Chapter Fifty-One Aftermath

  In less than a month's time, news spread from the Land of Earth that Utakata had killed one of his fellow jōnin and several members of the Council of Elders before escaping.

  It is said that among the rebels of the anti-soil country, a rebel ninja appeared who used explosives to destroy important buildings in various parts of the soil country.

  ※※※

  When Orochimaru had finished his rounds at all of his bases, he was preparing to return to this one on the border of the Land of Earth. Since finding that child, except for the necessary inspections of the base and work (going to the battlefield to collect orphans as pawns), he spent as much time as possible in this base.

  That kid's eyes looked familiar, just like my own in the past. Even more lost than I was back then. When my parents died at the same time, I was six years old and had a similar expression. I felt like a floating duckweed drifting through the world. Back then, there was "him", and then I met Nagisa and... that idiot.

  The corner of Orochimaru's mouth revealed a hint of genuine smile.

  But that child was even younger than himself at the time, and he treated everyone with the same attitude, without any special treatment. The gentle smile, calm eyes, and indifferent demeanor were all qualities that he himself didn't possess until he was nearly twenty years old.

  That child's expressions are numerous, vivid and accurate, so accurate that even the people who should have those expressions don't change their facial expressions as quickly as he does. It's like switching masks instantly. Hidden deep within his eyes is a hollow emptiness. In the base, except for interacting with those two children and me, there is almost no fluctuation... or perhaps, his attitude towards those two children and me is also completely under his control?

  Which one is the real him? Da She Wan let out a light sigh and stopped thinking about these things, continuing on his journey.

  When Da She Wan returned to the base again, it was already a week later. He saw the base that looked like ruins, and the first thought that flashed in his mind was not the fear of damage to the data inside the base, nor was it the life and death of those chess pieces, but...

  The Orochi Maru saw that the mountain wall outside the base, the entrance of the base, the passage and the floor were all scarred and pockmarked, with almost no intact objects in sight (was it an attack by a fire-type explosive?)

  Continue advancing inward until you reach the final battlefield - the corner in front of the fourth gate.

  There were no bodies of intruders along the way, so the intruder might be a ninja who would retrieve the body. If it was a traitorous ninja, they only needed to take the head away.

  As for the bodies of those children, when Daisuke saw them, he only slightly furrowed his brow, unsure whether it was due to his own wasted effort or simply being dissatisfied with the messy objects.

  "Huh!" Daheimaru noticed a headless corpse of a child, the way it died was different from other children who died from ninjutsu or explosions.

  The other children's heads were still intact, but this one had no head, with signs of having been frozen in the neck area, and limbs that showed multiple wounds from sharp blades. It was those two children next to "him" who did it; what kind of people are they? Those two children didn't seem like the type to abuse others, and what about "him"?

  The big snake pill toured several times and did not find "his" body, nor the two children, but dared not to determine their life or death.

  After all, except for the earliest corpse that was killed by Gankutsuou and still had a complete body, most of the corpses in this area were badly damaged, with many severed limbs and strange fragments scattered around. Moreover, after a certain number of days had passed, there were signs of decay and gnawing marks from rats and other creatures. And besides, missions like these would never leave any survivors.

  This base can't be used anymore, it's already been discovered. Take the materials from the secret room and abandon this place.

  The giant snake observed the destruction of the base, almost all of which was caused by explosive damage. The destructive power of each one was not much different, possibly carried out by one person or a certain group of people.

  Judging from the signs of destruction, after crossing the fourth gate, the attacker's method of attack seems to have become more... furious, using many overpowered ninjutsu or explosives, causing many places to collapse. It is clear that they did not consider their own safety, and the destroyer was likely an emotional person who would make such irrational moves. It is possible that in this invasion, a comrade was injured or even killed, which led to this impulsive behavior.

  This also means that there is only one destroyer, or is it the last one? There are no other teammates to advise against this behavior, and the age will not be too old. Ninjas over 30 years old are unlikely to act impulsively for such things, at least not in this situation.) It's no wonder that Orochimaru, known as the "Legendary Three Ninja", was able to infer most of the facts from just a few clues.

  It seems that there's no one left alive, so let's just give up on this place. The base that has been discovered doesn't need to continue existing anymore. It's just... these pawns wasted a lot of my resources.

  The Great Snake Maru attributed the faint anxiety in his heart to regret over the resources spent on these chess pieces. He lightly stroked the chain with a moon-colored glow on his left wrist, unconsciously fiddling with the red crystal strung on it.

  Daijamaru, this is for you. Today is October 27th, right? This is a gift! Won't you take it? As one of the legendary Three Ninjas, surely you won't be afraid to accept even just a gift?

  What a rude little devil!

  Don't ask others to do what you don't want to do yourself, Daheishoumaru.

  Hehehe, some things are known too clearly, it's a shortcut to death.

  Death...? ...What a pity, what a true pity.

  The great snake pill remembered that the last time he met the child, he talked about death. Those eyes with different colored pupils rarely showed real emotions, and it was a strange expression mixed with confusion and determination, envy and regret, longing and fear.

  I want to die so much... And also, I really want to live, right?

  Those eyes, they seem to be looking for something, but except for that child's soul, no one can make those eyes shine with such radiance!

  Those eyes that were filled with both a longing for life and a yearning for death are gone, it's... truly a pity.

  Three years have passed

  \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

  Next week may not be uploaded, let's see! I want to stock up and accumulate more before releasing, it seems that this way will get more votes. The big shots at the starting point seem to like this way too, a bigger explosion once in a while. Anyway, my progress on the third volume is also quite stuck now.

  Otherwise, unless something major and unexpected happens in real life, I won't be abandoning this, that's about it.

  Thank you for your comments and votes, everyone!