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Chapter 85 - CHAPTER 85

Cell Activity

  "Why are there so many…?"

  Anko Mitarashi stared at the monitor in disbelief. Though she had expected to see something unusual, the result far surpassed her imagination.

  The chakra signature displayed after Bai Ye placed his hand on the scanner was unlike anything she had ever seen. From the very beginning, the image was dim and complex—interwoven hues of white, black, and blue danced across the screen in equal measure. Unlike Yamato's readings, which were dominated by Wood Release particles, this formation was balanced, symmetrical—yet foreign.

  Had the system been able to run quantitative analysis, it would have shown an almost perfect one-third distribution among the three energies.

  "Bai Ye could be considered the prototype of 'Jia'," Orochimaru said softly, his tone reverent, almost hungry. "His internal energy distribution is… ideal."

  He licked his lips, staring at Bai Ye with a gaze that made Anko visibly uncomfortable.

  "...???"

  Several metaphorical question marks appeared above Anko's head. She didn't understand what Orochimaru meant by 'Jia', nor did she particularly want to.

  Had he made up another excuse, Bai Ye would've likely played along, at least on the surface. But Orochimaru wasn't even bothering to hide his intentions anymore. Bai Ye could tell: whatever was happening now had ties to the experiments surrounding the First Hokage's cells.

  He strongly suspected that, just like with Yamato (Tenzo), Orochimaru had already acquired his cells long ago—without his knowledge—and was quietly trying to merge them with others.

  Unlike most subjects, Yamato had survived the implantation of Hashirama Senju's cells. The surprise now was that Bai Ye's body seemed capable of balancing three distinct energies, without rejection.

  "Bai Ye, I'll be taking some of your blood for analysis."

  Orochimaru didn't wait for permission. Before the words were even finished, he had already pulled out a small syringe and inserted it into Bai Ye's neck with snake-like precision.

  A stream of blood filled the vial.

  "Sensei, would it kill you to be a little more tactful?"

  Bai Ye rubbed the side of his neck, where the wound had already closed. A thin trickle of blood still clung to his skin. He sighed, a dark line forming on his forehead in exasperation.

  Still, despite Orochimaru's brazen behavior, Bai Ye found himself letting his guard down. Orochimaru's charisma was undeniable. In the original timeline, many of his subordinates—despite knowing they were being used—followed him willingly, some to their deaths.

  Even Sasuke had known full well that he was to become Orochimaru's next vessel. Yet he went along with it, lured by the promise of power.

  Bai Ye understood. As long as he remained useful, Orochimaru would not harm him. And that was enough—for now.

  "It's getting late," Orochimaru said finally. "The dining hall is on the second floor, where I showed you earlier. I've had food prepared in advance. If you wish to bathe before sleeping, there's an open-air hot spring in the rear courtyard."

  With that, Orochimaru effectively dismissed them.

  "Then we'll take our leave, Sensei," Bai Ye said smoothly, pulling Anko away before she could linger. She clearly wanted to see what Orochimaru intended to do with his blood, but Bai Ye wasn't about to let that happen.

  "Why are you dragging me along? If you're hungry, go eat by yourself," Anko huffed. "Watching Orochimaru experiment is way more fun than dinner."

  Bai Ye groaned. "How did you even make it to the start of the main series?"

  He was genuinely baffled. Anko never seemed to grasp the tension in the air. Still, he was curious—what had Orochimaru seen in her? Among the Sannin's many disciples, Anko was by far the least powerful.

  "There is food! And no one else around, either," Anko said with wide eyes, immediately abandoning her complaints. She snatched a drumstick from the banquet table and started devouring it unceremoniously.

  "You're more trouble than both girls on my squad combined…"

  Bai Ye sighed. Yue and Yuyan were a handful, but at least they knew when to behave.

  "Better watch your mouth," Anko said, her mouth full. "I'll tell Yue and Yuyan you've been talking behind their backs."

---

Meanwhile, on the top floor…

  Once Bai Ye and Anko had departed, Orochimaru finally moved.

  "Yamato. You've seen this done enough times—you should know what to do."

  He approached a lab bench crowded with glass cylinders filled with murky liquids. Selecting a clean test tube, he added a drop of Bai Ye's blood and began mixing in various reagents. The fluid gradually turned clear.

  Beside him, Yamato bit his finger and followed suit with practiced ease.

  Next, Orochimaru placed a few drops from both mixtures onto a microscope slide. A monitor attached to the device projected the cellular activity in real time.

  A twisted smile tugged at Orochimaru's lips.

  "Excellent… There's still room for improvement."

  On the screen, the cells from Bai Ye and Yamato were not clashing. Instead, they were merging, harmonizing. No signs of cellular rejection or degeneration—only synergy.

  Had these been Hashirama's cells, the result would have been different. Typically, his cells would overwhelm and devour any foreign tissue, even in Yamato's body, which was already at its limit.

  But with Bai Ye's cells acting as a neutralizing agent, the balance could be maintained.

  This was something Orochimaru had discovered months ago. Back then, Bai Ye's cells had only mildly stabilized Hashirama's. Now, they were actively enhancing them.

  "The activity is significantly stronger than it was a few months ago," Orochimaru mused. "If it continues to evolve at this pace… there's a chance it could surpass the regenerative potential of Hashirama's cells."

  That possibility thrilled him.

  Still, he remained cautious. He suspected that Bai Ye's elevated cell activity might be tied to two unidentified energy sources within his body. These energies didn't resemble Hashirama's Wood Release at all. They weren't overtly aggressive—but they were potent.

  Further testing would be required. He needed to verify that Yamato's results weren't an outlier before scaling up to human experimentation.

  "We're still far from completion," Orochimaru muttered. "Bai Ye's current activity levels aren't even on par with posthumous Hashirama cells. We'll need to accelerate his development."

  Having finished his observations, he stored the samples for further study and shut down the lab station.

  "Rest well for the next few days," he told Yamato. "We'll begin strengthening your body soon."

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