"Get up," Kageyama Kogetsu said with a smile.
"Thank you, my lord," Hoshigaki Kisame said, standing up and clasping his hands.
"Your water-style ninjutsu is very unique, but its attack power is not strong enough."
"This scroll is for you."
"It records the water-style ninjutsu of Konoha's Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama. It can make up for your shortcomings."
Kageyama Kogetsu flipped his wrist and took out a scroll, handing it over.
An ordinary ninja would probably have eagerly taken it, but Hoshigaki Kisame did not.
"My lord, I have no merits. I am not worthy of this reward."
"It's no trouble. In the future, if your merits do not exceed the value of this scroll, I will not reward you."
"Thank you, my lord," Hoshigaki Kisame said, only then taking the scroll with both hands and putting it away.
"Alright, the matter is settled."
"Let's go. We'll have a meal together in a nearby town."
"In the future, the four of you must cooperate sincerely in the Akatsuki. You need to get to know each other better."
The four of them naturally had no objections and followed Kageyama Kogetsu to a nearby town. After disguising themselves, they went to the highest-class restaurant in town for a meal.
After the meal and tea, Kageyama Kogetsu took Kakuzu and Pakura back to the Land of Birds, and then spent a day alone with Pakura before returning to Konoha.
...
Otogakure central building, underground research base.
Mitarashi Anko, who had sneaked into Otogakure during her vacation, was captured by Kimimaro and locked in a room in the research base.
Because Orochimaru had used a forbidden jutsu to erase her memories, she had always held a grudge against him for abandoning her and conducting human experiments.
Upon learning that Orochimaru had established Otogakure, she hesitated and then decided to make a trip there.
The reason she gave herself was to capture Orochimaru and bring him back to Konoha to atone for his sins, but in reality, she was here to demand an explanation.
Anko had become Orochimaru's student as a child. After her memories were erased, she was not afraid, only left with confusion, disappointment, hatred, and some feelings of a father-figure teacher.
Before Orochimaru defected, he had asked for Anko's opinion, but Anko had firmly refused.
Seeing that Anko had no ambition and was not a fellow traveler, Orochimaru gave up on her.
And he left her with an incomplete Heaven's Cursed Seal, which had no transformation ability and almost killed her. It was only with Sarutobi Hiruzen's sealing that it was brought under control.
This was the cold and cruel side of Orochimaru.
The warm side was that he had erased Anko's memories, allowing her to pass the Anbu's interrogation and, with Hiruzen's protection, not be implicated.
The reason Anko was only a Special Jonin was mainly her own. Her mentality was affected, she had no ambition, and she was not active in her training.
Of course, Orochimaru certainly had confidentiality in mind.
Creak...
The slight sound of a door opening was heard. Orochimaru walked into the room and turned on the light in the small dark room.
Suddenly moving from a dim environment to a bright one, Anko's vision went black for a moment. It took a while for it to return to normal.
"Heh heh... does little Anko miss her teacher?" Orochimaru teased.
"Orochimaru!"
Anko was slightly stunned, then stood up and rushed over, punching him in the cheek.
Orochimaru easily dodged and grabbed her hand, twisting it behind her back. At the same time, he reached out and grabbed her other hand, twisting it behind her back as well.
"Without my teaching, Anko is not being a good girl," Orochimaru said, his snake-like tongue flickering as he moved closer to her face.
"Cut the crap. I was careless and got caught. I'm not good enough. You can kill me now," Anko said, turning her head to the side, her expression stubborn.
"How could a teacher kill his student?"
"Even though the student didn't leave Konoha with the teacher and even caused trouble in the ninja village the teacher founded."
"Stop fooling around. I'll let you go."
Orochimaru immediately let go of Anko and walked to a nearby chair to sit down.
Anko was surprised, "You asked for my opinion back then? Why don't I remember?"
Orochimaru briefly recounted what had happened in the past, emphasizing the teacher's care for his student.
Anko was quite moved by Orochimaru's sweet words, but she quickly came to her senses.
"No, if you really cared about me as a student, why would you plant this thing on me?"
"Do you know how much pain I was in? I almost died because of this!" Anko said angrily, pointing at the Cursed Seal on her neck.
"You have no ambition. Look at your strength now. You don't even have the strength of a proper Jonin."
"How can you survive in the ninja world with such strength?"
"In peacetime, the danger is not great, but once a Great Ninja War breaks out, you probably won't live to see the end of it."
"As a teacher, I have to think about my students' long-term future, so I bestowed this power upon you."
"If you want to take a shortcut, how can you not pay a price?"
"It's just pain. I had already anticipated that with my teacher's personality, as long as he was sure you were fine, he would definitely help you."
"It's just pain. You won't die," Orochimaru explained calmly, with a smile.
"You're lying. This thing hasn't brought me any power at all," Anko was a little shaken, but she still pointed out the flaw.
"The Heaven's Cursed Seal I gave you was not complete. It was just in preparation for what was to come."
"I perfected the Heaven's Cursed Seal a few years ago, and a while ago, I upgraded it further with Kogetsu-kun."
"You have a foundation, so it will be easy for you to receive the new power, and there will be no pain," Orochimaru said, still calm and composed.
"What? Lord Kogetsu is in cahoots with you?" Anko's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Such ugly words."
"Not only Kogetsu in Konoha has contact with me, but the Fifth Hokage also has contact with me."
"By the way, I also met with my teacher when I returned to Konoha a while ago."
"Although my teacher doesn't like me, he didn't call for my death, let alone make a move," Orochimaru said, his words a mix of two truths and a lie, extremely confusing.
Anko was dumbfounded, her worldview somewhat shattered.
How can the three highest-ranking officials of Konoha have contact with an S-rank rogue ninja?
"I made a big mistake back then, but I've already made up for it with my research results over the years."
"My research results have secretly saved the lives of many Konoha ninja. The number has already surpassed the number of people who died at my hands."
"Otherwise, why do you think I openly founded Otogakure and Konoha didn't have an extreme reaction?"
"Otogakure has already allied with Konoha and is considered a subordinate small ninja village. The news has been announced to the ninja world."
What Orochimaru said was logically self-consistent and extremely confusing.
Although Anko was not stupid, her mind was not that sharp either. Coupled with her emotional inclination, she believed him without a doubt.
"Then why don't you go back to Konoha?" Anko walked over, her expression softened, her face expectant.
"First, I can't bring myself to do it. My former junior is now above me."
"Second, Konoha has too many restrictions and is not free enough, which is not conducive to my scientific research."
"In my own ninja village, I can capture enemy ninja for experiments. Leaving is a good thing for both Konoha and me," Orochimaru explained in a flat tone.
After a moment of silence, Anko said, "I understand."
"Sit. It's been a long time since we've sat down and chatted peacefully."
"Mm," Anko poured Orochimaru a cup of tea before sitting down, her filial piety returning.
"So many years have passed in a flash. The little girl back then has grown into a young woman."
"Do you have a boy you like in Konoha?" Orochimaru said with a straight face.
Anko's face flushed slightly, and she remained silent.
It seems there isn't one. Good. Otherwise, I would have had to make a move, either by intimidating or even killing him.
"It seems there isn't one. That's normal. You've always been a rather simple-minded child."
"Forget it. I'll introduce you to one."
"What do you think of Kageyama Kogetsu?"
After a long detour, Orochimaru finally revealed his true intentions
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