Underground Research Facility.
The pale shadowless lamp casts an icy halo above Operating Table, and the air was filled with the unique smell of disinfectant water and some kind of culture solution.
In the giant Culture Jar of Corner, several unfinished humanoid outlines are slowly rising and falling in the light green Nutrient Solution, and the pipelines are entangled like vines.
On the operating bed, the black-haired woman slowly supported her body with her elbows, her movements carrying a sluggish feeling like a newborn.
Long Hair slid down the shoulders like a waterfall, and the tip of the hair touched the cold metal edge of Operating Table.
She lowered her head and glanced over her new body, the work that she and Second Hokage Tobirama Senju jointly carved using cells and Cloning Technology.
The skin is smooth, the texture is well-proportioned, and it is full of vigorous vitality. It is completely different from the previous Vessel, which was slightly decayed due to the influence of Living Corpse Reincarnation.
"How do you feel?"
A low and steady voice sounded.
The sound came from a chair in the shadows on the other side of the room.
Second Hokage Tobirama Senju Shadow Clone, who stayed in the institute, was sitting there quietly.
He was wearing the iconic Deep Blue laminated armor, with a white fur collar accentuating his cold and hard-lined jaw.
He observed every subtle movement of Orochimaru, from the trembling of his fingertips to the rhythm of his breathing, not missing any signs that might indicate instability or rejection.
Orochimaru did not answer immediately.
She raised one hand, and her fingers slowly opened and clenched under the light, feeling the unfamiliar yet familiar strength of the muscles and tendons working together.
The pulsation in the chest was steady and powerful, and the sound of blood rushing could be clearly heard in her ears. She took a gentle breath, and the air flowed into her lungs, bringing a slight cooling stimulation.
"A bit of an innocuous little question."
She finally spoke, her voice slightly hoarse than before, but strangely blended with a mellower tone.
She paused, and the corners of her mouth curved in a cold, snake-like arc.
"But that's not important."
What matters is the body itself.
It is young, strong, and has great potential. Except for its short lifespan due to imperfections, it is almost the most perfect Vessel of Orochimaru.
More importantly, it proves that the path leading to the "ultimate" is not an illusion.
She could feel that a certain "Vessel limit" that had bound her soul for a long time was broken, and her vision seemed to broaden.
She turned slightly sideways, and this movement made certain curves more obvious.
Yes, this body is "she" and not "him". There are several other bodies in the latest cloning results of her and Tobirama, but the male body belonging to Orochimaru... the development progress is lagging behind.
There is an unexplainable difference in the speed of cell division and organ formation. At this moment, it is still lying quietly in Culture Jar next door, waiting for the catalysis of time.
Therefore, she could only continue to make do in the female body.
She has long transcended the narrow understanding brought about by gender. The body is just a tool, a raft for crossing the river, and a carrier that carries the existence and will of "Orochimaru".
When I used Living Corpse Reincarnation before, the body I chose was also a female body, so I was still used to it.
"This proves that our thinking is correct."
Tobirama's Shadow Clone walked out of the shadows and came to the bright Operating Table side.
His eyes swept over the monitoring pipeline connected to Orochimaru that had not been completely removed. The beating waveform on it had stabilized.
"Cloning Technology combined with soul reincarnation Forbidden Jutsu... we are indeed creating a new 'continuation'."
There was not much joy in his tone, but instead there was a deeper solemnity, "But I still wonder, is life and death so easy to break?"
Tobirama has experienced real death, and walked around Mortal World as Impure World Reincarnation. He understands the strictness and weirdness of that boundary better than anyone else.
The deeper he goes into these taboo areas, the more he feels a certain cold gaze stemming from the nature of the world.
Immortality, it sounds wonderful, but the price of breaking the iron law of nature is often hidden in the blind spot of cognition.
Compared to Second's vigilance, Orochimaru's reaction was much calmer, even a little lazy.
She slowly sat upright, reached out and took the black Kimono prepared from the tray next to her, and put it on leisurely.
"Isn't this a good thing? We always have to make progress."
She tied the belt and flipped it with her fingertips deftly.
"Stagnation is the prelude to death. As for life and death..."
She raised her eyes, Golden's vertical pupils looked directly at Tobirama, "I'm not worried that I will die. It's just another form transformation."
Her tone was matter-of-fact, as if she was stating that it would rain tomorrow.
"Anyway, after I die, Anko with my Cursed Seal of Heaven around his neck can revive me. It is a pre-buried 'snake slough'.
After being completely dead..."
She tilted her head slightly, and her smile deepened, with a hint of satisfaction at the follow-up arrangements.
"Kabuto can give me Impure World Reincarnation. That kid remembers my data better than himself. You see, I have enough error tolerance."
From the resurrection of Cursed Seal to Impure World Reincarnation, and now this clone body that is closer to "perfect", she has turned "death" into a game that can be saved, loaded, and even changed servers.
Fault tolerance?
She is almost building an immortal closed loop.
Tobirama looked at her in silence for a few seconds.
There was not much expression on Shadow Clone's face, but the slight frown showed that he was not completely convinced.
Orochimaru's logic was clear and he was well prepared, but it was this overly thorough "immortality" that made him smell unusual risks.
When a person thinks that he is completely free from the ultimate threat, he often leads to madness or destruction in another sense.
"Well... you're right."
In the end, he nodded slowly, not choosing to argue at this moment.
Orochimaru's will is as strong as a rock, and her path has already been chosen.
As a collaborator, what he can do is ensure that the experimental data is accurate, the technology is flawless, and... provide warnings when necessary.
"But you still have to be careful. The closer you get to the core of the taboo, the force of the rebound may be beyond calculation. This new body needs more thorough testing."
"Of course."
Orochimaru had already put on her clothes, and the black Kimono made her complexion paler.
She slid down Operating Table lightly, stepped on the cold floor with her bare feet, and walked towards the floor-length mirror on the side of the room.
No more words for Tobirama's Shadow Clone.
He turned around and looked at another vacant operating bed in the center of the room.
There was a white body on it, and the instruments next to it showed that it was not dead.
Next to this bed are more sophisticated instruments and Scroll written with complex runes.
The next experiment, the next breakthrough, may be in the not too distant future. Immortality has a long road ahead, and they have just taken a landmark step.
In the mirror, the shadows of a black-haired woman and a white-haired man are quietly reflected.
One stares at the new life, the other contemplates the cost.