Kabuto didn't lie. He just stared at Orochimaru, and his eyes were completely filled with Orochimaru.
"Heh, what a funny joke."
With a cold laugh, Orochimaru didn't continue talking. Instead, he turned around and went back to recording the data he hadn't finished earlier.
Orochimaru's reaction caught Kabuto off guard.
He hadn't expected him to react so calmly.
But it didn't matter. In the face of a power gap, whether it's fierce resistance or indifferent silence, neither would have any effect on him.
"Lord Orochimaru, you've fallen behind the times. The next era is mine."
"Kabuto."
After quickly finishing the remaining data, Orochimaru finally raised his head and looked at Kabuto again.
"You're too eager."
What Kabuto was thinking, Orochimaru could probably guess.
It was just that his power had grown stronger and he wasn't content being his subordinate anymore.
Orochimaru could understand that.
At this moment, Kabuto lacked nothing in terms of power or brains.
Orochimaru was even willing to treat him as a partner.
However, Kabuto made the mistake of thinking he could replace him or even surpass him.
"Kabuto, come with me. I'll show you something interesting."
Luckily, Orochimaru had prepared for this. He took Kabuto into a secret room.
Click.
He turned on the power, and Kabuto's pupils instantly dilated when he saw the clone body soaking in the nutrient solution inside the glass jar.
"Director...?"
That's right, the person who shook Yakushi Kabuto's mind was none other than the director of the orphanage from back in the day, Yakushi Nonō.
Yakushi Kabuto respected this director greatly.
If it weren't for the director, he might not even know where he'd end up dying.
The surname "Yakushi" that Kabuto carries was taken from Yakushi Nonō.
It's easy to imagine how important Nonō was in Kabuto's heart.
But because of the scheme set up by that old man, Danzo, Kabuto ended up personally killing the director.
This would be a pain that would stay with him for life.
"Orochimaru-sama, what do you mean by this?"
"It's quite obvious, I want to resurrect Yakushi Nonō."
Kabuto clenched his fists tightly.
He knew that once Yakushi Nonō was resurrected by Orochimaru, he would no longer have the qualification to resist him.
Because he never wanted to see the director die in front of him again.
The director was Kabuto's weakness.
Just like how Rin was Obito's weakness.
"Don't make such a face. Actually, even without Nonō, you still wouldn't be able to resist me."
"Really? I don't believe it!"
"Alright, then let's make you believe it for a moment."
Snap
Orochimaru snapped his fingers, and immediately, Kabuto fell to his knees, clutching his head in agony.
His eyes filled with hatred as he glared at Orochimaru, trying hard not to scream.
"What did you do to me?"
"Aren't you even going to use honorifics anymore?"
Orochimaru smiled, not caring, and continued, "You should have known this a long time ago. When I injected my cells into you, I added a little something extra."
"Yes, I should have realized that earlier."
Kabuto's mind was fine.
If he thought from Orochimaru's perspective, he would have done the same thing.
"After learning Sage Jutsu, my body was also modified by the Sage of the Ryūchi Cave. I didn't expect that even after the modification, the hidden dangers still weren't eliminated."
"Heh, those snakes from Ryūchi Cave, what do they know about genes, about cells?"
Clearly, Orochimaru held great respect for the Sage of Ryūchi Cave, but in the field of science, he looked down on those snakes.
"Alright, Lord Orochimaru, you win."
"Don't say that, we both win."
"Snap~"
Orochimaru snapped his fingers, easing Kabuto's pain.
Kabuto took deep breaths for a moment before asking in confusion, "Win-win?"
"Exactly. You've gained immense power, and I've gained another subordinate. No, I should say, a partner. Now, you are qualified to work with me."
"Then, thank you, Lord Orochimaru, for seeing potential in me."
"Heh, no need to thank me."
Kabuto understood that "partner" was just a nicer way of saying he was still Orochimaru's subordinate.
As long as he didn't solve the issue with Nono or the hidden dangers in his own body, he would always remain Orochimaru's subordinate.
Kabuto felt a bit helpless about this but could accept it.
After all, he was used to being Orochimaru's subordinate; it was just maintaining the status quo.
But deep down, he was still a little upset.
He thought it would be a triumphant return, but in the end, everything was the same.
Fortunately, Kabuto had a good mindset, or he would have been furious.
A bit of frustration, just spend some time to adjust and it's no big deal.
Speaking of big deals, something big has been happening in Konoha these past few days.
First thing, Uchiha Itachi returned with Fugaku and Sasuke.
Seeing this, the Fifth Hokage Jiraiya immediately started using public opinion to portray Itachi as a hero who endured humiliation and infiltrated the enemy camp.
As for the issue of the dead Uchiha clan members, just leave that to Danzo, right?
After all, he won't stand up to oppose it.
Danzo: What a sin~
Second thing, Uchiha Obito was also brought back by Minato and Kushina.
He had no choice but to return. Kushina had already said she would marry Rin off to Kakashi, and if Obito didn't come back, when he next saw Rin, wouldn't she be his sister-in-law?
That was absolutely unacceptable to Obito.
Of course, Jiraiya used public opinion to clear Obito's name too.
But it wasn't about clearing up the Nine-Tails incident.
There's no way to clear that up, no matter how hard you try.
Jiraiya only briefly mentioned that Obito was saved by someone back then and had been wandering ever since.
It wasn't really about clearing his name, but more about choosing to conceal the truth.
Someone might ask,
So the people who died in the Nine-Tails incident just died for nothing?
Of course not.
Based on how the light screen can connect different timelines, who knows when it might link to the period during the Fourth Hokage's reign?
When that happens, a population census will be done, and all the fallen will be resurrected.
But reviving so many people will require a lot of money.
Konoha won't help Obito with this; he'll have to make his own money to make up for his past mistakes.
Third thing, Konan quietly arrived in Konoha.
Not many people know about this, only Jiraiya and a few others are aware, while the general public does not know.
The reason Konan came to Konoha was simple: to confirm whether Nagato was truly dead and to revive him.
"Don't worry, Konan, I'll take you to Orochimaru right now."
"Then I'll trouble you, Jiraiya-sensei."
"Don't talk about trouble. I'm your teacher after all."
With Konan, he had someone call Yahiko along the way.
After they met up, the three of them went straight to Orochimaru's laboratory.
*********
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