The Future Was Bright

The underground base of Root was even bloodier and darker than Kirigakure in the Land of Water. Its atmosphere held nothing but an oppressive silence. Even the occasional figure passing by seemed as lifeless as one of Sunagakure's puppets.

In a hidden room off a corridor, a small snake slipped nimbly through the crack beneath the door. Under the gaze of someone watching with disgust, its body rapidly swelled. It opened its jaws to a 180-degree angle, then Orochimaru's damp figure crawled out. As though he knew how much the other person loathed him, he deliberately dragged his long tongue lightly across his cheek.

"Orochimaru!"

Danzo could no longer bear his antics and rebuked him coldly.

Orochimaru paid him no mind. He sat back down on the coiled snake, resting his right hand lightly on its slender head. His hoarse voice rang out. "Danzo, you really can't wait, can you? Wood Release must appeal to you far more than I imagined. Unfortunately, Tsunade saw at a glance that something was wrong with the information I gave her, so I'm afraid your plan will have to be put on hold."

"Is that so? Then we'll continue our discussion when you've made some progress. After all, without enough test subjects, the work will be delayed—and I doubt I'll be the one most anxious about that."

With that, Danzo slowly rose and disappeared into the darkness, leaning on his cane. Orochimaru remained alone, sitting still, murderous intent flickering in his eyes.

"Greedy old fool. No matter how great your power, in the end you'll be nothing but a pile of dirt. Only by staying alive—staying alive..."

His voice, tinged with both revulsion and fervor, echoed softly through the empty room.

In the dark space, a blue fire burned silently. Countless meridians spread out from beneath it into the surrounding darkness. It was the only source of light here.

"Thud!" "Thud!" "Thud!"

The sounds of fists and feet colliding rang out without pause. Two figures fought at high speed around the Chakra Flame. No ninjutsu or secret techniques could be used in this space; only the most primitive taijutsu could build experience.

Senba struck first with his right fist, charging forward with unstoppable force and aiming for Senba of the Forest's face. Though they were one and the same, Senba couldn't stand the other's attitude.

Wearing crimson armor, Senba of the Forest sneered disdainfully and dodged the blow that would have smashed his face in. Then his right leg shot out like lightning, landing precisely against Senba's side with a dull thud.

"You charged straight at me without defending yourself. What are you, Might Guy? You're pathetic, original. You can't even get me interested."

Senba of the Forest folded his arms and looked down disdainfully at his counterpart, whom he had knocked back. His arrogance irritated Senba, who was clutching his side.

"Enough with the nonsense. If we weren't in here, I would've used the Hardening Technique on my side. Don't get all cocky just because I called you fat. Instead of wasting time, why not help improve my bloodline activation? I'm not asking for infinite Chakra or anything. At least get me some Chakraton."

Senba stretched his body, walked over to the Chakra Flame, and sat cross-legged. He reached a hand into the flames. Though he couldn't feel anything unusual, the sense of fulfillment in his heart still made his eyes narrow with pleasure. Supernatural power was truly captivating.

"Are you mistaken, original?" Senba of the Forest walked over to the fire and looked at the strangely satisfied expression on Senba's face. His tone remained mocking. "I'm just a fragment of your soul, at most a separate soul formed by fusing with some of the memories in the Senju bloodline. If you let me control a Wood Release body, I could do all sorts of things with it. But asking me to actively help strengthen your bloodline? You'd have better luck hoping a paramecium would turn into Rayquaza."

Senba of the Forest's words were discouraging, but Senba knew they were true. If he blocked the sharing of memories, the other would probably become little more than a vegetable, motionless.

But Senba wouldn't do that. He was too lonely. The deepest secrets in his heart could only be laid bare here, without restraint. No matter whether Senba's thoughts were dark or good, the other him would accept them unconditionally. But once he woke up, he became the good companion in other people's eyes, the humble junior, the inheritor of the Will of Fire—anything but his true self.

After sitting cross-legged on the ground and indulging in self-pity for a while, Senba rallied and looked at Senba of the Forest, who was still holding his head high. He couldn't help sighing. "Senba of the Forest, what are you putting on airs for? If you don't want to bow your head, then sit down and look me in the eye, okay? I don't like talking to people while looking up at them."

Hearing the warning in his original's voice, Senba of the Forest thought for a few seconds before finally giving in and sitting down. He still muttered something about "thirty years east of the river, thirty years west," making Senba want to punch him. Why did he have to run his mouth so much?

"You saw what happened to me today. Don't you have any thoughts about it?" Senba toyed with the Chakra Flame in his right hand, looking across at the other with a thoughtful expression reflected in his eyes.

"You want to use Tsunade to get the Senju Clan to take you in, right? Your appearance and Chakra nature will surely be reported to Tsunade by Slug."

Senba of the Forest naturally knew what his original had in mind. If he wanted to increase his strength quickly, he needed the backing of a faction. Among those connected to Konoha, the Senju Clan was clearly the best choice.

"But have you considered the Third Generation and Danzo? You could say those two are constantly at each other's throats, yet they always unite against outsiders. There aren't many candidates for Wood Release experiments. If they discover the problem with your Chakra nature, you'll be in danger."

"I know that," Senba replied, propping his chin on his fingers as he recalled Tsunade and Orochimaru's fight that day. "So I took a small gamble. At the moment, only Tsunade knows about my situation. If she tells the Third Generation the truth, then I'll accept my fate. Otherwise, I should be summoned by the Senju main family soon."

"When you're alive, you have to take a gamble at the crucial moments. Tsunade's one word is worth a hundred from anyone else."

Senba had long planned to use his grandfather's old friend, Senju Yunhua, to get himself noticed by Senju Momoka. Unfortunately, all this time, he'd made no progress at all.

Now that he'd finally run into Tsunade, Senba naturally wouldn't let the opportunity slip by. At the very least, he might get a few rare techniques, such as the "Flying Thunder God," the "Second Generation Water Release Compendium," and the "First Generation Wood Release Compendium."

Senba also liked the kind of fighting that involved smashing opponents away with sheer force. Thinking of this, he looked up at Senba of the Forest, who was striking a pose.

"Hey, Senba of the Forest, do you still remember the Spirit Transformation Technique? I think it suits our situation."

"Of course, original. And that's not all. We still need a Wood Release body. No, in the future, we may need more test subjects. We'll probably have to trouble Orochimaru and Danzo with that—and I doubt they'll refuse."

The two, their minds connected, smiled at the same time.

The future was bright.