This ninja in Naruto is unscientific

Chapter 392 The Child Who Followed Orochimaru

Nishikawa Tetsu walked out of the Science Research Institute's gate, his eyes momentarily dazzled by the autumn afternoon sunlight.

"It's unbelievable that Hiruko could come up with something like this."

He savored what he had just seen in the laboratory in Building C. Although the thing seemed unstable at the moment, its potential was absolutely groundbreaking.

"It seems Konoha's military-industrial complex is about to undergo another major upgrade. Funding, oh funding, these money-burning ancestors..."

While pondering how to squeeze more infrastructure funds from the villages during the Five Kage Summit starting next month to fill the research institute's hole, Nishikawa Tetsu strolled toward the Ministry of Finance building.

As he passed through the busiest commercial street in Konoha's new district, Nishikawa Tetsu casually glanced at the throngs of people on the street.

Suddenly, he stopped abruptly, as if frozen in place.

"That is..."

Nishikawa Tetsu rubbed his eyes, his face full of disbelief.

Not far ahead, outside a high-end dessert shop called Ganligan, stood a figure that was all too familiar.

She wore the same dark gray kimono for ages, her skin was so pale it was almost bloodless, and she had a chilling aura that seemed ready to dissect people as experimental subjects at any moment.

"Orochimaru, the Dean?!"

Nishikawa Tetsuya gasped.

This is the super nerdy guy who would rather spend months in an underground lab with his research than come out into the sunlight!

Did the sun rise in the west today? The cold-blooded Orochimaru actually has the leisure to stroll through a shopping street? And he even stopped in front of a dessert shop?

There must be a demon in the abnormal situation.

A fire of gossip ignited in Nishikawa Tetsu's heart, and he immediately switched to covert observation mode.

Nishikawa Tetsu hid behind a lamppost, peeking out half his head to carefully observe Orochimaru.

Orochimaru didn't enter the dessert shop; instead, he stood quietly at the entrance, his golden vertical pupils slightly lowered, as if waiting for something.

A moment later, the glass door of the dessert shop was pushed open.

A little girl who looked about six or seven years old, with a high ponytail and chubby cheeks, hopped out like a happy little duck, holding two strings of tricolor dumplings that were bigger than her face.

"Teacher! I bought it! The meatballs at this shop are absolutely delicious!"

The little girl ran up to Orochimaru, tilted her sugar-frosted smiling face up, and unsuspectingly handed one of the dumplings to Orochimaru's sinister face.

"..."

Nishikawa Tetsu watched from behind the lamppost, his jaw almost dropping.

This scene is too bizarre!

A powerful, unapproachable Sannin stood next to a naive little girl holding a sweet treat.

What shocked Nishikawa Tetsuya even more was...

Orochimaru did not show any disgust or impatience when the little girl handed him the dumpling.

He actually bent down slightly, and for the first time ever, a look of helplessness and indulgence appeared on his face, which always carried a strange smile.

Orochimaru stretched out his pale, slender fingers and used his fingertips to wipe away a bit of icing from the little girl's lips.

"Eat less sweets, they're bad for your teeth."

Although Orochimaru's voice was still hoarse and deep, Nishikawa Tetsu swore he could definitely detect a hint of doting in it!

"Is this Snake?! Has he been switched?!"

Nishikawa Tetsu was internally ranting, but his intense curiosity drove him to get closer and see for himself.

however.

"Sneaking around behind others is not the proper behavior for a dignified Vice Minister of Finance, Che-kun."

A voice carrying a hint of coldness suddenly rang in Nishikawa Tetsu's ears without warning.

"Oh my god!"

Nishikawa Tetsuya was startled and turned his head sharply.

Orochimaru had turned around at some point, and his golden vertical pupils were looking at him with a half-smile.

"We've been discovered."

Nishikawa Tetsuo coughed twice, straightened his clothes, and forced himself to walk out from behind the lamppost.

"Haha, Dean Orochimaru, what a coincidence! I just came out of the research institute. I thought your back looked a bit like yours, but I didn't dare to recognize you."

Nishikawa Tetsu chuckled as he swaggered over.

He walked up to Orochimaru and brazenly looked the little girl hiding behind Orochimaru, who was staring at him with curious eyes.

Actually, Nishikawa Tetsu had already guessed who the little girl was when he saw her.

Mitarashi Red Bean.

She is Orochimaru's disciple in the original work, and also the "Sweet Potato" aunt in Boruto who caused countless longtime fans heartache.

"Dean, you've done a really good job of keeping this a secret."

Nishikawa Tetsu lowered his voice, nudged Orochimaru's arm with his shoulder, and winked at him with a mocking expression.

"This morning, Hiruko-senpai told me you've been taking care of a child lately, and I didn't believe it. I never expected it! The mighty Hiruko-senpai, one of the Legendary Sannin and the Dean of the Konoha Science Research Institute, has actually transformed into a stay-at-home dad?"

"If Jiraiya-sensei and Tsunade-sama knew this, their jaws would probably drop to the floor."

Orochimaru glanced coldly at Nishikawa Tetsu, ignoring his teasing.

He turned his head and looked at Hongdou, who was happily munching on a meatball skewer. The chilling coldness in his eyes seemed to melt a little.

"Her name is Hongdou (Red Bean)."

Orochimaru lowered his voice, his tone carrying a subtle, complex emotion.

"This child's father was once my direct subordinate in the Anbu. He sacrificed himself to cover the retreat of the main force during the last war against Iwagakure and Kumogakure."

Orochimaru paused for a moment, his golden vertical pupils narrowing slightly, as if recalling some unpleasant past events.

"Her mother also passed away recently due to a recurrence of old injuries. Although there is an orphanage in the village, I do not want my subordinates' bloodline to grow up mediocre there."

"So I took her in and made her my disciple."

Nishikawa Tetsu put away his playful expression.

He looked at Orochimaru.

This man, known as Leng Jun, surprisingly developed a human touch.

Orochimaru has always been a very sentimental person, whether it's towards the Third Hokage, or towards Jiraiya and Tsunade.

However, his way of expressing emotions was often accompanied by an extreme fear of the fragility of life and a morbid pursuit of immortality, which ultimately led to paranoia.

But now, Orochimaru, who has suffered the successive deaths of Nawaki and Kato Dan but was not swayed by Danzo and was instead tricked into the research institute by Nishikawa Tetsu with science, seems to have retained more of the warmth of a human being in his heart.

"So that's how it is."

Nishikawa Tetsu nodded, a gentle smile returning to his face.

He squatted down and looked at Hongdou at eye level.

"Hello, Little Red Bean. I'm Nishikawa Tetsu, your teacher's colleague at the research institute."

When adults talk to children, their voices seem to unconsciously become a little hoarse, and Nishikawa Tetsu is no exception.

Hongdou stared wide-eyed at the handsome older brother with curiosity.

"You're Che-gege? I've heard the teacher mention you! The teacher said you're a little fox whose head is full of money and weird ideas!" Hongdou said crisply, innocently revealing Orochimaru's evaluation of Nishikawa Che behind his back.

"..." Nishikawa Tetsu's lips twitched, and he turned to give Orochimaru a resentful look.

Orochimaru expressionlessly looked away, pretending to look at the clouds in the sky.

"Ahem, children say the darndest things, children say the darndest things." Nishikawa Tetsu chuckled twice, reaching out to touch Hongdou's chubby little face, finding it surprisingly pleasant to the touch.

He glanced at the dumpling in Hongdou's hand, which she had already gnawed down to just one, and snapped his fingers with a flourish.

"Since this is our first meeting, you should at least show your appreciation, brother."

Nishikawa Tetsu turned and walked into "Kanrikan". A short while later, he came out carrying an oversized luxury gift box filled with various flavors of tricolor dumplings, daifuku and yokan.

"Wow!!!"

Hongdou's eyes instantly turned into starry eyes, and she was practically drooling.

"Delicious! I love three-color meatballs the most! Thank you, Brother Che! Is there any more? Is there any more?" Hongdou hugged the gift box tightly, jumping up and down excitedly.

Nishikawa Tetsu looked at Hongdou's adorable, possessive expression and couldn't help but pinch her cheek again.

"Since you like three-colored dumplings so much, how about I call you Red Bean Dumpling from now on?"

"Red bean dumplings?" Red Bean tilted her head, biting her finger, looking puzzled. "What kind of delicious snack are red bean dumplings?"

"Hahahaha, you're Red Bean Maruko!" Nishikawa Tetsu laughed heartily.

Orochimaru stood aside, watching Nishikawa Tetsu and Aoko interact.

On his perpetually pale face, in a fleeting moment that even he himself didn't realize, a tiny smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Red Bean Maruko..." Orochimaru murmured softly, his voice so soft that only the wind could hear it.