Implanting the Crescent Mark and the Open Scheme of Reverse Poisoning

The air inside the shrine was cold and viscous, mixed with the stench of blood, sweat, and incontinence. It was nauseating.

Tayuya lay limp on the ground like a worn-out doll drained of all color. Her fiery red hair was scattered messily beside her bloodstained cheeks, stripped of its former luster. Her chest rose and fell faintly, proving she was still alive, but the eyes that had once brimmed with arrogance and ferocity were tightly shut, devoid of any spark.

The power of the Cursed Seal, along with all her will and dignity, had been cruelly and completely drained away by that silver thread that had appeared from nowhere.

Inside the Hokage's Office, Baishi rested his chin on one hand and coldly examined his "Trophy" through the Byakugan vision shared by Hyuga Hiashi.

The bodily activation level in Cursed Seal Level Two is indeed several times higher than that of an ordinary ninja. Orochimaru may have taken a crooked path, but his talent for cellular fusion and energy catalysis cannot be underestimated. This body... after repeated tempering by the Cursed Seal, possesses a far greater capacity for natural energy than ordinary people. It is excellent experimental material.

There was not the slightest hint of pity in Baishi's eyes, only the scrutiny and calculation of a scientist examining a rare specimen.

"I'll use you as the first subject for a... 'purification' experiment."

The icy voice passed clearly through the Barrier and reached the ears of Yoshikawa Shin, the only one still conscious.

"Purification?" Yoshikawa Shin shuddered. He could not understand what the word meant at all, but he could hear a terror deeper than death in that calm tone.

He looked fearfully at Tayuya on the floor, and the next moment, a sight he would never forget for the rest of