Chapter 71 — Yujiro: How About Reviving the Second Hokage… and Making Him a 996 Research Worker?
After cutting off Shimura Danzo's head, Uchiha Yujiro finally returned to the Rain Village.
Once the dust settled, he and his companions spent a few days regrouping, discussing their next moves, and bidding farewell to Nagato bro and sis Konan. Then, the team prepared to head back to Konoha.
Well—most of them.
Because Orochimaru was no longer part of the "we."
As agreed beforehand, Orochimaru had now officially and joyfully defected.
All the dirty crimes—using corpses of fellow Konoha shinobi for experiments, desecrating the First Hokage's body—
had been neatly dumped onto Danzo's already severed head.
The result? Orochimaru was free. Unburdened. Practically glowing with relief.
No one in Konoha seemed eager to chase him down, either.
They knew full well what role he'd played in Danzo's forbidden research, but for now—
with Danzo's corpse still cooling—no one wanted to stir up that particular nest of snakes.
Still, returning to the village was impossible.
Even in the best-case scenario, Orochimaru would be thrown into the deepest cell of Root and left to rot.
And yet—Orochimaru wouldn't die so easily.
Someone like him always finds a way to slither free.
Now that his last remaining tie to Konoha had been severed, his grudge toward the village deepened into something personal.
Rumor had it his parents had been killed by Konoha shinobi long ago.
This defection erased the final traces of sentiment. The next time they met—it would be as enemies.
For now, though, this amicable separation suited them both.
Leave a thread of goodwill, and the future always has room for negotiation.
Rain Country, with its endless rain and tangled politics, was perfect for someone like him.
Rogue ninja, mercenaries, bandits—research materials were everywhere.
Orochimaru was delighted.
His only lingering regret… was Uchiha Yujiro.
When they parted ways, the look in Orochimaru's eyes nearly made Yujiro's skin crawl.
It wasn't affection—it was obsession.
That kind of focus could make even a million S-rank shinobi seem less terrifying.
Not because Orochimaru had fallen for him romantically—no, this was far worse.
Orochimaru simply couldn't let go of such a precious experimental specimen.
As Yujiro's Strength stat surged higher and higher,
his physical condition improved dramatically.
That increase in vitality boosted his Yang chakra,
which, in turn, began subtly transforming his Sharingan.
Bit by bit, it was inching closer to the Rinnegan—the legendary eyes of the Sage of Six Paths.
Most people wouldn't notice such microscopic changes.
But Orochimaru, who had been monitoring Yujiro's physiology down to the decimal, saw everything.
It filled him with ecstatic hope.
To him, Yujiro was no longer a man—he was the future of shinobi evolution.
He wanted more data, more material, more time.
He wanted to study him, dissect him, understand him.
And Yujiro?
He knew exactly how to keep the snake on a leash.
He baited Orochimaru with crumbs—just enough to keep him hungry.
Orochimaru was fully aware he was being manipulated,
but what could he do?
It was like watching a lovesick teenager: desperate, hopeful, addicted.
While Yujiro, with the serene patience of a master manipulator,
fed him small promises wrapped in sincerity:
"Now's not the time for experiments, Orochimaru. Focus on learning—and making money."
"How's the latest batch of Ryūchi Vitality Medicine coming along?"
"What about the new health supplement line?"
"And the anti-thrombosis formula—don't forget that! You've still got a hundred financial targets to hit.
How do you even sleep at night knowing you haven't reached them yet?"
The poor snake scientist was trapped—
a brilliant genius reduced to a corporate wage slave,
the number-one cash cow of the Ryūchi Pharmaceutical Group.
He could see the sun… but it was green.
Even his research hours were eaten away by endless commercial development.
"Yujiro-kun," Orochimaru sighed one day, exasperated,
"How about this—I'll introduce you directly to Ryūchi Cave.
You can find someone else to handle the medicine research, and I'll take a smaller share of the profits.
Would that be acceptable?"
Yujiro crossed his arms, pretending to think deeply.
"Hmm… nah."
Sure, it sounded tempting. But there was no better researcher in the world than Orochimaru.
Losing him would be like losing the heart of the operation.
"Honestly, Orochimaru," Yujiro continued, "why waste your time on ninjutsu?
You should be studying nuclear theory, pushing for a Nobel Prize!
Do something meaningful for the shinobi world.
Who needs Amaterasu when you could have a Tsar Bomba?"
Orochimaru blinked slowly.
"…Ah."
He was long past questioning Yujiro's bizarre, future-sounding nonsense.
At this point, he'd just accepted it as part of the man's eccentric genius.
After all, Yujiro was an Uchiha on the verge of awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan—
and he hadn't lost his parents, his lover, or his clan.
Opening a Mangekyō without trauma?
That alone proved how deeply twisted and complex Yujiro's psyche truly was.
"By the way," Yujiro said suddenly, "you've been complaining about not having any capable assistants, right?"
"Yes," Orochimaru perked up instantly. "You promised to send me a few bright apprentices, remember?
I've been looking forward to that."
"Don't worry," Yujiro assured him. "Once I'm back in Konoha, I'll make arrangements."
In his mind, a certain silver-haired boy appeared—
the genius medic, Kabuto Yakushi, his "expensive godson."
His girlfriend, Nonō Yakushi, was like a mother to the boy.
Which made Yujiro, naturally, the godfather.
Putting Kabuto under Orochimaru's tutelage would be perfect.
The kid's mind was razor-sharp, adaptable, and hungry for knowledge.
With the combination of Ryūchidō techniques and Orochimaru's forbidden arts,
he'd definitely surpass his mentor one day—becoming an elite of the elite.
A father's love plans for the long term, after all.
But then, a new idea flashed through Yujiro's mind.
"Hey, Orochimaru—tell me, you're familiar with the Edo Tensei, right?"
Orochimaru's eyes gleamed.
"Of course. It's a fascinating technique."
"Exactly," Yujiro said, snapping his fingers.
"In my opinion, that's Tobirama's greatest invention. Possibly his only truly perfect one."
"Oh? You think so?"
"Absolutely. But tell me, what do you think its real purpose is?"
"Did Tobirama intend for it to be a tool of terror—sacrificing others as exploding corpses?"
"Or maybe as an immortal army of undead soldiers?"
Yujiro grinned, eyes shining like a man with an outrageous idea.
"No, no, no, Orochimaru. You're thinking too small."
"Imagine this—"
"We summon the Second Hokage back from the Pure Land…"
"—and make him work 996 in the lab as a research assistant."
Orochimaru stared.
The rain outside paused for a moment, as if even the heavens were processing that sentence.
Yujiro, of course, looked perfectly serious.
"Come on," he continued earnestly.
"He invented Edo Tensei, right? He's a genius! Why waste talent like that?
Let's bring him back—give him a lab coat, a desk, and a coffee mug that says 'World's Best Necromancer.'
He can work full-time on chakra science and technology development.
That's how we truly honor the Second Hokage's legacy."
Orochimaru rubbed his temples.
"…Yujiro-kun, sometimes I think you're even scarier than I am."
Yujiro smiled, the rain glinting off his Sharingan.
"Nonsense. I'm just a visionary."
"No, no, no—you're thinking too small," Yujiro said, his eyes gleaming with that familiar, dangerously brilliant light.
"The real way to use Edo Tensei isn't to make an army or suicide bombers…"
He paused for dramatic effect, a grin spreading across his face.
"It's to resurrect the smartest, most talented minds in the history of the ninja world—"
He clapped his hands together.
"—like Senju Tobirama! Then have him work under you as a research assistant in the lab!"
Orochimaru's pupils constricted.
It was the kind of idea so insane that only someone like Uchiha Yujiro could say it with a straight face.
Yujiro kept going, enthusiasm growing with every word.
"Think about it! You're a genius. Tobirama was a genius. The collision of two genius minds—do you have any idea what kind of revolutionary discoveries that could lead to?"
"And this time, Tobirama isn't the Hokage anymore! No meetings, no paperwork, no boring politics—he can finally dedicate himself to pure, unrestrained research!"
"With you two working together, you'd create forbidden jutsu so powerful the Sage of Six Paths himself would ask for a subscription!"
Orochimaru slammed his hands on the table.
"Yes!! That's… brilliant!!"
And then came the sound of flesh meeting knuckles.
"No, it's not!!"
Tsunade's Monster Strength Fist hit both of them in sequence—first Yujiro, then Orochimaru.
The two "geniuses" were instantly flattened.
"Have you two lost your damn minds?! Was desecrating my grandfather's body not enough—you want to desecrate my great-uncle's too?!"
Yujiro, still half-buried in the wall, raised a trembling hand.
"I think, given Tobirama's personality, this kind of treatment would actually suit him quite well."
He grinned wickedly.
"Besides, you know how much your great-uncle hated the Uchiha, right? Imagine his face when he finds out his grandniece is dating one."
Tsunade froze—just for an instant.
Her cheeks twitched. There was, undeniably, a flicker of interest in her eyes.
Then she snapped out of it.
"No! And who the hell is your girlfriend?!"
The next punch, Yujiro dodged.
Then she chased.
Then he ran.
Within seconds, the Rain Village courtyard was filled with shouting, thunder, and the sound of exploding stone tiles.
In the chaos, Jiraiya and Orochimaru were left standing side by side, watching their "companions" disappear down the street.
For a moment, the air between them grew strangely heavy.
"So," Jiraiya said quietly, "you've really decided, huh? You're not coming back to Konoha?"
Orochimaru nodded.
"No. I'm not."
As they spoke, Yujiro stopped running and turned back toward Tsunade, lowering his voice just enough for her to hear.
"You think they're going to shout each other's names dramatically and throw friendship punches any second now?"
Tsunade smirked.
"Very likely."
Yujiroodded solemnly.
"Yeah. Classic."
After all, compared to his and Minato's "ready-made ramen-quality" bond,
the connection between Jiraiya and Orochimaru was the gourmet, Michelin-star-level Naruto–Sasuke substitute meal.
And then it began.
"Orochimaru!!!"
"Jiraiya!!!"
"OROCHIMARU!!!"
"JIRAIYA!!!"
"OROCHIMARU!!!!"
"JIRAIYA!!!!"
(This is not padding for word count.)
Even from a distance, their voices thundered through the rain-soaked air, loud enough to rattle windows.
Yujiro leaned forward eagerly.
"Oh, oh, it's starting—it's starting! Who do you think's gonna win?"
"I'm betting on Jiraiya!" Tsunade declared confidently.
Yujiro grinned.
"Nice choice. But are you sure about that?"
"Then I'll bet on Orochimaru!"
"You sure about that, too?"
Tsunade glared.
"Fine! Then I bet on both of them!"
Yujiro clapped his hands.
"Excellent! Then I'm betting on a draw!"
And as the two legendary Sannin's shouts echoed through the storm,
Uchiha Yujiro laughed like a man watching the greatest live drama ever staged.