Sasuke turned around, glaring at Kabuto Yakushi.
The white-haired man grinned innocently, looking harmless enough.
He only mentioned that Orochimaru wanted to meet him.
He never expected the real purpose was to confront Naruto.
The last person he wanted to see right now was him!
"I heard from Orochimaru that you fought against that man," Sasuke inquired, "Is he really strong?"
The vision of the Sharingan from the Land of Whirlpools resurfaced in his mind.
Naruto shook his head: "When he fought me, it seemed like he didn't use his full strength."
"I'm not entirely sure of his true power."
"But,"
Naruto glanced at Orochimaru, "If you can kill this guy and evolve your Sharingan into the Mangekyō, maybe you could have a shot at that man."
Sasuke looked down, quietly repeating, "Mangekyō, huh?"
Orochimaru tsked, joining their conversation: "Naruto-kun, your straightforwardness wounds me."
"Am I just a tool in your eyes?"
Naruto shot him a look: "When did you ever think otherwise?"
"I've always felt this way."
Orochimaru's grin widened, "You care so much about Sasuke-kun, why not strike a deal with me?"
"I could give him to you."
"As long as you're willing to share,"
"The secrets of those two swords and a way to refine the summoning technique with me."
Naruto looked over at Sasuke.
Sasuke clenched his fists, keeping his head low.
"Is it my excessive mercy that gave you the illusion that you could bargain with me?" he began, his tone soft yet cuttingly sharp.
Naruto's aura was combined with the Nine-Tails' wrath, targeting Orochimaru.
The snake-like man's expression slightly shifted, stepping back a bit: "Naruto-kun, you've grown stronger. I was just speaking casually."
"I intend to take Sasuke away; I don't need your consent." Naruto continued, "However, he has his own thoughts."
"I've prepared to bear the cost."
"I won't intervene."
He could see that Sasuke didn't want to accept "charity."
He just couldn't quite understand why his help would be viewed as "charity" in Sasuke's eyes.
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes, "Is that what you think, Naruto? Then I'm relieved."
Sasuke lifted his head, his expression no longer as heavy.
"Everyone chooses their own path." Naruto turned his gaze back to the black-haired boy with the awakened Three-Tomoe Sharingan. "As long as one is ready to face the consequences, whichever road he takes is his own decision."
"However."
"Orochimaru, I think Sasuke will be the one to emerge victorious in the end."
Orochimaru spoke softly, "Do you really regard him so highly, Naruto?"
"Let me think." Naruto tilted his head, sensing something unusual about Sasuke, "If I could express it in a phrase both you and that Uchiha Itachi guy have used."
"It would be that Sasuke's capacity far exceeds yours."
His eyes lingered on Sasuke's forehead.
Catching that hint of "unusualness."
Naruto walked over and removed the headband from Sasuke's head, discarding it casually on the ground, "If you choose to leave Konoha, then there's no need to wear such inconvenient things."
Sasuke slightly raised his head.
It had been a year and a half since they last met, and Naruto was now half a head taller than him.
In Konoha, he had been shorter than Sakura.
"Is that so?" Orochimaru wasn't angered by Naruto's words; instead, his interest was piqued, "It seems I can't let you down, Naruto."
Naruto turned his head, looking at Sasuke's neck, which was bare, and continued, "I have two pieces of advice for you."
"Don't accept Orochimaru's cursed seal, even though it is indeed a way to gain power."
"However."
"It's merely a poor substitute for 'Sage Mode.'"
"You might try to get the scroll from one of the Three Great Places, Ryuchi Cave, from Orochimaru's hands, and then learn Sage Mode from there."
"If you can't master that technique, then you can consider accepting Orochimaru's cursed seal."
Sasuke paused.
"Sage Mode?"
This is a fresh concept he hadn't heard of before. If Naruto holds it in such high regard, it must be a formidable power."
He nodded slightly.
Naruto continued, "The second thing is, he is currently researching the power of the soul."
"You might want to try learning about that too."
"It could potentially assist with the Sharingan."
Sasuke was startled and then nodded once more.
"Sage Mode and the power of the soul, huh?"
Naruto turned back with a bright smile towards Orochimaru, "Orochimaru, don't hoard your power."
"Hand it all over to Sasuke."
"And if you're hiding anything,"
"Even if you come out as the winner, I won't hesitate to kill you."
Orochimaru licked his lips, "Naruto, you really do favor Sasuke."
"He's my friend," Naruto answered without hesitation, "And you've already been killed by me once before."
He paused thoughtfully, "I have an immature idea now, maybe I'll need him for it in the future."
Orochimaru said nothing.
Sasuke lowered his head, lost in thought.
The experimental equipment was much richer than expected. Orochimaru's laboratory, except for its size, was not that different from the Twelfth Division's facilities.
Regarding information about criminals, Orochimaru also provided many dossiers.
Most of these contained threats to the Sound Village. Since Orochimaru had not shown himself again, with Kabuto Yakushi overtly leading, the village situation was not optimal.
After acquiring what he wanted, Naruto left immediately.
Catching a confirmed sinner and ninja nearby, Naruto took Karin and headed towards Konoha.
They sneaked in without alerting the Anbu.
Traces related to the Uzumaki clan were scarce in this village.
Soon found, at the edge of Konoha, there lay a dilapidated shrine left behind by the Uzumaki clan.
It was in a state of severe disrepair with most structures collapsed from lack of maintenance.
Only the signboard at the entrance retained the Uzumaki clan's emblem, its spiral pattern revealing its former owners.
They entered through the partially collapsed, low entrance.
Karin exclaimed in surprise, "There are so many masks here!"
As soon as they stepped inside, they saw the walls lined with three rows of Shinigami masks.
The Nine-Tails peered over, its gaze sweeping across them. "Which one could it be?" it wondered aloud.
All the masks appeared similar, each one featuring a terrifying, ferocious face with two horns on its head, but slight variations in features and facial shapes gave each a unique sense of identity.
"It's that one," Naruto reached out and took down the sixth mask from the second row.
The Nine-Tails leaned in closer, sniffing without detecting anything special.
"How can you be so sure?" it asked.
"Because they look the same," Naruto replied. "That demon looked just like this."
Karin took out a scroll, "So, should I summon that person now to free the Fourth Hokage's soul?"
Naruto shook his head, tossing the mask to her. "Hold on, let me prepare a bit more."
Karin tilted her head, puzzled by what else needed to be prepared.
Weren't all the tools, techniques, and personnel ready?
Naruto stepped out of the shrine.
With his hands pressed together, he initiated an incantation.
A massive barrier sprang up, enveloping the entire shrine from all sides.
Then, several sealing techniques unfolded across the ground within the barrier.
And finally, the last technique: "Bakudō Number 73, Tozansho."
A blue, inverted triangular prism appeared out of thin air, hovering above.
Having completed all these preparations, Naruto picked up Karin and entered the Tozansho.
"Naruto?" Karin was confused.
She didn't understand the significance of deploying so many sealing techniques.
Konoha wasn't worth such a fuss.
"Just in case of that guy from the Pure Land," Naruto shook his head.
Karin recalled, "You mean the Sage of the Six Paths?"
Though the Great Toad Sage hadn't directly stated who the master of the Pure Land was, from the hints it provided, it wasn't hard to surmise the truth.
"We still can't confirm if it's him." Naruto reached out and took the scroll from Karin's hands. "But that guy in the Pure Land is truly formidable. I could only barely catch traces of his actions."
"We're going to release the souls in a moment."
"If he takes them away, all this effort would be in vain."
As he spoke, he spread the scroll flat on the ground and placed his hand over it, initiating the summoning technique.
A wooden barrel appeared out of thin air.
Naruto opened it and yanked out the person inside.
"Lord Uzumaki!" The middle-aged ninja cautiously greeted him.
Naruto took the mask from Karin's hands once more and handed it to him. "Just like we agreed before."
"You help me perform this ritual."
"If you survive, I'll let you go."
The middle-aged man nodded, respectfully taking the mask and putting it on his face.
He formed the hand seals.
Chakra was drained from his body completely, and a spectral figure appeared behind him.
Karin still couldn't see anything, but the Nine-Tails, having been through the "Dead Demon Consuming Seal" before, saw it clearly.
That 'Death God' had a face as sinister and malevolent as the mask.
Naruto drew his sword.
"We met hastily once before."
"Now let me see what you really are."
He stepped forward in a flash, standing before the 'Death God'.
The ghastly figure remained unresponsive, its expression vacant, focusing solely on the ninja performing the ritual.
It seemed as though it only cared about whoever became its 'vessel', awaiting its next course of action.
Naruto's sword sliced through, striking its abdomen directly.
The specter continued to show no reaction.
Even when its belly was split open, five souls burst forth from within its body.
But as long as the one performing the ritual did nothing, it made no further moves.
At the very moment the souls emerged.
Naruto looked down.
In his perception, a surge of energy emerged from underground, crashing against the barrier. Its target was undoubtedly the four masses of souls that had just been released.
(End of Chapter)