Chapter 234 : Jhin: That must be very interesting.
"ember, what are they trying to do?"
root white zetsu—that is, Zero—looked over with a puzzled expression, but Jhin glared at him.
It immediately remembered the previous incident where the White Zetsu failed to discover Hanzo of the Salamander's secret dealings with Sunagakure and quickly tried to explain itself.
"Orochimaru's reports are too complicated; we don't understand them—"
Before it could finish speaking, the cold gleam of a blade plunged into its forehead.
Jhin smiled "kindly" and twisted the hilt: "If it's really not working, how about I transplant a brain for you? What do you think?"
Though White Zetsu didn't have much of a brain, it felt this wouldn't be a good idea and tried to change the subject, looking distressed: "Should we stop them? What if they damage your body…?"
"No."
Jhin raised the corner of his mouth with interest, a glint of excitement and malice in his eyes.
"I want to see what these Konoha guys plan to do. If they can come up with something new, that would be quite interesting~"
"Huh?"
White Zetsu scratched the back of its head in distress, wanting to dissuade him but not daring to speak.
Besides Lord Madara, only Black Zetsu's words could make Jhin listen a little, but Black Zetsu was busy with other matters and had no time to constantly advise him… White Zetsu decided not to trouble itself and just blindly support Jhin's plan.
It sent the eavesdropping White Zetsu to Orochimaru's underground base to continue monitoring, and what it saw was an astonishing scene.
Uchiha Fugaku personally carried a "mummy" to the experimental base and then pulled out ten pairs of Sharingan from a sealing scroll, all legacies left by Clan Member during their sacrifices over the past few centuries.
He made a few hand signs, and the strips of cloth on the "mummy" slowly loosened and fell away, revealing the face of the person inside.
It was a disheveled, bearded middle-aged man with sunken features and a strong smell of alcohol, clearly a habitual drunkard.
Fugaku placed the man on the operating table, tying his hands, feet, and mouth while apologizing to Orochimaru.
"I am truly sorry, Lord Orochimaru. If we had made up our minds sooner, his condition might not be so bad."
Throughout the process, his gaze at the drunkard was utterly cold, as if he were looking at an unconscious corpse.
"It's fine," Orochimaru said, putting on a lab coat. "This is not a critical issue."
"Yes, then I will return. I leave the rest to you."
After Fugaku left, Orochimaru raised the glass jar containing the Sharingan with interest, observing the blood-red eyes through the light.
"To use these already awakened Sharingan as nourishment, you must feel very honored, aren't you?"
He looked at the man on the table, his words finally revealing a hint of the extreme scientist's desire and madness… Jhin paused for a moment when he saw what the drunkard looked like, but quickly returned to normal.
"Ah~ It's that scumbag."
He let out an exclamation of "I see," roughly guessing the purpose of this experiment.
It must be said that Orochimaru is indeed the strongest scientist in the Ninja World; this heaven-defying talent and imagination, perhaps only Kabuto in his later Sage Mode could rival him.
Although he didn't care whether that scumbag lived or died, if this succeeded, he would have another point to greatly abuse the audience.
At that time, popularity points would pour in, a guaranteed profit.
So, he had to help Orochimaru… Time arrived the next morning, and Orochimaru, wearing a white lab coat, strolled into the laboratory.
As expected, the experimental subject, having been injected with the medicine, showed some improvement and was much better than when it was brought in last night. Upon hearing someone enter, it began to struggle desperately.
"Mmph! Mmph mmph mmph…!"
"Quiet down. The main course is next."
Orochimaru took out a glass jar containing a pair of Sharingan and placed it into a machine. After a series of complex procedures for refinement, he obtained a tube of bright red liquid, which he injected into the experimental subject's vein with a syringe.
As soon as the liquid entered its body, the experimental subject immediately became agitated and restless, with blood oozing from its ears and nose. However, since its mouth was gagged, it could only emit some indistinct growls.
Half an hour later, Orochimaru briefly examined it and, without changing his expression, prepared for a second attempt.
After all, he had been mentally prepared for this person's lack of talent; perhaps even all the Sharingan Fugaku sent would not be enough.
When the second tube of liquid was injected, the effect lasted for a full hour before gradually subsiding.
When Orochimaru pulled open the experimental subject's eyelids, its eyes were distinctly blood-red, with a single tomoe slowly rotating around the pupil.
At the same time, the experimental subject's hair turned from black to streaked with white, and many wrinkles appeared on its face, making it look about ten years older.
Considering there was only one sample and he couldn't be too aggressive and kill it, Orochimaru decided to give it a day to rest and recuperate.
"That's enough for today. We'll continue tomorrow."
He smiled as he hooked up a nutrient solution to the experimental subject and turned to leave the laboratory… Jhin, witnessing all of this through White Zetsu, was very calm, his expression normal throughout. He even had the presence of mind to coach Zero while the experimental subject screamed, making it practice juggling three stones simultaneously.
"Tsk, another mistake."
Jhin jabbed root white zetsu in the stomach, gesturing for it to continue, just as he heard another White Zetsu's voice transmit.
[That's enough for today. We'll continue tomorrow.]
He showed disappointment: "Eh~ That's all? I wanted to hear more."
After confirming that Orochimaru would only continue the experiment tomorrow, Jhin left the forbidden forest and quietly arrived at Naraku's room in Fugaku's residence.
Naraku's body was still in a deep sleep, unable to wake. In his mental world, he controlled his subordinate Jhin to approach and touch his own forehead.
"How ironic. Uchiha Naraku clearly desires release, yet the person he cares about most is extending his life in this manner…"
Jhin glanced at White Zetsu following behind him, a joyful smile spreading across his face: "Tell me, what expression would he make if he learned the truth the moment he decided to live?"
"That would be very, very interesting, wouldn't it~"
If Black Zetsu were here, it would surely complain: although it wasn't human, Jhin's level of madness was clearly more severe than its own.
Thump thump thump thump.
Faint footsteps approached from outside the door. White Zetsu quickly led Jhin, who was still moving unhurriedly, into the underground, swiftly leaving the Clan Head's residence.
The second they disappeared, the sliding door to the room was pulled open, and Uchiha Itachi, with his short legs, came to Naraku's bedside, attempting to wake his brother for the Nth time.
"Brother, brother… It's morning now…"
Shizune, who followed behind, picked him up and coaxed, "Alright, Little Itachi, your mother said not to disturb Brother Naraku's rest, didn't she?"
"Mm," Itachi nodded, then asked, "When will Brother… wake up?"
"He'll wake up when he's well-rested. Then you can ask him to take you out to buy three-colored dango, okay?"
"Okay!"
Hearing there would be sweet dango to eat, Itachi happily agreed, wishing in his heart that his brother would wake up tomorrow and carry him out to play like before.
Shizune coaxed Itachi for a while and then took him out to catch butterflies.
In his mental space, Naraku silently added an item to his memo: After waking up, take Itachi to buy three-colored dango, but he can only eat one, and I'll eat two.
Then he checked his popularity points. After the Battle of Mount Kikyo, nearly 100,000 popularity points had been added to his account so far, and the number was still continuously increasing.
Based on past experience, he would probably gain around 130,000 to 140,000 in the end.
--This wave is a net gain!