Naruto: Kurotsuchi Mayuri

A blazing white light, followed by a shockwave from the explosion, instantly filled the entire area.

The curtain of rain around them was swept away, and a huge cloud of white steam spread outward.

The thick rainclouds created by the Storm Release technique were split apart like they'd been cut by a giant sword, leaving a massive rift in the sky.

A violent gust of wind burst out like a sudden storm on flat ground, flattening everything around it to the ground.

In the center of the battlefield, deep inside a massive crater, Hiruko lay on the ground, gasping heavily for breath. His eyes were filled with unwillingness as he looked at the green giant walking toward him.

"Whew… that was a dangerous technique," said Shisui, standing in front of Hiruko as the green form of Susanoo faded from around his body.

He was referring to the technique Hiruko had just used—pouring a huge amount of chakra into the rainclouds in the sky in a desperate gamble, trying to unleash a more powerful version of his Storm Release.

Even though Shisui had managed to stop it from being fully released, the threat it posed had definitely left him a bit shaken.

Before Hiruko became a rogue ninja, he had already reached the rank of jōnin. His so-called "lack of talent" was only in comparison to legendary figures like the Sannin.

Otherwise, how could he have successfully created his own forbidden technique?

From their recent exchange, it was clear Hiruko's strength had already surpassed that of an ordinary jōnin.

With just his Storm Release kekkei genkai and the Dark Release that could absorb all kinds of elemental ninjutsu, he was already standing at the peak of what most shinobi could hope to achieve.

"Damn it… If only my Chimera Technique had been completed…"

Hiruko felt his consciousness slipping away as he let out a voice filled with frustration.

"Capturing you alive is really not easy."

Although the Hokage didn't specifically demand that he be brought back alive, this was a top-secret mission directly assigned by the Hokage, so he wanted to complete it as perfectly as possible.

…

When Hiruko regained consciousness, he felt a wave of panic.

It was as if his mind was trapped in a pitch-black space—he couldn't feel his body at all.

Am I dead?

The thought came to Hiruko instinctively.

But soon, a raspy, magnetic voice—somewhat familiar—echoed in his mind.

"You're awake?"

"Who is it? Orochimaru?"

Hiruko was startled at first, but in the next moment, it was like he had guessed who the voice belonged to.

"It's been a long time, Hiruko."

Suddenly, a faint light appeared in the dark space. A small bonfire ignited out of nowhere right in front of Hiruko, pushing back some of the thick darkness.

Hiruko stared at Orochimaru, who slowly emerged from the shadows into the firelight. His expression was complicated.

He had always held mixed feelings toward the Sannin, especially Orochimaru, whose talent back then had been nothing short of astonishing. There was envy, but also admiration.

As comrades, he shared deep bonds with the Sannin.

It was precisely because of those bonds that he desperately wanted to catch up to them—to not be left behind, to keep walking beside them as equals.

But his talent was limited. Becoming a jōnin had already been his ceiling.

Later, he resorted to using fellow village shinobi as experimental subjects due to a lack of materials for his forbidden jutsu research.

When the Third Hokage found out, he sent a team to hunt him down. Thanks to the Sannin going easy on him, Hiruko barely managed to escape.

After all these years, he never imagined that when he saw Orochimaru again, the man would have actually become Hokage.

"Orochimaru!"

Hiruko looked at Orochimaru, who was sitting across from him by the campfire, his appearance somewhat strange.

What made it strange was that Orochimaru's skin had a faint, scaly texture, and two horn-like bumps had grown from his forehead, making him look quite different from the Orochimaru he remembered.

"Where is this place?"

Hiruko glanced around. Logically, he should have been brought back to Konoha by that Uchiha. But this place looked more like a mental or spiritual space.

A moment later, Orochimaru confirmed his guess. "This is the depths of your consciousness—where your soul resides inside your body."

"It took me some effort to get here."

"The depths of my consciousness?" Hiruko was a bit shocked. He knew there were techniques that allowed one to browse a person's memories or dive into their mind.

But what was Orochimaru's purpose for doing this?

Did he really have something worth Orochimaru going through all this trouble for?

"Is it for the Chimera Technique?"

After thinking for a moment, Hiruko figured that was probably the only thing about him that Orochimaru would value.

He was well aware of Orochimaru's talent for jutsu and his obsession with forbidden techniques.

"Half and half," Orochimaru replied vaguely.

"Your current appearance… I see, you've altered your body again, haven't you?" Hiruko couldn't quite understand Orochimaru's calm tone.

At the same time, he felt a spark of anger—anger at being underestimated by a former comrade.

"Your emotions are quite unstable. Are you angry? There's no need to be. I acknowledge your talent and the forbidden technique you've perfected."

"As for the body..."

Orochimaru gently touched the horn on his forehead and said softly, "This is the depth of the soul. Everything here is revealed without any disguise. Have you ever seen what your soul looks like?"

"My soul's appearance?" Hiruko was confused. Then, he noticed something—there seemed to be a puddle of water on the ground in front of him, and his upper body was reflected in it.

It was a soul that looked like it had been stitched together from various parts. His body was covered in countless seams, and on both sides of his chest, faintly visible, were two twisted, sleeping faces.

These were the ninja he had absorbed and fused with using the Chimera Technique!

Their remnants still lingered within him!

That was the first thought that surfaced in Hiruko's mind.

In terms of twisted and terrifying soul appearances, he seemed to far surpass even Orochimaru.

"You really surprised me. The Chimera Technique—this forbidden jutsu—was truly created. Even though it still carries immense risk."

Orochimaru's gaze toward Hiruko was filled with admiration.

It was the recognition of one researcher acknowledging the work of another.

"What is it you really want?"

But Hiruko suddenly felt a chill run through his body, as if something massive and terrifying in the darkness had set its eyes on him.

A sense of deep unease gripped him. He had a feeling—something horrifying was about to happen.

"What do I want? I only wish to help you perfect this technique."

Under the flickering firelight, Orochimaru's soul form suddenly underwent a drastic transformation.

Its shadow twisted and stretched across the ground, becoming a giant, monstrous serpent—much like the Yamata no Orochi.

Then, one of the serpent's heads broke off, and before Hiruko's horrified eyes, it merged with the shadow of his soul form.

Or rather, it devoured his shadow entirely!

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