Orochimaru's arrival and his words stirred something in Hiruzen's heart.
He rose and stretched his body. "That works too. A walk—balancing work and rest…"
Orochimaru smiled knowingly.
This was a good start.
Sensei and disciple walked side by side beneath Konoha's starlit sky, chatting casually along the way.
Under Orochimaru's guidance, they eventually arrived at the cemetery within Konoha.
"War has taken many lives, hasn't it, sensei…"
A trace of emotion appeared on Orochimaru's face. "Nawaki, Dan… and there will surely be wars again in the future."
Hiruzen nodded silently.
They continued walking until they stopped before a gravestone.
Moonlight fell upon it, making the name on it faintly visible.
It was the grave of Orochimaru's parents.
As shinobi of Konoha, both had died in war.
"So it's them…"
Hiruzen let out a sigh, took a cigarette case from his pocket, and placed three cigarettes one by one before the incense burner.
A flame flickered at his fingertips as he lit them.
Orochimaru wiped the gravestone, warmth rising in his heart. "Sensei, give me one?"
"Though smoking is harmful to one's health, with bodies like ours…"
Hiruzen held the cigarette between his lips and shook his head. "Saying that is rather unnecessary."
Orochimaru took the cigarette and lit it for his sensei. The sensei and disciple stood silently before the gravestone.
A gentle breeze passed by, and for a moment there were no words.
Only the two small flames flickered from time to time, like the longing for old friends that would occasionally well up.
Orochimaru recalled the past.
He still remembered that when he had first been accepted as Hiruzen's disciple, he had accompanied him here to pay respects to his parents.
Back then, he had found a white snake's shed skin here. Hiruzen had told him it symbolized luck and rebirth…
'So much time has already passed along this road?'
'I've parted ways with quite a few important people, but thankfully, not all of them…'
Various thoughts flashed through Orochimaru's mind as he pinched out the cigarette.
"Sensei, I've developed a kinjutsu called Living Corpse Reincarnation…"
"It allows one to transfer one's soul into another person's body…"
Orochimaru did not conceal it. He spoke plainly, "I like this ninjutsu very much. I believe it can fulfill my dream…"
As he spoke, Orochimaru handed a scroll to Hiruzen.
Hiruzen raised an eyebrow, chuckling inwardly.
Sure enough, in this shinobi world, the thoughts of ninjutsu geniuses were, in a certain sense, connected…
Just as Senju Tobirama had researched Impure World Reincarnation and soul-binding techniques…
A visible soul, blurred life and death—if one possessed sufficient ability, how could it not give rise to ideas?
But the problem was…
Immortality has always been a sensitive word—one that drives people mad, because it represents infinite possibilities.
Before immortality, order and ethics are fragile.
Hiruzen studied Orochimaru for a while with a blank expression, then unrolled the scroll.
Orochimaru's heart began to pound.
But he still understood at once, and a flame flickered to life between his fingers to light the way for his teacher.
Hiruzen read carefully.
After a moment, he roughly understood this technique's underlying mechanism.
This was a complex formula.
First, Living Corpse Reincarnation requires the caster to have a strong perception of the soul, so that they can drive their own soul to migrate.
That step alone dooms the vast majority of shinobi to never mastering it.
It was like the Flying Thunder God Technique: in fact, shinobi who can perform Summoning Technique already count as having talent in the concept of "space."
But for Flying Thunder God users, in their perception, the intangible space seems like tangible blocks…
Visible, touchable.
And being able to drive the soul still isn't the end of it—the body to be seized is also extremely particular.
Much like the rejection reaction between the cells of different individuals, it is the same between soul and body. If the compatibility is wrong, the mismatch will bring severe backlash.
Inside an unsuitable vessel, the soul is as if in a steamer—being weakened every moment…
And this kind of reincarnation is not unlimited, either.
Unlike the brief separation in the Spirit Transformation Technique, Living Corpse Reincarnation causes the original soul and the new vessel to intertwine. In Orochimaru's estimate, each reincarnation would require at least a three-year interval.
In special circumstances, even three years would not be enough.
In short, this was a half-finished product.
But what happened to be the case was that the various problems of Living Corpse Reincarnation…
Between Tobirama and Izuna—Tobirama's clone body—did not amount to an insurmountable barrier.
It was basically workable…
One could only say that Senju Tobirama's lingering obsession with Uchiha Izuna had, thirty years later, received an echo!
Sometimes, Hiruzen also thought about it.
What state of mind had his teacher been in, to conduct research on Uchiha Izuna's cells in so many directions? Failing so many times was one thing…
But he had even added his own cells into it?
Moreover, with shinobi cells influenced by chakra, ordinary cloning simply would not work.
Because of reasons like losing the growth environment, it also required step-by-step fine-tuning and constant careful nurturing…
The effort and difficulty required could practically be called hand-crafting life!
One could only say that even Hiruzen was shaken by the rival-like bond between the Uchiha and Senju strategists…
The more you thought about it, the more terrifying it became…
And why Orochimaru was being so cautious.
Hiruzen could understand that as well.
Given the shinobi world's current level of technology, if one took a liking to a shinobi's body, going the cloning route was basically unworkable—one would have to "seize" the target instead.
Moreover, the Will of Fire emphasizes "inheritance." This kind of immortality—using a method like "body seizure"—makes it difficult not to form extremely unpleasant associations.
If the village were to produce a once-in-a-generation genius, would Orochimaru take them as a target?
That was entirely possible…
Hiruzen slowly closed the scroll, his gaze solemn.
Chakra gathered silently. Although Hiruzen did not move, the invisible pressure seemed almost tangible, making even the air grow thick.
Orochimaru's heart jolted.
It was not that he had never considered the worst-case scenario—for example, that his teacher might fight him…
He just had not expected that Hiruzen seemed to be even stronger than when they had clashed before…
Orochimaru could not accurately judge his teacher's strength; this was the intuition of a shinobi in a life-and-death battle.
His sixth sense kept issuing warnings.
If Hiruzen were to attack him without holding back…
Even with multiple secret life-preserving techniques at his disposal, could he truly escape?
Not to mention that present-day Konoha's internal and external defenses had already been upgraded by more than one level…
If he truly wanted to get away, he would probably have to play the sympathy card.
"Sensei, you…" Orochimaru inwardly lamented.
Although he had already resolved to lay everything out and accept any outcome…
At this point, bitterness was inevitable.
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes.
Orochimaru watched his movements intently, sweat unconsciously forming in his palms.
"Why so nervous?"
Hiruzen suddenly dispersed the chakra and burst into laughter. "I was just teasing you, you brat!"
Orochimaru was taken aback.
But seeing that his teacher's expression did not seem false, he gradually relaxed.
Orochimaru could not help but complain, "Sensei, don't randomly gather chakra like that!"
"I occasionally want to display a sensei's authority…" Hiruzen raised an eyebrow.
Orochimaru let out a helpless chuckle, expressing his silent protest.
"I've said before—you are my most proud disciple…"
"You were conflicted about whether to tell me about this kinjutsu, weren't you?"
After hesitating for a moment, Orochimaru nodded in admission. "I wasn't sure of your attitude, sensei…"
"As a sensei, unless a disciple has committed something truly unforgivable, how could he raise his hand against his disciple?"
"What I did just now was to tell you that you should trust me as your sensei."
Hiruzen patted Orochimaru on the shoulder. "The look you had, thinking I would attack you, made me a little sad…"
"Come, let's talk somewhere else. Let the departed continue their rest."
Orochimaru paused, then looked at his teacher's back and smiled from the bottom of his heart.
He quickly followed.
There could not have been a better answer than this…
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