A Grade-Schooler Learning Calculus?

In other words, the Sacred Blessing Serum didn't take away the user's ability to think freely. It merely added an extra safeguard.

"Once I obtain a way to control things, this world will finally achieve true peace!"

That was what Nagato thought. When the time came, he wouldn't need to actively control other people like that madman Uchiha Brahman. He would only need to put an end to all conflict and control the warmongers who sought to destroy peace.

Then, under his leadership, the entire world would enter an era of peace unlike anything it had ever known.

He was Nagato, the Kami of the New World!

"I wonder how Orochimaru's research on the Sacred Blessing Serum is going?"

In a shadowy corner, a reddish-brown cockroach crouched, silently watching Nagato's back.

Orochimaru had been in a terrible mood lately.

In the lab.

"Phew..."

With his eyes bloodshot and webbed with red veins, Orochimaru set aside his work, picked up a vial of Sacred Blessing Serum, and angrily hurled it to the floor.

"Uchiha Brahman—who the hell is this guy?! How can his technical expertise be so incredible?!"

Orochimaru gritted his teeth. For the first time in his life, he felt what it was like to be completely outclassed—not in strength, but in intelligence and technological expertise.

Ever since the Sacred Blessing Serum had appeared, Orochimaru had seen in it a path to immortality. This wasn't some kind of cell implantation; it was gene editing and recombination. Cell implantation couldn't even begin to compare.

Put simply, cell implantation was taking existing things and piecing them together. It required some technical skill, sure, but... that was about it.

But gene editing and recombination was on a whole other level. It was creating something from nothing. With sufficient expertise, one could create immortal cells from scratch. It would be difficult, yes, but merely difficult—not impossible.

This was an entirely different level of technology from cell transplantation. In fact, the cells used for transplants could be created directly through gene editing.

Orochimaru had realized this was a path to immortality, and one far more advanced than the path he was currently exploring. After all, the technology was already being used. The Sacred Blessing Serum was so cheap that the technology behind it had to be highly developed; otherwise, it couldn't possibly cost so little.

That made it clear that Uchiha Brahman possessed a thoroughly mature version of this technology, not some half-baked method.

Lately, Orochimaru had been hoping to use his extraordinary intellect to reverse-engineer the serum and uncover the gene-editing technology it contained. This was a path to immortality, after all.

But once he actually started trying to analyze it, he ran into a problem.

It was far too difficult. The technology contained in the Sacred Blessing Serum was so advanced that someone like him, who was still dabbling in cell transplantation and had only just begun studying genetic modification, had no hope of deciphering it.

What's more, while researching the serum, he'd discovered gene locks hidden inside it, specifically designed to prevent the theft of its technology.

It was like asking a grade-schooler who had just learned that 1 + 1 = 2 to study calculus with no reference materials whatsoever.

If Orochimaru's research skills were really that good, he would have ruined the entire world just as Uchiha Brahman had in his previous world. In the end, with no other choice, he would have fought Uchiha Brahman to the death—and even then, he shouldn't have won.

To be honest, when Uchiha Brahman had made these serums, he'd added the gene locks without a second thought. To him, it was like casually adding a pinch of salt while cooking. Putting in those gene locks had taken no effort at all.

He didn't care if others reverse-engineered the technology in the Sacred Blessing Serum and used it for themselves. It wasn't anything impressive to him, anyway.

On the contrary, he'd actually been looking forward to those ants giving him a bit of entertainment. Who could have guessed that Orochimaru wouldn't even get past the first hurdle?

"Damn it. I need to think of another way. I have to get my hands on this technology!"

Orochimaru picked up the vial from the floor. The golden liquid shimmered alluringly in the light, and he could almost see the path to immortality beckoning to him.

Mature gene-editing technology...

If he obtained it, he could gather every Kekkei Genkai in the Shinobi World and edit them all into his own body. He could even develop a kind of immortal cell. Then he would achieve true immortality.

Unfortunately, dreams were beautiful, but reality was harsh. He couldn't even break through the gene locks in the Sacred Blessing Serum.

Uchiha Brahman might not even have realized he'd added gene locks to the serum. For him, it had simply been an unconscious, effortless gesture.

He hadn't done it on purpose.

"Maybe..."

Orochimaru decided to try a different approach. He couldn't bring himself to challenge Uchiha Brahman directly. Brahman wasn't his teacher; he might actually beat Orochimaru to death.

Orochimaru soon came up with a plan: he would steal—or seize—the technology. The Empire had plenty of factories producing the Sacred Blessing Serum. If he could steal some equipment from one of them, wouldn't that amount to obtaining the technology?

Then he could use that equipment to figure out the genetic modification and editing techniques.

It was a perfect plan.

"What?! You can't figure it out?"

Nagato stared at Orochimaru in surprise.

"That's right. The technology in these things is far too advanced. You could even say it doesn't belong to our era. It's beyond my ability to study. But there is a way: if we can get a set of equipment from one of the factories that produce the Sacred Blessing Serum, I'm certain I can figure out the technology!"

Orochimaru looked at Nagato and spoke in a low voice.

"..."

Nagato fell silent, wondering whether he should go through with it.

"No. We can't tip them off. Stop your research on the Sacred Blessing Serum for now. Once Uchiha Brahman has defeated all the Shinobi Villages, I'll show him what true power is! Once I defeat him, everything he has will be mine!"

Nagato shook his head, rejecting Orochimaru's suggestion. He even felt Orochimaru was useless—unable to figure out something this simple.