[Nobunaga's pupils contracted. He whipped his sword back to defend himself, but Yor's short blade had already grazed his ribs, scattering drops of blood.]
[Yor did not let up. Her blade struck again like a venomous snake!]
[Nobunaga was forced back two steps, his expression turning graver. This woman's combat instincts and adaptability were terrifying.]
["Everyone, hold on!" Konohamaru shouted.]
The Canopy Screen's footage ended there.
In a dim but exceptionally clean underground laboratory, the air smelled of disinfectant and old scrolls.
Inside enormous cultivation tanks, strange tissues drifted slowly through pale green liquid.
Orochimaru lay flat on a specially made medical bed. The faint blue glow of the equipment made his pale face look frail, yet there was an unsettling vitality about him, as though he saw through everything.
His golden snake eyes, however, remained fixed on the final moments of the Canopy Screen replay.
He watched as a long dragon's roar, seemingly from ancient times, echoed across the world. Among the clouds, Kabuto Yakushi appeared in a majestic, terrifying form identical to the legendary "True Dragon"!
At last, Orochimaru's pale lips curved into a smile. It held none of his usual mockery or greed, only the pure, heartfelt admiration of a researcher beholding a perfect result.
"Kabuto, you truly are a genius who never stops surprising me."
Standing beside the bed, Kabuto Yakushi bowed slightly and lowered his gaze behind his glasses. "You flatter me, Lord Orochimaru."
"I merely stood on your shoulders and made a small application of your research into Senjutsu Chakra and Lifeform Transformation."
"Without the foundation you laid, I could never have reached that realm."
Orochimaru shook his head gently. His golden, slit-pupiled eyes turned toward Kabuto, as if to pierce his deferential exterior. "No need to be so modest, Kabuto. Humility is a