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Truth be told, Midorima wasn't entirely confident he could break the cursed seal on Shizune's neck. However, he had no desire to encounter any Konoha shinobi other than Tsunade—simply because he didn't trust them.
Though Tsunade was revered as one of the "Legendary Sannin," her direct combat abilities were undoubtedly inferior to Orochimaru and Jiraiya's. Thus, if Midorima wanted to leave, she likely wouldn't be able to stop him.
But interacting with other Konoha shinobi would be downright foolish.
He didn't trust Konoha, just as Konoha didn't trust him.
If he naively handed Shizune over to the village, there was no way they would let him walk free.
He was a rogue ninja from Kirigakure, a subordinate of Orochimaru, and now implicated in Shizune's kidnapping—his list of "tags" was far too long.
As for his personal circumstances…
Come on, what were the chances Konoha would care about the plight of a rogue ninja from another village?
Did he really think Konoha was full of pushovers?
Given that Midorima and Shizune couldn't separate, the likelihood of them running into other Konoha shinobi was much higher than encountering Tsunade alone. And with Kimimaro hot on their heels, Midorima's best option was to remove the cursed seal from Shizune.
Of course, there was a second-best solution for Midorima: simply letting go of Shizune.
Shizune would meet her end, while he regained his freedom.
This alternative wasn't lost on Midorima—and Shizune, clearly aware of it as well, had hastily spoken up.
Perhaps there was some genuine trust in her words, but how much of it was real? No one could say for sure.
Once Shizune agreed, Midorima began attempting to break the cursed seal.
In truth, using the [Cell Laboratory] to dismantle the seal was no easy feat.
Deciphering cursed seals was inherently complex, and he wasn't even sure if the [Cell Laboratory] could function on someone else's body.
The "50% success rate" Midorima had mentioned hinged precisely on this uncertainty—after all, he had never tried it before.
Another method was to use the "Evil Sealing Method."
Leaving aside whether Midorima even knew how to perform this sealing technique, using it would inevitably require separating from Shizune—immediately followed by her head exploding.
Midorima channeled chakra into Shizune's body, probing the sealed chakra within, and instantly felt a headache coming on.
Shizune already had the "Cursed Mark" implanted in her, and with the additional seal Orochimaru had placed on her just days ago, the chakra inside her body was in complete disarray, making it extremely troublesome to handle.
But there were still discernible differences.
The "Cursed Mark" affected the entire body once activated, whereas the other seal was localized to the neck.
The neck was one of the human body's most vulnerable points—destroying it didn't require much chakra. In that sense, this seal's chakra wasn't as potent as the "Cursed Mark," and its overall complexity wasn't as high.
After sorting through the chaos, Midorima finally had a rough idea of how to dismantle the seal. The next challenge was whether the [Analysis Laboratory] could function on another person's body.
He barely needed to test it to know the answer: no.
This was his own personal ability—there was no way it could extend to someone else.
Though the realization was disheartening, Midorima quickly devised another approach.
He had Shizune transfer her own chakra into his body, then used the [Analysis Laboratory] to analyze it.
Aside from Shizune's natural chakra, the only other presence was Orochimaru's. Since the "Cursed Mark" had already been decoded, the remaining chakra had to belong to the second seal.
He then used the [Analysis Laboratory] to break down that remaining chakra.
The entire process was painstakingly slow.
Shizune, weakened from days without food and already low on chakra, could only transfer a minuscule amount into Midorima's body. But precisely because of this, Orochimaru's chakra made up a larger proportion of what little she could give.
Midorima's plan was to first use the [Analysis Laboratory] to decipher the seal, then replicate the same cursed seal on his own body and dismantle it using the lab. If successful, this might provide a way to remove the seal from Shizune.
The process was convoluted, but it was the only way.
Midorima's greatest hope was that Kimimaro wouldn't find them before he could remove Shizune's seal—otherwise, they'd be in serious trouble.
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Deep within the Forest of Death, a giant serpent thrashed violently. As it raised its head, the towering trees could no longer conceal its massive form.
Birds and beasts scattered in panic, drawing the attention of the patrol teams.
Upon spotting the serpent, the teams split up—one group rushed into the forest to engage the beast, while a smaller contingent went to call for reinforcements.
When Hiruzen Sarutobi received the report, he immediately summoned Danzō, Tsunade, and members of the Hyūga and Uchiha clans to reinforce the Forest of Death. His brow furrowed deeply.
"Orochimaru… just what are you planning?" Hiruzen's voice was uncharacteristically furious.
Danzō, equally grim-faced, couldn't decipher Orochimaru's motives. But he knew one thing: Hiruzen would heighten security for a long time to come, which meant his own operations would face greater scrutiny.
Tsunade's mood was even worse. As she followed Hiruzen out of the command room, she asked quietly, "Sensei… Orochimaru's experiments require test subjects, don't they?"
"Most likely," Hiruzen replied darkly.
"Do you think… Shizune was captured by him?"
"..." Hiruzen had no immediate answer.
Meanwhile, a team led by Kakashi—tasked with guarding the Forest of Death—rushed to the scene upon receiving the distress call.
By then, the giant serpent had already begun its assault, overwhelming the first wave of responding chūnin.
Against such overwhelming power, even the chūnin stood no chance.
"Suspend the second exam immediately!" Kakashi ordered, activating the contingency plan as he and his subordinates charged into the forest.
The team split into two groups: one, led by Kakashi and Itachi Uchiha, advanced to confront and slay the serpent, while the other focused on rescuing the injured—both examinees and proctors alike.
A bloodied chūnin staggered out of the forest's depths, carrying a wounded genin on his back. Reinforcements immediately rushed to his aid.
"Can you hold on?"
The chūnin gestured weakly toward the serpent. "Don't worry about me… there are more examinees… I could only save one…"
"The medical team is right outside. Go to them now."
Nodding, the chūnin hurried toward the forest's edge with the barely breathing genin in tow.
The medics swiftly took the critically injured genin and began emergency treatment.
"Where's that chūnin from earlier?" one medic asked, turning to treat the chūnin's wounds—only to find he had already vanished.