"Hey, have you heard?"

"Heard what?"

"Apparently, some time ago, the forbidden jutsu left behind by the Second Hokage was stolen."

Inside a barbecue restaurant, at a window seat, Seimei was devouring grilled meat ravenously. Upon hearing this, his movements froze momentarily.

Immediately, he tuned out the surrounding conversations and focused his hearing on the two individuals speaking.

Thanks to his exceptionally strong mental power, coupled with the enhancement of his physique attribute that improved all aspects of his physical abilities, he was able to achieve this feat.

Otherwise, it would have been nearly impossible to clearly hear their conversation from such a distance in such a noisy environment.

As he concentrated, he heard the Konoha ninja who had been questioned ask in a slightly surprised tone, "The forbidden jutsu left by the Second Hokage? Who did it?"

"I heard it was a spy from the Hidden Cloud Village. It seems they've already caught him," the other person replied.

However, the first ninja, intrigued by the conversation, shook his head upon hearing this.

Seeing his reaction, the other ninja immediately asked, "What's wrong? Do you have other information?"

"I don't have any specific information," the ninja who shook his head replied. "But I do know that the forbidden jutsu researched by the Second Hokage must have been under tight security. How could a mere spy from the Hidden Cloud Village have accessed it so easily, let alone stolen it? I feel like there's more to this."

"Tsk tsk~"

He didn't finish his sentence, but the implication was clear.

Clearly, he didn't believe that the Hidden Cloud spy acted alone. He suspected that someone from within the village might have helped him.

Understanding his implication, the Konoha special jonin who had initiated the topic glanced around.

After ensuring no one was paying attention, he lowered his voice and said, "Honestly, I don't completely believe it either. I also have some insider information. Want to hear it?"

Hearing this, the skeptical Konoha ninja immediately responded, "What kind of insider information? Don't keep me in suspense!"

Evidently, whether in his past life or this one, and whether a supernatural being or an ordinary person, everyone had an innate curiosity for gossip.

Seemingly satisfied with his companion's reaction, the Konoha special jonin picked up a piece of grilled meat with his chopsticks, chewed it thoroughly, and only after savoring it did he leisurely say, "I heard that this incident might also be connected to Lord Orochimaru."

"What? Seriously?!"

The other ninja was stunned upon hearing this.

---

Meanwhile...

Seimei wasn't surprised to hear Orochimaru's name.

This wasn't the first time he had heard rumors linking Orochimaru to such incidents.

As the saying goes, there is no smoke without fire.

Although Danzo's death and Hiruzen Sarutobi stepping down had led to stricter surveillance on Orochimaru, reducing the frequency of his human experiments, reduced frequency didn't mean complete cessation.

On the contrary, without Danzo—a reliable "supplier" of experimental subjects—Orochimaru, for convenience, had started sourcing materials closer to home.

As a result, the number of missing civilians and ninjas in Konoha hadn't decreased; in fact, it seemed to be subtly increasing.

Orochimaru had indeed been very discreet, leaving no evidence behind.

But as the old saying goes, "If you don't want people to know, don't do it."

And those who had become high-ranking ninjas were not fools.

They might not have concrete evidence, but they could make educated guesses about the truth.

After all, many were aware that Orochimaru had been conducting human experiments.

Previously, he had used prisoners from enemy villages, and during special circumstances, people turned a blind eye.

But now, things were different—he was likely using his own people for experiments.

Given the situation, many were eager to fan the flames and use this as an opportunity to trouble Orochimaru.

Yes, Seimei felt that this time, the rumors about Orochimaru's involvement were deliberately spread by those dissatisfied with him.

Of course, that didn't necessarily mean Orochimaru was innocent.

On the contrary, Seimei thought there was a significant possibility that he was involved.

In another timeline, before his defection, Orochimaru had infiltrated the secret archive containing Tobirama Senju's research and stolen the "Edo Tensei" and "Eight Branches Technique"—two S-rank forbidden jutsu.

In this lifetime, because of Seimei's presence, Danzo had died earlier, depriving Orochimaru of a powerful ally. Naturally, his progress wouldn't be as smooth.

Given these circumstances, it was highly possible that he had set his sights on these secrets earlier.

Leaking relevant information to the Hidden Cloud spy and using the spy's actions as a cover for his own movements and objectives would be a clever strategy.

Of course, the exact truth might only be known by Orochimaru himself, along with Minato Namikaze, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and a select few.

Shaking his head, Seimei stopped overthinking. This matter didn't concern him much, and he had no intention of getting involved.

However, from the available intelligence, he could infer that Orochimaru's defection might happen sooner than expected.

There was no other choice—public opinion within the village was gradually turning against him.

At most, it would take one or two months; at worst, one or two years. Orochimaru was bound to leave.

'The question is, will Hiruzen Sarutobi still go easy on him this time?'

This thought crossed Seimei's mind as he quickly finished the grilled beef while continuing to eavesdrop on conversations in the restaurant.

Whenever he heard something interesting, he focused on it. If it was unimportant, he simply ignored it.

Time passed, and two hours later, near midnight, Seimei finally left the barbecue restaurant.

By then, the streets outside were almost empty, and the vendors had already packed up and left.

Walking along the road leading back to the Uchiha district, Seimei felt completely refreshed, as if the exhaustion from days of intense training had been washed away.

Even so, he had no intention of resuming training that night.

Since he had decided to take a break, he wouldn't change his mind so easily.

With his thoughts wandering, Seimei returned home.

After a quick wash to remove the lingering scent of barbecue, he went straight to his bedroom, took off his clothes, and lay down.

Though he had claimed to feel less tired, as soon as his body touched the mattress, he quickly drifted into sleep.

Moments later, faint snoring filled the room as Seimei entered deep slumber.

---

The next morning...

At dawn, when the first rays of sunlight seeped through the window, Seimei opened his eyes.

"Mmm..."

He murmured softly.

Sitting up, he stared blankly ahead for a moment before fully waking up.

Feeling clear-headed and energized, Seimei stretched his arms and twisted his waist, causing his joints to crack.

After a few moments, he got up to wash up and put on his gear.

After a hearty breakfast and purchasing a large bag of fortified ration pills from a store specializing in ninja supplies, he left the village.

Finding an open space, he used "Wind Release: Wind Wings" and "Chakra Cloak," soaring into the sky and heading toward the southern training island.