The cold wind, carrying snowflakes, crashed against the stone wall, emitting a mournful echo.
Orochimaru's laughter was like threads tempered with ice, winding around the three people's ears: "Hehe, what rare guests, Shisui-kun."
As he spoke, his tongue licked his lower lip almost imperceptibly. His voice was light and soft, yet like a snake's tongue licking skin, carrying a slimy gloominess, the tail end drawn out long.
Hearing this, Itachi and Shisui subconsciously exchanged a glance, their gazes colliding in a silent question mark, then with perfect understanding, looked together at Makoto.
Signaling who among them should speak about the matter they had discussed earlier.
Orochimaru's gaze swept over the three leisurely, finally settling on Makoto.
His golden vertical pupils slightly contracted. A hint of amusement rippled in his snake-like pupils. He noticed that Shisui and Itachi's postures subtly indicated they were led by this brat still smelling of milk.
'Interesting.'
He hadn't met this kid before, but he had seen his portrait from Danzo, the one who 'scribbled' on the Hokage Rock over half a year ago, nearly triggering a civil war between the Uchiha Clan and all of Konoha.
Even Danzo was so angered he hopped mad, holding a grudge for a full half year. Clearly, this was a fearless character.
A flash of amusement passed through his golden vertical pupils, as if he had found a new toy.
"Coming to find me, is there something you need?"
Orochimaru's voice was still drawn out long, like a snake's tongue sliding over frozen ground, leaving a slimy trail, sounding somewhat frightening.
Makoto met Orochimaru's icy gaze, his black eyes not flinching in the slightest.
He knew very well the weight of the person before him. He had performed 108 S-Rank missions and 491 A-Rank missions. He was a legendary figure in Konoha.
The people he had killed could pile into a high mountain, fill a river.
Makoto took a deep breath. The smile on his face instantly vanished, replaced by a serious expression. His black eyes sparkled with a serious light.
Itachi and Shisui's eloquence couldn't match his, and he needed to take the initiative in this matter, so he had to be the one to speak.
"Orochimaru, we've come to discuss a major matter with you." Makoto did not use the honorific 'Orochimaru-sama', which was extremely impolite behavior in the Shinobi World.
But if he wanted to earn money standing up, he had to adopt an equal posture first. Otherwise, he might be extorted by Orochimaru, as that guy was very smart.
At this time, Orochimaru hadn't yet started practicing the Living Corpse Reincarnation, so his Genjutsu resistance was relatively high. But with Shisui and Itachi protecting him, even if a fight broke out, he didn't have to worry too much.
The Uchiha Clan's geniuses, when fighting, had a mid-battle breakthrough buff, just like the protagonists in the Shonen Manga he read in his previous life.
As long as they weren't instantly killed, they were highly likely to fight more fiercely and even turn the tables on the enemy.
Especially Shisui. He remembered the official evaluation from his previous life, which stated he had even more outstanding talent than Itachi.
Moreover, his epithet wasn't famous for his Dojutsu, but for his Body Flicker Technique.
Nowadays, the fame of 'Shunshin no Shisui' was even known by the Hachibi's Jinchuriki, Killer B, who hadn't left the Valley of Clouds and Lightning for years. He was truly renowned throughout the Shinobi World.
Although Makoto hadn't seen Shisui fight, beneath great fame lies true talent. In the Shinobi World, if your reputation was big but you lacked matching strength, you died easily.
Moreover, during previous battles with Kirigakure, he had cast Genjutsu on the enemy from an extremely long distance, silently and unnoticed, making Kirigakure's Byakugan wielder, Ao, not even dare to engage, directly fleeing with his people.
As long as Orochimaru couldn't instantly kill Shisui, with just a bit of fighting, and Itachi getting injured a little, the probability of Shisui awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan was extremely high.
Then his strength would leap to become one of the top Kage-level fighters. Who would be dealing with whom then?
Plus, with his Flying Thunder God Technique, even if the two couldn't win, escaping wouldn't be difficult. Makoto had played with the S-Rank Space-Time Ninjutsu, Flying Thunder God Technique, extremely skillfully over the past months. So he didn't fear Orochimaru in the slightest.
Orochimaru didn't mind Makoto not using honorifics, after all this was the one who had rendered Danzo speechless.
His long tongue licked his chin. He was very interested in what Makoto had to say. He took a few steps forward, dragging out a winding trail, like a snake's track.
"Oh? What major matter could make you three Uchiha Clan's geniuses come in person?"
Orochimaru's tail end rose slightly, carrying undisguised mockery. Clearly, he didn't take these three half-grown children seriously.
Shisui was about to speak, but Makoto stopped him with a look. Shisui was great as a fighter, but if you let him negotiate, he'd start frantically revealing their own weaknesses.
Makoto also stepped forward. The snow crunched crunchily under his feet. His black eyes met Orochimaru's golden vertical pupils directly, without the slightest fear.
"We've come specifically to pledge ourselves to you, to help you become the Godaime Hokage."
The wind suddenly stopped.
The falling snow hung in mid-air. The small snakes in the stone cracks froze their tongue-flicking. Even the icicles under the eaves forgot to drip.
The smile on Orochimaru's face froze for an instant, fleeting as an illusion.
His golden vertical pupils stared at Makoto. After a good while, Orochimaru suddenly laughed, sharp like broken glass scraping sheet metal.
"Hehe... Interesting. Truly interesting."
Orochimaru's gaze swept over Makoto one full circle, as if examining a very interesting toy.
"A little brat, actually wants me to become Hokage? Do you know what you're saying?"
He didn't want to be Hokage that much anymore. After experiencing the successive deaths of those close to him, Orochimaru had gained a profound understanding of life's fragility.
Now he wanted to learn all the world's Ninjutsu, grasp the world's truths. But a human life is short. So he had embarked on the path of researching immortality.
Makoto met Orochimaru's gaze, his tone as certain as cast iron.
"With the full support of our Uchiha Clan, plus your identity, qualifications, strength, subordinates, running for Godaime Hokage is absolutely not empty talk."
Orochimaru chuckled lowly, his golden vertical pupils rippling with mockery: "Can you represent the Uchiha Clan? Or can either of them represent the Uchiha Clan?"
When out and about, identity and reputation are self-proclaimed. Makoto's expression turned stern, each word falling with a solid thud:
"I alone cannot represent the Uchiha Clan now, but the three of us in the future, will definitely be able to represent the Uchiha Clan!"
Seeing thought appear in Orochimaru's eyes, Makoto began to paint a grand picture.
"Uchiha Shisui, famed throughout the Shinobi World for his Body Flicker." He raised a hand pointing to Shisui beside him, "His current strength is slightly inferior to yours, but his current age is his greatest asset, it means limitless potential!"
"In not much time, becoming a Kage-level fighter is a certainty, and moreover, one of the best among Kage-level fighters."
Hearing Makoto praise him, Shisui's Adam's apple bobbed lightly, but he didn't respond. Although these words sounded extremely exaggerated, they generally aligned with the facts.
"Uchiha Itachi," Makoto's finger pointed at Itachi. The youth lowered his eyes, his black eyes hiding a hint of barely perceptible anticipation, because Makoto was about to praise him...
"Awakened the Three Tomoe Sharingan before the age of ten, now already has Jonin-level strength."
"This level of talent needs no further explanation. He will inevitably become a Kage-level figure in the future."
Itachi's eyelashes trembled. The joy in his eyes sparked like a star for an instant, then quickly faded, leaving only a pool of calm.
Finally, Makoto's finger poked his own chest. His black eyes shone like tempered fire: "And I, Uchiha Makoto, awakened the Sharingan at two and a half."
"An unprecedented genius in the Uchiha Clan. The future Clan Head's position is mine without doubt!"
As the words fell, he spread open his palm. A snowflake landed in his palm, instantly melting into a water droplet: "Now, the three of us have come to pledge ourselves to you, representing the Uchiha Clan. Is this sincerity enough?"
"In the Shinobi World, strength is the hard truth. When the three of us grow up, who would dare say half a word of dissent to you?"
These words were like soft thorns, precisely poking Orochimaru's itchiest spot.
He wasn't short on usable manpower now, but he lacked geniuses with peerless potential… and they had delivered themselves to his doorstep. How could he not accept them?
Even with his mental state, he couldn't help but feel ripples of excitement.
'Truly worthy of the exceptionally favored Uchiha Clan, producing geniuses in clusters. Kage-level figures were super rare in any village, yet in this clan, a single era could have several.
In the Konoha's Academy, students graduated at twelve, and the vast majority only had Genin-level strength after graduation, with many repeaters who couldn't even pass the exams.
But these three before him? Shisui's prestige and age were right there, and Itachi had Jonin-level strength before ten.
As long as they didn't die young, becoming Kage-level fighters was just a matter of time.
And Makoto's talent surpassed both of them...
Orochimaru was completely won over.
Although he wasn't very interested in the Hokage position now, having three future Kage-level subordinates, plus his identity, qualifications, strength, and old subordinates...
He could sit in the Hokage's seat whenever he wanted, with no one able to stop him, not even his teacher, Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Moreover, with the Uchiha Clan's strong support, his research wouldn't lack funding. This was clearly a grand picture he could start benefiting from now.
Thinking this, Orochimaru nodded slightly: "Okay."
Hearing this, Makoto immediately bloomed into a smile, his tone familiar like an old acquaintance: "Then from now on, we'll be relying on you a lot."
Orochimaru subconsciously licked his lips, his tongue sliding over his lower lip with its usual eerie quality.
An icicle under the eaves just happened to drip, hitting the snow with a drip, like punctuating this brief peace.
Makoto seized the opportunity, his smile unchanged, but his words took a sharp turn: "Since I now count as your subordinate, there's a difficult matter I'd like to ask for your help with."
Hearing this, Orochimaru thought it was about the Shimura Danzo matter. He waved a hand, his tone casual: "Don't worry about Danzo's side. I'll handle it. He won't bother you again in the future."
But Makoto shook his head: "That's just a small matter. That inherently evil Shimura Danzo, I'll deal with him sooner or later."
He rubbed his hands, his tone somewhat embarrassed: "It's that I wanted to borrow some money from you..."