Chapter 77: Injecting Hashirama cells
"Brat! The way you handle things is far too troublesome!"
Little Nine-Tails, perched on Naruto's shoulder, looked disdainful and immediately switched to biting sarcasm as soon as they returned to Naruto's residence.
"You should have just crushed them all with your strength! This kind of dragging negotiation is incredibly annoying to watch and listen to!" Little Nine-Tails flicked its tail. "I could tell that so-called Orochimaru was terrified of the Mangekyo Sharingan. You should have just..."
"If you tug on my tail one more time, I'll..."
"You'll what?!" Naruto grabbed Little Nine-Tails' tail and pulled it right off his shoulder. "Not only are you eating, drinking, and living off me, but now you even dare to get snappy with me!"
"I... I'm just telling the truth... with strength, you should..." Little Nine-Tails struggled while hanging upside down in mid-air, its human speech losing some of its edge. "Anyway, watching you act like that makes me uncomfortable!"
"I want to as well!" Naruto placed Little Nine-Tailsback on his shoulder, his tone no longer as sharp as before. "But until I obtain Shisui's Mangekyo, I still need to use profit to entice someone like Orochimaru!"
"What about that black-hearted fellow, Danzo Shimura? Why did you..."
"Danzo Shimura is still useful to me. Besides, killing a man like him with a single blade would be too easy. I want him to experience the same pain I once felt; only letting him die in agony will satisfy my grudge!"
"I really don't understand you humans. Why be so complicated?!" Little Nine-Tails gestured with its paws in a very human-like shrug. "It's much simpler being a Tailed Beast. If someone annoys you, just drop a Tailed Beast Ball and everything is settled!"
Naruto stroked Little Nine-Tails' soft fur and shook his head with a bitter smile, not bothering to explain. Little Nine-Tails was right; humans were indeed too complicated sometimes...
However, complexity had its benefits. Beyond the dark schemes and machinations, humans could truly experience sincere emotions and draw immense power from them, driving them to strive forward relentlessly.
"Speaking of which, the price you paid this time was a bit high..."
Little Nine-Tails was now completely in the same boat as Naruto. It extended a paw to stroke its second tail, which was about to emerge, feeling incredibly lucky yet also hating the agreement it had made with Naruto.
It was now tied to Naruto for better or worse. If anything happened to Naruto, the main body of the Nine-Tailed sealed inside him would target Little Nine-Tails first!
After all, as the leader of the collective consciousness, it would not tolerate a "usurper" like Little Nine-Tails continuing to run around.
Thus, Little Nine-Tails was now extremely concerned with Naruto's every move, even reaching the point of offering him advice.
"I can only devour a tiny bit of the consciousness attached to the Tailed Beast's Yang-attribute Chakra each day, and the purified Yang Release Chakra I produce is limited. Giving it away all at once... isn't that a bit... counterproductive?"
"You can't catch the wolf without sacrificing the child!" Naruto gave a cold smile. "And don't think I don't know your consciousness is growing. That second tail is about to sprout, isn't it?"
"It still needs some time..." Little Nine-Tails didn't dare deny it. "About a year or so should do it."
"Your absorption of the consciousness attached to the Tailed Beast Chakra will only get faster. I've only paid a bit of a price early on. Later, I'll get it all back with interest, and... I'll leave Orochimaru with nothing but bones!"
"I hope so..." Little Nine-Tails sighed and dropped the subject. "By the way, are you interested in that brat named Kimimaro?"
"I remember you saying that the Sage Body has many branches. Although not many remain today, I think that brat Kimimaro has some characteristics of the Sage Body Bloodline!"
When Naruto first saw Kimimaro, he only felt that he was a bit special. Although he had chatted briefly with Orochimaru, it was mostly out of curiosity at first, and Naruto hadn't taken it to heart.
But as Naruto and Orochimaru discussed their collaborative project on bloodline diseases, Narutolearned that Kimimaro's surname was Kaguya—his full name was Kimimaro, the successor of the Shikotsumyaku Bloodline Limit!
"Indeed." Little Nine-Tails nodded solemnly. "Besides immense vitality, super recovery speed, and massive amounts of Chakra, there is indeed a clan that inherited something that falls within the scope of the Sage Body but is, in some ways, superior to it."
"That would be the Kaguya Clan with the Shikotsumyaku..." Naruto was a bit confused. "But what do you mean by 'is and is not'?"
"It's them, alright, but..." Little Nine-Tails definitely knew more secrets of the Ninja World than Naruto. In fact, all the Tailed Beasts knew more than anyone else in the current Ninja World, but Narutohad no way to force Little Nine-Tails to speak.
Little Nine-Tails pondered for a long time before finally deciding to give Naruto a partial explanation of why the Kaguya Clan's Shikotsumyakubelonged to the Sage Body category yet also did not.
"The Shikotsumyaku is an ability that can only possibly emerge after the Sage Body has evolved to its limit and then evolved again after obtaining a certain power. And that power..." Little Nine-Tailstried to choose its words carefully. "While its manifestation is similar to the Shikotsumyaku, its power is worlds apart..."
"Are you saying the Shikotsumyaku is like an abnormal atavism? That before the Sage Bodyreaches its true limit, it inherits a power it shouldn't have across several levels?"
"Something like that..." Little Nine-Tails nodded hesitantly. "For this reason, that kid's bloodline disease is completely terminal. Unless he gains a Sage Body and allows the Shikotsumyaku to evolve again, he... definitely won't survive!"
"You sure know a lot, Little Nine-Tails!"
Naruto didn't focus on whether Kimimaro's bloodline disease could be cured. Judging from the hesitant information Little Nine-Tails revealed, he realized the creature was still hiding many things from him.
"I'm not hiding things from you on purpose..." Having benefited from Naruto, Little Nine-Tails' tone softened even more. "I've told you what I can. The rest is terrifying; it's better if you don't know."
"Fine, you've lived longer, so you have the final say!"
Naruto didn't intend to force Little Nine-Tailsfurther, understanding the principle of not overdoing it. He abruptly ended the conversation with an unfriendly tone and then took out a test tube containing Hashirama cells from a Seal scroll.
Just like when he experimented on Little Nine-Tailsbefore, Naruto took out a brand-new, specially-made metal syringe. After installing the test tube filled with Hashirama cells, he plunged it fiercely into his left arm.
As the Hashirama cell fluid was slowly injected, Naruto's body underwent a violent reaction. But before he could even react, the Mangekyo Sharingan in his eyes suddenly activated on its own. A surge of powerful Yin Release Chakraerupted from his eyes, instantly reaching his left arm through the intricate network of Meridians that permeated his entire body.
"This..." Naruto was stunned, but he quickly realized what was happening. "Orochimaru! You just wait!"
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