[Starting in Naruto with a Daily Login System] Chapter 55

The Hokage’s office wasn’t exactly what I’d call "cozy." It was more "impressive and a little intimidating" if I had to be honest. Not that it mattered—I’d been here enough times to not get too bothered by it.

I strolled in, team behind me. Tokuma marched in like he was at attention, all business. Shisui practically bounced in, grinning like an idiot, and Genma slouched in the doorway, senbon dangling from his mouth like he was too cool to care. If anyone noticed, it was probably because he was the only one not making any effort to look even vaguely respectable.

"Hokage-sama," I said with a lazy grin, letting the formality roll off my tongue like it was second nature. "What’s up? You want to tell us about this top-secret mission, or are we doing the ‘I know something you don’t’ routine again?"

The Hokage didn’t bother raising an eyebrow at my casual tone. After all, this was my thing. And honestly, in my past life (the one I was still getting used to), I would've been more... well, formal. But here? I could relax.

"We’ve got a situation," Hokage-sama said, putting down his papers. "I need you and your team to investigate Orochimaru."

"Orochimaru?" I repeated, sitting down casually in the chair across from him. "I mean, sure, if you’re just gonna toss out villains like that. Got anything specific on him, or are we working with the ‘vague, bad guy energy’ lead?"

Hiruzen gave me a long, knowing look. He didn’t need to say it aloud, but we both knew it. I was strong. Stronger than most people in Konoha, probably even stronger than the Hokage himself. Danzo knew it, too, though he’d never admit it. They tolerated me because I got the job done efficiently—and most importantly—without a lot of unnecessary mess.

It wasn’t that I went out of my way to be reckless, but it was hard to not leave a trail of chaos when you could practically tear down mountains with a thought. I could finish missions faster than anyone, and usually without anyone noticing. That’s what mattered.

"Right," I said, leaning back in the chair. "So, what’s the situation with Orochimaru?"

Hiruzen didn’t answer right away, but his steady gaze was enough. He didn’t need to. He trusted me to get it done, even if he had to deal with my... unconventional methods. And deep down, I kind of liked it that way.

Hokage-sama's eyes hardened, his tone shifting. "He’s suspected of doing illegal human experiments, Kakashi. This could be serious."

Tokuma, who had been standing stiffly in his usual serious posture, finally spoke up. "Is the mission just to gather intel, or do we have authorization to eliminate him if necessary?"

"Only if we have to," Hokage-sama said firmly, though there was an edge of concern in his voice. "If we find the reports are true, we can’t afford to let Orochimaru continue. But for now, focus on gathering information. He’s always been slippery."

"Right, right, catch him red-handed, but keep it clean," I said, leaning back in my chair with one leg over the other. I glanced over at my team, all of them still standing at attention, like I wasn’t about to drop some usual sarcasm on this mission. "So, no mutant snake hybrids or weird zombie ninjas to fight this time? Because that would be a real downer."

Shisui snorted at that, the bastard’s grin even wider. "I hope so. Wouldn't mind facing some mutant snake, though. Could get a good fight in."

"Yeah, sure," I shot back, my tone dripping with sarcasm. "That’s what we need, Shisui. You and a snake—sounds like a date I don’t want to be part of."

"Hey, I’m fast enough to outrun any snake, Captain!" Shisui flashed me a grin that said he was probably already plotting to do exactly that.

"Good, good," I said, tapping my fingers on the armrest. "That’s exactly the kind of energy we need on this mission—recklessness. Love it. Keeps things interesting." I turned back to Hokage-sama. "What’s our starting point?"

Hokage-sama slid a few papers across the desk. "We have a lead on a few locations that Orochimaru might be using to hide his experiments. You’ll investigate those and confirm whether the rumors are true."

I gave a lazy salute. "Got it. We’ll sneak in, get the goods, and get out. Quiet as mice. No mutant snakes involved."

Tokuma gave me a deadpan look, which honestly was becoming his signature. "Do we need to plan for an extraction? Orochimaru’s not the kind of guy to go down quietly."

"Yeah, well, if I’ve learned anything in this job, it’s that you never really get out quietly," I said with a shrug. "But we’ll manage. Genma’s good at looking like he doesn’t care until he does something useful."

"Thanks for the compliment, Captain," Genma muttered from the back, flicking his senbon with a bored look on his face. "I’ll make sure to do my part... after a nap, of course."

"You know," I said, leaning forward slightly, "I should be more worried about your lazy ass, but I’m kind of starting to trust you. Not a lot, but just enough to get by."

Genma’s lazy smirk only deepened. "Hey, as long as I don’t have to do any real work, I’m good. Besides, you need a break from being the all-knowing, all-powerful Captain, right?"

"Exactly," I said with a wink. "But only because I know you’ll do your part when it counts. Just don’t make me regret it."

Tokuma finally cracked a faint, almost imperceptible smile, though his expression was still mostly business. "So we head out immediately, Captain?"

"Yep," I said, standing up, stretching a bit. "We move out, gather intel, and don’t make a spectacle of ourselves. If we find something, we handle it accordingly. And if we don’t? Well, then we just chalk it up to another day of not getting eaten by mutant snakes."

"Fine," Tokuma said, a touch of dry sarcasm creeping into his voice, "but if we get eaten, I’m blaming you, Captain."

"Fair enough," I grinned. "But I’d like to see a mutant snake try to eat me. That would be an interesting experience."

"Alright, let's get this over with," Genma said with a long-suffering sigh. "I’ve got real things to do... like staring at the ceiling while we’re on our way to Orochimaru's secret lair."

"Good talk, Genma. Always a pleasure." I gave him a lazy salute, then turned to Hokage-sama. "We’ll report back soon, Hokage-sama. Don’t miss us too much."

Hokage-sama gave me one of his rare, tired smiles. "Don’t get yourself into too much trouble, Kakashi."

"Trouble?" I repeated, pretending to be shocked. "Me? Never."

—

The sun had barely dipped below the horizon as we approached Orochimaru’s supposed hideout. I wouldn’t call it a secret lair, but it sure looked like one of those places you find in horror movies where things go south really quickly.

“Alright, team,” I said with a smirk, looking back over my shoulder. "This is it. Time to sneak in, gather intel, and leave without anyone knowing we were ever here. Simple stuff, right?”

Shisui bounced on his heels, grinning from ear to ear. “Simple? Oh, I thought we were going full-on ‘fight mutant snakes and zombies’ today. You know, the usual ninja stuff.”

“You’re just hoping for a mutant snake to come and eat you, aren’t you?” I teased, giving him a side-eye. “Is that your idea of a good time?”

Shisui threw his hands up in mock surrender. “Hey, I just want a challenge. Also, mutant snakes are cool.”

“Whatever you say, buddy,” I said with a chuckle, glancing over at Genma, who was as usual, doing absolutely nothing productive. He was lounging against a tree like he was on vacation.

“You know, Genma,” I called over to him, “if you spent half as much time looking for traps as you do looking for shade, we might actually survive this mission.”

“Yeah, yeah, Captain,” Genma muttered, without even looking up from the senbon he was lazily twirling between his fingers. “I’ll get to it. Eventually.”

“I’m gonna pretend I didn’t just hear that,” Tokuma snapped, clearly still holding onto some semblance of professionalism. “We’re supposed to be investigating Orochimaru, not sightseeing. Focus!”

I threw my hands up in mock defense. “Alright, alright. I’m focused. I’ve got the ‘serious ninja’ look on. See?” I gave a dramatic wink, but Tokuma didn’t seem impressed.

“Sure,” Tokuma muttered under his breath. “You’re a model of perfect focus.”

I stifled a laugh as we crept toward the entrance of Orochimaru’s hideout. The walls were slick with moss and the air smelled faintly of mildew, but it wasn’t enough to put me off. I’d been in worse places.

"So, Captain," Shisui whispered, practically bouncing with excitement. "What’s the game plan? Mutant snakes? I’ll fight anything you throw at me. Zombies? Bring 'em on."

“Honestly, I’m just hoping for a nice, clean mission where we don't have to fight weird hybrids,” I said with a grin. "But, hey, if there's a zombie apocalypse involved, I’ll let you handle it."

“Please,” Shisui laughed. “You know you’d be the first one in the fight. I just want a front-row seat to watch you dodge poison spikes like a ninja god.”

I shrugged, smirking. “It’s a gift.”

We reached the entrance, a creaky, decaying door that looked like it had been left alone for a few too many years.

“Alright, let’s keep it quiet, no explosions, no mutant snakes," I said with a grin, nudging the door open.

Inside was exactly what I expected: creepy. It looked like a mad scientist’s dream come true. Cages, strange vials of who-knows-what, and a whole lot of twisted, deformed bodies scattered throughout the place. It was quiet, too quiet, and something about it made my skin crawl.

“Nice place, huh?” I said with a grin, voice dripping with sarcasm. “Sure, it’s not exactly five-star, but I’m sure Orochimaru’s got great taste in interior design.”

“Stop talking, Captain,” Tokuma hissed, his eyes scanning the room as he silently moved in front of us. He was taking this seriously. Like, way too seriously.

“You guys get that ‘human experimentation’ vibe, or is it just me?” Shisui asked, his grin gone now, his tone more serious. His usual enthusiasm faded for a moment as he glanced around the room, noticing the same disturbing things we were.

“Yeah, I’m getting that vibe, alright,” I muttered, suddenly feeling a little less comfortable in my own skin. This wasn’t just some rogue ninja’s creepy hideout; this was real danger.

The moment I took a step deeper into the room, I heard a soft hiss.

“Alright, now we’re talking,” Shisui said, already excited again, his eyes lighting up like a kid in a candy store. “Is it snake time yet?”

Before I could respond, a tall figure appeared from the shadows, moving smoothly, effortlessly. And I recognized him immediately.

Orochimaru.

“Ah, Kakashi,” he said with a smile that sent chills down my spine. “I’ve heard much about you. I didn’t expect to meet you so... soon.”

I tilted my head, suddenly very aware that this was my first interaction with Orochimaru. "And here I was, thinking you'd keep your distance." I crossed my arms, leaning back slightly in a casual stance that I was sure was making Tokuma twitch. "But, hey, if we’re going to do this, might as well get it over with. Nice hideout, though. Looks like you really went for the 'evil lair' aesthetic."

Orochimaru’s eyes gleamed with a mix of curiosity and... amusement. "Ah, you have a sense of humor, Kakashi. It’s a shame that won’t save you."

I shrugged. "I wasn’t planning on it. But I was planning on saving everyone else from whatever twisted experiments you’ve got going on here."

He tilted his head, giving me that same slithery grin. "Twisted? No, Kakashi. I’m simply seeking... evolution. Something you wouldn’t understand. You’ve been blessed with strength, but I have a goal. Immortality."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh, is that what this is about? You’re trying to cheat death? Real original."

Shisui, now looking slightly less enthusiastic and more concerned, whispered to me, “This guy really is as creepy as the rumors say.”

“Yeah, I’m starting to see why they say he’s ‘off the charts’ insane," I muttered back.

Orochimaru’s lips twitched at the side. "You’re already familiar with my reputation, I see. But what I’m doing... it’s the future of humanity."

“Right, sure," I said, rolling my eyes dramatically. “And the future involves locking people in cages? Really going for the whole 'mad scientist' look, huh?"

Shisui leaned in, grinning. "I think it’s safe to say, Captain, we’ve found the snake pit."

Before anything could escalate further, I snapped into a stance, my attention fully on Orochimaru. "Alright, I’m officially arresting you, Orochimaru. You’ve got a lot to answer for."

Orochimaru's expression turned from smug to slightly amused, as though he’d heard that line before. He scoffed, a sound like a hissing snake. "Arrest me? You? Do you even understand what you're trying to do, Kakashi? You cannot stop me. You are far out of your depth."

I chuckled, still standing in a relaxed pose, despite everything. "You can keep thinking that, Orochimaru. But we’re taking you down. Now."

Orochimaru’s eyes narrowed dangerously, but he didn’t move. "We'll see about that... Kakashi."

And with that, the room’s atmosphere shifted from bad to worse.
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Chapter 55 Operation Pedomaru
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Author's Note:
So, I've been thinking about it, and I’ve decided to rewrite this fic. Honestly, it started as a side project to help spark ideas for my other story. But after rereading it yesterday… yeah, I realized it’s not exactly my best work. You guys deserve better than this.

Right now, I'm about five chapters into the rewrite! I’ll still post my unedited drafts for now, but my main focus will be on improving the story through the rewrite. Thanks for sticking with me!