Chapter 287: The Topic Of Immortality
One day, Yoru saw an important piece of information at Butterfly.
Shigeto, who specializes in Earth Release · Flying Gravel, left Hidden Stone Village to carry out a mission in the Land of Rain.
My ninjutsu collection, take it slow, I’m coming.
Yoru had Yak gather the squad, while he himself went to Root.
After entering Lord Orochimaru’s laboratory, Yoru saw new test subjects in the nutrient tanks.
Both test subjects were children around 1 year old.
They were soaking in nutrient solution, blowing bubbles from their nostrils.
Yoru looked at the test subjects’ names, and his pupils contracted.
Tenzo…
One of them was codenamed Tenzo, who would later be Yamato.
He was indeed Kazematsuri Yuzu’s son; Root had erased his name and given him a new codename.
Lord Orochimaru suddenly appeared behind Yoru and said:
“The new materials are very good; their life force is much stronger than those crooked experimental subjects from outside villages.
With these test subjects, I will definitely figure out the secret of Wood Style’s powerful life force.
Once I gather 50 test subjects, I will start the new control experiment.”
“Wood Style’s powerful life force?” Yoru said:
“That sounds tempting. I also specialize in Earth Release and Water Style, Lord Orochimaru, do you think I qualify as ‘not ordinary’ experimental material?”
Lord Orochimaru tilted his head slightly, his snake eyes staring at Anbu’s Top Expert Fox.
“You certainly qualify; I’m just afraid Kiiroinu won’t let you go.”
Yoru said: “Just kidding, Lord Orochimaru, I couldn’t help it upon seeing the prey. I won’t disturb Lord Orochimaru with your experiments; I need to go to the Land of Rain to complete the mission.”
“The Land of Rain? Aren’t you afraid of running into Uchiha Madara?”
“If we’re afraid of running into Uchiha Madara, should we not do missions in the Land of Rain?” Yoru said:
“Lord Orochimaru, you have the status to do as you please, but I don’t. My missions are extremely heavy, one after another.
Even more infuriating is that I’ve only completed a dozen or so S-rank missions so far, still far behind your S-rank mission count.”
Lord Orochimaru said: “S-rank missions are nothing; I’m over ten years older than you. When you reach my age, your S-rank mission count will naturally be much higher.”
“When I reach your age?” Yoru said: “Lord Orochimaru, why do you sound so old-fashioned, like you’re already fifty or sixty.”
Lord Orochimaru suddenly fell silent, and after a long while, he slowly said:
“Without immortality, even a newborn baby is marching toward death.
Whether it’s you or me, death will come one day, won’t it?”
Lord Orochimaru’s tone was thick with longing for immortality.
Yoru couldn’t answer this question.
What he was thinking now was how to get a Five Elemental Great Exploding Air Bullet for his sub-account Shiroki, then aim for Wood Style; he was busy and had no time to ponder grand questions like life and death.
As for what Lord Orochimaru said about gathering 50 test subjects, it was possible in the original story; the Senju Clan was annihilated in the original, and no one cared about a woman like Kazematsuri Yuzu who had lost her child.
Now, the Senju Clan still had decision-makers, so Lord Orochimaru’s beautiful dream wouldn’t be easy to realize.
After leaving Root, Yoru quickly arrived at the main entrance of Konoha Village.
Yak Squad was already waiting at the entrance.
After White Crane joined Fox Squad, she was assigned to Yak Squad.
Yoru glanced extra at White Crane and said: “Let’s go, to the Land of Rain.”
On the road, Yoru explained to Yak:
“Our destination is the old place, Di Gu Town at the foot of Ji Gang Mountain Range.
The Daimyo of the Land of Wind obtained permission from the Land of Fire Daimyo, Land of Rivers Daimyo, and Land of Rain Daimyo, and dug a gap in Di Gu Town for the Jishui River, diverting water through a cave across Ji Gang Mountain Range.
Hidden Stone Village doesn’t want the Land of Wind to grow stronger, so they sent Jonin Shigeto to sabotage the water diversion canal in Di Gu Town.
The purpose of our mission this time is to kill the A-rank target from the Assassination Manual, Stone Ninja Jonin Shigeto.”
Yak said: “Captain, ever since we had the Assassination Manual, I feel like we’ve completely become tools for carrying out missions.
The squads are all competing with each other.
Assassinating B-rank targets is manageable; B-rank targets are at most Special Jonin level. Assassinating A-rank targets is too hard; A-rank targets are Jonin from other villages, or well-known rogue ninja or traitor ninja.
Our squad is better off; last month you led us to assassinate an A-rank target.
I heard Golden Eagle Squad is under a lot of pressure; Golden Eagle Squad hasn’t assassinated an A-rank target yet.”
Yoru said: “Jonin are hard to kill.”
The reason he could quickly kill Cloud Ninja Jonin Takami was because he farmed battle experience with Death, gathered intel on Takami, and his own Mayfly Technique was overwhelmingly strong, allowing him to complete the mission.
If given a strange Jonin now, Yoru had no confidence; he didn’t know what trump cards the strange Jonin might have, and fighting would require extreme caution.
When passing through the Land of Rivers, Yoru paused by a hydroelectric power station.
This place was over a hundred kilometers from Kyoto, Land of Rivers, with a large noble’s city nearby.
The power station was sizable, generating enough electricity for several cities.
The dam was engraved with the emblems of the Land of Fire and Land of Rivers.
There was also a monument beside the dam, marking it as important property of the Land of Fire Daimyo and Land of Rivers Daimyo.
Destroying this dam would be equivalent to attacking the two countries’ Daimyo.
Koizumi Chisa’s Lord of the Treasury did well; the hydroelectric power stations were running and being promoted.
Heard that on the Naka River in the Land of Fire, they were also building hydroelectric power stations, much larger in scale than these.
Entering the Land of Rain, Yoru clearly felt Yak tense up.
The Land of Rain not only had the Half-God of the Ninja World Hanzo, but now also Uchiha Madara.
Running into either of these two could mean instant death.
Yoru said: “Yak, don’t be afraid, don’t be nervous.
I’ve encountered Uchiha Madara twice in the Land of Rain already. It can’t be that I run into Uchiha Madara every time I enter the Land of Rain, right?
Haha, that would be too unlucky.”
Yak swallowed hard, even more afraid.
“Why aren’t you laughing? Don’t like laughing lately?”
Yak thought of Root’s 5 casualties and Lynx Squad’s 7 terrifying losses, and really couldn’t laugh.
It took 10 days for Yoru to arrive at Di Gu Town.
Di Gu Town had changed dramatically.
A gap had been cut in the dam outside Di Gu Town, with river water flowing out continuously.
The old Di Gu Town was in the valley and had been flooded by the river water.
Back then, building Di Gu Town in the valley was to motivate the residents to maintain the dam properly.
Now the Land of Rain Daimyo had taken the money and sold useless river water to the Land of Water Daimyo.
In the distance from the old Di Gu Town, on higher ground, a new small town had been built; the wooden houses in the small town were very new, and Di Gu Town’s residents had moved to the small town.
Yoru had Yak Squad go search for intel on Stone Ninja Jonin Shigeto, while he himself entered the new small town.
In the new small town, Yoru quickly found Xiao Lan, whom he had met before.
The first time entering Di Gu Town, Xiao Lan had taken him and Purple Cat to almost every shop in town.
Sand Ninja didn’t treat town residents as people; to divert water, they destroyed Di Gu Town and several villages.
The Daimyo of the Land of Wind was more principled, relocating people first before diverting water.
Xiao Lan had become a little helper at the bakery, carrying a large waterproof bag, preparing to deliver bread to the guards on the riverbank.
With officials and samurai from the Land of Rain and Land of Wind settling in, the small town looked orderly and thriving.
Not long after, a team member from Yak Squad suddenly appeared behind Yoru.
“Squad Leader! There’s a conflict at the dam!”
Monthly votes 5000 extra update, another chapter at 8 PM tonight.
