Revolution in the Ninja World

"Magnet Release?"

After a test-oriented battle, Habara was shoved back into his cell. Afterward, he received a bit of an explanation regarding his own abilities.

Based on Habara's understanding of the "original story," Magnet Release was a kekkei genkai primarily used by the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Kazekage. It manifested as large-scale control over specific types of metal – essentially, a "miniature, teenage Magneto."

But was he really a Magnet Release user? Although he had, seemingly by divine intervention, controlled that kunai at the last moment of the fight, calling that Magnet Release felt… off. There was a strange dissonance, a subtle difference between that manifestation and his impression of Magnet Release.

So, was this just a subjective awkwardness, or was there an objective difference? Habara didn't know, so he decided to test it.

"It should be this… and there it is."

Habara opened the ninja tool pouch on his back and rummaged through it, finding a stack of chakra paper. He pulled one out and held it between two fingers.

"…This is how it's done, right?"

As a surge of chakra flowed from his fingertips, the thin sheet of paper first wrinkled, then was sliced apart, and finally crumbled into dust… This reaction indicated that he possessed three chakra natures.

Although Habara couldn't quite remember which chakra nature produced which reaction, the core chakra natures were limited to Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, and Lightning. Therefore, using common sense and simple deduction, it wasn't difficult to match the physical changes to their respective natures – wrinkling was Lightning, slicing was Wind, and crumbling was Earth. Thus, Habara's three chakra natures were Lightning, Wind, and Earth.

As an average reader, his knowledge of the source material wasn't incredibly detailed. He didn't know exactly which two chakra natures comprised Magnet Release. However, as a kekkei genkai, it could only combine two chakra nature transformations. But what about a combination of three natures?

He didn't know, but theoretically, that wouldn't be Magnet Release. A combination of three chakra natures was called a kekkei touta, and as far as the entire ninja world was concerned, there was only one known kekkei touta: Dust Release.

Could it be…?

Was the true nature of the "Inji no Jutsu" (Attraction Technique) actually a kekkei touta?

Well, compared to the monsters that would appear later, any kind of "Release" was child's play. After pondering for a while without figuring out what was going on with himself, Habara decided to give up.

Whether it was a kekkei genkai or a kekkei touta, neither could help him escape right now, and their future growth curves and strengths were… well, they were what they were. So… no point in overthinking it. He'd just go with the flow for now.

Taking a step back, even if he had the corresponding ability and potential, reality wouldn't give Habara the time or opportunity to develop them. He didn't know what Orochimaru was trying to do, but without a doubt, all of Orochimaru's experiments were extremely dangerous. Habara was completely in the dark about what would happen to him next, let alone how to escape his current situation.

It was a deadlock.

The first "BOSS" he faced after his rebirth was a bit too powerful.

...

One day after the battle, the female ninja, Hotaru, once again came to Habara's cell.

"The experiment is about to begin. Please follow me."

"Experiment?"

As before, it wasn't that Habara didn't want to resist, but what resistance could a fish on a chopping block offer? He could only lie there and wait. After the female ninja opened the cell door, he silently followed behind her once more.

After walking in silence for a while, Habara spoke, "The person I fought yesterday…"

"You should have killed him," the female ninja said in an exceptionally calm voice.

Habara was taken aback for a moment, then continued, "What do you mean… Why do you say that?"

The female ninja glanced back at him, then returned her gaze to the path ahead. "Orochimaru-sama is someone who values his experimental materials. For him, high-value experimental materials have one use, low-value experimental materials have another… and corpses have yet another."

"…I understand."

Her answer rendered Habara completely silent.

His previous life's way of thinking wasn't suitable for this world. The kindness of his past life wasn't necessarily the kindness of this life. "Killing you is for your own good" – this bizarre logic actually made sense in the ninja world.

They continued to ascend through the tunnels, eventually reaching a shallower level of the earth. After passing through several tightly sealed doors, they appeared before Orochimaru.

Compared to the dungeons below, this place looked more like a laboratory… No, it wasn't like a laboratory, it was clearly a laboratory.

A terrifying, biohazard laboratory.

Habara could see corpses hanging on one wall, but he didn't have time to feel shocked or sympathetic, because… he might soon become one of them, a piece of jerky waiting to be dried.

Orochimaru seemed to be in a good mood when he saw Habara. He waved his hand, dismissing the female ninja, and then turned to Habara, saying, "Following the procedure, let's draw lots first."

With that, Orochimaru handed a lottery tube to Habara.

Habara raised his hand and randomly picked out a paper slip. As he unfolded it, he tentatively asked, "Orochimaru…-sama, this 'experiment'… what do I need to do?"

Orochimaru took back the lottery tube, maintaining a seemingly "approachable" demeanor as he replied, "You don't have to do anything. You'll mainly be playing a supporting role.

Don't worry, as long as the theory is correct and the method is feasible, it's just a matter of dosage. So, if we keep repeating it, we'll succeed eventually, whether it's after a thousand tries or ten thousand… That's how scientific experiments work."

"Exhaustive enumeration…" Habara muttered the term silently.

And coming from Orochimaru, the term was utterly chilling.

"The number?" Orochimaru asked.

Habara had already unfolded the slip, so he showed the number to him: "97."

"97. In a sense, you're lucky. But to a greater extent… you're really unlucky."

What did that mean? Had Habara drawn something exceptionally rare, something that wasn't necessarily a good thing? Indeed, that was the case. The different numbers represented different dosages, and 97 was clearly a large dose, basically a "lethal dose."

Orochimaru picked up a large syringe – the kind Habara had only seen used by veterinarians treating certain docile, even-toed ungulate mammals during his time experiencing rural life. The syringe was filled with a pale purple liquid… The whole thing looked incredibly unsettling.

Habara instinctively wanted to escape, but under Orochimaru's gaze, he found himself completely unable to move. He could only watch helplessly as Orochimaru injected that syringe full of dangerous liquid into him.

Even after Orochimaru finished the injection, Habara remained frozen, arm raised. He stared at the puncture mark, his entire being consumed by intense anxiety.

Habara even held his breath, becoming extremely cautious. After a short while, surprisingly, everything seemed normal. Huh, there didn't seem to be any particular reaction…

Just as he started to entertain this optimistic thought, an indescribable, excruciating pain erupted from every cell in his body.

Tearing, swelling, stinging, pounding…

Under the assault of intense and complex pain, Habara collapsed to the ground. The overwhelming agony made him want to scream, but the muscles in his face were contracted so tightly they felt like stone, and his jaw was clenched so hard that he couldn't force out any sound beyond a series of muffled, continuous groans.

A person can try to endure external pain, but this pain, rooted in the deepest parts of his body, was utterly impossible to resist. Within just two minutes, Habara completely lost consciousness.

Just like he had experienced once before, the dark, long night seemed to descend again…

Well, not really. When Habara woke up again, the excruciating pain was gone, replaced by a deep soreness and fatigue.

Habara tried to lift his head, finding even that simple movement difficult.

"Clang!"

As he shifted his body slightly, a series of crisp, metallic clangs echoed. Habara felt a bit strange. He looked around and realized he was lying inside a human-shaped "iron shell."

"Unbelievable, you actually survived… Congratulations, the experiment seems to be a success."

A voice came from not far away.

Habara struggled to move. He shifted backward little by little, until he was leaning against the wall behind him. With his body supported, he slowly sat up. Then he noticed a large, square iron cage opposite him. Inside the cage was a chair, and sitting on the chair was a person.

The person who had spoken was this individual.

Judging by their build, it was likely a child. They were "wearing" something that looked like a straitjacket used in mental institutions, their entire body tightly bound to the chair. Even their eyes were covered by a blindfold with some unknown sealing formula drawn on it. And around the chair, on the floor, were circles upon circles of a larger array.

This wasn't Orochimaru's lab where Habara had been before. It was another, larger cell.

"How long has it been…?"

As he spoke, Habara found his voice to be exceptionally hoarse and strained.

"You were struggling in there for about seven days," the other person said.

Seemingly because they hadn't spoken to anyone in a long time, the child's voice had a slightly cheerful tone.

"Can you… see with your eyes?"

"Of course, I can see."

"So… what exactly happened to me?"

"What happened? Let me think… Just like the previous test subjects, your body kept twisting and expanding until you became a five or six-meter-tall monster. Then, boom, you exploded. Well, that's the normal process, but clearly, you survived."

The child said with great interest, "Magnet Release ninja, your ability saved your life. When you could no longer suppress the violent changes in your body, you instinctively activated your ability – you completely bound yourself with layers upon layers of iron. The situation at that time was really interesting."

Thanks to the other person's reminder, Habara realized that there should have been a large iron cage in the place where he was originally located, just like the one the child was in. He too had been locked in a similar cage.

But most of that cage was now gone.

Looking at the human-shaped iron shell left on the ground, he could imagine what had happened… He hadn't lain down in the iron shell. Rather, when he lost consciousness, he had controlled the iron cage to transform into the shell, encasing him.

Like coating a fish with batter before frying… It was a crude analogy, but regardless, he was alive. That was the best news.

"One last question, kid… Who are you?"

"Me? I don't have a name. As for my identity… Just like you, I'm just one of Orochimaru's test subjects."