 149 Orochimaru's Cooking Skills

"Seriously, then just honestly ask for help!" After hearing Orochimaru's explanation, Akaishi was somewhat disdainful of the Land of Iron's attitude.

"Ha, the people of the Land of Iron are worried that seeking help from a major ninja village will break their neutrality." Orochimaru shook his head, his attitude also disdainful.

As long as the Land of Iron can withstand the attack from the Land of Rain, at least the five great ninja villages will not rashly intervene in the Land of Iron, just as the Hidden Cloud Village has never dared to directly invade the Land of Iron!

If Kumogakure were to intervene directly, Konoha and Iwagakure would definitely ally with the samurai of the Land of Iron. In that case, Kumogakure would not only have to fight on their home turf against samurai who are not weak outside of the Five Great Nations, but would also be caught in a pincer attack by Konoha and Iwagakure, who would have the help of the locals. It is very likely that Kumogakure would lose all its vital forces to the Land of Iron.

However, with the Land of Rain attacking and the Hidden Cloud Village poised to strike, neither Konoha nor Iwagakure dares to make any major moves. If Konoha wants to provide assistance, it can only do so indirectly by sending elite teams to escort supplies under the guise of "normal trade."

"You have to hide it when you go to help." Akaishi pouted, somewhat annoyed.

"Yes, so those samurai from the Land of Iron aren't really companions, let alone employers. Konoha just needs them as a barrier between the North and the Land of Lightning," Orochimaru said matter-of-factly.

The Land of Lightning is located in the northeastern part of the continent, on a peninsula. The land bridge connecting it to the mainland is blocked by the Land of Iron.

Although it is possible to come directly by sea without using the land bridge, just like the previous blitzkrieg against the Land of Whirlpools, the sea is more vulnerable to being cut off from the rear. Land travel is more reassuring, and a smooth supply line is essential to sustain a major war.

"That's not entirely true. The Land of Iron's move was a desperate attempt to protect itself. Openly seeking help would be tantamount to taking sides in the ninja world, making it impossible to remain neutral. Especially in the Land of Iron's situation, without a neutral stance, it could very well become a battlefield." Jiraiya was quite understanding of these small countries.

Orochimaru's thinking is closer to that of Akaishi: Why don't you just join Konoha? Since you're unwilling to join, I only need to be responsible for my own interests. Konoha just needs a shield. As for what happens to your Land of Iron, I don't care at all!

Orochimaru did not directly refute Jiraiya at this moment, but instead took out a map and said, "In short, we need to get to the border of the Land of Iron as soon as possible. After entering the Land of Iron, we will transport supplies along this route."

The trade in chakra metals and grains between the two countries has a long history.

Konoha has always been the one to escort supplies, and whether they are lost or robbed, Konoha bears the safety risks.

However, the Land of Iron also needs to provide necessary supplies and support to the Konoha transport team along the way.

Orochimaru's map of the Land of Iron shows many supply depots, which are clearly concentrated in the southwest and central parts of the Land of Iron, the area where the Land of Rain invaded and engaged in battle!

"The supply points are so close together? And—it's such a winding route," Akaishi remarked.

"These supply points are villages or markets in the Land of Iron. In theory, there are supply points all over the country, and ninjas transporting supplies can choose any route."

"Now we should explore the combat zone as much as possible. Konoha won't officially send reinforcements to the Land of Iron, but if we happen to run into some foolish enemy who wants to plunder us, that would be a different story," Orochimaru explained patiently.

In order to conduct large-scale resource transactions with various countries, the villages and markets scattered throughout the Land of Iron would receive ninja teams with proper permits.

Moreover, even in Konoha, the teams transporting trade goods are usually just Chunin combined teams, rarely sending out Jonin. Therefore, there is a certain degree of risk involved. Hence, the routes are kept secret and are changed each time, and the teams can also decide to change routes midway.

This time, they also took advantage of this, openly displaying themselves in the battle zone to cover the warriors of the Land of Iron as much as possible.

Deflect the Rain Kingdom's offensive!

"Alright, let's eat first," Orochimaru said calmly.

Thud—

As Orochimaru spoke, he vanished from the spot.

Akaashi:? ? ?

Akaishi, of course, couldn't tell the difference between Orochimaru's real body and shadow clone. He just didn't expect that the real body would be cooking while the shadow clone was explaining the mission to everyone.

Jiraiya: ————

"I'll go scout the area," Jiraiya said, getting up.

"I—" Minato was about to take the initiative when Jiraiya had already disappeared.

Seeing this, Akaishi had a bad feeling.

When a set meal of omelet rice, steamed egg, and egg drop soup, which looked quite exquisite, was placed in front of Akaishi, his ominous premonition subsided slightly.

perhaps----

Jiraiya just doesn't like eating eggs, while Orochimaru loves eggs too much, right?

Kara—

Scoop out a spoonful.

Glug it into your mouth.

Akaishi:————

Ou Chishi covered his mouth and swallowed with difficulty.

Akaishi really couldn't understand how someone who loved cooking so much could make food taste so awful, even though it looked decent on the outside!

"What's wrong?" Orochimaru asked, staring at Akaishi.

Although Orochimaru's voice is usually cold and sinister, Akaishi could still tell that it was genuinely cold and sinister now.

If you say it tastes bad—

"My God! It's absolutely delicious!" Akaishi said confidently.

"But you look like you're struggling," Orochimaru asked, staring at him.

"Y-yes—I'm the kind of person who absolutely dislikes eggs, and I was prepared for this to be something I don't like, but I never expected—eggs can be so delicious, hahaha—" Akaishi said in a moment of inspiration.

Orochimaru then gave a faint smile: "That's good. How could anyone not like eggs? — It's truly absurd."

Then Orochimaru himself picked up the omelet rice—no, the plate of "omelet with unknown slime"—and bit into it, sucking out the half-cooked egg and other liquids mixed in with something else!

Like Orochimaru, Akaishi picked up the plate!

Lanwu: !!!

Lan Wu stared at Chi Shi—from the side view, Lan Wu saw—

Akaishi picked up the plate to cover his eyes, then activated his Sharingan and used the plate as a mirror to perform genjutsu on himself!

"What does Tsunade think of this?" Lan Wu asked Orochimaru after hesitating for a moment.

"Tsunade—neither she nor Jiraiya like to eat eggs." Orochimaru shook his head regretfully—it was obvious who he was referring to with the previous "incomprehensible" comment.

It's clear that Orochimaru really likes eggs.

"Actually—we descendants of the Thousand Hands don't like eggs!" Lan Wu scooped out all the members of the Thousand Hands clan.

"Hmm? Is that so?" Orochimaru looked somewhat puzzled, seemingly genuinely pondering whether this was related to the Senju clan's unique physique.

"Well, so—I'm sorry." Lan Wu said, placing the portion she had only taken a small bite of in front of Chi Shi.

Akaishi:————

"I—" Lan Wu was about to take out her soldier's rations when Orochimaru stopped her, saying, "What a pity, you don't even like eggs—"

"Then I'll make something else for you and Jiraiya."

The three then realized that Orochimaru had only made four servings, and probably hadn't brought Jiraiya's at all. The reason Jiraiya immediately "ran away" was because he was afraid someone would take his chance to "not eat"!

but----

After Lan Wu said she didn't eat eggs either, Orochimaru created another shadow clone and then hastily made do with other ingredients.

Lan Wu felt extremely uneasy upon seeing this.

Even with careful preparation and my favorite ingredients, I almost died.

If we just rush through this...

Akaishi glanced at the "Orochimaru's Mysterious Egg Set Meal" that had appeared in front of him and chuckled to Lanwu, "At least this way Jiraiya-sensei can have some too."

Even though you're going to eat something even more terrifying, at least you've dragged Jiraiya-sensei down with you!

Lan Wu glared at him —

"Hmm? Akaishi-kun, how come you've activated your Sharingan?" Orochimaru asked meaningfully when he saw Akaishi put down the plate.

"I want to learn your cooking skills!" Akaishi found a good reason.

"I see. However—cooking isn't just about copying actions. I can teach you sometime," Orochimaru said kindly.

Minato, standing to the side, then steadily and meticulously ate the "Orochimaru's Mysterious Egg Set Meal," much to Akaishi's surprise.

"Minato-kun, is he not to your liking either?" Orochimaru asked gravely upon seeing this.

"Well, but you, Orochimaru Jonin, must really like it, right?" Minato smiled slightly and admitted it.

"I see, there's nothing I can do about it." Orochimaru nodded upon hearing this.

As for Yakushi Nonou, she finished eating quickly without saying a word, as if it were just ordinary food, and Orochimaru didn't ask her about the taste.

A moment later, Jiraiya returned.

"Ah!" Jiraiya looked on in surprise, only to find that Orochimaru was still making other food.

Having already stuffed his share and Lan Wu's share into the bowl, Chi Shi was secretly chuckling again, but—

"What's going on today? You're actually willing to cook for me, you rascal!" Jiraiya exclaimed with delight.

Akaashi:? ? ?

"To be precise, it was for Miss Lanwu." Orochimaru emphasized that he was just doing it incidentally.

Akaashi:? ? ?

Akashi had another ominous premonition.

Soon after, Orochimaru placed two bowls of seemingly unappetizing stew in front of Lan Wu and Jiraiya, and then disappeared with a "pop." It turned out to be just a sham; the other ingredients were prepared by his shadow clones, and his real body didn't touch them at all.

"Hmm?" Lan Wu solemnly picked it up, then her expression suddenly changed.

Snore—

"Wow! This is super delicious!" Lan Wu exclaimed excitedly.

"Of course, Orochimaru can make everything delicious except eggs," Jiraiya said matter-of-factly.

Akaashi:? ? ?

There's actually such a setting?

"Except for eggs," is superfluous. Although there are guys like you who are extremely averse to eggs, at least this time, we've changed Akaishi-kun's opinion on egg dishes. Hmm—at least we didn't bring all these eggs for nothing. From now on, we're the only ones who can enjoy them, Akaishi-kun." Orochimaru said, looking at Akaishi.

Akaishi:————