Hokage, I Choose Orochimaru, Ten Years to the Moon Chapter 29

The more Shisui probed, the more he felt that this person was not Uchiha Madara.

"The real Uchiha Madara is over there!" Shisui demanded loudly.

"I am right here!!" Obito responded with equal volume.

He prepared to go all out, for he did not believe the other's ocular power could surpass his own; in a clash of genjutsu, victory depended on whose mental strength was superior.

He had enhanced his own strength through White Zetsu cells, and since the opponent suffered side effects from using the Mangekyō Sharingan, he was certain he would be the one to win!

Obito launched another attack, determined this time to drag Shisui into the Kamui dimension.

Shisui sensed that the opponent was serious this time, noting that he simply reached out without even attempting to block his line of sight.

Shisui was also analyzing Obito's attack pattern, sensing that Obito had a deep obsession with making physical contact, which was clearly a necessary condition for the activation of his technique.

He was confident that the moment the opponent touched him, he could suppress him with genjutsu.

Thus, the contest now boiled down to whether his Kotoamatsukami would succeed first, or the opponent's technique would take effect first!

As Obito reached out to grab him, Shisui threw a punch of his own.

The instant fist met palm.

"Got you!"

The space around Obito's body began to distort.

"Kamui!"

"Kotoamatsukami!"

Both sides used their dōjutsu almost simultaneously.

A second later, the distorted space smoothed out, and Obito's body passed right through Shisui's; he lost his balance, stumbling and nearly falling to the ground.

"To have endured such a mental assault and still be standing!"

Shisui flashed backward, his left eye bloodshot, though no tears of blood fell.

He had just poured his full strength into a destructive mental attack within the genjutsu space, a feat that drained his mental energy significantly.

Inside the genjutsu space, Obito had almost no means of resistance and could only endure it head-on.

"You are indeed strong; worthy of an Uchiha who has awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan!"

Obito turned around, his movements somewhat sluggish.

He seemed to struggle even as he spoke.

If Kakashi could still speak after being hit by Tsukuyomi, it was only natural that Obito, possessing White Zetsu cells, could withstand Kotoamatsukami—and he was in slightly better shape than Kakashi had been, though he still suffered from a splitting headache.

After all, the light of Shisui's Kotoamatsukami possessed greater destructive power than Tsukuyomi, aiming to directly shatter Obito's mental space, yet he had managed to endure it.

Had it been Kakashi, he might have already collapsed.

Furthermore, Kotoamatsukami lacked one of the restrictions of Tsukuyomi; as long as Shisui's gaze could lock onto the target's form, it could be released. Its activation conditions were simpler than Tsukuyomi's, and its power was greater—such was the nature of Shisui's ultimate genjutsu.

"Heh, is this what Uchiha Madara amounts to?" Shisui mocked.

He had intended to finish Obito off just now, and he had not expected the man to withstand it.

It was proof enough that the opponent's mental strength was not far behind his own; otherwise, he would never have survived.

"Hmph, if not for this body, you would have been dead long ago."

"Are you already reaching your limit? You are quite interesting. Let us talk properly when we meet again."

Obito continued to put on a brave front.

Just as Shisui had scripted a role for himself, so too had Obito.

He knew his own strength could not compare to Uchiha Madara's, so if any flaws were revealed, he would use the excuse of having changed bodies to deceive him; after all, Uchiha Madara had lived a long time, and switching bodies was a reasonable enough explanation.

Hearing this, Shisui did indeed look suspicious.

However, Obito did not give him time to dwell on it, phasing his body into the ground and vanishing before Shisui's eyes.

Shisui could still sense his general location, but the feeling vanished almost immediately.

"Did he escape!"

Shisui did not lower his guard.

Yet, today's probing revealed that even if this person were Uchiha Madara, the level of danger did not seem as high as he had imagined.

He felt he needed to pass this intelligence back, but should he provide a copy to Konoha?

"How amazing, to carry so many jewels just like that on one's hands!"

"That blue teardrop gem around his neck is so beautiful!"

On the streets of Konoha, a single figure drew the attention of many women.

It was primarily because the gems on this person were far too eye-catching.

If not for the crest on his back, it is likely that some would have already been unable to resist the urge to snatch them.

"Captain, it seems you are being targeted by quite a few people."

A subordinate of Uchiha Gin whispered into his ear.

"It doesn't matter. In Konoha, no one dares to rob me of my gems."

Uchiha Gin said, completely unconcerned.

Today, he was wearing a black and white robe, similar in style to the captains in Bleach, with a black Uchiha robe underneath and a white haori draped over it, the Uchiha Clan crest printed on the back.

At the same time, he wore gem rings on all five fingers of his left hand: yellow, blue, red, cyan, and a transparent one.

Around his neck hung the Tears of the Goddess, a reward for completing a mission.

Such an outfit was incredibly flamboyant, and almost everyone on the road would stare at Uchiha Gin upon seeing him.

Seeing their captain say as much, they stopped worrying about it.

However, every move Uchiha Gin made was being watched by the major clans and the high-ranking officials of Konoha; they could not understand why he was being so flashy.

They had only seen this kind of situation during protection missions, usually involving nobles or wealthy merchants—the type of nouveau riche—yet they did not get that impression from Uchiha Gin. Instead, it felt entirely appropriate, as if everything were exactly as it should be.

Uchiha Gin, while on patrol, seemed indifferent to his duties, frequently entering shops that sold luxury goods during his rounds.

Whenever he left, he had purchased something, though it was almost exclusively jewelry.

"What is he doing?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen watched through the Crystal Ball, feeling somewhat bewildered.

Although Kotoamatsukami had forced him to focus his attention on the Akatsuki organization, he was still observing the situation within the village.

"Does he think his strength is sufficient, and now that Shisui, his only rival, has left the village, he has started to indulge himself?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen could only conclude as much.

After all, no one could have guessed that the gems on Uchiha Gin's hands were actually weapons, casting mediums, and the like.

However, since this matter had no impact other than attracting attention, Sarutobi Hiruzen stopped paying it any mind.

That evening, inside the research base, Orochimaru was also quite surprised to see Uchiha Gin dressed this way, as he did not believe Uchiha Gin was the type to be greedy for luxury.

"Has the funding request report been submitted to the Third Hokage?"

Uchiha Gin, naturally unbothered by Orochimaru's gaze, asked directly.

"It has been submitted, but there is basically no chance of approval. Not to mention the teacher's bias against us, Konoha's current funds are not that abundant. By the time the Land of Fire releases the money, it has already been allocated."

Orochimaru said.

At the same time, his hands were manipulating instruments, analyzing the cells taken from three members of the Uchiha Clan.

The three had varying degrees of fusion with the First Hokage Cells, but all three had seen their physical fitness improve significantly. The eldest, Fugaku's uncle, had even seen his biological age regress by twenty years, reaching the level of a forty-five-year-old.

However, all three showed certain reactions, such as parts of their skin turning white, and when they used too much chakra, the First Hokage Cells within their bodies would cause a backlash, increasing the area of whitened skin. The consequences of the entire body turning white were not yet certain, though Orochimaru believed the result would surely be bad. While he hoped to obtain a test subject who had suffered such a backlash, he could not say so in front of Uchiha Gin, so he could only analyze it himself.

After all, the current First Hokage Cells were not the stable product Orochimaru would spend years researching later, and they were something different from White Zetsu, but as long as one did not overexert chakra, there would generally be no problems.

"If they won't give us money, then we'll just have to scrape it together ourselves."

"Have the ninja tools from the Land of Snow arrived?"

Uchiha Gin had never intended to get money from the Third Hokage from the very beginning; it was merely an excuse.

"Yes, they have already been placed in the ninja tool research lab."

Orochimaru nodded.

The efficiency of Root was quite impressive. Thanks to Danzo's arrangements, there were members of Root all over the ninja world, not just the few visible in Konoha.

Chapter 43: Orochimaru is very normal, except for being a pervert

"I know of a more stable Wood Release cell. Are you interested?"

Uchiha Gin looked at how intently Orochimaru was researching and suddenly asked him.

"?"

"Are you hiding something from me?"

"I thought we were already allies who could trust one another!"

Orochimaru stopped what he was doing, turned around, and revealed a look of disappointment.

It was as if Uchiha Gin were some kind of scumbag.

"That thing is unstable and carries potential risks. After all, this is for the Uchiha Clan to use, so naturally, I want something safer."

"However, this thing might be very helpful to you, even if it isn't very stable for the Uchiha Clan."

Uchiha Gin replied, completely unmoved by Orochimaru's feigned guilt.

After all, having known each other for so long, Uchiha Gin knew that aside from being a pervert, Orochimaru was quite normal in other respects and capable of standard communication.

"What is it?"

Orochimaru stopped acting and asked directly.

The more he researched, the more interested he became; he desperately wanted to understand what kind of figure the Sage of Six Paths truly was through these studies.

After all, he had already obtained the First Hokage Cells, so what kind of composition would a so-called sage have?

"A creature known as White Zetsu, capable of perfectly replicating a person's chakra after absorbing it, while also completely concealing its own chakra fluctuations to avoid detection."

"Most importantly, this thing can unleash Wood Release."

Uchiha Gin said.

He figured that when Orochimaru later developed stable First Hokage Cells, he must have captured a few White Zetsu for study. After all, having spent time in Akatsuki, a shady character like Orochimaru would never pass up the chance to collect genetic information on his surrounding companions.

Especially the genes of an interesting creature like Zetsu.

Had he not fled early, Orochimaru likely would have dissected Hidan to analyze him thoroughly as well.

However, Uchiha Gin hadn't initially told Orochimaru about Zetsu as an experimental subject because he wanted more; the information contained within the First Hokage Cells regarding Ashura was certainly more potent than what could be derived from the White Zetsu created from those cells. Still, for ordinary members of the Uchiha clan, White Zetsu seemed sufficient—achieving an effect like that of Obito would be quite good.

"Such a creature actually exists in this world?"

Orochimaru wore a look of astonishment.

If it hadn't come from Uchiha Gin, he truly wouldn't have believed such a thing existed.

"Is the other party human?"

Orochimaru asked.