Chapter 7: Meeting Orochimaru.

In Naruto's eyes, Tsukikanami seems a bit violent, his muscles seem a bit stuffy, and he may be a bit stingy, but he is a man who knows everything. If Naruto has any questions, he can always get answers from Tsukikanami.

"Boss, I want to learn ninjutsu." Received the book 'Beginner's Guide to Ninjutsu.'

"Boss, I want to learn genjutsu." Received the book 'Beginner's Guide to Genjutsu.'

"Boss, I want to learn taijutsu." Received Tsukimi's flying kick, 'Tsukimi's One-Kick.'

"Boss, I want to learn forbidden jutsu." Finally, in his ignorance, Naruto asked a question he shouldn't have.

"No, get out!" "Eh, why? Aren't you supposed to know everything?" "You little brat, you dare say that! Learning forbidden jutsu without permission can land you in jail. I don't want to go down with you, so get lost!"

Tsukikanami angrily kicked Naruto out of the shop and locked the door.

"What the heck? Huh?" Naruto didn't understand why Tsukikanami was angry. After thinking for a while, when he was about to go back, he suddenly noticed a piece of paper, a white paper that had fallen at his feet at some point.

"Could it be a message for me to go?" Naruto easily understood the map markings on it since he was always looking at maps. After some thought, he decided to put the piece of paper in his pocket and ran off following the markings.

"That's how it should be." Tsukikanami stood by the window, watching Naruto's actions, and closed his eyes, lost in thought.

...

"In Konoha's cemetery, there won't be any ghosts popping out, right?" Naruto arrived at the cemetery following the map markings. Here, there were memorial stones dedicated to the ninja who sacrificed themselves for the village. Amidst the howling night wind, it appeared particularly desolate and eerie.

Naruto stood in front of an inconspicuous memorial stone and compared it with the markings on the paper. He gently pressed on a certain character.

"Clickety-clack." A harsh gear sound rang out as the green grass slowly lifted, revealing an underground passage.

"Excuse me, is anyone here? I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I apologize for intruding into your home so suddenly."

Naruto descended anxiously into the passage, which gradually became illuminated. The torches on the walls ignited on their own, casting an eerie orange light, and after walking for more than ten minutes, he reached a wooden door. Summoning his courage, Naruto pushed it open and was greeted by a strange sight. Numerous jars and containers held peculiar substances, and the table was covered with books written in unreadable texts.

"Who are you?" A long-haired woman with her back turned to Naruto, engrossed in her work at the workbench.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto, the future Hokage! Hello, Auntie."

"Auntie... Although a pesky white-haired brat used to say I look like a woman, being addressed like this is a first."

Orochimaru turned his head, his feminine appearance accentuated by purple eyeshadow, with hook-shaped earrings dangling from his ears. Combined with his hoarse voice, it was indeed easy to mistake his gender.

"Uh, did I get it wrong? Are you an uncle?"

"Welcome to my laboratory. I am Orochimaru, the little demon of the Nine-Tails."

His snake-like tongue slithered out of his mouth, licking the blood stains on his left cheek.

"Then I'll call you Snake Uncle. Um, um, um."

"What are you doing?"

Orochimaru's smile froze, and Naruto imitated him by sticking out his tongue, but no matter how he tried, he could only lick his own mouth.

"I can't reach it. How can I lick my own cheek? That way, when I eat ramen, I can lick off the soup by myself."

"What are you here for?"

The golden slit-like pupils narrowed slightly, and Orochimaru abandoned the idea of settling the score with a little brat, asking instead.

"I'm here to learn forbidden jutsu. Snake Uncle, can you teach me?"

"Oh? What makes you unafraid of danger and come to me to learn forbidden jutsu?"

Orochimaru didn't deny his ability to teach forbidden jutsu and continued to ask.

"My mom and dad are both dead, and I want to bring them back. Only forbidden jutsu can do that, right?"

"The path of learning forbidden jutsu is very dangerous. Not only will you be threatened by the jutsu itself, but there are also people—people who are narrow-minded and conservative, who consider forbidden jutsu a disaster and are afraid to attempt it. They lock away the possibilities called forbidden jutsu. Even if they discover someone practicing forbidden jutsu, they will cry out for justice and destroy them. Are you not afraid?"

Orochimaru's expression became slightly more serious. In his eyes, he and Naruto were similar, having lost their parents at a young age and striving in their own ways to see them again. There was a sense of empathy.

"Of course!"

Naruto answered seriously, although he only understood a little of what Orochimaru had said. Forbidden jutsu shouldn't be discovered; he would practice it secretly.

"Very well, but before that, I want to see your potential."

Orochimaru stepped aside, and only then did Naruto notice that on his workbench, there wasn't a document but a corpse, a dissected one.

"Oh? I wanted to praise you just now. You don't seem to be repulsed by the strong smell of blood. Now that you see a graphic scene of flesh and blood, are you still unafraid?"

Orochimaru looked at Naruto with great interest. Just this alone revealed Naruto's potential. If he feared blood, what kind of ninja would he be? He should go back and become a farmer.

"He's already dead, so what's there to fear?"

Naruto had seen countless corpses. The wretched Nine-Tails showed him images of ninja battles day and night. Even if it were a dismembered corpse, he was accustomed to it.

"Good, you qualify to be my vessel. No, it's nothing."

Orochimaru was very satisfied with Naruto's disposition. He then handed him a shuriken and pulled a certain switch on the table. The adjacent wall slowly retreated, and soon a person bound to a cross was pushed out by some mechanism.

...

"Um, um, um!!!" The ninja, whose mouth was blocked, saw Orochimaru shaking his head desperately, seemingly begging for mercy but also roaring in anger.

"What are you doing?"

"Kill him. Stab him wherever you want, however many times you want."

Orochimaru effortlessly toyed with the fate of the ninja. The poor guy immediately looked at Naruto, making continuous muffled sounds of "um, um, um."

"I can't do it. I can't harm innocent people."

Naruto shook his head. The teachings of his mentor, Minato, had an effect on him. He had to be ruthless towards enemies, but he couldn't use his own power to harm innocent people.

"Innocent? He's not a Leaf Village ninja but a spy sent by the Land of Earth. To accomplish his mission, he killed an innocent villager, assumed their appearance to gather intelligence, and after being discovered, killed a neighboring family of four. Is that still considered innocent?"

Even Orochimaru wouldn't capture Leaf Village ninja. Rabbits don't eat grass near their burrow, let alone when the teacher is the Third Hokage. He wouldn't just let it slide when it came to his own people.

"Oh, I see."

Naruto nodded and turned to walk towards the door.

"You're just leaving like that?"

Orochimaru was disappointed. How could someone without such tolerance become a vessel? But the matter wasn't over yet. In the midst of his astonished gaze, Naruto picked up a chair near the door and placed it in front of the spy, then slowly climbed onto the chair.

"I can't reach him like this."

Naruto grinned and casually swung a shuriken. The sharp shuriken instantly slashed the spy's throat, and blood sprayed out like a spring, splattering Naruto's face.

"Ugh, my eyes!"

Naruto covered his eyes and cried out, falling off the chair.

"You've passed."

Watching Naruto still screaming in pain, Orochimaru felt a sense of helplessness. He picked up a towel from the table and wiped the blood off Naruto's face.

"You brat, what were you thinking when you killed him?"

"I wasn't thinking anything. He was an enemy of the village, so it's only right to kill him to protect the village, isn't it?"

"Hehehe, is this the conclusion you reached from the abuse you suffered since childhood? Interesting."

Seeing no trace of confusion in Naruto's eyes, Orochimaru spoke with delight. He had truly received a perfectly suitable material in the form of Naruto, Danzo.

Inside Naruto's body,

"Oh, you've taken the first step."

The Nine-Tails perked up its ears, grinned, and then lay back down.

"Fourth Hokage, you lost to the Nine-Tails."

Minato had no idea what had happened. Only the Nine-Tails could see what Naruto was doing. If the Nine-Tails didn't show him the footage, Minato couldn't see it. He was still playing chess with the chakra pieces created by the Nine-Tails.

"It's you who lost."

The Nine-Tails raised its eyelids and casually manipulated the shape of the chakra, shifting the positions of the pieces and defeating Minato.

"Ah, you cheated, you despicable Tailed Beast!"

"Hmph."

...

In the Moonlit Sea teahouse, he poured a cup of tea and placed it on the table, waiting for something.

"You're still so good at timing."

No one saw how this person entered. He took a seat in front of the cup, his tone calm as he praised.

"Is that so."

"I'm very dissatisfied with the mission you carried out."

Tsukikanami didn't go for the tea. With a cold tone, he said, and a strong killing intent surrounded the Moonlit Sea.

"I've been diligently carrying out the mission, taking care of the brat with the Nine-Tails."

"Don't make excuses. You should know that no one ever survives in 'Root.' The reason I gave you this opportunity was to let you vent your excess energy. But you couldn't even accomplish this simple task."

Tsukikanami was very angry. It wasn't he was too good to Naruto, but rather too bad. What he needed to do was to take care of Naruto meticulously, becoming his pillar in his heart. And when the day came that this pillar betrayed Naruto, he would become the perfect weapon, a weapon used only for him.

But what he saw now was constant beatings and scolding of Naruto every day, without a trace of tenderness. Even if such a person betrayed him, there would be no emotional turbulence.

"I understand."

"I don't want to remind you a second time. It took me a great deal of effort back then to suppress the fact that he is the Fourth Hokage's son. I even spread the news in the village that he is the Nine-Tails fox. It was all to make him a weapon of Konoha, and weapons don't need emotions."

"But you did well in luring him to Orochimaru this time. Orochimaru is also satisfied and will provide us with many techniques... Perhaps I'm being suspicious, but you, known as the 'Moonlit Killer,' wouldn't develop any feelings for this brat, would you?"

After the ninja finished speaking, he disappeared into smoke without waiting for a reply, leaving behind a cup of tea that still retained its warmth.