Naruto Dream Fulfillment Master

Page 226

Hiruzen Sarutobi paused slightly upon hearing this, then turned to look at Jiraiya, a complex expression creeping across his face.

After a long pause, he nodded meaningfully: "It seems that you still haven't given up on him, Jiraiya."

Jiraiya smiled and asked, "Why give up?"

“Old man, you saw it too… Orochimaru isn’t entirely without room for maneuver.”

Hiruzen Sarutobi silently gazed at Jiraiya, his eyes filled with both relief and shame.

He understood his disciple's inner turmoil. Ever since Orochimaru's defection, Jiraiya had been unable to let go of it, and for many years he had searched everywhere for Orochimaru's whereabouts, trying to influence him to return to the righteous path...

Over the years, Jiraiya had tried countless times, both openly and secretly, to win Orochimaru back, but all his efforts were in vain.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed softly and turned his gaze back to the still-lit large screen.

In the scene, Orochimaru stands quietly in place, watching Nawaki leave.

His profile was hidden in shadow, making it impossible to see his expression clearly.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at his unfathomable disciple on the screen and murmured, "Orochimaru, what exactly are you planning to do...?"

On the other side, Tsunade, having recovered her senses, gently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, let out a long breath, and slumped back into her chair as if a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

She pressed her hand to her chest, trying to calm her rapid breathing, and murmured, "Thank goodness... Rope Tree... Rope Tree has been rescued..."

After calming down slightly, Tsunade suddenly turned around, her face filled with barely suppressed excitement: "Jiraiya! Nawaki survived in the dream this time! Does that... does that mean that if I can enter the dream space next time, I'll have a chance to see him?!"

[Ding! Tsunade's emotional fluctuations have been detected! Emotional value +1000!!]

Jiraiya felt a pang of pain in his heart when he looked into Tsunade's bloodshot, anxious eyes.

After a moment of silence, he sighed softly and advised, "Tsunade, I understand your desire to see Nawaki again. But... I really can't guarantee that."

"There is more than one dream world."

Upon hearing this, the hope on Tsunade's face gradually faded.

She released Jiraiya's hand, pursed her lips, and nodded with a look of disappointment on her face.

She might not have the chance to actually enter the dream, and even if she did...

It's also not certain that they'll be able to enter the world where the rope tree still exists.

Thinking of this, Tsunade felt a pang of melancholy and helplessness.

[Ding! Tsunade's emotional fluctuations have been detected! Emotional value +600!!]

Jiraiya looked at his best friend's gloomy expression, but for a moment he didn't know how to comfort him.

He could only pat Tsunade's shoulder gently to offer some comfort.

The two looked at each other in silence, their hearts heavy with complex emotions.

Meanwhile, Kabuto, who had been silent for a long time, had heard every word of their conversation.

At this moment, he narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze behind his glasses unfathomable: Are the people of Konoha... so familiar with this dream world?

Judging from their tone, they seemed to have already witnessed many different dream scenarios and could even summarize the patterns!

……

At dawn the next day, the long night finally came to an end.

In a cold, dark dungeon somewhere beneath Amegakure, Orochimaru, who had been asleep all night, suddenly opened his eyes and woke up from his dream.

He sat up abruptly, cautiously surveying his surroundings.

The surroundings were dark and damp, filled with the sticky, musty smell of blood and blood, and the sound of water dripping down the mossy stone wall could be heard.

Rough, cold stone walls, rusty fences, a long, dark corridor outside the prison cell...

The familiar scenes before his eyes caused Orochimaru's pupils to shrink slightly.

He easily recognized where he was.

The dungeon of Rain Hidden Village.

Before his defection, this place held many live subjects for his experiments with scorpions.

He had entered and exited this dungeon countless times, so he naturally knew its layout like the back of his hand.

It seems I've been captured by Itachi Uchiha and taken back to the Akatsuki organization.

Orochimaru stretched his stiff neck and felt an indescribable soreness all over his body.

"Looks like... I've been having a special connection with dungeons lately!"

Orochimaru gave a bitter laugh and made a self-deprecating remark, his hoarse voice echoing in the empty cell.

From being captured and imprisoned in Konoha to now being a prisoner, his recent days have been filled with misfortunes.

It's incredibly ironic that Orochimaru, one of the legendary Sannin, has now been imprisoned one after another.

Just then, a soft footstep sound came from not far away.

It seemed someone had heard the commotion inside the cell and was walking this way.

Upon hearing this, Orochimaru's gaze suddenly turned cold, and he slowly turned his head to look at the prison door.

"Tap, tap, tap..." Footsteps approaching from afar stopped in front of the prison door.

In the dim light, the newcomer was tall and slender, appearing to be about seventeen or eighteen years old, shrouded in a black Akatsuki robe with red clouds.

Orochimaru looked up and met a young face that was both unfamiliar and familiar.

He was a handsome young man with short, fiery red hair, pale skin that was almost sickly, and delicate features that resembled a porcelain doll. He was beautiful but exuded a sinister and eerie aura.

His eyes were an eerie dark green as he stared indifferently at Orochimaru in the cage in the darkness.

Their eyes met, and neither of them spoke.

"Heh... Orochimaru, you woke up pretty early!"

A playful smile curved the corners of the red-haired boy's lips, and his voice, tinged with lazy mockery, drifted leisurely from outside the cell door.

Orochimaru looked up at the newcomer through the iron bars, and his signature sinister smile immediately appeared on his face: "Long time no see, Sasori."

His words revealed no trace of the embarrassment of being a prisoner, as if he were simply greeting an old friend he hadn't seen in a long time.

Back then, Orochimaru and Sasori had a partnership in Akatsuki, but they didn't get along very well.

It's unclear why Scorpion came to see him this time.

Sasori narrowed his eyes slightly, sizing Orochimaru up and down, a hint of schadenfreude in his smile: "Even the mighty Orochimaru has met his end?"

Orochimaru, instead of being annoyed by the other party's teasing, chuckled and shrugged, saying, "Hehe, yeah! It's been a long time since I've been back to Akatsuki. It's no harm to come back and visit occasionally."

He was nonchalant, as if the cold prison cell before him was merely a hotel where he could rest.

Sasori was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, then burst into laughter: "Hahaha! As expected of Orochimaru, your face is as thick as ever!"

"By the way, I've already read Kisame's mission report. You were actually captured alive by that brat Itachi Uchiha?"

Upon hearing Itachi's name, Orochimaru's previously nonchalant expression suddenly darkened, and he frowned unhappily: "Hmph, what does it have to do with you?"

Seeing this, Sasori sneered and said mercilessly, "Orochimaru, you idiot!"

"Back then, you tried to ambush Uchiha Itachi, but that brat cut off one of your arms and you had to slink away from Akatsuki."

"I can't believe that after all these years, you haven't improved at all? How could you lose so easily and so thoroughly this time?"

Orochimaru's face was ashen, and a dangerous glint flashed in his golden snake eyes.

He suppressed the surging anger in his heart and said in an icy voice, "Did you come here just to spout this nonsense?"

Sasori shrugged, strode forward, and stared at Orochimaru through the iron bars, a thick, mocking smile playing on his lips: "That's right, I came here specifically to see you make a fool of yourself!"

"Tsk tsk, Orochimaru, admit it—this incident fully proves that your research is nothing but worthless garbage!"

"Completely incomparable to me! My art is the true path to immortality."

Orochimaru's face turned ashen, his snake-like eyes fixed on the red-haired youth before him.

This guy is nothing but a pile of rotting human flesh, how dare he mock his research?!

"The facts are right in front of you, aren't they?" Seeing Orochimaru's angry expression, Sasori felt a surge of pleasure, and his smile deepened. "Uchiha Itachi is indeed quite capable, but even if he's stronger than you, his strength is limited. The reason you lost so easily this time is probably because of your 'immortality technique,' isn't it?"

Upon hearing this, Orochimaru's pupils widened suddenly, and his expression changed drastically!

He sat bolt upright and shouted sharply, "You—?!"

Seeing this, Scorpion laughed heartily and said smugly, "What, I guessed right?"

He shook his head slightly and clicked his tongue in dismay. "Looks like I was right after all. Ah, how pathetic!"

Scorpion grinned maliciously, stretching out his arms exaggeratedly in front of him. "With your immature, half-baked existence, you dare to claim immortality?"

"Orochimaru, your laughable research is utterly meaningless! My art is true immortality. Even if Itachi Uchiha's genjutsu is incredibly powerful... Hmph—"

Orochimaru's face twisted slightly upon hearing this, and he let out a cold sneer: "Hmph... Illusion techniques are of course useless against the dead."

Upon hearing this, Scorpion's expression froze.

Orochimaru slowly curled his lips into a mocking smile: "Back then, in order to make your body immortal, you transformed yourself into this inhuman, ghost-like form. You even discarded most of your heart and flesh. In the end, what difference is there between you and a real dead person?"

"You—!" Scorpion's face darkened at the sarcastic remark, and his previously nonchalant smile vanished instantly.

A flash of annoyance crossed his sinister eyes, but he quickly suppressed it, scoffed disdainfully, crossed his arms, and coldly looked down at Orochimaru: "Orochimaru, don't worry, you'll soon never have to fear genjutsu again!"

"After the organization executes you, I will turn your corpse into the strongest puppet!"

"You will become my most cherished possession, and live forever in my collection!"

"Hahaha--"

Sasori of the Red Sand laughed loudly as he turned and left, his unrestrained laughter fading into the distance until it disappeared at the end of the corridor.

The dark cell fell silent again, with only Orochimaru trapped in his small confinement.

He slowly loosened his clenched fists, sat down against the wall expressionlessly, his snake-like eyes so dark they seemed to drip venom.

At this moment, Orochimaru's anger had gradually subsided, replaced by a deep chill and solemnity.

He knew very well that Scorpion's words just now were not a bluff—

Once Payne decides to execute him, Scorpion will definitely rush to turn his corpse into a puppet.

To make matters worse, this is Amegakure!