Hidden underground, Seii continued observing Jiraiya for a while longer, hoping to find out whether the man—once Orochimaru's comrade and fellow teammate—had any way to track Orochimaru down.
Unfortunately, the results were disappointing. Without the intelligence network of the village backing him up, even soone as skilled in gathering information as Jiraiya couldn't imdiately determine which direction Orochimaru had escaped in.
In truth, the only reason they managed to find Orochimaru this ti was thanks to Konoha's intel system.
If not for the ANBU narrowing down Orochimaru's general location, they wouldn't have been able to locate him so quickly.
This just goes to show how important it is to have the support of a major power.
And that, in itself, was one of the reasons Seii hadn't left Konoha so easily.
After a mont of reflection underground and confirming that Jiraiya truly had no leads, Seii quietly slipped away from the ruined forest.
However, what he didn't know was that the mont he left, Jiraiya's expression shifted subtly as he discreetly glanced at the ground beneath his feet.
Clearly, Jiraiya had sensed Seii's surveillance.
To be fair, Seii had been incredibly careful and primitive in his approach to avoid drawing attention from both Jiraiya and Orochimaru. But it couldn't beat the sensory prowess of Jiraiya in Sennin Mode.
In this state, both his physical abilities and sensory perception were amplified several tis over.
Earlier, during the battle with Orochimaru, Jiraiya hadn't noticed the hidden observer.
But afterward, as he carefully searched the area for traces of Orochimaru, he picked up on subtle signs of soone else.
Still, since Seii's concealnt was top-tier, Jiraiya didn't know exactly where he was and chose not to act rashly—he just kept probing the surroundings calmly.
It wasn't until Seii used Doton: Dochū Eisō no Jutsu (Earth Style: Underground Fish Projection Technique) that Jiraiya confird he was hidden below.
Even then, Jiraiya chose not to make a move.
Why? The situation was unclear, and he had just been through a fierce battle. His chakra and stamina were both heavily depleted, making his condition far from optimal.
There was no need to cause unnecessary conflict—he simply made a ntal note of it.
All of this, Seii was unaware of.
Even if he had known, he probably wouldn't have cared.
After all, Jiraiya hadn't seen him directly. Even if he suspected soone had been watching from the shadows, it wasn't a big deal.
And even if he later figured out—through talks with Namikaze Minato—that the hidden figure was Seii, it still wouldn't matter.
It's not like Seii had refused to help or made himself known. That alone shouldn't earn Jiraiya's hostility, right?
If it did, then he wouldn't be the bold and free-spirited Jiraiya everyone knew.
A few kiloters away, Seii finally released the Doton: Dochū Eisō no Jutsu and erged from the ground.
Standing atop a small hill, he scanned the area, unsure of where to go next.
Truthfully, his objective for this mission had already been t.
Just earlier, he had taken advantage of Jiraiya's use of Sennin Mode to sense natural energy himself and carefully morized the sensation.
With that, he could return ho now without issue.
What's that? The mission?
Well, when facing soone of Orochimaru's caliber, it's perfectly normal for the mission target to escape.
Seii was confident that Namikaze Minato wouldn't hold it against him.
Still, he didn't want to leave a record of a failed mission.
But more importantly, he wanted to know whether Orochimaru had already completed his research on Edo Tensei (Reanimation Jutsu).
That intel could be critical if he ever had to deal with Orochimaru again in the future.
So Seii stood in place, torn over what to do next.
---
anwhile…
In a mountain forest over ten kiloters away, Orochimaru erged from the earth and leapt onto a tree branch.
He turned back to glance at the distant battlefield and replayed the mories of his shadow clone, which had just returned to him.
"Sennin Mode… Jiraiya…" he muttered.
Orochimaru's expression shifted—his thoughts unreadable.
Just as Seii had predicted, the mont Orochimaru saw Jiraiya successfully enter Sennin Mode, he knew one thing for sure: in a straight fight, he couldn't win.
And so, he had no hesitation in retreating from the battlefield.
At this stage in his life, Orochimaru had no interest in battles. He just wanted to leave the Land of Fire, find a quiet place, and continue his experints to fulfill his ambitions.
As for what others thought, or Konoha's pursuit?
He couldn't care less.
After a brief rest, Orochimaru stopped wasting ti. Once he'd confird his bearings, he headed for the northern border of the Land of Fire.
But not even thirty minutes later, he was forced to stop by a probing gaze from above.
"…That feeling…"
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed slightly.
He had felt this sa familiar sense of being watched days ago, in that underground lab.
And now it was back.
Abruptly, Orochimaru looked up.
A small dot in the sky rapidly expanded, becoming a figure he recognized.
"Uchiha Seii…" Orochimaru muttered.
That's right—after so internal conflict, Seii had ultimately decided to continue the mission and track down Orochimaru.
Of course, he only made that choice because he was confident he could locate Orochimaru quickly, without wasting much ti.
How did he do it?
Simple—just like his daily patrols around that island, he flew high using Fūton: Kaze no Tsubasa (Wind Style: Wings of Wind), and thodically searched the area outward from that forest as a center.
All the while, his Byakugan was activated, allowing him to quickly filter out anything without chakra.
And sure enough, after a while, he found Orochimaru.
Upon confirming his target's location, Seii imdiately sealed the Byakugan in his forehead.
Given Orochimaru's sharp senses, he'd probably piece together that Seii had a Byakugan, based on the intel from the battlefield and their current encounter.
But letting him guess was fine. What mattered was not openly revealing it.
After all, exposing that eye might spark conflict between Konoha's two great clans.
And Seii had no interest in getting caught up in that ss.
So he concealed what needed to be concealed.
Once that was done, he folded his wings and descended right in front of Orochimaru.
Seeing Seii drop from the sky, Orochimaru didn't strike imdiately.
Instead, he looked at him with curiosity—especially at his pair of flawless three-tomoe Sharingan—and said with a smile, "Seii-kun, what can I do for you?"
Seii ignored the pleasantries, and also paid no mind to the deep greed flickering in Orochimaru's pupils. Instead, he silently pulled out a kunai.
This kunai was uniquely shaped—with three prongs and a paper seal wrapped around its handle.
That's right—this was the special kunai given to him by Namikaze Minato, marked with the Flying Thunder God seal.
The mont Orochimaru saw it, his eyes narrowed, and he imdiately extended his right hand. With Sen'ei Jashu (Hidden Shadow Snake Hands), he launched an attack, aiming to snatch the kunai away.
Unfortunately for him, Seii remained perfectly calm.
In one smooth motion, he raised his left hand and instantly ford hand seals, unleashing one of the Uchiha clan's signature jutsu—Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu (Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique)!
Boom!
A massive fireball ford in front of him and was hurled directly at the incoming snake hands.
Reviews
All reviews (0)