The flickering lights of Orochimaru's secret laboratory cast long, serpentine shadows across the walls, which were adorned with coiling carvings of fanged snakes and archaic symbols half-lost to time.
The air was thick with the scent of old blood and medicinal herbs, a pungent mixture that clung to the skin like a second layer.
The dim lighting, paired with the soft, rhythmic bubbling of chemical vats and the faint rattling of suspended chains, gave the place a hauntingly sacred feel—like a shrine devoted to forbidden knowledge.
Test tubes clinked in the distance.
Scrolls written in ancient scripts were sprawled across rusted metal tables, their contents protected by seals that pulsed faintly with chakra. Strange biological samples, some twitching unnaturally, others floating in a viscous liquid, lined the walls in reinforced glass tanks. Some of the forms inside those tanks were humanoid—half-peeled bodies, their faces frozen in eternal, agonizing expressions.
Naruto stood beside Orochimaru, posture relaxed but eyes sharp, scanning the grim surroundings with thinly veiled curiosity. His golden hair shimmered in the low light, casting an almost regal glow.
"Not gonna lie… this place's got a vibe," He said casually, his tone dancing somewhere between amusement and caution. "Creepy, sure, but… it's got personality."
Orochimaru chuckled softly, his pale face stretching into a disturbingly smooth smile as his tongue flicked over his lips. "I take that as high praise, coming from someone like you. But let's not waste time with flattery. What is it that you came here to discuss?"
Naruto turned, hands in his pockets, that same mysterious glint in his eyes. "Well… before we get into the meat of it, I thought I'd offer you a gift."
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed slightly, his interest sharpening. "A gift? Now that is a rare thing—especially from someone with your... disposition. Consider me intrigued."
"You should be." Naruto chuckled again, a dark, knowing edge to his voice. "I put some real thought into this. You're not exactly the kind of guy who'd be impressed by just anything. You want something alive. Something... old."
There was a flicker of chakra—deep and cold like the ocean's abyss. Black smoke curled from beneath Naruto's feet like sentient mist.
With a pulse of unnatural silence, two bodies dropped from the shadows.
The White Zetsus stood motionless in front of them, their forms tall and ghostly pale under the lab's sickly light. They were human-like in shape, but nothing about them felt right. Their skin was porcelain-white and unnaturally smooth. Vine-like tendrils coiled tightly around their limbs and torsos-like armor made of plant and parasite.
Their faces were dominated by a single spiraling indentation where features should have been, as though the essence of their identity had been swallowed inward. Their glowing yellow eyes flickered dully, lifeless yet conscious, their gaze fixed on nothing—perhaps not even seeing the world around them.
Orochimaru stepped forward slowly, like a priest approaching a god. His eyes gleamed, trembling with an unspeakable hunger. He reached out, brushing his fingertips across one of their arms, eyes widening as he felt the alien texture beneath his touch.
"I've seen something like this before," He muttered, voice breathless. "The Akatsuki has one. Zetsu… yes. But these… these are different."
Naruto smirked as he began to casually pace the lab, his footsteps echoing faintly. "That's because they are different. That thing in Akatsuki? It's something more than just Zetsu. These two?"
He gestured with a flourish. "They're pure white Zetsus. These two are untouched with no tampering."
Orochimaru's interest shifted from curiosity to obsession.
"Where did you find them?" He asked, voice low and trembling. "What are they truly?"
Naruto paused by a vat of bubbling purple liquid, letting the silence grow heavy. When he finally spoke, his tone carried weight—like a storyteller revealing a forbidden legend.
"They're called White Zetsus. But these two aren't recent spawns. They're relics. Remnants of something that predates the Five Great Nations… predates shinobi villages… predates the concept of chakra control as we know it."
He turned, golden eyes burning as he dropped the final truth.
"They've been alive for over a thousand years."
The words dropped like boulders into the atmosphere, making even the ever-serene Kabuto freeze, vial in hand.
Orochimaru's spine straightened, eyes widening in disbelief, then narrowing in absolute exhilaration. His body trembled, a low, delighted breath escaping him as he stared at the Zetsus with reverence. His mind flooded with possibilities—immortality, genetic memory, forbidden history.
"A thousand years…" He echoed, voice filled with awe. "You're saying these… creatures… witnessed the world before chakra became common knowledge?"
Naruto gave a slow nod. "They're living fossils. And now, they're yours. Consider it a token of good faith."
Orochimaru didn't respond immediately. He simply stared, lips slightly parted, until the hunger in his gaze finally shifted to Naruto.
"You wouldn't give away something like this for free," He said softly. "What do you want in return?"
Naruto's smile slowly darkened as he stepped closer, the playful gleam in his eyes replaced by an intense gravity.
"I want you to take me to Ryūchi Cave."
The room seemed to grow colder.
Orochimaru stiffened, his smile fading. "The Ryūchi Cave? The sacred land of the snakes? That's not a place one visits on a whim. Even I… I had to survive a trial no man forgets."
"And I will too," Naruto replied without hesitation. "I'm not asking for a shortcut. Just a door."
A long pause. The shadows in the lab deepened, stretching unnaturally as if responding to the growing tension.
Kabuto glanced over his shoulder but said nothing.
Orochimaru's tongue slithered briefly from his lips before he asked, voice cautious and sharp, "What do you plan to do there?"
Naruto grinned again—but this one wasn't charming or amused. It was unsettling. Shadowy. Dangerous.
"That," He said as the shadows beneath him rippled, "is a secret."
Orochimaru studied him for a long time. He could see the truth behind Naruto's smile—not deceit, but power. Something unspoken and ancient, like a sleeping god wearing a boy's face.
"You're not just a brat from Konoha," Orochimaru whispered.
Naruto's eyes glinted. "I'm a brat, alright. Just one with better taste in secrets."
The two White Zetsus stood silently between them, like judges presiding over a pact sealed with ambition. Their mere presence bent the atmosphere as if ancient fate itself had entered the room.
Finally, Orochimaru smiled again—slow and serpentine.
"Very well… I'll take you."
Naruto's grin widened. "I knew you would. You and I? We speak the same language."
Orochimaru returned the smile, though his was more serpentine, twisted with curiosity and ambition.
"I suppose we do."
As the shadows in the lab danced around them, Naruto's own shadow twisted and flickered with excitement, as if alive with hunger.
---- ✦ ✦ ✦ ----
Spoilers for the next three chapters!
Chapter 146: Of One Nature
Chapter 147:Fangs Beneath
Chapter 148: Pet Problems
--- ✦ ✦ ✦ ---
🚨 Want to read chapters before anyone else? Head over to Patreon for early access and exclusive perks!
📖 If you're enjoying the stories and want to help keep them coming, your support means everything. Join us and stay ahead!
👉 Patreon: patreon.com/Myth_Valley
☕ Or support directly: buymeacoffee.com/myth_valley
Let's keep the adventure alive! 🔥📚✨