The Underground Labyrinth and the Genetic Proposition
In the dark and damp underground space, the passageways twisted and turned, with different areas stacked layer upon layer.
Konoha possessed a vast and complex vertical space, shaped like a labyrinth.
Trying to find something in this maze was by no means a simple task.
However, Hagoromo walked toward a very specific destination, as if he had a clear route mapped out in his mind.
"Tap, tap, tap"—his footsteps echoed one after another. Hagoromo made no attempt to conceal his arrival.
He only paused slightly when he stood before a certain door, then reached out and pushed it open directly.
The light inside the room behind the door was very dim, making it hard to judge the exact situation at a glance. But that long, straight black hair viewed from behind could belong to no one else but Uncle Snake.
Orochimaru continued his work as if he hadn't noticed the person arriving behind him. Only when his task seemed to reach a stopping point did he turn his head to glance at the person who had arrived—someone who was interrupting, yet simultaneously not interrupting, his work.
"So it's Hagoromo. I truly didn't expect you to be the first one to find me. I thought it would be the Third..."
Things having reached this point, Orochimaru already knew that his actions being discovered was only a matter of time. Therefore, he wasn't surprised and even appeared quite composed.
"Could you pass me the scalpel over there? It's right next to you."
"Which one?"
"Number 3, extended."
On a shelf right by the door sat a row of scalpels. The moment Orochimaru's voice faded, the exact scalpel he requested trembled twice on the rack, then launched into a perfect parabola, landing precisely in his hand.
"Heh, Magnet Style."
Orochimaru chuckled lightly, the underlying meaning very clear... In reality, he no longer believed Hagoromo's claims about his own powers.
If the Lightning Style's Raiden Mei was barely acceptable, then Divine Core Raiden Mei: Rashomon had absolutely exceeded the bounds of a "jutsu". Orochimaru could no longer accept such an irrational explanation.
By instinct, he felt that this was not a power belonging to ninjas.
After all, Hagoromo's ultimate move was vastly more ferocious than even a Tailed Beast Bomb.
Several months had passed. The destruction caused by the Nine-Tails had already been repaired. What remained unrepaired was entirely caused by Hagoromo—simply put, in a single instant, Hagoromo had excavated an artificial river tens of meters deep, over a hundred meters wide, and fifty kilometers long. And this was merely the aftermath of his attack.
Orochimaru naturally harbored a desire to investigate the secrets hidden within the young man standing behind him. He had even made attempts before, but he couldn't uncover a single thing.
"You don't seem very surprised?" Hagoromo asked.
Uncle Snake was far too calm about his arrival. His dark little secret had been discovered—shouldn't he at least act a little nervous just to give him some face?
"You don't seem surprised either?" Orochimaru countered.
Beneath Orochimaru's scalpel lay the corpse of a ninja. A Konoha ninja's corpse.
"Should I be surprised by a corpse?" Hagoromo answered a question with a question. The point of whether he should be surprised wasn't the corpse itself, but rather the act of Orochimaru dissecting a fellow Konoha ninja.
"Heh, so you're saying I'm safe for the time being, and there's no need to flee in panic."
Orochimaru was a smart man. He could discern Hagoromo's stance from just that one sentence.
He naturally knew that a significant number of ninjas were investigating the missing ninja cases, and Hagoromo was one of them. But looking at the other party's current attitude, he didn't seem to have any intention of turning him in.
Orochimaru's guess was spot on. Hagoromo wouldn't report him as the result of the mission; otherwise, he would have voiced his suspicions in front of the Third Hokage earlier.
Right now, he had even less intention of personally capturing Orochimaru. If he did, he would have made his move already. Plus, capturing Orochimaru alive would mean he'd have to use his ultimate move again.
But right now, Hagoromo didn't even have his trusty iron gourd on him.
As for persuading Orochimaru to turn over a new leaf? That's not a joke you just throw around.
"Indeed. Regarding the mission the Hokage gave me... I have no intention of completing it. As for the dead ninjas..." Hagoromo trailed off.
The dead ninjas had nothing to do with Hagoromo. In reality, Danzo genuinely shared the blame for this mess—at least half of the responsibility belonged to him. Orochimaru and Danzo had hit it off instantly; the former's experiments were facilitated by the latter.
Orochimaru was currently focusing on "vegetative grafting" experiments... Ahem, First Hokage Wood Style cell transplant experiments. This power was something Danzo greatly coveted.
Danzo Shimura had already reached the limits of an ordinary ninja. If he wanted to further increase his strength, he needed external plug-ins.
Like Wood Style, or the Sharingan.
These were tasks Orochimaru was capable of doing, and more than happy to do.
"So, what is your objective? The electro-therapy we discussed last time?" Orochimaru asked.
For Hagoromo to conceal this without reporting it, he naturally had his own goals. It came down to whether they were talking about feelings or interests. Orochimaru wasn't naive enough to believe Hagoromo was hiding this simply because he liked him.
And Hagoromo indeed had his own objective.
Put it this way: if it was about cellular engineering, Tsunade could probably handle it. She might even have more talent for the First Hokage cell experiments Orochimaru was currently conducting.
But Tsunade had a bottom line; there were some things she simply wouldn't do.
However, if he wanted to pursue genetic engineering, there was no one in the ninja world more suitable than Orochimaru. In fact, he might be the only one capable of doing it.
"What are you working on right now? Forbidden jutsu? Human modification? Immortality jutsu?" Hagoromo countered, not directly answering Orochimaru's question.
"First Hokage cell transplant experiments." Orochimaru saw no need to hide it.
Hagoromo shook his head and said, "If the goal is to increase a ninja's physical capabilities, this is indeed one method. But I can guess the success rate and the risks without you even telling me..."
Immense power comes with immense risk. The First's cells were not something that could be controlled so simply.
"There is a portion of ninjas—or rather, Ninshu ninjas—whose power originates from the same common ancestor. However, generation after generation, this power continuously dilutes and fades. For example, Tsunade does not possess the First's power. So... is there a way to awaken the dormant, inherited power residing within a ninja's body?"
"For example, through some sort of cellular stimulation method..."
"Not simple electro-therapy, but a deeper restoration of genetic information. Acquiring the power they were meant to have all along, which merely slumbers in their blood. Allowing the Senju to truly become the Senju once again."
In reality, what Hagoromo was suggesting was...
Letting the Senju acquire true Senju power, or even Otsutsuki power.
Letting the Uchiha acquire true Uchiha power, or even Otsutsuki power.
Letting the Uzumaki acquire true Uzumaki power, or even... Otsutsuki power.
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