Experiment, Yamato, Flirting?

Two hours later, a large crowd gathered outside a bustling village, including young and old people dressed as villagers, as well as wealthy merchants in fine clothes.

"Thank you so much! My brother was killed by this man!" A middle-aged man dressed in fine clothes said to the Shuichi's squad with a mixture of grief and gratitude, "This is a small token of my appreciation. I hope you will accept it."

"You're too kind. This is just our duty." Shuichi smiled as he accepted a small packet of banknotes. People in this village and the nearby town had been victimized, so they had joined forces to offer a high price to come to Konoha to carry out the commission.

"I've destroyed the meridian systems of these murderers, so don't worry about them using chakra to resist. Now the people are officially in your hands; we need to return to the village as soon as possible."

Such an efficient operation greatly impressed the many employers, who all expressed their intention to patronize Konoha again. After seeing Shuichi and his companions off, the villagers, their faces filled with hatred, unleashed their fury upon the prisoners...

After completing the mission, Shuichi shared some of the extra reward with Shisui and Ishikawa Tatsuki. It was rare to receive so much income from a mission that wasn't particularly difficult. Money is something you can never have too much of, so everyone returned to Konoha in a relaxed and happy mood.

After submitting the report in the Hokage's Office, Shuichi walked out with his hands behind his head, whistling. His two teammates, being very loyal, didn't leave first, but instead waited for him to go out for a big meal together.

"Because we've completed several missions in the past few months, the Lord Hokage has granted us a vacation," Shuichi smile to Shisui. "We won't be taking on any more missions for two whole weeks. You're free now, you can do whatever you want. Want to come over to my house for some fun again?"

Shisui broke out in a cold sweat, recalling Sarutobi Hiruzen's earnest and repeated emphasis on him: Shuichi excellent ninja, but he must never learn that decadent and corrupt lifestyle, or his talent will be wasted.

As an obedient and good child, he certainly wouldn't openly disobey the Lord Hokage's teachings, so he could only hesitate before replying, "I'm sorry, Captain, I haven't mastered the Ninjutsu you taught me yet, so I'd like to practice more diligently during this time."

Such positive behavior did not make the seasoned Shuichi feel the slightest bit ashamed. Seeing that Shisui was busy, he asked Ishikawa Tatsuki next to him.

As it turned out, although Ishikawa Tatsuki really wanted to go, he said he still had to work hard to earn money to pay off his debts. During their rest time, he still had to find other teams to go on missions, which surprised Shuichi.

"Alright, don't push yourself too hard," Shuichi a sigh.

It seemed he would be enjoying the planned hot springs and sauna all by himself, and he felt a pang of regret for his companions who were missing out...

"Hmm? Is something the teacher need?"

After finishing their farewell dinner at the barbecue restaurant, before they could even say goodbye, Shuichi suddenly received a signal from Orochimaru. So he could only wave to them and disappear from the spot in a flash.

Orochimaru set up more than one experimental site outside the village, and even Anko frequently visited the one he used most often, not to mention the Root.

However, the others are all kept secret, and only Shuichi, his disciple who can "understand" him, knows about them. The two of them are meeting here this time, so it seems they will discuss some rather confidential matters.

Soon, Shuichi saw Orochimaru in good spirits, so it seemed that nothing unexpected had happened. He wondered why Orochimaru had specifically asked him to come.

"Teacher, what happened? I just got back to the village and then I received your message?"

Orochimaru licked his lips and tossed Shuichi lab log. "A while ago, over 30 test subjects were implanted with varying strengths of Wood Release Genes fluid. This is their recent health report. One of them has disappeared. I suspect that Danzo tampered with it."

Shuichi and examined it carefully. Since he had transmigrated here, Orochimaru had not yet fully let loose, so he could not collect experimental materials without restraint.

Apart from what they and their master collected casually during the mission, the vast majority of the items were provided by Danzo.

Although Danzo and he didn't want the Third Hokage to know about these things, so they acted cautiously, they had encountered several groups of people over the years, and the White Zetsu had also appeared along the way, so their research route had naturally changed quite a bit.

This batch of experimental subjects mainly consisted of teenagers and young adults, including a few children. According to age distribution, each group was implanted with Genes fluid at three levels: strong, medium, and weak.

This new technique differs from directly injecting First Hokage Cells; it avoids the dendritic process exploding, essentially eliminating the risk of immediate death. However, completing the Genes modification will take at least several months, and possibly more than a year.

Although Orochimaru kept a close eye on things, he was only one person and couldn't possibly keep an eye on things 24 hours a day. So, the Root researchers were naturally in charge of this matter.

"Do you suspect this person succeeded? Or do you think Danzo and the others succeeded after observing the data, and then secretly hid him away?" Shuichi asked tentatively.

White Zetsu Cells are quite overpowered; compared to the original story where success or failure was purely a matter of luck, the current success rate is probably ridiculously high.

The person who disappeared used Medium-Strength Gene Fluid. According to Orochimaru and Shuichi's estimates, the chances of him surviving and being able to use Wood Release are about 50/50, although its power should be less than that of Yamato.

A few days ago, Root told Orochimaru that this person had died suddenly and that they had disposed of the body. This seemingly normal explanation is likely to be suspicious.

Although his physical indicators were somewhat abnormal, the process was slightly bizarre compared to previous deaths, making it difficult to hide from Orochimaru, who had a deep understanding of the human body.

"Of course, this person was originally a reserve member of Root, and that feeling didn't escape my notice." Orochimaru smiled confidently. "Although I don't care about Danzo's actions, I'm very interested in studying that successful product. Since he deliberately hid himself, he can definitely use Wood Release, barring any unforeseen circumstances."

"So you're looking for me because..."

"That person is probably gone, but there are still a few materials that show signs of success, and I don't want to let them go this time."

Shuichi: "I'm fine with it. To prevent any accidents or omissions, you can mark them all."

At night, under the bright moonlight, the Konoha appeared quiet and peaceful.

Deep beneath the village lies a vast space perpetually shrouded in darkness, where countless sinister and sordid deeds are buried.

"Tap tap tap..."

Orochimaru's footsteps returned in the quiet darkness. He skillfully turned into a corner, used his chakra to open a door, and stepped inside in a few strides.

At that moment, three ninjas dressed in white, their faces hidden behind masks, were on guard. Upon seeing him enter, they called out, "Lord Orochimaru!"

Orochimaru didn't respond to them. Instead, he circled the entire laboratory before asking, "Another test subject is missing today. When did this happen?"

"Number 8 died yesterday, and we've confirmed he has no vital signs." The Root ninja said calmly, "Because you specifically mentioned it, this is something we keep in the autopsy room for review at any time."

"Is that so? Looks like his luck wasn't so good!" Orochimaru took out the file and looked at it. He found that the experimental data in the record was normal, so he didn't bother to examine the corpse again.

Looking up, he stared at the Root ninja with his serpentine eyes filled with murderous intent. "I hope you behave yourselves, or Danzo won't be able to protect your lives. Right now, he's the one who needs my help."

"... No, we didn't do anything else." Under the masks, cold sweat beaded on the faces of the three men. They were not elites trained through brutal methods, but rather medical personnel, unlike combatants who were fearless of death.

Seeing that the deterrent effect was good, Orochimaru's expression suddenly changed. "I need to conduct a detailed examination of all the test subjects now. Please leave immediately and do not send anyone else to disturb us. Otherwise... who knows what might happen."

The three Root members exchanged glances and could only obey his orders to leave, leaving Orochimaru alone in the silent laboratory.

And he did indeed begin to examine them, even removing each experimental subject from the nutrient solution once. At the same time, he took out a Scroll from his person, and when he unfolded it, a large number of ink rats were neatly drawn on it.

He quickly formed several hand seals, and when there was an experimental subject nearby, a rat jumped out of the paper, dissolved on the subject, revealed the "Flying Thunder God Technique" technique, and then disappeared.

"How is it? Is there any chakra fluctuation?"

Outside the door, several Root ninjas were not just waiting idly. Some were maintaining Hand Seals Sensory Ninja monitor the room, while others were checking the state of the laboratory's Barrier.

If we were to pinpoint what Danzo was most worried about regarding his Wood Release experiments, it would undoubtedly be Shuichi's ability to use the Flying Thunder God Orochimaru move freely.

If this isn't stopped, the place will be like a sieve, and the initiative will completely shift into Shuichi's hands.

Once the master and apprentice felt they had used up the Root, they could simply transfer their research results away. They could even bring the Third Hokage back to report him first. How could Danzo, with his extremely strong desire for control, allow such things to happen?

The safest option, installing surveillance cameras, would have angered Orochimaru, so it wasn't used. However, other surveillance methods were already in place, including Sensory Ninjutsu and chakra Barrier.

"Nothing for now, and no spatial fluctuations have been observed." The Root Member remained vigilant; any mishap would surely result in severe punishment from Danzo.

However, they were completely unaware that Shuichi's methods were so bizarre. The Flying Thunder God Technique required a spell to move, and the Super Beast Imitation Drawing, originally used for information transmission, became much more flexible in his hands. Despite the combination of the two, they were still able to steal the chicken.

Out of curiosity, a small ink snake emerged only after Orochimaru had finished his inspection, explored the entire laboratory, and then hid inside his body before leaving...

"I don't recognize many of the materials, but I still need to memorize their appearances." After the master and apprentice finished their antics, Shuichi took the Ink Snake back home and slowly read the images recorded inside.

Although he couldn't fly directly into the Root, Danzo would definitely be able to sense any successful Wood Release experiments he might attempt to hide.

Shuichi little worried that he would forget what these people looked like, after all, there were still more than 20 people left, and perhaps those teenagers and children would look very different in the future.

Therefore, while watching, he also used his excellent drawing skills to record them one by one.

"This child looks familiar..." Shuichi paused slightly, focusing his attention on the boy or girl who had been injected with the potent Genes serum. Even he couldn't discern the child's gender in a short time.

The test subject looked pained, and after a long while, Shuichi jumped up in surprise, "Isn't that Yamato? Holy crap, he was so innocent when he was little, he's become ugly now!"

Yamato was a few years younger Kakashi and had not yet entered puberty. She looked almost like a little girl, no wonder Orochimaru called her "my cute experimental subject." Shuichi also thought she was really cute when he saw her.

"Keep going, brother! Hold on with your strong will, and I'll rescue you from Danzo." Shuichi could only silently pray that he would succeed.

Now that we're in the later stages of the experiment, a large amount of the First Hokage Gene Fluid has been injected in multiple batches, and all that's left is the stabilization process.

Yamato is currently the only surviving potent experimental subject. Those who died before him were basically recipients of this Genes serum. Even Root ninja with a strong will collapsed. It seems that in addition to perseverance, luck was also needed.

Although he wasn't in good condition, he had already attracted the attention of Danzo and Orochimaru. Unless they brought Tsunade back to the village now, it would be better to let him continue to endure it.

Upon seeing Yamato, Shuichi lost interest in the others as well. He quickly recorded all the information from the "video" and then set it aside. After all, they all had their own spells on them and couldn't escape anyway.

The two-week break passed quickly, and on a clear, sunny morning, Shuichi arrived at the team's meeting point feeling refreshed.

Following his full-service housekeeping team of Earth Clone, he has recently developed Water Clone "massage" technicians, repeatedly exploring advanced techniques in his own hot spring room, an experience that is simply heavenly.

To those who gave up the opportunity, Shuichi says you missed out on a fortune.

He was now incredibly grateful for the vast amount of human knowledge he had accumulated, which he had originally intended for learning Mystical Palm Technique, but unexpectedly had this other benefit. "I always said that enjoying the Ninja Way is the bright future of the Shinobi World, Ninja Way is trash. Desire is the driving force for human progress."

"Shuichi-kun, you're here so early today!" A gentle voice came from the side after I had only been standing there for a short while.

Yūhi Kurenai had just finished a mission and had been idle recently, but Shuichi pulled her into his mission team.

"I've only been here a short time, I didn't expect you to arrive so quickly!" Shuichi, snapping out of her daze, smiled and said, "You look beautiful today. How about we come to my house for a hot spring after we finish the mission? I've even practiced massage techniques."

Hong, who had been smiling, seemed to have been struck by lightning; her fair face instantly turned bright red. The message conveyed by those words was far too "unrestrained"...

"Oops, I didn't mean to say that!" Shuichi realized his tone was off as soon as he blurted it out; he hadn't meant to flirt with her. "No, Hong! Let me explain, there are specialized massage services..."

Good morning, senior!

"Senior Brother, Hong! You guys are here so early! I didn't expect to be the last one..."

Shisui and Anko appeared simultaneously from both sides of the street, interrupting Shuichi's words. They also saw that Hong had her hands behind her back and her head down like an ostrich, and they were somewhat confused about what had just happened.

Shuichi: "..."