Naruto Dream Fulfillment Master!

Chapter 544 Mastering Wood Release, Aiming to Turn the Battlefield into a Workshop

Scorpion himself was somewhat surprised.

Wood Release was even more effective than he had anticipated.

Not only can it create puppets at will, but what amazes Scorpion even more is its material.

They were created from his chakra, and contain extremely active chakra pathways, originating from the same source as his power.

As soon as the chakra threads attached, they smoothly seeped into the wooden joints and transmission structure without any obstruction.

No matter how many processes a piece of wood is processed beforehand, the interior of a regular puppet cannot be completely uniform.

When manipulating it, chakra will always experience slight depletion at certain joints.

The Wood Release puppet does not have this problem.

Scorpion only needs to move a finger, and the puppet will react immediately, as sensitive as if it were an extension of his body.

For this reason alone, this material is superior to all the puppet wood he has ever used before.

Sasori did not immediately release the chakra threads in his hand, but instead manipulated the wooden puppet to perform several more movements, carefully experiencing the differences.

Dou stood beside the monitoring instrument, staring at the curve for a while.

Once the previously elevated cell activity returned to a safe level, and after Sasori rested for a while, Orochimaru allowed him to conduct another low-output test.

After receiving permission, the scorpion immediately raised its right arm.

With a hissing sound, several tender branches sprouted from the palm of my hand, and after landing, they quickly intertwined and grew.

From the skeleton to the joints, and then to the most basic transmission structure, in just a few breaths, the second puppet body took shape beside him.

Scorpion looked at the two wooden puppets standing side by side with great interest.

Just as he was about to continue trying, he felt a soreness in his right arm.

The curve on the monitoring instrument also began to rise.

Sasori frowned and voluntarily stopped chakra output.

"What's wrong?"

Orochimaru noticed his hesitation and immediately looked over.

"The amount of Wood Release chakra I can mobilize at a time is very limited."

Scorpion stretched his right arm, his words carrying a hint of regret that he hadn't had enough.

"At the current level, it's impossible to produce too many puppets in a short period of time."

Orochimaru sensed another meaning in those words and couldn't help but laugh.

"Heh heh heh—judging from your tone, if you had enough Wood Release chakra, you could create even more Wood Golems at the same time?"

"certainly."

Scorpion glanced at the two puppet bodies beside him, his face expressionless, and said matter-of-factly, "This number is far from my control limit."

"Then I'll have to disappoint Sasori for now—" Orochimaru shrugged and explained, "The First Hokage's cells are extremely corrosive; you've only completed the first stage of the transplant."

"For safety reasons, subsequent transplants must be carried out gradually, allowing your body to adapt to these cells first, and then gradually expanding the transplant area based on the observation results."

"If too many are implanted at once, once that life force breaks free from the control of the restraining technique, the Wood Release cells will devour your flesh and blood in a very short time. At that point, even I might not be able to save you."

After listening, Scorpion did not refute.

Although he wanted to verify all the possibilities of combining Wood Release and Puppet Technique as soon as possible, he had no interest in risking his life.

He understands the principle that haste makes waste.

Since the quantity can't be increased for the time being, let's try to see how well Wood Release and mechanisms can be combined.

Only after the monitoring curve dropped again did Orochimaru allow him to continue trying with even lower output.

Scorpion refocused his attention on the second puppet body.

He let several branches that had not yet been retracted extend from his palm and burrow into the puppet's shoulder joints and chest cavity.

Under his control, the originally simple wooden structure began to change.

Orochimaru stood aside, not stopping them, but simply signaling Kabuto to continue recording.

Scorpion's gaze grew increasingly focused.

For him, puppetry represents a brand new art form.

The dream has ended.

The next day, Sunagakure Village.

After waking up from his dream, Scorpion sat by the bed for a long time.

The memories of last night are still vivid.

-

That power was just right for him.

"What a pity."

He stared at his empty palm for two seconds before putting his hand down.

As for whether Orochimaru in the real world actually replicated the Wood Release transplant technique, Sasori didn't know.

However, even if that stinky snake could actually do it now, he might not be able to do it for him.

Moreover, he had already transformed most of his flesh and blood into a puppet, leaving only the regeneration core within his body still active.

Conventional bloodline boundary transplantation requires complete flesh, blood vessels, and organs to support it, but there's simply no way to do that with his current body.

We can't just sacrifice our only regeneration core to be eroded by the First Generation cells for the sake of Wood Release.

If this problem can really be solved—

The thought of those two lignocelluloid bodies in his dream made Scorpion's regeneration core itch.

With his skill level, as long as he has enough chakra, he can continuously create puppet bodies on the battlefield.

Combined with the Crimson Secret Technique: Hundred Machine Manipulation, the battlefield will become his workshop.

This is what it truly means for one person to form an army.

Scorpion went through the scene in his mind, but in the end, he shook his head.

No matter how much you think about it now, it's impossible for an arm capable of using Wood Release to grow out of thin air.

It was already bright outside; he needed to go to work.

Most of the mundane affairs in Sunagakure can be handled by Maki.

However, decisions concerning the future direction of the village still have to be made by him, the Kazekage, personally.

No matter how troublesome things are, there are some things he can't avoid.

Scorpion pushed open the door and walked towards the Wind Shadow Building.

Upon arriving at the office, he had barely opened the door when he saw Maki hunched over his desk, working on case files.

Several stacks of neatly categorized documents were piled on the table, and the cup of tea beside it had long since gone cold.

Maki's pen didn't stop; he was writing annotations on a secret report.

Scorpion sighed inwardly.

Maki is indeed a rare and excellent horse, even more responsible than the Wind Shadow himself.

Without this hardworking and dedicated guy, he would probably be driven crazy by all those trivial daily tasks.

The fact that Sunagakure hasn't been brought down by those power-hungry high-ranking officials over the years is largely thanks to people like Maki.

Upon hearing the door open, Maki immediately looked up.

Upon seeing that the visitor was Scorpion, he quickly put down his pen, stood up, and bowed.

"Lord Kazekage, you've arrived."

Scorpion waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to be so polite, and went straight to the head seat to sit down.

"How's the investigation into Orochimaru's whereabouts going with the Anbu?"

Maki straightened his expression, pulled out a prepared intelligence report from the table, and handed it over with both hands.

"Lord Kazekage, the Anbu have not yet pinpointed Orochimaru's exact location, but they have found some valuable clues within the Land of Rice Fields."

Scorpion took the intelligence report and began to read it with lowered eyes.

"To the outside world, Otogakure is just a small ninja village that the Land of Rice Fields established in recent years. After the Chunin Exams, we already knew that it had a close relationship with Orochimaru."

"This time, the Anbu continued their investigation along the supply lines left by the Sound Ninja and discovered that the Sound Ninja's power was far greater than it appeared."

Maki pointed to several locations marked on the dossier and said with increasing seriousness, "Several important passes, trade routes, and government offices within the Land of Fields have been infiltrated by them. Even in the Daimyo's prefecture, there are officials covering up the whereabouts of the Sound Ninja."

"In addition, the Anbu also discovered several abandoned underground bases, which contained a large number of experimental equipment and traces of human experimentation. The methods were highly consistent with the information we had about Orochimaru in the past."

"It can now be basically confirmed that the Sound Village is the power Orochimaru established behind the scenes, and most of the Land of Rice Fields has probably already fallen under his control."

This result was indeed somewhat unexpected for Scorpion.

No wonder that after he entered the Land of Fields, no matter how hard he searched, he could never find Orochimaru's true hiding place.

The land of fields is neither very big nor very small.

In a place teeming with spies, trying to find an underground base undetected is nothing short of a pipe dream.

Thinking about this, Sasori gained a more intuitive understanding of the foundation of the five great ninja villages.

While in the Akatsuki organization, he was able to obtain a lot of secret information by relying on the underground intelligence network of Amegakure.

When it comes to this kind of task that requires a large number of people to conduct investigations, Amegakure is indeed no match for Sunagakure.

Now that he is the Kazekage, he can use the intelligence resources of the entire Sunagakure village.

In just a few days, the Anbu, following a few inconspicuous clues, uncovered most of Orochimaru's hidden forces beneath the surface of the Land of Rice Fields.

"Should we intensify our search efforts?"

Maki looked at Sasori and asked in a deep voice, "If we send a few more ANBU squads to continue investigating along these strongholds and transport lines, we should be able to pinpoint the areas Orochimaru frequents very soon."

With new grudges and old resentments, Maki naturally had no shortage of enthusiasm.

"No."

Scorpion waved his hand, rejecting the proposal.

"Suddenly sending too many ANBU into the Land of Rice Fields will only alert them. Orochimaru is very wary, and once he notices the movement of Sunagakure, he will definitely relocate immediately."

"Maintain the current scale of the investigation, keep an eye on the locations and contacts that have been discovered, and don't rush to close the net."

"I need to do some preparations before I officially start."

Although Maki didn't know what the preparations he was talking about were, he simply nodded.

"clear.

""

"Oh, right."

Scorpion suddenly changed the subject.

"Has any news reached the village about Gaara and the other two?"

Upon hearing this question, the seriousness on Maki's face slowly turned into an indescribable strangeness.

He paused for a moment before pulling out a short letter from another stack of documents.

"They have arrived safely in Amegakure and sent back the first message."

"Amegakure was very friendly to them. They not only did not make things difficult for them, but also arranged accommodation for them. Their movements within the village were not restricted, and they could freely enter and exit the areas they needed to investigate."

"According to the letter, there are even people in Amegakure playing soccer with them."

Maki couldn't understand why Amegakure, known for its isolation and xenophobia, would be so enthusiastic towards three Sunagakure ninjas.

Previously, let alone allowing ninjas from other villages to conduct investigations freely, even if someone wanted to pass through the Land of Rain, they had to consider the attitude of Amegakure first.

Scorpion showed no surprise after hearing this, simply leaning back in his chair and nodding calmly.

"That's good. No rush, let Arara stay there for a few more days."

Maki opened his mouth, but ultimately swallowed his question.

"Yes, Lord Kazekage."

On the other side, in Amegakure.

Inside the orphanage office, Nagato was standing by the window.

After taking the medicine, his complexion and physique had recovered considerably.

After this period of adaptation, I can walk for short periods of time, but I haven't fully recovered yet, and I still feel a stinging pain when I stand for a long time.

Even so, being able to stand here on his own is a long-awaited experience for Nagato.

As his body gradually recovered, the oppressive aura of a Rinnegan user reappeared on him.

However, this power had very limited effect on Obito.

Obito slumped back in his chair, one arm draped over the armrest, and asked lazily:

-

"Now that your body has recovered to this extent, when are we going to capture the next Jinchūriki?"

Nagato turned his gaze away from the window, paused for a moment, and then said, "I've already spoken with Deidara about our next target."

.

"What did he say?"

"He strongly opposed going to Iwagakure to carry out missions."

Nagato calmly repeated, "According to him, Onoki is a very difficult old man, and he doesn't want to go back and face those bumpkins who don't understand art at all."

Xiao Nan placed the documents in her hand on the table and took over the conversation.

"Among the remaining Jinchuriki, apart from the still young Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, most are well-established ninjas, and some are even capable of perfectly cooperating with the Tailed Beasts."

"They are experienced in combat and can skillfully utilize the power of the tailed beasts, which is completely different from Gaara and Maple's situation."

"To bring them back, persuasion and deception alone will likely not work. Unless they are completely defeated, they will be difficult to control."

After listening, Obito's brows furrowed even deeper.

"So what do we do now?"

He was urging them on verbally, but he knew in his heart that the longer things dragged on, the more variables would arise.

Black Zetsu has urged them several times already. If this continues, someone will eventually lose patience.

Nagato said calmly, "So, it's up to you now."

Obito paused for a moment, then pointed to himself.

"Looking at me? What are you looking at me for?"

"Of course, we should go and persuade Deidara."

Xiao Nan said matter-of-factly, "You two are partners now, so he'll give you some face."

Obito's lips twitched slightly.

He glanced at Nagato, then at Konan, and was speechless.

Goodness, these two are quite adept at shifting blame.

Obito sighed, just as he was about to complain a few more times, when there was a knock on the office door.

All three of them turned their gazes in that direction at the same time.

The door opened, and Kakuzu walked in from outside.

Under his cloak was a bulging, heavy-looking cloth bag.

As soon as he entered, Kakuzu habitually scanned the room.

When he saw Nagato, his expression turned serious.

Nagato's aura was completely different from before.

Kakuzu stared at him for a long time, his gaze gradually becoming serious.

"leader?"

Nagato nodded calmly and said, "It's me."

"What happened to the changes in you?" Kakuzu's gaze shifted from Nagato's regained color to his legs, quite surprised.

"It's all thanks to Orochimaru."

Nagato did not hide anything.

"He developed a medicine that can repair bodily damage. Although it cannot stop the subsequent damage to the Rinnegan, it has at least repaired most of the injuries accumulated in the past."

"That traitor?"

Kakuzu's face darkened, his whole body radiating disdain and killing intent.

Konan nodded and said, "No matter what, Orochimaru's expertise in medicine and human modification is indeed very high. After Nagato took his medicine, his recovery speed far exceeded our expectations."

Upon hearing this, Kakuzu fell silent.

During this time, he was also secretly searching for a way to restore his physical body.

His current body, pieced together from the black lines of earthly resentment, is completely incapable of properly cultivating the Eight Gates Formation.

It would be such a waste to just leave the martial arts skills I finally acquired sitting there unused.

Since Orochimaru was able to heal Nagato's injuries accumulated over many years, he might have a way to restore Nagato's physical body to the point where he could train the Eight Gates.

Whether it works out or not, it's at least worth asking.

Thinking of this, Kakuzu asked directly, "Where is Orochimaru hiding now?"

After he finished speaking, the office was silent for a moment.

Nagato and Konan turned their heads in perfect unison to look at Obito, who was watching the commotion from the side.

Seeing this, Kakuzu also looked over.

Obito's lips twitched as he was stared at by three pairs of eyes at the same time.

A moment later, as if he had suddenly remembered something, he raised his hand and slapped his forehead hard.

"oops!"

"I suddenly remembered, Deidara-senpai just said he had something urgent to discuss with me!"

"Sorry, sorry! I have something to do, so I'll have to go now!"

Before he could finish speaking, Obito had already rushed out of the office and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Kakuzu stared at the doorway for two seconds, looking slightly suspicious.

Konan turned around and said calmly, "If you want to find Orochimaru, go ask him."

"He was the one who negotiated the organization's several deals with Orochimaru. He knew best where Orochimaru might be hiding."

Kakuzu nodded thoughtfully and made a note of it.

Then, as if he had finally remembered the reason he came here, he reached out and pulled out the heavy, coarse cloth bag from under his cloak, and casually tossed it in front of Xiao Nan.

The bag slammed onto the table with a dull thud, and just by listening to the sound, you could tell it was quite heavy.

"These are the results for this month."

After Kakuzu finished speaking, he withdrew his hand, and his expression returned to its usual calm.

outside the office.

Obito walked a distance down the corridor, shook his head, and sighed.

"Honestly, none of them are easy to deal with."

He hadn't gone far from the orphanage when he suddenly sensed a familiar presence ahead and stopped in his tracks.

A ripple spread across the ground.

Immediately afterwards, a half-black, half-white humanoid figure rose up from the ground.

"Absolutely brilliant."

Seeing this persistent nuisance only worsened Obito's mood. He rolled his eyes and asked impatiently, "What are you doing here again? Aren't you annoying?"

Black Zetsu chuckled sinisterly a few times, and then immediately launched into a fight against Uchiha Madara.

"Lord Ban asked me to check on your mission progress."

"No matter what, you should at least seal a few of the tailed beasts into the Gedo Mazo. If you keep dragging this out, it won't be easy to explain to Lord Madara."

After hearing this, Obito casually shrugged.

"Can I just ban it whenever I want?"

"The Rinnegan is on Nagato's face, and he's the only one who can summon and control the Gedo Mazo. If you're in such a hurry, you should go in and urge him, not come to me."

Jue's half-black face became even blacker.

"Stop making trouble here. Weren't you always the one responsible for contacting Nagato?"

"The past is the past, the present is the present." Obito tilted his head, even more straightforward than the other person.

"I can't do anything about it. I don't know what's wrong with Nagato lately. He's become really strange and won't listen to anything I say."

"If you don't believe me, go in and try it yourself."

As he spoke, he pointed towards the orphanage office.

Seeing that he was unyielding to both soft and hard tactics, Black Zetsu was at a loss for what to do with him.

"you----"

Both of them were focused on each other, and neither noticed that a jet-black raven had somehow landed on the roof above them.

Rainwater slid down its black feathers, yet it remained motionless, even concealing its chakra aura completely.

Only those scarlet raven eyes silently watched everything below in the rain.