Chapter Thirty-Five: Orochimaru Goes Live

Unfortunately, Borsalino’s intentions were quickly discovered by Fleet Admiral Sengoku. Ever since then, whenever a mission required his deployment, the Fleet Admiral would ensure he was assigned the fastest warship available.

"Replacing the ship, huh..." Nami bit her lip, mentally calculating the costs.

Because their current flagship had been in service for so long, it required a major overhaul at the docks every few months. While it didn't have any catastrophic flaws, its minor issues were endless, and every overhaul consumed a significant portion of their budget.

By her calculations, the time for another overhaul was approaching soon. If she could seize this opportunity to replace the ship entirely, the saved maintenance funds could easily be diverted toward building a swimming pool on a new vessel. Furthermore, a new ship wouldn't need to return to port for major repairs every few months. That would eliminate the need to set aside a dedicated overhaul budget in the future—it was a deal that was well worth making.

"Hmm... why won't this belt come undone..."

When Nami snapped out of her thoughts, she realized Borsalino was struggling with her belt with a look of feigned distress, while his other hand had wandered quite brazenly toward her sensitive areas.

"You pervert! Stop that at once!"

With a flushed face, Nami tried to push him away. Although she appeared open and outgoing—and rarely minded dressing in revealing outfits—at her core, Nami was quite conservative. She couldn't let this scoundrel get his way with such indecency right here in the office!

Knowing Borsalino as she did, she knew that once he started, there was no stopping him. If he was doing this in the office now, who knew what kind of embarrassing places he might choose in the future? She certainly didn't want to wake up one day to find herself being compared to that woman from Amazon Lily by Borsalino.

"Don't worry, the office is soundproof. No one will find out."

It was far too difficult for a little lamb to escape the clutches of a big bad wolf. The experienced Borsalino effortlessly stripped Nami down, then casually pulled the curtains shut.

After about six thousand words of indescribable events, little Nami, whose combat power was less than five, drifted into a deep sleep in Borsalino's arms. Although Nami’s natural talent was not inferior to Hancock's, the disparity in age and physical stamina limited her. Against a veteran player like Borsalino, the result was a total defeat.

Borsalino was naturally unsatisfied after barely finishing the first round, but little Nami was simply unable to hold her own, leaving him no way to initiate a second. While alternating between rich, heavy meals and light, simple porridge was a nice change of pace, the current portion size simply wasn't enough to satisfy his hunger...

In her sleep, little Nami seemed to sense danger. She clutched the Admiral's greatcoat tightly, wrapping herself up completely. She wiggled like a caterpillar until she felt sufficiently secure, then curled up contentedly in Borsalino's arms.

Well... that killed any chance of keeping his hands busy. With a sigh, Borsalino opened the chat group to see if the eccentric members were up to any antics.

【Ai Haibara: It’s truly surprising how many people worship Orochimaru.】

【Kobayashi: Don't say that, Haibara-san. Orochimaru-san is a war hero who resisted the invasion~】

【Jotaro Kujo: This is a pain. I always thought that guy was a villain.】

【Passerby wanting to hug Luo Feng’s thigh: Jotaro-san, finally seeing you speak! You should come out and be active occasionally. And Zhang Sanfeng is also quiet all day...】

【Jotaro Kujo: ...My apologies.】

【Fubuki: Doesn't that village look a bit too big?】

【Borsalino: What are you all talking about? Who is this Orochimaru?】

【Passerby wanting to hug Luo Feng’s thigh: Kizaru-san, scroll up through the chat history. Orochimaru-sama is currently livestreaming his return to Konoha after the war.】

【Borsalino: Oh? You can livestream on this thing?】

Borsalino had only come to watch the group members clown around; he hadn't expected the chat group to introduce a feature like this. Scrolling up through the history, he quickly found the stream the Passerby had mentioned.

【Ding! Orochimaru has started a livestream, inviting @everyone to watch. Do you accept?】

【Accept/Decline】

Borsalino chose to accept, and in an instant, his vision blurred. He felt as if he were standing at the gates of Konoha, surrounded by countless cheering villagers. Following the crowd's gaze, he saw Orochimaru leading the triumphant Konoha ninja home.

As the commander-in-chief of the Third Great Ninja War, even a dazzling new star like Minato Namikaze found it difficult to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the man who had led Konoha to victory. With the adoration of countless villagers, the loyalty of the ninja who had fought for the village under his command, and a reputation that nearly surpassed the Third Hokage, it was no wonder Orochimaru considered the title of Fourth Hokage to be well within his grasp.

"Thank you for your hard work, Orochimaru. You are all heroes who have protected Konoha!"

The Third Hokage personally arrived at the village gates to welcome Orochimaru and the returning ninja. Behind him stood the village elders and the "Shadow of the Pot," Danzo Shimura.

The young Orochimaru lived up to his title of "Legendary Sannin"; his extraordinarily handsome face even managed to change the minds of several group members who usually disliked him.

【Kobayashi: Orochimaru-san is so beautiful... no, I mean, so handsome~】

【Ai Haibara: Idiot! Don't be fooled by his appearance. Even if he looks handsome, he doesn't seem like a good person!】

【Fubuki: What does it matter? As long as he looks good, that's enough.】

【Passerby wanting to hug Luo Feng’s thigh: Such a superficial woman...】

【Borsalino: I can't agree with you there, Passerby-san... Beauty is justice, after all.】

【Passerby wanting to hug Luo Feng’s thigh: That’s far too realistic! Can you really do whatever you want just because you're good-looking?!】

In the Devouring Starry Sky universe, the Passerby looked at the reflection in the mirror—a face that was never handsome to begin with and had only grown to look more like an ape after eating a Devil Fruit—and felt that the world was full of malice toward him.

On the livestream, Orochimaru walked up to the Third Hokage and whispered something. The Third Hokage, who had been smiling just a moment before, suddenly turned deathly pale. Before he could react, dozens of Konoha ninja behind Orochimaru launched a simultaneous assault on the elders standing behind the Third.

As the final victor of the Third Great Ninja War, Konoha had practically emptied its coffers to repel the major powers that had coveted the Land of Fire. The village was currently at its weakest point in history. Excluding the wounded in the hospital and the veterans who should have retired long ago, the number of ninja still capable of fighting likely didn't exceed four digits.

Yet, the army of ninja that had followed Orochimaru back to the village numbered over a thousand—all of them subordinates who had shed blood and fought alongside him.