UK:GSW Chapter 361 – The Scam Against Obito and Black Zetsu Begins
Sasuke had always known that the Heaven Curse Mark was a hidden danger. He could even sense the soul fragment of Orochimaru within it—especially after awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan, his perception had become even clearer.
However, to Sasuke, it was also a source of power. When the Heaven Curse Mark flared, he could gain tremendous strength, dramatically boosting his combat ability. It was one of his trump cards for facing Uchiha Itachi.
So, even knowing the risk, Sasuke had never thought about removing it—at least not until after killing Itachi.
But now things were different. He had already awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, undergone training, and gained external equipment and support. The Heaven Curse Mark, being risky and harmful to his body, was no longer necessary. Removing it early would also prevent Orochimaru from ambushing him during the battle with Itachi.
Thus, Sasuke nodded to the three in front of him and expressed his thanks.
To Orochimaru and the others, this attitude was nothing noteworthy—after all, they weren't close to Sasuke. But to the rest of Snake Team, it was surprising. They couldn't help but look at Sasuke strangely, because the Sasuke they knew had never been this polite.
This trip to the main world had clearly left a deep mark on him.
Not that they disliked the current Sasuke—quite the opposite.
This Sasuke was more reassuring and trustworthy. In the past, he had treated them like tools—though there was some sense of camaraderie, it was unclear how much. Now, it truly felt like he saw them as partners he could entrust his back to.
Then, Sasori commanded his puppet clone to surround the area and erect a barrier, setting various instruments into record mode. Senju Tobirama formed hand seals, preparing a sealing jutsu.
Orochimaru stepped forward with a smile, eyes on the Heaven Curse Mark at Sasuke's neck. He chuckled, raising his right hand, where Sage Art chakra began to gather, and pressed it toward the mark.
Yes—Sage Art chakra.
In the original series, Orochimaru had not mastered Sage Art chakra until after the Boruto era. But now, his research and mastery had reached an advanced level—the exact extent unknown.
After all, Orochimaru would say he was "just a researcher, not a professional fighter with overwhelming power.jpg."
Sage chakra flowed into the Curse Mark, eroding it. At the same time, Orochimaru used Sage perception to subtly alter his chakra into something akin to that of the Curse Mark.
The next moment, the hidden soul fragment within the mark was activated. Sasuke frowned in discomfort as another Orochimaru surged out of the mark, roaring in apparent agony.
Indeed, being forcibly dragged out like this left the World No. 2 Orochimaru unable to take Sasuke's body. Without a suitable vessel, his soul was wracked with pain.
In the original series, the soul fragment in Anko Mitarashi emerged already with a body—having absorbed a large amount of her chakra over more than a decade. It was strong enough to form a temporary body, later discarding it to take over a White Zetsu for true immortality.
Now, this World No. 2 Orochimaru had none of those advantages. Pulled out so suddenly, he was in pain and unstable.
At that moment, one of Sasori's puppet clones threw another puppet—one resembling Orochimaru's "original" appearance. Tobirama caught it and used a direct jutsu to guide it.
Orochimaru immediately directed the No. 2 soul into Tobirama's jutsu, linking it to the puppet, and sealed the soul within the specially made vessel.
The coordination among the three researchers was seamless, as if rehearsed countless times.
In truth, they had rehearsed—though not countless times, only three. Still, as scientists with rigor and professionalism (honed through training in the genjutsu world), three runs were more than enough.
With this process, Sasuke's hidden danger was resolved, and World No. 2 Orochimaru was "revived."
Feeling the Curse Mark vanish, Sasuke felt lighter from body to soul, exhaling in relief.
He then looked at the puppet containing the No. 2 Orochimaru.
Tobirama, still harboring bias against the Uchiha, ignored him and took the puppet to work with Sasori on applying further restrictions, ensuring the soul was fully bound to the vessel and completely under control.
Orochimaru, the scientist, smiled at Sasuke. "Although he's a failure, the other me has made significant contributions in biology. He'll be a useful source of knowledge for our research projects. Kei-kun's arrangement is for us to keep him under control and put him to good use."
In other words—drain every last bit of value from him.
This complete disregard for the other "self" made the rest of Snake Team instinctively shrink back. They had already felt intimidated by Orochimaru, and this just confirmed his terrifying nature—especially since he was already a psychological shadow for them.
Sasuke, however, understood immediately. Having once been "Batman," he knew how hard research was, and how much someone like World No. 2 Orochimaru's knowledge could accelerate scientific progress.
He even had another thought. "Do you need the research equipment and materials from our world's Orochimaru? After he failed to take my body, I left, but the equipment should still be with Kabuto Yakushi."
Orochimaru smiled. "No need. We've already sent White Zetsu to retrieve them. I'm also interested in that boy Kabuto. According to the information Kei-kun provided, he inherited my other self's mantle and may even have mastered the Ryuchi Cave Sage Mode that I never achieved."
"Such a boy would make an excellent assistant."
Orochimaru was indeed interested. While Kabuto from World No. 2 lacked top-level research creativity, he was perfect as a hard-working lab assistant, possessing a wealth of Orochimaru's techniques and even having improved Edo Tensei. If recruited, he could be immediately useful.
Moreover, given the main world's circumstances, once World No. 2 Kabuto was brought to the main world, he would certainly join them.
After all, Kabuto's greatest regret and pain was killing his foster mother, Nonō Yakushi, leaving him lost and without purpose. If he could see her again, it would fill that void and make recruiting him easy.
In fact, having reviewed No. 2 Kabuto's information, Orochimaru was also interested in the main world's Kabuto and was considering taking him as a disciple.
To a scientist like Orochimaru, such an assistant was a rare find. Not recruiting him would be wasteful.
As for the current special relationship between Nonō and Jiraiya, Orochimaru didn't care. As long as the "fool" found happiness, that was fine.
In fact, he saw it as a good thing. Yesterday, the "fool" suddenly returned to the main world's Leaf after seeing the tragic fate of the other world's Nonō, becoming emotional and determined to hold onto his current happiness and future.
This surprised Orochimaru, but he smiled. For him, a close friend finding happiness and certainty was worth celebrating.
He was even wondering what gift to give when Jiraiya and Nonō got married.
A heartwarming story.jpg.
Orochimaru—awaiting the arrival of a perfect assistant.jpg.
Sasuke didn't know these details, but he understood enough not to dwell on them. He gathered his teammates, stepped through the dimensional gate, and returned to World No. 2.
There, Minato Namikaze was already waiting.
Facing the legendary "Eternal Sister-Carrier," everyone in Snake Team except Sasuke was nervous—afraid, even. In World No. 2, this hero of the Leaf and Land of Fire was, to other nations, a god of slaughter.
So feared was he that the Land of Earth once issued standing orders that encountering Minato meant abandoning the mission without it being counted as a failure.
This wasn't just words—it was a humiliation for the Land of Earth and Iwagakure. If not for being mentally broken by his killing sprees, the stubborn Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, would never have issued such an order.
To countries outside the Land of Fire and its allies, Minato's name was a bug-level "stop-children-from-crying-at-night" deterrent.
Now, such a legend stood before them. And none of them were from Konoha—in fact, they were from enemy factions—so fear was natural.
Sasuke, however, felt fine, even respectful. He had grown up hearing Minato's legend. Before the Uchiha Massacre, his parents and brother had often spoken of Minato with admiration and regret.
Uchiha Kei had also told him that in World No. 2, Minato was Naruto's father and a friend of the Uchiha Clan. If Minato had lived, the Uchiha would never have been wiped out.
For these reasons, though he had only met Minato twice, Sasuke had a positive impression. Thus, he politely addressed him as "Minato-senpai."
Minato responded with his trademark sunny smile and handed Sasuke a pink turtle.
Sasuke's eyes flashed. He accepted it, recalling what Uchiha Kei had told him yesterday:
"Sasuke, the Uchiha Massacre in your world had many causes, but the key was a man named Uchiha Obito."
"Yes, your teacher Kakashi's comrade—the so-called hero inscribed on the Konoha Memorial Stone."
"He didn't die. Uchiha Madara saved him."
"Long story short, the Nine-Tails Incident was his doing, making him the real culprit behind the Uchiha's downfall."
"Right now, he's active in the Akatsuki as 'Tobi,' pretending to be Madara."
"He's watching you and Itachi, planning to approach you after your fated duel and recruit you as his enforcer."
"But thanks to our interference, his plan has been greatly disrupted. I've made him and his allies believe you and Snake Team obtained a special treasure that lets you travel through time and space."
"You really did time-travel, but the details must remain hidden. When you return, Minato-senpai will give you something—just pretend you used it for the time travel."
Remembering this, Sasuke found the pink turtle strange—how could this have anything to do with time travel?
Still, since it was Uncle Kei's arrangement, it had to have a deeper purpose. He only needed to follow it.
After all, this was the valuable experience passed down from his Uchiha seniors!
Holding the "Kāma" pink turtle, Sasuke and his team were sent back by Minato using the Flying Raijin Jutsu, reappearing where they had "vanished."
Soon, news of Snake Team's return reached the ears of Uchiha Obito and Black Zetsu.
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