Uchiha Gin never expected to run into Orochimaru here, and it happened so suddenly.
However, speaking of it, Orochimaru was actually the person he most wanted to meet in Konoha.
But… not Orochimaru from this period.
At this time, Orochimaru was still loyal to the village, completely under the influence of the Will of Fire, not yet awakened to his own ambitions.
It was only later, after losing the chance to become Hokage to Namikaze Minato, that Orochimaru's true nature fully emerged.
If Gin handed over his foundational inner arts to Orochimaru now, Orochimaru would undoubtedly hand it over to the village immediately.
That would completely disrupt all of Gin's plans.
Although if he gave it to the village, the spread of his inner arts would be much faster, and only elite ninjas would even be able to cultivate it—
But the problem was...
He was a Uchiha.
There was no telling what attitude the village would take toward him. Most likely, it wouldn't be a friendly one.
The Konoha leadership absolutely did not want talented individuals appearing among the Uchiha.
While Gin was deep in thought, silent and contemplative, Orochimaru stared at him with his snake-like pupils, the killing intent radiating from him warning that any strange move would provoke an immediate attack.
Even though Orochimaru was not yet at his peak, he was already an elite jonin.
Compared to him, Gin, who was only at a special jonin level, was like an ant.
Orochimaru asked in a slow, lazy tone, as if it were a casual inquiry:
"Can you explain to me why someone known as 'unable to perform ninjutsu' is now using Shadow Clone and Fire Style techniques so freely?"
Damn it.
Not only had this man witnessed him casting ninjutsu, he even knew exactly who he was.
Gin's reputation was widespread, but only a few people knew his face. How did Orochimaru know?
Suppressing his anxiety, Gin answered calmly and respectfully:
"I didn't expect that even someone like Jonin Orochimaru would know of a nobody like me."
Being recognized by Orochimaru like this was basically a death sentence!
This was practically telling the village that he was hiding something!
"Danzo's handiwork. To undermine the prestige of the Uchiha," Orochimaru replied flatly.
And with that, he explained how Uchiha Gin's infamy had spread so widely.
After all, as long as it was about suppressing the Uchiha's reputation, that shadowy man lurking in Konoha's darkness would stop at nothing.
"Damn you, Danzo."
Gin gritted his teeth inwardly. Without that troublemaker, his reputation wouldn't have been dragged through the mud.
He made a mental note to settle that score later.
Orochimaru observed Gin with a hint of curiosity and suspicion. Although Gin kept a calm expression, subtle changes didn't escape Orochimaru's sharp eyes.
"You seem to know about Danzo's existence."
Danzo was high up in Konoha's leadership, but he was essentially the village's shadow. Except for Jonin-level ninjas, most were unaware of him.
How else could he be called "Root," buried deep beneath the great tree?
Gin, of course, knew about Danzo. Future "5.5th Hokage," the first "Blame Shadow."
Unfortunately, this only made Orochimaru's killing intent surge even more.
Gin's body grew stiff. Having lived peacefully for years, he struggled to resist the overwhelming pressure.
He could only force himself to explain, word by word:
"My parents' diary... mentioned him..."
Orochimaru's face remained expressionless—hiding emotions was basic training for a ninja.
But Gin knew Orochimaru didn't believe a word.
The killing intent grew even more intense.
"Surely… Lord Orochimaru… you don't think a Uchiha would turn spy, right?!"
Gin practically shouted, using all his strength to force the words out.
It worked. The murderous aura weakened.
Orochimaru pondered briefly and came to a conclusion.
Indeed.
If there was one group in Konoha that would never betray the village, it was the Uchiha.
In Orochimaru's mind, every clan could potentially betray Konoha if the interests were high enough—a relic of the Warring States era still lingering in their blood.
But not the Uchiha. From the ancient relics to the new generation, they saw Konoha as their own creation.
According to the radical Uchiha, Konoha belonged to them.
They would never surrender their own territory.
In Orochimaru's view, the Uchiha were crazy, but at least they were the type of comrades you never had to fear stabbing you in the back.
If they did, it would be an open and direct rebellion.
And yet Konoha's leaders still feared and guarded against them.
It made no sense.
"Then, is it because you fear war?" Orochimaru asked, lowering his gaze so his expression couldn't be read.
If only Nawaki had been able to escape because of fear of war.
"Absolutely not!"
As the killing intent vanished, Gin collapsed to the ground, hurriedly explaining.
"Both times I took the ninja exam, I couldn't use ninjutsu. Only recently have I been able to perform it."
Orochimaru wasn't interested in Gin's excuses and turned to leave.
"Lord Orochimaru! Have you ever thought that a ninja could achieve immortality?"
Gin's words made Orochimaru pause and turn his head, his gaze deep.
The dream of immortality had only just begun to sprout in Orochimaru's heart. For now, he was still chasing the mastery of ninjutsu.
No one should have known this.
Gin didn't wait for a response and continued:
"I developed a technique that could let a ninja live forever, based on accumulating chakra without damaging the body. In theory, if chakra is abundant enough, immortality is possible."
And it had to be one's own chakra. Borrowed chakra like that from tailed beasts would be harmful in the long term.
Orochimaru pondered seriously. In theory, it made sense. Most ninjas didn't live long because of battlefield deaths and overexerting their chakra.
Yet many still lived to their sixties and seventies.
"Can I see your technique?"
Orochimaru stepped closer and requested politely, showing due respect to unknown knowledge.
"I happen to have a copy with me," Gin said, grinning and showing his white teeth. He pulled out a small notebook from his tool pouch.
"But in exchange, could you take me as your student?"
After quick thinking, Gin realized he couldn't afford to be labeled a coward—that would affect his future actions.
Besides, this was a rare opportunity to connect with Orochimaru.
Perhaps Orochimaru would interpret and improve his foundational inner arts differently.
Thus, Gin crafted the image of a "genius ninjutsu researcher." If he became Orochimaru's disciple, it would ease much of the hostility from the higher-ups.
Gin's plan sounded great in his mind.
Unfortunately, reality would not follow his expectations.
Orochimaru froze for a moment as he took the notebook, leafing through it as he replied:
"I have no plans to take on students for now."
The shadow of Nawaki's death still loomed over him. He wasn't ready to accept another disciple yet.
As Orochimaru skimmed the notebook, he noticed that it detailed three stages entirely based on sealing techniques. With just a glance, he understood these seals were deconstructed and recombined.
The first dismantled seal immediately revealed why Uchiha Gin had previously been unable to perform ninjutsu.
No further explanations were necessary.
This level of work wasn't something an ordinary child could have created.
Orochimaru gazed deeply at the disappointed Gin, who was putting on an expression of sorrowful tears.
Meanwhile, internally, Gin was cursing Orochimaru's ancestors thoroughly.
You heartless bastard!
"A genius researcher of ninjutsu, huh? Truly worthy of the Uchiha name," Orochimaru muttered inwardly.
An Uchiha comparable to the Second Hokage… whether that would be good or bad for the village remained to be seen.
"I'll keep your secret," Orochimaru said meaningfully as he closed the notebook.
"I can't be your teacher, but I will find one for you."
With a puff of smoke, Orochimaru disappeared.
Gin sat there dazed.
This outcome was completely different from what he had anticipated.
Orochimaru had chosen to protect him and even promised to find him a teacher.
"Who?! At least tell me who!"
Hopefully Tsunade—beautiful, strong, and a master of medical ninjutsu.
Please not Jiraiya, that destiny-chasing nutcase!
He couldn't stand mystics!
...
At the Ninja Academy.
Namikaze Minato looked at Gin, who had dark circles like a panda, full of confusion.
"What happened to you? You look drained."
Just one day without seeing him, and he looked like… he'd been indulging way too much.
"Don't even ask," Gin sighed.
Exhausted, he didn't even notice Minato's strange gaze.
Yesterday had been a whirlwind—he hadn't slept a wink after getting home.
Originally, he was happy after swapping to the Eight Gates technique.
But then he ran into that guy Orochimaru.
He still had no idea who Orochimaru planned to assign as his teacher.
After getting home, he absorbed the clone that had been studying ninjutsu and immediately dived into researching his "Lingbo Weibu" (Wave Walking Step) technique.
He soon discovered the fatal flaw:
Size.
His body was too small. The required placement of the eight trigrams positions was enormous.
Forget evading attacks—even the basic confusion effect of the technique wouldn't work.
He had no choice but to abandon Lingbo Weibu and work on something else.
While lightweight techniques were great, they depended heavily on one's own body. In normal martial arts worlds, no one could match a ninja's physical prowess.
Unless it was a high-fantasy martial world like "Fengyun" where martial arts surpassed ninja levels—
But those depictions were too vague, lacking concrete steps.
Thus, he had to take a different approach.
After a full night of effort, he finally succeeded in creating a new ability.
Unlike the foundational inner arts, this one could fully utilize a body's power even at the first level.
"I didn't sleep at all last night," Gin said with a yawn.
"I'm just going to nap for a bit. Wake me up after class."
With that, Gin collapsed onto the desk and fell asleep.
Meanwhile, Inoue Satoru, the teacher on stage, was furious.
This delinquent really doesn't respect me at all!