Chapter 15: Return to the Village

"Let's go, it's time to head back to the village," Orochimaru said after checking and confirming that the illegitimate child of the Hyuga clan was indeed not dead. He then reassured himself and put the subject back into the container.

Kenichi nodded obediently, then glanced back at the experimental subject with some reluctance. The subject was a rare and valuable specimen, and he hoped to have the opportunity to acquire it from his teacher in the future.

However, Kenichi leaving now was inconsequential, as he already had his own experimental ideas, namely to induce lung cancer by targeting the lungs with nicotine.

Unfortunately, he had not yet succeeded and still needed a lot of experimental data. He could only hope that Orochimaru would bring back more subjects for experimentation.

Throughout the journey, Orochimaru taught Kenichi various ninjutsu techniques. However, since Kenichi's chakra nature was lightning and fire, the focus was mainly on lightning and fire release techniques.

"Teacher, do you know about the lightning release secret techniques of Kumogakure? I heard they can use lightning release to train their bodies," Kenichi said after finishing his ninjutsu practice, his chakra nearly depleted.

He needed to rest.

"Those muscleheads from Kumogakure? Of course, I know them. They are very formidable in close combat," Orochimaru said, looking at his disciple with satisfaction.

Orochimaru had been somewhat disappointed when he noticed his disciple's slow progress in strength, as in the ninja world, a ninja's strength is ultimately the most important thing.

If Orochimaru's strength were insufficient, then Danzo would not speak to him so politely, nor would their current cooperation be possible. Instead, Danzo might take advantage of him.

In Orochimaru's view, Kenichi was a perfect disciple with a unique talent in science. The only issue was his lack of strength, being only a Genin.

This was disappointing to Orochimaru, who knew well that without sufficient strength, one could only become a vassal, controlled by others for life, just like the root ninjas.

However, Kenichi's strength was beginning to improve, which pleased Orochimaru.

Kenichi envied the powerful body techniques of Kumogakure. If he could learn them, it would be an additional safeguard for his life.

Unfortunately, Orochimaru did not know the specific body technique of Kumogakure, so he could not teach it to him.

When the two returned to Konoha, the biggest news on the streets was that the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was preparing to step down, and the election for the Fourth Hokage was about to begin.

The transition of leadership in Konoha was naturally a very important matter. The entire village was discussing it, and Orochimaru told Kenichi to stay at home during this time.

There was no need to go to the laboratory until the Fourth Hokage was elected, and Kenichi had no objections.

"It seems the teacher has some plans," Kenichi shrugged, but he knew the outcome; the Fourth Hokage would not be his teacher Orochimaru, but Minato Namikaze.

Once the result was announced, his teacher would begin preparations to defect from the village and even harbored resentment towards Hiruzen Sarutobi, planning to execute the "Destruction of Konoha" plan in the future.

Although he couldn't go to the laboratory now, Kenichi planned to take the opportunity to set up his own laboratory, at least to get the framework started, and also to find Kakashi.

By finding Kakashi, he could also get in touch with Kushina Uzumaki and obtain a sample of her hair.

So, Kenichi happily went to find Minato, especially since it was already noon, and Kakashi was unlikely to be at home alone. Visiting Minato's house also allowed him to meet Kushina.

"Eh? Isn't this little Kenichi?" Minato's house was not hard to find, as he was a star in Konoha. Upon arriving near his house, Kenichi encountered his target, Kushina Uzumaki.

Kushina was quite attractive, though a bit temperamental. Kenichi even wondered if Sakura was modeled after Kushina.

"Hello, Kushina. I'm here to find Kakashi," Kenichi said, maintaining the appearance of an ordinary child and putting on a sweet smile, looking somewhat foolish.

"Oh, you're looking for Kakashi? He went to the training field with Minato. You can go there and check," Kushina said with a smile, pinching Kenichi's cheek.

Kenichi was somewhat helpless, but that's how children are. It would be better when he got older.

"Thank you, Kushina," Kenichi finally escaped Kushina's grasp, but not without gain. He had noticed something odd about one of Kushina's hairs.

Sure enough, it fell off, and Kenichi quietly took it.

Having obtained the sample, the next step was to analyze the genetic chain of the hair and see how it differed from that of a normal person, then isolate this unique genetic chain. With that, his task would be considered complete.

Although he had already obtained the sample early, to avoid unnecessary suspicion, Kenichi still went to the training field for a look. He didn't find Kakashi but saw Might Guy instead.

"Yo, Kenichi, have you finished your mission?" Guy was as enthusiastic as ever, sweating profusely from training even in the heat of Konoha.

When Kenichi arrived, he saw Guy doing one-handed push-ups, which impressed him.

Setting aside everything else, Guy's effort was indeed worthy of his eventual moment of glory. A sword honed for many years shines brightest in its final moment, a fitting reward for his efforts.

"Ah, I just finished a mission with my teacher. Guy, how about a thrilling contest of youth?" Kenichi asked with a grin.

"Oh! How can a man refuse a friend's request? How about we do frog jumps around the training field twelve times?!" Guy was instantly excited, and Kenichi couldn't help but smile at Guy's simple happiness.

(End of Chapter)