Konoha Year 55.
In the remote Purple Country, within a lush, uninhabited mountain forest, there was a hidden cave entrance.
"Ah! It hurts so much…"
Taro Soma was jolted awake by a searing pain. His head felt as if it had been struck by a heavy hammer, and his consciousness was a chaotic mess.
Opening his eyes, he found himself in a confined, secret room. The walls were constructed from rough-hewn rock, interspersed with several oil lamps casting a faint, yellowish light.
The lamplight flickered on the walls, seemingly on the verge of being swallowed by the endless darkness.
Numerous complex instruments and conduits were scattered around.
"Five Great Nations! Orochimaru! Is this the Hokage world?! I transmigrated?"
Taro Soma was originally a slacker, nearly thirty years old, yet still accomplished nothing. He spent his days doing odd jobs and setting up street stalls.
Just yesterday, he was out drinking with a group of questionable friends on the street, chatting and bragging about his ex-girlfriend. They drank more and more as they got excited, and he ended up blacking out…
When he woke up, he was in this unfamiliar body, and the first thing he saw was the scene before his eyes!
He struggled to process the flood of memories pouring in from his chaotic mind.
The original owner was a seventeen-year-old young man from a small village named Hiroshi Bito. One night, Orochimaru brought a group of subordinates and captured everyone in the village, imprisoning them here.
Hiroshi Bito didn't know why they were captured, only that the people around him were decreasing day by day, disappearing without a trace, and he didn't know where they went.
But at this moment, the body's owner, Taro Soma, knew. He knew perfectly well that those people must have been used as lab rats and killed by Orochimaru!
It took him a good while to slowly merge and digest the two sets of memories.
Hiroshi Bito subconsciously tried to move his body but found his limbs tightly bound by cold, heavy shackles. The restraints dug into his skin, causing sharp pain, and the icy touch seemed to penetrate directly to his bones.
At this moment, Hiroshi Bito was tied to an experimental bed. He had been tied here yesterday and injected with many unknown reagents.
Does it have to be this bad? It's already 2025, is there a more ridiculous transmigration than this?
Hiroshi Bito wailed inwardly, "Seriously, buddy? This is too ridiculous!"
Others transmigrate as protagonists, the Twelve Ninja Squad, or from the prestigious Uchiha clan. I'm just a nameless extra in the wilderness?! And one who's about to be killed? Where's the cheat? Where's the system?
"Ugh…" A painful groan came from not far away, a weak sound filled with endless despair.
Hiroshi Bito struggled to turn his head and saw a gaunt prisoner tightly bound to a dilapidated experimental table.
Various tubes of different sizes were inserted into his body, with liquids of various colors flowing through them. When some of the liquids were injected, the prisoner's skin would bulge with horrifying lumps, which would then quickly shrivel away.
Orochimaru stood beside the experimental table, wearing a white lab coat stained with blood. The dried blood had turned a dark, dull brown, as if it were the mark of countless lost lives.
His face was as pale as paper, but his eyes gleamed with a fanatical and cold light. That gaze was like that of a demon from the abyss, devoid of any reverence or pity for life.
At this moment, he held a syringe containing a liquid emitting a strange blue light, slowly injecting it into the prisoner's body.
"The vitality of this batch of test subjects is still too fragile."
Orochimaru muttered in a low voice, his words echoing in the silent underground base like a demon's curse.
"But it doesn't matter. Failure is the mother of success. A suitable sample will eventually appear."
The memories in his mind became increasingly clear. Hiroshi Bito's family, including his underage sister, had also been brought here. They were likely already in grave danger.
A surge of intense anger and fear rose in Hiroshi Bito's heart. He roared loudly, "You insane demon! What the f*** are you doing?!"
Orochimaru slowly turned his head, a cold and cruel smile playing on his lips. That smile seemed capable of freezing the surrounding air.
"Oh?"
"You're awake? You should feel honored to participate in my great experiment! This is the path to eternal life and surpassing limits!!"
"And your lives, like ants, were originally meaningless, but now I have bestowed upon you a great and sacred mission!!"
Orochimaru's expression was one of madness and longing. He held out his hands, tilted his head slightly, his eyes seemingly piercing through the earth, seeing something akin to a belief.
"This is inhumane! We are all innocent! You will face retribution!"
Hiroshi Bito glared angrily at Orochimaru, his eyes practically spitting fire. However, his anger seemed so powerless in this dark environment.
Orochimaru sneered, "Retribution? Before me, so-called justice and morality are utterly ridiculous. I will break the shackles of life and create a being that surpasses all. And you will all become the foundation of this great endeavor."
Having said that, Orochimaru ignored Hiroshi Bito and continued to focus on his experiment.
The prisoner's body began to tremble violently, and he constantly foamed at the mouth. His eyes were wide open, filled with fear and despair of death.
As time passed, his struggles gradually weakened, and finally, his body slumped lifelessly onto the experimental table, no longer moving.
"Another failure!"
Orochimaru frowned, a hint of displeasure flashing in his eyes. He waved his hand, and several subordinates, equally pale-faced and expressionless, stepped forward, grabbed the prisoner's limbs, and dragged the corpse away like a dead dog, leaving a long trail of blood on the floor.
Hiroshi Bito watched this scene, his heart filled with grief and despair. He had to find a way to escape this terrifying place and prevent Orochimaru's experimental plan from succeeding.
However, his hands and feet were tightly locked, and Orochimaru's subordinates were everywhere in the base. Every corner was filled with the aura of death and fear. Escaping was harder than ascending to heaven.
Hiroshi Bito wailed inwardly, "This is such a rip-off!!!"