Time passed.
It's been over a year since Hayashi left, and now it's snowing.
Looking around, everything was covered in a vast expanse of white.
Tap, tap, tap.
Hayashi walked through the snowy ground, his eyes fixed ahead. "Is that the base of Orochimaru up ahead? I wonder if he's hiding in there!"
Recently, he had been searching for Orochimaru's hidden base. He had already checked a few bases, but they were all empty. Now, he had received another lead and rushed here without hesitation.
However, he didn't hold much hope this time.
Orochimaru had many hideouts, and he wasn't sure if Orochimaru was in this one.
(Though he knew Orochimaru was in the Village Hidden in Sound, his dwelling was a cave, and it was incredibly secretive. Anyone who's read the original would know this!)
It's been over a year since he left Genya. Beneath the mask, Hayashi's eyes had lost the last trace of innocence, and there was now a touch of weariness.
The outside world was still a place for training.
Tap, tap, tap...
The sound of Hayashi's footsteps in the snow echoed far in the quiet snowstorm.
Up ahead was the cave.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~~
Just as Hayashi was about to get closer, several shurikens suddenly shot towards him.
Hayashi's eyes lit up when he saw the shurikens. His body quickly moved backward, dodging the attack.
"Finally found it!" A look of joy appeared on his face, and he whispered softly.
His gaze turned towards the direction of the attack. Three ninjas, wearing white snow-colored clothing, appeared before him.
If you weren't paying attention, they could have easily blended into the snow.
"Who are you? Why are you here?" Before Hayashi could speak, the leader immediately questioned!
This place is a forbidden area belonging to Lord Orochimaru. No accidents are allowed here. They are the ninjas responsible for guarding the entrance.
"I want to see Lord Orochimaru. Tell him to come out!" Hayashi narrowed his eyes, thinking about what to say next, to get Kimimaro to follow him.
He had recently inquired in the ninja world. Although Kimimaro was still young, he was already one of Orochimaru's trusted subordinates. Such a person, would Genya really allow him to go?
Would Orochimaru allow it?
He thought about it... This might be the second test Genya gave him!
To make Kimimaro willingly follow him. If not... he would really only bring back a bone.
However, this was a decision Hayashi made when he had no other choice.
"Who are you? Do you think you can just meet Lord Orochimaru whenever you want? Leave!" The leading Sound ninja became even more cautious upon hearing that Hayashi wanted to see Orochimaru!
They also knew Hayashi was not here with good intentions, so they wanted to drive him away!
"I just want to talk to Lord Orochimaru. Can't you go and inform him?" Hayashi frowned slightly when he heard these words.
He had finally found Orochimaru's place, so he wouldn't leave so easily. The task Genya gave him was not complete!
"If you don't want to leave, don't blame us for resorting to violence. As luck would have it, Lord Orochimaru is still in need of test subjects!" The leading ninja, seeing that Hayashi was persistent, exchanged a glance with the others behind him!
In an instant!
Several ninjas leaped forward and attacked Hayashi!
Attack?
The eyes of Hayashi narrowed slightly as he stepped back, positioning himself beside the other ninjas.
These three were barely at the level of Special Jonin; Hayashi didn't even need to use Wood Release to easily overpower them.
After a brief pause,
Hayashi looked at the ninjas lying on the ground, completely defeated and no longer able to fight, his tone still calm: "I just wanted to see Orochimaru, why are you attacking me?"
This time, he didn't kill them, and his tone was merely filled with some regret.
"Because you shouldn't be here!" Just as Hayashi was reflecting, a cold voice came from within the cave.
Then,
A young boy with white clothes and white hair walked out of the cave. His pale face looked somewhat weak.
However,
As Hayashi locked eyes with the white-haired boy, he felt a heavy killing intent.
Just from a simple glance, Hayashi could tell that this indifferent-looking boy had killed people before, and not just a few.
So when he saw this person, his eyes became alert, and his body immediately took a defensive stance.
"Oh? The mask of the Wood Ox?" But when the white-haired boy saw the mask, his cold eyes became even colder.
Wood Ox?
A lot went through his mind at that moment.
"Are you the one who wants to see Orochimaru?" The white-haired boy said coldly, his expression still indifferent.
"Understood!" Hayashi nodded.
"If you want to see Orochimaru, you'll have to get past me first!" The white-haired boy's eyes narrowed, a sharper glint flashing in them.
With that, he unleashed two sharp bone spikes from his palm, gleaming with a cold, menacing light.
"Bone spikes?" Hayashi's eyes narrowed when he saw the distinct feature. "You're Kimimaro?"
Having learned about Kimimaro's abilities in the past few days, Hayashi recognized him immediately when he saw the bone spikes.
After all...
There was probably no one else in the ninja world with such a unique ability.
"You talk too much!" Kimimaro sneered disdainfully and stomped his foot on the ground.
In a flash...
He appeared in front of Hayashi, the bone spikes in his palm aimed directly at Hayashi's forehead.
As the bone spikes drew nearer, Hayashi's pupils quickly shrank. Just as they were about to strike, he began to retreat!
Once he steadied himself, he once again took up a taijutsu stance, even mockingly waving his hand at Kimimaro.
"Huh? Damn it!" Kimimaro frowned. He couldn't tolerate such a provocation!
With a rush, he charged toward Hayashi again.
This time, Hayashi didn't dodge. He engaged him head-on in combat!
Both were primarily clashing with taijutsu, but even without opening the Eight Gates, Hayashi held the upper hand against Kimimaro, even pressing him down!
Crack!
In the next clash, Hayashi kicked and broke both of the bone spikes in Kimimaro's palm.
At the same time, he frowned slightly. Genya wanted Kimimaro, but this Kimimaro seemed a bit weak. Was someone like this really worth Genya's attention?
Although every spot of body contact could inexplicably grow bone spurs, everything else was rather ordinary.
If Kimimaro only had this much strength, he probably wouldn't even be able to defeat Shou Kui now!
"You've got me serious!" Kimimaro watched as his bone spurs were kicked off. His eyes turned serious, and his palm wiped across his back!
He then felt a bump on his shoulder, and with a forceful tug...
A bone sword was pulled out. It shimmered with a cold gleam under the reflection of the snow, a bit dazzling!
Even Hayashi stared in shock: "Damn. This bone growth is too impressive!"
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