Malphegor
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Ch. 173: Graduation: Corrupted
🕑 Added 2024-12-08 00:44:48 +0000 UTCMizuki vividly remembered the day Orochimaru fled the village. The ninja warning issued at the time stated that the Sannin had stolen the Scroll of Seals.
But why does Naruto still have access to it now?
Could it be that Orochimaru's departure back then was for a different reason?
Regardless, Naruto's unexpected acquisition of the scroll made his heart brim with excitement.
For a long time, he had deeply admired Orochimaru. Not only did he want to join his faction, but he even dreamed of becoming his apprentice.
Unfortunately, his talents were mediocre.
When Orochimaru was selecting disciples, Mizuki wasn't chosen; Anko was picked instead.
By the time the Sannin defected from Konoha, Mizuki hadn't even made it to the rank of chunin.
Despite this, Mizuki never forgot about Orochimaru. He always aspired to follow in his footsteps and defect from Konoha to join him.
But climbing the ladder required a proper "step." This statue was intended as a gift for him. Now that this "step" also included the Scroll of Seals, he was even more elated.
Quietly, he walked to the side, picked up the statue lying on the ground, and then reached out toward Naruto, who was engrossed in reading the scroll.
"Naruto, give me that scroll," Mizuki said.
Naruto looked up at him, noticing that his usual squint-eyed smile remained on his face. But within that smile, he sensed a trace of danger and malice.
"Mizuki-sensei?"
"Naruto, listen to your teacher. Hand over that scroll."
Mizuki's hand inched closer to him, but Naruto, acting on instinct, pulled the scroll back slightly.
At that moment, Mizuki dropped his facade.
"Naruto! Give me the scroll right now!"
His sudden shout startled Naruto. Just as He was about to ignore Naruto's hesitation and grab the scroll directly, a voice came from behind him.
"Mizuki, you're the one who should hand over the statue to me."
Naruto and Mizuki both turned toward the direction of the voice. Emerging from the shadowy foliage was a tall, thin figure.
The man had an afro and, even in the dead of night, wore a pair of sunglasses.
"Motoki-sensei!"
This time, Naruto's face lit up with delight, while Mizuki's expression twisted into one of shock.
"How did you find this place?" Mizuki asked with confusion.
Motoki didn't hide his methods and explained directly.
"Male parasitic insects are naturally attracted to the scent of female parasitic insects. No matter where the females are, they'll lead us to them."
Hearing this, Mizuki immediately recalled Motoki pulling Naruto aside earlier in the day. That must've been when he placed a female insect on the boy.
"Well then, Mizuki, hand over that statue," Motoki demanded.
Mizuki, of course, knew what the Aburame was referring to, but he feigned ignorance. "What statue are you talking about?"
"The one you're holding in your hand."
As Motoki spoke, a swarm of parasitic insects emerged from his collar, swirling in an amorphous cloud that steadily grew in size.
Seeing this, Mizuki knew Motoki wasn't bluffing. He could take action at any moment.
He was deeply wary of Motoki. As an Aburame, he came from a renowned ninja family in Konoha, known for their reliable and consistent combat abilities.
While the Aburame clan had never produced any legendary figures, their members were consistently formidable—far beyond the likes of Mizuki and Iruka.
The parasitic insects, in particular, were infamous for their ability to drain chakra, making them a nightmare to deal with.
Though both were at the chunin level, Mizuki felt outclassed by Motoki.
To ensure his plans weren't foiled, he decided to assess the situation before making any hasty moves.
"Wait a minute. Can you tell me why you want this statue? Do you know what it is?"
Though Mizuki had gone to great lengths to investigate and manipulate Naruto for this statue, he didn't actually know what it was.
He had only heard rumors that a team of ninja had once discovered it on a mission. Two of them fell victim to its genjutsu and died, while the sole survivor barely escaped with their sanity before disappearing entirely.
The statue was later retrieved by the ANBU, but even they suffered losses during the mission.
Based on this, Mizuki deduced the statue would be of interest to Orochimaru, leading to his elaborate plans.
Now, with someone else interested in the statue, Mizuki wondered if the Aburame knew more about it.
"Of course, I know what this statue is. Because I was the one who discovered it."
Both Mizuki and Naruto's eyes widened in disbelief. Mizuki, in particular, was astonished to find himself face-to-face with the person responsible for the entire situation.
"Years ago, I went on a routine bandit-clearing mission with my squad. At the time, I had just been promoted to chunin and was leading the team."
"After we dealt with the bandits at their main camp, I suggested searching nearby for any hidden bases where they might have stashed stolen goods to return them to the villagers."
"But in the cave, we found more than just stolen goods. We found a man and a statue."
"That man was wearing a battle uniform from Kiri, and the statue was something he had brought from elsewhere."
"Wait... Could it be..."
"You guessed it. The statue he brought is the one in your hands."
"This statue possesses a strange power. Two of my teammates merely glanced at it and were uncontrollably drawn toward it. While I also saw the statue, my rational mind barely managed to force me to escape."
"Later, I was injured and fell unconscious, only to wake up in the hospital. But one night, Orochimaru abducted me from the hospital."
"I don't remember much about what happened after that, but many years later, Orochimaru released me. After returning to Konoha and spending a long time recovering, I was reassigned to the Ninja Academy as a teacher."
Motoki's explanation finally clarified for Mizuki why this older chunin, who had disappeared for so many years, suddenly appeared as a schoolteacher.
It turned out Motoki had been a captive of Orochimaru all this time.
Naruto, however, was entirely lost in the conversation. He had no idea who Orochimaru was or what they were talking about.
Mizuki then asked, "What does all this have to do with the origin of the statue?"
"Hahaha."
Motoki lowered his head, letting out a chuckle.
"Naruto, do you remember what I told you during the day?"
"I said that in the depths of a black sea lies a mysterious garden, home to an unimaginably powerful being—a true god of the ocean."
"And that god's name is Cthulhu!"
"And the statue you're holding is a carving of him."
"So... give me the Cthulhu statue now!"
"I want to join them!"
"I want to approach that great existence!"
"I want to become one of those who bask in its miracles and glory!"
"I will no longer remain human!"
Motoki, usually calm and composed, shouted these fanatical words, startling everyone present. He then removed his sunglasses and tossed them aside.
Beneath the glasses were bloodshot, slightly bulging fish-like eyes, filled with an unnatural intensity.
This left Naruto and Mizuki feeling deeply unsettled.
A chilling sense of dread crept into their hearts.
Motoki seemed to have lost all sense of self, roaring like a fanatical zealot.
Even the parasitic insects on his body seemed to resonate with his frenzy, morphing into bizarre shapes—sometimes forming bat-like wings, and at other times, transforming into tentacles like that of an octopus.
This... This guy has completely lost it!
Mizuki made this judgment internally, and under its influence, he clutched the statue in his arms and turned to flee, no longer caring about snatching the Scroll of Seals from Naruto.
As he dashed away with the statue, Motoki chased after him like a mindless beast drawn to its prey.
Naruto, seeing Motoki charging in his direction, assumed he was the target. Instinctively, he raised the scroll to block, but the Aburame didn't even spare him a glance. Accompanied by the high-pitched buzz of his insects, Motoki swept past Naruto and disappeared into the woods in pursuit of Mizuki.
In no time, silence returned to the small clearing. Naruto stood alone in the forest, panting heavily.
Everything that transpired was being observed through a crystal ball.
The crystal ball, placed atop a red velvet cloth, broadcasted real-time footage of the events unfolding in the Forest.
Sitting behind it was Danzo.
"A little bait was all it took for him to reveal his true nature. Motoki is definitely a spy sent by Orochimaru to gather intelligence on the village."
"This is the disciple you raised, Hiruzen?" he remarked as he cast a sidelong glance at the figure standing behind him.
At the mention of Orochimaru, Hiruzen remained silent. After all, no matter how it was framed, the Sannin was once his student.
The truth was that Danzo had leaked the existence of the Cthulhu statue to Orochimaru, indirectly causing his defection from Konoha. The Sannin's betrayal was triggered by his obsession with obtaining the statue, but the root cause was Hiruzen's failure to guide him properly, which led him astray.
Even if Danzo hadn't revealed the information, Orochimaru might have defected anyway. Thus, Hiruzen refrained from arguing, merely lamenting, "Motoki is one thing, but I never expected Mizuki to..."
Danzo scoffed. "Mizuki is a product of your time as Hokage. Whether it's Orochimaru or Mizuki, your soft approach to education is to blame."
"All of this is your fault."
Since assuming the role of Hokage, he had grown adept at deflecting blame, often framing himself as the one cleaning up the messes left by Hiruzen.
Hiruzen, however, had no recourse. After all, Danzo was the Hokage now.
Despite his criticisms of Hiruzen's educational methods, Danzo had retained him to oversee the training of genin and Academy students, while he only dealt with approvals.
He claimed to focus solely on cultivating strong individuals, leaving the so-called "weaklings" of the Ninja Academy beneath his notice.
In reality, Danzo's remarks about Hiruzen's failures were merely a pretext to undermine the Sarutobi faction's influence in the village. Privately, he acknowledged Hiruzen's skill in training young ninjas, given that Hiruzen had produced formidable disciples like the Sannin.
By contrast, his own protégés had been lackluster, with none achieving exceptional prominence. To bolster his forces, Danzo resorted to coercion, deception, and manipulation to recruit talent, including Orochimaru, Kinoe, and other gifted individuals from Konoha's clans.
He covered the crystal ball with the red cloth and rose from his seat.
"We can't allow this chaos to continue within the village. This farce must end."
Hiruzen nodded in agreement. "Indeed."
---
Back in the forest, Mizuki darted through the treetops with the statue in his arms, but no matter how fast he fled, he couldn't shake off the pursuit of Motoki.
The deafening buzz of a massive black cloud of parasitic insects steadily closed in on him. At times, a few stray bugs nearly landed on his shoulders.
What a persistent guy.
Motoki's obsession with the statue was far more intense than he had anticipated.
Both of them harbored treacherous intentions, and this chase would only end in disaster if Konoha's shinobi discovered them. Neither of them would escape unscathed.
Thinking quickly, Mizuki halted on a sturdy branch and called out to Motoki.
"Wait! This pointless standoff is just wasting our time. Let's make a deal."
"You're only after the statue, and I need something that will please Orochimaru-sama."
"If you help me retrieve the Scroll of Seals from Naruto, I'll give you the statue. How about it? You get the statue, I get the scroll—we both get what we want."
Motoki considered Mizuki's words for a moment before nodding in agreement.
"Alright, but you'll have to give me the statue first. Then I'll go after Naruto for you."
"No way! What if you just take the statue and run? How would I ever catch Naruto on my own?"
On the other side of the forest, Naruto had secured the scroll on his back and was moving in a different direction. Although he still didn't fully understand what was happening, one thing had become clear from Mizuki and Motoki's earlier exchange:
Both of them were trying to steal something important from Konoha, and he was just a pawn in their scheme.
They only approached me to use me.
The care Mizuki-sensei had shown him, Motoki-sensei's words of guidance—it was all a facade, mere lies from the start.
Not one of them ever truly acknowledged him.
As this thought sank in, his nose stung, and tears welled up in his eyes.
At that moment, a familiar voice called out nearby.
"Naruto, what are you doing here?"
Naruto turned towards the voice and saw a familiar figure.
"Iruka-sensei!"
"It's dangerous here. Come back to the village with me right away!"
As Naruto began moving toward Iruka, another voice rang out.
"Naruto! Don't trust him—that's a fake Iruka! I'm the real one! Come over here!"
Naruto turned to see another Iruka approaching from behind him.
Before he could process this, yet another voice came from his left.
"Naruto! Don't believe them! They're just after the scroll on your back! Come to me!"
"Naruto!"
"Naruto!"
"Naruto!"
In an instant, no fewer than three Irukas were calling out his name from different directions.
