Becoming Orochimaru's Disciple

The air in the laboratory always carried a cold scent, mixed with chemical reagents and some indescribable life energy. Uchiha Kyohaku was focused on adjusting the energy output frequency of a precise rune array, one of the crucial steps in stabilizing soul fragments during the Impure World Reincarnation process. His movements were meticulous, his gaze intent, as though the entire world had been condensed into those minute currents of energy.

Suddenly, the shadows in the depths of the laboratory twisted, and a staggering figure emerged, shattering the entrenched silence. The newcomer wore a Root uniform, half his body wrapped in bloodstained bandages. Most horrifyingly, fresh bandages covered his right eye, while the sleeve on his left side hung empty—Shimura Danzo. His face was terrifyingly grim, and pain he could no longer suppress churned alongside towering fury in his sole remaining left eye.

"Orochimaru!" Danzo's voice was hoarse and urgent, stripped of its usual gloom and leaving only naked impatience and command. "Immediately! Attach a new arm for me!"

Orochimaru slowly turned from behind another experiment table. His golden snake eyes swept over Danzo's miserable state. Rather than showing surprise, he wore an amused look, as if he had come across an interesting piece of experimental material. "Oh my... isn't this Elder Danzo? What a sorry sight. It seems the mission in the Land of Rain was more troublesome than expected."

"Enough nonsense!" Danzo growled, trembling slightly from the agony and humiliation. "I need an arm that works! Immediately! Use your best technique!"

"My best technique?" Orochimaru approached unhurriedly, studying the stump of Danzo's arm. "How about an arm made with Hashirama Cells? It possesses nearly limitless vitality and the power of Wood Release..."

"Not now!" Danzo refused decisively. Though he craved power, he knew even better how terrifying the backlash of Hashirama Cells could be. "Attach an ordinary arm first, one that is strong enough! Quickly!"

Orochimaru shrugged, seeming somewhat regretful. "As you wish." He turned to Kyohaku, his tone as calm as if assigning an ordinary errand. "Kyohaku, go to Cold Storage No. 3 and retrieve a Type-A No. 3 active clone, along with the corresponding neural connection gel and vascular sutures."

"Yes." Kyohaku set down his work without the slightest hesitation or fear. Leaning on his cane, he headed steadily and swiftly toward the cold storage room. He had long since become intimately familiar with everything here.

Over the next few hours, the laboratory became a temporary operating room. Orochimaru personally performed a precise yet bizarre limb-attachment procedure. Kyohaku served as his most capable assistant, handing over instruments, preparing nutrient fluid to maintain the clone's activity, and using precise chakra control to stabilize the chakra flow within Danzo's body, which had been thrown into disorder by intense pain and rejection.

His movements were calm, precise, and efficient, as though he had gone through countless similar situations before. His anatomical knowledge from his past life as a forensic examiner, combined with the medical ninjutsu he had cultivated in this life, proved especially useful in the microscopic connection of nerve bundles and blood vessels. Several times, he offered crucial suggestions at delicate junctures, making the procedure proceed more smoothly.

During the operation, Danzo's consciousness had grown hazy at times from the pain and anesthetics. Yet even through his lingering awareness, he could sense the unimaginable role that silent Uchiha brat with a cane was playing in the surgery.

The operation was initially complete. A new pale arm had been attached to Danzo's stump. Though it was still far from functional, the connection had succeeded. Danzo was quietly taken away by his Root subordinates, and silence returned to the laboratory, leaving only medical waste scattered across the floor and the faint smell of blood in the air.

Orochimaru watched as Kyohaku skillfully began clearing the area, sterilizing the instruments, and recording the surgical data. Then he suddenly spoke, his voice carrying a rare, undisguised note of appreciation. "You seem to possess an extraordinary understanding of biological structure and energy connections... Your suggestion regarding the auxiliary anastomosis points between vagus nerve branches and chakra meridians was very interesting. That is not something found in medical ninjutsu textbooks."

Kyohaku paused in his work and replied calmly, "It was only a small inference based on general human anatomy and the laws governing chakra flow. You flatter me, Lord Orochimaru."

"An inference?" Orochimaru gave a low chuckle. "A brilliant inference. And your previous suggestions about the energy passivation of Hashirama Cells, as well as frequency simulation for soul fragments... Your line of thought always reaches blind spots overlooked by conventional thinking."

He slowly walked up to Kyohaku, his golden vertical pupils carefully examining the boy who was only ten years old, yet possessed maturity and wisdom far beyond his age. The cold laboratory light cast deep shadows across his pale face.

"Uchiha Kyohaku," Orochimaru said, his voice turning formal and seductive, "your talent would be utterly wasted treating wounds from cats and dogs fighting at a hospital, or merely serving as an observation sample. This world is filled with foolish rules and shortsighted prejudice. Only by wielding the power of truth can one rise above them."

He bent down slightly and looked directly into Kyohaku's unruffled black eyes. "I admire you. Not the blood of the Uchiha, but this mind of yours... a mind that seeks the essence of knowledge and power. What do you say? Are you willing to truly become my disciple and learn the deepest mysteries of this world?"

Kyohaku's heart sped up slightly for an instant, but his expression did not change at all. He had waited far too long for this moment. Every effort, every display, every act of restraint had been for this goal.

Without the slightest hesitation, he slowly put down the instrument in his hand. Leaning on his cane, he performed a standard disciple's bow toward Orochimaru, difficult yet extraordinarily solemn.

"Master." He clearly spoke the two words, his voice calm yet carrying immense weight.

There was no grand ceremony, no tedious formalities, not even any further words. In this laboratory filled with forbidden knowledge and cold instruments, a master-disciple relationship that would profoundly shape their future fates was thus established.

A genuinely pleased smile appeared on Orochimaru's face, cold and filled with ambition. "Very good. From today onward, you will come into contact with the true core of power. Do not disappoint me, Kyohaku."

"Yes, Master." Kyohaku straightened up and calmly met those snake-like eyes.

His early objective had finally been achieved. He had successfully placed himself within Orochimaru's inner circle and earned a ticket to the highest-level forbidden techniques and knowledge. The road beneath his feet had become more dangerous, but also broader. Uchiha Kyohaku's game had entered a new stage.