As Hinata left, the System's voice rang in her mind.
[Ding! Detected a moderate deviation in a critical node of the Worldline!]
[Major Event: Uzumaki Naruto has learned of his status as the Fourth Hokage's son ahead of schedule!]
[Significantly altered Uzumaki Naruto's psychological growth trajectory and self-perception, with potential impact on future decisions. Reward points: +6000]
[The Nine-Tailed Demon Fox's perception of the host as a threat has significantly increased. Reward points: +2000]
[Minato Namikaze's Chakra Remnant Soul was triggered early, potentially affecting future key nodes! Reward points: +3000]
[Total reward points: 11,000!]
[Current points: 128,050!]
[A wave of forced spoilers directly saved Naruto years of detours. It's a pity I didn't get to see Naruto punch his dad.]
Hinata thought for a moment. Minato hadn't repaired the Seal, and his remaining Chakra hadn't been consumed, so he could still exist within Naruto's body. She'd deal with that the next time they met; she had other things to do now.
In the next moment, with a slight thought, Hinata's figure crossed thousands of miles and appeared in Orochimaru's cold and damp Underground Base Laboratory.
Orochimaru was leaning over a complex Technique Formation, holding a dropper and carefully dripping a dark red liquid that emitted an ominous aura into the Formation Core. It was unclear what kind of strange thing he was researching.
Hinata's appearance out of thin air caused his fingers to tremble slightly, and a drop of liquid almost fell outside. He slowly straightened up and turned his snake-like pupils toward Hinata.
He had already checked; there were no Flying Thunder God marks in the base, so he still hadn't figured out how Hinata was teleporting in.
"Heh heh, your spatial movement is getting more and more elusive. But next time, could you give me a heads-up? Even I can get startled if you keep doing this."
Orochimaru joked as he put down the dropper.
"What interesting news did this sudden visit bring? Or do you have new ideas regarding the research on that eye?"
His gaze instinctively flickered toward a distant container where his equipment was analyzing that eye.
"This time, it's bad news. Our Resurrection Experiment has been exposed. The news of Kimimaro's reappearance in the world is known to the Konoha Leadership, as well as Jiraiya and Tsunade, who have just returned to the Village."
The smile on Orochimaru's face froze, his golden snake pupils suddenly constricted, and he fell silent for a few seconds.
"That really is bad news..."
Orochimaru sighed; he would have to make plans in advance.
Seeing that Orochimaru had processed the information, Hinata continued.
"Tsunade and Jiraiya are looking for you everywhere. Jiraiya definitely wants to stop you from continuing your research. As for Tsunade, it's hard to say."
Orochimaru immediately understood what she meant by "hard to say." He knew what Tsunade's heart-knot was.
He had always planned to use Edo Tensei on Tsunade's lover and younger brother as bargaining chips when he needed something from her.
"So, Hinata Young Miss, what do you plan to do? No one knows you're involved yet. You could draw a line between us; after all, you are a konoha hero."
Orochimaru was testing Hinata's attitude. If Hinata wanted to distance herself from him, he would have to hide with the experimental data and precious Materials to lie low.
"No need for that. I just came to tell you that they will keep the secret for us. Those in high positions fear world chaos the most. Not many people will know."
Hinata's words made Orochimaru breathe a sigh of relief. As long as this powerful ally didn't distance herself, everything was fine.
"Heh heh, well said. Those people fear the breaking of order the most. As long as the news doesn't spread, there's still room to maneuver."
He licked his lips and looked at Hinata. "So, Hinata Young Miss, you didn't come all this way just to warn me, did you? Is there a new plan, or do you need me to speed up some research?"
Hinata's gaze swept across the instruments and Petri dishes in the laboratory that emitted an ominous aura.
"There's no rush; take it slow. If you take too big a step, you'll pull a muscle. I just came to warn you and see how your research is going."
Orochimaru smiled at her words. He hadn't expected the Young Miss to use such crude and easy-to-understand language.
"There's no lead on the eye for the time being; it's still being analyzed. However, there's progress on the resurrection. A new body has been developed, fused with Hashirama cells. Using Wood Release shouldn't be a problem, but it has no Soul. Currently, there's no suitable experimental subject, so the specific situation is still unknown."
Hinata nodded. She estimated it would probably be a bit stronger than Yamato, but it was still a Breakthrough.
"Do as you see fit. Tsunade and the others will likely find you soon."
She said one last thing, preparing to leave.
"Don't worry. Oh, right, wait a moment. I've prepared something for you."
As the words fell, Hinata, who was about to leave, turned back with a look of confusion.
She saw Orochimaru turn around and take an egg out of a precision instrument. It looked like a snake egg, which he handed to Hinata.
"Hmm? What's this? You want to treat me to snake egg soup?"
Hinata took it and observed the egg. She sensed it was no ordinary egg. If paired with the heaven and earth primordial qi pot, it would surely taste delicious.
Orochimaru's face was covered in black lines. What kind of decent person eats snakes for no reason, let alone a snake egg?
"I created this based on the Spiritual Power foundation you provided. Take it back and try it. You should be able to hatch it with that mysterious energy of yours. Then, I can try to use it to contact you."
This way, she wouldn't keep appearing and disappearing without a way to reach her, and she wouldn't keep startling him.
But Orochimaru didn't say those words out loud.
Hinata raised an eyebrow. The fact that Orochimaru could make something like this was beyond her expectations. So, what was this? A Spiritual Pet?
"Interesting. I'll take it."
Hinata nodded, and her figure vanished.
Silence returned to the laboratory, save for the faint hum of the machines. Orochimaru stood there, his smile gradually fading as he became serious.
"Kabuto," he called out softly.
Yakushi Kabuto stepped out from the shadows.
"Did you hear everything?" Orochimaru asked.
"Yes, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto pushed up his glasses.
"Start preparing. We need to relocate."
"Yes. The base relocation and data backup are expected to be completed within three days at the latest for the main parts."
Kabuto reported respectfully.
"Good." Orochimaru nodded with satisfaction. In three days, they wouldn't be able to find him. His gaze turned once more to the instrument analyzing Shisui's Sharingan.
"As for these eyes... perhaps we should consider some more direct tests. Analyzing them here is too slow."
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