After arriving in this world, the person closest to Ye Zi wasn't Kushina, wasn't Kotoe, nor the others he met later on, but Orochimaru, with whom even at home he rarely exchanged words.
In the eyes of others, Ye Zi and Orochimaru seemed to share a plain and ordinary relationship, but only the two of them knew that despite the lack of blood ties, there was a certain familial bond between them.
The reason Ye Zi asked Orochimaru for help was because of the bond formed from living together for many years, and Orochimaru was willing to help for the same reason.
However, Orochimaru would help Ye Zi, but in his own way.
Ye Zi wanted to rescue Nanako at the lowest possible cost, so he asked Orochimaru for help. Orochimaru, on the other hand, thought that Nanako's existence wasn't important, and to prevent her from negatively impacting Ye Zi's future, the best solution was to get rid of her.
Orochimaru had his own method of helping Ye Zi, so he decided to expedite Nanako's demise.
Ye Zi believed Orochimaru would assist him, but he never imagined this kind of "help." After leaving the Root, Ye Zi returned home. Instead of training, he sat in his room.
Thick curtains covered the windows, blocking out the glaring sunlight.
Ye Zi leaned against his bed, his body blending into the darkness, his eyes quietly fixated on one spot.
The path to return home was difficult, without a single road sign, and the road was strewn with thorns.
The creature from another world, Shokui, once said that breaking through space-time required an immense amount of energy, and establishing a passage required precise spatial coordinates. If the coordinates were off by even a fraction, the outcome would be drastically different.
This was Shokui's explanation, highly credible yet difficult to achieve. Since Ye Zi had limited knowledge of space-time ninjutsu, he set his sights on the Rinnegan. Another alternative target was the Forbidden Scroll of Seals within Konoha.
Ye Zi stared at a corner of the dark room, his thoughts sinking deeper into the shadows.
…
After Ye Zi left, Orochimaru did not continue with the Sharingan transplant. He closed the door to his lab and went to see Danzo.
In the underground Root, where darkness reigned, dim candlelight served as the only illumination.
The paper sliding door slowly opened, revealing a room dimly lit by a single candle. Shadows flickered and swayed with the light.
In the small room, Danzo sat in the center, raising his head to look at Orochimaru. He asked, "What is it?"
Orochimaru let out his characteristic raspy laugh, his voice chilling as he said, "I want to conduct an interesting experiment, and I need a test subject."
Danzo's eyes instinctively narrowed, his tone indifferent as he replied, "If you need test subjects, Anga will assist you."
Orochimaru curled the corner of his mouth into a sinister smile and calmly said, "The test subject I want is Nanako Shimura."
Upon hearing this, Danzo raised an eyebrow and asked, "Reason?"
"Don't you think it's fascinating to conduct the first experiment on the creator herself?" Orochimaru's cold snake-like eyes glimmered with malice.
Danzo didn't like Orochimaru's smile, but he wasn't opposed to the idea. The surname "Shimura" attached to Nanako seemed like nothing more than a formality. In the end, when it was decided that Nanako would be dealt with, blood ties meant little.
This experiment was the culmination of Nanako's life's work. How ironic it was that the first test would be conducted on her, the creator herself.
Danzo found the idea appealing. If Hashirama and Ye Zi's cells could be fused in a third-party host and produce even stronger cells than Hashirama's, it would be a valuable breakthrough. Danzo coveted the Sharingan, believing it to be the strongest, most readily available asset in the village. He wasn't satisfied with possessing just one Sharingan; he wanted more. The key to realizing this ambition was a body strong enough to accept multiple, or even dozens, of Sharingan implants.
"Alright," Danzo replied calmly, his voice and expression as still as water.
If Orochimaru weren't the same type of person, he might have found this chilling. There weren't many who could so calmly and cruelly deal with a blood relative, but Danzo was one of them.
After receiving Danzo's approval, Orochimaru immediately set off for Nanako's prison. Orochimaru was always swift in executing his decisions, especially when time was of the essence. He would waste no time in solving the problem.
The iron door, which blocked out all outside light, was opened again. This time, the person who appeared wasn't Danzo but Orochimaru.
Nanako was surprised to see Orochimaru, and when she saw the cold gleam in his eyes, hidden in the shadows, her heart skipped a beat. In that instant, she sensed danger.
Ye Zi may not have known much about Nanako, but Nanako knew a lot about Ye Zi, including his former teammates, his current ones, those closest to him—and Orochimaru.
She didn't know why Orochimaru was here, but the feeling of being stalked by a cold, venomous snake was unmistakable.
"I read through your research. It's impressive, so I want to ask you to participate in an experiment."
Orochimaru stood at the door, looking down at Nanako, who was sitting on the ground.
Nanako looked up at Orochimaru, remaining silent.
"The coexistence of Hashirama's and Ye Zi's cells in a third-party host... I wonder what that would look like," Orochimaru mused, his tone icy and indifferent.
Nanako's expression slowly changed. He was ruthless enough to make her the test subject. Was this all that remained of her value? Had she been utterly abandoned?
"Uncle," Nanako thought bitterly. This was her last time calling him that. From this moment on, the name "Shimura" would have no more ties to her.
"The research data is in your hands. What about Ye Zi? How is he?" Nanako asked, her gaze fixed intently on Orochimaru, showing no concern for her own fate.
Orochimaru's eyes flickered briefly, his emotions momentarily concealed, though his voice remained indifferent as he replied, "He wants to save you, so I have no choice but to make sure you die sooner."
"So that's how it is," Nanako suddenly smiled. She was genuinely happy, knowing Ye Zi wanted to save her. That was enough for her. At the same time, she understood why Orochimaru wanted her dead quickly. Strangely, this realization made her feel even more sorrowful.
She didn't want to die like this. She still wanted to see if the results of her experiments could fix the flaws in Ye Zi's body.
She had promised to help him, but now she wouldn't even get the chance to see him again.
Such unwillingness...
But what could she do?
Seeing that Nanako no longer cared about what was to come, Orochimaru fell silent.
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