A Bountiful Harvest

Half a month later, Orochimaru had exhausted all of his test subjects.

Looking at the experimental data in his hands, his expression was grim.

This experiment had been far too rushed, and the updated data was insufficient. If he were to use it on Sen Chisato now, he wouldn't have the slightest bit of confidence.

Yet, looking at Sen Chisato in the corner, who was pale and on the verge of losing consciousness, Orochimaru finally made up his mind.

Forget it. If I do nothing, Chisato won't survive anyway.

Even if he were to die, he had to extract the maximum value from Sen Chisato first!

And so, Sen Chisato was placed upon the operating table.

The fourth Wood Release experiment on his body began.

Orochimaru had originally held no hope; he only wanted to summarize as much data as possible before Sen Chisato died.

But gradually, he noticed something strange.

"Huh?"

Orochimaru stopped his instruments and stared intently at the monitors connected to Sen Chisato.

Previously, Sen Chisato's body had clearly been on the verge of collapse, and even injecting Hashirama Cells had been useless—it was never going to work, and in such a state, continuing the injections would only accelerate his death.

But it was bizarre!

Sen Chisato had actually survived!

Furthermore, his collapsing body had stabilized, and even the Hashirama Cells had ceased their erosion, stopping right at the edge of Sen Chisato's physical breakdown.

"This is..."

Orochimaru looked at Sen Chisato, his gaze burning with intensity.

"It actually succeeded! Is it because of his powerful will to survive? It seems this body has already adapted to the erosion of the Hashirama Cells."

"Chisato... as expected, you truly are my most precious test subject!" He extended his tongue and licked his lips.

Given Sen Chisato's current state, he wouldn't act rashly, lest he break the fragile balance within the boy's body.

However, he had gained more data and hypotheses, and he was now impatient to turn these into results.

But...

Looking at the pile of corpses beside him, Orochimaru's expression darkened further.

The test subjects were all gone!

Unless he went out to capture people himself, he would have to wait for Danzo to send more.

Orochimaru's expression shifted constantly as he pondered his next move.

He couldn't just sit around and wait.

"Mm..."

A youthful voice rang out, interrupting Orochimaru's thoughts.

He looked toward the operating table and met Sen Chisato's clear eyes.

"Lord Orochimaru, it seems I am still alive." Sen Chisato offered a strained smile.

"Indeed, you are quite lucky to have clawed your way back from the brink." Seeing Sen Chisato, Orochimaru's mood improved slightly.

"There is nothing left to do for now; get some rest."

He gave the instruction casually, but receiving no response, Orochimaru looked at Sen Chisato and found him staring blankly at the pile of corpses.

Starting again, are we, little one?

Orochimaru shook his head helplessly. "Do as you please, but remember: do not use Wood Release."

"Yes, thank you, Lord Orochimaru!"

Sen Chisato dragged his body off the operating table and slowly left the laboratory. By the time he returned with a wooden cart, Orochimaru had already vanished.

After looking around, Sen Chisato closed his eyes and pressed a finger to the ground.

He activated his Perception Technique, covering the entire underground laboratory, but found no sign of Orochimaru.

"He really left."

Withdrawing his finger, Sen Chisato opened his eyes and curled his lips into a smirk. The moment he stood up, there was not a trace of weakness in his movements.

He loaded all the corpses onto the wooden cart, then slipped out of the laboratory under the cover of night and headed deep into the forest.

The pit had already been dug over the past half-month. He buried all the bodies and waited quietly, his heart filled with excitement.

Not long after, a system notification rang in his mind.

[System Notification]: [You have buried nine special ninjas (Hashirama Cells). You have obtained the power of incomplete Wood Release. Wood Release Fruit maturity is at 100%. You have obtained complete Wood Release.]

A familiar sensation surged through his body, but this time, it was fundamentally different from the previous attempts!

Sen Chisato felt no discomfort whatsoever; his body was in perfect harmony with this power.

Even the Hashirama Cells that had been injected into him multiple times were completely devoured by his body, finally becoming a part of him.

BOOM!

A powerful surge of chakra erupted from within him, his chakra reserves swelling continuously until they had multiplied several times over in the blink of an eye.

Glancing at his personal panel, he saw that his current chakra volume had reached a full 10 Kaka!

Not only that, but the system notifications began to refresh in a continuous stream.

[System Notification]: [You have acquired Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique (Utilize chakra to activate tree seeds, transforming them into a massive wood dragon. Possesses powerful binding capabilities; attacks and constrictions absorb enemy chakra and repair damage to the wood dragon.)]

[System Notification]: [You have acquired Wood Release: Wood Human Technique (Utilize chakra to force trees to grow rapidly, transforming them into a giant wood human. Size depends on chakra output; possesses powerful offensive capabilities.)]

[System Notification]: [You have acquired Wood Release: Wood Clone (Create a Wood Release clone identical to yourself. Harder to distinguish than a Shadow Clone; upon dispelling, it can instantly transform into wooden branches to bind or attack the enemy.)]

[System Notification]: [You have awakened the trait: Seal-less Healing (Your cellular activity is greatly enhanced. When injured, cells divide rapidly to repair wounds. Your body is brimming with vitality, and your lifespan is significantly extended.)]

[System Notification]: [You have awakened the trait: Asura Chakra (A peculiar type of chakra that does not dissipate upon death. The possessor has a chance to awaken the Sage Body.)]

Watching the system notifications scroll endlessly through his mind, Sen Chisato slowly opened his mouth, a surge of immense surprise welling up from the bottom of his heart. He was so excited he nearly jumped for joy.

It did not disappoint him.

This moment was worth his five years of planning, and it even far exceeded his expectations.

Beyond the complete Wood Release, he had actually obtained the entire set of Wood Release ninjutsu that Senju Hashirama had used back in the day!

Aside from the techniques that required Sage Mode, one could say he was missing nothing—he had even obtained the "Seal-less Healing" trait!

It even came with a bonus "Asura Chakra," laying the foundation for awakening the complete Sage Body.

At this moment, Sen Chisato only wanted to say: "System, you're awesome!"

"Calm down, calm down."

After being excited for a long time, Sen Chisato finally steadied himself.

The matter of fully awakening Wood Release could not be let known to Orochimaru, at least not yet.

"No matter what, I have to trick... persuade Lord Orochimaru to go to the battlefield."

Otherwise, what if Orochimaru refused to leave the village?

And besides...

"Is this Asura Chakra something the system conjured up, or did it fish it out from somewhere in the ninja world and install it on me? With Asura Chakra appearing on me, won't I be targeted by some old schemer?"

"If it's the original portion from Hashirama... hiss! I hope I haven't accidentally erased Naruto from existence!"

"Forget it, whatever."

After thinking for a long time, Sen Chisato simply stopped dwelling on it. He resumed his act of being on the verge of death and slowly made his way toward the laboratory.

Now, it was time to plan for Lord Orochimaru's future... or rather, his end.

Since Orochimaru had "nurtured" him so well, he really ought to repay the favor properly.

In the gap between the ninja world and the Pure Land, an old man who had been watching the ninja world for over a thousand years suddenly turned his head toward a certain direction.

"Hmm? How could Asura's chakra appear at this time? Indra's chakra is still in the cycle of reincarnation... where did something go wrong?"

"No, that's not right. Asura's chakra is also in the cycle of reincarnation... then where did this current Asura chakra come from?"

Watching this abruptly appearing Asura chakra, the old man fell into deep thought.

He decided...

To keep watching.