Interlude

Watching the look of sheer disbelief on Jiraiya's face, the corner of Orochimaru's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.

This guy must be thinking about something inappropriate again, right?

"Physiological monitoring."

Too lazy to waste words on him, Orochimaru pointed to a waveform graph flickering on a nearby screen and picked up several metal patches attached to wires.

"I'm recording the changes in your body's data while you attempt to absorb and utilize Sage Chakra.

This will help analyze and optimize the training process..."

He tried his best to explain in language Jiraiya could understand.

"Oh, oh! So that's what it is!"

Jiraiya had a sudden realization, the wariness on his face instantly replaced by an embarrassed, goofy grin.

"Geez, I thought... ahem, you know, you should've just said so!"

He scratched his head and then began to strip with practiced efficiency.

His jacket and shirt were tossed aside in a flurry, revealing a reasonably toned physique.

Just as his hands reached for his waistband, "That's enough. You don't need to take off your underwear."

Orochimaru finally spoke up to stop him.

Jiraiya's hand froze mid-motion, and he gave a sheepish laugh before pulling his hand away.

"Heh, I was just thinking that more comprehensive data would be better."

He muttered under his breath before obediently stepping onto the slightly raised metal platform.

Ignoring his grumbling, Orochimaru clapped his hands together.

"Poof!" "Poof!" "Poof!"

As several puffs of white smoke cleared, multiple Shadow Clones appeared in the laboratory, each heading toward different instruments to begin calibration.

One Shadow Clone walked over with electrode patches and began sticking them onto Jiraiya's body.

His chest, his arms, and even his forehead.

The cold sensation made Jiraiya shiver.

"Ready."

After confirming all equipment was connected correctly, Orochimaru spoke to Jiraiya on the platform.

"Now, attempt to absorb natural energy and condense Sage Chakra.

Follow the feeling you have when training at Mount Myoboku; don't force it."

He wanted to first observe Jiraiya's current progress and some of the fundamental characteristics of the Sage arts from Mount Myoboku.

"You got it!"

Jiraiya replied, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes.

He began to focus on recalling the sensation of being guided by Sage Fukasaku at Mount Myoboku, attempting to perceive that elusive energy in the surroundings.

The atmosphere in the laboratory fell silent, save for the faint humming of the instruments.

A moment later.

The sides of Jiraiya's nose began to bulge slightly, and faint, oil-paint-like markings appeared beneath his eyelids—the telltale features of a Toad.

An energy, distinct from his own Chakra, began to gather within his body.

But just as those features were about to become more pronounced and the Sage Chakra was on the verge of taking form, Jiraiya snapped his eyes open, and the anomalies on his body receded.

He panted for a few breaths, a look of regret on his face.

"Whew... this is the furthest I can go for now."

"If I go any deeper, I lose control of the physical changes, and I feel like I'm going to turn into a toad completely."

Orochimaru nodded, his expression calm as he signaled for his Shadow Clones to record the data.

"Hmm, the initial perception and guidance are already sufficient."

Afterward, he had Jiraiya perform several attempts at varying intensities, such as deliberately accelerating the absorption rate or attempting to perform basic Chakra nature transformation while condensing Sage Chakra.

With every attempt, the surrounding instruments recorded detailed data.

Though Jiraiya was a bit confused, he cooperated honestly.

After a long while of tossing and turning, Orochimaru finally signaled that they were done.

Jiraiya hopped off the platform, stretching his stiff body while curiously leaning in toward Orochimaru to look at the complex curves and values on the screen.

"Well? How is it? My talent isn't too bad, right? Will I be able to master Sage Mode soon?"

He rubbed his hands together, looking expectant.

"You don't actually think this little bit of data is enough, do you?"

Orochimaru glanced at him and said indifferently.

"Huh? We're still going?"

Jiraiya's smile froze on his face.

"Research is not as simple as you think."

Time flew by, and in the constant experimentation and accumulation of data, a year passed quietly.

This was also the third year since Orochimaru arrived in this world and became a ninja of Konoha.

After a year of joint research, especially after Orochimaru "borrowed" Jiraiya from time to time for various "harmless" tests, his research on Sage Mode finally got on the right track.

First of all, the perception and absorption of natural energy indeed, as he had expected, required the body and mind to reach a state of extreme "stillness."

In this regard, the ninjas of the Naruto world were somewhat lacking because they relied too heavily on the "convenient" energy of Chakra.

And after natural energy is inhaled into the body, this energy produces an instinctive, root-level repulsion reaction with Chakra.

This is perhaps the fundamental reason why special constitutions like Jugo, who are born with the ability to absorb natural energy, intermittently fall into a berserk state.

Their bodies find it difficult to maintain stability under the conflict of two completely different energy systems.

As for the core mysteries of the Sage Arts of the two great holy lands, Mount Myoboku and Ryūchi Cave, they were exactly as he had previously thought.

They did not create a brand-new way of using energy, but rather, by imitating the life characteristics of the two Sages—the toad and the snake—who had adapted to and even mastered natural energy since ancient times, they greatly reduced or even reconciled this repulsion reaction.

They allow the human body to "become compatible" with this powerful local force.

As for why such a thing is possible, he can only speculate for now that it is the special nature of Sage Chakra.

This is understandable, because Chakra already has corresponding manifestations in this regard, just like the Impure World Reincarnation.

By attaching the Chakra of the deceased to a living person, one can allow them to use the ninjutsu of the deceased, and even utilize Kekkei Genkai such as the Sharingan and the Rinnegan.

It is not impossible for Sage Chakra to allow the host to gradually adapt to natural energy...

"So, the key is still how to make the body adapt..."

Orochimaru looked at the experimental records, lost in thought.

Therefore, after understanding this point, he selected and adjusted certain basic training techniques from the Under One Person world and taught them to Jiraiya.

When it comes to how to reach a state of "stillness" and how to adjust one's internal "Qi," the methods of the Under One Person world are far ahead.

Although the bodies and spirits of the ninjas in the Naruto world are powerful, they are mostly used for Chakra control and the release of ninjutsu, and they have not delved deeply into this kind of pure internal cultivation.

Jiraiya was skeptical at first, wondering what use these strange postures and breathing methods could have.

But after trying them for a few days, he was "truly hooked."

The effect was unexpectedly good!

He found that his efficiency in perceiving natural energy, his stability when condensing Sage Chakra, and even his control over Chakra had all improved significantly.

After spending a few months combining the training from the Under One Person world with the training plan provided by Orochimaru, Jiraiya was pleasantly surprised to find that he had actually succeeded in entering Sage Mode!

Although the duration was not yet long and the features were somewhat unstable, this was undoubtedly a huge breakthrough!

After confirming that these techniques were useful, Orochimaru used this as a bargaining chip and, through Jiraiya's connection, successfully obtained a tiny bit of body tissue samples from the White Snake Sage and the Great Toad Sage from Mount Myoboku and Ryūchi Cave.

The process went even more smoothly than he had imagined; the White Snake Sage seemed to want to see how far he could go and readily agreed.

What surprised him was the side of Mount Myoboku; the Great Toad Sage met him in person and said that in a prophecy, he had seen him stir up a revolution in the Ninja World, which could bring about both rebirth and destruction.

It was willing to provide a bit of body tissue, but on the condition that he must make a pact with it: when the Ninja World encounters danger, Orochimaru must do his utmost to prevent the destruction of the Ninja World.

Orochimaru was stunned, and after some thought, he readily agreed.

Just like that, he obtained the body tissues of the two Sages.

For the next half year, Orochimaru's main energy was devoted to the research of these two types of cells, and he made considerable progress.

"Next, it's time to consider the goals for the next stage.

I should also find a way to get my hands on the Second Hokage's research materials on the [Impure World Reincarnation]."

A sharp glint flashed in Orochimaru's eyes; next, he would have to consider how to get the experimental data from Danzo.

Taking a deep breath, Orochimaru pushed open the door of the laboratory, and the long-lost sunlight made him squint slightly.

Come to think of it, he had been holed up in the laboratory for a long time...

I wonder how Tsunade and Hiruko's work is going.

In order to train more medical ninjas, he had asked these two to try to organize and compile materials and then create some textbooks.

However, I haven't paid attention for a while, and I don't know how it's going...

On the streets, after several years of development, Konoha was clearly much more lively than when he first arrived.

It was no longer the depression and repression under the shadow of war; the laughter of children echoed in the streets and alleys, injecting a vibrant vitality into the village.

It's just that there will be a war again in a few years...

Orochimaru walked slowly along the street, feeling this hard-won peace.

A moment later, he arrived in front of the Hokage Building.

Today, it was his teacher, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had specifically summoned the three of them.

As for the specifics of the matter, Teacher Hiruzen had not gone into detail in his notification.

But Orochimaru could sense that it likely wasn't just some ordinary D-rank or C-rank mission.

Walking into the Hokage's office, two familiar figures had already arrived.

"Yo! Orochimaru! You finally came out of seclusion, you guy!"

Seeing him enter, Jiraiya immediately waved his hand in a warm greeting.

Because they had been researching senjutsu together during this period, the relationship between him and Orochimaru had grown much closer, elevating from teammates to best friends.

On the other side, Tsunade had her arms crossed and her lips pursed, her eyes carrying a hint of imperceptible resentment.

During this time, Orochimaru had been holed up in his laboratory almost around the clock. She had tried to find him several times to discuss new ideas regarding medical ninjutsu, or simply to drag him out to gamble, but she couldn't even find the person.

This guy was even more of a shut-in than her grand-uncle!

It's nice to be young...

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat behind his desk, watching the small interactions between his three disciples, a gentle smile appearing on his face.

However, his expression soon turned slightly more serious.

"Everyone is here now, so it's time to talk business..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped the pipe in his hand against the ashtray.

Then, he took a form out of his drawer and placed it on the desktop.

"Take a look."

Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade leaned in to get a closer look.

At the top of the form, written in eye-catching characters, were the words—"Joint Chunin Qualification Selection Exam of the Five Great Ninja Villages Application Form"...