Chapter 4 – The Zanpakutō Creation Plan
Sarutobi Hiruzen stood at the gate of the shadow-shrouded base, clad in full battle gear, the staff Enma transformed into a golden-banded cudgel gripped firmly in his hand.
He drew a long, heavy breath.
A year ago, he had received word that Orochimaru might be restarting his experiments on recreating the Wood Release bloodline.
At the time, whether out of the village's desperate need for stability in the aftermath of war, or because of his own blind indulgence toward the student he loved most, Hiruzen had chosen to secretly tolerate his research — dispatching only a small ANBU detail to keep an eye on him.
At first, it seemed a manageable compromise.
Though illegal, Orochimaru's experiments were still within the Hokage's bottom line — his hands had not yet reached toward Konoha's shinobi.
But suppression breeds eruption.
The pressure eventually boiled over into a violent, irreversible disaster.
Four days ago, he received the report of ANBU operatives found dead.
As the investigation began, waves of urgent reports soon followed — clans with powerful kekkei genkai, and even ordinary jōnin, reported missing family members and heirs.
In just two or three days, public outrage and political pressure from every direction mounted to the point where Hiruzen had no room left to hesitate.
Today's raid had been forced upon him.
The choice had already been made for him.
It didn't take long to pinpoint Orochimaru's location.
The Hokage who had led Konoha to victory in two Great Ninja Wars stood before the dark gate and lowered his gaze.
Orochimaru...
Why did it have to come to this?
But however tightly those thoughts coiled in his chest, there was no path left to retreat.
Hiruzen steadied his heart, voice turning cold as he addressed the ANBU assembled behind him:
"Breach the facility. Capture the criminal, Orochimaru."
"Alive or dead."
"Yes!"
With a single command, the ANBU team answered in unison, breaking the gate in formation and pouring in like a flood.
Though he was the Hokage, Hiruzen himself took the lead, Enma smashing aside obstacle after obstacle as they descended deeper into the base.
Whether to shield the young ANBU at his back or because of certain unspoken feelings he could not admit even to himself, he refused to let these children be the first to face Orochimaru.
And all of this — every flicker of hesitation, every nuance — did not escape the watchful eyes of Hatake Kakashi.
After so many years in ANBU, Kakashi had long since learned to read the Hokage's true thoughts in the smallest gestures.
He found himself relaxing ever so slightly, already deciding that when combat began, he would just do the bare minimum — throw out a few flashy jutsus, put on a show of effort, and call it a day.
But to his surprise, they encountered no resistance at all as they pressed forward.
No guards. No traps.
This abnormal silence only made the tension in Kakashi's chest tighten.
Another who had sensed the same thing was the boy silently following in his shadow from the very beginning — Uchiha Itachi.
"Kakashi-senpai?"
Itachi's voice was a low, cautious murmur.
"Stay sharp," Kakashi replied quietly, his tone grave.
BOOM—
At last, the final iron gate was smashed open beneath the Hokage's staff.
Hiruzen strode into the deepest chamber of the base, his face a mask of stone.
But what greeted his eyes was not the grisly scene of Orochimaru conducting human experiments.
The room was cold and deathly still.
Scattered across the hall lay corpses — most clad in white lab coats, clearly researchers — their lifeless bodies telling of an orderly, systematic slaughter.
Only one thing stood out: a section of wall had been breached, forming a tunnel that led straight to the outside.
He was warned ahead of time...
Hiruzen looked over the carnage, and for some reason, despite everything, he felt a quiet, inexplicable sense of relief settle over his heart.
Many things in this world are like this —
as long as there is no direct proof or caught-in-the-act moment, both sides can continue pretending that peace exists between them.
Even if, deep down, both know it is nothing more than self-deception dressed as diplomacy.
If there had been even the faintest chance, Sarutobi Hiruzen would never have chosen to personally execute the student who had walked at his side for decades — a disciple who had long since become as dear to him as his own blood.
But age wears away resolve.
The older he grew, the more compromises he found himself making.
Just as he allowed himself a subtle breath of relief, a faint hiss of static crackled through the radio receiver in his ear.
Then a voice — sharp, urgent — came from the ANBU on the other side:
"Lord Third! Emergency report!"
"The entire settlement of Motohaba — over three hundred households — and four ANBU/Root squads have been wiped out!
We've found massive traces of combat and Wood Release experiments, along with seven Cloud ANBU corpses.
No sign of the culprit."
"Based on the evidence, we suspect… Orochimaru!"
The body Hiruzen had just allowed to relax froze stiff.
In the end, there was no escape.
---
Brightly lit corridors.
Two figures — one tall, one small — walked side by side at a measured pace.
Yakushi Kabuto followed a half-step behind, posture rigid, while the man in front moved with an almost casual grace.
Aizen Sōsuke pushed open the door of the laboratory as if there was no urgency at all.
What greeted them was a massive cylindrical tank, locked within layers of sealing barriers.
Suspended at its heart was a pure white, half-formed blade — its shape faintly unstable, still in the process of becoming.
What an interesting world, Aizen thought, gazing at the nascent weapon.
Aizen Sōsuke.
Former Captain of the 5th Division, Gotei 13.
Former traitor of Soul Society, sentenced to twenty thousand years in Muken.
And now —
a jōnin of Konohagakure, chief researcher of the Third Hokage's Laboratory.
Sometimes, the dissonance between his past and present identities left him feeling strangely unreal.
It had already been twenty-two years since he arrived in this world.
But unlike his past life — where he was born with extraordinary talent and intellect beyond mortal reach —
this time, he was born a commoner, without kekkei genkai, without fortuitous encounters.
Just an ordinary shinobi.
Without his tricks, his strength would have been unremarkable.
The only blessing was that he had retained the long, unbroken memory of his previous existence.
And now, after decades of research and careful maneuvering, his first goal was finally within reach:
— To forge a Zanpakutō anew.
The first and greatest obstacle before him was the sheer gulf between the laws of this world and the one he came from.
In the past, everything in the three realms was structured atop spirit particles — anchored in the grand lattice woven by the Soul King's sacrifice.
But this new world was built entirely upon matter and energy.
Again and again, he had watched souls vanish into nothingness — and not once had he seen a Shinigami come to claim them.
Which meant: this world likely had no such organization.
And yet — soul and spiritual energy still existed.
Perhaps more interestingly, the upper limit of this world's power far surpassed what most shinobi could even dream of.
Through years of research, poring over ancient records, gathering intelligence, he arrived at an astonishing conclusion:
— That once, there existed a figure known as the Sage of Six Paths, a being so powerful he granted the force called chakra to all life on this planet.
And he might not have been the only one.
That Sage, together with a companion named Hamura, fought a goddess called Kaguya Ōtsutsuki and sealed her upon the moon.
It sounded like myth, but within the grotesque logic of this world, such a myth seemed almost too plausible.
More than that — Aizen had confirmed that this "Hamura" was indeed the progenitor of the Hyūga clan.
Even now, the Hyūga seemed to have a secret connection to a mysterious clan living on the moon.
And this entire shinobi world… seemed to be under someone's watch.
There were still secrets hidden deep under the oceans, truths he had not yet uncovered.
This, too, was why he had stayed hidden for so long, never stepping fully into the open.
He had not gathered nearly enough strength.
But compared to the ancient powers he had uncovered — powers capable of reshaping the heavens —
the techniques wielded by today's Kage and shinobi felt woefully meager.
And that was why he had to reclaim the power he once possessed.
---