"Senpai, have you ever heard of cloning?"
Uchiha Yuan spoke calmly.
"Cloning?"
It was the first time Orochimaru had heard the term.
"Yuan-kun, enlighten me."
A short while later.
After listening to Yuan's explanation of cloning, even Orochimaru's formidable composure cracked.
From initial skepticism…
to keen fascination…
to unrestrained, almost manic laughter.
"Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant, Yuan-kun!"
As a scientist obsessed with life's mysteries, Orochimaru instantly grasped the implications.
If he could clone his own body—
He could refine it.
Enhance it.
Even incorporate other bloodline limits.
In his mind, identical bodies bearing his face lined up in succession. Bodies to be exchanged like garments.
Was that not a form of immortality?
For a man who had pursued eternity for years, how could he not feel elated?
Of course, the true challenge now lay ahead—mastering the cultivation of cloned flesh.
"Yuan-kun," Orochimaru suddenly asked,
"are you certain you have not awakened the Sharingan?"
Yuan met his gaze steadily.
"I'm afraid I must disappoint you. I have not."
A faint smile curved Orochimaru's lips.
"What a pity."
He had already considered it—if one could design a new body at will, why not incorporate the Sharingan itself?
Yuan clearly understood that thought.
"Your actions today angered the old man greatly," Orochimaru said.
Yuan sneered.
"A group of decaying elders. Their anger means nothing to me."
Orochimaru's eyes sharpened.
"With your intellect, why provoke them so openly? You know they have long distrusted the Uchiha—especially after the Nine-Tails incident that led to the Fourth Hokage's death."
Yuan's expression turned cold.
"Prejudice is a mountain in the human heart—it blinds people to truth."
"Since the time of Tobirama Senju, the village leadership has excluded and distrusted the Uchiha."
"They took Uchiha Kagami as a disciple. Now Shisui serves in ANBU. But those were political measures—to divide us."
"If nothing the Uchiha do can earn their trust, why should I concern myself with angering them?"
Orochimaru studied him carefully.
"Do you intend to betray Konoha?"
Yuan laughed.
"Those old men do not represent Konoha."
"They cannot even represent the Senju anymore."
"Konoha was founded by Uchiha and Senju together. Why would we betray something we built?"
The tension in Orochimaru's gaze faded.
"But if you continue provoking them," he said, "relations between the Uchiha and the village will worsen."
"I am not afraid."
Yuan had already calculated the political balance.
The village feared the Uchiha.
The Uchiha feared the village.
Neither side dared strike first.
If the leadership attacked without justification, other clans would grow wary.
If open war erupted, the Uchiha would fall—but Konoha would suffer devastating losses.
A pyrrhic victory.
Thus both sides remained locked in a fragile stalemate.
Until, in another timeline, a naïve political idealist like Itachi Uchiha allowed himself to be manipulated by Danzo.
But Yuan would not allow history to repeat so simply.
As long as the Uchiha did not rebel, the village would not dare move.
If anyone yielded—it would be the elders.
He smiled faintly.
"Of course, to minimize future friction… I will need your assistance."
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes.
"What do you mean?"
"The village must be preparing to select a new Hokage," Yuan said.
"The Third is only acting."
Orochimaru blinked in surprise.
"You want me to run for Hokage?"
Since losing the Fourth Hokage election, Orochimaru had buried such ambitions beneath research and forbidden techniques.
Yuan shook his head.
"It is not what I want. It is what the situation demands."
"You are the only viable candidate."
"You do not fear the Uchiha the way the elders do."
"If the Fourth Hokage were still alive, relations between the village and the Uchiha might have eased."
(Orochimaru knew Yuan meant Minato Namikaze.)
Silence settled over the laboratory.
Finally, Orochimaru spoke.
"I have no desire to become Hokage. And the old man may not allow it."
"I know."
Yuan's expression did not change.
"I've reviewed records since joining the Police Force."
"For example—Sakumo Hatake's suicide. Was that not entangled with Hokage politics?"
"And during the last selection, you were the sole candidate—until the Fourth Hokage suddenly rose to fame."
"There is always a hidden hand behind these outcomes."
"And that hand… belongs to the Third and his circle."
Orochimaru chuckled softly.
"You are sharper than I thought, Yuan-kun."
Yuan sighed theatrically.
"The world simply contains too many fools. Intelligent men like you and me are rare."
At that moment, footsteps approached.
The laboratory door opened.
Kabuto Yakushi entered carrying a basket of medicinal herbs.
"Orochimaru-sama, the materials are ready."
To read advanced Chapters, head over to p@treon:
patreon.com/nani_kaito