Chapter 487: The Use of White Zetsu Clones
After sealing the numerous White Zetsu clones and Obito Uchiha's blood in the laboratory, Ishiro returned to the Tsuchikage Tower.
After a period of solitary contemplation, he picked up his brush and began to write a letter to Orochimaru.
Once finished, Ishiro summoned the messenger Orochimaru had left in Iwagakure.
When the man arrived, Ishiro handed him the freshly written scroll. "Deliver this to Orochimaru."
The messenger did not hesitate. He bit his thumb, performed the Summoning Technique, and stuffed the scroll into the mouth of the small snake that appeared.
In the letter, Ishiro had asked Orochimaru what price he would demand for the technology related to human transplantation surgery. He had also specifically noted the price for transplanting the limbs of White Zetsu clones.
Unlike the data Ishiro had sent before, which required a long time to study, Orochimaru's reply was swift.
A short while later, the messenger sensed the summons from Ryūchi Cave and quickly performed the jutsu again. After retrieving the second scroll from the snake's mouth, the messenger was dismissed by Ishiro.
Orochimaru had agreed to the exchange, but in return, Iwagakure needed to cooperate with his research on senjutsu.
He hadn't made an outrageous demand, like asking for the complete, systematic training method for Sage Art. Instead, he had listed the problems he was encountering in his research on the Cursed Seal of Heaven.
If Iwagakure wanted the standard human transplantation techniques, they needed to answer half the questions. If they wanted the techniques for transplanting White Zetsu clones, they needed to answer all of them.
Ishiro thought for a moment and said to the messenger, "You may return for now."
After the man left, Ishiro immediately convened a high-level meeting, also summoning the Head of the Medical Division, Nakata Hajime.
Once everyone had gathered, Ishiro began, "During the mission to the Land of Iron to help Kirigakure rescue the children of their bloodline clans, I managed to capture many White Zetsu clones."
Hearing this, Saka immediately interjected, "Did you rescue the children? How many?"
Ishiro replied, "Most of them were rescued. Only about twenty were taken by Obito Uchiha. However, the ones he took were the most talented. As far as I know, they include Mangetsu Hōzuki's talented younger brother, Suigetsu Hōzuki. I don't know the others from the Mizunashi clan, but Haku's younger sister, Yi Mizunashi, should be among them. Oh, and a child with the Red Eye Kekkei Genkai."
"Speaking of the Red Eye child, he wasn't actually one of the ones taken from Kiri. He was the scout Kiri sent to find Obito's exact location. With him was Kurosuki Raiga. The last of the original Seven Ninja Swordsmen should now be dead at Obito's hands."
"With this, the first generation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen are all dead. Of the seven blades they left behind, the Great Sword Samehada is with the Mizukage, the Longsword Nuibari is with Mangetsu Hōzuki, and the Blast Sword Shibuki has also returned to Kirigakure, though its new master is unknown."
"In addition, the Lightning Swords Kiba are likely in Obito Uchiha's hands. The remaining ones—the Blunt Sword Kabutowari, the Twin Swords Hiramekarei, and the Executioner's Blade—are all here with us."
"Oh, right, the Executioner's Blade was previously in the Akatsuki's possession. Because we offered Shibuki as a prize for their joint Chunin Exams, they compensated me with the Executioner's Blade when I visited the River Village."
"However, that's not what we're here to discuss today. What I want to say is, I now have a large number of White Zetsu clones. Including the ones I obtained from the underground shrine before, we have quite a few. I plan to use the limbs of these clones to provide transplants for the ninja in our village who have been disabled by war or missions."
Hearing this, the two younger advisors, Kawakita and Megumi, didn't have much of a reaction, but the eyes of Bella and Saka lit up.
They had lived through many wars, especially the Second Great Shinobi War, a conflict that required ordinary ninja to fill the trenches with their lives. They knew that many ninja in the village had been forced to give up their careers due to disability. After losing their status as ninja, their lives were generally difficult. Some, because of their disabilities, couldn't even live a normal civilian life and relied entirely on the village's pension to survive.
Therefore, Bella and Saka immediately expressed their support for Ishiro's proposal.
Bella was even more direct. She looked at Nakata Hajime and asked, "Head Nakata, does the Medical Division have the ability to perform this kind of surgery? If you need any resources, just ask. The village will do its best to provide them."
Recently, Iwagakure had yet to fully digest the dividends from the Fifth Great Shinobi War, so the "Goddess of Wealth" was speaking with great confidence.
Nakata Hajime said awkwardly, "Lady Bella, the Medical Division does not have this technology. We have studied the White Zetsu clones before. They have a very strong life force; a successful transplant could even extend one's lifespan. But it is precisely because their life force is too strong that a successful transplant is almost impossible. The rejection reaction is too severe."
Everyone looked disappointed. Bella even shot Ishiro a glare, blaming him for getting her hopes up.
Ishiro said, "I know the Medical Division doesn't have the technology, which is why I contacted Orochimaru. He is willing to sell it, but the price is some data on senjutsu."
As he spoke, he handed Orochimaru's reply to the council.
While they read the letter, Ishiro continued, "However, senjutsu is a core secret of the village. All the related techniques were developed only after the village paid a huge price. So, I want to know everyone's opinion on whether to agree to the exchange."
Ikura, who was currently practicing senjutsu and had some understanding of it, spoke after reading the letter. "What Orochimaru wants to know is not the core of the senjutsu training. The questions he's asking are more like he wants to understand information that is different from the senjutsu data he's obtained elsewhere."
Ishiro nodded. "That's the gist of it. As far as I know, Orochimaru is likely researching a method to temporarily use natural energy. Such an unconventional method must have side effects. He probably wants to overcome or reduce them."
Saka asked, "Ishiro, what are your thoughts?"
Ishiro said, "I agree to the exchange. But my reason for agreeing is not because of Orochimaru, but because of Kumo."
"Someone in Kumogakure has already learned Sage Mode. Although that person was killed by Ikura, Kumo definitely doesn't lack data on it. Orochimaru can choose to trade with us, or he can choose to trade with Kumo."
"Since we can't monopolize the training method for senjutsu, we might as well get something useful for the village before Orochimaru chooses to trade with Kumo."
The council members looked at each other and expressed no objections.
And so, the matter was settled. Ishiro then announced the end of the meeting.
Afterward, he had Nakata Hajime and Han stay behind.
He first spoke to Nakata. "Help me prepare some introductory medical ninjutsu materials. I'm going to give them to a student who has just entered the Ninja Academy. This is a child with exceptional talent in medical ninjutsu. I don't want her to waste time at the academy; I intend to have her start learning now."
Nakata's eyes lit up. "Really? That's great! The Medical Division has been expanding for years, but that's mainly been in breadth; in other words, the scale has grown. But the depth of our medical ninjutsu has not. The village's medical technology has not improved. Lord Tsuchikage, do you think this child has the potential to advance our village's medical ninjutsu?"
Ishiro nodded with absolute certainty. "Yes. If she is nurtured properly, her achievements could rival those of Konoha's Fifth Hokage."
Nakata was first stunned, then overjoyed. In the eyes of ninja in their profession, Tsunade's status was no different from Hashirama Senju's. Even though she belonged to an enemy village, it didn't change their view.
Nakata couldn't imagine how outstanding a genius with the potential to reach Tsunade's level would have to be. But like all the villagers and ninja of Iwagakure, he trusted Ishiro's judgment. A talent judged by a master teacher like Ishiro could not be wrong.
Filled with hope for the future, Nakata left the Tsuchikage Tower in high spirits.
After Nakata left, Ishiro said to Han, "Senior Han, was your first time attending a high-level meeting okay? Are you used to it?"
Han shook his head. "Lord Tsuchikage, I was a little nervous just now."
Ishiro smiled. "There's really no need to be. You've long been a very important part of the village's combat power. Your performance is recognized by everyone. In fact, without you even realizing it, the high command, the other ninja, and the ordinary civilians have all long since recognized and accepted you."
Han, of course, knew about the change in everyone's attitude toward him. He was even more sensitive to it than Ishiro. He also knew where this change came from. Although he had made many contributions to the village, they were not enough to change everyone's view of him.
This effect was entirely due to the many stories the Iwagakure Bi-Weekly Report had written about him. Many were true, but some had been embellished. After reading these articles, people no longer ostracized Jinchuriki. Especially for Han, the Five-Tails Jinchuriki, people were grateful for his sacrifices, sympathetic to his plight, and regretful of any unintentional harm they may have caused him in the past.
After chatting with Han and encouraging him for a bit, Ishiro let him go.
After Han left, Ishiro answered all the questions in Orochimaru's letter.
Just as he was about to send for Orochimaru's messenger, he saw Nakata Hajime and many other members of the Medical Division arrive with a large stack of documents.
Ishiro was stunned. How did they move so fast?
Nakata was very excited. After returning to the hospital, he had mobilized the entire Medical Division to compile this set of progressive learning materials at top speed.
Ishiro took the documents and looked them over. They indeed started from the most basic knowledge. It would be difficult for a new academy student, but with Sakura's academic talent, she should be able to learn it.
Ishiro had the others leave, keeping only Nakata. He then summoned Orochimaru's messenger and had the reply sent.
Soon, Orochimaru transmitted the various techniques and data for human transplantation and the White Zetsu experiments. It seemed that while Ishiro and his council were still discussing, Orochimaru had already made his preparations.
Along with this data came the analysis of the previous Caged Bird Seal experiments and the content for the next round.
Ishiro gave the other materials to Nakata and picked up the Caged Bird data for himself.
The knowledge mentioned in Orochimaru's analysis was very useful to Ishiro. There were many terms he had never even heard of, and Orochimaru had thoughtfully provided annotations. It seemed Orochimaru also knew that Iwagakure was essentially using these scrolls as textbooks.
Ishiro felt a deep admiration for Orochimaru. His "vessel" (tolerance/capacity) was probably the greatest among all the Kage.
Hashirama Senju, Naruto, Sasuke—they all surpassed Orochimaru in raw power, but they were all still at the level of inheriting their bloodlines. In Ishiro's eyes, these three were not even as good as Tobirama Senju.
It was just that the original story contained too little about Tobirama. Ishiro didn't know his purpose or motivation for developing so many forbidden jutsu, so he couldn't judge what kind of person he was.
Unlike them, Orochimaru was trying to defy fate itself.
That alone wasn't enough to say much; Kakuzu and Sasori were also defying fate. But Orochimaru was also pursuing the ultimate truth of chakra.
In this regard, the only one who could have originally been compared to him was Madara Uchiha. But Madara had lived his entire life in a trap designed by others. From beginning to end, he had acted according to the contents of a stone tablet.
Only Orochimaru. His research never stopped. Even after the final battle in the original story, he was still researching.
Ishiro felt that what supported this research was Orochimaru's sheer capacity.
If it weren't for the fact that the author had forcibly draped a cloak of hot-blooded shonen over the entire shinobi world, an existence like Orochimaru would have been a far more difficult final boss than Kaguya or Madara.
The path Ishiro himself was walking was, to a large extent, a reference to and a lesson from Orochimaru's.
In any case, Ishiro became engrossed in reading Orochimaru's scroll. By the time he looked up, Nakata Hajime was gone.
One of his assistants said, "Head Nakata couldn't wait to go back and start his experiments."
Ishiro nodded. "Send him a message. After the experiments are successful, start the transplants with the older ninja first."
Then, he summoned Katsumata, Natsuki, and Neji again and conducted the second round of experiments according to Orochimaru's methods.
Because of the Yata Mirror, the experiments proceeded very quickly. The speed was such that it even made Orochimaru suspect whether Ishiro was really using Neji as a test subject. Even when he had experimented on the captured Hyuga, he had not been as frequent as this.
It wasn't that Orochimaru was merciful and couldn't bear to harm the Hyuga. It was that the Hyuga couldn't withstand such frequent experiments. The experiments Orochimaru listed all stimulated the soul. Even the most normal of them caused some damage. It was mostly minor damage that wouldn't leave lasting effects and could be recovered from with rest. But recovery required a guaranteed rest period.
However, from the timing of the data Ishiro sent, Orochimaru felt that Ishiro must have performed all dozen or so experiments on Neji consecutively.
Orochimaru was very happy about this, because the analytical value of data from consecutive experiments was even higher than from individual ones. So this time, Orochimaru had even provided the order in which the experiments should be conducted.
Before the experiments, Katsumata and Natsuki naturally had to analyze everything first—both Orochimaru's analysis of the last round and the safety of the upcoming round.
To Ishiro's pleasant surprise, during the last research session, Katsumata's Yin Release had already shown significant improvement. Afterward, he and Natsuki had carefully analyzed the Caged Bird data, and now he was comparing his own analysis with Orochimaru's.
And then, he had become an elite jonin.
Even Natsuki, who was not a diligent cultivator, was progressing rapidly. And Ishiro seriously suspected that if she hadn't been so lazy before, she would be close to the elite jonin level by now.
Ishiro was very happy about his disciple's great progress. Katsumata's progress was not considered fast among his disciples. He had originally been a combat-type genjutsu user, but because of Iwagakure's lack of genjutsu, he had been forced to become a research-type ninja.
Among the research types, his progress was very fast. The other research types, Yoshimura Kazumasa and Yuran Kawasoe, were still only at the jonin level.
But among the combat types, Katsumata's speed was average.
Of Ishiro's first squad, Kawakita was Kage-level, and Megumi and Kajiyama Ri were elite jonin.
Of the second squad, Shinya Matsutani was a Quasi-Kage, Ogura Saki had long since become an elite jonin, and even the slowest of the three, Takumi, had become an elite jonin during the recent war.
The six members of the third and fourth squads were from the same generation. Aside from the research-types Yoshimura and Yuran, who were still jonin, the others like Takuhiro Uchiyama and Kanako had long since become elite jonin. Even the average-talented Himeki Suda, because she could summon the Giant Panda, could be used as an elite jonin despite only being at the jonin level.
In comparison, Katsumata seemed to be the slowest of the six from his generation.
Fortunately, he had finally become an elite jonin.
Ishiro could clearly feel the change in him. Natsuki could also sense some of it, and she was a little envious.
Neji was still too weak to notice these things. Since the last experiment, he had been studying the fundamentals of sealing jutsu and Yin Release on his own. During this research session, he raised many professional questions. Although his questions were still naive, Ishiro could feel his eagerness and effort.
So, Ishiro gave him a complete set of theoretical books for sealing jutsu practice. In addition, he had Katsumata prepare a set of basic books on Yin Release for him. Since Neji was studying seriously, he should be given the proper resources. Ishiro had high hopes for him.
After a while, Katsumata and Natsuki finished analyzing Orochimaru's second scroll. The three of them concluded that the experiments were not very harmful and could be performed.
And so, Neji once again served as a test subject for another dozen-plus rounds.
After the experiments were over, Ishiro sent them away.
He then took a portion of the most basic materials from the pile Nakata had sent over and, holding them, went to Sakura's house.
At this time, Sakura was already back from the academy.
Her house was still very lively. Little Saiken and Little Chōmei were both there, playing with her.
Sakura was no longer a stranger to Ishiro. Because of the two Tailed Beasts, in her eyes, Ishiro was like one of her parents, an elder.
Seeing him enter, Sakura ran up to him. "Lord Tsuchikage! I made a lot of friends at the academy!"
Before Ishiro could speak, she began to chatter about her experiences at school.
Ishiro didn't interrupt her, even asking a few questions from time to time. This was a habit he had developed with his sister, Natsuki. Among these trivial school matters, there might be hidden information about a special student, which could help him choose suitable disciples in the future.
After Sakura finished, Ishiro said, "Sakura, have your parents ever told you that I plan to take you as my disciple in the future?"
Sakura was stunned. "No!"
Ishiro knew Sakura's parents had promised to keep it a secret. But now he planned to have her start growing up early, so he decided to tell her.
He ruffled her little head. "Sakura, I have an agreement with your parents. After you graduate, I will take you as my disciple."
Sakura nodded, half-understanding. Having just started school, she hadn't yet heard of Ishiro's legendary reputation for teaching.
Ishiro continued, "Sakura, I hope that during your time at the academy, you can learn a little more than the other students."
He gestured to the books in his arms.
Sakura's gaze finally fell on the pile of books.
At this time, she had not yet shown her super-strong theoretical talent, so seeing the pile of books, her mind went blank.
Ishiro patted her head and turned to the two Tailed Beasts. "You two, from now on, you have to accompany Sakura when she reads. If she forgets, you must remind her."
Little Saiken and Little Chōmei happily agreed, not knowing at all that they had just sold out their good friend.
After Sakura came back to her senses with a miserable expression, Ishiro added, "Remember not to tell anyone other than your parents that I will take you as my disciple."
Sakura nodded, tears in her eyes.
Although she didn't yet know of Ishiro's fame as a teacher, she knew his identity as the Tsuchikage. In her days at the academy, she had already learned that this friendly neighborhood elder was the most powerful ninja in the village. Even the academy teachers had to listen to him.
So, she knew she couldn't refuse. She could only accept it silently. Otherwise, what if Ishiro had the teachers give her a hard time?
After giving Sakura a "gift," Ishiro let the two Tailed Beasts play with her for another day, then left.
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