"Kaien, remove the genjutsu on Hiruko."
"Alright."
Uchiha Kaien quietly stepped back to watch the show unfold.
Today's spotlight wasn't on him—it was on the man named Hiruko.
Thanks to Kaien's interference, Hiruko hadn't escaped the pursuit of the Sannin this time.
From Kaien's memories, if he hadn't gotten involved, Hiruko would've shaken off the Sannin and continued wandering the shinobi world, collecting various kekkei genkai and fusing them into his own power with the Chimera Technique.
As for why he could escape from the Sannin in the original timeline… perhaps they had gone easy on him.
In fact, only one of the Sannin had been sent after him—Orochimaru, the ever-diligent one.
Jiraiya was off training disciples in Amegakure, Tsunade was still in self-imposed exile and depression, so the only one regularly taking missions was Orochimaru.
At this point in time, Orochimaru was even more hardworking than Jiraiya.
As soon as Kaien lifted the genjutsu, Hiruko began to stir—but before he could fully come to, Kaien swiftly layered a sealing technique on him, completely locking away his chakra.
"Hokage-sama…?"
Huh, still polite. Even after planning to defect, he's calling the Hokage with respect.
Hiruko looked dazed, clearly just beginning to regain consciousness, his confusion written all over his face.
"Do you remember what you were just doing, Hiruko?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's tone was no longer gentle—he spoke with the full weight of the Hokage's authority.
It was the first time Kaien had seen Hiruzen this serious.
To be honest, it was impressive—his presence felt on par with the Third Raikage.
Truly worthy of standing at the pinnacle of Kage. This must be the peak a shinobi can reach without the aid of special bloodlines.
"I…"
Hiruko still looked bewildered, and convincingly so. It didn't seem like an act.
Hiruzen's brow furrowed. Was he faking it?
"Maybe I overdid it, Hokage-sama," Kaien said, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. "I heard he was one of Orochimaru-sensei's old acquaintances, so I aimed the genjutsu to a level that could affect sensei himself. It burned through quite a bit of my Mangekyō's chakra…"
"..."
"..."
The room fell silent.
Genjutsu strong enough to affect Orochimaru… That was definitely overkill for a standard jōnin.
On top of that, Hiruko had likely been shaken by Hiruzen's earlier display of pressure, making his confusion even more convincing.
Hiruzen understood. He'd studied genjutsu too—mainly how to counter it. Hiruko was already frail and didn't have a particularly strong spirit. Being hit with Kaien's Mangekyō genjutsu left him looking pitiful.
Kaien had only told them that his genjutsu was powerful—but he hadn't mentioned the things he whispered to Hiruko through it.
The remnants of his ocular power, still lingering in Hiruko's mind, would one day pull the two of them into the same mental plane during some deep sleep.
That was Kaien's real plan for turning him.
And the Flying Thunder God mark—now imprinted on Hiruko—was the key that would allow Kaien to communicate remotely.
As long as he could transmit chakra to Hiruko, the residue of his ocular power would activate, enabling silent, undetectable conversations.
Much more discreet than sneaking into a prison to recruit him face-to-face.
Besides, as the heir to the Will of Fire, planting a Flying Thunder God mark during a high-profile capture made perfect sense—it was a "precaution" against escape.
"Wait… just now… was I with… Orochimaru!"
Hiruko's mind finally snapped back into gear, like a paper bomb exploding in his skull.
His gaze darted up to see Orochimaru and Kaien standing nearby, and his body reacted instinctively—springing into a guarded stance.
"Chimera Technique!"
He began to form hand seals with impressive speed—but soon realized no matter how fast he moved, his chakra wouldn't respond.
"A futile struggle," Orochimaru said. "Your chakra has already been sealed. Everything you're doing right now is meaningless."
"You made your choice. Now you need to face the consequences of being caught."
Three powerful chakra signatures surged through the room. The ground groaned under the weight of their killing intent.
It wasn't until Hiruzen's teacup shattered from the pressure that the three finally withdrew their chakra.
That was a brand-new cup… Hiruzen thought with quiet regret, but his face remained calm. He was the Hokage—dignity came first.
"Are we… maybe bullying him a little too much, Orochimaru-sensei? Hokage-sama?"
Three fully capable shinobi unleashing pressure on one sealed, chakra-less man—who was also physically frail from birth. Objectively speaking, they were the bullies here.
And worse, it looked like a case of the old dragging along the young to gang up on the weak.
"Ahem. Let's not make a fuss, Kaien," Hiruzen coughed lightly, trying to shoo him away. "It's late. Head home and get some rest. We'll log this as an A-rank mission for you."
"Fine, but I want credit for two A-rank missions."
"Sure, sure. Just go to bed—kids need sleep to grow tall…"
"Well then… good night, Orochimaru-sensei. Good night, Hokage-sama."
"Good night…"
Kaien let out a yawn and disappeared with a flash of the Flying Thunder God Technique, reappearing in his own cozy bed.
The Hokage's office was left to the three adults.
Kaien didn't care to listen to what came next. He'd already laid the groundwork to recruit Hiruko in the most efficient way possible.
Honestly, the Flying Thunder God was unbeatable for commuting.
...
"Now then, it's time you told us about your experiments, Hiruko."
Hiruzen's voice was laced with disappointment. Once, this boy had been someone he watched grow up. He'd never expected him to stray so far in the pursuit of power.
Orochimaru, on the other hand, had a glint in his eyes. The technique Hiruko had just tried to use—Chimera Technique—was fascinating. If it really allowed him to absorb all his summoned snakes, then his earlier theory about its nature might be correct.
He had even mentioned "completing his congenital deficiencies." Could he really devour the bloodlines of others?
It might be an exaggeration—perhaps not something Hiruko could achieve just yet—but Orochimaru was intrigued. If perfected, this technique might actually realize Hiruko's vision.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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