Haiichi gathered his clan members again and repeated the experiment with Souma.
Even though the entire idea sounded reckless—even dangerous—he still chose to trust Souma in the end.
After all… Souma would never intentionally sabotage himself, right?
Haiichi calmed his breathing, focusing completely, then activated the Yamanaka clan's secret technique to bind everyone's spiritual power together.
He knew this jutsu better than anyone.
Just like before, the mental energies began merging—
and then Haiichi sensed something unusual.
A new strand of spiritual power had slipped in.
It moved like a fish weaving through water—light, agile, subtle.
Souma.
With exquisite control, he guided his own spiritual energy between the others, acting like a "bonding agent," tightening and stabilizing all their mental signatures.
"How about now?"
"…I can draw more mental power!"
Haiichi's eyes widened in astonishment.
It was only a 10% increase, but at this stage, even a 1% improvement was incredibly difficult.
A ten percent leap was monstrous.
"Should we try the extraction now?"
"No—wait. I felt a few more areas that can still be optimized."
"Th—this kid…"
It wasn't necessary!
Haiichi was about to say so, but Souma had already withdrawn his spiritual power.
With Souma gone, their combined mental strength weakened instantly.
Just as Souma had said—
The loss between different spiritual frequencies was inevitable.
Fixing the jutsu entirely was nearly impossible.
The only real solution was to directly adjust the individuals involved.
And Souma was the key.
Without him, they were stuck with the same old limits.
Haiichi could only let him continue.
Because—
Souma's direction was undeniably correct.
This time, after only a few minutes of adjustments, Souma looked delighted.
"Alright. This time we will go all in."
"Please, Souma… we're counting on you!"
They repeated the ritual.
Souma slipped into the network—
This time—
"Twenty percent! It worked!"
Haiichi's eyes shone.
A full 20% expansion in usable mental force.
More than enough to dig out the deepest memories.
He immediately dove into Jirōbō's consciousness.
Fragments emerged—
more broken pieces than before, but clearer.
He saw:
Orochimaru training them since childhood,
The silhouette of a mysterious medical assistant aiding Orochimaru during experiments.
Unfortunately, no matter how deep he searched, the soul was far too damaged to produce more.
Still—
Haiichi uncovered one more key location:
Tenchi Bridge.
He exhaled.
This was the limit.
"Grass Country. Tenchi Bridge."
"It matches the earlier clues. But that 'medical assistant'… We still have nothing conclusive."
Haiichi sighed inwardly.
Without Souma, even these scraps would have been impossible.
Jirōbō's spirit was completely shredded—any more probing and he'd simply die.
"Lord Haiichi, how did it go? Did we get anything new?"
"Don't tell me… nothing?"
Ibiki asked urgently.
He was right.
If they didn't find anything now, they never would.
"We found a few leads."
Haiichi summarized everything onto a scroll.
Grass Country.
Tenchi Bridge.
And—
"Orochimaru has a medical-ninjutsu assistant. Many of his surgeries and experiments seem to rely on this person."
"Medical assistant…?"
Ibiki frowned.
Given Orochimaru's origins, such a person was most likely from Konoha.
A former subordinate, perhaps.
But with so many potential candidates, suspicion alone wasn't enough to act on.
Even ANBU couldn't simply start arresting people.
Souma, of course, knew the answer—
Yakushi Kabuto.
But he couldn't say it outright.
Not only because he lacked concrete "evidence,"
but also because… Kabuto was complicated.
Extremely useful if controlled.
Dangerous if provoked.
A double agent for multiple factions—
and involving Souma would make him a triple agent.
After careful thought…
Souma decided not to expose Kabuto—yet.
He would observe him longer.
And maybe… give Kabuto a warning when the time is right.
"Jirōbō's mental state is beyond rescue. Shame. With more time, I might've further improved the synchronization."
Souma sighed.
Haiichi's face reddened slightly.
"This isn't your fault. You've already helped us immensely."
He knew his own limits.
Even if Souma polished the technique further, half the Yamanaka clan wouldn't be able to execute it anyway.
Souma's earlier display had been so brilliant that even Haiichi, the clan head, felt inferior.
"As for future improvements—"
"No need for now. You're busy. If we need your help again, we'll discuss it then."
"…Fair enough."
Souma nodded.
If the clan wanted deeper improvements to their secret arts…
They'd need to pay a proper price.
Souma left the room.
After some silence—
Ibiki exhaled deeply.
"Seeing him makes me doubt myself. Good thing we're not in the same generation."
"Or maybe that makes it worse."
"…What?"
Haiichi coughed lightly.
"As seniors… being surpassed this quickly is much more painful, don't you think?"
"…"
Right in the heart.
Ibiki couldn't refute it.
Souma's power, knowledge, theory, innovation—
all far beyond him now.
The only field he could still brag about was torture.
And Souma wasn't ANBU, so that hardly mattered.
It hurt.
Haiichi finished his report and went to the Hokage's office.
Hokage's Office
"An Orochimaru base in Grass Country?"
Hiruzen frowned.
"And possibly cooperation with Grass Village?"
"Hard to say."
Haiichi had considered this.
Grass Village was notoriously untrustworthy.
Anything was possible.
Orochimaru wouldn't keep all his eggs in one basket either.
Tenchi Bridge was likely just one of several bases.
"And this assistant…"
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes.
"A medical-ninjutsu expert helping Orochimaru all these years?
If such a person exists, many things make sense now."
He needed to be found.
But with so little intel, it was like chasing smoke.
Souma left the ANBU base and expanded his sensory field.
He wanted to look for Might Guy.
But—
Team Guy was on a mission.
So Souma turned to the next best choice—
Kakashi.
Kakashi's taijutsu wasn't Guy-level, but his theory and analytical skills were top-tier.
Perfect for discussing breathing techniques.
Souma found him soon—
"Still doing D-rank missions? You're dedicated."
Kakashi wasn't catching the cat.
That was left to Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura.
Kakashi himself sat quietly atop a tree stump—
Meditating.
A true master never wastes a chance to train while slacking off.
Souma admired that.
Before he even landed, Kakashi spoke:
"What brings you here?"
"I have a question for you."
Souma crouched on a branch.
"You seem to be adapting well. You can sense natural energy now."
"I can sense it… but I can't convert it yet."
"Ease your body into accepting it. Forceful fusion is harder. Gentle adaptation might help. Though if you can force it, Sage chakra is ideal."
Kakashi nodded.
Souma glanced toward the clearing.
Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were chasing the cat.
Compared to before, they were finally acting like a team.
"They seem much better now."
"Mm. I'm planning to take a C-rank mission soon. Time to give them some real experience."
Wave Country.
Souma paused.
He had no interest in that mission anymore.
Ice Release was nice, but he had no affinity for chakra nature transformation.
And Zabuza's sword… was tempting, but not essential.
Still—
"Kakashi-sensei, if you come across any interesting techniques or loot, remember to copy it. We can study it together later."
"…"
Kakashi fell silent.
He hadn't even left yet, and Souma was already looting future enemies?
Also—
"I'm only taking a C-rank mission. Not likely to meet any shinobi."
"Doesn't matter. Just keep it in mind. In case."
"…Fine."
Kakashi nodded.
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