Chapter 155
Orochimaru's Astonishment
Chapter 155 Orochimaru's Astonishment
The third generation walked to the low table and naturally pulled out a chair to sit down.
Menma sat down again, maintaining a silent and respectful posture, just like an ordinary boy from the Konoha orphanage.
Naruto excitedly untied the ribbon from the gift box.
"Naruto, Menma." Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the two children, his tone as gentle as if he were having a casual chat.
"Time flies. In the blink of an eye, you're almost five years old." He paused, his gaze shifting between Naruto's excited little face and Menma's calm expression, before continuing slowly.
"In another year, it will be time for me to go to school."
Naruto abruptly looked up, forgetting all about the half-unwrapped gift. His blue eyes flashed with an astonishing light, and he almost jumped up: "Ninja Academy? Really, Third Hokage? I can become a ninja? That's great! I want to go!"
Naruto passed by the Ninja Academy more than once and saw the students playing happily together on their way to and from school, which made him very envious.
He also wants to make friends with other people his age.
Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and nodded, then turned his gaze to Menma, who had been sitting quietly. His smile remained warm, but a hint of inquiry and consideration lingered in his eyes: "Where's Menma?"
This taciturn yet unusually precocious black-haired boy, who grew up in an orphanage, appeared to have an ordinary daily routine, both in the orphanage and after being adopted by the wealthy businessman Kado, according to the reports from the secret service intelligence unit.
Menma raised her head, meeting the Third Generation's gentle yet scrutinizing gaze.
His face remained expressionless, and his voice was clear and calm: "Ninja academy? Becoming a ninja isn't bad. You can't just deal with money all the time, that would be so boring."
Hiruzen Sarutobi laughed heartily.
The wealthy merchant Gato was busy traveling and only returned to Konoha once or twice a year. After the child showed his aversion to business, Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted to train him to become a ninja.
A Konoha ninja deeply influenced by the Will of Fire.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's smile deepened slightly, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes smoothed out, and he seemed quite satisfied with the answer: "Hmm, very good."
He patted Naruto on the shoulder and nodded to Menma: "Then it's settled. You'll be sent to the Ninja Academy in a year. Especially you, Naruto, don't cause any more trouble in class!"
"Hehe, I know, Third Hokage!" Naruto scratched his head and grinned sheepishly.
The Third Hokage sat for a while longer, chatting with Naruto about trivial matters, mostly inquiring about his daily life and situation. Occasionally, he would also gently ask Menma a few questions, with the conversation always revolving around the daily lives of the two children.
Mianma's answer remained concise and proper.
Although he appeared quite mature, there were many mature orphans like him in Konoha, forced to grow up after losing their loved ones in the war, so Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't pay much attention to him.
Under the warm yellow light, the atmosphere was harmonious and joyful.
Hiruzen Sarutobi only slowly stood up after the tea in his cup was emptied.
"Alright, this old man won't disturb you two youngsters from keeping vigil any longer." He picked up his pipe, which was placed to the side.
"Remember, work hard in the new year." He gave Naruto and Menma one last deep look, his gaze still gentle.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama. Please take care." Menma respectfully rose to see him off.
"Goodbye, Third Hokage!" Naruto waved vigorously.
The door closed gently, shutting out the wind and snow outside, and also shutting out the departing figure carrying an invisible pressure.
The room fell silent again, save for the lingering warm aroma of ramen broth. Naruto, still buzzing with excitement about going to the Ninja Academy, chattered away.
Mianma sat down again, picked up the cup of tea that had long since gone cold, but didn't drink it.
He turned his head slightly, his gaze falling on the snow-covered night scene outside the window.
Numb fingertips lightly traced the cold surface of the teacup, a barely perceptible curve appearing at the corner of his lips, carrying a chilling undertone.
He spoke in a low voice, so soft it was like a sigh, and was drowned out by Naruto's excited words.
"What major events happened in Konoha in year 56?"
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Deep within the heart of Star City, a cold alloy tunnel winds its way down, eventually leading to a vast space shrouded in a high-strength barrier.
This laboratory was personally supervised by Guren, who possesses the Crystal Release bloodline limit under Orochimaru's command. It was converted from an existing underground facility in the Star Capital and has now become a collaborative research laboratory for Shura and Orochimaru.
The stark white operating lights illuminated everything in perfect detail. The air was filled with a mixture of disinfectant, culture medium, and a faint but persistent smell of blood, so cold it seemed to freeze one's breath.
In the center of the laboratory, Kaguya Kimimaro lay quietly on the operating table that gleamed with the cold light of metal.
The boy was thin, with a sickly, almost transparent bluish-white skin. Fine beads of sweat slid down his forehead and disappeared into his silvery-white hair.
He was wearing only a simple white lab coat, and his chest rose and fell slightly with his breathing beneath the open collar, revealing several pale pink surgical scars that had not yet fully healed.
What is most striking is the slightly bulging, brand-new eye socket contour beneath his tightly closed eyelids.
Orochimaru stood next to the control panel.
He was still wearing his signature loose-fitting kimono, with a shimenawa (traditional Japanese rope) tied around his waist, and his long black hair was casually draped over his shoulders.
At this moment, his long, narrow, golden vertical pupils, gleaming with an inhuman desire for exploration, were fixed on a specially made syringe in his hand.
Inside the syringe, blood was being slowly drawn from Kimimaro's elbow vein.
The blood took on a strange color under strong light; it was no longer pure red, and occasionally, one could even catch a glimpse of an extremely faint, pinhead-sized bone particle that flashed by.
"Amazing harmony..." Orochimaru's hoarse voice echoed in the silent laboratory, filled with undisguised admiration.
"Such a violent and unruly bloodline power, yet it has achieved such a delicate balance after being implanted with the Byakugan. Lord Shura, your methods always surprise me."
His gaze lingered greedily on Kimimaro's tightly closed eyelids, as if he could penetrate the skin and flesh to look directly into those transplanted Byakugan eyes from the Hyuga main family.
A few steps away from the control panel, a figure stood silently like a ghost.
He was shrouded in a wide black robe, and his face was covered by the iconic, expressionless white three-eyed fox mask—he was Menma's shadow clone.
Behind the eye sockets of the white three-eyed fox mask, the gaze was as calm as a deep pool, reflecting everything on the control panel without any ripples.
In response to Orochimaru's praise, the shadow clone merely nodded very slightly.
"The Kaguya clan's 'Shikotsumyaku' bloodline disease is essentially caused by the awakening of a dormant power deep within the bloodline, leading to an imbalance in the Yang Release within the body, making it unable to withstand this power." Menma's voice came through the mask, deep and steady, without the slightest emotional fluctuation, as if stating a cold formula.
(End of this chapter)