The Secret of the Complete Hashirama Body!

Whoosh! In the familiar underground cavern, Tobi appeared out of thin air as Riu returned to the base with Orochimaru and Kabuto.

Kamui's spatial movement likewise required a mark, but unlike Flying Raijin's formula markings, Kamui used the eyes to mark locations. In other words, as long as he had been somewhere once, he could use Kamui to jump back and forth.

"This is..." Standing before the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, Orochimaru's expression was utterly shaken. His footsteps had covered the Five Great Nations; what powerful warriors and ninjutsu had he not seen? Yet this was the first time in his life he had personally felt so small.

"This power... does not belong to this world! Coming here truly was the right choice!" Orochimaru's eyes brimmed with fanaticism for Myriad Phenomena and the truths of the world. Riu had opened the door to a new world for him.

"Orochimaru, do you see that artificial body of the First Hokage? What do you think?" Riu asked.

Orochimaru stared deeply at the First Hokage's body on the statue, his gaze filled with longing. "Subarashii—absolutely perfect. It is practically identical to Lord Hashirama himself. If I had not seen it with my own eyes, I truly could not have imagined it..."

"You have a good eye." Riu turned to look at Orochimaru's profile. "I want to merge with it. Perfectly. Completely. Do you have a way?"

Orochimaru's slit pupils lit up. After a moment, he said, "The most direct method would be grafting it onto your body. But like an organ transplant, it would cause rejection and prevent you from wielding its full power. Furthermore, should your own strength be depleted, you might suffer a backlash from the First Hokage's power. So that method is certainly not worth considering. We need a more advanced approach." Orochimaru spoke seriously.

Riu nodded. Orochimaru was not lying. Danzo had used precisely that method, and when he exhausted his strength in battle against Sasuke Uchiha, he was devoured by Hashirama Cells.

"What is this more advanced approach...?"

"Implant Hashirama's Original Cells into your body. As the Original Cells multiply and divide, they will gradually replace your existing cells. But you would have to endure the agony of breaking out of a cocoon, and the success rate is virtually zero," Orochimaru said.

"Virtually zero? Have you conducted similar experiments?"

"Once, I obtained residual bodily matter from Lord Hashirama's grave and attempted to reactivate it to extract 'Original Cells.' But too much time had passed. From that remaining material, I could only extract degraded Original Cells. I implanted them into sixty newborns, and even with those degraded cells, only one survived in the end. One out of sixty. Thus, it can be inferred that with complete Original Cells, the success rate would be infinitely close to zero..."

Riu knew that the surviving test subject Orochimaru spoke of was Yamato. Indeed, compared to other users of Hashirama Cells, Yamato was more like a living, breathing person. He could also use a relatively broad range of Wood Release techniques, though their power was greatly diminished.

As the saying went, the First Hokage's Wood Release conquered the world, while Yamato's Wood Release handled landscaping. The difference was plain to see.

"And if it succeeds?" Riu asked.

Orochimaru smiled as though possessed. "The legend of the God of Shinobi will be reborn!"

"Putting the risks aside, are you confident you can extract the most perfect Original Cells?" Riu asked.

"The more perfect the source, the more perfect the Original Cells that can be extracted. This replica of Lord Hashirama is already infinitely close to the original, but it still has minor flaws. With just one small catalyst, it could become absolutely perfect. But unfortunately, that catalyst is likely impossible to find!" Orochimaru's tone carried endless regret.

"A catalyst? What kind of catalyst?"

"The one infant who survived back then. I abandoned him in the facility. He should have died long ago..." Orochimaru sighed.

Hearing this, Riu breathed a sigh of relief.

So the catalyst he meant was Yamato.

Riu knew that Danzo had accidentally saved that infant and kept him at his side to train. By now, he had joined Konoha's ANBU Root under the codename Kinoe.

Danzo, Danzo. You committed countless sins in your life, but you still managed to do one good thing! Riu thought.

"You do not need to worry about the catalyst for now..." Riu said. He decided that he would make a trip to Konoha afterward and retrieve Yamato.

Gurgle, gurgle! Large numbers of White Zetsu emerged from every direction.

"Lord Orochimaru!" Kabuto drew a kunai and went on guard.

"Kabuto, do not be nervous. Yu is our partner; he will not be rude," Orochimaru said to Kabuto beside him, gazing at the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path in fascination.

Kabuto lowered his kunai.

"They are called Zetsu. They are my friends and assistants. They have already moved the experimental equipment scattered across your various hideouts here, so you need not worry about anything. If you need help with anything, just tell them directly..." Riu said.

"Heh heh, how very far-sighted of you, Yu~" Orochimaru said with an alluring smile.

"Orochimaru, while investigating the outside world, we heard plenty of rumors about you. Let us make this clear: if you dare entertain any crooked ideas, do not even think about leaving here alive!" the White Zetsu warned.

"Oh my, I am truly flattered. Do not worry. Before I unveil the veil of truth, I will not casually lose such an important laboratory. Does that put your mind at ease, Yu?" Orochimaru said, glancing sideways at Riu.

"Heh." Riu smiled faintly. "Zetsu, take Mr. Orochimaru and his assistant to their sleeping quarters."

"Your rooms are ready. Follow me." A White Zetsu stepped forward to lead them.

Orochimaru looked at White Zetsu and thought, Looking closely, these white creatures are filled with Lord Hashirama's cells. Though they are degraded... Yu, just how many truths has he mastered...?

Late at night, Riu sat atop the massive beast-bone spine at the entrance to the base, gazing at the bright moon hanging high in the sky. Madara's Gunbai rested at his side.

He sincerely felt that the moon in the Naruto World was rounder and brighter than any moon he had seen before.

Before crossing over, Riu's grades had been average. He had no outstanding talents, was introverted and quiet, and had no friends in life with whom he could truly talk.

His parents had divorced when he was in middle school. Soon afterward, both had started new families of their own. Neither had wanted to raise him; they only left behind the legally required support payments each month and never cared about his life.

Now that he had vanished, they probably had not noticed yet. Even if they had... at most, they would hastily report it to the police and be done with it. That was simply the kind of people they were.

After entering high school, he developed depression and had once contemplated suicide. It was during that time that he encountered the world of anime and became completely immersed in it. He was obsessed with those passionate, novel adventure stories—Naruto, One Piece, Dragon Ball, Bleach, Fairy Tail, A Certain Magical Index, One Punch Man... especially Naruto!

He felt that with those things, it did not matter even if he had no friends.

His classmates and teachers all looked down on him. They thought he was worthless trash poisoned by anime culture, someone with no future who would sooner or later be eliminated by the brutal competition of society!

Perhaps... but how could they know that anime had saved him? It had given him, someone abandoned by life, the faith and motivation to keep living!

More than once, Riu had wondered how wonderful it would be if he could be born into a two-dimensional world.

Perhaps it was precisely his disappointment with reality and yearning for those fictional worlds that had become the opportunity for him to cross over here.

If this was a dream, then he hoped it would be a dream from which he would never awaken. He was sincerely grateful to have crossed into the Naruto World. After all, he had no attachment whatsoever to anything in reality.

Though the ninja world was full of battles and death could come at any moment, Riu sincerely felt freer now than he had ever been. Even the blood-scented wind carried a touch of comfort!

"This is where I belong. I will live as I please and never be bound by anything again! In the past, I had no power to break through reality. But since heaven has given me this chance and brought me into the Naruto World, I will fight for everything! In this world, I do not want to live by anyone else's approval. Therefore, I want power—power enough to face every challenge!"

Riu poured out the ambitions in his heart to the moon. His only listener was Tobi, who was inseparable from him.

Through his connection to Riu, Tobi could sense his feelings—the feelings possessed only by a lonely person.

He was completely different from Obito before. Though Obito had been trapped, before he fell into darkness, he still had Kakashi, Rin, Master Minato, and Konoha in his heart...

But Riu had nothing in his heart but a thirst for power and a longing for freedom!

Tobi understood clearly that the person he enveloped was no longer Uchiha Obito, who had aimed to become Hokage, admired Kakashi, and loved Rin Nohara. He was Uchiha Riu, who knew every secret of the ninja world, desired strength and freedom, and fought for himself. Tobi sincerely wished to witness where such a Yu would go...

The wind rose, and Riu stood, gripping the Gunbai.

Smack! Tobi's head twisted and transformed into a brand-new double-eyed mask. Within its holes, the two Eyes of the Heart's Reflection glimmered in the darkness!

"Let's move. To Konoha..."