Konoha: The King of Souls from Uchiha

c75: Studying the Tacit Understanding Between Geniuses

In the lush, densely forested back mountains of Konohagakure, Uchiha Gen moved with quiet confidence through a concealed path leading into a secret underground base one long familiar to him.

At the end of the dimly lit tunnel stood Orochimaru, dressed in his usual dark, skin-tight garb layered under the standard green flak jacket of a Konoha Jounin. His obsidian hair fell loosely over his pale, snake-like visage. Golden eyes, slitted like a serpent's, flickered under long lashes, and a pair of small blue magatama earrings glinted at his earlobes. Though silent, his presence exuded dark elegance and latent menace.

Uchiha Gen entered calmly, his black cloak embroidered with silver-white streaks fluttering slightly behind him. His tailored outfit fit him like second skin, and the Kusanagi blade sheathed at his waist gleamed faintly under the low light. His hair, unruly and windswept, framed a face that combined youthful sharpness with quiet confidence like a shinobi born from battle.

"Teacher Orochimaru," Gen greeted softly, bowing slightly with a faint, knowing smile.

Orochimaru turned, that cold smirk tugging at his lips. "Ho ho… Judging by the scent of blood and the weight in the air, I'd say you took quite a few lives during your journey."

Gen was slightly taken aback but composed himself quickly and followed Orochimaru deeper into the base. "I made every effort to suppress my killing intent. Can sensei really detect it so easily?"

"My sensitivity to such things is… unusually developed." Orochimaru's voice held a tinge of amusement. "But your suppression is still crude. Later, I'll teach you how to better contain it. Killing is an art. So is hiding the trail."

Gen smiled lightly. "That would be a valuable lesson."

They entered the lounge of the research base a bright, sterile space with faint herbal aromas wafting through the air. A fresh pot of tea sat on the lacquered table between the two cushions. Orochimaru sat in his usual composed seiza posture behind the desk, while Gen reclined more casually across from him.

After sipping the tea, Gen asked, "How much of the funding remains after purchasing the new research equipment?"

"Excluding the unliquidated assets like gemstones and precious metals we still have around 80 million ryō," Orochimaru replied without hesitation.

"Then we split it evenly. Master and student should benefit equally," Gen offered without ceremony.

Orochimaru nodded with a faint smile. "I won't decline. Funds are tight lately."

"Oh?" Gen raised a brow. "What happened?"

"Danzo was pushed into forced retirement. My mentor, Hiruzen, is dismantling Root little by little," Orochimaru replied calmly. "Although Danzo still operates in the shadows and has some hidden funding, the lack of official Konoha support is... problematic."

"Even your experiments are affected?" Gen asked, genuinely curious.

"To a degree. Less money means fewer resources. It's slowed some of my more sensitive projects."

Gen clicked his tongue. "Minato moves faster than I thought."

"It wasn't his direct order," Orochimaru corrected. "But the Sandaime Hokage's decision was clearly in alignment with Minato's silent consent."

"Danzo must be fuming," Gen said, voice low and amused.

"You're unusually bold to call him by name," Orochimaru observed with a dry smile.

"Well, I'm not exactly just some prodigy anymore. Even the Hokage has to take me seriously."

Orochimaru's golden eyes narrowed slightly, bemused. "Ho ho… Indeed. Danzo's response was predictable he's urged me to accelerate the progress on the Wood Release experiments."

At that, Orochimaru paused, eyeing Gen closely. The implications were clear: if the experiment succeeded, Danzo might attempt to seize power, much like in the timeline when he stole Shisui's eye and nearly staged a coup with his modified Yamato-clone army.

But the experimental subjects, so far, fell short. None could match even Yamato's subdued version of Hashirama Senju's Mokuton, let alone the true power that once held back the Nine-Tails. If they had, Danzo would have certainly initiated a power grab perhaps even a civil war.

Still, Orochimaru's direction wasn't entirely wrong. Given time, he might yet revive the lost brilliance of Hashirama's legacy.

"You still desire the Hokage seat, Sensei," Gen observed with a half-smile.

"I once did," Orochimaru admitted coolly. "And even now, I sometimes wonder. But more than the title, I want freedom for my research."

"Freedom requires power," Gen noted. "If someone we control were to become Hokage, it would be a game changer."

"Would you allow Danzo to control the first successful Wood Release user?" Orochimaru asked suddenly, eyes glinting.

Gen laughed lightly. "Of course not. I just didn't expect you to still feign disinterest in politics."

Orochimaru scowled. "Believe what you want."

Gen let the subject drop. "Very well, let's move on. How is your progress with the Shintenshin Kai no Jutsu the enhanced Mind-Body Transmission technique?"

"Still refining it. The control degradation after long-distance possession is difficult to overcome. And you?"

"I've made some headway. I estimate full mastery by the end of next year."

Gen didn't reveal everything. He'd actually made greater progress than he let on—but every ninja, even one with a bond like theirs, kept some secrets. That was the shinobi way. And he knew Orochimaru, too, had layers of deception wrapped in charm and curiosity.

"There will come a time," Orochimaru said, eyes glinting, "when I'll want to study your soul-body interaction post-transmission."

"No," Gen said immediately. "That's a boundary I won't let anyone cross—not even you, teacher."

He met Orochimaru's amused gaze with calm defiance.

"Some things are too private. If you need help in other ways, I'm willing—but not that."

"Tsk, tsk…" Orochimaru chuckled. "You've grown stubborn. Just like an Uchiha."

Orochimaru seemed somewhat regretful at first, but he didn't press the issue further. Instead, a sudden gleam lit up his golden eyes, and his expression shifted to one of barely contained excitement.

"I haven't yet mastered the Shintenshin Kai no Jutsu the Spiritual Transformation Technique," he admitted, voice tinged with rare self-deprecation. "It seems I lack the innate aptitude for it. But during my research, I was struck by an inspiration one related not to the jutsu itself, but to the broader question of immortality."

His grin widened, revealing a glint of obsession beneath the surface.

"And this new inspiration… it feels more tangible, more reliable, than all my prior theories on eternal life."

He leaned in slightly, voice lowering as though revealing a sacred truth.

"While combing through archived documentation from Konoha's early years, I discovered that the Nidaime Hokage Senju Tobirama had conceived of a similar concept. To think... even in this, he was a visionary. That man was truly a genius beyond his era."

"Oh?" Uchiha Gen responded with feigned curiosity, though his eyes sharpened slightly with interest.

"Tobirama-sama and I independently arrived at the same idea: the transference of one's soul into another's body. A method to shed the constraints of mortality, to extend life… and perhaps, if perfected, achieve true immortality."

Orochimaru's tone was reverent, almost fanatical.

"The key difference between us is that while Tobirama attempted to implement this concept, I have not yet begun full experimentation."

Gen raised an eyebrow. "A genius concept, indeed. What became of his attempt?"

"He failed to complete it, though not entirely. What he created was, at best, a prototype—a semi-finished jutsu. From what I deduced, he intended to preserve the legacy of the Shodaime."

"You mean Senju Hashirama?" Gen asked.

"Exactly. After his final battle with Uchiha Madara at the Valley of the End, the Shodaime reportedly died shortly thereafter ostensibly from illness. But illness after a battle like that suggests either a grievous internal injury or an immense depletion of life force. It's clear Tobirama, desperate to preserve the strength that had unified the Hidden Leaf, sought ways to retain his brother's presence in some form."

He paused, eyes gleaming with scholarly fascination.

"It's unfortunate he died before he could perfect the technique. Given enough time, I believe he might've succeeded."

Gen nodded slightly. The Nidaime Hokage was infamous for inventing numerous techniques, many of which became forbidden due to their ethical implications Edo Tensei, Flying Thunder God, Shadow Clone Jutsu, and more. The very breadth of his experimentation implied a willingness to cross lines others feared.

It made sense, then, that human experimentation in Konoha had roots far older than Orochimaru himself. It wasn't something the village invented recently it had always existed in the shadows, sanctioned or overlooked when convenient.

Of course, the context mattered. There was a difference between experimenting on anonymous villagers and on enemy shinobi or battlefield corpses. The latter, while gruesome, could still be justified during wartime.

Gen recalled a vague but persistent rumor that Tobirama once studied Uchiha Madara's remains in a concealed cavern. Given Hashirama's temperament kind, respectful, and deeply loyal it was unlikely he would have permitted the desecration of his former friend's body.

That led to an inescapable conclusion: Madara's body had either been stolen posthumously or hidden before his supposed death.

And knowing the dark cunning of Uchiha Madara, he likely anticipated such desecration. Hashirama might have mourned, but Tobirama? Tobirama would have viewed Madara's corpse as a scientific opportunity.

It was plausible that Tobirama preserved the body for study, perhaps even in defiance of his brother's wishes.

Gen's thoughts spiraled deeper. Tobirama's vast knowledge of the Sharingan including its ties to emotional trauma, the chakra fluctuations caused by grief or hatred, and the physiological changes it induced could not have come from theory alone. His insight into the Mangekyō's evolution, and his wary attitude toward the Uchiha as a clan, strongly implied direct experimentation.

It was not hard to imagine that, during the final years of the Warring States Period, or the early years of Konoha, he had conducted tests perhaps on captive Uchiha, or war victims too broken to resist. And after Konoha's founding, who could say whether such studies ceased altogether?

It was... difficult to believe there were no Uchiha among his test subjects at some point in his rise to power.

After a brief silence, Gen turned back to Orochimaru and asked, "So then, Orochimaru-sensei… are you confident you can accomplish what Tobirama could not?"

Orochimaru's grin returned wider, hungrier. The fire of ambition danced in his snake-like eyes.

"Confidence? Ho ho… My dear Gen, with the knowledge I now possess, and with time, I don't plan to replicate his failure."

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