Minato Namikaze quickly snapped out of his daze, offering a sincere compliment. "As expected of Senior Hiruko. Truly incredible!"
His thoughts immediately flew to his pregnant wife. If the power of Wood Style were available, her delivery day would undoubtedly be much smoother. With that thought, Minato's respect for Hiruko deepened further.
As for Hiruko himself—Minato felt the man likely didn't have any ulterior motives. If he did, he wouldn't have stepped back from the competition for the Hokage seat; after all, a significant portion of the village had supported Hiruko's candidacy.
Hiruko, for his part, genuinely liked Minato. He turned toward a hidden compartment in the lab and pressed a button. A small, square, silver-white box slid out from the wall. Opening it, he revealed two vials of emerald-green liquid. He took one out and handed it to Minato.
"This is a serum I developed using Hashirama's cells as the base material," Hiruko explained. "I've weakened and adjusted the strain countless times to create a version that allows a Jonin-level shinobi to awaken Wood Style."
"However, even with the power suppressed, it isn't something just anyone can endure. If the user is below Jonin level, the probability of death is extremely high. From my research, the more vibrant the life force and the stronger the spiritual energy, the higher the success rate—and the more powerful the resulting Wood Style will be. The Senju, Uzumaki, Uchiha, and Hyuga clans will see the best results."
"Even families like the Ino-Shika-Cho, or individuals like you, your student Kakashi, and his friend Might Guy, would have a very respectable success rate," Hiruko added flatly.
In truth, Hiruko had a low opinion of the actual combat power of this "diluted" Wood Style. Its performance was disappointing. Of course, the ability to absorb chakra was a unique and interesting trait—one that clearly linked Wood Style to the power of the God Tree.
Unfortunately, for the average person, this serum was almost meaningless. If one's life activity was insufficient and their chakra reserves didn't reach the level of a Tailed Beast, then "Tenzo-level" Wood Style was the absolute ceiling. Most users would be lucky to build a "Four-Pillar House," let alone suppress a Tailed Beast; that was pure fantasy.
Hashirama Senju was a monster because he was a unique genetic mutation within his clan—a one-of-a-kind powerhouse who could suppress Madara's Susanoo without needing a Tailed Beast. He was essentially a localized "human God Tree," inheriting its chakra-absorbing traits perfectly. Moreover, he possessed peak Yang release and Asura's chakra, allowing him to enter Sage Mode instantly. An ordinary person, even with Wood Style, could never hope to reach those heights.
In this world of bloodline supremacy, that law was absolute. The closer your blood was to Kaguya, the stronger you were. This was exactly why Hiruko was so obsessed with perfecting his own techniques: to eventually steal that divine power for himself.
Minato's mind was a bit of a whirlwind. If this is true, won't Wood Style become common in Konoha?
Hiruko glanced at him and said casually, "Minato, that'll be 100 million Ryo, please."
"Ah! Senior Hiruko, isn't that a bit too expensive?"
"You think it's expensive? I think it's expensive too!" Hiruko rolled his eyes at the Hokage. "This is Hashirama Senju we're talking about! The power of the First Hokage!"
"With this, Kushina can better suppress the Nine-Tails. Furthermore, the Wood Style will resonate with her Uzumaki blood. The child she's carrying will benefit immensely; he'll be born with incredible vitality, and there's even a chance he might naturally manifest Wood Style in the future."
Upon hearing that it would benefit his unborn son, Naruto, Minato decided on the spot. A parent's love is far-reaching; even an astronomical price was acceptable for his child's future. Besides, at that price point, he didn't have to worry about Wood Style "flooding" the village—very few people could afford it.
Hiruko held out his hand, looking at Minato with a cat-like grin.
"Very well, Senior Hiruko. I'll have the funds transferred in a few days." Minato paused, then asked curiously, "By the way... how did you know Kushina was pregnant? The elders haven't permitted the news to spread, and Kushina hasn't announced it yet."
Hiruko had been holed up in his lab for weeks. How could he possibly know?
Hiruko chuckled. "I guessed."
Minato gave him a helpless look. You're really going to use a line meant for children on me? Clearly, Hiruko had his own information network. But Minato didn't dwell on it.
Unbeknownst to the Hokage, Hiruko was already planning his exit. When the "Night of the Nine-Tails" arrived, he planned to slip away from Konoha to begin his journey across the Ninja World to collect more "research materials."
He was waiting for the day of the Solar Eclipse to use his five bloodline-limit "puppets" at Mount Shumisen to trigger the Chimera Technique (Kimera no Jutsu) and ascend to become the ultimate, immortal lifeform.
The Chimera Technique was a bizarre fusion of genetic engineering, consumption theory, and occult ritual. It wasn't just mad science; it blended Western-style magical ceremonies with Eastern religious elements—the Three Talents (Heaven, Earth, Man), Yin-Yang and the Five Elements, and even astrology.
However, in Hiruko's eyes, the original scroll was a mess of chaotic instructions with a dismal success rate. He wondered how the "original" Hiruko ever pulled it off with such low scientific literacy. The timing had to be a Solar Eclipse; the location had to be Mount Shumisen. As for the five bloodline users, as long as they balanced the Five Elements, the specific abilities could be adjusted to his liking.
But there was one thing that kept Hiruko uneasy. This "ultimate" scroll... he had found it by "accident" back in his academy days, just lying around. Who exactly had "delivered" such a powerful, forbidden technique into his hands?