"This is indeed the first I've heard of it."
Kiyoshi feigned a look of great surprise.
"Heh heh, it seems life in the rear tends to corrode one's wits," Orochimaru chuckled.
Of course, this also indirectly proved Kiyoshi's focus on his experiments. Orochimaru spat out a scroll covered in slime from his mouth and handed it to Kiyoshi.
"Soft Physique Modification..." Kiyoshi said gratefully.
This time, it wasn't just an act; he truly felt a stir of excitement. Once he learned this prerequisite technique, the consumption of the [Orochimaru Style Body Replacement Technique] would drop to an extremely low level. At that point, his toughened skin would be the first layer of insurance. When an enemy tried every possible means to "break his defense," they would find that as soon as Kiyoshi shed his skin, he would be uninjured again—that would be his second layer of insurance!
Such double insurance would vastly increase his survival capabilities.
"I know you aren't interested in money, so consider this jutsu your compensation for this period of time," Orochimaru said, his voice raspy.
To make the horse run, you have to let the horse eat grass.
"Thank you, Lord Orochimaru."
Kiyoshi took the scroll. While the Yellow Flash's reputation was currently soaring, Orochimaru, one of the Sannin, was no less famous. His prestige had been accumulating since the Second Great Ninja War.
Since the current Orochimaru still wanted to become Hokage, his actions remained "lawful." He wasn't yet like the cult leader he would become in the future, where a wave of his hand and a bit of "Talk no Jutsu" led straight into a full-service body modification. No one who stayed by Orochimaru's side went unmodified!
Even Sasuke, the "ideal vessel" Orochimaru constantly pined for, was privately administered many forbidden drugs. Being forbidden meant that either the production process was illegal or the effects had side effects. Naturally, since it concerned his own "vessel," Orochimaru surely prepared repair solutions. As for other test subjects, they had to fend for themselves.
"By the way, Kiyoshi-kun, are you interested in seeing the [Cursed Seal]? It's a power that shares the same origin as Senjutsu."
Orochimaru made an inviting gesture. Kiyoshi nodded and followed him.
...
Hokage Building.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's brow was furrowed. A rare touch of irritability appeared on his face. Even with his temperament, it was difficult to remain calm. The reconnaissance ninjas on the front lines had sent back intelligence: the number of shinobi deployed by the Hidden Stone had reached a staggering... ten thousand!
Even ten thousand Genin could cause enough damage to split mountains and seas. A hidden village at this stage typically possessed only about ten to twenty thousand active shinobi. This referred to official ninjas; those who hadn't graduated or entered the Academy yet were not counted. Thus, this move by the Hidden Stone was essentially a full-scale deployment.
If the conflict with the Hidden Cloud was merely a feint and they turned to attack Hidden leaf, vast swathes of Land of Fire territory would be overrun before anyone could react!
"Those Stone ninjas have truly gone mad," Danzo Shimura said, his face dark.
With over ten thousand ninjas deploying in full force, Onoki truly had some nerve.
"The most important thing now is to grasp their exact movements," Koharu Utatane said solemnly.
Leaf's best reconnaissance ninjas were undoubtedly the Hyuga clan. Their Byakugan could see through objects several kilometers away and possessed the power of "far-sightedness." Their only flaw was that the Hyuga's [Body Flicker Technique] wasn't particularly strong. They put almost all their energy into developing [Gentle Fist].
If the enemy had sensory and Body Flicker ninjas, the Byakugan's gaze would be sensed immediately, and the scout would be hunted down by Body Flicker specialists. If intelligence is gathered but cannot be delivered back, it is meaningless.
"Kiyoshi! Send Kiyoshi Uchiha!" Danzo Shimura suddenly mentioned the name.
He had already obtained all the intelligence via Root regarding how Kiyoshi Uchiha escaped from the Hidden Sand Village. Kiyoshi Uchiha could fly! He could use his jutsu to achieve temporary gliding and hovering effects.
As long as he flew high enough, ground-based ninjas couldn't hit him, and even if they could keep up, they could only watch helplessly as Kiyoshi returned to the Leaf camp.
"Does that child have enough chakra for that?" Homura Mitokado asked, frowning.
Everything has a price. This type of jutsu would inevitably consume more chakra than others.
"We can send Tsunade," Koharu Utatane suggested, thinking of the Princess of the Senju clan.
Her summoned beast, Katsuyu, could split into countless smaller slugs. These slugs could "share vision" and "transfer chakra." This way, Kiyoshi Uchiha's stamina could be guaranteed.
"Mm..."
Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't speak; he took puff after puff from his pipe. Finally, he nodded slowly. "Then let Kiyoshi and Tsunade depart."
This configuration was indeed reasonable. Tsunade would only need to use her summoned beast from the rear, avoiding her "old problem" (hemophobia). If anything went wrong, she could escape immediately. The only potential sacrifice would be Kiyoshi Uchiha alone.
Of course, that was the worst-case scenario. Hiruzen intended to cultivate Kiyoshi as the next Kagami Uchiha, so he naturally didn't want him to come to harm.
"If he completes this mission successfully, I will grant him a look at the [Scroll of Seals]," Hiruzen decided.
If Kiyoshi could truly complete such a daunting task, the investment needed to be increased.
"Hmph." Danzo snorted coldly.
The [Scroll of Seals] contained nothing but forbidden jutsu. For example, Minato Namikaze had earned the right to view it through his contributions. "Do you intend to pass those true forbidden jutsu to an Uchiha so he can cause trouble?"
"I will handle those specific types of forbidden jutsu, just as I did during Minato's time," Hiruzen said calmly.
The so-called [Scroll of Seals] was a precedent set by the First Hokage. He sealed away all the "forbidden jutsu" of that time within it, to be kept by successive Hokage. They would add new forbidden jutsu as appropriate to maintain the village's stability. In other words, the [Scroll of Seals] was essentially a "Book of Forbidden Jutsu."
"I hope so."
Seeing this, Danzo said no more, defaulting to Hiruzen's arrangement. Such a high-difficulty mission should indeed be executed by the naturally evil Uchiha brat!
The classification of "Forbidden Jutsu" fell into two categories. The first were those that might endanger the user's life, such as [Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu] or [Tandem Paper Bomb].
The second were those that violated the laws of nature and heaven, being far too cruel, and thus were sealed away—such as [Reanimation Jutsu], which toyed with the deceased.
As long as Kiyoshi received the first category, it was fine. While forbidden jutsu were powerful, they also had various side effects. A brat who was so young and gifted was the most likely to become arrogant under praise, leading him to misjudge his own strength and let the "Forbidden Jutsu" backfire on its master!