https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-161-What-a-Performance-She-Deserves-an-Oscar-/12832233/
Chapter 160: Another Chance to Raid the Root Treasure!
Chapter 160: Another Chance to Raid the Root Treasure!
"New Year's Celebration!"
"Assigning me to the security detail?"
"Old... Hokage-sama, are you sure about this?"
Tang Ping almost called Hiruzen Sarutobi "old man" when he saw the ANBU messenger. But since they were in the village, he decided to give the messenger some respect and called him "Hokage-sama."
Things like calling the Hokage "the strongest Hokage ever" were fine to say in private, but in front of the ANBU, he had to be more cautious.
Tang Ping knew that his recent seclusion in the lab had made the F4 uneasy. After all, he had been out of their sight for a while. Giving him a break didn't mean he should disappear completely, so they assigned him this task.
As for whether it was a bad idea to hold a New Year's celebration during a major war on the front lines? Of course not!
The Shinobi World War had been going on for almost three years, and the village's morale was low. A grand celebration was needed to lift spirits. The more festive it was, the better it would show that Konoha was not being dragged down by the war.
This celebration was not just a necessity but also a way to boost morale. At the very least, it would show Konoha's "investors" that the village was confident and that their investments were safe.
"Yes, this is the village's order!"
The ANBU's tone was flat, as if he hadn't noticed Tang Ping's dissatisfaction.
Tang Ping was the "Purifying Flame," so he had some leeway. A few words of complaint wouldn't be taken the wrong way.
Ninjas were a paradoxical group. On one hand, they followed strict rules, and any violation was severely punished. On the other hand, strong and talented individuals were often given leniency, and rules were often ignored for them.
"Alright!"
What could Tang Ping say? The boss was the boss.
The opportunity for revenge against Danzo came when he discovered something in the security detail's files.
He recognized a familiar face in the documents.
A man wearing a green hood and round glasses, looking kind and gentle.
The key was the name.
Xuan Neng!
It sounded unfamiliar, but if he used his other name, it was unforgettable.
Xuan Weng!
A man who could "carry rice" for Konoha at any time.
Explosive tags!
This man had been planting explosive tags in Konoha since the Second Shinobi World War. The entire village was sitting on a time bomb, and if he wanted to, he could send them all to the sky.
In the original timeline, he was persuaded by Naruto's words and decided to abandon his plans. But with Tang Ping's butterfly effect, things might change.
Even if he didn't consider Konoha his home, he still wanted to eliminate this threat. He didn't want to be blown up one day.
This was a good opportunity.
He could teach Danzo a lesson and take the chance to raid Root's headquarters.
Root's base was right in Konoha! Last time, he raided an outside lab and obtained the precious Hashirama cells, which gave him many benefits.
Root's headquarters contained a wealth of jutsu, secret potions, techniques, and money.
With Konoha's defenses, there was no chance of an attack before. But now, with Xuan Weng as a "helpful" insider, he had a chance.
He could use Xuan Weng's cover to raid Root and get the funds needed for his experiments.
Tang Ping's foreign object implantation experiments were now complete, but they hadn't started yet, not because of technical issues, but because of the high costs.
Each experiment required at least several billion ryo. Who could afford that?
Even the bounty for an elite jonin was only a few billion ryo!
And that was the minimum cost. If he wanted to do a precise implantation, it would cost several billion ryo just in materials.
Note that his previous experiments were just trials and didn't cost as much. The real implantation would be much more expensive.
During this time, he had refined all the data and details. With the help of the "treasure boy," he was confident enough to start the formal experiments.
At this stage, he couldn't use death row inmates anymore.
Spending several billion ryo on a death row inmate would be insane.
So, the next experiment had to be done on "one of their own."
Shan Jian Hao-er!
This loyal follower of his could certainly enjoy this benefit.
Just like the Long Stairway to Divinity! If there's a benefit, it should naturally be given to him first. If he refuses, there are always others who would be willing to take it.
However, even without asking, Tang Ping knew the answer.
The ‘Second Heart’ surgery back then was an incredibly risky procedure, and yet, the other party had decisively accepted it. This time, the risk of the alien plant was far less significant.
The only issue now was the lack of funds.
If he was going to cause some trouble, Tang Ping naturally needed to make preparations.
He summoned the 404 Squad.
With the New Year Festival approaching, Konoha was already bustling with activity.
Caravans of merchants arrived one after another.
Konoha, despite being called a village, had a population of hundreds of thousands, making it more like a city.
The key was its strong purchasing power.
The residents were either shinobi or closely related to them.
While the rewards for genin missions might not seem high, they were still much better than those of ordinary people. In fact, being a shinobi was a ‘high, rich, and handsome’ profession.
Yes, aside from the dangers, there weren't many other issues.
In the shinobi world, the survival rate of shinobi was already quite high. Ordinary people faced various dangers, especially from noble exploitation and bandits, making their survival rate even lower.
Perhaps this was why so many people aspired to become shinobi.
In the village's commercial district!
On the rooftop of a two-story building.
The 404 Squad seemed to be gathered for a small meeting.
Not far away, a construction site buzzed with activity as numerous workers toiled.
"Is this him?"
Hyuga Aozuki didn't fix her gaze on the target but locked onto Xuanyi through Tang Ping's description.
No, he should now be called Xuanneng.
"Yep!"
Tang Ping played with a white armguard in his hand, not even lifting his head to respond.
The item in his hand was a special gift prepared for Shan Jian Hao-er.
Do you remember where the idea for the Long Stairway to Divinity came from?
It was the Space Marine transformation surgery!
And apart from the transformation surgery, what else is most memorable about Space Marines?
That's right, their Power Armor!
But in a world dominated by shinobi, would Power Armor be out of place?
This isn't the era of ‘Biboran’ where scientific ninja tools are rampant.
But Tang Ping had White Zetsu!
When technology falls short, aliens can fill the gap.
White Zetsu could envelop a shinobi, controlling them to unleash terrifying power. This was best exemplified by the future Aoba Yamashiro, who used White Zetsu to control Mifune.
More recently, there was ‘White Wolf,’ whose body was half-covered by White Zetsu, clearly making it the ultimate ‘Plant Armor.’
So, Tang Ping extracted cells from White Zetsu, cultivated them, and then used the ‘Foreign Implantation’ surgery to fuse them with a shinobi.
The process went surprisingly smoothly.
In other words, the implant prepared for Shan Jian Hao-er was Power Armor cultivated from White Zetsu.
However, due to limited resources, only this armguard was created.
"Try to crush it with force?"
Tang Ping tossed the smooth, plant-like armguard, which looked like fine porcelain, to Shan Jian Hao-er.
"This is...?"
Upon receiving it, Shan Jian Hao-er immediately sensed its extraordinary nature and began to apply force to it.
The originally light and sturdy armguard remained uncrushed under his immense strength.
"Huh!"
Hyuga Aozuki also became interested, shifting her attention from ‘Xuanneng (Xuanyi).’
Having known Shan Jian Hao-er for so long, she was well aware of the terrifying strength he possessed after the first phase of the Five Paths of the Long Stairway to Divinity surgery.
Even an iron armguard would have been flattened by his grip.
But this seemingly light white armguard only slightly deformed, which couldn't help but amaze her.
If this material were used to create ninja armor... the thought was exhilarating.
Shinobi didn't like armor because it hindered speed and movement, and it wasn't friendly to chakra use. This didn't mean they disdained armor; they understood the importance of defense, which was why items like the jounin vest existed.
Tang Ping's next words made it clear to Hyuga Aozuki and Shan Jian Hao-er that defense was just the most basic effect of this ‘Power Armor.’
(End of Chapter)
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