Chapter 362: Venomous Insects

Failing to uncover any useful information, Ye Zi and Orochimaru left Matsutake Rock and prepared to depart the Land of Earth for another country.

Their journey had been far from peaceful. Along the way, they frequently encountered ninja from major nations, which often led to unavoidable battles. Regardless of the number or skill of their opponents, few could stand against the combined might of Ye Zi and Orochimaru.

In the face of overwhelming power, the enemy shinobi they encountered met their end one after another.

Some overconfident ninja had even attempted to ambush Ye Zi, but against his keen sensory abilities, such efforts were little more than suicidal acts.

Ye Zi's name was well-documented in the elimination manuals held by the Anbu divisions of various villages. Any Anbu who encountered him would immediately launch an attack. Unfortunately for them, Ye Zi's reputation might not shine as brightly as Minato's, but his strength far exceeded his fame.

As a result, their journey left a trail of fallen enemy shinobi—what a series of pointless deaths.

Moreover, Ye Zi's bounty in the underground black market, which had once been rescinded, had been reinstated and now topped the charts. The five hundred million ryo bounty surpassed every other listing, dwarfing all previous rewards.

Most black market bounties demanded the corpse of the target, and Ye Zi's body was akin to a treasure trove. This was why the reward had climbed to such astronomical levels.

Yet, despite the enormous bounty, no bounty hunter dared to accept the mission.

Years ago, when the bounty had been only one hundred million ryo, no one could complete it. Now, with the reward at five hundred million, capturing Ye Zi was a task akin to reaching for the heavens.

Assembling a group to take him on? That would only serve to feed Ye Zi more experience, and even then, Ye Zi wouldn't consider it worth his effort.

The unclaimed bounty became a spectacle in the underground world, frequently igniting the greed of bounty hunters.

Money might make the world go round, but against Ye Zi, it had proven utterly ineffective. Even if the bounty were raised to one billion ryo, no one would dare take it.

While the black market stood still, the shinobi of the major nations had no such choice. Orders were orders, and many were forced to pursue Ye Zi, despite the obvious dangers.

Ye Zi and Orochimaru had begun to resemble specters roaming the entire ninja world. Their actions were low-profile and deliberate, but inevitably, their presence on foreign soil would be discovered.

A sharp crack echoed through the air. A blade infused with Lightning Release pierced through the heart of an Iwa shinobi, the surge of chakra crackling as Ye Zi slowly pulled the blade free.

The burly Iwa shinobi stared blankly at Ye Zi's emotionless face. The light in his eyes dimmed, and his body fell lifelessly to the ground.

"Chasing me all the way here? What a pity," Ye Zi remarked coldly, glancing down at the body.

His blade, Chijin, dripped faintly as he flicked it clean of the shinobi's blood. Around him lay the corpses of ten other Iwa shinobi.

Roughly two hundred meters away, Orochimaru finished off his own opponent using Hidden Shadow Snake Hands, leaving another seven or eight corpses scattered around him.

The two of them were now in the Land of Waterfalls, and it seemed this Iwa team had been pursuing them all the way from the Land of Earth. Ye Zi suspected they had inadvertently left traces behind, allowing the Iwa shinobi to catch up to them here.

Killing these shinobi brought Ye Zi no satisfaction. Fighting had become a routine occurrence for him.

Years ago, he had nearly lost his life in the Land of Earth, during a desperate chase led by the Tsuchikage himself. He vividly remembered his humiliating escape, battered and broken, forced to flee for his life. Those bitter memories remained etched in his mind.

To say he held no hatred for Iwa Village or the Tsuchikage would be a lie. However, even after growing far stronger, Ye Zi saw no reason to deliberately target Iwa Village. It would accomplish nothing.

Even with his base established in the Land of Earth, Ye Zi had never gone out of his way to hunt Iwa shinobi.

Ironically, while Ye Zi refrained from harassing Iwa Village, they had decided to come after him.

If Iwa Village wanted to send more shinobi, Ye Zi wouldn't mind. If the Tsuchikage Ōnoki himself showed up, all the better.

As long as he didn't have to face the entire strength of Iwa Village, Ye Zi wouldn't hesitate to fight a duel against Ōnoki. Killing him would leave Iwa Village without one of its most powerful leaders.

Weakening the Five Great Shinobi Villages was in Ye Zi's best interest. As they gathered more tailed beasts, the major villages wouldn't simply stand by and allow it to happen.

After all, Nagato intended to use the Gedo Statue as a weapon of war, a symbol to terrify and conquer the ninja world. Such ambitions would inevitably turn every village against them.

"Twenty shinobi? Not nearly enough, old man."

Ye Zi slid his blade back into its scabbard and glanced down at the lifeless bodies surrounding him. His words, of course, were directed at Ōnoki, though the Tsuchikage himself was not present to hear them.

Soon after, Orochimaru finished his own battle and approached Ye Zi, stepping over the corpses without a second glance.

"We should deal with the bodies," Ye Zi suggested.

Orochimaru nodded, forming a hand seal to cast a low-level Fire Release jutsu. Flames erupted across the field, consuming the corpses.

Ye Zi followed suit, unleashing his own Fire Release jutsu. The combined flames quickly grew into a roaring inferno, and the air filled with the acrid stench of burning flesh.

Once the bodies were reduced to ash, Ye Zi and Orochimaru turned and left the scene without a second thought.

Previously, in the Land of Earth, a squad of Anbu had encountered Ye Zi and Orochimaru, and predictably met their end. Now, an Iwa shinobi team had pursued them all the way to the Land of Waterfalls.

To put it bluntly, unless several hundred shinobi were deployed at once, there was no way to deal with Ye Zi and Orochimaru.

The Land of Waterfalls was known for its cascading waters, but it wasn't all waterfalls. The country also boasted plains, forests, and mountains.

In their search for ruins, the only place worth investigating was the forest, specifically the Aoki Forest, which accounted for one-sixth of the entire country's area.

The Aoki Forest was unique. It had only two or three types of trees, but all shared the same trait: they were green, deeply and uniformly so.

Every visible surface whether it be rocks, fallen logs, or anything on the ground was blanketed in a thick layer of green moss. Once inside the forest, the only color one could see was green, varying only in shade and intensity.

"This place is full of poisonous insects. Be careful," Orochimaru warned as he led Ye Zi deeper into the Aoki Forest.

Because of its geographic features, Taki Village known as the hidden village of the Land of Waterfalls, rarely faced attacks from other nations. However, as a small nation caught between giants, the Land of Waterfalls had been used as a battlefield many times.

Ninja typically avoided fighting in the Aoki Forest for one simple reason: the forest was infested with poisonous insects of every imaginable kind.

For shinobi, the danger was very real. A careless misstep, a moment of inattentiveness, or even brushing against an inconspicuous tiny green insect could spell death. Without a skilled medical ninja capable of immediate detoxification, even the slightest sting could prove fatal.

For this reason, defeated shinobi often fled into the Aoki Forest as a last resort, hoping to survive. But unless the pursuers were highly motivated, they usually stopped at the forest's edge, unwilling to risk entering.

Once injured or weakened shinobi entered the Aoki Forest, their fate was almost always sealed courtesy of the forest's poisonous inhabitants.

The only creatures capable of thriving in this toxic environment were the "Green Serpents", which fed on the poisonous insects. Meanwhile, the countless varieties of poisonous insects fed on each other, creating a delicate but ruthless ecosystem.

Long ago, the Seven-Tails, Chōmei, had lived in the depths of this very forest, undisturbed by its poisonous inhabitants.

For the Aburame Clan, who specialized in insect-based techniques, this forest was nothing short of paradise. In fact, many members of the clan who focused on venomous insects frequently visited the Aoki Forest.

To avoid being bitten by the insects, shinobi could envelop their bodies with a thin layer of chakra to protect themselves. However, this technique had a major flaw: it required a constant expenditure of chakra, which could quickly drain energy.

Naturally, neither Ye Zi nor Orochimaru was willing to waste chakra on such a clumsy solution.

Although Orochimaru was well-versed in poisons, his expertise lay in snake venom. He had no special knowledge of insect repellents, nor did he carry any of the Aburame Clan's insect-repelling agents.

As the two advanced through the forest, moss quickly began to cling to the soles of their feet.

They moved cautiously, their senses sharpened, listening constantly aware of their surroundings.

However, despite their vigilance, Ye Zi's luck ran out.

A tiny green insect silently dropped from above and landed on the back of Ye Zi's neck.

Before he could react, a sharp, stinging pain pierced his skin.

Ye Zi's expression darkened.

"...I've been bitten," he muttered, his voice low and cold.

Check out the patreon and get 55 chapters in advance -> SaintXI

Currently on Chapter 416 - The Invasion of Konoha