Chapter 453: Hidden Motives
Amado said, "Rest assured, their power will completely exceed your imaginations."
A puff of smoke drifted from his mouth.
He was smoking yet again.
His eyes lingered briefly on Delta.
She was not his daughter, after all.
Finally, he shifted his gaze back toward Konoha's laboratories.
"Tobitake Tonbo, Orochimaru, Kabuto Yakushi... truly troublesome scientists."
Amado couldn't help but sigh.
He hadn't expected Konoha to breed such a massive surge of talent.
Their development was simply too rapid.
Even after all his years of research, his progress up to this point had only managed to catch up with the Shinobi Alliance's technological strength in specific areas.
There was still a long way to go...
And among them, Konoha's Three Sannin-level minds truly made him wary.
No matter what methods he used, he could not probe into Sector 13 at all. He had no idea what kind of scientific technology or extraordinary ninjutsu enveloped and sealed off Sector 13.
Based on current intelligence, Amado could tell that Sector 13 was, without a doubt, the most secure location in Konoha's Technology Development Bureau.
"However, no matter how strong they are, once the remaining clones are finished, it will be more than enough to deal with them."
Recalling his latest research breakthroughs, Amado regained his confidence that his plan could be brought to completion.
The power of the Otsutsuki God.
Even a fraction of it yielded immense, overwhelming strength.
"I'll be taking my leave then. There are still a few matters to handle in the Land of Waves, or else Konoha might catch wind of them. After all, they maintain an alliance with Konoha."
Boro's stronghold was located in the Land of Waves, an overseas region.
He had already begun quietly setting up his forces there.
Leveraging the technology provided by Amado, he had bypassed most automated surveillance systems, leaving only physical patrols—which he was confident in handling.
Shortly after, his body gradually dissolved into data-like particles and vanished from the laboratory.
Soon, Akebi... I will fulfill Jigen's plan and bring you back to life, Amado murmured in his heart.
Kashin Koji's eyes darted toward him with a subtle glance.
...
"Curse them, underestimating me like that... Though, maybe this is for the better. It gives me room to make better preparations."
Victor grumbled about Amado under his breath as he returned to his private laboratory.
Several lab techs in white coats bowed respectfully as he passed.
Victor held his head high, walking past them into his personal domain.
It was a laboratory filled with experimental apparatus—a space blending cutting-edge scientific technology with the essence of the Shinobi World.
Countless tubes and fluids filled the room.
Monitors were packed with endless streams of data.
This was his personal research data.
Among the numerous test subjects, one particular vessel caught Victor's eye.
A strange, sinister smile curled up his lips.
The figure inside was completely naked, blonde hair floating softly in the fluid, looking as though she were asleep.
Like a sleeping beauty.
On her forehead was a diamond-shaped mark.
"A descendant of the Senju... Her Mitotic Regeneration technique was originally modeled after Hashirama's cells. Combining that with her genetic code, I will definitely engineer a far superior regeneration technology."
In truth, Tsunade had been captured by him.
Years ago, when he first joined Kara, he had set his sights on Tsunade as a descendant of the Senju Clan.
Initially, he had aimed for Hashirama's cells, but those were mostly under Orochimaru's control and impossible to acquire, so he settled for the next best option.
He decided to target Tsunade instead.
He hadn't expected that a legendary Sannin—let down by gambling and lulled into complacency by the era of peace—would let her guard fall so low, allowing him to capture her with ease.
Even after years of research, Victor had been unwilling to kill Tsunade, choosing instead to maintain her life functions using special fluid.
For now, keeping her alive was the most advantageous option for Victor.
"Lord Victor, the latest experiment was a massive success! The subject's finger regeneration speed is three times faster than before. If we keep refining this, we can engineer a body with incredible vitality—or even extend lifespan."
A scientist in a white coat reported the data, presenting the recent experimental results to Victor.
Hearing this, a wide grin broke across Victor's face. "I was right! My experiments were right all along! Hahaha! I'm going to succeed!"
He burst into loud laughter.
However, his laughter quickly faded, and he added coldly, "Three times faster isn't enough. It's still far from enough! It's not enough to make me immortal."
He wanted to engineer an absolute passive regeneration technique that could trigger super-regeneration within a second, costing only a fraction of chakra—and without requiring tedious hand seals.
The lab tech replied carefully, "However, Lord Victor... judging by Tsunade's current biological activity and genetic data, it won't allow us to reach that level. After all, she is merely a descendant of the Senju, not Senju Hashirama reborn."
He had no choice but to break Victor's delusion.
If experiments were that easy, anyone could do them.
There were far too many roadblocks in the way.
Troublesome roadblocks.
"What?"
Victor rushed over to review the data, only to find that, just as the lab tech had said, research on Tsunade had hit its absolute limit.
Unless far superior equipment became available to run advanced tests, this was as far as they could go.
"In other words, this subject is useless to us now. Should we dispose of her?" Victor turned his gaze toward Tsunade's container.
Since Tsunade had lost her experimental value, disposing of her would prevent her from being an extra drain on the lab's resources.
Even though funds were being earned by Kara's Outer members, it was still a waste.
The lab tech suggested, "My Lord, perhaps we could use her as a bargaining chip with Konoha to secure better resources? After all, she is Konoha's Fifth Hokage.
If used at the right moment, we could extract immense benefits from Konoha."
He knew Inner members of Kara wouldn't easily stoop to making such deals, but if things ever went sideways, the Fifth Hokage would serve as a valuable bargaining chip.
Victor looked at the lab tech with mild surprise. "Not bad. You have a point. Actually, no... I should demand reimbursement from the organization for this!"
Maintaining Tsunade's life functions required purchasing large amounts of expensive nutrient fluids.
Otherwise, Tsunade would have drowned long ago under these conditions.
"Understood, My Lord."
...
In the Land of Waves.
After recalling his consciousness through a communication jutsu, Boro fell into deep thought.
POOF!
Beside him, a Scientific Ninja Tool suddenly vanished into thin air.
He knew the organization had just summoned back the gear he had prepared.
Tapping on a nearby screen, a large monitor rose up.
Three figures came into view on the screen.
They wore Konoha forehead protectors.
Their destination was the Land of Waves Palace.
"Konoha's people are here... Ever since they discovered that Kara members had infiltrated laboratories across various nations, they've been sparing no effort to hunt down suspected terrorists!"
Boro felt an urge to take action, but he knew doing so right now would only draw out Konoha's truly formidable powerhouses.
In his current state, he lacked the strength to fight ninja of that caliber.
Not to mention, the opponent was a genjutsu specialist capable of casting absolute, all-around genjutsu.
Boro was terrified that his countermeasures against genjutsu would prove useless against Tobitake Tonbo.
That was right—his hypothetical opponents were the three Three-Star Honor Shinobi, including Tobitake Tonbo.
Against any other ninja, he no longer felt the slightest fear.
He was no longer the timid, submissive ninja he had been before the Fourth Great Ninja War; he was now a powerful scientist of the new era.
Even if his path was an evil one
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