In the blink of an eye, another month had passed, and heavy snow fell upon Konoha.
Orochimaru smoothly took over the leadership of Root and invited Minato to join the organization.
"This is Namikaze Minato, my assistant. He's to be allowed entry without obstruction from now on," Orochimaru said casually to the group of subordinates before him.
This child looks no older than five or six years old...
The subordinates were curious, but none dared question Orochimaru's orders.
The Anbu was such a place; one simply followed commands. It was best not to know what one shouldn't, lest one be silenced permanently.
Root handled even more clandestine matters, essentially being the Anbu within the Anbu.
Especially after Danzo's death, numerous dirty secrets had been exposed. Those selected for Root at this time were all people who knew how to keep their distance.
"May I ask, Captain," the lead ninja hesitated, "how should we verify his identity?"
Before Orochimaru could answer, a dazzling light erupted from Minato's fingertips.
"I thought you'd use another method," Orochimaru said with a smile.
Minato shook his head. "Wood Release isn't reliable. Who knows when another successful experiment with the First Hokage's cells might surface? But the Glint-Glint Fruit's power is uniquely mine."
"Come on, let me show you the possibilities."
The two walked deeper into the base.
Though the personnel of Root had changed, the base's location remained the same. Minato had only destroyed the outer entrance area; the deeper sections were unaffected.
After clearing the Wood Release left behind by Minato, Orochimaru seized the meager resources Danzo had painstakingly accumulated.
They arrived at a quiet room, dimly lit and chilly. The flames in the oil lamps on the walls flickered erratically.
"No electric lights?" Minato asked.
Click!
The moment he spoke, Orochimaru flipped on an electric light and sat down on the low kangs: "This used to be Danzo's private quarters. I wasn't wrong to call him crazy."
With a casual gesture, he turned on the air conditioner.
Minato glanced at the air conditioner, then seemed to sense something was amiss and looked again.
Air conditioner?!
So this is what they mean by heating in the Shinobi World!
Then what was the point of me freezing my butt off all this time?
Back in his previous life, the internet was always full of jokes about the Shinobi World's technology. But now that he was actually here, Minato realized the reality wasn't as warped as the memes suggested. The technology still followed its own logical progression.
During the Warring States period, the level of technological development was indeed primitive.
With the establishment of the Ninja Village system, warfare transformed from continuous, small-scale skirmishes into large-scale conflicts requiring long-term, stable development and an arms race.
Although warfare became more brutal, the Shinobi World as a whole experienced more progress in its economy, people's livelihoods, and technology over the past thirty years than in the previous several centuries combined.
The most rapid development occurred in the national capitals and Ninja Villages.
If one left Konoha for other villages, they would find that even in the prosperous Land of Fire, many areas lacked electricity.
"I've gathered this information using Root's channels over the past few days. Minato-kun, take a look."
Orochimaru produced a scroll, which Minato accepted and unrolled, glancing over its contents.
The scroll contained numerous Shinobi World rumors, some concerning the Sage of the Six Paths, while others pointed directly or indirectly to clues about achieving immortality.
Among the topics were: the Earth Grudge of Taki Hidden Village, the Evil God legends of the Land of Hot Water, the Box of Paradise of Kusa Hidden Village, the Impure World Reincarnation Technique, the Spirit Transformation Technique, research on Hashirama's cells, the possibility of cell activation research, the legend of the Sage of the Six Paths, and traces and intelligence on the descendants of the Sage's various clans...
After glancing around, Minato lightly tapped on the Impure World Reincarnation technique. "This jutsu can summon the souls of the deceased from a place called the Pure Land, can't it?"
"Yes, but it requires sacrifices."
Orochimaru chuckled. "Minato-kun, is there someone you wish to see?"
Minato shook his head and pointed to the Spirit Transformation Technique instead. "This jutsu allows one's soul to leave the body?"
"Exactly," Orochimaru nodded.
"So, souls truly exist?" Minato asked.
"Of course. Would you like to witness it, Minato-kun?" Orochimaru replied eagerly. "The Impure World Reincarnation was invented by the Second Hokage. Danzo inherited the Second's research legacy, which included the Impure World Reincarnation Technique."
"That's not urgent..." Minato tapped his index finger lightly on the table. "I was thinking, if souls can be summoned, then perhaps through some method..."
"...we could forcibly retain them, preventing them from going to the Pure Land?" Orochimaru let out a strange laugh, licking his lips in excitement. "We truly have a lot in common, Minato-kun."
"So, Senior, do you think this method is feasible?" Minato asked, though he already knew the answer in his heart.
"Theoretically, there's a certain feasibility, but it would require extensive experimentation. First, we'd need to clarify the precise mechanism by which the soul connects to the body. Second... comes the selection of a suitable container for the soul."
Orochimaru glanced at Minato. "Aside from soul transfer, Minato-kun, can you think of any other possibilities?"
"This Earth Grudge... can it maintain youth by plundering hearts?"
"The user transforms into a black-furred monster. I personally find that rather unappealing, and the technique only excels at activating cellular vitality."
You're not much better than Kakuzu, really...
Minato recalled Orochimaru's White Phosphorus Serpent form from the original story and chuckled awkwardly.
"Rumor has it the Evil God grants immortality?"
Orochimaru shook his head. "Even if reduced to ashes, they still die. It's merely a technique that enhances the body's regenerative capabilities, forcibly binding the soul to the flesh. However, it does have certain merits. This technique bears some resemblance to the Uzumaki Clan's methods. The Land of Hot Water and Whirlpool Village are geographically close, suggesting a possible connection."
Minato nodded thoughtfully. Orochimaru dared to exploit the Death God's loophole. If Hidan's immortality is truly connected to an Evil God, a research fanatic like him would never let that guy slip through his fingers.
In the Hokage world, the only clearly defined and manifested deity was the Death God, and even he couldn't directly interfere with the living world.
So, even if an Evil God exists, it's likely to be a being similar to the Death God.
"Actually..." Orochimaru's eyes gleamed with fanaticism as he proposed another research direction. "Ever since I saw you, Minato-kun, possessing two Bloodline Limits, I've wondered what would happen if we could gather all the world's Bloodline Limits within a single body?"
Minato found this an excellent research direction. Though it seemed unrealistic, if they could gather the bloodlines of the Sage of the Six Paths' descendants and combine them with the genes of the lunar lineage, they might just be able to artificially create an Ōtsutsuki.
While this wouldn't grant immortality directly, it would bring them closer to that possibility.
Pure-blooded Ōtsutsuki live for at least several thousand years. Otherwise, how could they spend millennia crossing the universe?
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