"Naruto-kun, is there anything else?"
"Naruto-sama, do you have any orders?"
The two spoke at the same time, but the way they spoke are completely different.
Perhaps out of habit, Yakushi Nono still called Naruto 'Naruto-kun,' and Naruto didn't mind. In fact, he was quite pleased. Aside from Neji, Sasuke, and Minato, everyone else around him addressed him as 'Naruto-sama or Sir,' which felt oddly formal to him.
"Do you want to see Kabuto?"
Naruto let his thoughts wander for a moment before getting straight to the point with Nono.
"Kabuto! Are you going to bring Kabuto here, Naruto-kun?"
A look of excitement appeared on Nono's face, an expression she hadn't shown in a long time.
Even Izumi was surprised. She had never seen Nono so emotional before. After all, Nono had always been the calm, caring older sister type.
Naruto smiled and nodded, then said: "Kabuto is also a very rare talent, and we happen to be in need of someone like him right now. It's also a good opportunity for you two to finally meet properly."
Nono took a moment to calm herself before asking: "Do you know where Kabuto is now, Naruto-kun?"
She remembered Naruto mentioning that Kabuto was on a mission in Iwagakure, but according to Naruto's earlier explanation, that mission had actually been a setup targeting her. Since she was presumed dead in Danzo's eyes, she wasn't sure if Kabuto was still in Iwagakure.
"Kabuto is likely with Orochimaru now."
'According to the original work, at this point in time, Nono had died at Kabuto's hands a year ago, and Kabuto had spiraled into self-doubt before joining Orochimaru's ranks. After all, this had been part of Orochimaru's deal with Danzo to recruit Kabuto.'
'However, since I had saved Nono, there might be some changes. But with Orochimaru's cunningness, he would undoubtedly find another way to bring Kabuto under his wing. Since I planned to bring that snake to the Land of Waves, Kabuto would naturally come along.'
'With these two on my side, the Land of Waves' biotechnology would far surpass that of the Five Great Nations.'
"Orochimaru?" Nono's face showed concern. She hadn't expected Kabuto to be with Orochimaru. Her impression of Orochimaru wasn't great. Although he was one of the Sannin, his personality was cold and calculating, like a snake lurking in the shadows.
Izumi was even more surprised. She hadn't heard of Kabuto, but she knew of Orochimaru, which is one of the Sannin, a former contender for the Fourth Hokage's position, and an S-Rank Missing-nin. Since Kabuto was working with someone like that, Izumi felt that he must be no ordinary person either.
"Orochimaru... are you confident, Naruto-kun?"
"Don't worry, it'll be fine."
Naruto smiled calmly. He still had a trump card up his sleeve, and using it on Orochimaru wouldn't be a waste.
He needed Orochimaru's power now more than ever.
Currently, his strength had hit a bottleneck. He had already absorbed Fugaku's Mangekyo Sharingan, but aside from a slight increase in Ocular Power and gaining two relatively underwhelming Dojutsu, it hadn't done much. While this method might still improve his strength, it was too slow.
After Sasuke awakened his three-tomoe Sharingan, Naruto had also absorbed some of his Chakra. His eyes did react slightly, but it was minimal. He couldn't just devour Sasuke, could he?
Although his moral standards weren't exactly high, he wasn't that heartless. Since Sasuke had been loyal to him, there's no way he could do something so cruel in return.
That said, if Sasuke's Mangekyo Sharingan still didn't work for him in the future, he might have to extract some flesh for fusion.
Over the past few days, he had also gone through the entire Scroll of Seals. Most of the Jutsu inside were Water Release Ninjutsu, and after learning a few, he found them to be of little use, so he stopped bothering.
At this point, there were very few ways for him to increase his strength, and Orochimaru could provide significant assistance.
'Orochimaru should have already started his research on the Cursed Seal.'
The Cursed Seal was related to Natural Energy. In the original work, Jugo was the source of the Cursed Seal, as he was born with the ability to absorb Natural Energy, allowing him to enter Sage Transformation. However, his Sage Transformation would go out of control if he stayed in areas with strong Natural Energy.
Sage Transformation was a form of Sage Mode, which Naruto absolutely needed to master. Sage Mode allowed the user to enhance their attacks and defenses using Natural Energy, increase the range and perception of their Taijutsu, and create 'Senjutsu Chakra' by combining Natural Energy with their own chakra. This would result in a dramatic increase in the power of their Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Genjutsu.
And the Cursed Seal Orochimaru developed through Jugo was already very close to Sage Mode.
"In that case, I hope everything goes smoothly for you, Naruto-kun."
Seeing Naruto's calm expression, Nono's worries eased somewhat. After all, after spending so much time together, she knew Naruto wasn't the type to act without confidence.
"Alright. While I'm away, I'll need you to take care of things in the Land of Waves."
"I understand." Nono replied seriously.
"Naruto-sama, do you need me to come with you?"
Izumi spoke up. Although her strength wasn't on par with Naruto's yet, she could still be of great help to him.
"You need to stay in the Land of Waves. With the Ninja World in turmoil, your presence here is a safeguard. While I'm gone, report any important matters to Nono. Don't act on your own."
After all, while the Uchiha were skilled in combat, their abilities in daily life and management left much to be desired. Although they had toned down a bit after the massacre, they were still cold and intimidating.
"Understood." Izumi replied, though she was clearly disappointed.
"Good. You can go now." Naruto had finished his instructions.
"Yes."
For now, this was the extent of his plans for the Land of Waves. The infrastructure here was too underdeveloped, so he needed to establish a solid foundation before he could bring in more talent and move on to the next phase of his plans.
'Orochimaru should have already joined the Akatsuki by now, though it was unclear whether he had defected yet.'
'In any case, it was time to head to the Land of Rice Fields and take a look.'