Chapter 257 Don't Wait for Me This Time

His tone was a little harsh, and before he could feel annoyed, Haruko entered the room.

Orochimaru didn't look at her. He kept fiddling with the instruments in his hands, sometimes lifting up the test tube to check it, sometimes taking something from the rack and returning to the table.

Then he frowned again, not knowing what to do with this useless thing.

Haruko, who was standing by herself, felt a little embarrassed. She asked tentatively: "Are you busy now? How about I do it next time..."

"Just tell me if you have anything to say."

His rude attitude brought the laboratory back to silence, leaving only the clinking sounds of instruments.

Haruko took a deep breath and convinced herself not to care about his indifference, "I have to go to the Sand Village with Tsunade on a mission, so I may not be able to come see you for a while."

"It's not my business."

"I want to ask you a favor. I wonder if you can figure out a way to break the caged bird of the Hyuga clan."

"Crack the bird in the cage? You really know how to give me a hard time."

When he learned that she only came to ask for help for Hinata, his feverish heart completely cooled down. Orochimaru laughed at himself and felt inexplicably ridiculous.

Self-definition sometimes has trouble balancing with the approval of others, especially for the gloomy Snake.

"I believe in you. No one is more likely to find a solution than you."

Haruko tried to make her tone sound relaxed, "You have a great talent for science, and it should be something you pursue, not a blade that stabs everyone."

Seeing that she hadn't given up trying to convince him, Orochimaru deliberately said in a cold voice: "You still like to talk nonsense."

Maybe she couldn't stand him anymore, maybe she didn't want to face his cold face anymore, or maybe she finally realized that they were walking on two completely different paths.

She left, taking away all the warmth she had brought before, leaving behind only words that were unnecessarily annoying.

"I will try my best to bring you new ninjutsu, so wait for me."

Orochimaru clenched the instrument in his hand, and the rising anger filled his chest, which was the resentment towards her usual tolerant attitude.

Do you still think he is the same kid who aspired to learn all the ninjutsu in the world?

Do not make jokes!

The boring life continued day after day, and it seemed that there was no change from the countless days and nights without her memory.

Orochimaru thought she was ridiculous too.

She was clearly a person who was afraid of death, but in the end, not only did she die protecting others, but she was also forgotten by everyone. Even so, she didn't change much after regaining her memory.

Given her personality, she probably never took it to heart, and might even think that forgetting her death was a good thing.

What a stupid person.

Selfless people are stupid, so he is selfish and only cares about his own prospects and future. He devotes endless efforts to research just to achieve his own success.

Including immortality, it is just his pursuit to preserve his own life.

Life is fragile. Once people die, what’s the point of talking about the value and meaning of life?

That's why I say she is stupid.

Later, she returned to the village and brought the ninjutsu she learned from Sunagakure that same day.

Orochimaru glanced at her without answering, ignoring her stunned expression, and cruelly told her that he had already collected these things, mocking her for wasting time.

Judging from the moral ethics of ordinary people, he can be said to be ungrateful.

But as foolish as she was, she apologized to him and said that she would definitely bring back more rare ninjutsu next time.

"Wait for me."

She said this again before leaving.

She would sometimes come to the lab after that, but most of the time Orochimaru spent it alone.

She had nothing to do when she came, so she would chat about whatever topic she thought of, not minding his silence. When she couldn't think of anything to say, she would watch him do his research and marvel at the knowledge she didn't understand.

It was a plain yet unexpectedly harmonious time together, so much so that he couldn't help but secretly start looking forward to their next meeting.

Orochimaru despised and disdained himself for being like this, but at the same time he envied and was jealous of himself for being like this.

Until the very end, but he didn't know that it was the last time they met. Haruko didn't speak again after saying hello. She just sat there quietly and looked at him for a long time.

The lonely look in his eyes made Orochimaru feel inexplicably upset, and even his tone became a little aggressive.

"Why are you looking at me with such pitiful eyes?"

But she didn't respond to this, and suddenly told him: "Orochimaru, I'm going on a trip."

Orochimaru paused while pouring the reagent, and the next second he regained his calm attitude, "Really?"

"Yeah, and I'll be gone for a long time, and I don't know when I'll be back."

She then added, "If we're lucky, we might be able to come back soon, but it will probably take some time."

Thinking of the white-haired idiot who broke in through the window to say goodbye not long ago, Orochimaru pretended to ask casually: "Why didn't you leave with Jiraiya before?"

“My path is different from his.”

Haruko looked at him deeply, with a hint of hope in her dark eyes.

"My path is different from yours, so I hope our paths will continue to cross."

"Crossing roads only wastes time arriving in a straight line."

"I care about you, so I want to keep you."

"…Care about me?"

Orochimaru found it somewhat funny that someone who rejected him actually said that he cared about him.

"Orochimaru, I'm not the only one who wants to keep you, and I'm not the only one who cares about you. I'm glad that I'm special to you."

Catching a glimpse of her serious expression from the corner of his eye, Orochimaru sneered, "People change, especially their feelings."

Seeing that he had a heart of stone from beginning to end, Haruko felt relieved. She walked up to him and hugged him gently. She hesitated for a long time before saying her final goodbye.

"You said that snakes don't have tears, so... don't wait for me this time."

The chirping of cicadas in Konoha in midsummer gradually died down, and the snow-white snow covered the streets of all sizes.

It was time for the snake to hibernate, and even when he woke up one morning, his head was groggy. All kinds of complicated and noisy thoughts were intertwined, and he couldn't get the answer he wanted.

Orochimaru, wrapped in his outer coat, stood by the window that was emitting cold air, looking down at the falling snow below, and slowly became lost in thought.

Winter always comes so quickly.

As if in harmony with the cold weather, he felt an indescribable eagerness in his heart...

He seemed to be waiting for a figure to appear.

A vivid, fearless figure.

*

Haruko was really busy, and even finding time to visit him was a rare opportunity for her to rest.

Ever since she last came to see Hiruko to confirm that he had thought it through, Haruko apologized and said that it was difficult for her to find time to visit him.

Beiluhu no longer had any negative emotions. After all, she allowed him to look at her through the screen from time to time.

Haruko was almost always busy, busy with training, busy with reform, busy with repairing the relationship between Uchiha and Konoha, and none of them was really busy with her own affairs.

She didn't mind him watching her, so Beiliuhu squatted in front of the screen almost every day and watched her busy.

The previously cramped room became much more spacious after a lot of clutter was thrown away, and with the newly installed lights, it looks bright and clean.

Not long ago, when Jiraiya came to see him and found that the room had been completely changed, he was amazed that this shabby house finally had a bit of the atmosphere of the living world.

That brainless guy, the front door is not far away, why did he choose to break in through the window...

***

Gratitude list as of July 2024, 7:

grateful--

He Shu?(???? The reminder talisman, Bobo milk tea, and a love letter sent by

The writer Lu Renjia teacher updated the kick, Mu Xue Yu Ji, Lin Laoji, Uzumaki Rasengan, the healing unicorn between the electric fire, He Shu?(????,?★★●?, Nanning's Jin Xiula, Yuan Wei ＾, Yan Yi Yue, A Yu Zhen Di C, Sanhao Squirrel sent the love to generate electricity x3

Yu & Jiuci, the real and fake Yang Rubing sent love to generate electricity x2

Piano lacquer worker, Ran Xia Q, Sakurai Xue., Sukuna, Fuso Qin, [◆﹏◆], Qi is not Qi, Xiao Xingxing who likes ginger fried duck, Chen Huang who likes spicy squid, open the skylight and say dirty words, tsuki Jia, 咻! Koi possession, damn it has been applied, Wu Ziyun, Mu Wangfu who likes black rice fried rice, sent with love

Thank you for the gifts! The author is so touched! Jiraiya climbed through the window and laughed (ㄏ￣▽￣)ㄏ