"Bang!"
With the room door closing, the entire atmosphere inside became heavy.
"Hokage-sama, this is just Danzo sowing discord. My teacher may have conducted a lot of research,"
"But he has never been involved in that kind of research. After all, I'm one of his students and assistants as well."
Hiruzen Sarutobi put the documents on the desk aside and took a deep drag on his cigarette.
His expression shifted several times before he finally exhaled a thick cloud of smoke.
"As for Orochimaru, I know what I'm doing. I'm aware of much of his research. I won't blindly trust Danzo's words."
"Alright, enough about him. Chizan, you've become quite famous this time."
Gekko Chizan didn't care about his own reputation at all.
So what if he was famous? He had Minato above him taking the brunt anyway.
He had originally been discussing future plans with Orochimaru-sensei, but who would've thought things would change today?
Truly, the world is unpredictable.
Originally, Orochimaru could have continued his research peacefully for several more years.
After all, with Danzo cooperating with him, and Danzo covering him on the surface, he was relatively safe.
But because of his own appearance, Danzo and Orochimaru's plans were disrupted, leading to Orochimaru's activities being exposed early.
At this moment, Gekko Chizan felt relieved.
Fortunately, he had dragged Orochimaru into planning a retreat ahead of time. Otherwise, they would've been caught completely off guard.
"Still worried about your teacher?"
"Don't worry. He's my disciple. I know what I'm doing."
"This time, your contributions were immense. Ordinary rewards would hardly suit you. Originally, I was thinking of letting you read the Scroll of Seals again."
"But knowing you, you've probably already read through it all."
"So, tell me—what reward do you want?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was genuinely pleased with Gekko Chizan.
After all, he had witnessed Chizan's performance all these years.
"One billion ryō? I feel like I lack nothing right now… except money!"
"I'm planning to get married. I need to buy a house, buy land. I'm the clan head of the Gekko Clan—I have to take responsibility for my people!"
"So, Hokage-sama, can you give me some financial support?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was dumbfounded. Looking at Gekko Chizan's greedy face, he wanted to slap himself.
Why did he even ask him to name his reward?!
One billion? The daimyo's annual allocation wasn't even that much!
This was highway robbery!
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"Pick something else. Money? Not a single coin!"
"However, the mission payments from your previous assignments—you can go collect them from the mission office. I had someone tell Pakura to collect them, but she refused to go."
"You can go pick it up yourself."
Gekko Chizan gave his Hokage a side-eye.
Stingy. Too stingy.
Look at the Fourth Raikage of Kumogakure—he started his term already five billion in debt, and nothing happened to him!
"But you just said you're getting married?"
"Heh… that's good news."
"Pakura was very worried when you went missing. It's time you took responsibility."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stroked his beard, smiling as he looked at Gekko Chizan.
Both Pakura and Gekko Chizan possessed kekkei genkai.
Their union was perfect—whether it was Transparent Release or Scorch Release, both were incredibly powerful.
He had once worried that Pakura might still be attached to Sunagakure, but now it seemed he had overthought things.
"Tch, like I need you to tell me?"
"I've already removed her Five-Element Seal. I'll find some time soon to hold the wedding."
"As for Pakura's arrangements, I think becoming a teacher suits her well."
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, agreeing with Gekko Chizan's proposal.
After all, she was marrying into one of Konoha's finest families.
A mere seal was nothing with Chizan around—there was nothing to worry about.
"But hey, what about my reward?"
"You're not going to skip out on it, right?"
Gekko Chizan wasn't about to let the reward slide.
He never missed a chance to get something extra.
Hiruzen Sarutobi gave him a tired look.
"I won't forget you. Let me think about it."
"I'll inform you once I've decided. In the meantime, just rest well."
Gekko Chizan was extremely dissatisfied at not getting his reward yet.
But there was nothing he could do—after all, it was the Hokage who decided on rewards.
He could only wait patiently.
But he definitely wouldn't let them shortchange him.
...
After Gekko Chizan left, Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned back in his chair, looking older all of a sudden.
He pulled out Orochimaru's report once again.
"Orochimaru…"
"Sigh…"
Clearly, Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn't as relaxed as he claimed.
This concerned his beloved student.
He had noticed Orochimaru's behavior becoming strange long ago, but he hadn't overthought it.
After all, his student was always deeply passionate about research.
That was what he admired most about Orochimaru back then.
But after experiencing war and death, Orochimaru had begun to walk down a twisted path.
For the first time, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt worried.
"Someone…"
...
Gekko Chizan left the Hokage building and headed straight for the village outskirts.
He pushed open the research lab doors, where Yamato was practicing Earth Release.
"Chizan-sama."
"Mm. Yamato, keep training. I'm here to see sensei."
He found Orochimaru, who greeted him with a faint smile.
"Looks like Hokage-sama already knows?"
"Let me guess—Danzo threw me, didn't he?"
Gekko Chizan nodded, his expression turning serious.
"Sensei, you'd better be prepared. All the records of your previous research have already been handed over to Hokage-sama by Danzo."
"Although Hokage-sama is hesitant, if Danzo keeps pressing the issue, sooner or later they'll come for you."
What kind of research did Orochimaru do?
Either cell research or human experimentation—things strictly forbidden in the open.
"Mm. The day I fell out with Danzo, I knew this day would come eventually."
"But not this soon. I know my teacher well. He'll punish me, yes, but he won't expose me in the middle of a war."
"Unless the war ends completely, nothing will happen to me."
Orochimaru understood Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo far better than Gekko Chizan did.
Hearing this, the serious look on Chizan's face gradually faded.
Because Orochimaru was right—this was the Third Shinobi World War.
If they moved against a commander like Orochimaru now, it would have disastrous effects on the village.
Sigh. He had been too anxious.
Seeing Gekko Chizan's expression slowly relax, Orochimaru knew he had realized it too.
"Heh heh heh… come, Chizan-kun.
Since you're here,"
"Let me show you the new ninjutsu I've created recently."
"This is the first step I've taken."
"I've named it: Soft Physique Modification Technique!"
Gekko Chizan: … Oh no… Orochimaru had already stepped onto a path of no return—a path of madness…
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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