If Takuno knew the reason for their hard work, he would probably be speechless.
It wasn't that the effect of the Gelel Stone was so obvious, but rather that they were simply too weak.
So, even though the Gelel Stone only slightly strengthened Fubuki Kakuyoku, it was very obvious in their eyes.
Soon, the four of them brought Takuno to a place with heavy snow and even harsher conditions.
Takuno raised an eyebrow as he looked at the environment in front of him; the laboratory and prison were not on the surface, but built underground, and even the railway was covered by heavy snow, making it difficult to expose.
"Good, you've put in a lot of effort," Takuno couldn't help but say.
"It's what we should do," Roga Nadare said with a smile.
Soon, they arrived at the prison. Takuno didn't have many demands for the prison, just that the subjects shouldn't freeze to death easily.
As for the laboratory, many high-end experimental machines were already prepared inside.
"My lord, these are the most advanced pieces of equipment in the Land of Snow. I've brought a set of each. If you need anything else, I can purchase them from other countries," Kazahana Dotō said at this time.
"Not needed for now."
Takuno looked at the laboratory with satisfaction. Afterward, he only needed to engrave a Sealing Jutsu on this laboratory, and it would be complete.
As for the final railway, it could also transport normally. The speed was a bit slow, but it was sufficient for use.
"You've done very well," Takuno said, then tossed the three Gelel Stones to them.
Immediately, the three of them fumbled to catch the Gelel Stones, afraid they would fall and break.
Then, they looked at the beautiful Gelel Stones in their hands, feeling the power being transmitted into their bodies. At this moment, they felt that their months of hard work were worth it.
Takuno looked at Fubuki Kakuyoku and said, "You come with me to the laboratory, and I will help you fuse with the Gelel Stone."
Fusing with the Gelel Stone actually meant placing the Gelel Stone in the heart to allow its power to be fully unleashed.
Fubuki Kakuyoku's eyes lit up when she heard this. She had thought there was nothing left for her, but she didn't expect to receive a reward.
Although she didn't know what fusing with the Gelel Stone entailed, it was definitely the next stage of reward!
"Okay!" Fubuki Kakuyoku nodded vigorously, then went to the laboratory with Takuno, leaving the three others looking at each other, a bit envious.
However, looking at the Gelel Stones in their hands, they all strengthened their resolve, believing that as long as they continued to work for the other party, the other party would definitely help them fuse with the Gelel Stones in the future.
Soon, after Takuno and Fubuki Kakuyoku came out again.
They looked at Fubuki Kakuyoku's slightly flushed face, understanding without a word.
Kazahana Dotō then asked, "My lord, is there anything else you need us to do?"
"After this, when your Hidden Snow Village undertakes missions, it's best to capture target Ninja alive and imprison them. Then you can wait for the opportune moment to arrive," Takuno said.
"Yes, my lord, may I ask what 'opportune moment' you are referring to—" Kazahana Dotō asked.
"War," Takuno said, a smile playing on his lips.
"War?!" The four of them were startled, exchanging glances.
Hadn't the Third Great Ninja War just ended not long ago? All the countries were recuperating, right? Would a war really break out in such a short time?
Although they were a bit confused, they didn't question Takuno. Qualified subordinates never question their boss's words.
Since Takuno said there would be a war, then a war would definitely break out in the future.
"Furthermore, someone will send you intelligence later. Some heinous rogue Ninja and rebel Ninja are also your targets," Takuno instructed again.
"Yes!"
After giving his instructions, Takuno left.
Back in Konoha's Anbu base, the bloodstains on his face had completely healed, and with his hawk mask, he naturally wouldn't be exposed.
At this moment, he pulled out the files that had been separately organized on the desk.
They contained information on Konoha Ninja, villagers, and missing persons from nearby areas who had disappeared over the years.
After Danzo's actions were exposed, the rate of disappearances decreased, but it didn't stop completely.
However, Takuno suddenly frowned as he looked at the missing records one by one.
"At this rate, has Orochimaru discovered something and started to restrain himself?"
Takuno muttered, tapping his finger on the desk.
It seemed Danzo's incident had given Orochimaru a warning. Based on his understanding of Orochimaru, he wouldn't be unprepared with many escape methods like in the original story.
Now, Orochimaru must have already set up several escape routes.
If that were the case, then his method of intercepting the other party to obtain their research data might not work.
Takuno shook his head, one couldn't underestimate anyone in the Ninja World.
Since that was the case, then this time he would try a genuine trade. He had Jugo's cells, which were important material for Orochimaru.
However, this might only be enough to trade for one piece of research data.
Takuno rubbed his forehead. It would be best if it was research data on the Cursed Seal. As for whether exchanging Jugo's cells for the Cursed Seal was a bit excessive?
He knew what it meant to have a rare commodity!
For Orochimaru, his Cursed Seal would be incomplete without Jugo's cells, and only he had Jugo's cells!
In fact, he also really wanted the Eight-Tails' horn that Orochimaru possessed.
The other party had only scraped some powder from the Eight-Tails' horn, but he had cultivated it into an enormous Eight-Tails' horn. If he could obtain this horn, then the collection of the Eight-Tails' Chakra would be successful.
Unfortunately, Takuno felt that the Cursed Seal research data could still be traded for, but Orochimaru probably wouldn't give him the Eight-Tails' horn.
Even for Orochimaru, cultivating the Eight-Tails' horn to such a size was not easy; it required not only a large amount of materials but also a significant amount of time for slow growth.
Therefore, Takuno would have to find another way to obtain the Eight-Tails' Chakra.
Fortunately, after Orochimaru's defection, the Cloud Ninja would most likely go to war with Konoha, and Killer Bee might also appear on this battlefield. He still had a chance to obtain the Eight-Tails' Chakra.
Furthermore, the Cloud Ninja didn't just have the Eight-Tails; they also had the Two-Tails.
This war would not only provide an opportunity to collect research materials but also to collect the Chakra of two Tailed Beasts.
It was truly, too worthwhile!
While thinking, Takuno also finished reading the missing records in his hand, and then he pulled out another stack of files.
These were materials he had previously ordered the Anbu to collect about marginal Ninja who had not yet gone missing.
The number of villagers was simply too large, and collecting their information was very troublesome, but—
Ninja had always been a scarce profession; even marginal Ninja would not be too numerous.
Takuno sifted through the files one by one, pondering who Orochimaru's next target might be.
After all, the Anbu had limited manpower, and it was impossible to send Anbu to monitor everyone.
As for the possibility of Orochimaru stopping his experiments, Takuno didn't believe it.
Orochimaru's experiments could not be stopped; from the moment he began pursuing immortality, he had been unable to stop.
Even with Danzo's precedent, he would at most be more careful, but he wouldn't stop.
Moreover, perhaps he had already prepared to defect when Minato became the Fourth Hokage. Would such a person still care if his experiments were discovered by Konoha?
Finally, Takuno selected the Ninja he believed were most suitable targets.
At this moment, he also called the Squad Leader over.
"My lord, is there something you need me for?" the Squad Leader asked, looking at Takuno.
Takuno handed the files to the other party and said, "Pay close attention to these individuals during this period. They might be the next Ninja to go missing."
The Squad Leader looked at the files. He was actually very familiar with them, as these were the files he had submitted. However, he was a bit puzzled as to why Takuno had only selected these few out of so many.
He didn't see anything special about these people.
However, he naturally couldn't question the Deputy Commander and immediately agreed.
Takuno shook his head as he saw the other party's confusion while looking at the files. This was a matter of perspective; when doing such things, one couldn't view problems from an ordinary person's perspective.
Sometimes, what seems most innocuous is often where problems are most likely to arise.
"Also, collect personal items that carry their scent. I remember there's an Anbu Ninja with a canine summoned beast?" Takuno asked.
"Yes, that Anbu is in another department," the Squad Leader replied.
"Hmm, go tell the Squad Leader of that department to borrow him. We'll need his Ninja dogs later," Takuno said, pausing, then looked at the Squad Leader and asked, "How do you plan to focus on them?"
The Squad Leader looked a bit confused, then said, "Naturally, by continuously monitoring them in secret."
Takuno patted his forehead and said, "Change your approach. Absolutely do not monitor them closely. The other party has been at large for so long, so they definitely have anti-reconnaissance awareness. Doing that would be like blatantly telling them it's a trap."
Immediately, the Squad Leader fell silent.
"Just observe from a few fixed points, disguised as ordinary Ninja. There's no need to specifically follow them. As long as they disappear for more than a reasonable amount of time, you can deploy the Ninja dogs to search for their whereabouts," Takuno said helplessly.
"Yes, I understand," the Squad Leader nodded.
"Then go do it immediately. For every moment wasted, one of our comrades might already be in danger," Takuno said.
"Yes!"