Chapter 229: Zetsu's Scheme! (Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Votes)
That evening, Yūhi Kurenai and Shizune returned and learned that Tsunade was pregnant. They were both excited and couldn't help but feel a little jealous.
But they quickly surrounded Tsunade, chattering and asking questions.
"From now on, you'll be staying at home, right?"
"Yes, I'm at the hospital with Senior Nonoyu, so it's not a problem at all."
Yūhi Kurenai and Shizune became very careful.
Tsunade said helplessly, "Do you have to make such a fuss?"
"I'm perfectly fine!"
Sarutobi Asuma watched with a smile and said, "Of course you're fine, but you still need to be careful for the first few months of pregnancy."
"Of course, you don't need to be overly nervous, but you don't need to do some things yourself anymore."
Shizune immediately nodded, "I'll go ask Kushina sister about that tomorrow."
Tsunade couldn't help but blush, "This... there's no need to ask about this at all, is there?"
...
The next day, as Shizune went to ask Kushina and Uzumaki Miri, the news of Tsunade's pregnancy quickly spread.
Sarutobi Asuma also began to delegate more research and development to his Shadow Clones, accompanying Tsunade himself.
This was his first child.
Whether in his past life or this one.
Perhaps it was also proof that he was truly integrating into this world.
March 6th, Konoha Year 56.
Sarutobi Asuma received an invitation from Orochimaru.
After leaving a Shadow Clone to oversee the Sage Domain, he personally traveled to Orochimaru's base in the Land of Fire.
The moment he saw Orochimaru, Sarutobi Asuma couldn't help but raise his eyebrows, then smiled, "Congratulations, you've achieved your desire!"
He could sense that Orochimaru's body was filled with Hashirama Cells!
Was the transplant successful?
Or had he cultivated a Clone?
No!
He must have obtained White Zetsu!
Sarutobi Asuma saw through everything.
Orochimaru didn't hide it either, smiling, "As expected, you can't hide anything from me!"
"A masterpiece from Uchiha Madara!"
Sarutobi Asuma smiled and said, "Not entirely!"
Orochimaru was slightly surprised, "You also know about the existence of White Zetsu?"
"No, it should be said that you captured and studied it!"
Sarutobi Asuma neither confirmed nor denied, but instead asked, "So, are you planning to use this as an intelligence exchange?"
Orochimaru didn't delve deeper and smiled, "Of course not."
"The intelligence I want to exchange is that a guy named Zetsu in the Akatsuki Organization made a deal with me. You absolutely wouldn't guess what it was?"
So excited?
Countless thoughts flashed through Sarutobi Asuma's mind.
The Ten-Tails?
The Moon Eye Plan?
The Rinnegan?
Even...
Uchiha Madara's corpse?
Sarutobi Asuma felt he had guessed most of it and smiled, "That may not be the case. I know quite a lot."
"Then it seems Senior Orochimaru has already decided to cooperate."
Orochimaru stuck out his tongue and smiled, "As expected, you have another spy planted in the Akatsuki Organization!"
"Who is it?"
"Kakuzu?"
You guessed it exactly!
Sarutobi Asuma deliberately twitched his eyelids and said, "Senior Orochimaru, knowing too much is not a good thing!"
Orochimaru's body stiffened, cold sweat breaking out on his back.
"This guy... is even more powerful than I anticipated!"
Sensing the dangerous aura emanating from Sarutobi Asuma, Orochimaru stuck out his tongue and chuckled, "I have a very high opinion of my own worth."
Sarutobi Asuma remained noncommittal and asked, "So, what kind of information does senior intend to trade?"
"What do you want to get from me again?"
Orochimaru laughed, "A pair of Three Tomoe Sharingan!"
"That shouldn't be a problem for you."
"Two pairs of Mangekyo Sharingan have appeared in the Uchiha clan, and I believe you were the one who facilitated it!"
Sarutobi Asuma immediately shook his head, "I could indeed provide them. But I won't. I will not allow Uchiha Sharingan to fall into the wrong hands. Besides, even if you obtain the First Hokage's cells and Uchiha Madara's cells, the chance of awakening the Rinnegan is still extremely slim."
Orochimaru's snake-like pupils narrowed slightly. "As expected, I couldn't hide it from you!"
"However, Asuma, don't underestimate me."
Sarutobi Asuma said, "I have never underestimated you, senior. But when it comes to understanding the Rinnegan, even Uchiha Madara, were he revived, might not surpass me now. With your current body, plus Uchiha Madara's cells, your power is far from enough to cultivate the Rinnegan. Of course, if senior offers enough chips, I have other ways to help you achieve your goal."
The information revealed in this statement was substantial, igniting a fiery gaze in Orochimaru.
"I hope you won't disappoint me!"
Sticking out his tongue, Orochimaru said, "The Akatsuki Organization has the Moon Eye Plan, a plan to collect all the Tailed Beasts and create a Ten-Tails, far more powerful than the Nine-Tails. They aim to achieve unprecedented peace this way."
Sarutobi Asuma scoffed, "Peace in a dream?"
"Do you agree with him, senior?"
So, he already knows. Orochimaru thought to himself, then said aloud, "Of course not!"
"That is not what I seek. Of course, I don't mind playing a certain role in it and obtaining something in return."
Peace? The peace spoken of by Zetsu was laughable to him. Only those who are internally weak would make such a choice!
"According to the intelligence, all Chakra in the Ninja World currently originates from that Ten-Tails. It can also be said that the source of all Kekkei Genkai powers in the Ninja World comes from the Ten-Tails."
Orochimaru stared at Sarutobi Asuma. Zetsu's intelligence might not be accurate, so he wanted to get some feedback from Sarutobi Asuma. This guy's intelligence-gathering capabilities far exceeded his imagination; perhaps there would be a surprise.
However, Sarutobi Asuma showed no reaction this time and instead asked, "Senior's chips are more than just this, right?"
Orochimaru smiled, "Of course. I have obtained some very good sacrifices that will allow me to perfect the Impure World Reincarnation jutsu, as you should know. The most difficult of the Nine-Tails to capture is the Nine-Tails. Therefore, once the other Tailed Beasts are in place, it will be the signal for a new Ninja World War to begin. At that time, believe me, it will be an unprecedented Ninja World War."
Speaking of this, Orochimaru couldn't help but recall the scene he had witnessed not long ago.
"Indeed, they used Uchiha Madara's body and White Zetsu to lure Orochimaru..."
Sarutobi Asuma stared at Orochimaru and smiled, "Then I eagerly await that day!"
Orochimaru's pupils contracted sharply. Something's not right!
Sarutobi Asuma continued, "It seems that in order to make you a very useful pawn, the other party has made a significant bet. In that case, I have no choice but to raise the stakes."
"Heh heh." Orochimaru chuckled, "It seems I've also become a pawn for you, Asuma!"
"No!" Sarutobi Asuma shook his head. "Pawns can be discarded at will, destroyed, but I won't."
"To me, senior is a collaborator."
"Cooperation is a win-win!"
Orochimaru stared into Sarutobi Asuma's eyes and said, "Then, what's your bargaining chip?"
"The secret to eternal life!"
Sarutobi Asuma's words made Orochimaru's pupils contract sharply.
"While the origin of bloodline power can indeed be said to come from the Ten-Tails, it's not entirely so."
Sarutobi Asuma continued, "At least the Byakugan isn't."
"Senior knows the Sage of Six Paths and the Ten-Tails, but doesn't know about another person, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, the mother of the Sage of Six Paths, who came from beyond the heavens. She brought the Ten-Tails, and indirectly, chakra!"
Orochimaru became excited, stretching his long tongue. "I have to say, you've swayed me!"
Sarutobi Asuma chuckled, "The secret to eternal life is hidden within chakra, and also within Sage Mode."
"The three Sages of the Three Great Sage Regions existed even before the era of the Sage of Six Paths, but the Sage of Six Paths died, and they are still alive."
"Senior must already be researching the power of Sage Mode; I can sense it."
"Your direction is indeed correct, but it's not enough. To achieve controllable Sage Transformation, you need to use immense Sage Chakra to perform deep, controllable Sage Transformation on the cells… allowing the cells to directly absorb and digest Natural Energy as nourishment, completely freeing themselves from ordinary food!"
Orochimaru stared intently at Sarutobi Asuma. "You've achieved it, haven't you?"
Sarutobi Asuma nodded, then continued, "And bloodline power, coupled with sufficiently powerful Chakra Control, allows Kekkei Genkai – no, not just Kekkei Genkai power, but even Chakra Nature Transformation, when mastered to an extremely high level and able to deeply influence the cell nucleus and genes within the cells, can also bring about great changes in physique."
"Onoki, the Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure, can be considered an example. That guy is even older than my father and your teacher, yet his condition is better, and it has a lot to do with Dust Release."
"The stronger the bloodline power, the greater its impact on physique."
"Isn't the Sage Body we know a representation of the power of Yang Release?"
"Therefore, even without mastering Kekkei Genkai, if your Yang Style Chakra Nature Transformation is mastered to an extremely high realm, and you can deeply alter your own genes, then possessing the First Hokage's chakra and the Uzumaki Clan's longevity would be a natural consequence!"
Orochimaru excitedly stuck out his tongue. "I see!"
"It truly is a win-win!"
"It seems the reforms in Konoha were also driven by you from behind the scenes!"
"So that's how it is."
At this moment, flashes of inspiration lit up in Orochimaru's mind, and the path ahead suddenly became clear.
It was wonderful!
His intuition was right after all. Asuma had truly brought a huge surprise!
...
Half an hour later, the transaction concluded.
Orochimaru suddenly laughed, "I heard Tsunade is pregnant, congratulations!"
"Thank you!"
Sarutobi Asuma's figure disappeared, leaving behind a parting message: "Don't forget to prepare a gift!"
"A gift, huh? I'll have to prepare it carefully."
Orochimaru smiled, then secretly mused, "Indulging, and even pushing for the outbreak of war, seems to have another purpose."
"Is it also for the Ten-Tails?"
"Or is it peace that can fundamentally never be achieved?"
After a long while, Orochimaru snapped out of his reverie and chuckled to himself, "These have nothing to do with me, but Asuma is indeed a very good partner."
"It seems I need to put more effort into clone technology research as well. There won't be so many experimental subjects in the future."
Orochimaru sensed something, though he couldn't confirm it completely yet.
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Machine Translation by: beta.randomtranslator.com
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