Postwar Deliberations (3)

Back at the Sound Village Underground Base, Neji asked Sasuke to wait in the corridor while he stepped into Orochimaru's core laboratory, filled with sophisticated instruments and cold, dim lighting. Orochimaru was already standing before the central experimental table, like a pale statue that had been waiting patiently. Although the "Snake Contract"—a restriction powerful enough to Tenseigan the soul and cause the violator to suffer the torment of snake venom for eternity—that Neji had forged through the Ryūchi Cave Senjutsu Mode the moment his Byakugan evolved into the Six Paths Tier and his strength leaped to the Six Paths level, was unilaterally broken by Neji, Orochimaru was well aware of this, but neither of them revealed it. Neji still voluntarily fulfilled the remaining obligations of the contract: regularly undergoing physical examinations and opening up his Byakugan evolution process for Orochimaru's research.

Neji silently Earth Walk the metal chair in the center of the room, covered with sensor probes and energy connection wires, and obediently sat down. Kabuto Yakushi operated the machine without saying a word, connecting countless fine probes and patches to Neji's arm, neck, and forehead. The hum of the instruments was particularly clear in the silence, and the data streams on the various colored screens began to jump wildly.

Just then, Orochimaru's hoarse voice broke the silence. "The evolved eyes... do they have a name?"

Neji pondered for a moment, then calmly gazed at the flickering screen in the distance. "The moment evolution is complete, some information naturally emerges in the consciousness. It's called the 'Tenseigan.' I haven't fully explored its specific abilities yet, but I can confirm that its level should be similar to the legendary Rinnegan."

Orochimaru clicked his tongue slightly, a complex light flashing in his golden vertical pupils. He was an absolute realist, and Neji had now entered the Six Paths realm, practically a "god" walking among mortals. The fact that Neji was still willing to cooperate with data collection was already an unexpected gift; as for those thoughts he once had about seizing this perfect vessel, they had long since evaporated like morning dew.

The testing process itself wasn't lengthy, but the results left Orochimaru in a brief silence. Even though he was mentally prepared, he still felt an almost absurd shock when all the monitoring instruments' readings soared to their limits, even emitting piercing alarms due to overload. This meant that all the equipment built with current technology was simply unable to measure the boundaries of Neji's true strength—not because the readings were too high, but because the measurement dimensions themselves were mismatched.

However, this result did not discourage Orochimaru; instead, it was like an electric current igniting the burning passion deep within his eyes. He stared at the flashing warning messages, a slow, almost excited smile curving his lips. He was going to create a new instrument, one capable of measuring the scale of "gods."

Neji seemed unsurprised by the result. When a fundamental leap occurs in the level of life, lower-dimensional technology loses its ability to interpret it. He looked into Orochimaru's eyes, at the rekindled, purest fighting spirit of a scientist, and spoke sincerely, "Lord Orochimaru, if your research requires my cooperation in the future, you can have Kabuto come to Konoha to find me. I will stay in the village for a while. Furthermore... if you wish to return to Konoha to conduct research, I can also communicate with Lady Tsunade on your behalf."

Orochimaru watched the young man in front of him who had been begging to be released from the caged bird all the way to a being that he had to look up to, and there was a rare emotion in his heart. Even though he had become a "god", the other party still gave him this respect. He laughed softly and declined the proposal to return to the village, "The Otogakure Base is very suitable for me. As for the test... I'm afraid I won't bother you in the short term. I need some time."

Neji nodded, then said, "I will take Sasuke back to Konoha later. Suigetsu, Jugo, and Karin will stay here for now. Please look after them with Kabuto."

Orochimaru's mind was already on the blueprints and new materials, and he simply waved his hand casually. "Kabuto will take care of such a small matter."

Neji's figure vanished like mist, and the next second he appeared in Sasuke's private room at the Sound Village Base. Sasuke, who was leaning against the wall, immediately looked up, his Sharingan revealing obvious displeasure. "Busy man, it's finally my turn to see you?"

Seeing the other person's expression, which seemed like they were sulking, Neji suddenly found it amusing, so he deliberately dragged out his words: "Hmm... I was actually planning to talk to Naruto first, and then come find you."

Sasuke failed to catch the hint of mockery. His eyes instantly transformed into Mangekyo Sharingan pattern, and a cluster of black flames ignited out of thin air, rushing straight towards Neji! Neji, however, didn't even flinch. His Tenseigan merely Tenseigan slightly, and the Amaterasu black flames suddenly changed direction, attacking Sasuke instead. Sasuke's pupils contracted sharply, and he hurriedly used his eye power to retract the flames, a fine layer of sweat beading on his forehead.

Seeing how easily Sasuke teased, Neji also lost interest in continuing the joke, his expression returning to calm. "Collaborator, that was just a joke. What exactly do you want to ask?"

Sasuke, though arrogant, was not stupid; he knew the difference in their strength was now vast. Suppressing his anger, he maintained his usual cold and arrogant tone. "Neji, I am indeed no match for you now, but Sasuke Uchiha is not someone you can easily toy with." He paused, then asked the crux of the matter, "The original plan was for Naruto and I to hold Obito; why did you intervene directly?"

Neji felt a pang of helplessness— Tsunade and the command center had their own plans and hadn't revealed the full scope to him. Furthermore, both Obito Uchiha and Madara Uchiha were merely proxies hired by Black Zetsu to revive Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. Although he had reached Six Paths Tier by absorbing the Incomplete Ten-Tails' Chakra, the Tenseigan wasn't the Rinnegan. Without the Six Paths Planetary Devastation to seal Black Zetsu, it was hard to guarantee that Black Zetsu resurface and cause trouble again. But explaining this to Sasuke was pointless. After a moment's thought, he replied, "Plans always change with circumstances. Obito's setback this time might lead him to try directly reviving Madara Uchiha. Ultimately, the key to resolving this matter still lies with you and Naruto."

Sasuke frowned. "With your current strength, you're capable of handling this. Why leave it to us?"

Neji's gaze deepened, and he shook his head. "There are some things that even if I intervene, I may not be able to completely eradicate, and they might even lead to more troublesome consequences."

Seeing that Neji was unwilling to elaborate, Sasuke didn't press the matter further, instead raising his most pressing question, "Since I failed to fulfill my duty of restraint this time, is our cooperation... still valid?"

Neji smiled slightly, "Of course it will work. So later, you and I will return to Konoha together. If we want to bring about change, we must first see the true face of the village."

Sasuke hesitated for a moment. "Not taking Suigetsu and the others?"

"You're going back to Konoha for research, and those three aren't from Konoha, so traveling with them would only draw attention. Do you think you're not eye-catching enough already?" Neji raised an eyebrow and asked rhetorically.

Sasuke remained silent for a moment, then finally nodded. "Understood. When shall we depart?"

"Now."

Before the words were even finished, the space rippled like water. When Sasuke came to his senses, the familiar hustle and bustle of Konoha's streets filled his ears, and a gentle breeze was blowing across the mottled surface of the Hokage Rock.