Chapter 8: Defective Sage Arts

Chapter 8: Defective Sage Arts

"You actually solved Jūgo's problem?!"

Orochimaru lost his composure.

Orochimaru couldn't help but feel a sense of defeat, even though he had experienced something similar before. Watching Ishihara accomplish in a short time what he had failed to do himself was disheartening.

"Is the gap between Ishihara and me really this vast?" Orochimaru was momentarily lost in thought.

"I'm cured?!" Jūgo looked at Ishihara in astonishment and quickly asked, "What did you do to me?"

Ishihara pointed to the curse seal on Jūgo's neck and explained, "This is the Reverse Curse Seal. It will prevent natural energy from entering your body. Natural energy is the real cause of your rampages."

Jūgo, hardly daring to believe it, asked with a trembling voice, "So, I won't have to worry about losing control anymore?!"

"That's right," Ishihara nodded and continued, "The Reverse Curse Seal has only one form. When activated, you will revert to your previous state and can lose control at will. In other words, you can now control your rampages."

Jūgo was stunned. He could now live like a normal person, free from his past life. It felt like a dream.

Seeing the two still in a daze, Ishihara turned to leave. The research on Jūgo had inspired him, and he needed to write down his findings quickly.

After taking a few steps, he stopped and looked back at Jūgo, who was following him, with a frown.

"Why are you following me?"

Jūgo replied earnestly, "You helped me solve my rampage problem. I'll follow you from now on!"

Ishihara raised an eyebrow. While he needed to research Jūgo, he didn't like being followed.

Orochimaru, snapping back to reality, looked at Ishihara with a complex expression. "Let him follow you from now on."

Unconsciously, Orochimaru's attitude had changed. He now regarded Ishihara as an equal.

"Alright," Ishihara hesitated but eventually nodded, recognizing Jūgo's importance in his plans.

Jūgo, delighted, scratched his head and followed Ishihara to the data room. Without the necessary permissions to enter, Jūgo stood guard at the door.

Over the next few days, the entire base buzzed with activity. People were brought into the base's depths, one after another, like prisoners.

"Die, Orochimaru!"

"Bastard, I'll kill you!"

"Orochimaru, don't forget your promise!"

Some were forcibly captured, while others volunteered, each with a different demeanor. Their presence made the base lively.

Ishihara often heard screams and roars from the base's depths. Orochimaru was busy, disappearing for nearly a month.

During this time, Ishihara was also busy researching Jūgo.

"Enter your rampage state now!"

"Okay, you can stop!"

Ishihara observed Jūgo in a room, watching him enter and exit his rampage state. He had a pile of experimental equipment before him.

Using a microscope, Ishihara examined skin samples taken from Jūgo in his rampage state, while his genjutsu space and sensory abilities analyzed the chakra in the skin.

"The skin has turned into a keratin layer, undergoing drastic changes in a short time!"

"The hardness of the keratin has fundamentally changed, even containing chakra pathways!"

"Despite the cells undergoing abnormal division, Jūgo's lifespan hasn't decreased!"

"No, chakra has also changed..."

Ishihara analyzed Jūgo's cells and documented his findings. Whenever the natural energy dissipated, he would have Jūgo enter his rampage state again to extract new cell samples.

Engrossed in his research, time flew by.

Then, one day:

[You have thoroughly studied Jūgo's body and understood the principles of the curse seal state. You have created the Sage Art: Petrification Technique!]

[Sage Art: Petrification Technique: The skin rapidly divides, forming an extremely hard keratin layer on the surface, greatly enhancing defense!]

[You have studied Jūgo's curse seal state and understood chakra flow, creating the Burst Secret Technique!]

[Burst Secret Technique: Forces open chakra pathways, greatly enhancing chakra output!]

[You have studied the natural energy flow in Jūgo's body and understood how it fuses with cells, creating the Sage Art: Natural Energy Guide Technique!]

[Sage Art: Natural Energy Guide Technique: Absorbs natural energy to fuse with body cells, greatly enhancing physical abilities. Side effects include violent and murderous tendencies. Not recommended for use!]

Phew...

The consecutive notifications made Ishihara exhale deeply and pause his research to review his gains.

"Three secret techniques, all flawed and unsuitable for my use. But they could serve as my report to Orochimaru."

Ishihara shook his head, having no intention of using the three techniques himself. He called Jūgo, who was standing obediently by the door.

Jūgo quickly ran over, looking at him earnestly.

"How's your progress with the body refinement technique I gave you?" Ishihara asked while writing on a blank scroll.

Jūgo excitedly replied, "I've mastered it! I can eat ten buckets of rice and dozens of pounds of meat every day now! I've grown several centimeters in just a few days!"

Ishihara nodded at the noticeably larger Jūgo and handed him the completed scroll.

"Study these secret techniques."

These flawed techniques were more suitable for those using curse seals.

"Yes!" Jūgo accepted the techniques solemnly, without any objection. Since Ishihara solved his rampage problem, Jūgo followed his every word without hesitation.

Meanwhile, deep in the base, Orochimaru's curse seal experiments had begun.