After a brief pause, the mocking laughter faded away.
Orochimaru's expression turned solemn as he said, "Yuan-kun, become my disciple."
Hearing this, Uchiha Yuan was slightly taken aback before shaking his head. "I'm sorry, Orochimaru-senpai, but I already have a teacher."
"Who is it?"
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed, his voice carrying a hint of curiosity. "Is it the one who taught you the Hatake Sword Technique?"
"That's right, you saw through it, Senpai."
"Although you've already merged the Hatake Sword Technique seamlessly into your taijutsu—one might even say you've surpassed its framework—your movements still carry traces of that style," Orochimaru observed with interest. "Yet, as far as I know, no one in the Hatake clan possesses such mastery of the sword. I'm curious—who is your teacher, Yuan-kun? Will you tell me?"
"My teacher is Hatake Sakumo, the White Fang of Konoha," Uchiha Yuan replied calmly.
For a brief moment, irritation flickered in Orochimaru's eyes. He thought Uchiha Yuan was mocking him. But when he met Yuan's gaze, that anger quickly vanished.
From the look in Yuan's eyes, Orochimaru could tell he wasn't joking.
The snake-like pupils in Orochimaru's eyes gleamed faintly. "Yuan-kun, Sakumo-senpai has been dead for years. Tell me—how can a dead man be your teacher?"
"Because I can see the souls of the dead."
At that statement, Orochimaru's usually placid aura rippled for the first time.
Shock crossed his face. After a long silence, his expression turned intrigued. "To see the souls of the dead—could that be a special ability of your Sharingan?"
"Sorry to disappoint you, Senpai. My family's bloodline hasn't awakened in me. I don't possess the Sharingan."
Orochimaru frowned slightly. "Not the Sharingan, huh…"
He gave Yuan a deep look, then smiled. "Yuan-kun, you're revealing quite a secret. Aren't you afraid I might tell others?"
Yuan smiled back. "Then, Orochimaru-senpai, would you?"
Orochimaru merely chuckled softly, offering no answer. Instead, he asked, "You've shared this secret with me—what's your purpose?"
Uchiha Yuan's demeanor grew serious. "Orochimaru-senpai, I wish to cooperate with you."
"Cooperate?"
Orochimaru's golden eyes gleamed as he studied the young man before him, a wicked smile curling his lips. "Yuan-kun, what can you offer me? What makes you think I'd want to cooperate with you?"
Yuan asked in turn, "Senpai, you once gave up competing for the Hokage's seat. For someone like you, that can only mean you're pursuing a far greater goal. Could you tell me what that goal is?"
Orochimaru lifted his gaze toward the night sky, fixing his eyes upon the silver moon.
After a long silence, he finally spoke slowly:
"In the face of that eternal moon, no matter who we are—you, me, or even the godlike First Hokage—we are all as insignificant as insects. Life is fragile. What I seek… is a ninjutsu that grants immortality."
"As expected of Orochimaru-senpai," Yuan said, showing neither surprise nor mockery. "A grand yet elusive goal indeed."
Inwardly, he thought: Just as I suspected—Orochimaru has already begun to pursue immortality. Perhaps he's even started human experiments in secret.
"Then tell me, Yuan-kun," Orochimaru said, his tone soft but probing. "If you wish to cooperate with me, what is it that you want?"
"My teacher, Sakumo-sensei, once said that among the Legendary Sannin, Orochimaru-senpai possesses the greatest knowledge and the clearest mind. I hope that by exchanging insights in ninjutsu with you, I can advance further and faster along my own path."
Orochimaru chuckled. "Interesting. According to the reports from the village, Yuan-kun, you excel only in taijutsu. Your talent for ninjutsu is said to be mediocre. How exactly do you intend to 'exchange' ninjutsu with me?"
Uchiha Yuan extended his hands. In one palm flared a ball of fire, while in the other crackled arcs of lightning.
The fire quickly compressed, its color shifting through shades of orange until it turned silver-white. At the same time, the lightning in his other hand condensed into the shape of a shuriken.
"Chakra nature and form manipulation combined so precisely… Such exquisite control," Orochimaru murmured in admiration. "I didn't expect your mastery of chakra to be at such a level, Yuan-kun."
Clearly, the power Yuan displayed far exceeded the intelligence reports from the village. But Orochimaru didn't mind—everyone had secrets. As long as those secrets posed no threat to him, the more talented Yuan appeared, the better.
And Yuan, understanding Orochimaru's mindset, had revealed just enough of his true strength to earn his interest.
"Yuan-kun," Orochimaru said as he turned to leave, "in a few days, I'll assign you to my personal unit."
Yuan smiled respectfully. "Thank you, Orochimaru-senpai."
Orochimaru's personal unit wasn't just made up of his closest subordinates—it also served as the command force of the Sand battlefield.
Four days later, while resting with Senju Gen in their camp, Uchiha Yuan was summoned to headquarters.
In front of several jōnin, Orochimaru formally praised Yuan's achievements on the battlefield as though meeting him for the first time, then announced his transfer into the personal unit.
Upon joining Orochimaru's direct command, Uchiha Yuan was promoted straight from genin to jōnin.
Two months later, the war-weary Sunagakure—its strength nearly exhausted—finally surrendered to Konoha. Both sides began withdrawing their troops from the border, and Orochimaru, following orders, returned to the village.
However, upon learning of Sunagakure's surrender, Iwagakure and Kumogakure suddenly launched fierce offensives against Konoha.
As a result, most of Konoha's forces from the Sand front were redeployed to those two new battlefields.
Between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning lay several small nations serving as buffer zones. Among them was the Land of Hot Water—bordering the Land of Fire—which had now become the main battlefield between Konoha and Kumogakure.
"Captain Yuan! Three miles ahead is our camp—but it's currently under heavy attack by a large Cloud-nin force!"
A Konoha shinobi ran up to the marching column, reporting urgently to Uchiha Yuan.
This reinforcement unit had been sent from the Sand front to support the fight against the Cloud. It was commanded by a major captain, under whom served five squad captains.
Uchiha Yuan was one of those five, leading a three-hundred-man division.
Though his strength had earned the acknowledgment of his comrades, many still grumbled in secret. They believed his promotion came only from Orochimaru's favoritism.
At that moment, several Konoha shinobi in the ranks cast envious, resentful glances in his direction.
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