Becoming Orochimaru's Disciple

Days slipped quietly by like flowing water. Two months had passed since Uchiha Narong had officially become Orochimaru's disciple. On the surface, Hidden Leaf Village remained as calm as ever, but beneath that calm, Narong's life had undergone a profound change.

Every week, he would spend one or two days, under cover of night or early morning, heading to the place he had agreed on with Orochimaru—usually a hidden entrance deep within the Forest of Death. Orochimaru would take him into an underground laboratory that was fully equipped, though not particularly large.

The walls here were cold, hard metal, giving off the mixed smell of disinfectant and some strange chemical reagent. Various glass vessels, microscopes, and precision instruments Narong could not name, their indicator lights flickering, sat on the experiment tables. The air was filled with a calm, focused atmosphere.

Over these two months, Narong had cooperated with Orochimaru in conducting a series of studies on kekkei genkai, with the focus naturally being his Sharingan.

Orochimaru would have him lie on a specially made examination chair and connect him to sensors that detected chakra and neural responses. Then Orochimaru would personally operate them, using extremely precise techniques to draw blood samples, or shining some faintly glowing instrument into his eyes, recording all kinds of data changes as the Sharingan activated, deactivated, and used different ocular powers.

"Very interesting..." Orochimaru would often record as he murmured in that hoarse voice of his, "the Uchiha bloodline, the direction of the chakra pathways, especially the portions leading to the eyes, are indeed markedly different from those of ordinary ninja. This difference may be the source of the Sharingan's power, and also the root of its curse..."

Narong cooperated the entire time, but he always kept a measure of vigilance in his heart. He carefully observed every corner of this laboratory. He could be certain that this was not the secret base from the original work where the First Hokage's cell transplant experiments were conducted. There were no large cultivation tanks here, nor could he sense any trace of Hashirama Senju's massive, life-filled chakra residue. He could not even see any related experimental tools. It seemed Orochimaru was still observing him, testing him, and had not yet truly brought him into the innermost research circle.

However, Narong was not impatient. He knew full well that gaining the trust of someone like Orochimaru required time, as well as proof of value. Aside from cooperating with the research, he was also thinking about how to speed up the process.

In addition to research on kekkei genkai, Orochimaru did indeed fulfill some of his responsibilities as a teacher, giving Narong guidance in ninjutsu training. During one discussion about chakra shape transformation, Narong "casually" raised an idea.

"Teacher Orochimaru, I've been thinking... is there a ninjutsu that doesn't require complicated hand seals, can be activated instantly, and still has enough power?" Narong brought it up seemingly at random during a break in training.

Orochimaru's golden snake pupils glanced at him with a trace of interest. "A ninjutsu without seals? Not a bad idea. But chakra shape and nature transformation are extremely complex, and hand seals themselves are the key to guiding and stabilizing that process. Omitting hand seals means one needs extraordinary control over chakra, and the structure of the technique itself must be extremely stable and efficient. You want to develop such a technique?"

"Yes." Narong nodded. He knew he could not directly say the name "Rasengan" or explain its complete principles. That would be too suspicious. He needed to guide Orochimaru into "discovering" it together with him. "I was thinking, if we give up on nature transformation and pursue only shape transformation to the extreme, highly condensing, rotating, and compressing chakra to form a high-density energy sphere... could it be possible?"

As he spoke, he held out his hand and tried to gather chakra in his palm. A blue chakra glow appeared, but it quickly collapsed due to instability.

Orochimaru watched Narong's attempt, a thoughtful light flashing through his eyes. "Pursuing only shape transformation... high condensation and rotation... an interesting line of thought. This does indeed bypass the most complicated issue of nature fusion, but how to maintain its shape stability is the greatest difficulty." As a top scientist and ninja, Orochimaru immediately grasped the key point.

Over the next few weeks, aside from regular research and training, Narong and Orochimaru devoted considerable energy to developing this "seal-less ninjutsu." It became a joint project between them.

Narong was responsible for proposing the initial concept and making constant attempts, "painstakingly" exploring chakra rotation methods and control techniques. Orochimaru, meanwhile, analyzed and guided him from the theoretical level.

"The axis of rotation must be absolutely stable, and the flow of chakra must form a closed loop..."

"Try using your Sharingan to observe inwardly. Watch the movement of chakra particles and find the most efficient rotational model."

"The degree of compression must be controlled precisely. Too much is as bad as too little, or it will detonate ahead of time..."

Orochimaru even used some of the laboratory's sensors to monitor the energy fluctuations and stability of the chakra mass in Narong's palm, providing data support. This process gave Narong a deeper understanding of Orochimaru's profound attainments in chakra theory, while also making Orochimaru quite appreciative of Narong's "creativity" and "comprehension."

Finally, one day after countless failures, a soccer-ball-sized sphere formed of highly condensed blue chakra took stable shape in Narong's palm! Inside it, chakra spun at high speed, producing a low hum and radiating powerful energy fluctuations.

"It worked!" Narong's face showed "surprise." Controlling the chakra sphere, he gently pressed it against a giant boulder used for training nearby.

There was no explosion, no firelight, only a dull cracking sound. With the point of contact as its center, huge spiderweb-like cracks appeared across the surface of the boulder, its internal structure completely destroyed by the terrifying rotational force!

"Mm..." Orochimaru walked closer, carefully observing the damage to the boulder, then looked at the chakra sphere slowly dissipating in Narong's hand. A rare, clear look of approval appeared in his golden snake pupils.

"No need for hand seals, instant activation, the pinnacle of pure shape transformation, A-rank destructive power... very good." Orochimaru's hoarse voice carried a trace of satisfaction. "This technique, what do you call it?"

"Rasengan," Narong said the name.

"Rasengan... very fitting." Orochimaru licked his lips. "A seal-less A-rank ninjutsu is indeed a powerful trump card. Narong, your 'talent' has surprised me once again."

Jointly completing the development of a high-difficulty ninjutsu had noticeably drawn the two of them closer. When Orochimaru looked at Narong now, there was less of the pure gaze of research and a little more recognition for a "collaborator" or a "valuable disciple." Narong could feel that the door leading to the core laboratory seemed to have loosened a little more.

Aside from studying under Orochimaru, Narong's daily life continued as usual. Every week, he would carry out one mission together with Might Guy and Amamiya Ren. Ever since their first C-rank mission, Jonin Aburame Shio seemed to have more important tasks of his own and rarely led the team personally anymore, unless it was a difficult mission of B-rank or above.

After nearly half a year of working together, Team Six's coordination had become quite smooth. Guy handled frontal assaults, Narong was responsible for tactical support and long-range ninjutsu assistance, and Amamiya Ren's medical ninjutsu and chakra thread support had grown increasingly practiced. Dealing with ordinary C-rank missions was already fairly easy for them.

While carrying out missions, Narong could feel the changes brought by his improved strength. His reactions were faster, his chakra control more refined, and his tactical thinking sharper. This slightly eased the sense of urgency in his heart caused by the approaching Third Shinobi World War. But he knew full well that this was still far from enough.

Night fell. Narong finished a day of training and returned to his residence. He spread his palm, and with a thought, a blue Rasengan instantly appeared in it, rotating steadily.

Looking at this A-rank ninjutsu he had "guided" Orochimaru into developing together with him, Narong's gaze deepened. The success of the Rasengan proved his value and strengthened his master-disciple relationship with Orochimaru. This was an important milestone.

But his true goal had always been the First Hokage's cells. He knew Orochimaru definitely had a secret base where related experiments were being carried out. The laboratory shown to him now might only be the tip of the iceberg.

"I still need more value, deeper trust..." Narong dispersed the Rasengan and pondered his next plan. Perhaps he could, at certain "unintentional" moments, reveal some "unique insights" into Wood Release, into the power of life? Or, in upcoming missions, obtain something Orochimaru might be interested in, something related to kekkei genkai or forbidden techniques?

The road ahead remained long and dangerous, but the success of the Rasengan let him see hope. Dancing with a snake, walking on thin ice—yet he had to keep going. For the power to change his fate.