At 1:00 AM, Shen, who had successfully descended from outer space, quietly arrived at Room 2046.
After doing a couple laps around the place, he made his way back to what looked like the leader's room.
"Hmm? Isn't this the basic conversion formula for chakra?" He casually glanced at the scattered draft papers on the table and realized these people from Kumogakure had been completely misled by him.
Shen figured that even if Kumogakure started working on chakra tech right now, it'd still take them at least ten years to get anywhere.
"By then, Kumo ninjas might turn into human juicers—or maybe they'll just start kidnapping people all over the place."
He knew that once this technology appeared in the shinobi world, warfare would shift from mutual killing to mutual kidnapping.
But were chakra-insulating materials really that easy to find?
Orochimaru had only managed to synthesize such an insulating material after gaining knowledge of chemical reactions and molecular structures from Shen.
Given the current overall technological level of the shinobi world, related theories wouldn't emerge for at least eight to ten years.
"I'll give you a little help," Shen muttered after carefully going through everything scribbled on the draft papers. Then, imitating their handwriting, he wrote down several formulas with slightly deviated directions.
Research based on these formulas would eventually lead to results similar to his own. At the very least, it'd be far better than those explosive disasters caused by that "biggest schemer."
It was just that stability and cost would increase more than tenfold.
"In a few years, when Konoha phases out chakra as a biological energy source, these poor kids will probably end up broke," Shen mused that Kumogakure would certainly fall behind economically.
Keeping good things secret was one of the survival rules in the cutthroat shinobi world.
Even if the Third Raikage possessed sufficient awareness and humbly pursued foreign trade with other countries, their research outcomes—research involving capturing people across the shinobi world—would make finding reliable partners willing to collaborate impossible.
"Although I don't know your exact plan, I'll keep watching until you slip up," Shen grinned mysteriously before burrowing underground and vanishing without a trace.
In the Hokage Tower Office—the supreme leader of Konoha—Sarutobi cradled his crystal ball, wearing an expression of knowing satisfaction.
The Telescope Technique he'd spent six years researching—that was his preparation.
As long as the caster understood the target's chakra signature and presence, he could observe their every movement within Konoha's boundaries.
The crystal ball was merely a medium; using any other transparent object instead would still allow successful casting.
Having served as Hokage for over a decade, although he clearly recognized the chakra patterns and presences of nearly everyone in Konoha, he had never observed anyone except Shen like this.
Originally, the Third Hokage simply wanted to stay ahead of the Konoha Troublemaker's antics. Why invade others' privacy otherwise?
The man who had been secretly photographed multiple times in bathrooms and restrooms declared firmly: personal privacy was sacred and inviolable—except concerning enemies, of course!
The Third Hokage, currently slacking off at work, no longer watched his little movies or read his little books. Instead, he focused entirely on monitoring the one who dared to violate his privacy.
He planned to record some amusing scenes and, after retirement, serve as principal of the ninja academy, using these recordings as cautionary examples for students—let's hope none of them end up like the rat-tail-whoops, I mean, "good-for-themselves."
"Just as I expected," the Third Hokage gave a self-satisfied chuckle. "This kid really did go there to snoop around."
Indeed, everything had been a setup all along. He'd long suspected something fishy about Kumogakure, which was why he stopped Shen from taking action against them.
Even someone as capable as the Third Hokage couldn't possibly decipher Kumogakure's Chakra patterns and signatures in just a few days.
Given Shen's mischievous personality, such interference would only make him more rebellious.
Sure enough, that very night, Shen sneaked over and started messing around with some draft papers.
The Third Hokage didn't know what exactly was written on those pages, but judging by the act itself, it must've been something extremely important to Kumogakure.
Feeling particularly pleased, he packed away his crystal ball and stepped out of the office, ready for a good night's sleep.
It was clear that during this period, he'd have to deal with Kumogakure during the day while keeping an eye on Shen's every move at night.
If the Third Hokage knew those slightly altered drafts could plunge Kumogakure into financial ruin just like the Shimura family—dreaming themselves back ten years—he might've laughed nonstop for three whole days!
Thus, while snoozing away in bed, the Third Hokage suddenly found himself floating in outer space... side by side with Shen—and somehow already miles ahead of him.
A week later, an afternoon found Shen arriving at the underground lab after completing his daily quota—"Clan Member Takedown Challenge" accomplished.
Before he could even pull out the carefully prepared supplements he had brought, Dora-A Shen was dragged into a small room by Orochimaru.
"Snake Uncle, I'm still a child, you know," Shen awkwardly avoided looking into Orochimaru's lust-filled eyes.
Orochimaru's gaze brightened further: "Shen, you finally arrived! Do you know how many days I've gone without proper sleep? More than a week!"
After a tight embrace, his lips trembled as he revealed a truth: "Ever since you left, I've been working nonstop."
Shen, originally feeling somewhat guilty, thought it over and realized he had never actually set any working hours for his employees.
"Snake Uncle, you're really turning into a bad influence. This overtime was all on you."
"I don't care. Today, you're not leaving this underground lab until Version 5.0's serum issue is solved!" After years of hard labor, Orochimaru had begun showing signs of mental strain.
Anyone working over twenty hours a day would start getting real negative vibes—especially a ninja who never got any mental health checkups. No wonder his personality had become increasingly twisted.
"Fine, fine. But Snake Uncle, after I fix the serum problem, you need to read all these books and write a 100,000-word reflection." Dora-A Shen pulled out over a dozen thick books from his pendant.
Orochimaru was stunned when he saw the titles on the book covers: "The Weaknesses of Human Nature", "The Measured Steps of Giants", "The Pyramid of Success."
The more he looked, the more suspicious he became about what these books contained.
"There's also these," Shen said, pulling out a few more books and piling them all up before leaving the small room.
"The True Story of Ah Q," "Call to Arms," "Wandering," "Diary of a Madman." Orochimaru couldn't help but wonder who Shuren Zhou was, the writer behind all these books.
What kind of literary talent could produce so many books—each one a different length?
He believed, without question, these were much more serious than the stories Jiraiya published in newspapers.
Picking up the book that interested him most—Diary of a Madman—Orochimaru felt instantly that this might be exactly the sort of book written for people like himself.
Flipping it open randomly to a page, he began reading aloud in his rich, deep voice: "I looked through the pages and found no dates anywhere. Each line was crooked, filled only with words like 'virtue' and 'morality.' Unable to sleep, I studied them late into the night—until finally, between the lines, I saw the truth: the whole book screamed just two words—'EAT PEOPLE!'"
[This quote comes from Lu Xun's *Diary of a Madman*, a classic of modern Chinese literature symbolizing criticism of traditional Confucian ethics.]
At that very moment, Orochimaru had an epiphany.
Lifting his head, he gripped the book tightly with both hands and cried out: "Scientific research alone cannot save the shinobi world!"
Search ReadingPal's official website: www.kanshuzhushou.com — Read millions of popular books completely free forever without any advertisements!
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
Want to read the subsequent content in advance?
Please follow my Patreon:patreon/Tansnovel
Tans Novel - The Fastest-Updating Naruto Fanfiction Account
Read 100+ chapters in advance, with at least 3 new chapters updated every day! More free chapters! 20+ Naruto fanfictions!
Just three steps:
1. Download and open the "Patreon" app
2. Search for "Tans Novel"
3. Click on the collection and enjoy to your heart's content
<><><><><><><><>