Five days later, the Hokage election ceremony officially began.
As Hiruzen Sarutobi expected, the highly respected Minato Namikaze Hokage Position, while Uchiha Fugaku was not chosen. Although the Konoha Ninja had changed their opinion of the Uchiha Clan, they were ultimately no match for Minato Namikaze, who was known as the "Little Sun" Minato Namikaze Jiraiya.
On the top floor of the Hokage Building, Minato Namikaze looked down at the Konoha who were watching his every move, and declared with great pride, "Today, I, Minato Namikaze, officially assume the position of Fourth Hokage. I will uphold the Will of Fire and fight for the future of Konoha."
As Minato Namikaze announced his appointment, the Konoha below cheered for Hokage new Konoha.
Uchiha Fugaku, standing in the crowd, felt a slight bitterness in his heart. He sighed, realizing that it was indeed impossible to rise to the top in one step; the Hokage Position was ultimately still some distance away for the Uchiha Clan.
However, Fugaku was quite satisfied with this result. At least the Fourth Hokage was Minato Namikaze, who did not have much prejudice against the Uchiha. It seemed that the Uchiha Clan would have an easier time in the future.
Unlike Uchiha Fugaku's relief, Orochimaru, standing in a corner of the crowd, had a gloomy expression.
Because he, like Uchiha Fugaku, was not selected.
Although Orochimaru, with his indifferent personality, did not truly regard the Hokage Position as the most important goal in his life, he once believed that no one else could take the Hokage Position.
As a result, the Hokage Position, which he considered a sure thing, unexpectedly fell into the hands of Minato, who was a generation younger than him. This was a huge blow to him and made his bond with Konoha even weaker.
With this personality, Orochimaru became increasingly immersed in experiments about the mysteries of the Shinobi World.
" Kōki, do you remember when I said on the battlefield that I had something to discuss with you after the war?" Orochimaru asked Kōki, whom he had invited, from a secluded base in the Forest of Death in Konoha.
"I remember. I wonder what business Lord Orochimaru has with me?" Kōki naturally remembered the invitation Orochimaru had extended to him during the battle in Sunagakure. After all, he had once hoped to gain something from Orochimaru.
"The reason I'm here to see you today is simple. Kōki, the Wood Release you possess was obtained through my previous human experiments, wasn't it?" Although Orochimaru spoke in a questioning tone, his expression was one of absolute certainty.
Kōki nodded in agreement. Now that the war was over, there was no need to hide his identity anymore, and with his strength, he wasn't afraid of Orochimaru's spying.
When Kōki saw Orochimaru nod in agreement, even though he was already 90% certain, a look of surprise still flashed in his eyes.
He truly hadn't expected that Kōki, a renowned ninja in the Shinobi World who had inherited the Wood Release technique, would actually be one of his subordinates. This instantly filled him with a strange sense of pride and accomplishment.
He was also very surprised, as he had thoroughly examined all the test subjects and found no survivors. So what happened to Kōki?
" Kōki, do you know how you survived back then?"
Orochimaru looked anxious; he desperately wanted to know what had happened to Kōki.
However, he seemed to be too excited and forgot that Kōki was not an ordinary person who could be easily slaughtered, but a ninja with greater strength than him.
How could someone like that possibly tell him their secrets?
Kōki shook his head, his face displeased, and said, " Lord Orochimaru, putting aside whether I know why I survived, you once used me as an experimental subject, subjecting me to endless humiliation and torture. The fact that I haven't killed you yet is already out of consideration for your status as Konoha Ninja. How dare you ask such a question? Do you really think I'm weak and easily bullied just because I address you with Orochimaru?"
In the end, Kōki even stopped using the honorific title for Orochimaru and started calling Orochimaru by his full name.
In the Shinobi World, strength ultimately prevails. His strength far surpasses Orochimaru's, so calling Orochimaru" sir "Orochimaru is a sign of respect and a way of not wanting to fall out with him.
But Orochimaru's question was completely disrespectful to him, which was unacceptable to Kōki. If he could accept it, Orochimaru might take advantage of the situation and ask even more outrageous questions.
This stern rebuke caused Orochimaru's somewhat anxious face to change slightly. He instantly recalled that Kōki was not an experimental subject he could manipulate at will, but rather a powerful figure who could manipulate him. His attitude towards Kōki just now was not the respect that a powerful figure should have.
At the same time, a sense of humiliation inevitably arose in his heart.
Sannin, one of the Orochimaru, known as " The Cold Lord," was actually reprimanded by a junior today, and this junior's achievements were entirely due to Orochimaru's own efforts.
But then, thinking about Kōki's current strength, a sense of powerlessness rose in his heart.
"Hehe, Kōki, I was rude just now. I was just anxious about what happened back then. Now, I apologize for my rudeness." Orochimaru bowed slightly. Seeing Orochimaru's apologetic posture, Kōki nodded, indicating that he would not pursue the matter further.
"Alright, Lord Orochimaru, let's leave this matter here. I want to know why you summoned me here today. And what were you referring to earlier regarding the issue of my identity?"
Kōki agreed to meet with Orochimaru today because Orochimaru mentioned that there seemed to be a problem with his identity.
Otherwise, with so many other things to take care of, how would he have time to come and see Orochimaru?
Upon hearing Kōki's question, Orochimaru quickly composed himself, retrieved a scroll from a hidden compartment in the base wall, handed it to Kōki, and slowly explained, "This scroll contains my records of my Wood Release experiments, including some information about your origins."
Kōki took the scroll with a puzzled look. Was there really some secret about his identity? Wasn't he just the son of an ordinary villager from the Land of Fire? With this question in mind, Kōki opened the scroll and began to read.
Seeing Kōki's actions, Orochimaru continued to explain, "Back then, we were full of confidence when we restarted the Wood Release experiment, thinking that we could surpass our predecessors and make Wood Release reappear. But reality gave us a heavy blow."
Transplanting Hashirama Cells is extremely difficult; no matter what experiments are conducted, the result is always failure.
After much deliberation, we deduced that ordinary host cells might not be able to support Hashirama Cells. Therefore, we searched far and wide for families with extraordinary bloodlines and selected children with special bloodlines to conduct Hashirama Cells transplantation experiments.
Strangely, Hashirama Cells seemed to be a level above ordinary bloodlines, and even those with special bloodlines ultimately failed to fuse with Hashirama Cells.
Therefore, we continued to search for families with some ancient bloodlines and then continued our experiments.
To our disappointment, no matter what bloodline we found, the experiment still ended in failure, with all dozens of test subjects dying without exception. This result left us extremely disappointed, leading us to believe that Hashirama Cells could not be fused with by others, and that Wood Release would never reappear in Konoha.
However, what I never expected was that among those experimental subjects who were confirmed dead, Kōki, you actually survived and even inherited the power of Wood Release, recreating the divine power of Hashirama Senju."
Orochimaru stared intently at Kōki, who was engrossed in the scroll in his hand. A greedy glint appeared in his eyes, and he couldn't help but stick out his long, thin tongue to lick his lips before continuing.
"When I first discovered you possessed the power of Wood Release on the battlefield, I was very curious. At first, I just thought you were a lucky one with the bloodline of the Senju Clan who had successfully awakened Wood Release."
But when I heard your name, I felt a sense of familiarity.
Afterwards, I diligently searched through my experimental records and discovered that Kōki, you were actually my former experimental subject. This filled me with ecstatic joy, because it meant the experiment had been a success.
But what puzzled me was why you were so special, so I continued searching for ways to differentiate you from the other test subjects. Eventually, I discovered that you were a member of the Itō Clan. And the Itō Clan seemed to be related to the Sage of Six Paths.
Perhaps it is the bloodline of the Sage of Six Paths that allows you to survive the erosion of Hashirama Cells. This is the real reason why you were able to awaken Wood Release.
Orochimaru's words caused a violent tremor in Kōki's heart, which had been quite calm.
If Orochimaru were just spouting nonsense, he wouldn't care, but the scroll in his hand contained the history of the Itō Clan, forcing him to believe Orochimaru's words.
The scroll records that during the time when the Sage of Six Paths was still alive, the ancestors of the Itō Clan had intermarried with the Sage of Six Paths ' family, and thus the bloodline of the Sage of Six Paths has been passed down in their clan.
However, possessing the bloodline of the Six Paths is both an honor and a calamity. At that time, the Itō Clan was ravaged by the flames of war, resulting in numerous deaths and injuries.
Later, the Itō clan chief realized that his clan, as a clan closely related to the Sage of Six Paths, should always uphold the ideal of peace and should not participate in war.
Therefore, he made the decision to relinquish Chakra and live in seclusion.
The secluded location was on land before the Land of Fire was established.
After the establishment of the Five Great Nations, the Shinobi World enjoyed a brief period of peace. The Itō Clan, an ordinary family, was completely incorporated into the newly established Land of Fire.
Until one day, someone appeared who knew their clan's history and coveted their bloodline. The entire Itō Clan was wiped out, except for the most outstanding Kōki, who was used as the prototype for the Hashirama Cells transplantation experiment.
Upon seeing this, Kōki didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
He never expected his identity after transmigrating to be so convoluted and bizarre, especially since he could even be connected to the Sage of Six Paths.
However, this also explains why he was able to inherit Hashirama Cells and unleash power no less than Hashirama Wood Release.
Consider the other people who received Hashirama Cells: Yamato, the legendary top real estate developer in the Shinobi World, also known as a carpenter. Danzo could only manage to fight the nearly blind Uchiha Sasuke, and even then, he couldn't defeat him and was killed instead.
But if you look at those who are associated with the Six Paths of Hell, it's a completely different story. Take Obito Uchiha, for example. He could instantly kill an elite ninja with a single Cutting Technique, and his Hell's Rebellion after his rage could slaughter the Kirigakure's elite troops like chickens, with incredible ease.
Madara Uchiha 'Hashirama Cells, was even more formidable. He unleashed a barrage of Wood Release techniques, overwhelming the Five Kage Five Kage and nearly wiping them out. If it weren't for the Child of Destiny's intervention, they might not have survived to the end.
This shows the enhancement that the Six Paths bloodline brings to Wood Release. Wood Release with the Six Paths bloodline is True Wood Release, while Wood Release without the Six Paths bloodline is merely that of a carpenter.
He just couldn't understand why, if he had inherited the bloodline of the Sage of Six Paths, the original Kōki Itō had died in the experiment with the Hashirama Cells, allowing him to usurp the mantle?
Soon, a word came to Kōki's mind: awakening.
Just like the Sharingan, the Kekkei Genkai of the Uchiha Clan, there is an awakening process. It is estimated that the Six Paths bloodline possessed by the original body also has a condition for awakening.
It's possible that the original owner's bloodline was gradually awakening when he was used as a Wood Release test subject, but he didn't survive, and then the transmigrated one took advantage of it.
Thinking about it this way, Kōki found it much more reasonable, and some parts that were previously incomprehensible now had clear explanations.
After figuring things out, Kōki looked up at Orochimaru and asked, "So, what exactly did Lord Orochimaru invite me here for today? Is it just to tell me about my past?"
Kōki didn't believe that Orochimaru had come to him today just to kindly tell him about his past; there was definitely something else waiting for him.
However, he wasn't afraid of Orochimaru's schemes. After all, no matter how many conspiracies there were, they couldn't compare to overwhelming strength. The difference in power meant that Orochimaru posed no threat to him.
If he wanted to, Orochimaru wouldn't even have a chance to escape, because his Wood Release has a wide range and great power, making it perfect for countering all sorts of fancy tricks.
Orochimaru, unaware of Kōki's thoughts, looked at him with a strange glint in his eyes and said, " Kōki, the Kōki I called you here today, besides telling you about my background, is that I hope... to obtain your body cells."
As soon as he finished speaking, Orochimaru's neck suddenly stretched out, his mouth wide open, revealing two sharp fangs that gleamed with cold light, and lunged to bite at Kōki's neck.
He didn't say all that today out of kindness; his real purpose was to get the body cells he wanted from Kōki.
Think about it, the Six Paths bloodline combined with Hashirama Cells would be incredibly attractive to scientists who aspire to explore the mysteries of ninjas.
He was willing to offend Kōki.
Since he lost the Hokage Position anyway, and nothing in Konoha was worth his time, he could just defect after obtaining the Kōki cells.
Then we can find a place to hide and won't have to worry about Kōki's threats.
However, he was well aware of Kōki's strength and did not presume to defeat Kōki.
He would be satisfied if he could obtain Kōki's body cells.
Therefore, he made a detailed plan.
He deliberately chose the desolate Forest of Death as the location for his meeting with Kōki, so that if a battle broke out, no one would arrive quickly to stop him. He also set up numerous traps within the base beneath his feet, so that he could evade Kōki's pursuit after his plan succeeded.
He also applied a special potion to the scroll he gave to Kōki, which would slightly dull Kōki's senses.
As for why he didn't just use poison, it's because Kōki is also a medical expert, and he himself is ashamed of his own skill in Medical Ninjutsu. Moreover, Kōki personally cured Chiyo's poison, which even he found extremely troublesome. He was afraid that if he used poison, Kōki would easily discover it.
Therefore, he chose to use something similar to a paralyzing drug against Kōki.
Now is the perfect time for him to make his move.
Kōki was startled by Orochimaru's sudden attack. He really didn't expect Orochimaru to make a move at this time, and he didn't notice that Orochimaru had tampered with the scroll in his hand.
When faced with Orochimaru's attack, his reaction suddenly became a little slow.
Even so, Kōki still managed to dodge Orochimaru's attack thanks to his superior strength. Unfortunately, while dodging Orochimaru's attack, he still managed to get a minor cut on his arm.
Even if the wound is completely healed in the next moment thanks to the body's powerful regenerative abilities.
But this still means that Orochimaru got what he wanted.