Anko had always firmly believed that the Ame ninja she had seen in the village was undoubtedly Orochimaru!
Whether it was the Ame ninja or Princess Kushinada, they were merely identities that Lord Orochimaru had disguised himself as.
But why were there now two Lord Orochimaru?
Was it a clone technique...?
Anko's gaze shifted back and forth between Princess Kushinada and Hakuryu, noticing that their demeanor and aura were entirely different.
Hakuryu had a refined yet frail appearance, his hair tied into a ponytail.
When Anko first saw him, she had doubted herself, but now, with that eerie smile and eyes as sharp as a viper's, it was clear—this man was dangerous!
Princess Kushinada, on the other hand, despite her breathtaking beauty, exuded a delicate and fragile presence.
Aside from Anko, no one would ever associate such a stunning, weak-looking woman with the infamous Orochimaru.
This wasn't a simple clone technique!
Anko took two steps back, positioning herself so that she could see both of them at the same time.
"You… who are you?"
Hakuryu stepped forward from the luxurious bed, his lips curling into a smirk.
"What? You don't recognize me anymore?"
"You've really disappointed me, Anko."
That tone, that expression—aside from the face, everything about him was exactly like the Orochimaru in Ankos memories.
"Lord Orochimaru…"
She shifted her gaze to Princess Kushinada again, unable to understand why this woman gave her the same feeling.
Hakuryu stepped closer to Anko, gently ruffling her hair and speaking softly, "Good child."
Anko's expression wavered.
There was no mistake—this was exactly the way Orochimaru had once treated her, with an affectionate touch, like a father toward his daughter.
"I'll explain it to you," Hakuryu said.
"Back then, during the battle against Sarutobi-sensei and Namikaze Minato, Sarutobi-sensei used a soul-sealing forbidden technique, intending to perish with me. But I escaped that seal using a special soul-splitting technique, allowing me to survive."
"But my body at the time… I had injected too many White Zetsu cells in one go, causing it to mutate beyond repair. It was no longer usable."
"Without a physical body, I could only keep splitting my soul again and again, evading the Death God's pursuit to remain in this world."
"In the end, my soul fragmented into multiple separate beings. What you see before you now—they're all me."
What he said wasn't difficult to understand.
Anko was well aware of Orochimaru's soul experiments.
She turned to Princess Kushinada once more.
If what Hakuryu said was true, then this woman was also Orochimaru—one of his fragmented selves.
Then… this man was as well…
But Princess Kushinada's gaze toward Anko was entirely different from Hakuryu's.
There was something in her eyes that only a woman would have.
A complexity in the way her gaze flickered, emotions that Anko had never once seen in Orochimaru before.
Anko looked at Hakuryu and said, "So, you're actually just a part of Lord Orochimaru."
Hakuryu's eyes flickered slightly as he replied, "No, I am me—I am Orochimaru! Even though my soul has split into many fragments, there is still a dominant consciousness. You could think of it like my hands, my hair, my organs—pieces of my body that have separated from me."
Princess Kushinada stood silently at the side, saying nothing.
Anko appeared deep in thought.
Hakuryu continued, "But right now, I'm very weak. Too many fragments have split away, and I need to find a way to restore myself."
Anko gazed at Hakuryu, staring at this unfamiliar face.
After a moment of silence, she asked, "Lord Orochimaru… what do you need me to do?"
A smile once again appeared on Hakuryu's face.
He said, "Do you remember when we were at the research facility, and I told you I had something to show you?"
Anko slowly nodded. "...Yes. After that, I passed out."
Hakuryu continued, "And when you woke up, you found that your body felt completely different—as if you had been reborn, possessing an incredible, overwhelming power."
Looking at Anko, Hakuryu reached out gently, lifting her chin so that she was forced to look up at him.
"That's because… I changed your body."
Anko's eyes instantly widened in shock.
Hakuryu went on, "Well, perhaps not 'changed'—more like transformed it. I created an extremely powerful body, originally meant for my own future use… but instead, I fused that body with yours."
Anko suddenly understood—so that's why…
That's why everything had felt so different.
That's why, after waking up, even when Kakashi, Hakumen, and Guy fought together, they still couldn't defeat her.
That's why Makoto had been constantly checking her body during that time.
She stood there, dazed, and asked blankly, "But… why did you…"
Hakuryu spoke gently, "At that time, I no longer had the chance to change bodies. I also anticipated that battle would end badly for me. If I died, this body would only become Hyuga Makoto's prize. Rather than let that happen, I chose to leave it to you."
"..."
Hakuryu's hand caressed Anko's cheek affectionately, as if he were touching something precious.
"Anko, I need your body now. With it, I can gradually reclaim the fragments of my soul and restore myself. Don't worry, I'll prepare another body for you."
"..."
Anko didn't respond.
Instead, she turned and walked toward Princess Kushinada.
Seeing this, a flicker of hostility flashed across Hakuryu's face.
Anko grabbed Princess Kushinada's delicate arm and stared intensely into her eyes, as if trying to confirm something.
"…Are you also Lord Orochimaru?"
Before Princess Kushinada could answer, Hakuryu interjected, "You could think of it that way. We are all parts of me."
But Princess Kushinada only forced a weak smile.
She seemed to hesitate, lifting her hand slightly as if wanting to touch Anko's face—yet, at the last moment, she stopped herself.
"…Lord Orochimaru."
Anko spoke softly, her back turned to Hakuryu.
"…You must be unable to use the name Orochimaru now in order to hide yourself. Can you tell me your current name?"
Hakuryu's eyes flickered. "My name now is Hakuryu."
"Hakuryu…" Anko murmured, taking a deep breath before slowly exhaling.
Then, she spoke again—this time, calling out his name directly.
"Hakuryu."
Her tone was unnaturally calm, as if she were addressing a stranger.
"Lord Orochimaru has never called the Third Hokage 'Sarutobi-sensei' in front of me. While he would use that title when speaking to the Third Hokage directly, it was only a show of respect—something even the Third himself was well aware of."
Hakuryu's expression stiffened slightly, and the smile on his face gradually disappeared.
"Lord Orochimaru also never called Makoto by his full name. Makoto was always the one he admired and relied on the most. He once told me that even if they were to become enemies in the future, he would never hate Makoto. At the time, I didn't understand why they would become enemies at all…"
Anko suddenly let out a bitter laugh.
She was the one who had introduced Makoto to Lord Orochimaru.
Back then, she had been happy that Makoto had earned Lord Orochimaru recognition.
She had always imagined that when she grew up, she would become just like Makoto—Lord Orochimaru's right-hand, following him forever.
"Lord Orochimaru never liked to smile. His smiles were always for show—even the ones he gave me were fake. It was because, when I was a child, I once told him that he looked terrifying when he didn't smile. After that, whenever he faced me, he always had a smile on his face.
But that smile was never gentle.
His true gentleness was hidden behind that cold, unreadable expression—not behind some fake, hollow grin."
"Hakuryu… You think that because you are the Third Hokage's student, you should respect him.
You think that because you are Makoto's enemy, you should hate him.
You think that because you believe you and I are close, you should put on a gentle smile for me…
But all of it is just what you think you should do.
If you were truly Lord Orochimaru… you would know that none of that was ever necessary."
Anko tightened her grip on Princess Kushinada's arm.
Her shoulders trembled uncontrollably.
"That day, Lord Orochimaru told me at the research facility that he wanted to show me something."
"He said he had a gift for me—a special, unique, and most important gift, one that belonged to me alone… He told me that no matter who it was, anyone who tried to take this gift away from me would be my enemy!
If Makoto had no interest in taking this gift, then I could continue to trust him.
At first, I didn't even know what this 'gift' was..."
"Something this important—why don't you remember it?!
You claim to be one of Lord Orochimaru's split entities, the one with the dominant consciousness…
Yet you don't even have a complete memory!"
At that moment, Princess Kushinada, standing before Anko, suddenly covered her face with her hands, tears glistening in her eyes as she gazed at Anko.
In contrast, Hakuryu, standing behind Anko, wore only an expression of coldness and killing intent.
Anko slowly turned around to face him, not surprised in the slightest by his reaction.
"From the moment I saw you in Konoha that day, I knew…
You might be Lord Orochimaru, but you are not the Lord Orochimaru I knew!"
"Hakuryu, you want my body, so that you can gain enough strength to devour the other split entities, right?"
"That means—among all of Lord Orochimaru's fragments, you are absolutely not the strongest one!
You're just a lowly remnant, an insignificant, power-hungry fragment, trying to overthrow the rightful ruler!"
As Anko spat her accusations, the killing intent on Hakuryu's face intensified.
But then, suddenly, he let out a low, chilling laugh.
His eyes narrowed, and his voice carried a sinister edge as he murmured,
"Anko, you've truly impressed me…"
Then, as the laughter faded, he spoke in a calm, deadly tone:
"You're right.
Among all the split entities, I'm not the strongest.
But killing you…?
I am more than enough for that."
"Killing me…" Anko murmured to herself.
"If it were Lord Orochimaru, and he wanted my life, I wouldn't hesitate…"
"But Lord Orochimaru would never want me dead!"
As soon as her words fell, dark eye markings appeared on her face, and an immense, terrifying chakra erupted from her body.
The entire room shook under the sheer force of the energy—screens, silk drapes, tables, and chairs trembled uncontrollably.
Suddenly countless threads of blue chakra filled the space, while the floor became covered in countless glowing, intricate seals crawling like living inscriptions.
Anko glanced at the sealing formations, then let out a cold laugh.
"So, you were prepared for this all along?"
Orochimaru's expression remained emotionless as he raised one hand and formed a seal in front of him.
Kagui Nine-Seal Corridor
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