i am kimimaro

Kabuto left, and Orochimaru turned to Kimimaro, as if admiring a masterpiece.

"It seems your medical ninjutsu has reached quite a remarkable level."

"It's just barely usable. If I want to improve further, I'll need to learn from even more skilled medical ninjas."

"At your level now, there aren't many ninjas more skilled than you. Kabuto is a decent medical ninja; you can exchange ideas with him. If even he can't help you, then the only one left would be Tsunade."

When Orochimaru mentioned Tsunade's name, a hint of nostalgia flashed in his eyes.

Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya had once fought side by side for decades. The depth of their bond was beyond words.

However, their paths diverged, and in the end, they could only part ways.

But if Orochimaru were to turn back, both Tsunade and Jiraiya would still accept him with open arms.

Unfortunately, he had no intention of turning back for the time being.

"Tsunade-sensei, huh? I truly admire her medical ninjutsu skills. If I ever get the chance, I'd love to learn from her."

"Heh, there will be a chance."

Orochimaru then looked at Jūgo with growing impatience.

"Since your medical ninjutsu has improved so much, let's study the power of the Cursed Seal together."

"Yes, Lord Orochimaru."

Kimimaro had promised to help Jūgo control the power of the Cursed Seal, so even if Orochimaru hadn't mentioned it, he would have done it anyway.

After all, Kimimaro was quite curious about the power of the Cursed Seal himself.

If he could perfect it, the Cursed Seal would become one of his key advantages.

Of course, he wasn't interested in the kind of Cursed Seal that turned people into monsters.

What he wanted was a perfect Cursed Seal that could help him transform into a sage.

With Jūgo's cooperation, the research on the Cursed Seal began.

Studying the Cursed Seal wasn't easy, but thanks to Orochimaru's previous work, this research went relatively smoothly.

Well, it went smoothly for Orochimaru.

For Kimimaro, the study of the Cursed Seal's power was just beginning.

The essence of the Cursed Seal was the fusion of natural energy and chakra, forming Sage Chakra.

The power of Jūgo's Cursed Seal resembled the Sage Chakra from Ryūchi Cave rather than Mount Myōboku.

In Mount Myōboku's Sage Mode, if you absorbed too much natural energy, you would start to turn into a frog. In severe cases, you could become a stone frog.

In Ryūchi Cave's Sage Mode, absorbing too much natural energy would lead to madness and, eventually, death.

This was similar to Jūgo's berserk state.

However, due to his unique body, Jūgo wouldn't die from this, but he had to release the excess natural energy through berserk episodes.

This gave rise to the power of the Cursed Seal.

Orochimaru's research involved extracting Jūgo's cells and injecting them into the Cursed Seal he had previously developed.

By doing this, Jūgo's cells could improve the recipient's body, allowing them to adapt to the power of the Cursed Seal.

Of course, not everyone could adapt successfully.

And the price of failure was death.

This made the already high failure rate of the Cursed Seal even higher.

But if someone survived, they would gain the power of the Cursed Seal.

It was a power that could only be obtained by gambling with one's life.

That said, if you had exceptional talent, the success rate of the Cursed Seal was actually quite high.

Those who died from it were mostly ordinary people.

A month later, the joint research by Orochimaru, Kabuto, and Kimimaro finally came to an end.

The three had thoroughly analyzed Jūgo's cells.

"Heh, what a fascinating body," Orochimaru exclaimed excitedly after seeing the experimental results.

It was as if he could already see the completion of his perfect Cursed Seal through his research.

After the research concluded, Orochimaru retreated into another lab on his own. The day he emerged would be the day the Cursed Seal was perfected.

"Kimimaro, it was a pleasure working with you. Your medical ninjutsu truly surprised me. Your vast knowledge is something I can't even come close to. I heard from Otoha that you've memorized all 5,000 books? That's unbelievable."

Kabuto looked at Kimimaro in admiration.

He rarely admired anyone—Orochimaru and Tsunade were exceptions. Now, Kimimaro had joined that elite group.

During their month of collaboration, Kimimaro's immense medical knowledge had left Kabuto feeling inadequate.

"I just happen to have a talent for memorizing books. Your medical ninjutsu is also quite remarkable, Kabuto-senpai."

Though their exchange was polite, both were sincere.

"I hope we get the chance to work together again."

"We definitely will."

Since they both worked for Orochimaru, there would certainly be more opportunities for collaboration.

After a month of research, both of them were a bit tired, so after their polite exchange, they went their separate ways.

The final development of the Cursed Seal didn't require their involvement.

And Orochimaru wasn't going to reveal that part easily.

After leaving, Kimimaro didn't return to his room. Instead, he went to find Jūgo.

Now that the Cursed Seal research was over, it was time to tell Jūgo some things.

Jūgo's room was right next to Kimimaro's, so it was easy to find.

Without Kimimaro around, Jūgo rarely left his room, not even for Suigetsu. Eventually, Suigetsu gave up trying.

"You're back?" Jūgo's face lit up when he saw Kimimaro.

"Yes, the research is complete. I've come up with two methods that might help you suppress the power of the Cursed Seal."

"What are they?" Jūgo asked, eager to know.

"The first method is through training. By cultivating enough chakra, you can fuse natural energy with your chakra to form the Sage Chakra that Lord Orochimaru mentioned.

That way, not only can you stop yourself from going berserk, but you can also gain immense power.

The second method is for me to develop a technique similar to a sealing jutsu that controls natural energy. But this method is much harder. It will take time, and I'm not sure if it will succeed."

Developing a new technique wasn't easy.

Orochimaru had spent ten years researching the Cursed Seal, and only now was it close to being perfected.

If it took that long for someone as talented as Orochimaru, it was clear how difficult it was.

"So, for now, the only thing you can do is train and build up your chakra."

Jūgo nodded slightly.

He knew Kimimaro had done everything he could, but the rest couldn't be rushed.

Whether it was training or the development of a new technique, both would take time.

Jūgo hadn't expected a quick solution to his problem anyway.

However, there was one thing still worrying him.

"You can train by my side from now on. You don't have to worry about losing control during your training," Kimimaro said, sensing Jūgo's concern.

"Alright!" Jūgo smiled.

---

(End of Chapter)