189. Analysis

Danzō came to Orochimaru's base, found him, and told him that he wanted to recommend Orochimaru to become the Fourth Hokage.

Orochimaru said that it didn't matter whether he became Hokage or not; he didn't care. All that mattered to him now was his research.

If he hadn't figured out what he truly wanted, he might still have been interested in the Hokage position.

But now, it was just dispensable.

Hearing Orochimaru's answer, the corners of Danzō's mouth curled up, and his eyes filled with greed.

This state of Orochimaru was exactly what he preferred. After Orochimaru became Hokage, he would definitely not concern himself with administrative matters.

Then he, as the Hokage's assistant, would be in charge.

His power would reach its peak, and he could replace all the top leaders of Konoha with his own people.

At that time, if they found an opportunity to make Orochimaru step down, he could naturally become the next Hokage.

Danzō said to Orochimaru: "Then this matter is settled. You don't need to worry about anything; I will handle all the arrangements. You only need to show up on the day of your succession ceremony, then stay in the Hokage Building for a few days. After that, you can do whatever you want.

When the time comes, I will provide whatever experimental materials you need for your research. You can even reopen some forbidden experiments."

Danzō had now determined that the next Hokage would be Orochimaru and had begun to make plans for the future.

Orochimaru glanced lightly at Danzō and said, "Very well."

Danzō left Orochimaru's base.

Not long after, Sora arrived at the laboratory.

Orochimaru happened to be taking a break. He looked at Sora and asked, "What's this? You're free to visit me today?"

Sora smiled sheepishly. During this period, he had been spending every day with Uzumaki Kushina and had never come to the base to see Orochimaru.

Sora sat across from Orochimaru and asked, "Orochimaru-sensei, how is the experiment going? Do you have enough materials?"

Orochimaru replied, "The materials are sufficient, but as for the experiments, they've reached a bottleneck. There's been no progress, whether with the Reanimation Jutsu or the Immortality Technique."

When Orochimaru spoke of this, he was very calm, as if discussing something that had nothing to do with him.

Sora poured a cup of tea and took a sip, remembering that Orochimaru's Edo Tensei technique wouldn't be successful until several years after Uzumaki Naruto was born.

At that time, a child who could control the weather would be resurrected by Orochimaru using the Reanimation Jutsu and placed in Konohagakure as a test subject.

As for the Immortality Technique...

It would probably be before Orochimaru invaded Konoha that he successfully researched the "Living Corpse Reincarnation" Forbidden Technique.

Sora said, "There's still plenty of time. I believe that Orochimaru-sensei will definitely succeed in his research. If you need test subjects, just tell me, and I'll help you solve that problem."

Orochimaru nodded. "Well, I'll leave it to you then. I'm being watched by many people now. If I run out of test subjects, I really won't be able to replenish them quickly. Problems may easily occur."

Sora sighed. "After all, Orochimaru-sensei's reputation is now at its peak in Konoha. Most people think you're the candidate for the next Hokage. By the way, Orochimaru-sensei, what do you think about the successor to the Hokage position?"

Sora wanted to know what Orochimaru was thinking now.

Without his intervention, Orochimaru would have been very interested in becoming Hokage by now.

When selecting the next Hokage, Danzō would have intended to recommend Orochimaru for the position to strengthen his own power.

However, the Third Hokage believed that Orochimaru hid evil intentions and ambition behind his eyes and didn't intend to entrust the important responsibility of Hokage to him.

Therefore, Konoha's senior officials would have jointly recommended Jiraiya's apprentice, Namikaze Minato.

This would have deepened Orochimaru's hatred for the Third Hokage.

But now with Sora's intervention, Orochimaru was focused on his experiments and showed little interest in becoming Hokage.

But after following Orochimaru for so many years, Sora still couldn't fully understand what went on in Orochimaru's mind.

Orochimaru said, "Danzō came to see me before you arrived..."

Sora's eyebrows shot up; he hadn't expected Danzō to be so impatient in approaching Orochimaru.

But it made sense—Danzō was obsessed with the Hokage position.

Orochimaru continued, "However, I have no interest in the position of Hokage. Danzō just said that after I become Hokage, some experimental research would be easier, so I simply let him proceed."

It seemed that Orochimaru truly didn't care about the position of Hokage. Sora spoke frankly, "Orochimaru-sensei, I hope you don't mind me saying this, but the position of Hokage will not fall to you."

Orochimaru seemed interested in Sora's assessment. "How do you figure that?"

Sora analyzed the situation: "Because Orochimaru-sensei's file appears to belong to Root, and to put it bluntly, the Third Hokage probably doesn't fully trust you.

After all, you're mysterious, and the Third knows that you and Danzō are secretly collaborating, though he doesn't know the exact nature of your partnership.

The Third Hokage is abdicating at this time because although Konoha clearly won the war, we didn't collect much compensation from other ninja villages. He plans to use his resignation to give Konoha an explanation.

However, it's impossible for the Third to completely give up his influence. He needs the Fourth Hokage to be someone who belongs to his faction, has few ties to other groups, and shares his way of thinking.

Orochimaru-sensei, you're too enigmatic, and the Third Hokage must be at least somewhat aware of your experiments. After all, the Anbu, who report directly to the Hokage, aren't easily fooled.

So when Danzō recommends you to succeed as Hokage, the Third will likely reject the proposal."

Orochimaru tilted his head slightly and thought for a while, then nodded and said, "What you say makes sense.

My values are completely opposite to those of the Third Hokage, and in his eyes, I'm quite a radical person.

If I became Hokage, he would be uneasy.

He needs someone who, like him, will adopt a diplomatic approach both externally and internally.

Now that the war has just ended, it's very possible that, as you said, I'm not among the candidates for becoming Hokage in the Third's eyes.

So, who do you think the next Hokage will be? Jiraiya?"

Sora shook his head. "It's unlikely. Jiraiya is unpredictable and often acts carelessly. I don't think the Third would trust Konoha in Jiraiya's hands. So I believe the next Hokage candidate will be Namikaze Minato."

Orochimaru pinched his chin and said with surprise, "Oh? Namikaze Minato? That's a candidate I didn't expect.

Jiraiya's apprentice, and by extension, a student of the Third Hokage's teaching. Why do you think the Third would want to hand over the position of Hokage to Namikaze Minato? What's his angle?"

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