Gojo Yoru didn't interact much with Konan—and that was for her sake.
He didn't know what Orochimaru was doing in the Hidden Rain, but it definitely wasn't sightseeing.
If Orochimaru caused any disturbance in Amegakure, then Yoru—who had come with him—would inevitably draw attention too, including anyone Yoru had contacted, like Konan.
So Yoru had no intention of getting close to her.
He tucked the paper flower into the pocket of his raincoat and continued wandering Amegakure. Every so often he stopped by a rain canopy, bought local snacks, and stuffed his cheeks full—looking exactly like a carefree child.
…
Hanzō of the Salamander's residence was located in Amegakure's core district, yet it wasn't a steel structure. It was a tower resembling traditional architecture.
Despite being in the core area, the surroundings were eerily sparse, almost like the outskirts.
The biggest highlight of this area was the wide, open visibility.
Around the tower, more than a dozen Rain ninja wearing breathing masks stood guard—only the ones visible from the outside. Who knew how many were inside?
It was clear that even standing at the pinnacle of the shinobi world, Hanzō remained extremely cautious.
The scene shifts inside the tower.
In an empty corridor, a section of tatami suddenly bulged upward like a swelling blister.
Then the bulge slowly took human form—becoming Orochimaru, disguised.
The moment he appeared, Orochimaru formed hand seals and released his sensory technique at full power.
Very quickly, his expression turned grave, and he murmured to himself, "So it's true… this is really going to throw everything into chaos."
To confirm further, Orochimaru was about to sink back underground and explore the tower—
Drip.
A single water droplet suddenly fell from the ceiling, passing down through Orochimaru's line of sight.
In the next instant, ripples appeared in the space before him, like a mirage shimmering in desert heat.
A figure holding a ninja blade emerged—distortion solidifying into reality.
"Phantom Rain… Tokiya."
Orochimaru spoke the man's title and name. Then a crack appeared from his left shoulder down to his right waist.
Plop.
Orochimaru's bisected body turned into a puddle of mud and splashed to the floor.
"Tsuchi clone… Iwa-nin?" Tokiya muttered. "Did something happen to Lord Hanzō?"
Even as he spoke, his hands moved quickly—biting his finger and forming seals.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Tokiya crouched and slapped the ground, summoning a strange-looking rat.
The rat merely sniffed Orochimaru's muddy remains, then burrowed into the ground and disappeared.
Before long, three-man squads—nine Rain ninja in total, all wearing breathing masks—turned into blurs too fast to see clearly and shot off toward the tower's southwest.
"Fast… very fast…"
Watching the Rain ninja Body Flicker toward his direction, Orochimaru's real body showed not a trace of panic. If anything, he looked relaxed, murmuring to himself, "Still can't sense that chakra… so he really isn't in Amegakure."
As long as that towering figure at the top of the shinobi world wasn't here, Orochimaru had nothing to fear.
More than that, he even had the thought of using them.
He pulled out a palm-sized scroll and deliberately let it be seen by the Rain ninja, then Body Flickered toward Amegakure's central street.
At this moment, Gojo Yoru was eating a red bean pie. This backward little place had nothing worth buying besides local snacks.
Yoru didn't even feel like getting souvenirs for Kushina.
Now he finally understood why, in every great ninja war, the Land of Fire and Konoha became targets.
The resources were simply too good.
The Land of Fire had no harsh environment. Trees were everywhere, the air was fresh, and people living there—unless they died in war or accidents—had a longer average lifespan than people in other countries.
For merchants, unless they had no choice, their first preference was always to do business in the Land of Fire and Konoha.
Yoru wandered while eating his red bean pie, finding it even more boring than waiting in uninhabited places.
At least when waiting out in the wild, Orochimaru was there—and if Yoru ran into something he didn't understand, he could ask an elite jōnin.
Now, alone in Amegakure, Yoru didn't even know what he was supposed to do.
Orochimaru hadn't said whether they would stay overnight here, so Yoru couldn't even go rent a room at an inn, take a hot bath, drink tea, eat some sweets, and admire the rain.
All he could do was eat to pass time—conveniently matching the "greedy kid" persona.
Whoosh—!
Suddenly, a sharp tearing sound exploded near Yoru's ear.
"Move!"
In the next second, a hand grabbed Yoru's shoulder. A huge force lifted him, and he was flung onto a rooftop.
Seeing Orochimaru's grim expression, Yoru's heart jolted.
Oh hell—this look… don't tell me he's being chased by the "demigod"?
Taking control mid-leap, Yoru glanced behind them and saw that it was only a group of Rain ninja giving chase. He finally let out a breath.
Just as he turned back, ready to say something—
A scroll was suddenly shoved into his view.
Orochimaru said sternly, "I'll hold them off. You must deliver this intelligence back to the village at the fastest speed possible. Don't stop for even a moment."
He stuffed the scroll into Yoru's hands. Then Orochimaru Body Flickered down to the street, spun around to face the onrushing Rain ninja, and formed seals.
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
The rain-soaked ground immediately liquefied and rose into a massive earth dragon that roared toward the Rain ninja.
"Teacher—be careful. I'll wait for you to come back."
Looking at Orochimaru's moving back, Yoru didn't insist on staying. He left that line behind, then used Earth Body Flicker to sink into the ground and escape Amegakure at high speed.
After burrowing who knew how many miles—burning through half his chakra—Yoru finally surfaced.
The sky was still covered in thick storm clouds. Rain curtains veiled the world in pale gray. All around were uneven rocky hills.
He'd left Amegakure behind, but he was still within the Land of Rain.
Yoru didn't stop for a second. As he sprinted toward the Land of Fire, he reached for a soldier pill to restore stamina.
Suddenly, as if he saw something, his pupils shrank sharply.
Not even having time to swallow the pill, Yoru formed seals at once, disrupting the flow of chakra in his body while mobilizing space–time chakra throughout himself—ready to enter full-body intangibility at any moment.
Slash—
At the exact moment his hands formed seals, Yoru saw a streak of cold light—hidden by the rain—cutting toward him.
~~~
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