Orochimaru's Gift...

Uchiha Shunichi had spent more than a week with nothing to do after encountering the little white snake.

During that time, a few interesting things happened.

Uchiha Sasuke and Naruto Uzumaki began training every day. Although Uchiha Sasuke spent most of the time teaching Naruto Uzumaki, it still aroused the curiosity of many people at the academy.

Sasuke was not supposed to be someone kind-hearted who enjoyed teaching others.

Watching this, Uchiha Shunichi waited for Root or the Anbu to show up.

Yet, to his surprise, neither Root nor the Anbu paid any attention to it, as though Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others truly did not mind the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki becoming friends with the Uchiha Clan.

Of course, this outcome actually made sense.

After all, only two children remained in the Uchiha Clan, and friendship between children was a strange thing.

Aside from those surprises, Uchiha Shunichi had also made some gains with the Naruto cells he was cultivating in the laboratory.

The gains were small, but the mice implanted with Naruto cells and Sasuke cells had actually survived.

When the test mice made it through the second day, Uchiha Shunichi replaced their cage with a particularly sturdy one and injected them with triple the usual dose of anesthetic.

A successful test subject had finally appeared, and Uchiha Shunichi could not bear to kill it just yet.

Though the experiment involved only tiny doses, it could still cause mutations...

That was why Uchiha Shunichi had been frequently visiting the laboratory lately.

"Shunichi, are you going to the laboratory again tonight?" After dinner, Uchiha Sasuke curiously watched Uchiha Shunichi hurry off.

"Yeah. If my guess is correct, I should be able to develop a drug that will initially strengthen my body," Uchiha Shunichi said with a nod.

Although his current research focused on the cells of those two, he had no intention of suppressing either of their cells at this stage.

His goal was the experiment's byproducts: one substance that could stimulate the human body's potential, and another that could replenish the body's nutrients.

More precisely, Uchiha Shunichi was using the aggressiveness between Naruto's cells and Sasuke's cells to stimulate the mice's cells, then using the mice to test various drugs that might prove effective.

So Uchiha Shunichi had been very busy lately.

However, the moment he stepped outside, he keenly sensed someone else's presence. There was no killing intent in that presence, but it carried a trace of malice.

Uchiha Shunichi did not hide his talent and called out directly, "Who's there?!"

A teenage figure emerged from the shadows in the distance. Wearing round glasses, he revealed a gentle-looking smile.

"What sharp instincts! Don't worry... I merely happened to pass by. I mean no harm," Yakushi Kabuto said, reaching up to adjust his glasses.

"What a coincidence, passing through this desolate place," Uchiha Shunichi mocked.

"So I was discovered... Hehe, just kidding. Actually, a certain important person asked me to bring you something. He said he is very interested in you." Yakushi Kabuto's expression changed slightly.

Uchiha Shunichi had some suspicions, but he still could not tell whether Yakushi Kabuto was currently working for Danzo or Orochimaru.

"What is it?" Uchiha Shunichi asked warily.

Yakushi Kabuto did not waste any more words. He took out a scroll and tossed it to Uchiha Shunichi.

"That is from that person. He said not to disappoint him. As for what you promised, he will come collect it himself."

After handing the scroll to Uchiha Shunichi, Yakushi Kabuto turned and left, as though he were extremely busy.

Watching Yakushi Kabuto's departing back, Uchiha Shunichi suddenly said, "If you encounter a blond woman someday, do not kill her, even if she is an enemy. Otherwise, you will regret it."

With that, Uchiha Shunichi headed straight for his laboratory.

Even now, he had not figured out who had sent Yakushi Kabuto. There was a high chance it was Orochimaru, though it might also have been Danzo.

Yakushi Kabuto looked at Uchiha Shunichi's departing figure in confusion. A faint smile appeared on his lips as he committed those words to memory.

Yakushi Kabuto, who moved between Root and Orochimaru, knew many secrets. He would not care about a warning whose truth he could not verify, but neither would he forget it.

Inside the laboratory, the equipment remained unchanged. It looked as though no one had ever entered, but Uchiha Shunichi knew that Anbu came to inspect it every so often.

Uchiha Shunichi did not care about that.

Living in Konoha, there were many things he could not keep hidden. So long as he did not conduct human experiments, Sarutobi Hiruzen should be happy to see him doing what he was doing.

After all, in Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes, he was a genius with an aloof personality. Given Sarutobi Hiruzen's nature, he was confident that he could keep Uchiha Shunichi under control.

That man was a terrible Hokage, but he was exceptionally skilled at controlling people's hearts.

He was clearly the worst Hokage in history and had achieved nothing remarkable during his tenure.

Yet, relying solely on his personal connections, he had gradually erased the legacies of the First and Second Hokage and eliminated every kind of threat without spilling blood.

Konoha was now completely under Sarutobi Hiruzen's control.

He was not a good Hokage. He was even a seemingly indecisive fool. But he was indeed an outstanding politician; honestly, being merely the leader of a village was beneath his talents.

Shaking his head, Uchiha Shunichi cast aside those messy thoughts. He took out the storage scroll Yakushi Kabuto had given him and removed numerous books and experimental materials from it.

The moment he saw those books and experimental materials, Uchiha Shunichi immediately understood that they had all come from Orochimaru.

It was a little regrettable that he had not met Orochimaru in person, but these precious documents and experimental materials still filled Uchiha Shunichi with delight.

What he lacked most right now was precisely this kind of foundational knowledge. With the materials from Orochimaru, Uchiha Shunichi believed that he would soon make progress.

Suppressing his excitement, Uchiha Shunichi immediately began studying.

Orochimaru truly deserved his reputation as a renowned scientist in the world of the Hokage. Even the simplest introductory materials solved many problems that had long troubled Uchiha Shunichi.

He also came to understand that the ideas in his mind had far more convenient ways of being realized...