Kaito held a Truth-Seeking Orb hovering above his palm and said softly,
"Truth-Seeking Orbs… the product of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements combined. They have the power to reduce all things in existence to nothingness. Orochimaru, would you like to experience it for yourself?"
Orochimaru's clothes were already drenched in cold sweat. He backed away while forcing a smile,
"Kaito-san, surely you jest… I couldn't possibly withstand such power…"
"Orochimaru-sama!"
Kabuto, who had been knocked away by Naruto earlier, rushed to Orochimaru's side. When he saw Kaito standing across from them, his expression changed drastically.
"Kaito!? Impossible!"
Kaito gave Kabuto a small smile and said,
"So it's you, Kabuto. It's been a while."
Back then, their relationship wasn't bad at all. In fact, Kaito had learned Mystical Palm Technique from Kabuto.
After the initial shock, Kabuto couldn't help but feel joy. He hadn't been present when Orochimaru ambushed Kaito years ago. Later, when he asked Orochimaru about Kaito's whereabouts, Orochimaru only told him Kaito was dead.
Kabuto had felt grief at the time, because Kaito understood him well. They got along, and Kaito had been one of the few people Kabuto could call a friend.
Now, looking at Kaito's long snow-white hair and his pair of Rinnegan, Kabuto couldn't help but ask,
"Kaito… what happened to you? Why do you look like this now?"
"Heh, you can thank Orochimaru for that. Without him, I never would've reached this stage."
Kabuto wanted to say more, but Kaito waved his hand, and an invisible force shoved him aside.
Orochimaru had already taken advantage of their conversation to flee some distance away. But such tricks were utterly useless before Kaito.
Kaito stretched out his hand in a certain direction and murmured,
"Universal Pull."
Under Kabuto's stunned gaze, Orochimaru was yanked from afar and dragged back, Kaito's hand clamping tightly around his neck.
Everyone watching was dumbfounded. No one had seen Kaito form hand seals, yet Orochimaru had been dragged back and captured just like that.
Smiling, Kaito lifted Orochimaru by the throat.
"Why the rush, Orochimaru?"
As he spoke, a Truth-Seeking Orb floated slowly toward Orochimaru's face, on the verge of pressing against it.
Unable to endure anymore, Orochimaru hastily formed several hand seals, his chakra surging wildly.
"Eight-Headed Serpent Technique!"
His body rapidly expanded, tearing free from Kaito's grip and transforming into a massive serpent with eight heads and eight tails.
Yamato and Sakura were completely dumbstruck. At this point in time, a jutsu on the level of the Eight-Headed Serpent was practically invincible.
It was also Kabuto's first time seeing Orochimaru unleash it. He quickly retreated to safety, worry etched on his face as he looked at Kaito.
Kabuto's loyalty to Orochimaru remained strong, but Kaito was also his only true friend. He desperately wished things hadn't come to this.
But Orochimaru wasn't concerned with that. Nine gigantic serpent heads lunged simultaneously at Kaito.
Kaito looked utterly calm, even closing his Rinnegan as if Orochimaru's Eight-Headed Serpent was beneath notice.
Seeing Kaito remain motionless, Yamato thought he was frozen in fear and shouted,
"Kaito-senpai! Look out!"
But the next second, Yamato's eyes went wide with shock.
Kaito gently placed Naruto on the ground, then vanished in a blur. In the blink of an eye, he appeared before Orochimaru's enormous body and unleashed a single punch—shattering the colossal serpent into countless fragments of writhing little snakes.
Landing lightly, Kaito reached out. A small white snake hiding in the grass was instantly sucked into his hand.
The tiny snake's face showed an almost human-like terror. Kaito, however, looked amused. He had deliberately restrained his power earlier, leaving Orochimaru a shred of life.
Originally, he had considered erasing Orochimaru entirely with a Truth-Seeking Orb, but now he changed his mind.
With Orochimaru completely bewildered, Kaito wrapped the snake around his waist and tied a neat knot at the back. Just like that, a genuine "Orochimaru belt" was made.
Orochimaru tried to struggle, but Kaito summoned another Truth-Seeking Orb and said coldly,
"If you don't want to die, behave."
Orochimaru's body stiffened. Then the snake head drooped weakly, as if conceding.
With Orochimaru dealt with, Kaito lowered his gaze to Naruto.
Naruto was in rough shape. Having entered the Four-Tails state for the first time, his skin was flushed red, faint traces of blood seeping out.
Yamato and Sakura hurried over. Seeing Naruto's condition, Sakura immediately crouched down, ready to use medical ninjutsu.
He placed a hand on Naruto's body and infused him with a surge of vibrant Yang Release vitality.
Under the nourishment of Yang Release, Naruto's wounds visibly healed. Within moments, he opened his eyes and sprang to his feet, startling Sakura and Yamato.
Sakura looked at Naruto in disbelief, her medical ninjutsu suddenly feeling meaningless.
Yamato turned to Kaito, awe in his eyes. "Kaito-senpai…"
Kaito waved it off. His gaze lingered briefly on Naruto's spiky blond hair as he murmured,
"He really does look alike…"
Naruto, still groggy from waking, stared in confusion at Kaito.
"Who are you?"
Kaito's expression softened into a warm smile.
"I'm a friend of your father's."
"Nani!?"
Naruto pointed at him, shouting dramatically,
"Quit messing with me! You look way too young to be my dad's friend! And… wait—you know who my father is!?"
Sakura quickly pulled Naruto aside and whispered,
"Show some respect! Captain Yamato said this Kaito… senpai was from the same era as the Fourth Hokage. And look—Orochimaru's already been taken care of. He's hanging right there on his waist!"
Naruto froze, staring at the small white snake tied around Kaito's waist. The snake noticed Naruto's gaze and glared back coldly, its expression exactly like Orochimaru's.
Then Naruto remembered what Kaito had just said—that he knew his father!
Naruto only knew he was an orphan. No one in the village—neither the Hokage nor the villagers—had ever told him who his parents were.
The word "father" felt utterly foreign to him. He raised his head sharply, voice trembling.
"Kaito-senpai… you just said you were my father's friend. Please… can you tell me something about him?"
Yamato's expression changed instantly. Many in the Anbu knew Naruto's father was the Fourth Hokage, but the higher-ups had forbidden revealing it to him. Alarmed, Yamato looked at Kaito, wanting to stop him.
But Kaito ignored him completely. Meeting Naruto's eyes, he said slowly and clearly,
"Your father… is the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato!"
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
+100 chapters and support me on Patreon(.)com/Jixo