Yagyū Souma formed hand seals with both hands and pressed his palm against Guren's forehead. His consciousness sank inward as he searched for the artificial consciousness he had cultivated within her.
That consciousness had originated from a modified version of the Mind Body Disturbance Technique.
Recently, while continuously reforming the Nine-Tails, Yagyū Souma had discovered that the Mind Body Disturbance Technique possessed further upgrade potential. He had made several small adjustments to it.
Now—
The results looked decent.
The shaping of Guren's secondary consciousness had been extremely successful.
Its only drawbacks were time and fragility.
The process was slow—very slow—and the newly born consciousness was weak.
Although it was also "Guren," it only possessed fragments of her memories. Its understanding and control of power were on a completely different level.
Fortunately, those flaws were fixable.
With a direct mental strike, Yagyū Souma erased the secondary consciousness.
As the memories of the sub-personality flowed back into her, Guren finally realized what she herself had been doing over the past few days. A chill ran down her spine.
What a terrifying ninjutsu.
Her body trembled slightly as she looked at Yagyū Souma, fear unmistakable in her eyes.
After a long while, she finally spoke.
"What do you need me to do?"
"Nothing special,"
Yagyū Souma replied calmly.
"Things will continue as before. You can still revive Orochimaru if you want—provided you can manage it yourself."
"There's only one condition," he added coldly.
"You follow my rules. Otherwise, I'll replace you with someone more obedient."
"I understand."
After answering, Guren fell silent.
Kabuto glanced at the scene, then spoke cautiously.
"Lord Yagyū Souma, if that's the case… can I reduce how often I need to return here?"
"Yes,"
Yagyū Souma nodded.
"If something comes up, I'll contact you via Flying Thunder God."
"Keep an eye on Kyoto for me. But for now, don't leave just yet—I need you to help me find something."
"What kind of data?"
"Everything related to Kimimaro,"
Yagyū Souma said.
"All medical records—what drugs were used, how the illness progressed. Sound Village should have detailed logs."
"Yes!"
The information was extensive, far too cumbersome to transport to Konoha.
Guren froze for a split second—then understood.
Kimimaro hadn't died.
Just like her, he must have been subdued by this man using some method, forced into loyalty.
Perhaps the conditions offered to her had already been promised to Kimimaro earlier—and were now being repeated.
Damn it.
Guren reacted quickly, but understanding didn't change anything. She was powerless against Yagyū Souma.
"Oh, right,"
Yagyū Souma said as he turned back.
"If you truly help me sincerely, I do have a small gift for you."
"A gift?"
Guren blinked.
Benefits?
This devil… giving benefits?
It felt unreal.
"Based on Orochimaru's curse mark, Lord Yagyū Souma developed a far safer and more stable version himself."
Kabuto pulled down his collar, revealing a lotus-shaped mark near his chest.
With a thought—
Formations spread outward from the lotus, coursing through his body. In an instant, patterns resembling Buddhist mantras appeared across his skin.
Without careful inspection, the change was barely noticeable.
Guren's heart stirred.
She could clearly sense that this power lacked the madness and malevolence of Orochimaru's curse mark. Its raw strength might be weaker—but its safety was clearly superior.
"Does it have any flaws?"
"In essence, it's senjutsu chakra,"
Kabuto explained, adjusting his glasses.
"Lord Yagyū Souma simply helped us skip the absorption and refinement process."
"In other words—it requires long-term accumulation before it can be used."
"And?"
Guren frowned.
If that were all, there'd be no need to mention "sincerity."
"This technique has limitless potential,"
Yagyū Souma said bluntly.
"It can be beneficial—or it can become a weakness fully under my control. It depends on how I choose to modify it."
"I won't hide that from you. If you don't trust me, I won't force you."
After a brief hesitation, Guren said,
"I need time to think."
"No problem. I'll be staying in Sound Village for a few days. You have time."
Yagyū Souma nodded.
He left the prison with Kabuto.
The seal restraining Guren had already been removed—she was free to leave at any time. Yet after they departed, she remained seated for a long while.
She was no stranger to curse marks.
Orochimaru's curse mark had fatal flaws. Many people died after receiving it. She had desperately wanted one—
But had been abandoned.
Guren never received Orochimaru's curse mark. Instead, she was neglected for a long time, and even now she still didn't understand why.
And yet—
Another opportunity now lay before her.
Safer. More reliable.
The price was betrayal.
Betraying Orochimaru.
She was tempted.
After a long silence, Guren finally walked out of the prison.
Outside—
"Big Sister Guren! You're finally out!"
She turned to see several children.
"You are…?"
"We're from your old base! We moved here recently. Lord Kabuto said we can live in the village now—we don't have to be test subjects anymore!"
"I see…"
Guren looked at the children's bright smiles and felt completely lost.
...
"Actually, this wasn't necessary."
"Yes. I overstepped."
Kabuto immediately bowed.
Yagyū Souma shook his head with a smile.
"But your intentions were good. Bringing those children back was the right call. A ninja village can't grow strong without people."
"Yes."
Kabuto nodded, then remembered something.
"Oh—Lord Yagyū Souma, among those children, there's one special case."
"Oh?"
"The green-haired boy—Yūkimaru. He possesses the ability to control the Three-Tails."
Kabuto lowered his head.
"If you intend to capture the Three-Tails, he'll be an essential helper."
"Yūkimaru…"
Yagyū Souma murmured the name. It sounded familiar.
A moment later, realization dawned.
Originally, Guren's betrayal of Orochimaru had stemmed from escorting Yūkimaru—she'd developed a bond with him.
Ironically—
Yūkimaru's mother had died by Guren's own hand.
After a brief silence, Yagyū Souma said,
"I've heard the Three-Tails prefers living in water?"
"Yes."
"Bring him along when the time comes. He won't need to do much—just draw the Three-Tails out. I'll handle the rest."
"Yes. I'll prepare the data."
Kabuto withdrew.
The Nine-Tails squinted slightly.
"He's scared of you now."
"Aren't you?"
Yagyū Souma asked.
"Tch. What's the point of fear?"
The Nine-Tails snorted.
"I'd have gone mad long ago if I feared every little thing."
It had endured far worse beatings than Kabuto or Guren ever had.
Yagyū Souma smiled, saying nothing.
The Nine-Tails tilted its head.
"Why collect tailed beasts?"
"For now, Akatsuki is my enemy,"
Yagyū Souma replied.
"So I oppose them. Simple as that."
"Makes sense."
The Nine-Tails pondered.
If it had possessed autonomy back then, would it have helped Madara fight Hashirama?
No chance.
But—
If that was the logic, why was it helping this brat?
Its ears twitched.
Wait.
Had its personality already been influenced?
A chill ran through the Nine-Tails.
"You didn't already use that technique on me, did you?!"
"If I had,"
Yagyū Souma replied lazily,
"would you really be able to tell?"
"Who knows!"
A tailed beast's mental endurance far surpassed that of humans. Even if half its consciousness were suppressed, it might not notice.
The Nine-Tails fell into deep thought.
Yagyū Souma couldn't be bothered to explain.
He hadn't created a new personality for the Nine-Tails—only subtle, gradual guidance.
Those were entirely different things.
Besides—
Did the Nine-Tails even sleep?
Its mental state never truly weakened. That method wouldn't work anyway.
"Lord Yagyū Souma, the data is ready."
"Good."
Yagyū Souma followed Kabuto into a laboratory.
Soon—
He was faced with an overwhelming mountain of data.
After a moment of silence, he created a shadow clone.
"All right. You can return. I don't need further assistance here."
"Yes. Call me anytime—I'll come immediately."
Kabuto bowed slightly, then vanished.
The shadow clone dispersed.
The Nine-Tails squinted.
"You're going to read all of that?"
"You're not the one reading—why are you panicking?"
Yagyū Souma replied calmly.
One man, one clone.
Work began.
The Nine-Tails was bored.
It hated studying—just looking at dense data gave it a headache. Fortunately, it could still stare outside.
Sound Village lay on open plains. Beyond the buildings stretched endless fields—a scenery quite different from Konoha.
But—
Even the most beautiful view grows dull after days.
Especially when Yagyū Souma barely slept.
The Nine-Tails suffered greatly.
Finally, five days later—
"Finished?"
"Mm. I've extracted what's useful."
Yagyū Souma sealed the room and stepped outside, contemplating Kimimaro's condition.
From the data, he confirmed—
Kimimaro's Shikotsumyaku mutation began when he started using the curse mark. The illness hadn't been obvious at first, only erupting after long accumulation.
Additionally—
Kimimaro didn't require potent Hashirama cells. Even heavily diluted White Zetsu cells would suffice.
The problem was availability.
White Zetsu wasn't easy to capture.
But—
There was still Shin's arm.
A plan had already formed in Yagyū Souma's mind.
"Next stop—Kumogakure."
Lightning Release Armor.
Cloud Village's taijutsu.
The Eight-Tails.
All of it interested him deeply.
And on the way—
He'd pass through the Land of Hot Water.
There was a good chance of encountering Jiraiya.
After all, judging by the timeline, Jiraiya might already be there with Naruto.
Before leaving, Yagyū Souma assigned Karin homework—
By his next visit, she must master Adamantine Chains and the Four Symbols Seal.
Both were essential for dealing with tailed beasts.
Especially the former.
The Uzumaki clan had been valued—and annihilated—because of it. Only they could wield Adamantine Chains.
"Brat, you're not waiting for that woman?"
the Nine-Tails asked.
"No need. I'm not playing hard to get. If she doesn't need it, I won't force her."
Just as Yagyū Souma had said—
He hated trouble. That was why he issued a warning first.
Whether Guren accepted the curse mark wasn't his concern.
His curse mark hadn't fallen so low as to be offered door-to-door.
Just as he prepared to leave Sound Village quietly—
A figure flashed into existence at the village entrance, dropping to one knee and blocking his path.
Yagyū Souma stopped.
"Looks like you've made your choice."
"I want greater power,"
Guren said, bowing her head.
"But I hope you'll honor your earlier promise."
"You're smart enough to know I struck a deal with Kimimaro too,"
Yagyū Souma replied calmly.
"So there's no reason for me to deceive you."
"Yes."
"Come. Let's find a clean room. I've prepared everything in advance—only the curse mark remains. As for the placement…"
To avoid misunderstandings, Yagyū Souma explained the reasoning beforehand.
After a brief hesitation, Guren followed him.
Inside, the implantation went smoothly.
Compared to Sadataki, Guren's build was smaller. It took little effort—just a minor adjustment before planting it in the optimal position.
"For a while, don't use large amounts of chakra. Stay in Sound Village."
"When it fills up, you'll feel it yourself."
"Yes, Lord Yagyū Souma."
And with that—
He left Sound Village quietly.
His curse mark was not something he chased people to give.
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