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Midorima had been confined for a week without seeing another soul, completely immersed in his own world and the [Cell Laboratory].
When he first crossed over into this world, he did have plenty of time to study the [Cell Laboratory]. However, back then, the [Cell Laboratory] was barely unlocked, and his understanding of this golden finger was far too superficial.
Later, in his desperate escape, he barely had time to rest, let alone deepen his comprehension of the [Cell Laboratory].
Ironically, the period of imprisonment under Orochimaru turned out to be the most leisurely time he'd had since his transmigration.
This feeling was akin to the brief respite after the college entrance exams—before the results were announced. The shackles on his shoulders wouldn't truly be lifted until the scores came out, but this fleeting moment of tranquility gave him a chance to catch his breath.
His injuries had mostly healed, and his chakra had also recovered after some recuperation.
The only downside was that he still hadn't found a way to break the "Curse Mark."
Unsurprisingly, utilizing the predefined functions of his golden finger was relatively easy, but actively uncovering its hidden potential was far more difficult.
However, this wasn't something he could rush. Attempting to manually unlock the golden finger's capabilities naturally came with a high probability of failure. The only thing he could do was repeatedly use the [Analysis Lab] function to try and deconstruct the "Curse Mark of Heaven."
Only because he was trapped here with nothing better to do would he persist in such tedious attempts.
When Orochimaru opened the door to Midorima's room, he had just experienced another failed attempt and was about to replenish his energy before trying again.
Just as he stuffed a chicken leg into his mouth, he saw Orochimaru standing at the doorway, his face practically screaming displeasure.
"Want some?" Midorima pulled the chicken leg out of his mouth and offered it to Orochimaru.
Orochimaru's lips twitched as he stared at the bone in Midorima's hand.
Had he not just eaten, he might have actually sat down with Midorima and shared a meal.
"How have you been adjusting these days?"
"If I say I'm not adjusting well, will you let me out?" Midorima wiped the grease from his hands.
"No."
"Then… still not adjusting well." Midorima had given up trying to reason.
Orochimaru wasn't the least bit surprised by Midorima's answer.
Whether Midorima adjusted or not was irrelevant—as long as he was satisfied, nothing else mattered.
"Speak. Why did you summon me?" Orochimaru asked.
"I was about to ask you the same thing," Midorima shot back.
Though his response sounded like circular logic, he could guess Orochimaru's reason for capturing him. Still, he couldn't just blurt out, I know you want me as a vessel, could he?
Directly exposing someone like that would be downright rude.
"Of course, it's because I find you… fascinating." Orochimaru's eyes narrowed into slits.
Midorima's smile froze. If he didn't know better, he might have thought Orochimaru was confessing to him.
"How long do you plan to keep me here?"
"You'll be free once my experiments are complete," Orochimaru replied with a grin.
Yeah, right. The only ones who believe you are already dead.
Midorima grumbled inwardly.
"But you can't just keep me locked up forever, can you? Three meals a day, eating and sleeping—are you scientifically fattening me up?" Midorima complained.
Kimimaro, standing behind Orochimaru, took offense and stepped forward. "Watch your tone. If you're a pig, then what does that make Lord Orochimaru?"
"What does that have to do with Orochimaru?" Midorima feigned ignorance.
Orochimaru raised a hand, cutting off their bickering.
Kimimaro's loyalty wasn't in question, but he was still young and easily provoked into saying too much.
"You want to leave this room? That's perfectly fine. However, this entire laboratory is under a barrier I've set up. I'll be tracking your movements based on your chakra signature. In other words, as long as you're inside this facility, I'll always know where you are," Orochimaru said with a smirk.
Midorima didn't doubt Orochimaru's words in the slightest.
Such techniques were entirely plausible in the world of Naruto. For instance, the Akatsuki had once used the "Rain Tiger at Will Technique" to monitor intruders.
While that particular jutsu relied on the power of the Rinnegan—something beyond the reach of most—Orochimaru detecting Midorima's chakra to pinpoint his location was hardly difficult. Moreover, within the entire laboratory, there were only a handful of individuals with chakra levels comparable to Midorima's, making surveillance almost effortless.
"It's not like I'm trying to escape anyway. Kakuzu's still out there," Midorima chuckled.
Now that he had fully recovered, even if Kakuzu found him, he still stood a chance of getting away. But being constantly hunted by Kakuzu was undeniably annoying.
"And you certainly won't escape my grasp." Orochimaru's gaze locked onto Midorima, and an overwhelming pressure instantly filled the room.
A sharp pain erupted from the Curse Mark of Heaven on Midorima's neck. The cursed pattern spread outward, quickly covering the upper half of his body.
A searing sensation tormented his nerves, even creating the illusion that his muscles were burning.
Sweat drenched his forehead as Midorima clenched his fists, channeling all his chakra to resist the agony—but to little effect.
There has to be a way…
Midorima forcibly activated the [Catalysis Chamber] to dull the pain, but his mind was suddenly flooded with a message:
[Analysis Lab] has initiated analysis of the Heavens' Curse Mark.
Why is it still analyzing?!
The thought flashed through his mind before his consciousness was completely overwhelmed by pain. All he could do was cling to the last shreds of his rationality, forcing his body to remain upright.
Orochimaru was surprised that Midorima could endure this long—and his satisfaction with Midorima only grew.
He approached Midorima, bending down to whisper in his ear:
"Make any request you wish. I'll consider it."
After Orochimaru left, the pain from the Curse Mark showed no signs of relenting.
The burning torment persisted for over ten minutes before finally easing slightly. By then, Midorima's undershirt was soaked with sweat, and his body felt completely drained.
He wanted a drink of water but failed to lift the cup after two attempts.
Heavens' Curse Mark…
Midorima had never imagined it would be this potent.
In the manga, Kakashi had used the Evil Sealing Method to suppress the Curse Mark.
But Kakashi wasn't here now, and Midorima didn't know the Evil Sealing Method. Trying to seal this curse mark was unrealistic.
What about the [Cell Laboratory]?
Just moments ago, the [Cell Laboratory] had been analyzing the Curse Mark. What was the status now?
Suppressing his exhaustion, Midorima summoned the [Cell Laboratory] interface—only to find that the [Analysis Lab]'s progress on the Curse Mark of Heaven was stuck at 10%.
Seriously, dude? You're not some software freezing at 10% during a download!
Midorima tried accessing other functional modules, and everything else worked fine—only the Analysis Lab was stuck.
Could this be a bug?
The Analysis Lab could simultaneously analyze five jutsu. Even if one got stuck, the rest should function normally. But for a golden finger that came with his transmigration to glitch like this was unheard of.
This was even more troubling than the Curse Mark itself.
But unlike software, he couldn't just uninstall and reinstall it. All Midorima could do was hope the [Cell Laboratory] would mature sooner rather than later—and stop giving him so much grief.