Orochimaru began to speak.
However, instead of stating the reason for his visit, he recounted the process of animal experiments and informed Xu Ming that the project was successful. They had developed three targeted emergency medical ninjutsu.
"I understand what you mean," Xu Ming nodded slightly, his expression softening.
"You already know what needs to be done next. You're just struggling to overcome the hurdle in your heart, but it's a hurdle we must pass."
"A sharp knife can be a murder weapon or a tool to protect your loved ones."
"The key is how the person wielding it chooses to use it."
Xu Ming stood up, walked to the two of them, and placed a reassuring hand on each of their shoulders.
"Go ahead."
"Even if your heart resists, even if your body trembles, grit your teeth and push forward."
"Because you're doing the right thing. Your colleagues will support you, and those who survive this project will owe their lives to you... Therefore, for the ideals we had when this project began, we must endure the thorns along the way."
Xu Ming's voice was gentle, filled with encouragement.
The next step after animal testing was, naturally, human trials.
In this era, where medical ninjutsu was still in its infancy, saving lives was never guaranteed—it was just as easy to lose a patient as it was to heal one.
But this was a necessary step.
Only by facing death could one hope to conquer it.
"I understand," Orochimaru exhaled solemnly and nodded.
"...We still need you, a lazy guy, to tell us what to do," Tsunade muttered, swatting Xu Ming's hand away nonchalantly. "We just came to show off our progress to you—don't get too full of yourself."
Her words might have been more convincing if her eyes hadn't been slightly red.
Naturally, Xu Ming didn't call out Tsunade's stubbornness.
He simply smiled, withdrew his hand, and said gently, "Of course. I was just sharing my thoughts."
"Well, what you said does make some sense."
Tsunade turned her head away, her face slightly flushed.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru watched the exchange thoughtfully, casting a meaningful glance at Xu Ming.
Xu Ming stared back.
Don't meddle in things that aren't your business!
After being reassured by Xu Ming, both of them calmed down and left.
But Xu Ming wasn't free to rest just yet.
Because Orochimaru and Tsunade weren't the only 'guests' visiting him that night.
"Teacher Third Hokage, Uncle Danzo, why must you climb over the wall instead of using the front door?" Xu Ming walked to his yard, looking at the two figures standing under the moonlight, and couldn't help but tease.
"Ahem, don't concern yourself with trivial details," Third Hokage coughed awkwardly.
"Boys should be more generous," Danzo added with a straight face.
Xu Ming was taken aback.
Since when did Danzo crack jokes!?
What kind of life experiences must he have gone through in the coming decades to turn into the cold, calculating man history remembers?
For a moment, Xu Ming found it hard to reconcile this version of Danzo with the one he knew from the future.
"Xu Ming, you handled things well just now," Third Hokage said with admiration.
"There are always tasks that must be done, and there are always people who must make sacrifices for the village. They are like burning leaves, lighting the path for the future of Konoha."
"I'm glad you understand that."
"Sacrifice is sometimes necessary," Xu Ming acknowledged.
Although in the future, the interpretation of the Will of Fire would change, at this moment, it was truly Third Hokage's genuine belief.
Not long ago, in the battle where the Second Hokage perished, it was the Third Hokage who had volunteered to stay behind and sacrifice himself for his comrades.
"It's difficult to bring up the matter of human experiments. I originally planned to ask them to abandon the idea," Third Hokage sighed. "But you surprised me. You succeeded in convincing them."
"That's good. A ninja is someone who carries burdens. Perhaps Orochimaru and Tsunade will find their own paths as shinobi through this."
"Mito-sama also holds you in high regard..."
The Third Hokage continued speaking at length.
Xu Ming, however, found himself a little confused.
What was the purpose of this conversation? It felt like the Hokage had simply gotten carried away and started talking for the sake of talking.
"Actually, what I want to say is: don't worry about anything—just go for it," Third Hokage finally said, noticing Xu Ming's puzzled expression. "Our expectations and trust in you are greater than you realize."
Expectations?
Trust?
Xu Ming pondered this and suddenly felt enlightened.
They believed he was even more of a genius than Orochimaru. With all his unconventional ideas and ambitions, they thought he was merely holding back, concerned about public perception.
In reality, he had only been acting indirectly through Orochimaru.
Now, his teacher was telling him to stop restraining himself.
All of us at the top are looking forward to your potential.
"This..."
Xu Ming felt a surge of excitement.
Perhaps he should push Orochimaru even further?
"If Hiruzen hadn't taken you as his disciple, I believe we would have made an excellent master-disciple pair," Danzo suddenly remarked.
Third Hokage: ?
Xu Ming: ?
That was unexpected.
"What, did I say something wrong?" Danzo frowned, displeased. "All of you were planning to make Orochimaru and Tsunade back down, but I was the only one persuading them to move forward. Isn't that exactly what Xu Ming was doing?"
Third Hokage pursed his lips and looked away.
Xu Ming, amused, said nothing.
"In any case, I will oversee the human experimentation from now on," Danzo said, looking directly at Xu Ming. "In the future, if you have any ideas or experiments that cannot be conducted publicly, you can come to me. I welcome them."
After a brief pause, he added another condition.
"Of course, only if they are beneficial to Konoha."
Xu Ming nodded and replied sincerely, "I will never harm Konoha."
At least, not this vibrant Konoha of the present.
For now, destruction was not on his mind.