A secret underground base somewhere in Konoha
Shimura Danzō and Orochimaru walked side by side through a large underground laboratory.
Rows of upright nutrient tanks lined the room, each filled with a green, viscous nutrient solution. Inside each tank floated a child or teenager wearing a respirator, suspended in the fluid.
Orochimaru glanced at the tanks and sighed.
"Another failure. This method isn't working. We need to find a new way to obtain the power of the First Hokage."
Danzo remained expressionless, saying nothing. He was unwilling to give up on acquiring the First Hokage's power, but no matter how much he desired it, the money he invested only produced failure after failure.
"If I can get my hands on more test subjects, I'm 90% confident we can revive the power of Wood Style."
Orochimaru refused to accept defeat and was eager to continue the experiment.
Danzo had heard this kind of confidence too many times before.
Every research team claimed they were close to success—next time, next time—only for failure to repeat over and over again. Danzo had grown numb to these so-called "guaranteed successes."
"How many test subjects do you need?"
After a long silence, Danzo finally asked. He couldn't bring himself to abandon the pursuit of Wood Style.
Orochimaru was, after all, a rare genius in research. Unlike other teams that produced nothing, Orochimaru's experiments at least showed signs of progress—if only a "bubble."
"Twenty. Give me twenty more, and I promise we'll get results."
Orochimaru licked his lips. This round had failed. He recalled the warning given by the captain of the guard team.
These current test subjects had already begun to fail—exploding one after another over the past few days. Less than a third remained, and even those showed identical biometric signs as the ones that had died. They were all bound to perish eventually.
There was no hope of success this time. Orochimaru was becoming increasingly cautious, especially in light of Uchiha Naraku's cryptic warning.
He shook his head slightly, still puzzled how Tsunade had once considered Naraku a friend.
"This will be the last time, Orochimaru," Danzo said coldly.
"If we fail again, it will prove that the power of the First Hokage is beyond what mortals can control."
Orochimaru smirked confidently.
"Understood."
The two approached the power console. Orochimaru reached out and shut down the power to the nutrient tanks, officially declaring the experiment a failure.
Then, the two left the lab and headed toward the Root Organization's base. Along the way, Orochimaru's mind wandered, revisiting his earlier conversation with Uchiha Naraku.
"Should I look back? Maybe there really will be a miracle…"
Danzo, walking beside him, felt irritated. He had poured too many resources into the Wood Style experiment for it to end in yet another failure.
"I'll handle the official business. If you have a mission, see Aburame Ryoma."
Without waiting for a response, Danzo turned and left, intending to return to the lab one last time to see the results of his funding for himself.
Back in the Wood Style lab, a miracle occurred.
One child had regained consciousness. Unlike the others who had exploded from chakra overload, this one remained stable and alive.
With the power cut, oxygen stopped flowing through the respirator. The child thrashed desperately, kicking at the inside of the nutrient tank.
"Let me out! Let me out!"
His will to live was strong, but his small frame wasn't strong enough to break through the reinforced glass.
"Let… me…"
His kicks slowed, strength fading as he teetered on the edge of unconsciousness due to oxygen deprivation.
"There's still one alive!"
Danzo, who had returned to inspect the lab, was shocked by what he saw. Without hesitation, he smashed the tank's glass.
Nutrient fluid spilled across the floor, and fresh air rushed in. The child tore off the respirator and gasped deeply before collapsing from exhaustion.
"Hey, kid, stay with me!"
Danzo caught the unconscious child, his heart racing.
"It worked… It actually worked."
Just then, Orochimaru returned. Uchiha Naraku's earlier words had gotten under his skin—he couldn't help but double back to the lab.
And there it was: the one surviving subject. But by the time he arrived, the child was already in Danzo's hands.
"I didn't think any would survive… He must be observed."
Danzo's voice was flat, but his eyes were sharp with suspicion as he glanced at Orochimaru.
Orochimaru understood. He couldn't challenge Danzo now. The child belonged to him.
Still, this subject was invaluable—survival meant data. This might finally be the key to stabilizing the fusion of Hashirama's cells.
If he could unravel the mystery behind this success, the next Wood Style ninja could be artificially created.
"If I can overcome the hurdle of Wood Style chakra, I'll achieve greatness… and the sacrifices of the previous subjects won't have been in vain."
Orochimaru silently vowed.
---
Meanwhile, in another part of the underground base...
"Not a single survivor from twenty test subjects?"
"It failed. Their age range was too scattered. Ideally, I need subjects between four and thirty years old."
Hiruko's voice was hoarse. His eyes were bloodshot from endless nights of monitoring data and checking records.
"The First Hokage's power is too wild, too overwhelming. I still need more reference points. One more attempt, and I swear we'll succeed."
"You've worked hard. I'll assign two medical-nin assistants to help you. We have skilled personnel under our control now."
"That would help a lot," Hiruko replied. "I thought it was just a matter of cellular rejection, but this goes deeper. It's tied to something… more mysterious. Chakra itself."
"Chakra?" Uchiha Naraku frowned. "The First Hokage's been dead for decades. His cells still hold chakra?"
"Yes. And it's incredibly powerful. The last batch of subjects couldn't contain it—they exploded, transforming into massive trees."
"I see. I'll have another thirty test subjects gathered. But this will be your last chance. If there's still no success, we're shutting this down."
Twenty more had died, leaving behind nothing but trees and data.
Whether they came from Konoha's prison or were captured from outside, these disappearances could not remain hidden forever. Eventually, someone would investigate.
Naraku wasn't afraid—but unnecessary complications were still unwelcome.
"Scientific research… is expensive. And far too troublesome."
Naraku sighed inwardly.
---