Djinn spoke eloquently, carefully grounding each of his points in logic and experience.
Orochimaru was not driven purely by profit; rather, he possessed a deep and unwavering pride. In both ninjutsu and scientific research, he had reached the pinnacle of the shinobi world. There was no one who could truly stand as his equal in thought or technique. Over time, this had fostered a quiet arrogance deep within him.
The Third Hokage, Jiraiya, and others could converse with him casually—but their discussions were rooted not in research or truth, but emotion and sentimentality. That, in part, was why Orochimaru had left Konoha in the original timeline. His ambitions were misunderstood, his scientific pursuits stifled by emotion, and the village's constraints had become suffocating.
Yet in recent years, he had exerted himself fully, displaying his talents without restraint. With access to the top experimental subjects and the best resources the shinobi world could offer, he had gone as far as one could possibly go.
And yet… after all that effort, all that sacrifice, to still be denied a breakthrough—to still be shackled by bloodline limits—was a devastating blow.
Djinn believed Orochimaru could endure this setback. But this time, things were different. He needed to bounce back quickly—there was no time to waste.
---
Silently, Orochimaru exhaled. He pressed his hands to the ground, coiled his tail around his body, then abruptly sat cross-legged.
"This method might work," he said slowly. "But the Serpentis isn't something easily controlled. Though it's currently restrained, releasing it now could lead to consequences that are hard to undo."
He had not forgotten the chaos caused by the white snake during its last outburst. At such a critical juncture, that kind of instability was the enemy of all planning.
"You don't need to worry about that..." Djinn began, then paused, looking at Orochimaru in surprise. "Your composure is remarkable. I thought you'd need more time to adjust."
To face a crisis calmly and immediately consider solutions rather than wallow in emotion—it was a rare quality, especially at this scale. Had Djinn underestimated him?
No—Orochimaru had faltered emotionally, even if only briefly.
"I was shaken," Orochimaru admitted with a self-deprecating chuckle. But then his expression returned to its usual calm. "Still, as you said—the ninja world is the way it is. I have no choice but to ride the current."
"I may not be qualified yet, but one day, I will master this knowledge."
The righteous path might exist—but it demanded time and resources he didn't possess. For now, the crooked road would have to suffice. But once he reached the end, Orochimaru would circle back and reconstruct the proper path with what he'd learned.
"...Your mindset is rare," Djinn nodded, smiling. "Perfect. Because I have some bad news to share."
Orochimaru frowned slightly. "What is it?"
"Take a look."
Djinn waved his hand, and a blue light curtain expanded in the air. Numerous data points appeared—dense and technical—but one in particular was highlighted in red.
Lifespan: 31,536,000 seconds.
Orochimaru's gaze narrowed. He couldn't immediately process the number, but instinctively, he knew—it was short.
"In shinobi terms," Djinn said, "that's just over a year."
"...Impossible."
The words came out automatically, but stopped halfway. Orochimaru's face darkened.
"Is this because of the skin-shedding technique?"
"Possibly. Or maybe it's the first Hokage's cells," Djinn replied. "Remember, Hashirama also died young. Konoha says it was wounds from his fight with Madara, but… I don't buy it."
Given how extensively those cells had been studied, Djinn had serious doubts. Hashirama may not have died from wounds—but from some kind of irreversible expiration. Just like Orochimaru might now.
Which was ironic. After all his striving for immortality, death had only come sooner.
"But the White Snake Sage sheds far more than I do, and she doesn't seem to suffer any lifespan limit."
Orochimaru frowned. "The Toad and Slug Sages live long too. Clearly, natural energy should extend life."
Which was precisely why he had used senjutsu without hesitation. And yet… here they were.
He didn't regret the decision. But he did wish he had prepared more thoroughly.
"Thinking can wait," Djinn said cheerfully. "What matters now is action."
"...You're right." Orochimaru's expression softened with resolve. "There's no time to hesitate."
"Not necessarily," Djinn pointed upward. "There's always the Pure Land. If you're willing to give up this body, you might reincarnate."
"Not enough time."
Orochimaru shook his head. The modifications he'd made to Nagato would last only a few more months. Without him, no one could restrain Nagato's growing ambition—not to mention Obito pulling the strings in the background.
Nagato was powerful, but relied too heavily on brute strength. Obito was cunning and ruthless—he wouldn't hesitate to exploit even Minato's wife giving birth. Orochimaru didn't know what Obito was planning, but his presence alone made the situation volatile.
Being present in the ninja world was necessary—for stability, for survival.
The Sage of Six Paths might be powerful, but unless Kaguya reawakened, that ancient figure preferred to remain uninvolved.
And someone had to do the dirty work.
---
Djinn, seeing Orochimaru's resolve, offered one last warning. "This isn't like the previous transplant. Once the merging starts, I can't intervene. You're on your own until it ends."
"No problem."
Orochimaru closed his eyes and sank into the depths of his soul.
There, in a spiritual space far richer than Naruto's sewer-like mindscape—full of mountains, rivers, and wildflowers—the white snake lay coiled atop a stone pillar, dozing in boredom.
It was free to roam this space, but not to leave. A gilded cage, compared to the freedom of the Pure Land.
Orochimaru's will approached.
The snake opened one eye lazily, then shut it again.
"You damn thing..."
He reached out, and black, tadpole-like seals lit up across the snake's body—then rushed toward his hand in retaliation.
The snake's eyes shot open in surprise as all its restraints vanished into smoke.
With no understanding of subtlety, the white snake simply felt free.
It hissed excitedly—and leapt into control of Orochimaru's body.
In an instant, his human form melted into serpentine flesh. Snake replaced man.
This "transformation and embodiment" technique was something Orochimaru had studied—but through the white snake, it was executed flawlessly.
As the fusion completed from the inside out, a dramatic change began.
The white snake rolled and writhed through the sand, wrapped itself around the stone cauldron, coiling and thrashing like a dragon in flight.
Djinn could see it clearly—something was being born within this body. A new, strange energy.
And the white snake's change was only part of it.
---
Inside the spiritual space, Orochimaru stared at his own hands in confusion.
"What's happening?"
Based on his research, Yin (spiritual) and Yang (physical) energies—when both reach sufficient strength—should merge into an all-powerful force.
He'd assumed his spiritual power wasn't quite enough before.
But now, it was the Serpentis that was changing... yet the effect seemed to involve him too.
"Don't forget,"Djinn appeared, smiling. "The little white snake is a part of you now."
It might surpass him in raw spiritual strength, but it still shared his soul.
And whether active or passive, the moment it fused with his physical Yang energy—Orochimaru became a part of the process.
In a way, the white snake was the perfect union of Yin and Yang by nature.
"You predicted this, didn't you?" Orochimaru narrowed his eyes.
"If I did, it was only a hunch," Djinn shrugged. "This isn't my body, so I didn't want to promise anything."
He smiled slyly. "Still, it helped that you were determined to go all in. That kind of mindset improves success."
"But stay sharp," he warned. "This transformation might give you one shot at asserting control over the white snake. Don't miss it."
"I understand."
Orochimaru closed his eyes, sitting cross-legged within the void, absorbing the energy. His translucent body began to glow with a white light.
---
Outside, the white snake writhed uncontrollably—squirming, twitching, as if suffering immense pain or indescribable itching.
No matter how far it thrashed, it always returned to the cauldron—the heart of the dragon vein.
It devoured everything—light, heat, natural energy—but it still wasn't enough.
Its eyes turned downward.
It wrapped around the stone cauldron and let out a thunderous hiss.
In response, rings of rock and sand surged outward. A massive stone pillar formed beneath it—piercing deep into the earth.
Ten meters. A hundred. Five hundred...
The snake coiled down into the depths, golden eyes flashing.
Suddenly—the world trembled.
Dozens of glowing beams erupted from the earth, blasting into the snake like crashing torrents of raw natural energy.
---
More than ten miles away, Queen and her daughter Sara opened their eyes simultaneously—blood streaming from their noses and eyes.
They collapsed, barely breathing.
Jiraiya and Kazekage Rasa rushed to their side in panic, but quickly found they were only exhausted, not fatally harmed.
After feeding them pills, the two women slowly regained consciousness.
"What happened?" Jiraiya asked.
"...The dragon vein... It awakened..." Queen whispered, stunned.
Until now, they had believed the dragon vein was dormant—barely conscious. Its energy had been inert, stable.
But something had changed.
"Orochimaru… must have woken it up."
Jiraiya and Rasa exchanged glances. Orochimaru had warned them about possible energy surges. But awakening?
That meant far more than a mere riot of chakra.
This was no longer a medical operation. It was the start of something far greater.
Something alive.
_____________________
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