Подземная лаборатория, скрытая от глаз и солнечного света.

  Орочимару был поглощен скрупулезным манипулированием скальпелем. Обычно никто не осмелился бы потревожить его в такое время. Для исследователя тихий час для исследований был его величайшим удовольствием.

  Но позади него внезапно появился ниндзя.

  Этот ниндзя опустился на колени, принося важные новости. ?Орочимару-сама, деревня узнала о том, что здесь происходит?.

  Рука Орочимару замерла. ?Значит, деревня знает, что я делаю, верно?… Они ?узнали? или это ?просочилось???

  ?Это... просочилось, Орочимару-сама?, — стоявший на коленях ниндзя ещё ниже опустил голову.

  ?Мы знаем масштаб утечки?? — спокойно спросил Орочимару, не выказывая ни гнева, ни удивления.

  ?Инормация об Эксперименте Альа полностью утекла. Инормация об Эксперименте Бета… ещё не должна была утечь?.

  ?Хе-хе, как и ожидалось от Данзо-самы…?

  Поскольку это была ?утечка?, существовала высокая вероятность присутствия шпиона — шпиона из числа старших по званию жителей деревни или, точнее, ?наблюдателя??

  ?Орочимару-сама, что нам делать дальше? Стоит ли нам полностью уничтожить это место??

  ?Полностью уничтожить? естественно означало уничтожить то, что нужно было уничтожить, и испарить то, что нужно было испарить.

  ?Нет. Учитывая, что инормация уже просочилась, если деревня попросит меня отдать то, что я должен, а мне нечего будет показать, это может означать своего рода прорыв. К сожалению, я пока не могу покинуть деревню, так что…

  Хотя жаль, я могу передать все на этой базе только деревне. Хе-хе, в конце концов, я ниндзя Конохи, — с улыбкой сказал Орочимару.

  ?Тогда… тот, кто слил инормацию…?

  ?Кроме подопытных, здесь находится всего несколько человек. Выявить шпиона будет несложно?.

  Орочимару, способный спокойно воспринимать вещи и отпускать их, передал бы деревне все, что было на базе. Но это ?все? определенно не включало бы предательского шпиона.

  …………

  Хабара пережил один из экспериментов Орочимару. Как ценный ?успешный экземпляр?, он получил тщательный уход после… Его ценность до и после эксперимента была совершенно разной.

  The one responsible for taking care of him was the female ninja named Hotaru.

  And Habara's recovery speed was astonishingly fast. Just a week ter, he ractically "boung off the walls."

  During this time, he'd been fio that cell, along with the child who was securely bound. However, aside from their retively extensive versation on the first day, they spent most of their time in silewo prisoners, really, had nothing much to talk about.

  One day, Hotaru came to the cell as usual to deliver meals to her two inmates. Her behavior seemed as it always did, but just as Habara reached for the tray she handed him, he noticed something unusual… There seemed to be a piece of paper hiddeh the tray.

  Habara instinctively g her, but her expression remained unged. He discreetly pressed down oe with his hand, then, seizing the opportunity, slipped it away without drawing attention.

  Whatever the note was, he wasn't in a hurry to read it. At the very least, he needed a retively safe enviro.

  But the quiet period of recuperation couldn't st forever. Once Habara's body had mostly recovered, Orochimaru's move began immediately.

  When Orochimaru reappeared before Habara, even though Habara had nearly been tortured to death previously, he didn't even have a ce to express ament.

  "The experiment was uedly successful, which is good news for both you and me… Please extend your arm," Orochimaru said.

  Although he was somewhat afraid that Orochimaru would i him with something again, Habara obediently extended his arm. Fortunately, this time, it wasn't about putting something into him, but taking something out… Just drawing blood. pared to his previous ordeal, this was child's py.

  Hoping to gain a bit of information, Habara observed Orochimaru's expression while tentatively asking, "Orochimaru-sama, may I ask… what kind of experiment is this?"

  trary to the image of aloof superiority, as long as one obediently listeo Orochimaru and didn't a defiance or resistance, he was, quite often, a retively easy person to talk to. He olite, courteous, and habitually used honorifics…

  This showed that verbal restraint, urained as, and a cruel personality were not mutually exclusive.

  As Habara had guessed, Orochimaru was quite willing to answer his question.

  "It's just an inactivation or activity suppression experiment. To expin it further, it's about something that is too lethal to be practical. Therefore, if we want to make it usable, it must undergo a weakening process…

  Based on on sehe smaller the dose, the easier it is to achieve this goal. But surprisingly, the opposite turned out to be true. The rge-dose experiment was the ohat succeeded.

  That is to say, 'Subject Zero' is too lethal and often in an untrolble state. Furthermore, he's in his juveage and uo undergo high-iy experiments. Therefore, we need a 'Subjee' who withstand 'Subject Zero's' power.

  'Subject Zero' and 'Subjee' don't have much power individually, but the process from 'Subject Zero' to 'Subjee' is crucial, because the possibilities that extend from 'Subjee' are limitless."

  Hmm, a good expnation, but Habara didn't quite uand it.

  "Do you feel any different from before?" Orochimaru asked.

  "If I had to describe a ge, I feel more eid my body feels more… lively?" After hesitating for a moment, Habara tinued, "Also, it stantly feels like there's something moving around on me in the air. ive ions?"

  As he spoke, Habara discreetly withdrew his arm. Orochimaru had already drawn a rge tube of blood from him. The tter part, though, was Habara's genuine feeling. This ge even made him suspect he had developed sensitive skin.

  "No. What you're describing, that 'moving around' feeling, should actually be called… natural energy."

  "…"

  The word "enlighte" perfectly described Habara's current feeling. In that instant, he finally uood what Orochimaru had been talking about:

  The so-called "Subject Zero" was likely Jugo, and "Subjee" was himself, Habara. His role was nothing more than a "human inactivator." And what Orochimaru was currently w on was the development of the "Cursed Seal" – or rather, Orochimaru had just begun to develop the "Cursed Seal."

  At the same time, Habara could roughly determihe time period he was in. It should be during the end of the Third Shinobi World War, before Orochimaru had defected from Konoha. As for the location, if he wasn't mistaken, this should be underground, beh Konoha.

  Almost from this point onward, Orochimaru would bee increasingly reckless, eventually transf from Konoha's "ninja with four virtues" into a deranged rogue ninja.

  Orochimaru was already dangerous enough, and staying by his side would only beore dangerous iure.

  Thinking this, Habara couldn't help but look at Orochimaru with a worried expression. No matter what, the escape pn was imperative.

  Seemingly notig his gaze, Orochimaru misuood something and offered an expnation, "Don't worry, I'm just extrag your blood serum."

  "…"

  art of that was supposed to be "don't worry"?

  For the hree days, Orochimaru came every day to draw a rge tube of blood from Habara. Oddly enough, Habara didn't feel any symptoms of blood loss. He had no idea what kind of super-nutritious food he was being fed.

  При отсутствии зацепок относительно плана побега время, казалось, шло мирно.

  Единственное, что показалось Хабаре странным, так это то, что за три дня он не увидел женщину-ниндзя, которую видел здесь чаще всего.