"Hehehe…" Orochimaru clapped his hands softly, looking at Seisui with a face full of approval.
Seisui's ideology is almost perfectly aligned with his own.
He had thought about such things countless times, yet he had never spoken them aloud.
And now, Seisui had voiced them outright.
"Seisui-kun's insight is truly piercing," Orochimaru said with a thin smile as his serpentine eyes studied him. "You're like a new gust of wind. I'd like to see where you'll blow this world toward."
"I'm not the wind." Seisui chuckled, meeting his gaze. "I'm not what anyone wants me to be."
"I'm me—Seisui of Konoha."
Orochimaru's lips curled higher. "You have great ambition, don't you, Seisui-kun?" He stood, turning to glance out the window. "Your ambition runs deep—but I can see it."
Then, with a teasing tone, he added, "Would you care to share it with me? Perhaps I could… help you."
Seisui smiled at that.
"Orochimaru-sama, what do you think of this world?"
"Me?" Orochimaru was caught off guard by the question. After a pause, he said, "It's a miserable place."
"Ninjas are nothing more than killing machines. The First Hokage dreamed of creating a peaceful world… but clearly, he failed."
"Sure, compared to the Warring States Era, things seem more peaceful—but the wars have only grown larger in scale."
"Perhaps the only improvement is for the children," he added with a faint smile. "I've researched much about the Warring States. Even if the records are buried, I found that the First Hokage's younger brothers both died in battle against the Uchiha before they even reached ten."
"The ninja village system at least lets children live decent lives. It keeps them off the battlefield—at least for a while."
"That's true," Seisui nodded, then met Orochimaru's gaze. "But I don't have ambition."
"Or rather… I have only one goal."
"To end this rotten world."
"Oh?" Orochimaru's eyes glimmered with interest. "And how do you intend to end it?"
Seisui smiled faintly and looked outside at the bustling streets, the scent of grass and flowers carried in by the breeze.
"Orochimaru-sama, have you ever heard this saying?"
"What are you saying?"
"The strong thrive, and the weak perish."
"I'll become Hokage—and with absolute power, I'll unite all the nations into one."
"Then I'll build a flawless system of law, enforce it strictly, but give people freedom within those laws."
"As long as everyone has food to eat and clothes to wear, the world will no longer need war."
"Seisui-kun," Orochimaru chuckled, licking the tip of his nose with his tongue. "Aren't you afraid I'll tell others about this?"
"Would you?" Seisui countered smoothly.
Truthfully, he wasn't worried.
The current Orochimaru wasn't yet the one obsessed with immortality—but the signs were already there.
And with his personality, Orochimaru wouldn't expose him.
He'd want to see that new world for himself.
Besides, even if he did talk, it wouldn't matter.
With the Panda Clan, Uchiha Haru's Mangekyo Sharingan, Panda Wu's explosive clay, and his own ties to Minato and Kushina—Seisui didn't fear anyone in Konoha.
As long as he didn't betray the village, Minato would always side with him.
And with Minato's Flying Raijin, even without perfect control, he already stood at the threshold of Kage-level—slaughtering elite jonin like chickens.
If it came to overturning the village elders, the Uchiha would probably be the first to join him.
And if all else failed—he still had his trump card: the Mutual Multiplying Explosive Clay Formation.
He could summon Panda Wu's entire arsenal.
Even if all five great ninja villages gathered in one place—they'd still be obliterated.
There was simply no way to lose.
And compared to the risk of sharing his vision, Orochimaru's potential value was much greater.
In a world obsessed with bloodlines and destiny, Orochimaru was one of the few who believed in science.
That alone made him indispensable.
After all, by the time of Naruto's adulthood, Konoha already had trains and advanced tech sprouting everywhere—a clear sign of Orochimaru's legacy.
Having him as an ally would speed everything up tremendously.
"Seisui-kun, you really do see people clearly," Orochimaru said with a low laugh. "A newborn wind… I truly can't wait to see where you'll blow this world."
With that, he smiled and turned toward the door.
"Well then, I'll take my leave. Thank you for the enlightening conversation. If you ever need me, you can find me in the lab beneath the Hokage Rock."
After offering a polite nod, Orochimaru slipped away into the corridor.
Seisui stood by the window, watching his departing figure, and chuckled softly.
The current Orochimaru—still unscarred by Nawaki's death—was actually… rather pleasant.
As a child, he lost his parents and sought the meaning of life.
But after witnessing Nawaki die before his eyes, he turned toward immortality.
"Immortality, huh…" Seisui murmured. "It's actually quite simple."
His grand unification wasn't some impulsive fantasy.
As long as he wielded overwhelming power, no fool would dare rebel
Once order was established, time would erode the barriers between people, until they accepted his ideology.
And in this world, there were many ways to achieve immortality.
He wasn't worried about that at all.
As for blending the supernatural with the mundane—that too, he had already thought through.
It was all about guiding the next generation correctly.
In other words, teaching them the virtues of unity from birth.
Watching Orochimaru vanish from sight, Seisui exhaled softly.
"It's still early."
"We'll deal with it later."
"The first step… is to become Hokage."
And that would likely have to wait until after the Third Ninja War.
But Seisui didn't want to wait that long.
He already had a plan forming.
One that would only unfold once Uchiha Itachi—and his Mangekyo Sharingan—came into play.
"Soon," he murmured.
He currently possessed:
[Uchiha Sasuke (Eternal Mangekyo) 53/100]
[Uchiha Itachi (Mangekyo Sharingan) 36/40]
Just four more shards to complete Itachi's template.
Itachi was an A-rank ninja, and it took five rainbow stones to acquire one of his shards.
He only needed twenty more rainbow stones.
With his monthly draws yielding four to six each time—he'd have enough in about four months.
And somehow, he knew—once he obtained Uchiha Itachi's power, something extraordinary would happen.
==========
A month later.
Seisui stood before Konoha's great gates.
"Back again, huh."
As an active Konoha shinobi, he still had to take missions.
Luckily, the past month's assignments were all ones he'd chosen himself—mostly C-rank bandit hunts.
No ninjas involved.
"Nice and easy," Minato said, stepping up beside him.
He, too, looked up at the village gates.
For the three of them, C-rank missions were a joke
Even B-rank missions felt like a leisure trip.