"Orochimaru-sensei, you wanted to see me?" Gen stepped into the tent and gave a respectful bow.
"Sit," Orochimaru said with a faint smile.
"Thank you, Orochimaru-sensei."
Gen walked over and sat opposite his teacher, looking relaxed yet attentive.
"Rested well these past two days?"
"I have," Gen replied. "Do you need me for something?"
"Come lend me a hand when you're ready."
"With administrative work, or… experiments?"
Orochimaru's lips curled into a knowing smile.
"So it's about that," Gen said, eyes lighting up.
"Yes. The research."
"Then of course I'll choose to assist you in experiments," Gen said without hesitation. "Compared to the pursuit of immortality, everything else pales in significance."
Orochimaru's smile deepened. Yes, this one was cut from the same cloth, with the same ambitions.
"Come to me tomorrow afternoon at two."
"Yes, sensei."
"You can go." Orochimaru said.
"Then please rest early, Orochimaru-sensei."
"Hm."
Back in his tent, Gen found himself with nothing urgent to do. Many acquaintances had returned to Konoha, so he settled in to focus on ninjutsu development.
At the moment, he was working on two techniques: the Wind-and-Flame Blade and the Explosive Flame Bomb.
Gen's vision for the Wind-and-Flame Blade was a versatile sword art usable for both close-quarters and ranged attacks and one that required no hand seals. The second stage of its development was still incomplete.
In shinobi combat, a ninjutsu that can be unleashed without hand seals is a huge advantage. Techniques like the Rasengan, Chidori, and Water Gun Jutsu all share that trait.
After all, a true master shinobi should be able to shape chakra instantly, with nothing more than a movement of the hands.
The Explosive Flame Bomb, on the other hand, was a seal-based technique. Fire Release jutsu had tremendous destructive power, but hitting a nimble opponent was another matter entirely.
Power without accuracy was meaningless.
So, Gen aimed to emphasize the explosive nature of Fire Release chakra over its heat, designing a jutsu that would detonate on impact like a blooming shell, flames and shockwaves scattering in all directions like shrapnel.
Ideally, its power would scale with chakra input, potentially turning the user into a walking turret of destruction.
Fast speed and wide-area fragmentation would make it difficult to evade. Even if it didn't kill outright, the resulting injuries could tip the battle in his favor.
Gen hoped it could become another signature technique for the Uchiha clan, standing alongside their pride, the Great Fireball Jutsu.
The stronger the clan, the greater his own benefits and status. And truthfully, unraveling the mysteries of powerful ninjutsu was fascinating in itself.
In his past life, he'd possessed no such extraordinary abilities. That made him cherish and pursue them all the more now.
Many shinobi born into this world took their power for granted. They still sought to grow stronger, but without that same burning hunger.
And slowly, Gen was beginning to understand Orochimaru's obsession with chasing 'truth.'
Time passed quickly when immersed in research, and soon it was evening.
With fewer people stationed at the Konoha forward camp, food quality had improved. Every day, shinobi were rotated out to help build fortified outposts along the borders.
Not just here; Konoha was quietly constructing bunkers all across its borders, each reinforced with barriers.
They could serve as attack points, defensive strongholds, and deterrents to large enemy forces. Smaller squads could still bypass them, Konoha's borders were simply too vast to fully seal.
After dinner and a short walk, Gen returned to training and study before washing up and turning in.
The next day, after morning drills, he again spent his free hours refining ninjutsu. With little in the way of entertainment at the camp, there was nothing better to do.
By two o'clock sharp, Gen was waiting outside Orochimaru's tent. His teacher emerged right on time, and Gen fell in step behind him.
Every Konoha ninja they passed greeted Orochimaru with deep respect. Some spared glances at Gen; some envious, some resentful, and others openly awed.
They left the camp, Orochimaru's pace quickening, until they reached a forest in the camp's northeast corner.
In front of a seemingly ordinary tree, Orochimaru pressed a patch of bark, then strode forward several paces. The ground split open, revealing a shadowed stairway plunging underground.
The entrance sealed itself once they descended.
Orochimaru exhaled twin streams of flame, igniting the oil lamps along the walls. Yellow-green light banished the darkness, casting eerie shadows.
The tunnel was long and deep. Their footsteps echoed faintly — enough to chill an unsteady heart.
When they emerged into a vast chamber, the dim light revealed rows of cylindrical storage tanks.
Inside floated preserved specimens, most of them animals, but many human. Some looked normal; others were warped and monstrous, the most common being human-snake hybrids.
"Human experimentation?" Gen asked.
"Surprised?" Orochimaru replied, smiling faintly.
"A bit… doesn't the village forbid that?"
"Heh… the village forbids it openly," Orochimaru said. "So do the other Great Nations and even the smaller ones. And yet, in the shadows, research never stops."
"Openly banned, secretly encouraged."
"This…"
"Hard to believe?" Orochimaru's smile didn't waver.
"Yes. I'd thought..."
"that Konoha was all sunshine and virtue?" Orochimaru finished what was left yet to be said.
"I was just as shocked, once. But Gen, where there is light, there is always shadow."
"In a world as chaotic and dark as ours, is it any wonder these things exist?"
"A world of chaos breeds monsters — endlessly."
Gen hesitated, wrestling with the thought. Finally he exhaled slowly. "You're right, Orochimaru-sensei."
"Is this facility sanctioned by the village?"
"No. This base is mine, dedicated to research on fusing animals and humans."
"Some animals live far longer than humans. And then there are spirit beasts; my main focus is snakes, but I've yet to capture others."
"And the village allows this?"
"I built this lab with research funds they granted me."
"The village's own research bases are all near Konoha. It's far too public to work on things like this there."
Orochimaru turned toward a side passage.
"And if you need to move everything back to Konoha?" Gen asked.
"I have plenty of summoned beasts to handle transport," Orochimaru said casually.
Gen was momentarily stunned. The snakes of Ryūchi Cave fought for him, shielded him, communicated with him, carried him… and now doubled as lab materials and moving crews.
Those poor snakes.
This… this was exploitation so ruthless it could make men fall silent... and women weep.