"You three collaborate with the ANBU from the vicinity and make sure that no one gets here." Hiruzen pointed at the remaining ninja, "You two come with me".
"It's been a while since I have seen Lord Third in action personally.", Scythe thought to himself.
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In the depths of an underground laboratory, a chilling atmosphere enveloped Orochimaru as he conducted his experiment.
Orochimaru stood over a small, frail boy lying motionless on a cold operating table.
"It's taking a bit longer than the others. His cells just won't acclimate to the foreign chakra. I will have to instill more of Jugo's flesh to sustain this child's body." His words resonated with a twisted delight, revealing the depths of his cruelty and obsession due to repeated failures over the last two months.
With unsettling precision, Orochimaru produced a patch of flesh in his hand, a grotesque combination of twisted flesh humming with vitality. The sight alone was enough to send shivers down the spine of any witness who dared to gaze upon it. He removed the restoration seal from the piece of flesh, while adding a caging seal to the boy's exposed stomach, revealing the gruesome entrails beneath.
"It is a strong, developed body compared to his age," Orochimaru muttered, his voice laced with a perverse fascination. The words hung in the air, weighted with the implication of the unspeakable torment that awaited the child.
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Hiruzen moved stealthily through the building, his senses finely attuned to the presence of various alarm seals, shadow seals, and chakra seals that adorned the surroundings. With his expertise as a grandmaster of Fuinjutsu, he skillfully detected and deftly evaded each one, ensuring that his presence remained undetected.
"Dont touch anything, unless I command you to do so. Only go where I go, retracing my footsteps. Is that clear?" Hiruzen's ordered.
"Yes, Lord Third," the ANBU members acknowledged in unison
'Lets see, my student, how far you have progressed in seals.'
With a deliberate motion, Hiruzen brought his hand to his chest, channeling his chakra, and activated the seal engraved on the back of his other hand. The energy within him crackled, spiraling outward like a swirling vortex of power. As he channeled his chakra into the seal, a surge of energy resonated through the room.
"Sealing Art: Shadow scavenge". A bright light flashed from his hands and where he pointed, it revealed the seals embedded on the walls.
"Good", Hiruzen glad that the seals were effective.
Satisfied with the efficacy of the seals, Hiruzen led his ANBU squad towards the underground staircase, descending further into the depths of Orochimaru's house. As they reached the underground room, Hiruzen targeted and destroyed the seal guarding the hidden door, unveiling a concealed dormitory.
Stepping into the lobby, Hiruzen activated another seal in his hand, casting a discerning gaze across the room. His eyes widened in fury as he took in the sight of lifeless bodies thrown haphazardly, stacked like discarded waste.
An intense wave of anger washed over Hiruzen's features, his expression contorted with a mix of grief and rage. Pausing for a moment, he focused his senses, trying to detect Orochimaru's chakra presence, failing in the end.
He immediately moved towards the last room in the dormitory and paused. Some sounds could be heard from the inside. He signaled the ANBU`s to get ready.
Suddenly, Orochimaru's expression flickered, a sinister gleam in his eyes. "Ah! This chakra, my dear Sarutobi Sensei is here," he hissed, a twisted smile spreading across his face like a venomous serpent.
The room door burst open and the ANBUs rushed in to take side positions.
"So, Orochimaru, I should have known you were upto something all this time. Now speak, tell me exactly what you were doing here?" Hiruzen's voice crackled with a mix of disappointment and a faint glimmer of hope, his heart yearning for an explanation or a shred of remorse from his former cherished student.
Orochimaru's voice slithered through the air, laced with arrogance and a chilling determination. "Even if I told you, Sensei, you probably would not understand. What I am currently going for cannot be achieved by staying in this pitiful village... I am the chosen one. I will unlock all of the mysteries of nature."
"You cant mean.....you`re experimenting with that jutsu here", His eyes widening with disbelief.
"Yes Sensei, the very one, I want the Immortality Jutsu. As strong as I am, I cannot master every jutsu in the short span of a human life time", A wicked grin danced on Orochimaru's lips
"You would throw away your friends, your students and your master just to master some more jutsu?" Hiruzen voice dripping with disappointment at the state of his student.
"My mind is made up, Sensei, and you can't change it," Orochimaru declared with a resolute voice, his determination unyielding. In one swift motion, he leaped towards the gate, dispatching the ANBU guards with a single kick
Hiruzen readied his chakra, his gaze fixed on his corrupted pupil. But in that moment, memories flooded his mind, overwhelming his resolve. Images of a young prodigy, a child filled with potential, and the bond between a master and his student filled his thoughts, tugging at his heart.
A loss of focus occured and the chakra in his hand dimmed. He could still remember the little boy that was crying due to loss of his parents.
'Dont worry little Orochimaru, I am here, I will never leave'
'Sensei! how do you do this technique'
'Please teach me sensei'
'Sensei, will my parents come back'
'Sensei','Sensei','Sensei'
He didnt even notice as his prideful student sprinted past him and leaping out of the laboratory.
He couldnt end what he himself created. Hiruzen found that he didnt have any energy left to chase after his student.
Running away from the laboratory, Orochimaru a made a rat hand sign with his one hand infusing his chakra and activated all of the seals in the building. Suddenly, a chorus of explosion tags ignited.
The concussive force rippled through the walls and floors, quaking the very foundation of the laboratory. Flames erupted, consuming the once silent lab.
"Shadow clone jutsu". Three more Hiruzen clones appeared and picked up the bodies of the ANBUs and the one on the stretcher. and immediately went out of the building using Body flicker.
Once everyone was out, Hiruzen performed Water style: Great Waterfall Jutsu.
A massive torrent of water surged forth from his mouth, cascading down upon the engulfed laboratory, quenching the flames and dousing the explosions with a powerful torrent of cleansing water.
Hearing the commotion, other ANBU teams in the vicinity immediately came over to check the situation.
Hiruzen, his weary gaze fixed on the unconscious ANBU and the fragile body of the young boy, handed them over to his subordinates, his voice laden with a sense of responsibility and determination. "Go inside and search the entire building. See if there is anything left that's preserved."
"Roger", all ANBU moved inside the building save for the team holding the unconcious bodies. They moved towards the hospital.
As the teams departed, one of the Guard units approached Hiruzen,"Do you require assistance, Lord Third?"
Hiruzen's tired eyes met the gaze of his subordinate, his voice heavy with a mix of sorrow and self-doubt. "No, leave me be. I must return." Unbeknownst to him, a single tear escaped the corner of his aging eyes, tracing a path down his weathered cheek.
He had suddenly aged about 10 years with his silver hair turning entirely white.
He looked towards the charred remains of the laboratory, his heart heavy with the burden of his former student's choices. "Sensei, I have failed,", he sighed.
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Author Note:
Thank you dunkinB, Filippo_Manzone and Loalola for your power stones.
If you like the story so far, please review, comment and yes please send power stones.