Infiltrating the Sealing Jutsu Forbidden Area

"Lord Orochimaru, this is the blood and some tissue samples retrieved from Konoha Hospital."

An Anbu ninja carried a stack of blood bags over to Orochimaru.

They contained blood and tissue from the major clans: Uchiha, Hyuga, the Yamanaka clan, the Nara Clan, and even Uzumaki Kushina.

Orochimaru knew that Hashirama Cells and the Uchiha Sharingan could mutually restrain one another. Uchiha Madara had used Hashirama Cells to awaken the Rinnegan, while Danzo later used a Sharingan arm to suppress Hashirama Cells.

From that, he could work backward to determine the direction of his experiments. As for the cells from the other clans, Orochimaru also wanted to see whether they had similar effects.

"If only I could get my hands on a Sharingan and a Byakugan."

That was an unrealistic thought. Now was not the time to secretly research alongside Danzo, and the village could not possibly satisfy all his demands.

Orochimaru had collected these blood and tissue samples through Konoha Hospital, and even that had taken quite some time.

Looking at the sorted, labeled blood samples, Orochimaru first picked up the Uchiha and Hyuga blood bags. He would begin with these two types of cells.

The Hyuga and Uchiha were related as well. In the Original Work, Kakashi had said that the Uchiha's origins could be traced back to the Hyuga Clan, while both the Byakugan and Sharingan were exclusive Dōjutsu of the Ōtsutsuki Clan.

It was like the Senju and Uzumaki: the former had inherited the Sage Body, while the latter had inherited the Sage Eye.

The Kaguya Clan had also inherited the Sage Body, though they were currently far away in the Land of Water.

The Chinoike Clan's Ketsuryūgan had likewise inherited the Sage Eye, though who knew what corner of the world they were hiding in now.

In a world built around bloodlines, Orochimaru found it truly frustrating.

For ninjas outside those bloodlines, trying to overturn the world in the later stages was exceedingly difficult.

Unless they cheated like Sage Kabuto and forced their way into the game. Yet even Kabuto's perfect Sage Body had ultimately lost to the Uchiha brothers.

As for Sakura, who shamelessly claimed she had caught up to Naruto and Sasuke—just listen and move on. Do not laugh.

"If cheating still can't win, then the cheat clearly wasn't strong enough. Otherwise, why not uninstall the game?"

With cells from every clan added to the mix, Orochimaru's research directions became far more numerous.

Orochimaru personally kept the research on Uzumaki, Uchiha, and Hyuga cells in his own hands, while he delegated the projects involving the fusion of Hashirama Cells with cells from the other clans.

Even so, Orochimaru's research progress slowed.

Even doubled comprehension required sufficient data for analysis, as well as time and risk for trial and error. But Orochimaru knew this project would likely be shut down before it produced any meaningful results.

"My knowledge base is still insufficient. The Second Hokage's research materials definitely weren't limited to this. There should be more!"

As Orochimaru looked at a freshly produced data report, he could not help sinking into thought.

The materials provided by the Third Hokage were incomplete. They looked comprehensive, with extensions in every direction, but none included deeper research results.

Orochimaru guessed that, if he continued researching along these paths, they either led to problems even the Second Hokage had failed to understand, or pointed toward foundational knowledge for certain Forbidden Jutsu.

Like the Impure World Reincarnation and the Spirit Transformation Technique—both had been developed from research into the human body.

The Third Hokage knew those Forbidden Jutsu, but he did not realize that the origins of their development would also greatly aid Orochimaru's current research.

They could help him avoid many detours and save considerable time and effort.

"Where can I get those materials? Apply to see them?"

He immediately dismissed that thought. The Hokage would never agree to let him examine those materials. They involved a large number of Forbidden Jutsu; they were not something one could view simply by asking.

"Looks like I can only take the old route!"

That night, after dinner with Tsunade and Shizune, Orochimaru went to his workshop.

Neither woman found it strange. Orochimaru had been rushing about like this throughout this period.

When the night grew quiet and both Tsunade and Shizune had gone to bed, Orochimaru created a Shadow Clone.

Orochimaru himself used Sonido to leave Tsunade's residence. Without stopping, he flashed several times in succession and arrived at a forbidden area within Konoha.

He stopped when he was still twenty meters away from the forbidden area.

Two ninjas stood guard ahead, with a cluster of buildings shrouded in darkness behind them.

"Hey, Tajima, what's the point of guarding this place day in and day out? This is Konoha's forbidden area. What idiot would dare come here?"

One ninja grumbled to his companion, Tajima. A cigarette hung from his mouth as he puffed out clouds of smoke.

"Mizuma, it's fine to say that to me, but don't go spouting it outside. If Lord Hokage hears it, won't he remove you from your post?"

Tajima scolded Mizuma a few times. He was somewhat dissatisfied with the job as well, but as a ninja, he could only follow orders. Besides, their pay was not low—barely less than what ninjas earned for going out on missions.

"I heard the Uchiha Clan has been getting restless lately. Fighting every other day... I really can't understand what those lunatics are thinking."

Mizuma continued. During night watch, he could only pass the time by talking with his companion, and his tone made it obvious that he held the Uchiha Clan in great contempt.

"Sigh, who told them to be such a powerful clan? And with the Konoha Military Police Force behind them, they have every reason to act arrogantly. How could commoners like us compare?"

"Hmph. Evil Uchiha..."

Hearing their conversation from ahead, Orochimaru did not act rashly.

He did not care about these two gatekeeping lackeys, but this was a secret infiltration. He did not want to alert the enemy.

Just as Orochimaru was about to make his next move, a mechanical voice sounded in his mind.

Detected that the host has triggered the plot in advance: infiltrating the Sealing Jutsu Forbidden Area. The host has the following choices:

① Kill the Forbidden Area Guardians and force your way in. You will receive the Fear Aura as a reward. When making eye contact with an enemy, it can make them feel fear and erode their will.

② Infiltrate secretly. You will receive the Uzumaki Clan cell fusion agent formula as a reward.

Orochimaru had not expected plots could be triggered ahead of time. This was quite the unexpected delight.

By that logic, could he run for Hokage early, carry out the Konoha Crush Plan early...

Thinking that, Orochimaru shook his head again. Which matter involving him was not earth-shattering? One wrong move could truly doom him beyond redemption.

Take what he was doing now: spying on Konoha's secrets. If he were discovered, he would likely have no choice but to defect.

Returning his focus to reality, Orochimaru was tempted by the first option. But if he did that, it would be a one-time deal, and he did not want to defect so early.

"Coming early has its pros and cons, it seems. What a pity about that reward."

After weighing his options, Orochimaru no longer hesitated and decisively chose the latter.