Starting with rogue ninjas, building the insect kingdom.

Chapter 64 A Secret Power Struggle

But it is precisely because our own people take this seriously that outsiders believe it is truly effective.

For this routine questioning, Aburame Shisei did not send any Naotos, but simply had ordinary guards conduct a simple inquiry, and did not use any pheromones.

In his view, any caution is useful, especially when it comes to insects, although he is very confident in himself.

But the other party is, after all, an important figure who has mastered core technologies. Even if the other party's strength has not yet fully grown to its peak, the other party is still a top expert in the field of biological research.

Without a doubt, Orochimaru passed the interrogation very smoothly. He believed that he had concealed himself well and had not revealed his whereabouts.

Aburame Shisei was also playing along with him, but she only hoped that he would leave soon and not disturb his life.

Orochimaru, however, had no intention of leaving after just a quick look around.

Orochimaru, or rather, the herbal medicine merchant who went by the alias Snake Head, actually stayed in Takigakure for a week.

During that week, he strolled through every street, sampled every newly opened restaurant, chatted with dozens of villagers, and even audited two cultural classes at the ninja school under the pretext of observation.

What he saw was a vibrant village. The streets were clean, the shops were well-organized, and the villagers wore expressions of anticipation for the future. The ninjas were well-trained, executed missions with exceptional efficiency, and cooperated seamlessly with each other, even giving the impression of being on par with Konoha.

"Though small, it is soon complete in every way," he thought to himself.

If such a village is not stopped, it will inevitably have an impact on Konoha in the future.

When the thought flashed through his mind, he instinctively thought: tell Konoha, tell his teacher.

But the next second, he scoffed at the idea.

No matter how good Konoha is, it is ultimately a mortal prison. What he is pursuing now is the essence of life, the mystery of forbidden techniques, and the power that transcends life and death.

This small village of Takigakure clearly holds something interesting.

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes slightly.

From the moment he stepped into the village, he had a strange feeling, as if something was watching him.

It is not human vision, but something more hidden and ubiquitous.

This feeling was extremely uncomfortable, especially for someone as perceptive as him, but in the end, he chose to endure it.

"A missing spies, an undetectable area. Heh heh!" Orochimaru chuckled to himself.

The intelligence he'd gathered over the past few days mostly focused on: the new leader, Shibuki Korou, was diligent and caring towards the people, and was implementing sweeping reforms to the village system; and the Jonin, Naoto, had mastered the Earth Grudge Fear technique, a skill unmatched for over a century, resulting in a rapid increase in his strength.

The commercial street was planned and spearheaded by Ryuji Ida, a businessman from outside the area. The open-minded policies attracted many outside merchants.

Orochimaru took all this information into his possession, but only believed about three-tenths of it.

"A person's foresight depends not only on their own wisdom but also on their environment."

He couldn't believe that a small village with fewer than 10,000 people could produce two ninjas in the same era who were both exceptionally talented in economics, domestic affairs, and ninjutsu.

Especially Naoto and Shibuki Syaoran; as far as he knew, their talents in the early stages were not outstanding, and could even be described as mediocre.

Orochimaru licked his lips, a glint of excitement in his eyes. There must be someone behind them, and that person must be watching him, or monitoring everyone in the village. He wanted to know who that person was.

He didn't alert the enemy, and Aburame Shisei didn't choose to involve anyone else. Both sides were patient and observing, like two wild beasts staring at each other from a distance, waiting for the other to reveal a weakness.

A week later, Orochimaru had gathered all the information that could be made public, but it was all just for show. With no progress in such a short time, he was gradually losing patience.

Of course, the change in his mindset after the last great battle led to a breakthrough in his strength, giving him enough confidence. Therefore, he chose to strike first and break the stalemate.

"I really don't know what kind of beast you are, that you actually beat a snake in a contest of endurance." Orochimaru muttered to himself, holding up the edge of his straw hat and looking around.

After waiting for several days, he set his sights on a Chunin, a Chunin who had been promoted to Chunin in his thirties and was considered an elite Chunin. His position was destined to expose him to some unknown secrets.

In the dead of night, Orochimaru appeared at a street corner in a small alley and quietly intercepted the man.

"I'm very sorry, but I need to borrow the information in your head."

He said sorry, but he felt no remorse in his heart; his pupils turned into the vertical eyes of a snake.

Illusion Technique: The Fox's Mind-Reading Technique.

Under the influence of the genjutsu, the Chunin's eyes began to glaze over. Just as Orochimaru was about to ask for further information, a dark figure descended from the sky.

The delicate kunai swept across his head, but fortunately, his senses were sharp and he dodged in time, taking only a few strands of hair from his forehead.

Naoto, however, reacted swiftly, unleashing three hand seals and a fierce palm strike aimed directly at Orochimaru's chest, forcing Orochimaru to release the hostage.

He took the opportunity to rescue the person and threw them to a distance.

He formed hand seals again, and four white tentacles grew out from his back—Earth Release: Binding Technique.

The same simple C-rank ninjutsu with three seals transforms his originally soft, combat-inept tentacles into hard earth spears. Combined with the inherent resilience of the tentacles, these spears become incredibly tough and do not easily break.

These four spears instantly gave him four more weapons, drawing Orochimaru into close combat before he could even react.

Although he lost the initiative, Orochimaru was experienced and quickly dodged four spear attacks before his body slid backward several meters like a snake.

"Is this the Earth Grudge Fear? To achieve symbiosis with a mysterious creature is indeed a topic worthy of study."

"Who are you?" Naoto wrapped his hands around two tree tendrils, holding two spears in his hands. Then, two more tendrils extended from his back, transforming into spears.

It wasn't that he didn't want to control two more, but rather that his current mental strength only allowed him to control a maximum of four.

"Just a curious traveler," Orochimaru's voice was hoarse and playful. "But... it seems you've been exposed. Did someone behind you tell you?"

Orochimaru's question was a casual probe, and Naoto's expression changed; he almost got tricked into revealing something.

But he quickly remembered what Shisei Aburame had told him, so he stopped communicating with Orochimaru, said one more word, and charged forward again with his spear in both hands.

"Sigh, I didn't fall for it!" Orochimaru sighed, slightly disappointed. "Fine, let me see what the number one ninja of Takigakure is really made of."