As soon as those words were spoken, the entire crowd fell silent.
"You're claiming to be Orochimaru-sama's student? Who would believe that?" the Uchiha clan member shouted.
Uchiha Fugaku snapped, "Enough. Shut your mouth."
"Captain—"
"I said shut it!"
"...Yes, sir."
Fugaku narrowed his eyes, staring intently at Kiyosuke. Activating his Sharingan, he observed the boy's chakra flow and noticed a strong fire-natured chakra.
"You said you're Orochimaru-sama's student. Got any proof?"
Kiyosuke raised his hand, revealing a small white snake coiled around his wrist.
"This snake was a gift from my teacher, Orochimaru."
The white snake lifted its head, flicking its tongue as it sensed the tangled scents in the air.
"That's definitely Orochimaru-sama's summoning beast."
Only Orochimaru in all of Konoha was known for using snakes. These white snakes weren't particularly suited for combat, but during wartime, he often used them to transmit intelligence. As the strongest in the current Uchiha clan, Fugaku had seen these snakes before.
Of course, a snake alone wasn't enough to prove the boy was Orochimaru's disciple. But it at least showed they had a close relationship—such a snake wouldn't just appear on someone else's hand.
One of the ANBU operatives nodded in recognition and said,
"Even so, this needs to be officially reported. Besides, we haven't heard anything about Orochimaru-sama taking on a student. You'll need to come with us."
"Then go ahead and file the report. Sorry for the trouble. I'll be more careful next time."
Next time?
You're apologizing seriously while already planning a repeat offense?
Everyone twitched at the corners of their mouths, helpless against the absurdity.
"Let's go."
Just as the ANBU were about to take Kiyosuke away, someone from the Konoha Police Force stepped forward.
"Hold on. You ANBU are overstepping. This falls under the jurisdiction of the Police Force. We'll take the brat."
"His jutsu is already a threat to Konoha's safety. He's coming with us," an ANBU countered coldly. As a direct division under the Hokage, ANBU had no reason to yield to the Uchiha.
"I think I'll be taking the boy."
A raspy, low voice cut through the tension—cold, yet magnetic.
"Orochimaru-sama."
"Orochimaru-sama."
Both factions turned to greet him.
As one of the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi's disciples, one of the Legendary Sannin, and a decorated war hero, Orochimaru was widely considered the top candidate to succeed as Hokage. His strength alone earned him immense respect.
Emerging from the shadows, Orochimaru said calmly,
"Thanks for coming all this way. This brat is mine. I'll handle it."
He'd rushed over the moment he heard the explosion. Judging by the scene, it was indeed Kiyosuke's handiwork.
Looking over at the massive crater in the ground, Orochimaru asked,
"What technique did you use to do this?"
Kiyosuke answered, "It was the one you mentioned before. I tried training it today. Since I didn't have enough chakra, I used a Shadow Clone instead. I made some adjustments based on your idea and split it into two components."
Orochimaru's eyes gleamed.
"Impressive. The power's not bad."
He turned to Fugaku and the ANBU.
"The kid's a bit reckless, but it was just training. No need to take him in."
"Understood."
With those words, the ANBU operatives vanished in a blink.
As for the Police Force, Fugaku gave a slight bow.
"Then we'll excuse ourselves as well, Orochimaru-sama."
"Thanks for coming all this way, Fugaku-kun. And congratulations on your recent marriage."
"I'm honored." Fugaku remained composed and left with his men.
Now that Orochimaru was here, there was no reason to escalate things. Offending him would only invite trouble. The Uchiha clan already had enemies on all sides—they didn't need another.
As he surveyed the devastation, Orochimaru said, "Use that technique on me again."
"Uh—okay."
...
Boom!
Another explosion rocked the ground. The two of them waved away the dust cloud in front of them.
Orochimaru absorbed the memories from the Shadow Clone and remarked,
"Its power could seriously injure an unprepared jonin. But if they're ready for it, your clone won't survive."
In other words, the technique only worked when it caught people off guard. Of course, if used by the original body, the outcome might be different.
"I understand."
"Good. When we get back, continue testing your abilities."
"Yes, sir."
Nice—he didn't hear me bluffing earlier about being your student...
...
In the Lab
Orochimaru handed Kiyosuke a sheet of paper.
"What's this for?"
"It's a chakra affinity test paper," Orochimaru explained. "It'll show what elemental natures your chakra has."
"Let's give it a shot." Kiyosuke was curious about his own chakra nature too.
Under Orochimaru's guidance, he poured chakra into the paper. Instantly, half of it sliced clean through, while the other half curled up in flames.
"Wind and fire, huh? Not bad..."
Orochimaru suddenly muttered to himself, eyes lighting up,
"Could it be... this special Kekkei Genkai is a fusion of these two elements? Wind and fire together usually produce Scorch Release, but maybe... this is something else entirely? I should've tested his chakra a long time ago..."
Kiyosuke watched him fall into his usual spiral of muttering.
He'd seen it too many times over the past half-year. Orochimaru was obsessed with research—no wonder he was considered one of the top scientific minds in the ninja world. That dedication alone was admirable.
But every time Orochimaru went down a mental rabbit hole like this, Kiyosuke couldn't help but feel a little bad.
Because the truth was—Orochimaru's starting assumptions were completely wrong. No matter how deeply he theorized, he'd never get the right answer.
Still, for the sake of his own safety... Kiyosuke wisely kept quiet. He didn't want to end up dead.
"Come on. Let's run an experiment."
"Oh, okay."
He followed along like a loyal assistant, silently watching Orochimaru walk straight into another scientific dead end...
...
In the days leading up to graduation exams, Kiyosuke didn't return to the Academy at all. He was officially on leave. Anyone who didn't know better would've thought he'd dropped out.
In reality, he was still being experimented on—Orochimaru was busy gathering data.
But no matter how many experiments he ran, Orochimaru couldn't unravel the mystery behind Kiyosuke's elemental transformation. Eventually, he had to put that research on hold and focus on other projects.
That's when Kiyosuke realized just how twisted Orochimaru really was.
Though he hadn't yet reached the point of using humans as test subjects, he was already experimenting on snakes and other animals—dissecting them, warping their shapes into bizarre forms. It was... disturbing, to say the least.
"When you see the battlefield, you'll understand—this is already pretty tame."
Orochimaru said it softly, almost like a warning.
Suddenly, he asked, "Kiyosuke-kun, I have a question for you. What do you think a ninja is?"
A ninja?
Kiyosuke thought for a moment and replied,
"An assassin. A tool. A sacrifice."
Ninjas existed for war from the very beginning. Back in the Warring States period, clans were hired as mercenaries, constantly fighting each other—no better than tools. Things hadn't really changed much. The only difference was that now the clans had grown into villages. Every ninja was still expendable—dying for the sake of a mission.
Orochimaru paused, then gave Kiyosuke a long, thoughtful look before smiling.
"An interesting perspective. And not entirely wrong. Personally, I believe a ninja is someone who masters all forms of ninjutsu. That's why I want to learn every jutsu there is."
"Wouldn't Shadow Clones do the trick? As long as your chakra reserves are high enough, you can drastically shorten your training time."
In the world of shinobi, Shadow Clone training was absurdly effective. It was practically broken—massive experience gains in no time.
"You're absolutely right. That's been my dream all along. And what about you, Kiyosuke-kun? Why did you become a ninja? What are you fighting for?"
"...What am I fighting for?"
A blank look crossed Kiyosuke's face.
"To survive. Just... to stay alive in this cruel world."
"A noble goal."
Orochimaru nodded approvingly.
"To fight for your own survival... that's admirable."
"I think so too. Haha."
"Then keep training hard, Kiyosuke-kun. Make the world remember your name."
"Yes, sir."
"Oh, and go collect 100 milliliters of mixed venom for me," Orochimaru added, handing him a test tube.
Wait—we were just talking about life and ideals, and now I'm being sent off to do grunt work again?
Tch!
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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