Land of the Sea

The Land of the Sea!

It lay at the southernmost tip of the Land of Water.

It was a small, impoverished country with no arable land. The people living nearby made their living by fishing, and life was very hard.

A country this weak naturally had no ninja village.

That was why Orochimaru had established a research base here many years ago.

"Lord Orochimaru, you're back!"

As soon as they entered the base, a bespectacled middle-aged man came over.

"Amachi!"

Orochimaru glanced at him and said, "Let me introduce you to a new friend: Hozuki Mangetsu of Kirigakure's Seven Ninja Swordsmen!"

"Welcome, welcome!"

Amachi pushed up his glasses and said with a smile, "This is where Lord Orochimaru conducts his most valuable experiments. Once the research bears fruit, it will change the entire Shinobi World."

He had originally been a medical jonin from Konoha, but he had betrayed the village alongside Orochimaru to pursue his research and ambitions.

He had now become one of Orochimaru's most important medical assistants.

What he didn't know was that Orochimaru had already decided to abandon this place. He had come this time to tell him just that.

Hōzuki Mangetsu smiled faintly and followed them into the base.

The base wasn't large, but it had many rooms.

Orochimaru turned to Hōzuki Mangetsu and said, "This is my base. Feel free to look around."

As he spoke, he led him into a laboratory.

Inside were several enormous tanks. A long-haired monster lay in one of them.

Orochimaru said with a smile, "The Land of the Sea and the Land of Water have vast oceans. There's no way ninja alone can guard all of them, so I developed this new type of weapon: a perfect underwater soldier."

"An underwater soldier!"

Hōzuki Mangetsu's mouth twisted. "An amphibious one?"

Orochimaru and Amachi were both startled by his words. They had been researching these amphibious soldiers at their base in the Land of the Sea for some time. They thought they'd kept it completely under wraps, but Hōzuki Mangetsu had seen right through them with a single remark.

"Kid, it seems you know quite a lot."

Orochimaru's eyes narrowed again.

Hozuki Mangetsu was from Kirigakure. If he knew about this, it meant Kirigakure knew about Orochimaru's activities too.

If Kirigakure learned that he was making amphibious ninja, they certainly wouldn't let the matter rest.

A sharp glint flashed in Amachi's eyes. He pushed up his glasses and looked at Orochimaru, signaling that they should take Hōzuki Mangetsu down.

A flicker of hesitation crossed Orochimaru's eyes. He also wanted to get rid of Hōzuki Mangetsu once and for all, but he simply couldn't turn down the confidential information Mangetsu had offered.

"Forget it. It's not much of a secret, and I was planning to abandon the project anyway."

He spoke calmly.

Orochimaru had many bases scattered around. Keeping them running required a huge amount of funding every day, and it was no small expense.

Even someone as powerful as Orochimaru found it difficult to maintain all these bases, so he had come to shut down some unnecessary bases and projects.

The base in the Land of the Sea was one of them.

"What?"

Amachi froze and looked at Orochimaru. "Lord Orochimaru, do you really mean that?"

He had devoted many years of effort to this experiment.

If they abandoned it, all his work over the years would go to waste.

"Lord Orochimaru!"

Amachi hurried to Orochimaru's side. "Please don't abandon this project. I'll find a way to get the funding!"

He was one of Orochimaru's senior subordinates, so he understood the difficulties the base was facing.

"Amachi!"

Orochimaru glanced sidelong at Hōzuki Mangetsu and said unhurriedly, "Do you still not understand? Amphibious weapons are obsolete."

"Obsolete!"

Amachi swayed and stared at him, unwilling to accept it.

"Wars are fought on land these days. Naval battles make up only a small part of them, so there isn't much demand for amphibious soldiers."

Orochimaru explained.

He had researched amphibious ninja purely to solve his funding problems. The years since had shown that he'd gone down the wrong path, and with funding limited, he had decided to shut the base down.

"Lord Orochimaru!"

Amachi still wanted to say something.

Orochimaru slowly rose to his feet.

"This is an order, not a request!"

Amachi clenched his fists. It took him a long while to unclench them.

"I understand, Lord Orochimaru!"

His face still showed his reluctance.

This experiment was his life's work. He couldn't accept it simply coming to an end.

Orochimaru seemed to understand how he felt.

"Starting today, funding for this place will be drastically cut. Amachi, you'd better prepare yourself."

Amachi nodded silently to show that he understood.

Only then did Orochimaru motion for Hōzuki Mangetsu to leave with him.

"Looks like you've decided to abandon him."

Hōzuki Mangetsu glanced sidelong at Orochimaru.

He knew Orochimaru had abandoned the base in the Land of the Sea long ago. Amachi and the others were pawns he was throwing away, too.

"That's right!"

Orochimaru smiled faintly. "I've found a replacement!"

Amachi was a skilled medical ninja who had helped Orochimaru a great deal, but Yakushi Kabuto had taken his place.

Compared with a genius like Yakushi Kabuto, Amachi was somewhat outclassed.

Orochimaru was a practical man. Once he decided you were no longer useful, he'd discard you like a piece of trash.

Hōzuki Mangetsu's eyes narrowed.

He did lack someone skilled in Medical Ninjutsu. Unfortunately, Amachi wasn't a good partner to work with.

Orochimaru suddenly spat out a test tube, making Hōzuki Mangetsu feel sick.

For some reason, Snake Uncle always liked spitting things out of his mouth.

"These are the cells of Hashirama that I cultivated!"

Orochimaru picked up a small test tube and held it out in front of Hōzuki Mangetsu.

"So the First's cells have been on you all along?"

Hōzuki Mangetsu stared at Orochimaru in surprise.

Orochimaru smiled. "Something this precious naturally stays with me."

"Water Release: Water Wave!"

Hōzuki Mangetsu spat out a stream of water and rinsed the test tube clean. He still couldn't stand Orochimaru's slime.

So these were Hashirama's cells?

Hōzuki Mangetsu carefully examined the tissue inside the test tube.

After a long while, he reached out and put the test tube away. He had no intention of undergoing the transplant right now.

The First's cells were far too powerful. With his current body, there was no way he could fuse with them.

Orochimaru sneered. "You're quite clever, not asking me to transplant these cells into you right away. Don't underestimate even this tiny amount. If it were implanted in your body, it would devour you in just a few minutes."

He sighed. "The First died decades ago, yet even a few of his cells still possess such powerful vitality and ability to devour. Just imagine how strong the God of Shinobi must have been in his day. I only regret being born more than ten years too late. I never got to see the battles of our predecessors. It's truly a shame."