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Underground Secret Base.
In the dimly lit study, Orochimaru's face twisted into a sickly smile as he gazed at the enormous scroll before him, his expression turning into one of unrestrained joy.
"Ha ha, Edo Tensei! Who would have thought that such a jutsu still exists in the Ninja World? It's a combination of the nearly extinct Onmyōji (Yin-Yang Practitioners) and ninja techniques, a perfect fusion. This is truly another key to unlocking the mysteries of the soul!"
Beneath his hoarse, deranged laughter, two tears of sorrow trickled down the corners of his purple eyes.
Uchiha Yoru, who had just entered the study, furrowed his brow slightly at Orochimaru's disheveled appearance but remained silent, stepping forward without a word and instead gazing calmly at the enormous scroll.
Edo Tensei!
Reading the record of this jutsu, Uchiha Yoru's mind was filled with a sense of realization. No wonder Uchiha Madara knew this jutsu and even the technique to unseal it in the original story.
After all, this jutsu was supposed to have been invented by the Second Hokage, but the timing of its invention was somewhat contradictory. If it had been invented at the beginning of Konoha, Madara's knowledge of it could be explained, but the Second Hokage didn't use it in the Land of Lightning, which seemed unreasonable. Therefore, this jutsu was incomplete, a fragmented technique. Madara knew about it, and the Second Tsuchikage had also recognized it, which could only mean that the jutsu was not yet perfected.
This evil jutsu had appeared during the Warring States Period. Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama had defeated the enemy together, and among the spoils of war was this jutsu, though it seemed to have been damaged and was not complete.
"Hehe, Lord Yoru, this forbidden jutsu was originally intended by the Second Hokage to resurrect the First Hokage, but it was only in the initial stages of experimentation."
At that moment, Orochimaru looked like a young boy who had just found a treasure, his face breaking into a genuine smile. In his eyes, these forbidden jutsu were more important than anything else, as they provided him with two keys to pursue immortality.
Edo Tensei! A jutsu that manipulates the soul. If he could successfully develop it, he would gain a deeper understanding of the soul's mysteries and thus uncover the secrets of immortality.
Impure World Reincarnation! It would give him a path to eternal youth by transferring his consciousness into younger bodies.
While these two forbidden jutsu seemed to be at odds, the Impure World Reincarnation jutsu already involved the mysterious soul, making them perfectly suited for Orochimaru.
Seeing Orochimaru's growing obsession with the path to immortality, Uchiha Yoru frowned and spoke in a serious tone, "Teacher Orochimaru, it seems that the village hasn't had any discussions about the Fifth Hokage for a long time."
The dimly lit study fell into a heavy silence, and Orochimaru's deranged, sickly smile slowly faded. He turned his head to gaze at Yoru, chuckling hoarsely, "Lord Yoru, it seems you are very concerned about the Fifth Hokage."
Facing Orochimaru's words, Uchiha Yoru nodded straightforwardly, speaking his mind.
"That's right. If Teacher Orochimaru becomes the Fifth Hokage, the Uchiha clan won't be marginalized. We can even smoothly enter Konoha's upper echelons, and the entire Konoha will become your support, providing endless resources for your research on immortality."
"Similarly, as your disciple, I can also be relieved of my burdens." These words were not at all insincere; Uchiha Yoru spoke the truth. Once Orochimaru became the Fifth Hokage, he would naturally rise with him, gaining access to higher levels of power in Konoha without such worry.
After all, it's easier to thrive under a powerful mentor. Relying on Orochimaru would be quite relaxed, as long as you still had value.
Looking at this outstanding, most satisfactory disciple he had ever had, Orochimaru smiled. Rarely did he talk about forbidden jutsu, but instead, he took out a scroll and threw it over.
"This is the current defense map of Konoha's borders, along with the trade shares controlled by the major clans within the Fire Country. For example, the Nara clan operates 40% of the Fire Country's medicinal business, the Akimichi clan operates 50% of Konoha's military rations, the Yamanaka clan controls Konoha's intelligence department, and other clans..."
"The major clans within the village have completely divided all of Konoha's resources. Even your Uchiha clan is involved in the medicinal and rations businesses, though not much. However, the Hyuga clan controls the largest shuriken, kunai, and chakra metal business in the entire Fire Country."
At this moment, Orochimaru no longer seemed like a madman obsessed with forbidden immortality jutsu. Instead, he appeared as a skilled politician, steady and composed, his eyes radiating wisdom as he slowly analyzed the situation of the major clans in Konoha.
At this moment, Orochimaru was a wise politician. Uchiha Yoru opened the scroll and saw all the information, which completely analyzed Konoha's resource distribution and the share each major clan held.
Seeing Uchiha Yoru's serious expression, Orochimaru gave his unique, hoarse laugh, "The current Konoha is a stagnant pond, with all interests clearly divided. Lord Yoru, your political acumen is the best among the young people I have seen in my life, even surpassing me."
"But there is one thing you have never understood: in this stagnant pond, there is a king, an unshakable king and a group of supporters. When this king nods, the stagnant pond will come to life. In the survival of the fittest, a strong king might emerge, leading the pond to greater prosperity. Of course, it might also decline after a period of competition."
"The pond is only so big. However, at the peak of his power, this king was afraid. He was afraid that his kingdom would collapse, that his ideals would be replaced. And this king is extremely arrogant."
At this moment, Orochimaru's pale golden snake eyes were filled with depth, speaking of the current political situation like a philosopher.
"King! No matter who it is, they have their pride. They can allow someone to defeat their aging selves, and they can allow someone to replace them, but they absolutely cannot allow anyone to trample on their ideals! To trample on their will!"
"Every powerful ninja has their own firm ideals, just like you and me!" At this point, Orochimaru gave a meaningful look at Uchiha Yoru and chuckled hoarsely, "Just like Lord Yoru, you are extremely proud in your bones. Even when facing me, your teacher, you naturally carry a sense of pride, not influenced by anyone's will."
At this moment, Uchiha Yoru understood Orochimaru's meaning. The Third Hokage, one of the Three Sages, was the king at the peak of his power, while Orochimaru was the new generation's king. Both had their own ideals, and neither would submit to the other.
If Orochimaru wanted to rise to power, he would have to deal with the Third Hokage. Without the Third Hokage's approval, Orochimaru would face all the clans and ninjas aligned with the Third Hokage's interests.
Orochimaru's current power was strong, even with the support of the Uchiha and Hyuga clans, along with countless civilian ninjas. But would they fight to the death for Orochimaru? In such political struggles, would they fight to the bitter end?
Fighting to the death meant tearing off the mask. Once the political mask was torn off, failure meant being eliminated. On the other hand, adhering to the rules of the political game, they were merely investors. If Orochimaru lost, they would lose their stakes, not their entire assets.
Being eliminated meant the end of the game. Losing the stakes meant the end of the game. But if you bet everything, it meant overturning the board.
Many civilian ninjas had bet on this, but what about the Hyuga and Uchiha clans? The Hyuga wouldn't, and what about the Uchiha clan?
At this moment, Uchiha Yoru gave a bitter smile. The Uchiha clan had placed their bets, but they only wanted to return to the center of the village's power. They wouldn't overturn the board now, as the future division of the Uchiha's position by the Hokage's lineage was still in the future, not the present.
The Uchiha clan wouldn't bet everything on Orochimaru! Unless the candidate this time was from the Uchiha clan!
This chapter is two thousand words. Starting from tomorrow, I will make it a large chapter of four thousand words, so there will be one update. The word count and the number of updates will remain the same.
(End of Chapter)