The Sudden Fulfillment of a Dream

Orochimaru planned to swallow the Dragon Yuan today.

But first, he had to leave this place to prevent the bloody scent of the Kumogakure Anbu corpses from attracting anyone else’s investigation.

After all, Orochimaru had no idea what effects swallowing the Dragon Yuan would bring.

What if something like what happened to Di Shitian occurred during the process?

In that situation, even an ordinary person without Chakra could pose a lethal threat to him.

No matter what, with Di Shitian, that unlucky old fool, as a warning, Orochimaru would definitely make thorough preparations.

Orochimaru quickly found a place—a cave inhabited by a black bear. The bear, however, had already been digested by his giant snake.

The lingering scent of an apex predator here was enough to intimidate the other animals outside and keep them from entering.

The small snakes Orochimaru had sent out had already scouted the surrounding dozen or so miles. There were no traces of humans, enough to ensure his safety for the time being.

Unable to wait any longer, Orochimaru took out the Dragon Yuan and sat on the ground. Without much hesitation, he swallowed it in one gulp.

Powerful energy erupted within him. Orochimaru, who had yet to undergo Living Corpse Reincarnation, already possessed a flawless soul. After merging with the soul from another world, his soul power had increased tremendously. Yet now, the Dragon Yuan was continuing to transform his soul. No—not just his soul!

Streams of powerful energy were also remaking every cell in his body!

As the Dragon Yuan’s energy continuously strengthened both his soul and body, it also imbued them with an air of immortality!

Yes, aside from greatly increasing one’s power, the Dragon Yuan could also make a person ageless and immortal!

The reason Di Shitian had slaughtered a dragon to obtain the Dragon Yuan in the Feng Yun World was that the Phoenix Yuan within him could only make him immortal, not ageless.

In fact, in the sequel to the Feng Yun World, Feng and Yun were still alive a thousand years later.

The Dragon Yuan’s explosive energy soon subsided. Orochimaru panted heavily as he slowly climbed to his feet.

It was as though both his soul and body had ascended. Orochimaru was now immortal.

His dream… had been fulfilled just like that?

A dream might remain beyond reach even after a lifetime of desperate pursuit. Yet sometimes, its fulfillment came this suddenly, this unexpectedly.

The immortality that the original Orochimaru had paid such a great price to obtain had been achieved just like that! And unlike Living Corpse Reincarnation, it came without the side effect of weakening his soul!

The expression on Orochimaru’s face suddenly became somewhat crazed.

"Ha ha ha ha… I… Orochimaru! Finally—"

"Immortal!!!!"

"Ha ha ha ha…"

Orochimaru’s sickly, unrestrained laughter echoed through the cave for a long time.

Three days later, inside an izakaya in Konoha.

"Tell me, Orochimaru, how did you suddenly become so much stronger?"

Tsunade tilted a bottle of alcohol into her mouth, while the table beside her was covered in empty bottles.

"Orochimaru, don’t get cocky. I’ll catch up to you soon enough!"

Jiraiya draped an arm over Orochimaru’s shoulder and pointed a thumb at himself.

He had been chasing after Orochimaru since childhood. Orochimaru was both his companion and his rival.

They were only in their early twenties then, not yet the renowned Konoha Sannin who would shake the Shinobi World. They were merely three ordinary Jōnin from Konoha.

This was when the Three Ninja had the best relationship, a period that, in the original timeline, lasted until their battle against Hanzo of the Salamander began to change things.

After they were defeated by Hanzō and given the title of the Three Ninja, the three of them went their separate ways.

Jiraiya remained in the Land of Rain to teach the savior he believed in.

After Tsunade lost her grandmother and younger brother, she also lost her lover. She lost her bond with Konohagakure and witnessed the darkness beneath the village’s prosperity. That drove her to leave Konohagakure, and she did not return even during the Third Ninja War.

After failing to become the Fourth Hokage, Orochimaru became obsessed with experiments. In the end, Danzo led him astray, and he fell into darkness.

The Cold Lord Orochimaru, leader of the Three Ninja and a man who had rendered countless services to Konohagakure, became a rogue ninja.

It was only later, when Jiraiya brought Naruto to find Tsunade and have her succeed as the Fifth Hokage, that the Three Ninja gathered once more. But by then, they were no longer inseparable teammates.

Orochimaru ignored Jiraiya’s pestering and answered Tsunade’s question instead. His explanation was the same as the one he had given Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi after returning to the village.

After merging with another soul, Orochimaru’s personality had changed significantly. He seemed to be becoming less cold and less indifferent toward life.

"If the two of you also went through a brush with life and death, you could reach this level as well. What you lack is an opportunity to break through your limits under the pressure of life and death."

"But you don’t look injured at all."

As a master medical ninja, Tsunade could easily tell that Orochimaru was in perfect condition.

In truth, this was the effect of the Dragon Yuan. Besides granting ageless immortality and greatly increasing one’s power, it also came with regenerative abilities. The more severe the injury, however, the slower the recovery.

"Yeah, Orochimaru. Don’t tell me you’re afraid I’ll learn the secret behind your strength and surpass you!"

Jiraiya shouted from the side.

"I came back after recovering from my injuries."

Orochimaru took a light sip of sake and spoke slowly.

He could not reveal the matter of the Dragon Yuan. He had no way to explain where it had come from.

"As you know, in the past, I was always struggling against death, even though I had witnessed death and caused death. But when death truly arrived, you would feel unprecedented pressure. Your potential would erupt at that moment!"

Since boasting required no preparation, Orochimaru casually made something up.

"Then what? Did you meet the Sage of Six Paths, who taught you ninjutsu, and then your strength skyrocketed?"

"Under the threat of death, my will ascended! I realized that death was not frightening. Perhaps I should not fear death. What I truly feared was never having truly lived."

Orochimaru continued his nonsense.

"That’s it? What about the details? Nothing else?"

"After understanding that truth, the transformation of my spiritual energy greatly increased my Chakra reserves."

This was already the most reasonable explanation Orochimaru could come up with.

Was it not perfectly normal to undergo an explosive breakthrough in a life-or-death crisis?

His Chakra reserves have increased a little too much. They’re actually greater than mine, a Senju’s. Tsunade grumbled inwardly.

The explanation sounded far-fetched, but it was still plausible.

Chakra was formed by mixing spiritual energy and physical energy in a one-to-one ratio. Transforming one’s spiritual energy in a life-or-death crisis and greatly increasing one’s Chakra reserves had precedents in the Shinobi World. It was just that no one had gained as much as Orochimaru.

Orochimaru’s increase was absurdly enormous.

Orochimaru raised his sake and said:

"Now, I no longer fear death so much. What I fear is leaving this world like the wind before I have brought it anything."

After merging with the soul from another world, Orochimaru had noticed the changes in his personality. He needed a reasonable explanation.

A drastic change in temperament under the threat of death was perfectly normal. It was a good explanation.

Inside the Hokage Building, Hiruzen Sarutobi smoked his pipe while looking at his disciples displayed on the Crystal Ball. He stroked his beard in satisfaction.

In his heart, Orochimaru had always been the best candidate to succeed him as Hokage. But his understanding of his disciple had left him concerned. If the village faced danger, could Orochimaru place the village above his own life, like the Second Hokage and himself?

His disciple valued his own life above all else.

But now, he had gained some confidence. It seemed that even if he died in battle, his disciple would raise the banner of the Will of Fire and protect Konohagakure.

After swallowing the Dragon Yuan, Orochimaru had already pulled ahead of Tsunade and Jiraiya.

Previously, all three of them had been close to Kage-level, but not quite there.

But after swallowing the Dragon Yuan, Orochimaru’s Chakra reserves had surged. Even among Kage-level fighters, he was among the top tier. His methods of fighting, however, were still not as varied or powerful as they would become decades later.

He currently lacked a powerful means of breaking through enemy defenses.

Still, with his vastly increased Chakra reserves, Orochimaru had reached Kage-level. He would just struggle greatly against particularly powerful Kage-level opponents.

Overall, he was around the lower-middle range of Kage-level, but he could still contend with stronger Kage-level fighters. Such strength was barely enough for him to take over old man Hiruzen Sarutobi’s position.

By then, their conversation had turned to the battlefield in the Land of Rain.

Previously, the Land of Rain had been engulfed in a chaotic free-for-all between Konoha, Sunagakure, Kumogakure, and Amegakure. The entire country had become a complete mess.

But Orochimaru did not know that Kumogakure had largely withdrawn from the Land of Rain battlefield, and it had something to do with him.

After he killed the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Ōnoki of Iwagakure concluded that Kumogakure had suffered considerable losses and decided to strike while they were down. Iwagakure and Kumogakure were now fighting fiercely.

"The Land of Rain battlefield doesn’t seem to be going very well lately. Someone named Hanzo of the Salamander has appeared. He calls himself the Demigod, and he fought the old man before."

Tsunade continued pouring alcohol into her mouth.

"What was the result?"

Jiraiya asked.

"No result."

Tsunade answered.

"Then it was a draw."

"He really is impressive, to be able to draw with Old Man."

Orochimaru said, resting his chin on his hand.

"He is impressive. The frontline troops led by Elder Danzo have suffered heavy losses recently, all because of Hanzō. Teacher will soon be returning to the Land of Rain battlefield. I imagine we’ll have to go with him as well."

Tsunade reasoned.

"War… when will it ever end?"

Jiraiya sighed with his arms folded.

"Say, if the three of us could defeat Hanzō, then the war would probably end soon, right?"

Jiraiya asked his two companions.

Jiraiya’s words sounded somewhat naive.

"That would only throw the Land of Rain into greater chaos and cause an even larger war."

Orochimaru concluded.

Without waiting for the others to respond, he continued his analysis:

"Suppose Hanzo of the Salamander were defeated and killed by Konoha. Then it is certain that leaderless Amegakure would no longer pose a threat.

"And killing such a powerful ninja would inevitably make the other forces wary. After all, Hanzō is a Five Kage-level powerhouse. If he could be killed, that meant the other Kage could be killed by the same method.

"Therefore, Sunagakure and Kumogakure would definitely join forces against Konoha. In that case, the village would face far greater pressure."

Orochimaru did not yet know that Kumogakure and Iwagakure had gone to war. His judgment was based on the previous situation.

"Then how do we solve it?"

Tsunade asked curiously. Other than training, she usually drank and gambled.

Ever since her younger brother died, she had stopped caring about the situation in the Land of Rain. It was a place that brought her sorrow.

"Win Hanzō over and have him help us fight one of the ninja villages. Then we can concentrate our superior forces to defeat one, and the rest will be easy to deal with."