Chapter 21: Orochimaru's Laboratory!

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"First Hokage..."

Orochimaru's snake-like eyes narrowed fiercely. He wanted to say something, but the words stuck in his throat.

Aside from widening his eyes, Kabuto had no other expression left.

Hashirama, looking at the person who had reverted from a monstrous form in front of him, had absolutely no recognition.

He didn't know him.

This was an experiment from Orochimaru's laboratory.

"Yin-Yin Monster."

"From now on, leave the task issuing to me."

"Let me handle it personally."

Hashirama sighed helplessly. He had initially thought the Yin-Yin Monster was just a useless system, but now it was showing quite a proactive side.

This was the first task initiated by the Yin-Yin Monster!

And they didn't even know who the target was!

Kill upon meeting!

Too ruthless!

Hashirama suddenly realized that this cute and seemingly harmless little spirit had more to it than meets the eye.

"Yin-Yin~ I got it~"

The Yin-Yin Monster immediately responded, adding a cute expression that made it impossible to get mad at.

Hashirama nodded, his gaze focused on the laboratory creature bound by wooden vines.

"You're out of luck!"

Hashirama thought, and the pressure exerted by the wooden vines suddenly increased, instantly enveloping the person inside.

Splurt!

Accompanied by a sound akin to squashing a persimmon, blood dripped between the tree vines.

Tree Burst Burial!

Hashirama silently named this technique.

The pressure exerted by these vines gathered together far exceeded Gaara's Sand Burial.

Gulp...

Both Orochimaru and Kabuto swallowed hard at the same time.

Fear deeply crept into their eyes.

You see...

Just a moment ago, they were both entangled by those wooden vines!

Of course, they didn't think much of it at the time.

But now...

It seemed like their lives were completely in the First Hokage's hands!

"Yin~"

The Yin-Yin Monster quickly flipped open its phone and confirmed the task it had just initiated.

"Host."

"Congratulations on completing the task!"

"Now issuing the task reward!"

As the Yin-Yin Monster's voice echoed in Hashirama's mind, he had already raised his right hand, ready.

This action immediately puzzled both Orochimaru and Kabuto.

What does this mean?

Is he asking for something?

Are we supposed to give him something?

Both dared not show the slightest negligence, carefully pondering the First Hokage's intentions.

Swoosh!

Just then.

A whistling sound broke through the air.

Immediately after.

A rusty shuriken flew from somewhere, aiming precisely at the First Hokage's head.

"This..."

Orochimaru and Kabuto glanced at each other, shock evident in their eyes.

This is too intense!

Kakuzu actually dares to shoot...

No wonder he fought with the First Hokage!

Just shot once!

Isn't that enough!

And now a second shot!

Too powerful!

In an instant.

The expressions on Orochimaru and Kabuto's faces turned peculiar. To them, this was no longer just a simple battle.

"This is provocation!"

"Two rusty shurikens shot at the First Hokage with no threat at all!"

"Oh my god!"

"There actually exists such a brave person in this world!"

At this moment...

Orochimaru and Kabuto's admiration for Jugo was boundless, like an endless river...

Swish!

Hashirama casually caught the rusty shuriken.

"This thing is useless! Just takes up space."

With this thought...

Hashirama directly threw the rusty shuriken to the ground.

As it made contact with the ground, the rusty shuriken emitted a crisp sound.

"... "

Orochimaru and Kabuto were speechless for a moment.

Both looked deeply at Hashirama, their eyes filled with fear, neither wanting to provoke him even slightly.

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes slightly.

He glanced in the direction from where the shuriken had flown.

Still not sensing any presence.

"Hoo!"

Orochimaru took a deep breath, quietly pondering.

"I never realized that miserly fellow had such powerful stealth techniques!"

"Indeed, the members of Akatsuki are all monsters!"

"To actually dare to provoke the First Hokage with consecutive shuriken attacks!"

"But..."

Orochimaru's snake-like eyes were filled with profound confusion.

"Why doesn't the First Hokage go find Jugo?"

"Could it be..."

Orochimaru's eyes widened suddenly, realizing something terrifying.

No way!

No way, no way!

Could it be that even the First Hokage can't find Kakuzu?

That would be terrifying!

Orochimaru reassessed Kakuzu's strength in his mind. He now firmly believed that Kakuzu was the hidden boss of Akatsuki!

"Uh..."

Kabuto supported himself with his left hand on the ground, struggling to stand up, his right hand placed on his abdomen, using Medical Ninjutsu to heal himself.

He couldn't help feeling fortunate.

Luckily, he was a medical ninja!

Otherwise, facing such a situation, he might have been finished!

Kabuto really wanted to please the First Hokage, but he had no idea where to start!

This was really...

Too helpless!

"Let's go inside!" Hashirama calmly said.

"Okay!"

Orochimaru responded immediately, taking the lead. The pitch-black corridor seemed like an abyss, harboring infinite terror and danger.

Hashirama followed closely behind Orochimaru. Before entering the Northern Stronghold, he glanced back at Kabuto, who was still healing.

"I... I won't run away!"

Kabuto quickly assured him. He didn't dare to run away; he just wanted to sit down and heal for a while.

Hashirama gestured towards the corridor leading to the Northern Stronghold.

His meaning was crystal clear.

If you're not running away, then get going!

"I... I understand!"

Kabuto forced himself up and staggered towards the Northern Stronghold.

As a multi-layered spy,

Kabuto had seen all kinds of tricks.

He had endured a lot of grievances.

But never had he felt so stifled!

This was like being punched over and over again for real!

It hurt!

Yet all he could do was endure!

At that moment,

Kabuto seemed to grasp the essence of being a ninja: when faced with helplessness, one could only endure...

After Orochimaru and Kabuto entered,

Hashirama stepped in behind them.

Before this, if Kabuto had run away, Hashirama wouldn't have cared.

They were just minor characters.

Insignificant!

But now...

Kabuto was important!

Just after stepping into the Northern Stronghold, Hashirama immediately sensed a completely different atmosphere inside.

Cold.

Dark.

Occasionally, a rotten smell drifted with the cold breeze.

The air around constantly emitted a bloody scent.

It was a laboratory filled with slaughter, where every experiment was expendable, liable to lose its life at any moment.

Orochimaru led the way at the front.

Kabuto followed closely behind.

Hashirama brought up the rear.

Kakuzu fluttered its wings at the very back, but no one could see it.

Passing three intersections,

Orochimaru led them to the end of a corridor.

It seemed like a dead end.

A thick wall stood in front.

Orochimaru stood before the intersection, hands tracing patterns on the door, then gave it a gentle push.

Creak.

The stone door rotated.

Orochimaru walked in, disappearing into the corridor.

Shortly after,

Kabuto reached the stone door, gave it a gentle push, and it rotated as well. He too walked in and disappeared into the corridor.

"Interesting."

Hashirama followed along, pushing the stone door lightly, effortlessly moving it.

Clearly,

This door had been sealed by Orochimaru before.

Stepping inside,

They found themselves in a dimly lit laboratory.

It was spacious.

Displayed inside were test tubes, beakers, microscopes—equipment one would expect to find in a chemistry lab.

Orochimaru stood at the center of the laboratory.

Hand seals.

His chest quickly expanded, emitting small flames.

These flames flew towards the surrounding candles.

In an instant,

The entire laboratory was illuminated by candlelight, revealing all the equipment clearly.

"First Hokage."

Orochimaru's gaze turned to Hashirama, a confident smile on his face.

"Welcome to my laboratory!"

(End of Chapter)