Since Orochimaru was one of the Research Institute's senior members, he had handled much of the work to improve the ritual. So even when the Institute noticed some of his private experiments, it didn't dig too deeply.
After all, Orochimaru wasn't the only one conducting secret experiments at the Institute.
Besides, Orochimaru had covered his tracks very thoroughly. He had erased every trace of Genyumaru in particular. So apart from his trusted subordinate, Kabuto Yakushi, no one knew that he had not only secretly cultivated an experimental subject who awakened a divine art, but had also stolen that art from him.
Two weeks passed in the blink of an eye.
After a round of preparations, the Research Institute officially began its fifth ritual.
The ritual was once again held atop a snow-capped mountain in the Land of Snow, an ideal location where the subjects could easily bathe in the light of heaven.
After the failure of the fourth ritual, the researchers preparing the site for this one worked in silence, each task carried out in an orderly fashion.
Observation area.
Amado, Orochimaru, Tsunade, Scorpion, and the other research team leaders had all gathered to watch the ritual.
Around the ritual site, and even on several neighboring peaks, the Barrier Squad had painstakingly set up one massive barrier after another to prevent interference from outside forces.
Before long, all preparations were complete, and the fifth ritual officially began.
The one chosen to host the ritual this time was a death-row inmate named Yamada Juichi. Like Owl, he had committed countless crimes. More importantly, he was thick-skinned and strong-willed. Even during his First Hokage cell transplant surgery, he hadn't cried out once.
Clearly, the Research Institute was guarding against something.
The first half of the procedure went without incident. After devouring all