At the border of the Land of Wind, Tsunade was helping Hoshiyomi straighten his clothes. Even though this was already who-knows-how-many rounds of negotiations, as Konoha's official representative in the Land of Wind, Hoshiyomi still had to mind the most basic courtesies.
A month had passed since the "triple six" incident, and with no news arriving, both Hoshiyomi and Tsunade had gradually pushed the matter to the back of their minds.
They assumed it was either a false alarm from Tsunade's intuition or the death of some distant relative she didn't know.
After adjusting his attire, Hoshiyomi was about to flirt with Tsunade a bit before heading out to yet another boring negotiation meeting. But just then, a voice came from outside reporting that both Sakumo and Kōhei were waiting for him.
The moment he heard those two had come together, Hoshiyomi's heart skipped a beat. He hurriedly let them in, and when he saw the two of them enter covered in blood, the smile on his face instantly disappeared.
Seeing their state, Tsunade also grew anxious and asked:
"Are you injured? Do you need treatment?"
Sakumo shook his head.
"I'm fine. This isn't my blood."
He glanced at Tsunade, hesitating whether to speak directly. But seeing her looking perfectly fine and alert, he finally said it straight:
"Nawaki is missing."
Hearing that, Hoshiyomi cursed inwardly. For Nawaki to go missing inside Konoha—if Danzō wasn't behind this, Hoshiyomi would chop off his own head.
But it didn't make sense. In theory, Danzō shouldn't even have the means to continue researching Hashirama's cells now… So what exactly had happened?
This wasn't the time to think too deeply. Supporting Tsunade, who nearly collapsed beside him, Hoshiyomi quickly reassured her:
"Don't worry. I'm here. We'll go back together and see what kind of scheme Danzō is pulling."
Hearing Hoshiyomi's words, Tsunade finally pulled herself together. She angrily slammed a fist on the small table in front of her, smashing it to pieces.
"If Nawaki suffers even the slightest harm, I'll make him pay with his life!"
After entrusting the negotiation matters to Sakumo and Orochimaru, Hoshiyomi summoned Lobo, and together with Tsunade, leapt onto Lobo back, heading straight back to Konoha.
......
At Root's training base, Danzō listened to his subordinate's report with a dark expression. He said nothing more, simply dismissing him with a flat command:
"Alright, I understand. You may go."
After his subordinate respectfully left, Danzō rose again and returned to the laboratory.
Looking at the still-busy Hiruko, Danzō asked:
"How have the test subjects who were implanted with different concentrations of Hashirama cells fared over this past month? After a month of observation, you should have a clear understanding of each concentration's effects, shouldn't you? Tell me everything you've learned."
For Beiluhu, these statistics were second nature; he didn't even need to think before answering:
"As of now, thirty individuals have been injected with Hashirama cell reagents of varying concentrations. Only three have survived."
Last week, all three jōnin and two chūnin who were injected with the 60% concentration died. This proves that even jōnin cannot endure a direct 60% Hashirama cell infusion.
Ten individuals were directly injected with the 40% concentration reagent. Out of these ten, six survived—all of them Root jōnin.
After transplantation, these six had their strength raised to the elite jōnin level. However, none have yet demonstrated the ability to use Wood Release."
After following your request and injecting them with nearly 60% concentration reagent, only two survived, and one of them even showed early signs of awakening Wood Release.
As for the remaining fifteen, they had first been injected with the 20% concentration. After moving on to the 40% concentration, five of them died, leaving only ten survivors.
Later, I performed a 60% concentration transplant on those ten, and in the end only one survived—and that one successfully awakened Wood Release.
Based on observations over the past few days, it can be confirmed that the effects of Hashirama cell reagents vary greatly depending on the concentration.
From the current data:
The 20% and 40% concentrations both increase strength and chakra reserves.
The 40% concentration also significantly enhances recovery ability.
The 60% concentration carries the possibility of awakening Wood Release, but the fatality rate rises sharply as well
Hearing this data, Danzō nodded in some satisfaction. Although only three people had survived the 60% concentration in the end, this success rate was already countless times higher than simply transplanting raw Hashirama cells directly.
If it were the "original" Danzō, he likely would have continued observing for a long time, waiting until the risks of Hashirama cells had dropped to their lowest before attempting the transplant himself.
But now, he had no such luxury. Hoshiyomi could return to Konoha at any time, and there was no time left to wait.
"Prepare to transplant Hashirama cells into me. Start with 20%. If there are no accidents, keep escalating the injections."
"What?" Hiruko froze, instinctively rubbing his ear as though he'd misheard.
Danzō gave no furthcaber explanation. He simply lay down on the operating table.
"Begin. Hoshiyomi could return at any time. If we don't transplant now, there won't be another chance."
At those words, Hiruko's expression changed. He knew all too well what Hoshiyomi's return meant. Without another word, he silently took out a vial of 20% concentration reagent from the drawer.
Clenching his teeth, Hiruko injected the entire dose into Danzō's body in one go.
The moment the reagent entered, Danzō felt a rush of heat flooding through him. The burning sensation was so fierce he couldn't help but cry out in pain.
Then came an agonizing torment, as though his entire body were being torn apart. Even with Danzō's iron will, he couldn't suppress low growls of anguish.
For the first time, the lofty "Lord Danzō" personally experienced the pain his test subjects had endured.
Fortunately, the agony came swiftly and receded just as quickly. Perhaps it was because his semi-Kage-level strength was more than enough to withstand the low concentration; in less than five minutes, the tearing pain in his body gradually subsided.
Taking the cup Hiruko handed him, Danzō drained it in one gulp. He then heard the man's voice of flattery:
"Congratulations, Lord Danzō. You've successfully suppressed the 20% concentration reagent."
For a moment, Danzō's expression flickered in disbelief. Was that really all?
Closing his eyes to sense his chakra, he couldn't stop the surge of joy in his heart—his chakra reserves had increased by nearly half.
For nearly ten years, he hadn't seen any progress in his strength. Now, experiencing such a drastic transformation in his body, his heart burned with excitement. These Hashirama cells truly were a treasure.
After roughly confirming there were no abnormalities within him, Danzō turned to Hiruko and said, word by word:
"Inject me with the 40% concentration reagent."