Shinichi's gaze slowly swept across the rows of test tubes.
As expected, when faced with the highly invasive first Hokage cells, the blood of most of the association members lost all vitality within just a few breaths after coming into contact with the first Hokage cells. It was then completely devoured, becoming nothing more than nourishment for the first Hokage cells.
The few samples that lasted slightly longer only managed to hold out for a brief moment more before tiny branches and vines began sprouting from the surface of the blood. Immediately afterward, the blood inside the test tube rapidly withered and dried up, ultimately transforming into a vibrant strand of woody fiber.
Shinichi also tested his own cells. To be honest, his cells held out for a remarkably long time, far longer than anyone else's.
But in the end, his blood sample could not escape the same fate. It was also eroded, eventually turning into a tree the size of an adult.
Looking at the tree that had grown from his own blood, Shinichi found it difficult to describe exactly how he felt.
If he were to say he felt relieved, that wouldn't be entirely wrong.
His cells had endured far longer than everyone else's, proving that his physique had long since surpassed that of ordinary ninja.
Even the tree that eventually grew from his blood was impressively large.
It was nothing like the others, which had only produced a short section of trunk or a few frail vines.
But if he were to say he was disappointed, that was equally true. In the end, his blood still failed to withstand the invasion and ultimately became a tree.
In other words, if he were to inject himself with the first Hokage cells, then barring any miracle, death would still be the outcome.
"Could it really be that only Yamato is the chosen seedling for Wood Style? Just what makes him so special?"
Shinichi frowned inwardly. He had previously speculated that Yamato's survival during First Hokage's Cells experiments in the original timeline was inseparable from the fact that he was naturally born with Light, Earth, and Water chakra natures.
Among this batch of volunteer association members, there were indeed several people who were naturally born with Light, Earth, and Water chakra natures as well. Their blood had indeed endured the first Hokage cells' invasion for a longer period, and perhaps had even undergone some deeper, subtler form of fusion.
However, with Shinichi's current methods, he still could not determine whether the subtle fusion he suspected truly existed.
But regardless of whether such a deeper fusion actually occurred, the mere fact that they lasted longer was enough to explain certain things.
In other words, Shinichi's earlier speculation had been broadly correct.
With that thought, Shinichi decided to secretly obtain a blood sample from Yamato within the next couple of days to see what exactly was going on.
To be honest, however, he wasn't particularly optimistic about this direction.
Yamato's success in the original timeline had simply involved too much luck. It was not something that could be replicated through a single reproducible condition.
The reason Shinichi had spent this period constantly strengthening Yamato's physique while improving his proficiency in Water Style and Earth Style was precisely to minimize that element of luck as much as possible in the future, making the success rate more controllable.
"Hm?"
At that moment, Shinichi's gaze swept across the laboratory bench once more and was suddenly caught by one of the branches.
The trees and vines that had burst out from the test tubes were tangled together in complete disorder, yet this particular branch was noticeably different from the rest.
It appeared more lustrous, greener, and softer in color. It lacked the savage, violent aura that the other branches exuded.
Seeing this, Shinichi's eyes shifted slightly. He immediately located the corresponding record number, quickly retrieved another blood sample from that association member, dripped it into the first Hokage cells once again, placed the test tube onto the observation rack, and waited with his full attention.
Time passed slowly, and after churning for a while, the blood inside the test tube still failed to escape its ultimate fate. It sprouted branches before completely losing its vitality.
Yet Shinichi, who had carefully observed and sensed every change within the test tube throughout the entire process, found his eyes shining even brighter than before.
Although a branch ultimately emerged in this sample as well, the process by which it grew was completely different from every other test tube.
In the other test tubes, once the blood was invaded by the first Hokage cells, the woody fibers would erupt almost instantaneously, violently bursting outward from within the blood like a ferocious beast desperately struggling to escape its cage.
The changes in this test tube, however, remained remarkably gentle from beginning to end. The branch slowly extended outward at an unhurried pace, as though merely stretching itself according to the rhythm of natural growth, until the increasing volume eventually exceeded the capacity of the test tube, forcing it to burst through the glass wall.
But what was even more noteworthy came afterward; under Shinichi's fully activated perception, the deeper microscopic fusion that he had previously only suspected finally became clearly visible.
At the initial stage, when the first Hokage cells came into contact with the blood, there were indeed signs of an extremely subtle fusion.
For a brief period, the cells of both sides entered a relatively peaceful phase of interaction. It was no longer a one-sided process of devouring and being devoured, but more like two entirely different forms of vitality cautiously probing and intertwining with one another.
Some of the cells were destroyed during this process, yet a small portion managed to achieve a low-level coexistence with the first Hokage cells for a short period. Although that coexistence was ultimately shattered by the overwhelming invasive power of the first Hokage cells, the traces of fusion that had once existed were unmistakably clear to Shinichi's perception.
In other words, the owner of this blood sample possessed the potential to successfully pass the First Hokage's Cells experiment!
Shinichi straightened up and looked at the branch that had now become still, his heart filled with somewhat complicated emotions.
Because this blood sample belonged to someone completely unexpected, Kizashi Haruno!
Kizashi Haruno was an utterly ordinary Chunin. In terms of talent and potential, his limits could practically be seen at a glance.
Even with all the various enhancements provided by Shinichi's talents, combined with Kizashi's own relentless hard work, it was still difficult to say whether he would ever reach the level of a full-fledged Jonin.
Yet after discovering that Kizashi Haruno's blood could actually produce such faint signs of fusion with the first Hokage cells, Shinichi suddenly realized in an instant that this seemingly ordinary man actually possessed quite a few unusual characteristics.
First of all, Kizashi Haruno himself was one of the few association members participating in this examination who had been born with Light, Earth, and Water chakra natures.
Speaking of that, according to Shinichi's memories of the original timeline, Kizashi Haruno's future daughter, the heroine of the main era, Sakura Haruno, also possessed all three Light, Earth, and Water natures, and even had Dark as an additional nature.
As for whether Sakura had been born with those natures, Shinichi could not be completely certain, but he believed it was almost certainly the case.