บท 277: Chapter 277: Some seemingly absurd stories are true history
"Exquisite beyond compare, truly exquisite beyond compare."
A small tree appeared on the stainless steel operation table. The tree's roots pierced through the glass shards and the stainless steel table, with a force so great at the moment of explosion that it was almost unimaginable.
This was not the kind of force a tree could produce; the only explanation is the power of Wood Release.
After admiring it for a while, Orochimaru suddenly pulled out paper and a pen, quickly scribbling on it while muttering, "3 milliliters of whole blood, approximately 70 billion cells. Mice are predicted to have 20 to 25 trillion cells, which means..."
3%! Three percent of the Divine Tree cells are enough to manifest Wood Release. Although it's an uncontrollable Wood Release, Tatsuma, you have the talent for Wood Release!
Orochimaru was very excited, but Tatsuma was serious. He said, "In other words, the time left for me to find a way to control the Divine Tree cells is not the full thirty years before they completely consume my other cells, but much shorter."
As Tatsuma's words sank in, Orochimaru's excitement was instantly extinguished, and his expression gradually became serious.
The two of them were silent for a long time. After a while, Tatsuma finally asked, "Orochimaru-sama, have you found a method to suppress the activity of the Divine Tree cells?"
Orochimaru shook his head and said, "No, neither physical nor chemical methods have worked. The Divine Tree cells are too tenacious. The only ways to suppress them are Sealing Jutsu and Cursed Seal techniques. However, the Divine Tree cells in your body have spread to all your organs. Your blood, muscles, internal organs, and skin all contain Divine Tree cells. Although the proportion is not high, unless you seal yourself entirely, there's no way to control their proliferation."
Wood Release is indeed powerful, but Tatsuma's worries at this moment outweigh his expectations. After all, he had witnessed the mouse, which had his blood injected into it, explode and turn into a small tree.
Moreover, in the original story, there was Danzo who went mad and turned into a tree due to the loss of control of the Hashirama Cells. If Shimura Danzo had not acted decisively and severed part of his body, he might have ended up like that mouse.
"By the way, Orochimaru-sama, don't tell anyone about today's events, especially my sensei."
Tatsuma said seriously. Orochimaru nodded and tightened his grip on the syringe, saying, "We should study these blood cells that have been completely replaced by the Divine Tree cells. There might be a solution."
Although Orochimaru said this, both he and Tatsuma knew the prospects were slim. However, it was still necessary to research the Divine Tree cells that had absorbed so many cells to see if there were any genetic changes.
After analyzing the blood samples, Tatsuma was cleaning the lab. When he came out, Orochimaru suddenly said, "The Divine Tree cells—this Divine Tree, is it the same as the tree used by Shikkotsu Forest's Slug Sage?"
Tatsuma nodded. Orochimaru licked his lips and said, "The three great sanctuaries have been passed down for thousands of years, even tracing back to the ancient era before Chakra appeared. I suspect that the Divine Tree is related to the birth of Chakra."
Orochimaru's speculation made Tatsuma's heart skip a beat. After all, he knew that the so-called Divine Tree was indeed the origin of Chakra. He pressed his lips together and quickly composed himself.
Fortunately, Orochimaru was lost in his own thoughts and did not notice Tatsuma's unusual reaction. Tatsuma cautiously asked, "Orochimaru-sama, why do you have this idea?"
"It's from a storybook I read in my childhood. Before the Ninja groups took over the ninja world, there were many clans in the ninja world that could use Chakra, and they all originated from the Shinobi Sect (Ninshu).
Records and rumors about the Shinobi Sect are extremely scarce. I only later heard some information by chance, including a tree with mysterious powers and even rumors about the Six Paths Sage and the tree. I never believed in the existence of the Six Paths Sage before, nor did I think he was the origin of the Ninja, but if a Divine Tree with such miraculous properties exists, then it doesn't seem hard to understand that it could have given rise to a Six Paths Sage.
And if we assume the existence of the Six Paths Sage, then many of his stories are worth pondering. For example, there are tales of him having two white eyes, or in some versions, two purple eyes and one red eye.
There are also legendary ninja tools said to be from the Land of Lightning, which were previously in the possession of the Kinkaku and Ginkaku brothers who were targeted for their deaths."
Orochimaru muttered, then recalled something else and said, "Earlier at Ryuchi Cave, I heard a snake belittling Mount Myoboku, claiming that those toads only survived because they helped a 'man' in the past; otherwise, Mount Myoboku would have been destroyed in some apocalyptic disaster long ago."
After saying this, Orochimaru shook his head and looked at the surprised Tatsuma with his mouth agape, saying, "But these are just rumors. You don't need to take them too seriously; it might just be a coincidence. However, I can visit Ryuchi Cave sometime to inquire about the Divine Tree. And Jiraiya—at such a critical moment, I don't know where he has gone. Otherwise, he could have inquired from Mount Myoboku."
Tatsuma nodded blankly, closing his mouth. He was certainly not surprised by the stories Orochimaru mentioned. His surprise was that Orochimaru knew these stories. However, considering Orochimaru's pursuit of Ninjutsu and tracing the origins of Ninjutsu and Ninja, it was understandable.
After a while, the new test report came out. Looking at the content on the report, Orochimaru said, "After consuming a sufficient amount of cells, the Divine Tree cells have indeed undergone some changes. Although they are becoming more similar to the Hashirama Cells, there are also differences. I will find some time to compare them carefully and narrow down the scope further, but..."
Orochimaru put down the document and picked up the paper he had scribbled on.
"Rip~"
Orochimaru tore the paper into pieces and said, "This calculation is too imprecise and has no reference value. The proportion of Divine Tree cells in the mouse is indeed only about 3%. However, these 3% of Divine Tree cells are already self-rewritten, different from the Divine Tree cells in your body. Fortunately, there are still a few blood samples left."
Orochimaru looked at the few unused blood samples and said, "I will find time to conduct a series of experiments based on different proportions of Divine Tree cells consuming autologous cells to see if we can determine a more precise range of changes."
Tatsuma also came to his senses. Both of them had been so shocked by the scene of the mouse turning into a small tree that they overlooked many variables. Reflecting on it now, Tatsuma felt a bit ashamed but also relieved.
Looking at Orochimaru, Tatsuma felt somewhat guilty. It seemed like he had made Orochimaru incredibly busy. First, there was the research on Shikotsumyaku and Boil Release, then the comparison of genetic information, and now new mouse experiments. Tatsuma had one thought in his mind:
Fortunately, he hadn't given Orochimaru any money; otherwise, he might have become a black-hearted boss!
"Tsk!"
Orochimaru suddenly tapped his head. Tatsuma panicked, thinking Orochimaru had realized he was being exploited.
To Tatsuma's surprise, Orochimaru looked around and said, "This place is still too rudimentary. If we could use a Wood Release research facility and assign more researchers to me, the progress would definitely improve."
"Unfortunately, the Wood Release research facility cannot be used, so I'll have to purchase some equipment myself. It looks like I'll need to complete a few missions to save up some money."
Seeing Orochimaru lost in his own thoughts, Tatsuma couldn't help but smile. How many people can make Orochimaru fund their research?
Thinking back to his misunderstandings about Orochimaru from a few years ago, Tatsuma wished he could slap himself. How could he have rejected someone so kind-hearted as this?
After placing a few blood samples in the refrigerator, Orochimaru looked at Tatsuma and said with a hint of embarrassment, "Tatsuma, it seems the experiment will be delayed for a while. However, I will finish the tasks as quickly as possible to get the money and purchase the necessary equipment."
"Well, Orochimaru-sama, I still have quite a bit of money here. Although ANBU doesn't settle mission counts, mission rewards are still distributed."
"No need. You have to cover the Clan's expenses, so it's better to keep some money on hand for possible emergencies, like if Tsunade might use the land deed as collateral."
Orochimaru shook his head. Tatsuma sighed, admiring how well Orochimaru knew his sensei. Despite this, he still spoke up for his sensei:
"Sensei hasn't been to the casino for a long time. She might be planning to quit gambling."
"With her weak self-control, the only thing stopping her from falling back into the casino is just a ridiculous excuse."
Orochimaru didn't believe Tsunade would quit gambling, just as he didn't believe Jiraiya, the perennial underachiever, would quit womanizing.
"Achoo!"
"Achoo!"
In Konoha Hospital and a hot spring inn in the Land of Fire, Tsunade, who was teaching, and Jiraiya, who was on a research trip, both sneezed simultaneously.
Tatsuma showed an awkward smile, unsure of how to restore his sensei's reputation. In fact, even he didn't fully believe that Tsunade would quit gambling.
As for why Tsunade hadn't been to the casino for several months, it was merely due to everything going smoothly. Although there was the incident of Tatsuma getting injured, it was actually a case of turning danger into safety, or rather, turning misfortune into fortune.
If something truly happened to Tatsuma, he could easily imagine his sensei getting drunk and once again stepping into the casino to do charity work.
Seeing that Tatsuma no longer disputed, Orochimaru was somewhat satisfied. Tatsuma's initial argument was understandable because he was Tsunade's student and needed to argue. However, if Tatsuma continued to argue, it would be foolish.
Orochimaru looked at the now-cleaned laboratory and said, "I need to go to the Hokage Building. You're free to do as you please."
"Alright, I need to go pay some fees and purchase a few things, so I won't stay here any longer."
Tatsuma nodded, and he and Orochimaru left the laboratory together, then went their separate ways. Tatsuma first went to the bank to pay the overdue utility bills from the previous quarter and prepay for the upcoming quarter's utilities.
He then withdrew some money and visited a clothing store that had been collaborating with the Senju clan for years to discuss summer clothing customization and paid a deposit. After that, he went to purchase items needed for tomorrow's Obon Festival and a gift for the upcoming Umino family's first meal feast.
The flow of spending made Tatsuma grateful that Orochimaru had declined his offer to fund the research; otherwise, he would have ended up broke again.
"Tatsuma?! Is that a gift you have in your hand? How did you know about my birthday in three days? I haven't even sent out the invitations yet!"
Tatsuma, who was about to seal the wrapped gift for the first meal feast, heard a familiar voice and looked back to see Uchiha Tenko, with his eyes gleaming, looking at him.
Tatsuma forced a smile and nodded, saying, "Of course. You're my friend."
"Hahaha~ Hahaha~ It'll drive that bastard Sento crazy! It was his birthday last week, and neither you nor Minato went. He even said you and Minato were busy. It seems some people are just full of themselves."
Upon hearing this, Tatsuma felt a wave of frustration. It seemed he not only had to buy Tenko a birthday gift but also needed to make up for the missed birthday gift for Sento.
Is money really my enemy? Does it want to keep leaving me?
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