— — — — — —
"Agreed!" Orochimaru declared firmly.
The next moment, the rune turned into a streak of light, merging into his hand before he could react. Instantly, it entered the center of his mind's sea of consciousness and settled there.
At that moment, Orochimaru felt his consciousness and soul become significantly more stable.
Before he could explore the change, waves of information began flooding his mind.
They included a vast amount of knowledge about the past and future of the One Piece world, parts of the past and future of the Naruto world, and, most importantly, the complete data for Life Force technique, Eternal Life technique, crystal meditation techniques, Primal chakra refinement, basic and advanced taijutsu, Haki training methods, the Six Powers, and the secret Life Return technique.
Orochimaru was ecstatic as he closed his eyes and focused entirely on absorbing this newfound knowledge and these techniques.
After a long while, he finally reopened his eyes, which now gleamed with excitement. He gave a respectful nod toward Kaito and said, "From now on, I'll be counting on your guidance, Kaito-san."
"Haha! No problem at all! Are you satisfied?" Kaito chuckled knowingly.
"Satisfied? This goes way beyond satisfaction!" Orochimaru nodded repeatedly. "It's more like an unbelievable surprise!"
"I originally thought having the full version of the Life Force method was already incredible, but I didn't expect there to be an even more godlike advanced version—the Eternal Life Technique!"
"With these two methods, I feel like I've already paved most of my path to immortality!"
"And that's not even mentioning the Primal Chakra Refinement, Crystal Meditation, and all the other techniques you've created and taught me!"
"To think that chakra itself carries such profound mysteries!"
"It makes sense, though. This energy was passed down to humanity by the Sage of Six Paths. If it were me, I'd probably leave some kind of mechanism in it, too!"
"I wonder, after all these years, just how much chakra the Sage has harvested through this technique? And how many souls of the deceased does he now control?"
If he were stronger right now, he'd definitely want to confront the Sage of Six Paths directly.
Better yet, he'd love to capture and study the Sage. And if possible, the Sage's mother, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, intrigued him just as much.
"Well, who knows? We'll only find out once we face him in the future," Kaito said with a casual wave of his hand. "But for now, our strength isn't anywhere near enough to take on the Sage of Six Paths."
"Let's talk about facing him again after I break through to Six Paths level!"
"Until then, stay low-key and don't do anything that might draw his attention too soon."
Otherwise, they might have to flee to the One Piece world, bide their time, and return later to settle the score with the Sage.
And as for whether the Sage of Six Paths was truly a villain, a bad guy, or even on their side? Kaito wasn't counting on any of that.
There was too much uncertainty.
For his own safety, it was better to treat the Sage as one of his potential enemies from the start.
"Understood! I won't act recklessly! Haha!" Orochimaru nodded, grinning.
Although he often seemed crazy and twisted, he wasn't actually stupid.
He knew when to act and when to wait.
"For the next few years, focus on the Life Force Technique, the Primal Chakra Refinement, and the Crystal Meditation Technique. Enhance your lifespan, vitality, and spiritual energy while simultaneously improving your strength."
"Also, I suggest you train in Observation Haki as a way to sharpen your perception."
"Other things can wait for now."
"My modified basic and advanced taijutsu techniques, along with the Six Powers, can supplement your physical training. Combine them with the meat of Sea Kings for optimal results."
"I believe your strength will undergo a dramatic transformation in no time."
"In the future, I'll be counting on you to take charge of the research division for me. There's so much in both the Ninja and Pirate worlds waiting to be explored!" Kaito added, giving Orochimaru advice and instructions.
"No problem!" Orochimaru nodded again. "Thanks for the advice! I never imagined that the ingredients for those nutrition pills were just ordinary Sea Kings from another world. It's unbelievable!"
"To think there's a whole other world beyond this one…"
"And such a fascinating world at that!"
"No wonder the people of that world are so physically strong!"
"This could completely compensate for the low-defense weakness of ninjas."
"Also, I'm intrigued by the Devil Fruits of that world."
"Who would've thought a world like that would produce treasures like those? They're absolutely mouthwatering!"
He had already decided—he would acquire a powerful Devil Fruit for himself in the future.
Moreover, he was determined to uncover the essence of Devil Fruits and even attempt to replicate them.
"These things probably aren't naturally occurring phenomena!" Kaito said with a slight shake of his head. "They're likely creations of ancient humans—manifestations of the light of human consciousness."
"Probably products of dimensional ascension! You might discover the truth through research one day."
"Oh? Human creations, you say? That makes them even more interesting!" Orochimaru responded, not disappointed in the slightest. Instead, he was even more intrigued.
Since It's Man-Made, the chances of him unraveling their mysteries were even higher.
"The chances of fully understanding it are much higher now!" Orochimaru said, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"By the way, Kaito, do you happen to have any other Devil Fruits on hand? Could you lend me one to study?"
"Also, do you think I'll ever get a chance to work with Vegapunk from the Pirate world someday? Collaborating with him would be fascinating!" Orochimaru licked his lips, asking with genuine curiosity.
In his mind, there was no way Kaito wouldn't be interested in someone as brilliant as Vegapunk.
"I do have a few Devil Fruits," Kaito replied, nodding. "They're all Zoan-types I acquired by chance over the past three years. I can give you one."
"But you need to remember: Zoan-type Devil Fruits are very different from Paramecia and Logia types. When researching Devil Fruits in the future, don't try to apply your findings from Zoan-types directly to the other two categories. Otherwise, you'll run into big problems."
As he spoke, Kaito flipped his hand, producing a Zoan-type Devil Fruit. He tossed it to Orochimaru and added, "As for meeting Vegapunk… we'll have to wait and see. Right now, even I haven't been able to meet him."
"He's been heavily guarded by the World Government for a long time. He's not someone you can approach easily. We'll have to look for an opportunity later."
Orochimaru caught the Devil Fruit eagerly, his eyes lighting up as he examined it closely. He even tried probing it with chakra, but the attempt failed. The fruit rejected his chakra completely, creating a strong repelling force.
For now, he set aside the research, storing the fruit in the storage space Kaito had given him. Looking back at Kaito, he nodded. "Got it. When I get my hands on Paramecia and Logia types, I'll make sure to keep one of each for comparison."
"Speaking of which," Orochimaru added with a curious gleam in his eyes, "are there any creatures—animals or insects, maybe—that possess enhanced intelligence?"
"I think small, stealthy, and highly mobile animals or insects would work well. You could form contracts with them and send them to scout hidden places like Mariejois, Navy Headquarters, or even Vegapunk's research island."
"While we're at it, the strongholds of the Four Emperors are worth considering too."
"If we can light up these locations on a map, we could use teleportation to travel freely between them. Then, stealing their treasures or kidnapping their geniuses would be a breeze. And the best part? They wouldn't even know who did it. What do you think, Kaito?"
"Wait… I...?" Kaito was momentarily stunned by Orochimaru's idea. After thinking about it, he realized it was actually a very viable plan. He couldn't help but give Orochimaru a thumbs-up.
"As expected of you, Orochimaru! I didn't even think of that. Thanks for the suggestion!"
"Heh, it's nothing!" Orochimaru smiled modestly. "Kaito-san, you're just too upright to think of something like this right away. Unlike me—I've never had an issue with using underhanded or shameless methods to achieve my goals."
"Upright? Maybe," Kaito muttered, raising an eyebrow. He didn't think of himself as particularly righteous, but it wasn't worth arguing about now.
"Speaking of stealthy creatures, perhaps… White Zetsu?" Kaito suddenly sensed a cluster of White Zetsu hiding underground outside the camp. Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, he considered the idea.
"Oh? White Zetsu?" Orochimaru's eyes lit up. Looking around, he asked eagerly, "Kaito-san, why didn't I think of that! These are perfect materials for human experimentation!"
"And they're the ideal subjects for Mokuton (Wood Release) experiments, too. Are there any White Zetsu in or near this camp? Could you catch a few alive for me to study?"
Thanks to the future knowledge he'd acquired about the Fourth Great Ninja War, Orochimaru already understood what White Zetsu were. With these, he could entirely replace human test subjects in his experiments, and the results would likely be even better.
Their compatibility was simply too high.
"There aren't any in the camp right now, but there are quite a few nearby," Kaito replied, shaking his head. "Over the past few years, my mother, Lady Mito, and I developed barriers specifically to counter Black Zetsu and White Zetsu's abilities."
"These barriers prevent them from easily phasing through."
"I used one of these barriers during the battle against Hanzo and Danzo, and it worked. But now that Black Zetsu knows about it, they've been avoiding our camps. The White Zetsu near here have already retreated to a more distant location."
"Also, I suspect that Black Zetsu and Madara Uchiha will make their move against us soon."
"Even if they don't, I plan to provoke them into action. It's better to send them to the afterlife sooner rather than later and eliminate the trouble they might cause in the future."
"So, for now, we can't capture White Zetsu just yet. We don't want to alert them prematurely."
"But after we deal with Madara, you can catch as many White Zetsu as you want!"
Madara would undoubtedly continue causing chaos to achieve his goals, whether it was inciting conflict between the major ninja villages or choosing a successor from the Uchiha to further his plans.
As for Black Zetsu, his obsession with reviving his mother, Kaguya, guaranteed he'd stop at nothing.
Right now, the Uchiha, Senju, and Uzumaki clans were the biggest obstacles in their way.
It was only a matter of time before they clashed with Black Zetsu and Madara. Instead of waiting passively, it was better to take the initiative.
.
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