Naruto: Echoes of a Distant Home

It had been only a week from the brink of death to near full recovery, and Ye Zi's remarkable healing speed had drawn astonished reactions from the medical ninjas at the hospital. The higher-ups, however, were contemplating more complex matters, such as what value his existence might reveal.

On the first night after his discharge, he received a short blade from Orochimaru.

"This is…" Ye Zi examined the short blade. The hilt was jet-black like ebony, the blade about two feet long, gleaming with a cold light, and with a shimmering luster. Just looking at it, one could sense the sharpness emanating from the blade. He could not forget that this was the very knife that had pierced his chest; it was also Kyocho's weapon.

Orochimaru observed him and said indifferently, "This is your spoils of war."

Ye Zi silently accepted the blade, Raiga, nodding, "I was just looking for a knife."

In his battle with Kyocho, he had felt deeply the disadvantage of lacking a suitable weapon. This short blade was perfectly suited for a ninja—light, sharp, and of an appropriate size for carrying. It could even channel chakra, making it an ideal weapon for assassination.

The two remained silent for a moment, the room falling into quiet.

After a long pause, Orochimaru's distinctive raspy voice broke the silence.

"Tell me about that night in detail."

Many were curious about how he managed to kill Kyocho, a well-known ninja from the Cloud Village. This included Orochimaru, as it was an inherently unreasonable feat.

If the opponent hadn't been particularly skilled in taijutsu and swordsmanship, it might have been more acceptable, but Kyocho was a formidable opponent, proficient in both physical techniques and sword skills, and capable of using Lightning Release to enhance his body.

Given such an enemy, despite his impressive achievements, how could a mere genin, having been promoted for just over a year, manage to defeat such a foe?

Orochimaru was very curious; he understood Ye Zi's abilities well.

Under Orochimaru's probing gaze, Ye Zi remained silent for a moment before a faint lightning flicker appeared around his body. He extended his hand, watching the lightning coils and dance in his palm, and calmly said, "At that time, I thought I could only die with him. I didn't expect to survive. In the end, I had to rely on this body."

Orochimaru watched the lightning with shifting eyes, seemingly coming to some conclusions, but remained silent, waiting for more details.

Ye Zi shifted his gaze from his palm to Orochimaru's face and continued, "By utilizing chakra nature transformation to convert it into lightning to stimulate the body, I achieved the purpose of activating the body, making my movements more swift and agile. Initially, I didn't know there was such a use; I only saw him use it that way and decided to try it out. It worked, and that's how I managed to have the means to go down with him."

He did not elaborate further because Orochimaru was aware of his body structure, including the fact that his heart was on the right side.

Orochimaru's expression slightly trembled. He knew that Ye Zi learned quickly, even memorizing his hand seals after just one demonstration. If it weren't for the fact that Ye Zi didn't have Sharingan in his eyes, Orochimaru might have suspected that he possessed Sharingan, enabling him to see and remember the hand seal steps.

Despite this, he had not anticipated that his talent had reached such a terrifying level.

The unknown is one of the roots of human stagnation, like a thick fog. To advance, one must slowly feel their way forward.

However, Ye Zi, in the face of the unknown, seemed like a blazing sun, violently tearing through the fog. Without theoretical or practical knowledge, he simply observed Kyocho using Lightning Release to increase speed, learned it on the spot, and put it into practice. This made even the somewhat conceited Orochimaru feel a twinge of jealousy.

Kyocho lost without injustice…

Such talent is one reason for victory, and another reason is that Ye Zi's body was different from others. Normally, when a knife pierces the heart, a person still has a brief period to perform other actions, such as a final counterattack. But if the knife was charged with lightning, it was a different matter.

However, Kyocho did not know that Ye Zi's heart was on the right side. When the knife pierced his chest, he had already lost. Even so, Kyocho naively believed that Ye Zi would also die, not realizing that Ye Zi's cellular vitality was comparable to the Senju clan's.

Orochimaru studied Ye Zi with renewed seriousness, suddenly realizing that his previous assessment had been far from adequate.

"Will you be able to undertake missions tomorrow?"

"Yes." Ye Zi replied calmly.

Orochimaru nodded and said, "Rest then."

With that, he stood up and walked toward the hallway, deciding to increase the intensity of the missions. Only this way would Ye Zi grow faster.

Ye Zi watched Orochimaru leave the room, gradually retracting his chakra and staring silently at the short blade he held, his eyes dark and unreadable, lost in thought.

Get access to 35 chapters in advance on the patreon: p@treon. com/saintxi