Chapter 103:
Yakushi Nono, you're someone to reach out to—but not just yet. Right now, Nono was too young and inexperienced to be of any use. Orochimaru decided it would be best to let Danzo mold her a little first. When the time came, he could step in and take her under his wing, already shaped and prepared, without having to waste time cultivating her himself.
After leaving the Root training room, Orochimaru noticed the other ninjas exchanging confused glances. They couldn't figure him out why did he just leave after the sparring match without a word? It seemed strange, but one thing was clear: Orochimaru's strength had surprised them.
Defeating five of them, even with the help of Yamata, wasn't something they had expected. They had grossly underestimated him, and it had cost them.
As for Nono, she was still puzzled. The young man who had just fought them looked so much younger than many of the elite ninjas at Root, yet his skills were clearly on another level. And why didn't he wear a mask like the rest of them? It was strange… really strange.
But Orochimaru didn't dwell on this. After leaving Root, he returned to his home, his mind already racing with thoughts.
It only took him one night to make a decision.
He couldn't afford to waste any more time.
Even if it meant using up more resources, he needed to move forward.
The idea was simple: find a ninja to clone. The person didn't have to be special, just suitable for the experiment. But whoever it was couldn't be from Konoha. The last thing Orochimaru needed was for someone to recognize the clone and start asking questions. That would lead to complications.