A week later, deep within Konohagakure's Root research laboratory.
At this moment, Danzō's entire right arm had been transplanted with the cells of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, and adorned with several Sharingan.
"The power of the Senju and the Uchiha."
"I've finally obtained it."
Standing in the laboratory, Orochimaru watched the smug Danzō, a sinister smile playing on his lips.
Compared to Danzō gaining the power he desired, Orochimaru valued the heap of experimental data and the insights he gained from this experiment even more.
"That jutsu is almost complete!"
At this moment, Veigar's image flashed through Orochimaru's mind, but he also knew that Veigar was destined to be the one he could never truly obtain.
Coincidentally, Hiruzen, while investigating the frequent disappearances in the village recently, found that the clues vaguely pointed towards Orochimaru.
Rubbing his aching head, Hiruzen spoke to the Anbu hidden around him:
"Tell Orochimaru to come see me."
Whoosh.
An Anbu ninja departed, having received the order.
"Orochimaru, I hope it wasn't you..."
At this point, Hiruzen was already doubting whether Orochimaru was truly suitable to succeed him as the Fourth Hokage.
He was getting too close to Danzō!
Learning that Hiruzen was looking for him, Orochimaru quickly arrived at the Hokage Residence.
"Old man, you were looking for me?"
Upon sensing Orochimaru's chilling aura, Hiruzen felt deeply displeased.
"Orochimaru, stop hiding in your laboratory all the time."
"Recently, a large number of villagers have gone missing, including some regular civilians and a portion of the Genin who returned from the battlefield."
"As a candidate for the Fourth Hokage, you have the responsibility and the obligation to investigate this matter."
Orochimaru could hardly miss the implied warning in Hiruzen's words, the disappointment akin to "hating iron for not becoming steel."
His words almost explicitly stated that he intended to pass the Fourth Hokage position to Orochimaru. At the same time, Orochimaru also sensed Hiruzen's subtle hint of protection.
Hiruzen knew that the evidence vaguely pointed to Orochimaru, yet he still tasked him with investigating. This clearly implied that if Orochimaru was indeed responsible, he should quickly erase any traces and prevent the evidence from surfacing.
Both Hiruzen and Orochimaru understood that if this matter were exposed, Orochimaru would have no other choice but to defect.
Otherwise, Konohagakure's prison wouldn't be able to hold such a formidable figure as Orochimaru.
"I understand, Hiruzen-sensei."
Orochimaru responded politely and formally on the surface.
In his mind, however, he thought:
'Hiruzen-sensei, I'm sorry to disappoint you!'
At this point, Orochimaru had already decided to defect from Konohagakure, leave the Land of Fire, and continue his research on forbidden jutsu.
Hiruzen never imagined that his hopes, in the end, would be misplaced.
After leaving the Hokage Residence and returning to his laboratory, Orochimaru summoned his newly taken apprentice, Anko Mitarashi.
Initially, Orochimaru chose Anko as his apprentice primarily because he discovered her potential, believing she would make an excellent experimental subject.
Of course, in Orochimaru's mind, Veigar was the most suitable, and Anko was merely a backup for Veigar.
"Orochimaru-sensei, were you looking for me?"
Anko, having been summoned, arrived at Orochimaru's laboratory and greeted him respectfully.
Under Orochimaru's tutelage, Anko not only didn't feel afraid of the various bottles and jars in the laboratory but even had an eagerness to experiment.
"Anko, you're here!"
With a sinister smile, Orochimaru said to Anko:
"Anko, I have high hopes for you."
"Now, I'm preparing to leave the village. Would you like to come with me?"
Anko, who hadn't considered the possibility of Orochimaru's defection, was a bit perplexed.
"Sensei, aren't you running for Fourth Hokage? Why would you leave the village at this time?"
Was Anko foolish?
No, she wasn't.
Not only was she not foolish, but she was very intelligent. She was just usually a bit reckless, appearing carefree.
That's just her personality; it couldn't be changed!
And precisely because Anko was so intelligent, Orochimaru immediately took a liking to her.
"Anko, when I say 'leave the village,' I don't mean like Tsunade and Jiraiya leaving. I mean..."
"...as a missing-nin!"
Instantly, a chill ran through Anko's entire body. She couldn't comprehend why Orochimaru would leave as a rogue ninja, choosing to defect from the village.
"S-Sensei, y-you, you're joking, right?"
Anko stumbled back a few steps, looking at Orochimaru in disbelief.
But in her heart, she knew that Orochimaru's decision wasn't a joke; he was stating a fact. Moreover, her physical reaction wasn't the best proof that she believed this?
"Hehe~"
Orochimaru's eyes suddenly sharpened, staring at the slightly pale Anko as he said:
"To conduct my experiments, I've laid hands on ordinary villagers and some ninja!"
"There's no other choice but to defect."
"So, Anko, make a choice!"
"Will you leave with me, or stay in Konohagakure?"
Under Orochimaru's intense killing intent, Anko couldn't move at all, and even speaking was difficult.
"N-No, Sensei, h-how could you?"
"Th-This isn't, isn't true, right?"
From anticipation to disappointment, then to despair.
Anko's emotional journey underwent immense changes in a very short time.
"Waah!!!"
A cry of broken faith escaped her, tears streaming from Anko's eyes. She couldn't accept that her sensei would do something to harm the village she loved.
"Stay in Konohagakure? Or leave?"
"Choose one!"
"Anko."
Orochimaru's expression remained unchanged, but the oppressive aura around him receded. The previously immobile Anko collapsed to the ground, as if losing some supporting object.
"No, no, I won't leave!"
Ever since becoming Orochimaru's disciple, Anko had regarded Orochimaru as her closest person. Now, with Orochimaru on the verge of defecting, her mind shattered, she ultimately chose the village.
"Is that so!"
"Anko. You've made a good choice. Then, before I leave, I'll give you a gift."
As his voice fell, Orochimaru's neck suddenly stretched very long, and then he bit down on Anko's tender neck.
"Agh!!!"
As Orochimaru's power entered her body, Anko endured immense pain, screaming tragically.
Fortunately, Orochimaru's laboratory had good soundproofing, or the screams would have long since terrified everyone nearby.
Orochimaru retracted his neck, leaving an imprint resembling a three-tomoe Sharingan on Anko's neck.
This was precisely the Heaven's Curse Mark, a derivative jutsu from Orochimaru's half-completed forbidden jutsu.
"Whether you can survive depends on your willpower."
Anko, having received the Heaven's Curse Mark, fainted on the laboratory floor. Seeing the spreading curse marks on Anko's body, Orochimaru knew that Anko had overcome the most difficult hurdle and successfully accepted the power of the Heaven's Curse Mark.
Since he had developed the Heaven's Curse Mark, Anko was the first experimental subject to successfully survive.
Staring at Anko for a while, Orochimaru made another decision. After forming hand signs, he placed his hands on Anko's head.
Seal.
Anko, who survived the Heaven's Curse Mark, had now become a fallback plan for Orochimaru.
"Grow stronger with your hatred for me!"
"Anko."
Immediately, Orochimaru no longer paid attention to Anko and left the laboratory directly.
As for why Orochimaru left, it was because an uninvited guest had arrived at his home.
In Orochimaru's living room, Orochimaru, having exited the laboratory, looked at the uninvited Veigar, a smile involuntarily curling his lips.
"Veigar, is there something you need?"
Staring at Orochimaru, Veigar's expression remained unchanged. He spoke directly:
"Orochimaru-sama seems to have completed an incredible soul forbidden jutsu!"
"Don't you have a parting gift for me?"
Veigar, who had mastered the Spirit Transformation Jutsu and the Reaper Death Seal, and had them imprinted on himself, possessed a sensitivity to souls that few in the entire shinobi world could match.
The Orochimaru before him happened to be one of them.
Veigar naturally knew where the missing people in the village had gone recently. Estimating that Orochimaru's defection was imminent, he had also been keeping an eye on Anko's movements.
His presence here and his request for a gift from Orochimaru were, of course, for the Heaven's Curse Mark.
However, Veigar wasn't after the power of the Heaven's Curse Mark, but rather Orochimaru's research findings on souls.
For eternal life and to forever maintain peak power, Orochimaru's technique of soul division was a desperate measure.
Veigar's request for a gift made Orochimaru's eyes flash with brilliant light, his gaze on Veigar filled with greed.
Orochimaru naturally coveted Veigar's power and talent immensely. Although Veigar didn't possess a kekkei genkai, Orochimaru had no doubt how much he would gain once he acquired Veigar's body.
"Since you want it, I'll give it to you then."
Then Orochimaru bit Veigar's neck.
Veigar did not resist Orochimaru's actions in the slightest. Not only that, he actively controlled his body's instinctive reactions, preventing the Reaper Death Seal and Phenomenal Evil Power from reacting, allowing Orochimaru's power to invade his body.
Orochimaru retracted his neck, looking at Veigar, who had his eyes lightly closed and was quietly accepting his power. The greed in Orochimaru's eyes intensified.
Orochimaru, who had developed the Heaven's Curse Mark, knew better than anyone the damage it inflicted on the body. Yet Veigar seemed completely unaffected, effortlessly withstanding this power.
After a short while, the curse marks spreading across Veigar's body retracted back into the Heaven's Curse Mark on his neck. Veigar then opened his eyes.
"Put away the greed in your eyes, Orochimaru-sama."
"I am destined to be the one you cannot have."
At this moment, Orochimaru's face was pale from consecutively splitting two soul seeds. Feeling as though Veigar had seen through him, the greed in his eyes receded. He chuckled and asked:
"Veigar-kun seems to know a lot of things!"
Ignoring Orochimaru, Veigar muttered to himself:
"The incredibly volatile senjutsu chakra, the curse marks for splitting and condensing souls... Orochimaru's's forbidden jutsu truly isn't simple."
In just this short time, Veigar had laid bare the core secrets of the Heaven's Curse Mark, making Orochimaru desperately want to capture Veigar and research him in his laboratory.
"Give me the method to undo this jutsu! I will preserve this soul well."
Orochimaru thought for a moment, then spat out a scroll covered in fluids, throwing it to Veigar.
Then, Orochimaru asked curiously:
"How did you discover its secrets?"
Putting away the scroll, and to make Orochimaru give up on him, Veigar explained:
"I possess the power of the Shinigami, the bane of all souls."
"Would you like to try it, Orochimaru-sama?"
Orochimaru's pupils intensely narrowed. Veigar's words sent a chilling malice through him. Since Orochimaru had transformed himself into a snake-like being, he hadn't felt such a chill. Now, because of a single sentence from Veigar, he experienced that sensation once more.
At the same time, Orochimaru developed immense interest in the "power of the Shinigami."
"So that's how it is?"
"Veigar-kun is truly a remarkable person!"
At this moment, Orochimaru regarded Veigar as a kindred spirit, equally insane... person.
"I'll look after her."
"Then I'll leave it to you, Veigar-kun."
Veigar departed, and Orochimaru's home returned to peace.
After returning home, Veigar began to study the Heaven's Curse Mark. This parting gift from Orochimaru gave Veigar a great deal of inspiration.
The next day, Veigar went shopping for an exquisite gift, then carried it towards Minato's home.
After being in the village for so long without visiting his sensei, Veigar had certainly been a bit remiss in that regard.
Walking on the street, with the final election for the Fourth Hokage approaching, Veigar could hear many voices praising, speculating about, and supporting Orochimaru and Minato.
As for the candidate Danzō, frankly, there were hardly any discussions about him.
As Danzō, who was rooted in Konohagakure's darkness, sought to step into the light, one might ask: in Konohagakure, apart from Root, which he had regained control of, and the Shimura clan, who else would support him?
None, truly none at all.
However, Danzō didn't care about this, for now that he had obtained the power of the Senju and the Uchiha, he possessed a mysterious self-confidence.
Moreover, he had already made his move against Orochimaru. After eliminating Orochimaru, his next target would be Minato.
Including him, there were three candidates for the Fourth Hokage. If the other two were eliminated before the final election, wouldn't the position of Fourth Hokage be easily within his grasp?
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TN: This fanfic has been fully translated and is available on my Patreon —— patreon(.)com/PrimalDemon [remove the parentheses ( )]