Analyzing the Ninja World Starting from Konoha

Chapter 203 Reunion with Orochimaru

He did not feign reluctance, nor did he pretend to be reserved.

He stretched out his hands and solemnly accepted the scroll and kunai.

Then he took a step back, stood up straight, and bowed deeply.

"Aoba will not let the Fourth Hokage down!"

Seeing Aoba's serious expression, Minato smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

"Go ahead, be careful, and come back soon."

"clear!"

They exited the gates of Konoha.

Aoba walked northeast along the main road for about thirty minutes, and the surrounding environment gradually changed from an open plain to a dense forest.

After confirming that he was far away from the range of Konoha's sensory barrier, Aoba stopped in his tracks.

-

"Lord Orochimaru.

Aoba's voice suddenly rang out in the silent forest, "You've been following me for so long, come out now."

The moment the words left his mouth, the surrounding air seemed to freeze.

A cold wind blew through the woods, swirling up a few withered yellow leaves.

A tall, slender figure slowly emerged from behind a large tree not far behind Qingye.

Orochimaru stuck out his long tongue, washed his face, and his hoarse voice carried a strange smile.

"Hehehe—truly a genius that even the old man praises highly."

"Aoba-kun, your perception is truly amazing."

Aoba turned around and looked calmly at one of Konoha's "Three Legendary Sannin".

"Lord Orochimaru, you flatter me."

Aoba smiled slightly, her tone relaxed, "Speaking of which, snakes and lizards were related in ancient times. If Lord Orochimaru wants to find me next time, he can simply use a different method; there's no need to be so sneaky."

As he spoke, a small, blue lizard wriggled at the collar of Aoba's clothes, poking its head out and flicking its tongue, its vertical pupils staring coldly at Orochimaru.

Orochimaru looked at the blue lizard on Aoba's shoulder, a strange light flashing in his eyes.

He stuck out his long tongue, washed his face again, and chuckled hoarsely, "Heh heh—a spirit beast of the lizard clan? It seems we really are destined to meet."

"Fate is such a vague and elusive thing."

Aoba shrugged and cut straight to the point, "Lord Orochimaru should be quite busy, right? Instead of doing research in the lab, he followed me all the way out of the village. He couldn't have come to see me off, could he? If you have something to say, just say it."

Orochimaru narrowed his long, narrow eyes slightly, seemingly somewhat surprised by Aoba's directness.

However, he didn't beat around the bush and said in a hoarse voice, "Since Aoba-kun is so straightforward, then I'll just say it directly."

"I need one of the medications you have."

Orochimaru's gaze sharpened. "It's the kind of special drug you used on your subordinates during the Iwagakure invasion—a drug with extremely strong vitality and explosive power."

Upon hearing this, Aoba immediately understood what the other party wanted.

The life-giving water in the ruins of the land of rivers.

He did use that thing on the battlefield, but he used it very discreetly, and no outsiders would discover it except for those he had treated.

Unexpectedly, this matter caught Orochimaru's attention.

Aoba stroked his chin and nodded thoughtfully: "I see."

"Did Danzo send you?"

Aoba asked casually, but then immediately shook his head in self-doubt.

"wrong."

"With your arrogance, Lord Orochimaru, that old fox Danzo could never command you. Your relationship is nothing more than a cooperative one of mutual exploitation."

A smile curved at the corners of Qingye's lips.

"Let me guess—"

"It must have been Danzo who stumbled upon information about this drug while secretly investigating me. And you, as his partner," noticed the drug's unusual properties while sharing information.

"So, you came to see me alone, without telling Danzo. I was right, wasn't I, Lord Orochimaru?"

Upon hearing this, the atmosphere in the forest instantly plummeted to freezing point.

Orochimaru's golden vertical pupils widened suddenly, as if he had seen some rare species, and he stared intently at Aoba.

His relationship with Danzo was so close that even his teacher believed he had sided with Danzo to gain Danzo's support and conduct forbidden experiments.

No one would have guessed that he and Danzo were actually in a cooperative relationship!

However, this young man in front of him actually saw through his and Danzo's secrets in one sentence!

"Hehehe————"

Orochimaru chuckled softly, the sound echoing through the silent forest, carrying a strange chill.

"Aoba-kun, it seems you have your own sources of information."

Aoba did not respond.

Despite the chilling killing intent gradually emanating from Orochimaru, Aoba remained calm.

"Lord Orochimaru, are you preparing to make your move?"

Looking at Orochimaru's expression, Aoba sighed helplessly, "To be honest, I really have no interest in fighting you. A fight between us here would only destroy this forest and waste each other's energy; it would be pointless."

Even at this time, Aoba was not confident he could kill Orochimaru, and Orochimaru was equally helpless against him.

He can fly, or he can escape through reverse psychic communication.

Orochimaru sneered, "Heh—Aoba-kun seems quite confident in himself."

The murderous intent in his eyes had unknowingly dissipated by more than half.

Instead, there is an increasingly strong sense of curiosity and interest.

This young man knew him far better than anyone could have imagined.

Aoba didn't refute, but instead reached directly into his ninja tool pouch.

Then a sealed glass test tube was taken out.

Inside the test tube, a pale blue liquid with a faint fluorescent glow flowed. Even through the glass, Orochimaru could vaguely sense the astonishing life force contained within it.

"This is what you've been looking for."

Aoba casually tossed the test tube over.

Orochimaru instinctively reached out and caught it, staring at the test tube in his hand with astonishment in his eyes.

He never expected that Aoba would hand over the item so easily!

You should know that this level of secret medicine is absolutely priceless in the ninja world!

"Why—?"

Orochimaru looked up at Aoba, puzzled.

You compromised so easily?

He did consider taking it by force.

Even though he had gathered a lot of information about Yamashiro Aoba beforehand, he still wasn't entirely confident that he could defeat the Fourth Kazekage head-on.

Orochimaru had prepared for a fierce battle and even considered the possibility of returning empty-handed.

But to his utter surprise, Aoba simply threw the item over.

It was as if—this thing was utterly insignificant to him.

"Because we are not the enemy."

Aoba looked at Orochimaru, his tone suddenly becoming extremely serious.

"Lord Orochimaru, in a way, we are the same kind of people."

"We are all fellow travelers."

Orochimaru's expression changed slightly.

"Travelers?"

"That's right."

Aoba nodded and said slowly, "I understand your pursuit of immortality."

"Human life is far too short. A few decades is but a drop in the ocean compared to the vastness of truth."

"To master all the ninjutsu in the world and explore the ultimate secrets of chakra, without a long lifespan to support it, is simply a pipe dream."

As Aoba finished speaking, the suffocating killing intent emanating from Orochimaru began to slowly recede.

His narrow eyes scrutinized Qingye with great interest, as if he were truly getting to know the young man before him for the first time.

There was a long silence.

Orochimaru suddenly laughed.

"Hehehe—hahahaha!"

Laughter echoed through the forest, conveying an indescribable sense of joy.

"What an interesting person, Aoba-kun."

Orochimaru looked at Aoba, a strange light flashing in his eyes. "This ninja world is full of ignorant mortals, their minds filled only with hatred and the narrow-minded obsession with their villages."

"I never expected that I would meet someone who truly understands me in this decaying Konoha village."

Aoba smiled slightly, stepped forward, and extended his right hand toward Orochimaru.

"Lord Orochimaru, let's cooperate!"

Orochimaru looked at Aoba's outstretched hand, a strange smile curving his lips.

He slowly extended his right hand.

However, just as their hands were about to clasp together!

A sudden change has occurred!

"Hidden Shadows, Many Snake Hands!"

From Orochimaru's sleeve, several thick, venomous snakes suddenly shot out and instantly wrapped tightly around Aoba's body!

Despite the sudden attack, Qingye, who was entangled by the venomous snake, showed no sign of panic.

"Sigh—I knew it."

Aoba sighed helplessly, "As expected, I don't have the talent for talk-no-jutsu. In the end, I still have to take action."

Orochimaru looked at the trapped Aoba and sneered, "Aoba-kun, your words certainly moved me. But compared to that, I'm more curious about the secrets you hold."

"You seem to know a lot of things you shouldn't know, which makes me really want to dissect you and see what's going on in your head."

However, even when entangled by venomous snakes, Qingye's expression remained calm and composed.

He looked at Orochimaru, and a mocking smile suddenly appeared on his lips.

"Lord Orochimaru, you've recently... started researching cursed seals, haven't you?"

Upon hearing this, Orochimaru's smile instantly froze!

His pupils suddenly contracted, and a storm raged in his heart!

A cursed seal?!

How did he know about the cursed seal?!

His research on the cursed seal is currently a top-secret matter!

Apart from a very small number of test subjects, even Danzo was completely unaware of it!

Where did Yamashiro Aoba get his information from?!

Just as Orochimaru lost his composure, he suddenly sensed something was wrong.

The venomous snake coiled around Aoba's body sent back a sensation that was not that of human flesh and blood!

Cracks appeared on "Aoba's" face, and sand began to fall off, revealing the humanoid puppet inside!

"Puppet clones? When?"

Orochimaru suddenly looked up.

A dozen meters away, Qingye was still standing there quietly.

However, his sunglasses had been removed, revealing his eyes, which were now radiating a scarlet light.