Immortality begins with the ninjas of Konoha

"The most important thing now is to repel Iwagakure. We have received intelligence that Kumogakure has already sent out squads to harass Iwagakure."

“In this situation, we can even push the battle line to the border of Iwagakure, and the Land of Grass will not stand in our way.”

Mitokado Homura tried to reason with Tsunade, looking at her with a sincere expression, while Koharu Utatane beside her added impatiently:

"Tsunade, you should understand what war means!"

"Without these new drugs, the village would suffer even greater losses. In another sense, this is Konoha ninjas voluntarily helping you test these drugs."

"Get enough..."

"boom!"

Tsunade slammed her fist into the table in front of her, shattering the other person's rambling, and then stood up with an angry expression.

Hiruzen Sarutobi finally spoke, frowning as he soothed him in a low voice:

"Tsunade, control your emotions. Everyone is doing this for the village."

Tsunade, her blonde hair tossing, appeared before the two advisors, placed her hands on the table, glared at them, and said in a low voice:

"What do you take those young Chunin for?!"

"I have no interest in discussing this anymore. The Konoha ninjas didn't have these medicines before, and they still won the war!"

"Unless Jiraiya tells me these requirements in person, the new drug will not be available on the front lines."

Koharu and Homura were overwhelmed by Tsunade's aura and instinctively leaned back.

They were somewhat worried that an emotional Tsunade might grab their collars, which would be unseemly.

Tsunade, ultimately giving her teacher face, didn't look at the two of them again, but turned to look at Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was puffing out clouds of smoke, and complained somewhat discontentedly:

"Old man! Don't let me hear any more of these stupid suggestions!"

"Even in the face of a war between the four countries, the Konoha ninja would not stoop to having the village's young people test medicines."

"As long as I'm here, this kind of thing won't happen."

The two advisors fell completely silent. Danzo, who had been practically invisible in the room, squinted and said:

"Tsunade, don't underestimate the resolve of the Konoha ninja!"

"The new drug was my suggestion, and it has nothing to do with Hiruzen and the others. We can stop supplying it, but we need to mobilize more ninjas."

"As the leader of the new generation of ninjas, Osamu Furukawa should go to the front line and contribute his strength."

"This is also what you experienced back then. Ninjas need to be tempered between life and death."

Tsunade nodded slightly. In a few days it would be Furukawa Osamu's 10th birthday, and at that age she had no reason to stop the mission.

"Let's go to the border of the Land of Rain. The water-style ninjutsu we've learned will be more effective there."

Danzo remained silent, but in his mind, he thought of the Uchiha clan's current location and glanced at Tsunade, pondering silently:

"So they really made contact? Has the Uchiha submitted to the Senju once again?"

"boom..."

The door closed, Tsunade left, and the two advisors turned to their old friend and complained:

"Hiruzen, Tsunade is too domineering. This is wartime, and the medical system should also follow our command."

"Yes, Hiruzen, we're doing this for the future of the village!"

Although Hiruzen Sarutobi was somewhat displeased, he understood his disciple's personality. Tsunade genuinely cared for the village, had inherited the will of the First Hokage, and considered Konoha her home.

Seeing that his old friend remained silent, Danzo narrowed his eyes and said in a low voice:

"There's no need to waste time on these things. Before Iwagakure and Sunagakure join forces, we should completely withdraw the battle lines from the Land of Fire before the end of the year."

"The core will be mobilized to turn the tide in one fell swoop."

Hiruzen Sarutobi then changed the subject, looking at the three people in the room and saying in a deep voice:

"The secret service will also begin to take action; it's our turn to strike first."

The four people in the room stopped talking about Tsunade, but the two advisors and Danzo felt a sense of crisis, realizing that they might really lose their power in the future.

-

At 4 a.m. on September 9th, Furukawa was routinely storing Sage Chakra. In a maximum of another year, the Hundred Healings Seal would be completely completed.

The Spirit Transformation Technique played a crucial role. Ever since Furukawa Osamu transformed the energy he had collected over the past few months into his own spirit body and integrated it into Sage Chakra, the progress accelerated once again.

"Did consciousness also exist within the original 'chakra' of the Living Slug?"

The slug wiggled its antennae on its shoulder, and after a moment's thought, responded in a soft, sweet voice:

"I'm sorry, Master Xiu, I was too weak at the time and didn't realize 'consciousness'."

"During my subsequent cultivation, I awakened a talent that, if it had 'consciousness,' might have been devoured by me."

“‘Consciousness’ should also be a kind of energy. The cells of Hashirama Senju that Master Shu has been studying recently are special and seem to have mutated.”

Furukawa Osamu nodded. Orochimaru's research direction was correct; he had already achieved the ability to carry consciousness with Sage Chakra.

The cells in Hashirama contain what is called "consciousness," which Furukawa Osamu believes may be caused by "Ashura Chakra," but he currently has no way to experimentally prove it.

Thinking of Orochimaru's teachings, Furukawa Osamu sighed helplessly. He was willing to call Orochimaru's "talk-no-jutsu" the strongest for the time being!

Aside from his different "Will of Fire," Orochimaru's understanding of ninjutsu was outstanding, and Furukawa Osamu benefited greatly from his mastery of Wind Release and Earth Release.

"After sensing the natural energy, the body should undergo a rapid transformation, becoming a living slug. After that, I'll need your help!"

Furukawa Osamu clenched his fist, a surge of power emanating from his body. Even without using escape techniques, he was confident he could slaughter an ordinary Jonin with his superior chakra and swordsmanship.

"Leave it to me, Lord Xiu!"

The live slug enjoys resonating with its own kind, a rare experience in its long life.

...

Due to the tense situation, although Furukawa Osamu's classmates were not deployed to the front lines, they were busy with low-level missions during this period.

At Konoha Hospital, every ninja who sees Furukawa Osamu offers him their blessings. Nohara Rin has been working there for some time and has received care from them. On her birthday, she didn't forget to return the favor.

"Xiu, this is my improved medical kit! I hope it can help you on the mission!"

Nohara Rin's face lit up with a bright smile. After presenting the gift, she tilted her head and joked:

"I've been preparing a gift for Silent for a long time!"

Jingyin fidgeted at her desk, finally blushing as she pulled out a scarf with somewhat rough stitches and said shyly in a low voice:

"I tried my best, but I may lack the talent in this area, and I look a bit ugly."

Furukawa Osamu wrapped the red scarf around his neck, looked him over carefully, and then gave him a gentle smile, offering encouragement:

"It's so beautiful! The weather will get colder soon, so it'll come in handy. I'll cherish it..."

Before Furukawa could finish speaking, Shizune ran away, her face flushed, and returned to her seat, secretly glancing at the other red scarf, her heart leaping with joy:

"Yay! Matching outfits achieved!"

-

Chapter 56 The Mark of "Darkness"... (Part 1)

In early October of Konoha Year 47, conflict broke out again on the border of the Land of Rain. The Daimyo of the Land of Fire strongly condemned this and joined forces with the Daimyo of the Land of Rain to put pressure on the Land of Wind.

Such diplomatic efforts were largely ineffective, as Sunagakure continued to act as it pleased, even sending elite squads to raid Konoha's supply lines.

When news from the front lines reached the village, the "hardliners" protested again, believing that the Hokage was too weak.

Fortunately, Tsunade, who stayed in the village, stood up for her teacher, and the "hardliners" were eventually "suppressed" once again.

Although it wasn't a full-scale war at this time, Tsunade still felt exhausted, and more and more people were showing her goodwill.

What put even more pressure on her was the development of medicine. Tsunade felt that some people in the village had probably misunderstood her. In fact, she relied entirely on her own disciples for the cultivation of medicinal herbs.

The new drug that is currently showing great promise on the battlefield was originally intended to enhance "brain chakra." Osamu Furukawa hoped to accelerate the processing speed of nerve signals, but it resulted in a "berserk" effect.

Shizune looked at Tsunade standing by the window with some worry. It was unusual for her to have skipped lunch.

"Tsunade-sensei, are you still thinking about pharmacology?"

"The Nara clan recently added some pharmacopoeia information, which may contain useful knowledge."

Tsunade, dressed in a blue Jonin casual outfit, turned her head and saw Shizune's worried eyes. She immediately gave her a gentle smile and reassured her:

"The Nara clan's collection is indeed of great reference value, but what I am worried about is the dependence caused by the drugs."

"Even if the side effects are reduced, some ninjas may still become addicted to the false power."

"Like Sarutobi-sensei, I want to avoid war as much as possible. Whether it is a large country or a small country, killing will only leave behind pain in the end."

Shizune couldn't fully grasp the emotion, so she could only blink in agreement. Tsunade, seeing this, suddenly burst out laughing and leaned down to tease her:

"You don't need to think about so much at your age. Children should live happily!"

"In a few more years, I'll be able to start dating. Jingyin, do you have someone you like yet?"

Tsunade gently rubbed Shizune's face, and the latter seemed to realize something, her face turning bright red.

Watching Shizune run away shyly, Tsunade suddenly missed Osamu Furukawa; the two could talk about many things.

"Hopefully no one notices Xiu Zhen's true talent."

In Tsunade's view, Furukawa Osamu's chakra was very special, capable of catalyzing mutations in ordinary herbs.

The mutated herbs have doubled their efficacy, and Konoha's current herbal laboratory is almost entirely supported by mutated herbs.

Tsunade discovered this ability shortly after taking Furukawa Osamu as her disciple. Not wanting the higher-ups to "study" her disciple in the village's name, she kept it a secret.

"This is such a hassle. I should have just done it in private from the beginning."

-

On the Konoha border, near the Land of Rain's territory, a Sand Village ninja, fleeing with all his might, jumped off a tree trunk and screamed with a contorted expression:

"Come on, you scum! Sand Village ninjas don't die like cowards!"

Three young men wearing headscarves stood back to back, and after shouting, no one responded. Cold sweat broke out on their foreheads again.

"call out!"

Suddenly, a shuriken imbued with wind-style chakra flew out from Furukawa Osamu's body. The three of them immediately widened their eyes, one of them fell to the ground, and the other darted to the side.

The Sand Village Chunin, acting as the temporary captain, seized the opportunity and threw his short sword. The blades clashed and the sword was instantly severed, while the shuriken also deflected due to the impact.

The protruding rocks on the ground behind them were instantly severed. The three men, having determined their direction, attempted a counter-charge. Just as their chakra was about to erupt, one of them noticed black insects appearing on his body.

"No!"

The Sand Village Chunin screamed in despair, then was "pounced" on by the parasitic insects. His body began to go numb, and he was unable to react.

The two people beside them felt their scalps tingle. Their team leader, a Jonin, had been "eaten" by the insects in the same way. Now, seeing the scene repeated, their legs wouldn't obey them.

"He was actually dominated by fear."

Hearing the voice behind him, the Sand Village boy felt a sharp pain in his chest. Looking down at the short sword that was spitting out chakra, a relieved smile appeared on his face:

"it's over..."

After whispering something, he fell to the ground. On the other side, a Sand Village ninja turned and swung his sword, but the blade was instantly severed.

Kakashi thrust his short sword horizontally, the lightning chakra attached to the blade vibrating at a high frequency, slicing a huge wound in the enemy's waist.

"boom..."

The last Sand Village ninja fell, blood gushing from his body. Kakashi glanced down at him, then calmly sheathed his short sword.

Inuzuka Jaw jumped down from the thick tree branch, and the giant yellow dog beside him immediately rushed to Furukawa Osamu's side, wagging its tail. Seeing his beloved dog's behavior, the veteran Jonin smiled and said:

"Xiu has only been here a few days, and you're already getting close to him!"

"Wang!"

The big dog barked in dissatisfaction, while Yu Nu Zhiwei, who had stepped out from behind the tree, pushed up her sunglasses and explained in a cool manner:

"Senior, my parasites tell me that Xiu has a 'natural' scent! Animals love it!"

Kakashi looked puzzled, subconsciously concentrated his chakra on his nose, sniffed carefully, and then gave a deadpan look and complained:

"I don't smell 'natural,' so what is it?"