Jiraiya's eyes were nearly splitting as he watched Tsunade take that step, walking toward Orochimaru.
He knew that once Orochimaru took Tsunade away, the consequences would be catastrophic—whether it was Konoha losing a vital top-tier combat power or Tsunade herself potentially stepping onto a path of no return!
"Stop right there! Tsunade!! Orochimaru!!!" Jiraiya roared, his hands forming seals at an incredible speed.
"Sage Art: Hair Needle Senbon!"
In an instant, his white hair hardened and split, turning into countless white senbon harder than steel and swifter than lightning. Like a torrential rain flowing backward, they enveloped Orochimaru, Tsunade, Kimimaro, and Yakushi Kabuto indiscriminately with a piercing Aura that seemed capable of boring through anything.
But Orochimaru merely gave a look to Kimimaro behind him.
Kimimaro's gaze narrowed as he moved to block the attack.
Clang! Clang! Pfft!
The deafening sounds of impact and penetration rang out simultaneously.
Most of the white hair senbon were blocked or deflected by the thick, resilient forest of bones. The few that managed to penetrate through the gaps were precisely parried and shattered by the bone blades Kimimaro swung or the bone spurs that suddenly protruded from his body.
At the same time, Yakushi Kabuto also took action.
The unique cold glint of Chakra Scalpels flickered in his hands as he precisely cut down those stragglers trying to attack from tricky angles.
Jiraiya's move was completely blocked by the two of them.
Jiraiya knew that with Kimimaro and Kabuto present, coupled with a determined Tsunade—who, while not helping Orochimaru, clearly wouldn't help him either—it was impossible for him to stay them by force.
He could not possibly keep them here alone.
Continuing the fight was not only meaningless but might also force Orochimaru to kill or lead to even more uncontrollable consequences.
"Tsunade... you..." Jiraiya looked at Tsunade's back and closed his eyes in pain. He knew it was too late to say anything now.
He turned abruptly, no longer hesitating.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
A massive cloud of smoke exploded, and the figure of Gamabunta appeared. Jiraiya leapt onto his head.
"Bunta, let's go!!" His voice carried suppressed anger and urgency.
He had to immediately report everything that happened here to the Third Hokage. Konoha, and even the entire Ninja World, might be thrown into unprecedented turmoil because of this.
Bunta, with a pipe in his mouth, glanced at the situation. Without a word, his massive body lunged upward, smashing a large hole through the cave ceiling.
Having driven Jiraiya away, Orochimaru turned and made a "please" gesture to Tsunade.
"Let's go."
The group followed Orochimaru in silence, leaving the ruins and arriving at a nearby, more secluded underground base that had clearly been prepared in advance.
Tsunade looked around and cut straight to the chase: "Orochimaru, stop beating around the bush. Answer my question. What is the essence of your resurrection? Also, you said you'd show me the foundation and reveal information about your collaborator."
Orochimaru gestured for Kabuto to prepare some materials while he sat down by an experimental table.
"First, let me correct a possible misunderstanding, Tsunade," Orochimaru said slowly.
"The word 'resurrection' is a bit general and not entirely accurate. More fittingly, it is the reconstruction of life forms and the re-summoning of the Soul."
Tsunade frowned. "What's the difference?"
"The difference lies in the division of labor of the core technology, and..."
Orochimaru extended a finger and lightly tapped the table. "The field I specialize in is the creation and perfection of vessels—the bodies you just mentioned."
"By studying Hashirama cells, the Shikotsumyaku, and various powerful life forms, combined with gene editing and biological tissue culture technology, I can create physical vessels with near-perfect strength, potential, and compatibility. Kimimaro is a successful example. His body not only perfectly carries his Soul and Bloodline Limit but is even stronger and more stable than before, having eliminated the hidden dangers of disease."
Tsunade looked at Kimimaro. Kimimaro nodded silently, confirming Orochimaru's statement. This slightly eased the doubts in Tsunade's heart; at least in terms of 'creating bodies,' Orochimaru indeed possessed startling mastery.
"However," Orochimaru's tone shifted, "merely having a perfect vessel is not enough. An empty shell is nothing more than an Advanced Puppet. The true key lies in the Soul."
"How to accurately locate and guide a Soul that has dissipated or exists in an unknown realm, and make it perfectly integrate with a new vessel while restoring all memories, personality, and emotions—this is the most core and difficult part of resurrection technology."
Tsunade followed up with a question: "So how did you do it?"
"I didn't do it. This is my limitation. My understanding of the Soul realm leans more toward the crude use of Forbidden Jutsu, like Living Corpse Reincarnation. That is essentially plunder and occupation, carrying huge risks and side effects. It is still far from true Soul manipulation."
He leaned forward slightly, staring into Tsunade's eyes, and said word by word.
"The one capable of guiding the Soul is my collaborator. It is her ability, her technical framework, and her crucial guidance that made Kimimaro's resurrection possible. I only provided the top-tier vessel suited for his Soul and executed the specific Fusion operation. She is the key figure who ultimately determines success or failure."
Tsunade was completely shocked. She had originally thought Orochimaru was the core leader of this forbidden technology and that the mysterious 'collaborator' might have just provided some assistance or resources.
She hadn't expected that the true core of the technology—the one touching the most mysterious realm of life, death, and Reincarnation—was actually someone else! Orochimaru was instead more like... an Advanced technical executor and vessel expert?
"Who... is she?" Tsunade continued to press.
She had absolutely no idea such a person existed.
"Is it Chiyo of Sunagakure? Her One's Own Life Resurrection involves the Soul... but the price is enormous and it's imperfect. Or is it some other hidden old monster?"
Orochimaru shook his head and revealed a mysterious smile.
"As I said, I cannot reveal her specific identity until you show enough sincerity for cooperation and reach a contract. I can only tell you that she is very young, but the knowledge system she possesses is completely different from ours, surpassing the cognitive boundaries of the current Ninja World. Her understanding of the essence of life and the Soul is perhaps very close to that of the Six Paths Sage. Even I cannot see through her."
Young? A knowledge system surpassing the Ninja World? Close to the Six Paths Sage?
Each word was like a heavy bomb booming in Tsunade's mind. This simply overturned her worldview. When did such a person appear in the Ninja World? And how did they get involved with Orochimaru?
Why was there no news at all about such a person in the Ninja World?
"So," Orochimaru concluded.
"The two key steps of resurrection: I am responsible for creating perfect, controllable, and powerful vessels, and she is responsible for guiding the Soul into the new body. The combination of the two is a complete resurrection. If you are willing to join, with your Medical Ninjutsu mastery and understanding of life, you can build a more perfect bridge between these two, as well as even stronger vessels."
He looked at the shifting expressions on Tsunade's face, knowing that the impact and temptation brought by this news were equally immense.
It wasn't just that the possibility of resurrecting Nawaki and Dan had increased, but also the strong attraction of coming into contact with a completely new field of knowledge.
"How about it, Tsunade? Now, do you have a clearer and more interested understanding of our 'little' collaborative project?"
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