Orochimaru: Believe in Chiba, Gain Eternal Life

"Why?"

After Gaara discovered the black, swirling mark on his abdomen, he asked Chiba with a look of surprise and confusion.

Although he hadn't heard much about the Eight Trigrams Seal, he could clearly feel that its effects were far superior to the seal he had originally carried.

Even if Shukaku's Chakra were to recover in the future, as long as Gaara himself didn't encounter any issues, he wouldn't have to worry about it fighting him for control of his body.

However, Gaara, who had been targeted and ostracized since childhood, could not understand the reason for Chiba's actions.

Doesn't he loathe me for being a monster? As soon as this thought surfaced, Gaara dismissed it himself: That's right, he can easily handle even Shukaku, so why would he care too much about me, someone who is, strictly speaking, just possessed by a monster?

But this still didn't allow Gaara to calmly accept this—kindness?—from Chiba.

"There is no why. I wanted to do it, so I did." Chiba couldn't be bothered to explain that much. "If you must have a reason, then just consider it that I need you and Shukaku to serve as my tools and pawns in the future."

"..."

"Mm, I understand." Upon hearing this, Gaara nodded gently, his expression relaxing significantly.

For him right now, compared to messy concepts like friendship or bonds, he was much more willing to accept the reason of being a "tool and pawn."

"Chiba-kun, your Tenseigan really gives me too many surprises."

At this moment, Orochimaru took the initiative to approach Chiba, asking with an excited expression: "Just as you said before, Otogakure is now a part of the territory under your rule."

"Including me, the one who established this village, I am willing to accept your rule."

"So, what do you need me to do?"

"Wrong!" However, Chiba shook his head and said meaningfully: "It should be you telling me what you can do for me."

"I know you are definitely interested in my Tenseigan right now, and I also know that you have always wanted to research a method for eternal life."

"Coincidentally, I know that there exists a type of person in this world who, before they die, can compress their information into a special mark called 'Karma,' and then implant that Karma into the body of a suitable person, or rather, a 'vessel'."

"Once that Karma finishes 'unfreezing,' they can complete a perfect resurrection through that vessel."

"Nani?" Upon hearing this, Orochimaru's pupils shook, his expression stunned, even showing a look of "bewilderment" for the first time: "Information compression, Karma, vessel, perfect resurrection?"

"Does such a method of resurrection really exist in the world?"

One must know that after experiencing the cruelty of the Second and Third Shinobi World War, as well as the deaths of his disciple Nawaki and Tsunade's boyfriend Dan Katō, Orochimaru had come to a profound realization of the fragility of life.

Coupled with the fact that there was too much he wanted to learn and research, his limited lifespan restricted his studies and experiments.

Thus, Orochimaru began to dedicate himself to the research of "immortality."

The Forbidden Jutsu "Living Corpse Reincarnation" was born from this.

Its effect was simple: it allowed Orochimaru to transfer his soul into the bodies of others, thereby granting him more life and a longer lifespan.

But "Living Corpse Reincarnation" had drawbacks such as "damaging the soul," "requiring a three-year wait between uses," and "rejection reactions between his own soul and the vessel."

Yet the "Karma" Chiba had just mentioned was, in Orochimaru's eyes, a perfect, upgraded version of "Living Corpse Reincarnation."

But the problem was, if such a perfect method of resurrection as "Karma" truly existed in the Ninja World, why had Orochimaru never heard of it?

He had no impression whatsoever of the "type of person" Chiba spoke of.

And why would Chiba, a member of the Hyuga Branch Family who had never left the Hyuga Clan Compound before, know about it?

Because the effects of "Karma" and "Living Corpse Reincarnation" were similar, Orochimaru even harbored a tiny sliver of suspicion that this might be something Chiba had fabricated to deceive him.

But that led back to the earlier question: very few people knew about his "Living Corpse Reincarnation," so how could Chiba know?

After a brief and complex bout of rapid thinking, Orochimaru forced himself to calm down and asked Chiba: "Then, honorable Hyuga Chiba-sama, what must I do to obtain more information regarding Karma?"

"Oh?" Seeing Orochimaru accept this so quickly, Chiba was somewhat surprised: "You don't suspect I'm lying to you?"

"And you aren't curious about how I know these things?"

"There is no need for that!" Orochimaru shook his head and said: "With your strength, you have absolutely no need to deceive me."

"Besides, everyone has their own secrets, myself included."

"I have no need to know what your secrets are, or rather, with my current strength, I am not qualified to probe into your secrets."

"I only want to know where this 'Karma' that allows for perfect resurrection is, how it can be obtained, how it operates, and how it can be applied to my own body?"

"To take a step back, even if the existence of Karma is a lie, I won't suffer any losses for the time being."

"Most importantly, strictly speaking, I am currently your captive, so what qualifications do I have to question or oppose you?"

"Talking to a smart person is always comfortable." Chiba nodded and then said: "However, as I said just now, it should be you proving your value to me."

"Once the value you demonstrate is sufficient, I will naturally give you the information regarding Karma."

Chiba wasn't giving Orochimaru a blank check, because something like "Karma" truly existed in the Ninja World.

He would inevitably move against the Otsutsuki Clan in the future.

Even Chiba himself was quite interested in "Karma."

After all, the Tenseigan could not grant him eternal life.

And as everyone knew, when it came to research in the Ninja World, leaving it to Orochimaru was the right choice.

Of course, the prerequisite was ensuring that he wouldn't be bitten back by him.

At this moment, upon hearing Chiba's words, Orochimaru gradually furrowed his brows.

The condition of "proving one's value" sounded simple, yet it could potentially be harder than any other requirement.

The greatest difficulty did not lie in whether Orochimaru could truly prove how much value he possessed, but rather in whether the value he demonstrated would be enough to satisfy Chiba.

However, the word "satisfy" was highly subjective.

As long as Chiba was willing, he could claim he was unsatisfied regardless of what Orochimaru did.

But thinking of the various powerful and miraculous abilities Chiba had displayed, as well as the "Karma" he mentioned that could allow for perfect resurrection, Orochimaru's gaze gradually firmed up, and he nodded, saying, "Fine!"

"I will prove my value to you."

In truth, Orochimaru did not truly trust Chiba, but he didn't mind taking a gamble.

After all, he wasn't some "Big Fat Sheep" who basically lost every bet, so it was still possible for him to win.

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