"Kintsuchi bro?!" Naruto froze in place. "How could you?!"
"We're friends!"
"Good friends!"
Sasuke, on the other hand, reacted much more decisively. His Sharingan was already activated, and he had drawn a kunai, fully prepared for battle. Though caution lingered in his eyes, there was also a restless excitent.
Seeing this, Kyoshin almost lost it.
Sasuke in the original story had basically been like a honey badger.
He refused to submit to anyone and wanted to throw hands with everybody he t.
And the result?
Almost every ti, he ended up beaten black and blue.
Yet he never learned.
Only after his "redemption," when he fought Uchiha Madara and Otsutsuki Kaguya alongside Naruto, did he finally achieve one of the few genuine victories of his life.
Even their final battle could only be considered mutual destruction. There was no real winner.
As for Sakura...
'Hm?'
'Why is this girl so calm?'
Kyoshin was a little surprised as his gaze landed on Sakura.
She wore a smile on her face and casually took out her scroll without the slightest psychological burden, tossing it toward him.
"Here you go!"
"What?!" Naruto imdiately started shouting. "Sakura! How can you do that?!"
Sasuke also frowned tightly and once again shot Sakura an irritated look.
Then Kyoshin glanced at the scroll after catching it and tossed it back to them.
No choice. Their scrolls didn't match.
Under Naruto and Sasuke's stunned gazes, Sakura calmly put the scroll away.
She glanced at her two hotheaded teammates and sighed. "Didn't either of you notice? Our scrolls can't complete a pair. There's no prerequisite for conflict here."
Naruto and Sasuke: "..."
"Oh crap! Crap crap crap!! We do et the conditions for conflict! Gaara, aren't we leaving yet?!"
A nervous voice ca from nearby.
Team Seven and Kyoshin turned toward the source.
Gaara stood there with his arms folded, his dear brother and dear sister behind him.
The one who had shouted was Kankuro.
The mont Gaara noticed Kyoshin looking over, he didn't hesitate at all. Copying Sakura's earlier action, he tossed over his scroll.
After catching it, Kyoshin stored it away with satisfaction. "Thanks."
He knew perfectly well why this adorable little raccoon was doing this.
"Whaaaaat?!!!!" Kankuro's eyes instantly widened. "He kept it! Gaara, what are you doing?!"
Gaara shot Kankuro a glare. "Shut up!"
Only when he stayed near Kyoshin would Shukaku stop its incessant barking.
Right now, Gaara didn't want to go anywhere else. He simply intended to follow Kyoshin.
As for scrolls?
If they ran into another team along the way, they could just casually kill a few people. Problem solved.
While Kyoshin was talking with the Sunagakure team, Team Seven quietly prepared to slip away.
As expected, Kyoshin noticed imdiately and followed after them.
And not just Kyoshin. The mont Kyoshin moved, Gaara tagged along like a little follower.
After noticing Kyoshin trailing them, Naruto asked, "Um… Kintsuchi bro, why are you following us instead of heading to the central tower?"
Kyoshin thought for a mont before explaining, "Simply put, it's because my 'sensory ability' is lower than the target's 'concealnt ability,' so I can't lock onto their whereabouts. Since intelligence suggested they'd co looking for you, then…"
Sasuke's eyelid twitched. "So you're using us as bait?"
Utter humiliation... This was absolutely humiliating.
But he really couldn't do much about Kyoshin.
Sakura hurriedly said, "As long as he's not attacking us, then he's not a threat. Let's just keep moving quickly…"
She was almost at her limit.
This place was too dark and eerie. It constantly made her think of unpleasant things.
She just wanted the exam to end already. Whether they passed or failed, Sakura could accept either outco.
So Team Seven could only silently accept the reality of Kyoshin tailing them.
And Kyoshin's objective was very clear.
He wanted to find Orochimaru and try recruiting him.
Orochimaru might currently be infamous throughout the ninja world... But Kyoshin knew that by the end of the story, he was basically forgiven anyway.
More importantly, technology was the primary productive force.
And Kyoshin already possessed the necessary conditions to recruit Orochimaru. The success rate wasn't low either.
Just like that, Team Seven entered the Forest of Death.
Not long after they ventured deeper inside, the main figure finally appeared.
A strange Sound ninja wearing a bamboo hat blocked Team Seven's path.
The instant they saw Orochimaru, Team Seven imdiately beca alert.
Kyoshin, anwhile, relaxed.
Because so far, Orochimaru was the only person in the Forest of Death capable of firmly suppressing Deidara.
Since Orochimaru was here, that ant nothing would happen to Deidara and the others.
Orochimaru noticed Kyoshin and Gaara's team, but didn't beco overly cautious.
Kyoshin and Gaara might be slightly troubleso, but not everyone was a monster like Uchiha Itachi.
"My scroll just happens to match yours~" Orochimaru took out his own scroll, extending his disgusting tongue and slowly swallowing it back into his stomach, killing intent fully visible in his snake-like eyes.
Next, he intended to formally test just how far his future vessel had developed.
Because Orochimaru's main target was Team Seven, Kyoshin and Gaara's team weren't interfered with.
A battle was about to begin.
Kyoshin stood in the distance watching leisurely.
Gaara also made no move. He didn't care about anything except whether Shukaku would keep barking.
The battle between Team Seven and Orochimaru began.
With Orochimaru deliberately holding back, he finally managed to gauge Sasuke's true level.
Orochimaru felt sowhat disappointed.
But whatever.
Sasuke was currently the only remaining Uchiha in the ninja world besides Uchiha Itachi.
'Though weak, he could be trained slowly~'
"The gas are over."
Orochimaru used the Hidden Shadow Snake style substitution technique to disgustingly reset his injuries, then swept his gaze over the exhausted Naruto and Sakura before landing on Sasuke.
His neck stretched out at an absurd speed, and he bit directly into Sasuke's neck.
Kyoshin watched as if he hadn't seen anything.
Sasuke's growth in Konoha really had been slow. Going to Orochimaru honestly would be better for him.
As for Kyoshin once telling Uchiha Itachi, "I'll help you fully complete your mission," that had rely been to make Itachi constantly live with the fear that Sasuke might be attacked by Kyoshin at any mont.
In truth, those words had beco the thing Itachi worried about most over the past several years, further weakening both his body and spirit.
Naruto desperately tried to get up and save the screaming Sasuke, but his body had already reached its limit.
Left with no choice, Naruto turned toward Kyoshin.
"Kintsuchi bro! We're friends!"
Sakura: "..."
Even now, he was still relying on soone else to save them?
Orochimaru's neck retracted as he looked at Sasuke expectantly.
"I'll be awaiting Sasuke-kun's arrival at any ti."
Kyoshin flew over from the distance and looked down at Sakura.
"Take Naruto and Sasuke and leave."
Orochimaru looked over with interest. "That chakra… astonishing."
'Too bad he isn't from the Uchiha clan… Otherwise, this Kintsuchi from Iwagakure is clearly the superior choice.'
Sakura had been so frightened from the start that she'd lost the ability to fight. Hearing Kyoshin's words now, she forced herself to hold together.
"Thank you."
Sakura helped Naruto and Sasuke up, slowly leaving under Orochimaru's gaze.
Orochimaru had already achieved his objective, so he made no move to stop them.
Once Team Seven was gone, Orochimaru finally turned to Kyoshin.
"So then, little one from Iwagakure, what business do you have with ?"
Orochimaru had been secretly observing Team Seven the entire ti. He knew what Kyoshin had told them earlier.
Kyoshin raised a hand and removed his mask, revealing a handso face.
Orochimaru's pupils contracted violently.
'That face. Those Sharingan eyes!'
'Uchiha Kyoshin!!!'
After being defeated by Uchiha Itachi, Orochimaru had long coveted the Uchiha bloodline.
He had gathered vast amounts of information about the clan.
As for Uchiha Kyoshin, he was one of Orochimaru's greatest regrets.
Because from childhood, Uchiha Kyoshin had displayed talent far beyond his peers.
Much greater than Sasuke's.
In Orochimaru's judgnt, Uchiha Kyoshin's talent was at minimum comparable to Uchiha Shisui's.
'Perhaps even… close to Uchiha Itachi.'
But unfortunately, after the night of the massacre, all information regarding Uchiha Kyoshin had vanished without a trace, just like the rest of the clan.
"How interesting…" Orochimaru trembled with excitent, though inwardly he also felt regret.
Heaven Curse Marks didn't grow on trees. This ti, he had only prepared one, and he had already used it on Uchiha Sasuke.
"So what exactly is your purpose?" Rather than imdiately attacking and attempting to capture Kyoshin, Orochimaru decided to probe him verbally first.
'This little brat…'
He vanished for so many years, only to reappear as an Anbu and genin from Iwagakure.
'How mysterious~'
The three tomoe in Kyoshin's eyes locked onto Orochimaru as he calmly said, "The Sharingan is the eye that reflects the heart. Its interdiate form is the Mangekyo Sharingan."
"Every pair of Mangekyo Sharingan possesses different abilities, but broadly speaking, those abilities are tied to whatever the awakener desires most at the ti."
Orochimaru frowned. 'Why is he telling this?'
But Kyoshin wasn't finished.
"No matter whose Uchiha body you seize, you'll never obtain the Mangekyo Sharingan ability you truly desire."
"Including, but not limited to… abilities possibly related to immortality."
Orochimaru's heart began pounding violently.
Kyoshin continued, "I suggest cultivating a clone body using Uchiha cells. That way, not only would you obtain the most suitable body for yourself, but you also wouldn't need to worry about losing a battle for control against another soul and suffering backlash."
"More importantly, clone bodies cultivated from Uchiha cells will inherit a certain degree of the original owner's talent."
'He knows too much...', Orochimaru felt completely seen through. 'That feeling again…'
Orochimaru's mind flashed with the image of Uchiha Itachi as he narrowed his snake-like eyes.
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
Kyoshin smiled, "To summarize, I know where Uchiha Madara's cells are."
From Kyoshin's perspective, Orochimaru's expression changed so dramatically it was like watching a stage magician perform tricks.
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