If Habara kh Release, then given the current level of security here, he might actually have been able to pull off an escape pn. However, havih-style chakra didn't mean he could use Earth Release teiques.

  Unfortunately, this half-baked ninja couldn't even use a sisu.

  However, after this period of research, Habara had gained a deeper uanding of his own "Mag Release."

  Uhe Mag Release of this world, which often only (or at least, was habitually used to) trolled one specific type of metal, Habara's "Mag Release" worked on all metals. Moreover, he could do quite a lot with it, including, but not limited to, ging a metal's shape, hardness, ductility, and temperature, easily making it vibrate, levitate, and move in various states… So, this was a "Mag Release" that was more in lih the cept, more macroscopid broader in meaning.

  One could only say that "flying on a sword" was no longer a dream, which was truly moving. And given that this unexpined "secret teique" was much more powerful than Habara had previously imagined, he had privately given it a very fitting name: "Mendeleev's Woe."

  It owerful, yes, but the problem was "scale." Imagine, if Habara had a staggering amount of chakra, even if he didn't know any ninjutsu, he could bee a powerhouse just with this secret teique. However, also unfortunately, acc to Orochimaru, his chakra level was only that of an average in.

  So, now another question o be addressed… Thinking this, Habara raised his arm.

  Theoretically, he was now a "modified human." The question was the extent as of his modification.

  Habara had undergohe "assimition experiment" with Jugo's Sage Transformation factor, a process that was a near-death experience. But this clearly wasn't the actual Cursed Seal experiment, but rather a necessary prerequisite for it. So, in the end, aside from feeling more eic, his biggest gain was that he could now seural energy.

  Or perhaps Habara should be more realistic – the biggest gain was that he hadn't been killed ht.

  And no matter how positive Habara's thoughts were, it couldn't ge the fact that he was extremely passive iy. But this passivity wasirely a bad thing… Soon, he wouldn't have to think about esg or not esg at all.

  Lying ft might seem like waiting for death, but sometimes it could actually lead to a smoother survival.

  A signifit ge occurred one day when Habara's cellmate, the child who had been stantly restrained in the iron cage, was taken away.

  Afterward, Habara heard some noises from behind one of the walls.

  The innermost wall of the cell had a row of ventition holes, each about the width of a hand. Behind these holes was the "arena" where Habara had previously fought a ninja. Through these holes, he could just barely see what was happening below… The child who had been taken away was there.

  Was it that child's turn to fight now?

  But when Habara saw the child's oppo, he was stunned… It was the female ninja, Hotaru, who had disappeared for several days.

  One was a child, the other was clearly a support-type female ninja. They were forced to fight to the death. One could only say that this was a truly crazy world… In this situation, Habara could only watch. He owerless to prevent anything from happening.

  Good and evil, sce, were pletely irrelevant. Those in that situation had only two choices: kill or be killed, that was all. In fact, even though Habara had held ba his previous fight and inquired about his oppo's fate afterward, he hadn't thought about the possible sequehat person might face sihen… When one was struggling to survive, there wasn't much mental space to care about or sympathize with others.

  As had happened dozens, perhaps hundreds, of times before, the fight began.

  As the fight started, Habara uood the child's identity.

  As the child formed hand seals, the barren and ft ground of the arena became uhen, something sprouted, twisting and turning like a flexible snake, strig and strangling Hotaru…

  It was Wood Release.

  As the child had said, he was Orochimaru's test subject, without a name or other identity. Perhaps he had a code name now, "Koh" (A), but he would be called "Tenzo" or "Yamato" much ter.

  "Koh" was a Wood Release ninja who had been impnted with the power of the First Hokage. Retively speaking, the female ninja Hotaru wasn't even a bat-type ninja, so…

  The blood that spttered owisting, growing wooden branches was exceptionally bright red.

  Someone wao live, and someone else died because of it.

  And so, the fight ended.

  Habara turned around. He leaned his back against the wall and slowly slid down, sitting down and closing his eyes.

  Su unequal fight couldn't possibly be for any experiment, nor to test the strength of the experimental subject.

  Hotaru was destio die.

  But wasn't she Orochimaru's subordinate? Why would Orochimaru kill her?

  Habara instantly thought of the note hidden on his person. There must be some e, but now wasn't the time to read it.

  After the fight ended, "Koh" didn't return to the cell. Instead, he disappeared pletely.

  Several days passed, and Habara finally noticed something was wrong. It was as if the dungeon, aside from the imprisoned criminals or test subjects, had beeied.

  Had Orochimaru abahis pce?

  "Freedom" came so suddenly that Habara almost starved to death.

  If this pce was indeed unmahen Habara could finally carry out his escape pn. The iron cell door was no problem for him. The only issue was Orochimaru, and now Orochimaru had left this .

  However, just as Habara was about to take a, clear footsteps echoed from the corridor outside again. This time, the footsteps were more chaotidig that there was more than one person.

  Then, someone opehe cell door and came before Habara. It was a man in his te twenties. More hy than his appearance was the Konoha forehead protector he wore.

  Habara realized what was happening. The troller of this dungeon had very likely ged from Orochimaru to the official Konoha authorities.

  "Habara? Please follow me." The man first smiled kindly, then spoke.

  Since he could directly call out Habara's meant that Konoha's acquisition of this dungeon was likely not a surprise raid, but a peaceful handover.

  "Yes."

  Now, Habara also uood why "Koh" hadn't returned.

  "A successful case of Hashirama's cell impntation" – su identity was extremely valuable. pared to that, what was someone like Habara, who had survived some bizarre experiment, worth? Nothing.

  When Habara left the cell, he saw many Konoha ninjas identifying the people imprisoned in the dungeon.

  So, what fate awaited him ?

  What was Konoha's attitude towards people like them?

  Everything was unknown.