"Is Orochimaru's genjutsu really this strong?!"
Nagato had been shouting "Release!" for a while now, but Orochimaru remained stiff as a board on the ground.
Clearly.
Nagato would sooner believe that his Samsara Eye could be caught in a genjutsu than accept that Uchiha Sasuke had instantly knocked out Orochimaru—who had just begun his path of Cultivation of Immortality—with a single illusion.
Sasuke's thoughts were the same.
He had once trained very hard in the Sharingan's genjutsu, but one night after awakening his first tomoe, he secretly tried using it on Kaito…
Only for that annoying guy to scrunch up his face in disgust and say…
'Gross! If you wanna bat your eyelashes, go do it at Uzumaki Naruto!'
He hadn't just tested it on Kaito, either—he had also tried it on Itachi at the time.
Sasuke clearly remembered Itachi scratching his head, looking at him with concern as he asked if he hadn't slept well the night before…
These two incidents alone didn't prove much, but what truly shattered Sasuke's confidence was Naruto.
His Sharingan genjutsu couldn't even control a dead-last like him.
From then on, Sasuke became convinced that his talent for genjutsu was abysmal. He rarely practiced illusions in his daily training, and the most exposure he'd had to them in recent years was the Tsukuyomi he endured from their ancestor…
Squatting on the ground, chin resting on his palm, Sasuke stared at the peacefully slumbering Orochimaru, lost in deep thought. Meanwhile, Nagato stood frozen in place, wondering if the three of them had been caught in some legendary formation.
Given Orochimaru's terrifying learning ability…
It wasn't impossible for him to be both an Alchemist and a Formation Master.
A Formation Master… an illusionary formation?As if to confirm his suspicions, Nagato immediately began searching around. He moved a couple of stones here, rummaged through a trash bin there, muttering to himself...
"What does the array's core even look like?"
Kaito tilted his head back and took a deep breath, feeling his blood pressure spike to a headache-inducing level.
After taking a moment to calm himself, he pointed at Orochimaru lying on the ground and addressed the two.
"Is there a possibility..."
"That instead of you two being under a Genjutsu, it's actually Orochimaru who's been hit by one?"
"Impossible!" x2
Sasuke and Nagato turned their heads in unison, shouting almost simultaneously.
Especially Sasuke...
He'd rather accept that his skills weren't as strong as this guy's than admit that his opponent had been instantly subdued by his Genjutsu.
After all...
All the Ninjutsu and taijutsu he'd trained so hard in couldn't even scratch Orochimaru, yet an illusion technique he barely practiced had managed to control him. The mere thought was unbearable for Sasuke.
To convince them, Kaito vanished from his spot with a Body Flicker Technique and reappeared holding a basin of water, which he promptly splashed onto Orochimaru's face with a loud "splash!"
"Gah—"
The sudden sensation of drowning instantly jolted Orochimaru awake from his unconscious state.
He sat up abruptly, gasping for air, then wiped the wet hair from his face.
At this moment, Nagato fell into stunned silence upon witnessing the truth.
Sasuke, on the other hand, seemed petrified, standing motionless with a vacant stare fixed on Orochimaru.
He looked utterly disillusioned with life.
"A side effect of the Living Corpse Reincarnation?"
Rather than being angered by his defeat, Orochimaru sat calmly, analyzing the flaws in his own technique.
Until now, Orochimaru had never realized his weakness against Genjutsu—or more precisely, he hadn't considered how the soul degradation caused by Living Corpse Reincarnation would leave him vulnerable to even a Three Tomoe illusion.
At this realization, Orochimaru couldn't help but glance at Sasuke again.
In a way...
Uchiha Sasuke had saved his life.
Orochimaru's long tongue slithered out, licking his lips meaningfully as he remarked,
"Very well, Sasuke-kun. I'll remember you."
Hearing that familiar voice, Sasuke immediately snapped out of his daze. He eyed the snake-like man, arrogantly lifting his chin with even more bravado than before the fight.
"Defeated trash."
"Hmph, you haven't even seen a fraction of my true power."
As Sasuke spoke, his legs trembled slightly as he walked over to Kaito. Trying to appear casual, he slung an arm over Kaito's shoulder to steady himself—his Chakra nearly depleted, making it hard to maintain this victorious facade.
This sudden shift in attitude left Nagato utterly dumbfounded.
Despite having lived so many years, he'd never seen someone so shameless.
One second thinking he'd been caught in a Genjutsu, and the next—after learning the truth—immediately putting on this act?
Nagato's piercing gaze locked onto Uchiha Kaito, as if demanding to know if all Uchihas were this insufferable.
Having witnessed Sasuke's transition from confusion to arrogance firsthand, and now feeling Nagato's judgmental stare, Kaito's face burned with embarrassment.
Especially when he caught Sasuke—far from showing any shame—striking a proud pose, hands on hips, head held high, declaring:
"Hardly worth mentioning."Although Sasuke also admitted that this kind of expression was rather unsightly, whenever he recalled Orochimaru's mockery, he couldn't help but put on a show—a counterattack against Orochimaru's previous behavior.
However...
He hadn't expected it to feel unexpectedly satisfying.
"Looks like the ancestor prepared a meal for me today..."
"I'm out!"
Kaito couldn't take it anymore and turned to leave.
Nagato didn't move because he planned to ask Orochimaru for the Body Tempering Technique later.
When Sasuke saw Kaito leaving, he was about to follow, but Orochimaru grabbed him and said, "We happen to have guests coming tonight."
"You can stay for dinner."
Hearing this, Sasuke didn't react much, but Nagato immediately nodded, as if signaling he would definitely stay for dinner.
"Ridiculous."
"Who wants to eat here?"
Sasuke swatted Orochimaru's hand away, hoisted the Executioner's Blade over his shoulder, and ran after Kaito.
"Kaito! Wait for me!"
Orochimaru: "..."
Lord Orochimaru, who had finally mustered some goodwill, felt particularly sour after being rejected by Uchiha Sasuke.
Nagato watched as the Alchemist's face visibly darkened. Not daring to make a sound, he could only stand there dumbly, offering silent companionship as a form of comfort.
But Orochimaru found Nagato's presence utterly unnecessary.
"Why are you still here?"
"Kaito mentioned the Body Tempering Technique—"
Slap—
Before Nagato could finish, Orochimaru pulled a scroll from his sleeve and tossed it at his feet, then turned and walked inside.
He even slammed the door behind him.
"Apologies, Sect Leader."
"I have much to attend to."
Orochimaru's current attitude was a stark contrast to how he'd treated Sasuke earlier, leaving Nagato momentarily stunned.
Just moments ago, he'd invited Sasuke to stay for dinner...
But now he's kicking me out???
Nagato was both exasperated and resigned. After glancing around and confirming he was alone, he used Almighty Pull to retrieve the scroll from the ground and walked away from Orochimaru's doorstep as if nothing had happened.
Before leaving, however, he cast one last look in the direction Sasuke had gone, then turned back to Orochimaru's tightly shut door, murmuring under his breath.
"Sasuke... is he really your dad?"
...