Naruto: Echoes of a Distant Home

That night.

When Ye Zi regained consciousness, his first sight was a pile of burning firewood, and next to the fire sat two people.

He was extremely hungry, weak all over, and his body ached in every part.

Also… had the rain stopped?

That was good news; he could no longer tolerate the sensation of his body being soaked in moisture.

In reality, the rain hadn't stopped; they had left the Land of Water and arrived at the border of the Land of Fire.

"Give me something to eat."

He turned to the man who had used snakes to bind him, not at all polite. The fact that he was still alive meant that the man didn't want him dead, so he dared to ask for food.

From the moment Ye Zi opened his eyes, Orochimaru had noticed. Hearing him demand food directly, he smiled faintly and tossed a few pieces of bread to him.

Ye Zi looked at the bread that fell just a short distance away. He struggled to reach out and picked up a piece, placing it in his mouth without biting.

His mouth and throat were extremely dry, and to digest the bread, he had to try hard to produce some saliva to soften it before swallowing.

Tsunade observed Orochimaru, fully aware that, given his state, producing even a small amount of saliva would be extremely difficult. Therefore, swallowing the piece of bread would undoubtedly be a painful process.

She paused, then suddenly got up and walked over to Ye Zi. Under his slightly wary gaze, she crouched down and offered him a corner of a large leaf filled with water.

His eyes flickered slightly, understanding what she intended. He opened his mouth, and the cool water flowed in from the leaf's edge, like nectar, instantly refreshing him.

After sending Tsunade a grateful look, he swallowed the softened bread and closed his eyes in satisfaction.

A piece of bread, some water.

So precious, it could be called the source of life.

"Thank you."

Without Tsunade's help with the water, the piece of bread in his mouth might have taken a long time to swallow.

Tsunade nodded slightly, setting the leaf aside. The water in the leaf was almost gone, but enough remained for Ye Zi to finish the rest of the bread.

Ye Zi endured the pain and changed to a more comfortable sitting position. He placed the remaining two pieces of bread into the water on the leaf, waiting for them to soften before silently eating them.

Crackling.

In the quiet night, the only sound was the gentle crackling of the fire.

They were in a forest, fraught with dangers, but to the powerful Orochimaru and Tsunade, it was nothing. If they were in another country, they might need to be more cautious, but within the Land of Fire, the necessary precautions were sufficient.

"Where are you taking me?" After his hunger was somewhat alleviated, Ye Zi asked.

Orochimaru replied "To Konoha Village."

"Konoha Village?" He frowned and said coolly, "Isn't that where human traffickers handle their goods?"

"Human traffickers?" Tsunade glanced at Ye Zi, her eyes showing a hint of anger. She didn't say anything, but she was somewhat pained by how he could so coldly compare himself to cargo.

In a war-torn era… there are far more painful situations.

Orochimaru replied coldly, "Konoha Village is our village." He was implicitly refuting Ye Zi's assumption.

His frown remained as he continued to question, "Then why are you taking me to your village? I don't see how a nearly starving child has any value to you."

Orochimaru turned his gaze towards Ye Zi, and a trace of a smile appeared on his usually indifferent face.

"Indeed, if you had no value, you would have already become a pile of rotten meat."

Orochimaru's cold words made his heart skip a beat. He then heard Orochimaru say, "So, you must find a way to prove your worth. Otherwise, you have no right to continue living. Remember, without me, you would be a corpse in a few days."

He smirked in disdain. If he hadn't encountered that small dog, he might not have had the confidence to survive. However, with the dog, he was confident he could make it.

Yet, the optimism Ye Zi had was based on his ignorance of the situation he had left behind.

In a war-torn era, safe places are few…

For powerless civilians, safe places are even fewer.

Orochimaru was right, but Ye Zi couldn't understand it, as he knew nothing about this world.

Tsunade, listening to their conversation, rubbed her forehead. She looked at him, who appeared no older than six but showed an astonishing level of psychological maturity. This was just a child from an ordinary family, right?

Moreover… his malnourished body showed remarkable resilience. If he were an ordinary person, the journey of the past few days would have been enough to kill him, yet he was still intact.

Tsunade wondered if she had underestimated Ye Zi's physical traits from the beginning.

"Miss, what's your name?"

Given that he knew nothing about these two, and Tsunade seemed to be the more approachable one, Ye Zi decided to make some small talk.

Tsunade came back to her senses, looked at him, and said, "It's basic courtesy to state your own name before asking for someone else's."

"…"

He was at a loss for words, thinking that they had bound him without a word, and now they were talking about courtesy.

"My name is Ye Zi. You can call me Ye Zi."

"Ye Zi? What a strange name." Tsunade said, lifting her eyelids in curiosity. "Is that a name you gave yourself?"

"Yes."

Tsunade had said it casually, but it turned out to be accurate.

This child…

Tsunade sighed inwardly and said, "I'm Tsunade Senju."

That name seems strange too…

Ye Zi's eyelids twitched, then he looked at Orochimaru.

Tsunade followed his gaze and said, "His name is Orochimaru."

Ye Zi nodded in understanding and fell silent.

"Is your body not hurting anymore?" Suddenly, Orochimaru asked.

"Huh? It doesn't hurt much anymore."

Hearing Orochimaru's words, he realized that the pain throughout his body had lessened significantly, to the point where he could converse with Tsunade normally.

"Heh…"

Orochimaru looked at Ye Zi, his eyes flashing with interest.

At this time, Orochimaru wasn't considering studying resurrection techniques but was purely fascinated by his physical traits.

From the first time he saw Ye Zi, he had noticed that despite the child's fragile body, it contained a surprisingly strong vitality. Although this vitality was only apparent in his tiny heart, it was still remarkable.

Despite its uniqueness, Orochimaru still had to deal with what needed to be dealt with, but Ye Zi's final performance earned him the chance to survive.

"Let me see."

Upon hearing Ye Zi's comment, Tsunade was also surprised. Without hesitation, she pulled open his shirt, placed a hand on his chest, and her palm glowed with a green light.

"Cell activity…"

Feeling the sudden surge of activity in the frail body's cells, Tsunade was stunned.

Perhaps…

She had underestimated Ye Zi's physical characteristics from the start.