"What are you trying to say?" Danzo narrowed his eyes and asked in a deep voice.
On the surface, he was questioning Orochimaru, but as he spoke, his body instinctively shifted back two steps. Orochimaru did not offer a direct answer; instead, his eyes glimmered with amusement.
Through his research on these entities, Orochimaru had long ago discovered that Hollowfied humans generated a unique, oppressive force field that affected any living creature in their vicinity. The more powerful the being, the more terrifying the pressure. This weight was particularly pronounced and unmistakable when two such beings faced one another.
This was precisely why those Root shinobi had found it so difficult to resist his slaughter. Originally, Orochimaru believed he was the first to discover this phenomenon. It wasn't until he met Aizen that day and learned the term "Reiatsu" that he realized he had been looking at the world through a keyhole.
He had assumed Aizen was merely Danzo's trusted protégé. Since the boy knew of Reiatsu, Orochimaru figured Danzo's research into Hollows was far more advanced than his own. But now, looking at the man before him, he realized he had overthought it. This fool didn't have the slightest clue.
But if that's the case, how did Aizen know about Reiatsu? Could it be...
As a realization struck him, the smile on Orochimaru's face widened. He licked his lips. "Interesting. This is truly interesting." Both he and Danzo had vastly underestimated that boy.
Though Danzo couldn't fathom Orochimaru's erratic behavior, he recognized a golden opportunity for a sneak attack. He surreptitiously moved his hands, preparing to weave a set of signs.
However, just as he began the first seal, a blade suddenly plunged through his lower back, erupting from his abdomen.
"Gah!"
Danzo was caught completely off guard. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he stumbled, nearly collapsing. Steadying himself with a desperate effort, he clutched his gory midsection and spun around in shock. "You!"
Standing behind him was the subordinate wearing the fox mask.
"I am truly sorry, Danzo-sama." The shinobi removed his mask, revealing a handsome, youthful face.
"You... you damned traitor!" Danzo's lips trembled as he raised a shaking right hand. It appeared he was attempting to trigger a hidden seal.
"Don't waste your energy, Danzo," Orochimaru interjected with a sinister smirk, seeing through the move instantly. "I have already dismantled the Cursed Seal you placed upon him."
"Damn you... bastard!" Danzo's face turned livid. He finally understood that he had walked into a premeditated trap. "Why? I have no grievance with you!"
Not only was there no grudge, but they had maintained a mutually beneficial arrangement for years. Danzo could not comprehend why Orochimaru would suddenly turn executioner.
"Why?" Orochimaru's expression turned subtle. "For an answer like that, you really ought to ask your beloved disciple."
"You mean... Aizen?!" Danzo gasped, his face etched with disbelief.
"Oh, that's right. I heard rumors that your precious student had passed away," Orochimaru mocked. "In that case, I can only suggest you ask him in the afterlife. Kabuto, finish it."
Orochimaru knew now that Danzo didn't possess the secrets he sought. Since things had escalated to this point, he couldn't let the man live; he knew better than anyone that one must pull a weed by its roots.
"Yes, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto Yakushi, now standing before Orochimaru, nodded slightly. His blade caught the cold glint of the moonlight.
Spurt.
Bright red blood sprayed across the grass, but it was Orochimaru who suddenly collapsed to one knee in a mixture of shock and rage.
What... what is happening?
Watching from a few yards away, even the wounded Danzo was stunned. What was Yakushi Kabuto doing?
"Kabuto!" Orochimaru hissed through gritted teeth, looking as though he wanted to tear the boy apart. "You... you have betrayed me as well?"
"Kabuto hasn't betrayed anyone. Could you please not be so hard on him?" a gentle voice resonated through the clearing. "Orochimaru-senpai."
As the voice faded, two figures emerged from the dense darkness of the forest. Both Danzo and Orochimaru stared with wide, disbelieving eyes.
"Aizen?"
"How is this possible!"
"Aizen-sama." At that moment, Kabuto walked to Aizen's side and bowed his head with profound respect.
"Kabuto is very loyal, but the object of that loyalty happens to be me," Aizen said, his mouth curling into a soft smile.
A heavy silence fell over the valley. Orochimaru finally pieced the puzzle together, his expression turning grim. "So that's it. This was your plan from the start?"
"Orochimaru-senpai's intuition is quite sharp," Aizen whispered in faux admiration. "I knew how dedicated you were to your Hollow research. Even the slightest hint regarding Reiatsu would inevitably spark your interest. And just as I expected, you laid all the blame at Danzo-sama's feet."
Sharp intuition? Orochimaru felt the praise was a stinging mockery. If he were truly sharp, he wouldn't have been played like a fiddle by a teenager. His face flushed with suppressed fury.
"Aizen!"
Though he had been slow to catch on, Danzo now realized the sheer scale of the deception. The boy had faked his death to vanish from sight, then used Kabuto to lure the two of them here to eliminate one another. It was a flawless conspiracy.
But one question still plagued Danzo. "When did you learn of Hollowification?"
He had never allowed Aizen to participate in his research. Even though Aizen was his "perfect masterpiece," he had instinctively kept the boy away from the core data. Yet, Aizen had described the process with more detail than Danzo had ever uncovered. Danzo hadn't even known what Reiatsu was.
"When did I find out?" Aizen's smile turned thin and mocking. "Why don't we rephrase the question, Danzo-sama? For example: back when the Root's Seventh Squad—which you once led—was tasked with an assassination for the Minister of Finance... how was it that you 'suddenly' encountered the source of the Hollows?"
Danzo's pupils shrank to pinpricks. A look of pure confusion crossed his face. "You... could it be..."