Tsunade looked at Kimimaro standing beside Orochimaru. With her years of medical experience, she could tell—this kid didn't have much time left.
"He's seriously ill, and it's a disease that can't be cured."
Tsunade shook her head as she spoke.
"There was no way to save him before, but now things are different. All we need to do is extract the power of his Kekkei Genkai and then preserve it using a Devil Fruit."
Orochimaru spoke calmly.
As for who would perform the extraction?
Previously, Orochimaru would have done it himself, but now, there was someone even more suited for the task—Hiruko. His understanding of Kekkei Genkai surpassed everyone present.
With both Hiruko and Tsunade here, Kimimaro's safety was guaranteed.
"Will extracting it put his life in danger?"
"Isn't this just like when a Tailed Beast is removed from a Jinchuriki?"
Jiraiya suddenly thought of something.
Hearing his words, Orochimaru and Hiruko could only roll their eyes in their minds.
Hiruko patiently explained.
"Tailed Beasts and Devil Fruits actually originate from the same source. Once a Devil Fruit is formed, it has the same properties as a Tailed Beast. A Devil Fruit's power only returns to nature after the user dies, and then it will reform somewhere else."
"In that sense, Devil Fruits and Tailed Beasts share the same nature. You could even say a Tailed Beast is just another kind of Devil Fruit."
Hiruko's voice wasn't loud, but Jiraiya understood clearly.
That explanation made perfect sense.
If Devil Fruits and Tailed Beasts were similar, and Kekkei Genkai could be transferred through Devil Fruits, then extracting a Kekkei Genkai wasn't much different from extracting a Tailed Beast.
"Of course, they're only similar—there are still some key differences."
Orochimaru didn't elaborate further. He and Hiruko weren't here to explain the power of Devil Fruits to Tsunade and Jiraiya.
Besides, extracting a Kekkei Genkai wasn't nearly as dangerous as removing a Tailed Beast.
Once Tsunade was ready, Hiruko activated his "Chimera Technique" to begin extracting Kimimaro's Kekkei Genkai.
As the extraction process started, intense pain made Kimimaro's body tremble uncontrollably. Tsunade stood by, ready at any moment, her chakra flowing over Kimimaro as she closely monitored his condition.
Meanwhile, Orochimaru and Jiraiya remained off to the side.
Orochimaru glanced at Jiraiya but said nothing, then simply sat down beneath a tree.
Orochimaru had a clear idea of the current situation in Konohagakure.
Besides, Kabuto was no weakling—there was no way he would get caught doing something so small. The only one who might have noticed something unusual was Jiraiya, but Orochimaru had already taken care of that.
"I wonder what exactly is hidden in the Uchiha clan's territory that made Uchiha Izuna willing to make such a deal with me."
"Poneglyph..."
Orochimaru's eyes darkened.
This was the difference between great shinobi clans and ordinary ninjas. It was only in this new era that Orochimaru finally understood the biggest gap between them.
It wasn't about secret family techniques—it was about the history passed down through generations. That was what truly separated clan ninjas from ordinary ones.
The most obvious example was Shanks. As a genius from the Uzumaki clan and one of the strongest figures in the ninja world today, Shanks came from a clan with a long and rich history.
The reason he had access to so many resources, in Orochimaru's eyes, was precisely because of his clan's deep foundation.
Whether it was the organization selling parts of the Divine Tree or the knowledge of so many Poneglyphs, it was all undoubtedly connected to the Uzumaki clan's legacy.
"Let's hope we can get some useful information."
Orochimaru shifted his gaze to Hiruko.
Orochimaru's goal was to obtain the method to become a dragon, which was why he had no interest in learning Ryuuchi Cave's Senjutsu. What he pursued was the legendary creature—the dragon itself.
Only a being of such immense power was worthy of his dedication.
Hiruko was the same. After Orochimaru recruited him, Hiruko had been searching for the perfect Devil Fruit ability for himself.
Both of them had their own pride and weren't worried about someone else taking the Devil Fruit they desired.
After all, the techniques they mastered were beyond what ordinary people could grasp.
As for how Orochimaru managed to bring Hiruko into his ranks, it was actually quite simple.
Orochimaru had given Kakashi a special Devil Fruit, one that had been sealed using a special technique and was not yet fully matured. This meant that when it finally ripened, Kakashi could influence its final transformation with his own power.
But no matter the outcome, once Kakashi used the Devil Fruit, the Kekkei Genkai in his body would disappear.
Orochimaru's plan was to disrupt Hiruko's strategy. Otherwise, getting Hiruko to join him wouldn't have been easy.
Of course, Hiruko wasn't aware of the details. As for the Devil Fruit's true origins, he could just let Shanks take the blame.
Meanwhile, Shanks and Shisui had arrived at a hidden underground lab beneath the Uchiha clan's territory.
The place didn't look very advanced—compared to Orochimaru's secret base, the difference was like night and day.
"Tobirama developed all his forbidden jutsu *here*?"
Shanks was stunned when he saw the place. He didn't know much about ninjutsu, but even Orochimaru's lab had some "high-tech" elements to it.
Tobirama's lab, on the other hand, had *nothing* like that.
It was like a genius building a nuclear bomb with just his bare hands. The more he thought about it, the more absurd Tobirama seemed compared to the so-called geniuses of today.
"Actually, Tobirama's main research focus was the Uchiha clan," Shisui said.
"And also himself."
Shanks glanced at the scrolls on the stone table. The techniques written on them weren't the ones he had heard of, like Edo Tensei or Flying Thunder God.
Instead, they were labeled Forbidden Reincarnation Jutsu and Forbidden Space-Time Jutsu.
As for the rest of the content, Shanks couldn't make sense of it at all.
He glanced at Shisui. Never mind, at least he could still see. Shisui didn't even have his eyes anymore, so there was no way he could read anything on this.
"But didn't Tobirama create these jutsu specifically to deal with the Uchiha? There's really no other reason."
After putting away the scroll, Shanks turned his head.
"Let's check out the shrine. I remember there was a stone tablet there."
There wasn't much valuable stuff in Tobirama's lab—at least, not for Shanks and Shisui.
"That stone tablet must've been altered, right?"
Shisui followed after Shanks. He had already seen the Uchiha clan's stone tablet before, and the records on it never really made sense.
"Yeah, someone definitely changed it. It's better to get rid of it as soon as possible. If that's not an option, we can just write a new history on it."
Shanks came up with an idea. Whatever Black Zetsu could do, he could do too.
Speaking of which, the Akatsuki still hadn't shown much reaction. It was as if Black Zetsu had completely disappeared, not interfering with anything at all.
"If Black Zetsu isn't showing up now, he's probably planning to stay hidden for a while longer. That guy can afford to wait. Worst case, he just outlives me and shows up later. From that perspective, he really doesn't have much to worry about."
Honestly, Black Zetsu's approach was the safest bet. But there was no way Shanks was going to take that kind of slow and steady route.
He was just a regular human—he couldn't afford to play the long game with some immortal being.
The two of them wandered through the Uchiha clan's territory, with Shanks acting like he owned the place.
Of course, if you really thought about it, Shanks's "home" was in an even worse state than the Uchiha's. At this point, the Land of Whirlpools probably didn't just have grass growing over the graves—trees might've started bearing fruit there.
That thought gave Shanks a sudden wave of guilt. Everything he was doing now kind of felt like digging up the Uchiha's grave.
But as they got closer to the clan's shrine and heard the sounds of fighting from inside, that guilt vanished in an instant.
So he wasn't the only one here grave-robbing? Well, then it was fine.
Meanwhile, inside the Uchiha shrine, Zobei and Kotarou were holding a sealing scroll.
Kabuto, standing alone, faced two ninja cats a short distance away.
"Esteemed ninja cats, we're only here to retrieve something. We have no intention of fighting you."
"If you want to take anything from here, you'll have to get through us first! Meow!!"
The ninja cat "Hina" roared.
"Hina, I don't think we can beat him."
The cat beside her, Tanbi, whispered cautiously. Even if they both attacked together, they weren't a match for Kabuto.
Kabuto wasn't just some low-ranking ninja they could toy with.
Hearing Tanbi's words, Hina shot her a fierce glare.
"If you know we're no match for him, why haven't you gone to get backup already?"
"Oh!!"
Tanbi suddenly realized what she needed to do.
Kabuto, however, made no move to stop her. Instead, he smirked coldly and turned his gaze to the remaining Hinata.
"With just you left, you won't be able to stop us."
"Zobei, Kotarou—she's all yours."
"Hmph, that's exactly what we wanted. Kabuto, don't underestimate the strength of Konohagakure's Chunin!"
Zobei and Kotarou clenched their fists, eager for revenge.
Now facing Hina, a lone ninja cat, neither of them held back anymore.
"Go!!"
The two of them moved in perfect sync, charging straight at Hina.
Just a mere ninja cat? Let us show you what Konohagakure's Chunin can do!
"Konohagakure Secret Technique: Twin Whirlwind!"
Hina, already injured, gritted her teeth as chakra surged through her body again to face Zobei and Kotarou's combined attack.
The next second—
"Hina, reinforcements are here!"
Tanibi's voice came from behind. Hina was stunned.
Two seconds—that was fast!
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