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[NUT] Chapter : 23
🕑 Added 2025-05-30 11:22:57 +0000 UTCOrochimaru’s tone was uncharacteristically serious. This was no idle curiosity—this was genuine scientific interest.
He hadn’t attempted anything like this before, which made it all the more exciting for him. If it had been familiar, he might have been bored. But a first-time experiment? That was different.
Without a word, Itachi pulled out another scroll.
Inside were a few relics belonging to Shisui. He’d never recovered his friend’s body, so instead, he had searched Shisui’s old home and salvaged whatever he could. Originally, he had intended to build a memorial… but for reasons unknown, his former self never followed through.
“You were truly close,” Orochimaru murmured, watching Itachi handle the old garments, delicately sifting through them for any remaining strands of hair.
With a bit of luck, Itachi found several short hairs.
“These should do,” he said quietly, handing them over.
“Haha, Itachi-kun, you really are a sentimental one,” Orochimaru chuckled as he took the hairs. He placed them in a small vial—then, disturbingly, swallowed it whole.
“How long will it take to get results?” Itachi asked, choosing not to micromanage. Ultimately, this was Orochimaru’s field. He would leave the technicalities to the expert.
Amateurs meddling in professional matters rarely did any good.
“You’ve signed the Snake Summoning Contract, haven’t you?” Orochimaru replied with a sly smile. “We’ll use serpents to deliver the results. Discreet and efficient.”
The almost flirtatious charm in his tone sent a chill down Itachi’s spine.
“I’ll be leaving now. Keep in touch when you can,” Itachi said, his voice just a touch stiff.
Unable to bear Orochimaru’s unnerving aura a moment longer, he rose to his feet and made a swift exit.Orochimaru watched Itachi’s silhouette retreat into the distance, a flicker of surprise crossing his snake-like features.
He sat for a moment longer, savoring the last of his sake before standing up to leave.
“Sir, please pay for your drink…”
Just as he was about to walk out, the tavern's nervous waiter stepped in front of him, clearly uneasy. Orochimaru’s slit pupils and the barely concealed menace that clung to him like a shadow were enough to make any civilian tremble.
“Huh? Didn’t my friend take care of the bill?”
Orochimaru’s brow furrowed slightly in confusion.
“N-no… he said you’d be covering it.”
A moment of silence followed.
Orochimaru licked his lips slowly, recalling the expression Itachi wore as he left. His lips curled into a subtle smile.
“He’s quite the interesting one…”
At that very moment, Itachi was walking briskly toward his residence.
He had fully intended to pay—after all, he'd been the one to initiate the meeting. But just as he reached for his wallet, he’d remembered with mild horror that he had left it beside his pillow.
And so, rather than face that small but humiliating embarrassment… he slipped away early.
It wasn’t the most honorable move. Still, having played a small trick on the ever-crafty Orochimaru filled him with an odd sense of victory.
Charming or not, that snake-like man could use a taste of his own medicine.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Just as Itachi settled in with a hot cup of tea, a knock sounded at the door, startling him.
Could it be Orochimaru, here to collect the money for the sake?
With a resigned sigh, Itachi rose and opened the door—only to find a familiar face standing outside.
“Juzo? What brings you here?”
He stepped aside, allowing Juzo to enter, his voice tinged with confusion.
“How did the meeting go?” Juzo asked without preamble, eyes sharp and anxious.
“Surprisingly well. He… isn’t as difficult as I expected,” Itachi replied, settling at the table and pouring Juzo a cup of tea.
The following day, Itachi and Juzo, having resumed their mission, were abruptly summoned via to Akatsuki’s true headquarters.
Itachi didn’t need to enter the room to understand what had happened.
“Orochimaru has defected from the organization,” Pain announced grimly from the shadows. “While you carry out your missions, stay alert. If you find him, kill him. Retrieve his ring.”
His voice was cold, tinged with annoyance. Clearly, Orochimaru’s betrayal had caught even Pain off guard.
The silhouettes of the gathered members exchanged glances but said nothing. Most of them were like Orochimaru—drifters and defectors with nowhere else to go.
Akatsuki was less a brotherhood than a waiting room for the lost.
“And,” Pain added, “if you come across someone suitable during your mission, see if they’re worth recruiting.”
He frowned inwardly. Orochimaru’s departure made it clear—they needed more manpower, and some reliable replacements. Otherwise, one death or desertion could halt everything.
“You met with Orochimaru yesterday, and today he’s gone rogue,” Juzo remarked as they left the meeting. He eyed Itachi suspiciously. “Know anything?”
“Nothing,” Itachi replied quietly. “Maybe he’s seeking his own truth. When there’s nothing left to do, anyone would leave.”
And that much was true. Without purpose, who would willingly stay?
The Akatsuki's mission statement was a puzzle box of lies—one inside another.
“Yeah… we’re all a little lost.”
Juzo sighed, the weight of his own past making his voice heavy with reflection.
“What’s our mission this time?” Itachi asked, changing the subject. “Once it's done, I plan to return to Konoha.”
His voice was calm, but there was steel beneath it.
Kakashi’s words from half a year ago still haunted him. They echoed constantly, stirring unease. Had it not been for the urgency of meeting Orochimaru, he would’ve returned much sooner.
But being part of Akatsuki came with its own constraints. You played by their rules… or not at all.
Now, time was running out.
“You’re going back to Konoha?” Juzo asked, his expression complicated.
He reached into his robe, fingers brushing the small, worn wooden carving he kept hidden—unfinished, yet cherished. His thumb lingered on the rough surface of the tiny face etched into it.
“Our mission is to investigate the Three-Tails in the Land of Water. The Kiri has been locked in isolation for years. No one knows what’s really happening there. But the Three-Tails is tied to our plans, so we need intel.”
His voice was soft, distant.
“Why that mission?” Itachi’s tone sharpened. “The village is sealed tight. The moment we enter, we’ll be exposed. Taking on a major village is suicide.”
Juzo didn’t respond right away. His gaze drifted.
“You think we can go back?” he asked, almost to himself.
“We lost the path home a long time ago,” Itachi said, frustration bubbling beneath the surface.
Why this mission? Why now?
Even with Orochimaru gone, Akatsuki sent them on a near-impossible task.
In Pain’s chamber, he voiced the same concern to the masked man seated before him.
“With Orochimaru gone, we’re short-handed. Juzo may not be the strongest, but he’s always been reliable. Why assign this mission now?”
The masked man—Obito—didn’t answer directly. Instead, he spoke softly, almost cryptically.
“You remember what happened six months ago? The power of Itachi's susanoo…”
He trailed off, letting the implication hang in the air.
What seemed insignificant now… might soon change everything.
“So what? Even if that power is formidable, I could suppress it with one hand.”
Pain dismissed Obito’s concern with cool arrogance.
“Really?” Obito responded, undeterred. “Then tell me—how strong were you at thirteen?”
Pain fell silent. Memories stirred: a time when he, Konan, and Yahiko had just become Jiraiya’s disciples... when their meals were moldy bread and their nights spent in damp, freezing caves.
“Even if someone is gifted,” Pain finally replied, his tone stiff, “they can’t surpass the power of my Rinnegan. That’s the boundary set by the rules of this world.”
“True,” Obito acknowledged, his voice calm but edged, “the rules do impose limits. Which is exactly why we need someone to keep an eye on him—before those limits are broken.”
