radicalducati Chapter 381 Akatsuki Intelligence, Orochimaru's Ambition
Chapter 381 Akatsuki Intelligence, Orochimaru's Ambition
"Intelligence? I see. It seems you haven't given up on getting revenge on Itachi, Sasuke-kun, hehehe..." Orochimaru couldn't help but chuckle wickedly upon hearing that Sasuke had abandoned the mission for the sake of intelligence, a thought stirring within him.
Now that Sasuke is a sage, the possibility of him continuing to take over the other's body is almost nonexistent!
So, it's not impossible that he might exploit his hatred for Itachi. If the two brothers end up severely injured, he might be able to obtain two perfect vessels.
Compared to Sasuke, it was actually Itachi's body that fascinated him more. Possessing both Amaterasu, the strongest physical attack, and Tsukuyomi, the strongest mental attack, he was practically the most perfect Uchiha.
Furthermore, he could use this opportunity to get Konoha to help restrain the Akatsuki through Sasuke, since he is currently at odds with the Akatsuki, and the Akatsuki's goals are also detrimental to him.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Konoha now boasts Jiraiya, Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage Kakashi, Mangekyou Sharingan user Junto, and Sasuke, plus Mitarashi Ishikawa, a ninja village no weaker than a Kage. This is undoubtedly the strongest ninja village to contend with Akatsuki, bar none…
"Enough with the nonsense, agree to this condition or let me kill you." Sasuke ignored Orochimaru's inner thoughts and pressed him with a stern voice, trying to appear calm.
This is the most crucial psychological battle; he cannot reveal the slightest flaw that would arouse Orochimaru's suspicion and cause him to fail at the last minute...
"Hehe, Sasuke-kun, you're still too impatient!" Orochimaru chuckled, a glint of shrewdness in his eyes, and shook his head. He then spat out a sticky scroll and held it in his hand. "I have information on Akatsuki, but why do you think I'd give it to you?"
"Don't spout nonsense about killing me. That kind of childish threat has no effect on me. Even if you have the Mangekyou Sharingan in Sage Mode, you absolutely can't stop me from leaving!"
"How can this be repaired..."
Sasuke's expression changed upon hearing this, but he also knew Orochimaru was right. Even if Orochimaru's Sage Mode was merely a facade, and he could actually unleash Sage Techniques, Orochimaru would have no chance of escaping.
This can be seen from Orochimaru's two previous attacks on Konoha.
[This is troublesome. In that case, we'll have to try using Sage Mode...] Sasuke glanced at Sai circling in the sky, a resolute look flashing in his eyes as he made his decision.
His senior brother's first S-rank mission was one he couldn't afford to fail. With Sai around, even if they ultimately failed, he could use Manda to delay Orochimaru's safe retreat.
"Heh, so you're still too naive, Sasuke!" Just as Sasuke was preparing for his last gamble, Orochimaru suddenly licked his lips and threw the scroll over.
Sasuke instinctively reached out and caught the intelligence scroll that flew towards him, then stared at Orochimaru with a bewildered expression, "Uh? Why??"
No way, is this guy crazy?!
He was about to go all in, so why did he suddenly hand over the intelligence? Could it be fake intelligence?
"If I had to give a reason, I'd say I was just enjoying the wind..." Orochimaru glanced meaningfully at Sasuke, then smiled faintly as the Yamata no Orochi beneath him transformed into a fluid and flowed rapidly back.
"The pleasure of the wind??" Sasuke was dumbfounded again upon hearing this, staring at Orochimaru with an expression that looked at him like he was crazy, his face full of black lines.
Is this guy joking?
"Heh, that's the difference between us. Sasuke-kun, I'm really looking forward to seeing how far your gust of wind can push that windmill of Konoha!"
"Finally, consider this a warning. You'd better not stop your wind manipulation, or I'll take over your body again when your wind stops..."
At this point, Orochimaru glanced greedily and unwillingly at Sasuke's eyes with his snake-like pupils before slowly disappearing underground!
"What the hell! Orochimaru, is he crazy??" After a moment of stunned silence, Sasuke finally came to his senses and could only helplessly retort.
What wind? I have absolutely no idea what that guy is trying to say...
Looking at the scroll in his hand, Sasuke immediately opened it and looked down, his expression turning solemn: "Akatsuki Zero Burial, Pain, Rinnegan."
From this very beginning, Sasuke was certain that the information was correct.
After all, last time at Ryuchi Cave, my senior brother Ishikawa mentioned that the leader of Akatsuki possessed the legendary Rinnegan, the eye of the Sage of Six Paths.
Skipping over the rest of the text about Itachi, Sasuke's gaze sharpened again. "Akatsuki's Suzaku, Uchiha Itachi, proficient in Fire Release and Genjutsu, possesses the strongest physical attack, the eye technique Amaterasu, and the strongest mental attack, the eye technique Tsukuyomi. His teammate is Kisame Hoshigaki, an S-rank rogue ninja from Kirigakure, proficient in Water Release and swordsmanship, wielding the legendary greatsword Samehada, known as the tailless tailed beast..."
"Just as I thought, Orochimaru's information should be correct." Sasuke put the scroll back into his ninja tool pouch, then turned his gaze to Manda with his crimson eyes. "Remember this, I'm not that Orochimaru! If you don't cooperate when I summon you next time, I'll have to erase your consciousness and turn you into a puppet tool."
With a cold, threatening tone, the kaleidoscope pattern on the snake's pupils immediately dissipated, returning to its previous emerald green.
"Damn brat, I never thought I'd actually..." Manda started to yell, but before it could finish, Sasuke's eyes flashed crimson, his eye technique poised to strike. "Calling yourself 'master' in front of me? Manda, do you want to die right now?!"
A chilling, bone-deep killing intent instantly permeated the entire body of Manda, freezing the unruly Manda in place as if he had seen the Grim Reaper!
That feeling made Wan She 100% certain that this brat really dared to kill it!!
The mere thought of Amaterasu's terrifying slicing of the white phosphorus serpent with the ease with which it had cut through melons and vegetables sent a shiver down Manda's spine, leaving him drenched in sweat...
"Lord Sasuke, you are now the Snake Sage who inherited the legacy of the White Snake Sage. Manda will naturally obey your commands." Without the slightest hesitation, Manda immediately submitted and bowed his head.
However, in order to save face, he gritted his teeth and added the honorific title of "immortal" to give himself some psychological comfort.
Damn it, what's wrong with Orochimaru? He actually sent me such a nemesis!
The once unruly and arrogant Lord Manda will cease to exist from this day forward... Waaaaah...
"Very good, go back!" Sasuke nodded in satisfaction and exited Sage Mode. Seeing this, Manda dared not linger and immediately turned into white smoke, returning to Ryuchi Cave to lick his psychological wounds.
Just as Sasuke fell from mid-air, Sai caught him with a beautiful glide maneuver using his Black Eagle. "Let's go, let's get out of here first."
Sasuke stumbled and almost fell, covering his eyes and urging him on.
Upon seeing this, Sai immediately understood why Captain Sasuke hadn't continued fighting earlier—he was nearing his limit. With a stroke of his brush, he drew another ink eagle that swooped down, and the other two ANBU members immediately jumped on and retreated at full speed.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru, a kilometer away, looked at the Anbu members in front of him with a mocking gaze, "You've been hiding in the Anbu and spying on me since just now. I thought you weren't going to come out!"
"Speak, who sent you?"