Konoha: Offer your heart to the Hokage!

He quickly stepped forward and checked Tsunade's condition with Hashirama.

She neither inherited Hashirama's black hair nor Mito's red hair; instead, she perfectly inherited the princess's blonde hair, with a small tuft of golden down on her head. Apart from that, there's nothing particularly special about her.

Hmm, looking naked is actually quite nice.

Hashirama quickly asked, "How was it? Did you manage to refine chakra at birth?"

Mito rolled her eyes at him: "Kenyu is an exception. Ordinary babies don't know how to refine chakra right after birth."

"Haha...that's true."

Concern leads to confusion. Hashirama was eager to know Tsunade's chakra nature, but such things cannot be forced. He could only wait until she matured and was able to refine her chakra on her own before he could find out.

"I will personally teach her ninjutsu and make her the strongest ninja in the ninja world!"

Hashirama shouted like a passionate young man.

The news of Tsunade's birth quickly spread throughout Konoha.

This baby girl, who inherited the name "Hime," was born during Konoha's most prosperous period. She carried the dual expectations of the God of Shinobi and the Daimyo of the Land of Fire. In a sense, she was a symbol of the country and the village, and an epitome of Konoha's golden age.

The whole village rejoiced.

...

That evening.

On the second basement floor of the neglected Gospel Hospital, Matsumoto Kazuka holds a baby boy.

Behind her stood a nutrient tank as tall as a person, filled with an unknown liquid. On the nearby experimental table, the container that had once held Shen'er's blood was now empty. To cover their tracks, Matsumoto Kazuka had simply destroyed the remaining blood containers as well.

In this way, no one could find out the true bloodline of the baby boy in her arms.

Matsumoto Waka's face was deathly pale, but her gaze towards the child was gentle: "Orochimaru, your name will be Orochimaru..."

Orochimaru was very well-behaved; he didn't cry or make a fuss, just stared at his mother with his bright, watery eyes.

"Dong dong!"

Two female ninjas dressed in ANBU vests pushed open the door and entered.

The visitors were Matsumoto Waka's good friends, Hinata Kotone and Yamanaka Yuki. After joining the Anbu, the two were assigned to work at the Evangelion Hospital, where they were responsible for guarding experimental equipment and protecting the safety of the cadavers.

When they first learned that Matsumoto Kaori was conducting forbidden experiments, the two immediately tried to stop her crazy behavior.

However, when Matsumoto Waka confessed that she was suffering from a bloodline disease and didn't have much time left, the two hesitated for a long time, but ultimately chose to secretly help her cover up the forbidden experiments.

When the two saw the child in her arms, a hint of joy flashed across their faces, but it was quickly replaced by deep worry.

"He Xiang, what do you plan to do with this child?"

"Should we send them to an orphanage, and then have you adopt them in a few years?"

Orochimaru's existence is a taboo for Konoha.

Both the Hokage, Hashirama Senju, and Dean Shen of the Evangelion Academy repeatedly emphasized the strict prohibition against medical research touching the red line of human experimentation. Yet, Matsumoto Waka not only embarked on this forbidden path, but went far down it.

She repeatedly conducted secret human experiments, and finally, using her own blood and Shen's blood as a basis, she successfully cultivated the artificial human Orochimaru.

Every step is fraught with unknowns and risks; every attempt is akin to gambling. Even if she were given another chance, the same result could not be replicated. This nurturing process is not replicable.

Orochimaru is the only one.

This means that if the matter is exposed, even if Matsumoto Waka is Shinji's disciple, he will probably not escape punishment.

The worst-case scenario is that they could be executed...

Along with the child.

Matsumoto Kazuka heeded the advice of her two friends.

She also knew that sending Orochimaru for adoption was the safest option, as it would avoid a lot of trouble.

However, the Konoha Orphanage has a rule that children must be at least three years old to be adopted, and her life is nearing its end, she could die at any moment, and she has no idea whether she can hold on until then.

She was unwilling to accept that she could only see the child as a "foster mother" from now on. Even if she was executed by the village, she should still be the child's biological mother.

"If we send her to an orphanage, won't she be bullied?" Matsumoto Kazuka muttered to herself.

Hinata Kotone warned her, "That's still better than being discovered by the village! If we're discovered, even Lord Shinji probably won't be able to protect you and the child."

"Yes! Teacher will definitely protect Orochimaru!"

Matsumoto Kaori spoke firmly, her intuition telling her that the teacher cared a lot about her child.

"Moreover, Lord Hashirama is a merciful Hokage. His granddaughter has just been born, so he certainly wouldn't execute a newborn child."

"Wako, you..."

Hinata Kotone wanted to persuade her further, but was stopped by Nakayama Yuki beside her: "Now that things have come to this, just trust Kaori, just trust her. Lord Shinji said that we are friends and should help each other."

“If the village orders Orochimaru to be executed, then I will… I will defect with Orochimaru.”

"Sigh." Hinata Kotone sighed helplessly, "Then I'll use my Byakugan to cover your escape."

Matsumoto Kaori looked ashamed.

She had approached these two "friends" with impure motives, but now she had earned their sincere trust, even to the point of entrusting her life to them.

"Thank you, Kotone, Yuki," Matsumoto Waka said softly.

Orochimaru will definitely survive.

"When he grows up, I will have him repay you properly in my place."

Chapter 88 Orochimaru, you must serve your teacher.

Hashirama Senju was happily at home with his child.

Just then, a member of the secret service came to his side and whispered a few words in his ear.

Hashirama's expression changed drastically upon hearing this: "How is this possible?!"

He quickly handed Tsunade to Mito, hurriedly changed into his sacred robe, and rushed to the Fukuin Hospital.

...

The second basement level of Fu Fuyin Hospital has been sealed off.

Matsumoto Waka was captured by the Anbu and is awaiting further instructions.

When Hashirama arrived, he witnessed firsthand the various traces in the laboratory. He never expected that, despite his and Jin's repeated prohibitions against human experimentation, the second person to break this taboo, after Tobirama, would be Jin's disciple.

what is this?

Was it fate, or a cruel twist of destiny?

Looking at Matsumoto Waka and the baby in her arms, Senju Hashirama remained silent.

According to village custom, she and the baby should be executed together. But as a newly minted grandfather, he simply couldn't bring himself to do it. Besides, Matsumoto Kaori was Jinji's disciple...

He still had to give them face.

We'll decide everything once Shen arrives.

Not long after, Shinji arrived dressed in a white haori, glanced at Matsumoto Kazuka, and then saw the baby in swaddling clothes.

His pupils suddenly contracted.

Although he was only in the shape of an infant, he could already see the shadow of Orochimaru in this child.

He went straight to the point and asked, "What's the child's name?"

Matsumoto Waka lowered her head: "Orochimaru, his name is Orochimaru."

It really is Orochimaru...

Shen Er took the baby from the dark guards and gazed into his eyes.

A strange feeling began to grow in my heart.

This was completely unexpected for him.

When he first received the report from the Anbu, he felt the same way as Hashirama. He had secretly and intentionally guided Matsumoto Kaori to engage in forbidden human experiments, but he hadn't expected that she would actually develop artificial human technology.

Furthermore, this technology was used to cultivate Orochimaru, just as Orochimaru later created Mitsuki.

How did she do it?

"Matsumoto Kazuka..."

Shen Er's eyes were red, her voice trembled slightly, and she had an expression of extreme anger: "I have repeatedly warned you that there is only a fine line between medical experiments and taboos. As a Konoha ninja and my disciple, you must uphold the bottom line."

"Why do you insist on engaging in the most unforgivable human experimentation?!"

Matsumoto Kazuka knelt on the ground, performing a deep dogeza (a traditional Tibetan bow): "I have failed you, teacher. I will accept whatever punishment the village may give me. But this child is innocent. Please forgive him, teacher..."

She even closed her eyes in "pain": "I will take care of your child. Since you have already made this decision, then... you should atone for your sins with your death."

After saying that, she casually took out a bottle of euthanasia poison and was about to hand it to Matsumoto Kazuka.

The Sage of Konoha is incapable of making mistakes. If a disciple makes a mistake, the teacher can only weep and execute the disciple to atone for his error.

This is the enlightenment of the pure and innocent Shen Er!

Seeing this, Hashirama, who had been silent all along, immediately stepped forward and grabbed Shinji's wrist like an iron clamp.

"Naruto?"

Hashirama shook his head: "Never mind, so be it."

Hashirama, in the end, was moved by compassion.

He was well aware that human experimentation represented taboos and dangers. If everything were judged according to the strictest rules, Tobirama, who had studied the forbidden technique of Impure World Reincarnation and manipulated the souls of the dead, would have committed far greater sins than Matsumoto Waka.

Tobirama was only confined for three months.

Matsumoto Waka's initial intention in conducting human experiments was simply to become a mother. Compared to Tobirama's sins, she was as pure as a white lotus flower.

The child had just been born, and the mother was about to lose her life simply because of the rules.

Does such behavior deserve the so-called Will of Fire?

It's not just children who lose their mothers...

Even he might lose his disciples...