The Sage of Six Paths, huh…
Danzo's initial hypothesis about the disappearing chakra was that it was related to the dispersal of a ninja's soul after death.
In the ninja world, a person doesn't simply vanish after dying.
Their soul leaves the physical realm and enters a place known as the Pure Land.
This place resembled the underworld from the legends of Danzo's past life.
Essentially, the souls of the dead would gather there.
Under certain conditions, they could even be summoned back to the real world using forbidden techniques.
For example, the infamous jutsu—Edo Tensei (Reanimation Jutsu).
If part of a deceased person's chakra remained attached to their soul, it wasn't impossible that it traveled with them to the Pure Land.
And when it came to chakra, souls, and the Pure Land, the first person Danzo thought of was the legendary sage—
Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo, the Sage of Six Paths.
As the son of Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, the Rabbit Goddess, he did not disappear as the legends suggested.
Instead, he hid within the Pure Land, secretly observing the ninja world—forever on guard against his mother's return.
As for his true intentions? Danzo wasn't entirely sure.
Danzo's sudden silence made Orochimaru narrow his eyes in suspicion.
Having fought in the Third Great Ninja War, Orochimaru knew just how terrifying Danzo's intelligence-gathering abilities were.
So, he couldn't help but wonder—had Danzo just discovered something?
"Lord Danzo, did you notice something?" Orochimaru asked.
Despite being a pioneer in ninja world research, Orochimaru always felt there was an impenetrable fog around Danzo.
Something mysterious and unfathomable.
Orochimaru's question snapped Danzo out of his thoughts.
He casually responded, "It's nothing. Your hypothesis was correct—death does accelerate the growth of Tailed Beast cells."
As he spoke, Danzo opened the sealed lab.
Inside, six corpses lay lifelessly on the floor.
Between them, in a test tube, the Five-Tails tissue sample had visibly grown larger.
This confirmed Orochimaru's theory.
But the problem was—six ninja lives had only made it grow this much.
If they wanted it to reach the size of an actual Tailed Beast… how many years—no, centuries—would that take?
If they relied solely on sacrifices, the number of lives required would be unimaginable.
A new method was needed.
Orochimaru, however, didn't seem bothered.
To him, if it meant obtaining power and advancing his research, what did a few lives matter?
"Now that I've helped you complete this experiment, don't you think it's time you fulfilled your end of the deal?"
Orochimaru's golden snake-like eyes locked onto Danzo.
"My research is at a crucial stage, and I'm desperately lacking test subjects."
Danzo had already completed his experiments on Wood Release, successfully integrating it into his own body.
But Orochimaru hadn't.
He also wanted to master the power left behind by the First Hokage.
So instead of stopping his research, he had doubled down—continuously sacrificing test subjects to speed up the process.
His goal?
To successfully create a Wood Release experimental body—one that could serve as a vessel for his Living Corpse Reincarnation Jutsu.
If successful, he would finally possess the First Hokage's legendary power.
For that reason, he was accelerating his research on both Wood Release and Living Corpse Reincarnation.
This rapid pace of experimentation led to an increasing shortage of test subjects—Orochimaru was using them up faster than he could replenish them.
"I'll assign twenty prisoners from the death row cells to you," Danzo said, glancing at him. Given their cooperative relationship, he added a word of caution:
"But you'd best keep a lower profile for now. The Third Hokage has started to take notice."
Unfortunately, Orochimaru didn't seem concerned. He simply replied, "I understand," before turning and walking away.
Danzo watched his retreating figure in silence.
To be honest, he had considered keeping Orochimaru under his command.
His forces severely lacked talented researchers like him.
But geniuses like Orochimaru all shared a fatal flaw—obsession.
Once they set their sights on something, changing their minds was nearly impossible.
Danzo knew he didn't have the persuasive charm of Naruto. There was no talking Orochimaru into submission.
So, he could only prepare for all possible outcomes.
If Orochimaru could be controlled and used, that would be ideal.
If not—he would have to be eliminated with absolute force.
Of course, with Orochimaru's survival skills, even Danzo wasn't confident he could kill him.
But at the very least, preparations had to be made.
---
Elsewhere…
Wearing his Dog ANBU mask, Kakashi had already begun his mission.
He lay in wait on a rooftop, silently observing the people below.
Or rather, his focus was locked onto one person in particular—a white-haired man.
This was Kakashi's primary target for the mission—
Hiruko.
According to intelligence reports, Hiruko was once a student of the Third Hokage.
He had even been on the same squad as Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade—the legendary Sannin.
However, due to his limited talent, Hiruko had been unable to keep up with them.
Eventually, he left their team and joined other squads for missions.
Though he did manage to climb the ranks to Jonin, in terms of power, status, and reputation—
He had been completely eclipsed by his three former comrades.
This bitterness led him down a darker path.
He began conducting forbidden experiments within the village.
Kakashi's mission was clear—find evidence of Hiruko's illegal research and capture him for interrogation.
After reviewing Hiruko's dossier in his mind, Kakashi noticed movement.
Hiruko was on the move.
After purchasing a large amount of instant food, he started heading toward the village outskirts.
Kakashi followed silently, ensuring he remained unseen.
Eventually, Hiruko led him to the Forest of Death.
After scanning the area cautiously, Hiruko placed his palm on a massive boulder—and effortlessly lifted it before disappearing into the underground passage beneath it.
"Wait… how is he that strong?"
Kakashi was momentarily stunned.
That boulder must have weighed at least a ton—yet the frail-looking Hiruko lifted it with one hand like it was nothing.
It was truly unexpected.
However, Kakashi didn't act recklessly.
Lord Danzo had assigned him a clear mission—to gather evidence of Hiruko's forbidden experiments.
If he startled the target too soon, it could ruin everything.
So, he waited.
For several days.
Hiruko had bought a large amount of instant food in one go.
And for the past six days, he hadn't stepped out even once, relying solely on those rations to survive.
Poor Kakashi, at first, could make do with the soldier pills in his pouch.
But as time dragged on, even his iron will started to waver.
Left with no choice, he summoned his ninken, Pakkun, to stand watch for a while so he could grab something to eat.
Of course, Pakkun complained about this arrangement.
Fortunately, patience paid off—after six full days, Hiruko finally emerged from his underground lab.
Kakashi noted that the amount of food he had purchased had lasted him exactly six days...
He quietly calculated the timing, remaining patient until Hiruko was completely out of sight.
Only then did Kakashi reveal himself and approach the massive boulder.
He reached out to test it—
And found that it was even heavier than expected.
With his strength alone, there was no way he could move it.
"You might as well call Bull for help," Pakkun said, lazily perched on Kakashi's head.
Pakkun was Kakashi's most trusted ninken and the leader of the Eight Ninja Hounds.
His sense of smell was incredibly sharp—even while talking, his nose continued twitching, constantly scanning for threats.
Hearing Pakkun's suggestion, Kakashi nodded.
Sure, he could use other methods to break through the rock—
But that might alert Hiruko.
Techniques like Earth Release: Subterranean Voyage could also work, but Kakashi was wary of potential traps or barriers around the area.
The safest approach was to mimic how Hiruko had moved the stone.
Without hesitation, he formed a hand seal—
And summoned Bull, the largest and most muscular of his ninja hounds.
"Move this rock? Leave it to me!" Bull growled.
Towering over a full-grown man, his massive, muscular frame made him look like an absolute beast among dogs.
Understanding his task immediately, he wasted no time—
And began pushing against the boulder.
With his sheer brute strength, the massive stone shifted—
Revealing a dark, gaping tunnel before Kakashi.
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