Just like that, Orochimaru made time whenever he could to spar in taijutsu with Tsunade, followed by academic research in the afternoons or evenings.
Fueled by a steady, continuous stream of energy, Orochimaru progressed from initially lasting only three punches and two kicks against Tsunade to eventually absorbing dozens of rounds of her force. Every day, his cells grew denser, his physical conditioning strengthened, and his frame filled out considerably. The result was an increased capacity for energy storage; if the cells throughout his entire body were fully charged, his weight would multiply several times over.
Yet all of this remained completely controllable, much like how the Black King could flick the young Magneto away with a single finger. It bore a strong resemblance to Tsunade’s Monstrous Strength, though limited to physical combat; Orochimaru could also convert absorbed kinetic energy and release it as searing, high-temperature flames.
Meanwhile, his academic research grew increasingly profound, shifting from theoretical knowledge to clinical practice. Orochimaru converted Tsunade’s basement into a small biological laboratory, using rabbits and mice he caught as test subjects. Anatomy inevitably played a regular part in this work, though Tsunade naturally kept her distance from such bloody experiments.
She did not feel obligated to cater to Orochimaru anyway; Kato Dan’s niece, Shizune, was still quite young, and Tsunade frequently dropped by on any pretext or none to look after the little girl.
Time slipped by in a blur, bringing them to the thirty-seventh year of Konoha.
That day, Orochimaru tossed a listless white mouse to Shiro, who gulped it down in two or three bites.
"You just eat without growing an inch!"
Watching Shiro's unsatisfied expression, Orochimaru stroked the hard crest of bone on top of its head. Ever since coming to this world, Orochimaru had never let the little creature go hungry, though its appetite was modest enough that a single meal sustained it for three to five days. He fed it even more often after starting his clinical trials, and the little fellow wasn't picky, capable of digesting anything as long as it wasn't overly massive.
"Time for some fresh air!"
After spending the afternoon on cell research, Orochimaru felt somewhat mentally fatigued. Packing up his experimental equipment, he decided to step outside and clear his head.
Tsunade was not at home at the moment, a situation Orochimaru had long grown used to. She had most likely run off to spend time with Shizune, which was fine as long as she made time for their morning training session.
The moment he opened the courtyard gate, someone came walking straight toward him. Seeing who it was, a flash of surprise appeared in Orochimaru's eyes.
The newcomer also had long hair, though it was white, with two red marks beneath his eyelids, giving him a bright and dashing appearance.
"Jiraiya, what brings you back?"
The newcomer was none other than Jiraiya, who had been gone for three years. Counting the time, he should have finished teaching Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan in the Land of Rain.
"Huh? Orochimaru, what are you doing at Tsunade’s place? Where is she?"
The two began questioning each other the instant they met. The original Orochimaru and Jiraiya had never really gotten along, naturally failing to see eye to eye. The present Orochimaru held no such lingering animosity, however, and didn't mind that Jiraiya fired off questions without the slightest intention of answering his first.
"Tsunade is out. Let's talk as we walk."
With that, Orochimaru shut his door behind him, having no intention of inviting Jiraiya inside. Wouldn't it be awkward for two grown men to sit face-to-face chatting? That would cross straight into truly awkward conversation.
Hearing that Tsunade wasn't in, and then being told by Orochimaru to walk and talk, Jiraiya made no objection, deciding to hear what Orochimaru had to say first. After all, he had just returned to the village and only had a basic, superficial idea of Tsunade's situation before rushing over.
"What took you so long to get back?"
Orochimaru took the initiative to ask, knowing the answer or not, it was all part of the routine.
"I took on three disciples, and teaching them ninjutsu took up quite a bit of time."
There was nothing to hide, and Jiraiya answered the question readily enough.
"Couldn't be those three brats from before, could it?"
Their past selves had indeed crossed paths with Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan. Back then, the Sannin were on a mission deep within the Land of Rain when the three children had run up to beg them for food. Faced with such homeless waifs, Orochimaru had advocated killing them all, reasoning that a short pain was better than a long one.
His plan had been blocked by Jiraiya, who believed that war was what had destroyed their families and left them homeless. Initially, Jiraiya had taught them some basic self-defense out of a sense of guilt, but upon discovering Nagato's Rinnegan, he had mistakenly concluded that the boy was the Child of Prophecy he was searching for. Thus forged the master-disciple bond between the four of them, and he had spent three years instructing the trio.
If he knew the massive impact his disciples would bring to the Shinobi World decades later, would he regret this decision? Perhaps he would have ended it with his own hands, just like in the original story!
"Yeah! It's them. It's a good thing I stopped you back then, or I would have missed out on three great talents."
Jiraiya said with a smile, clearly quite pleased with his apprentices and genuinely optimistic about their potential.
"Great talents? Just as long as you don't regret it later!"
They certainly were talents—future figures who would churn up the Shinobi World and even haul sacks of rice back to Konoha. If not for Naruto's Talk-No-Jutsu, the most powerful Land of Fire would have existed in name only.
If Orochimaru had ignored Jiraiya's obstruction back then and insisted on killing them, who knew if any of the subsequent events would have transpired? At worst, he would have had a fight with Jiraiya. Still, one imagined that Black Zetsu lurking in the shadows would never have allowed Nagato's Rinnegan to fall into someone else's hands. At least Orochimaru wouldn't have been lectured by a junior like Nagato later on.
Who could say what the future held? How could the inertia of destiny be altered so easily? Defying the heavens and changing one's fate was easier said than done.
"Tsunade... how is she?"
By this point, the two had walked to the spot where Orochimaru usually trained with Tsunade. Orochimaru stopped in his tracks and looked at the somewhat uneasy Jiraiya.
"I'll tell you as I hit you, and you are not allowed to fight back!"
Hearing Orochimaru's reply, Jiraiya froze for a moment before his gaze locked onto Orochimaru's sharp, piercing eyes. A wave of guilt welled up inside him. Giving him no time for self-reproach, Orochimaru delivered a heavy, powerful knee strike that sent him flying more than five meters away.
Caught completely off guard, Jiraiya was sent crashing through the air without mercy, the acid in his stomach churning up into his throat. Just as a surge of annoyance flared within him and he prepared to curse Orochimaru out for hitting so hard, Orochimaru's voice slowly reached his ears:
"She is the best in Konoha at Medical Ninjutsu, yet Kato Dan died right in her arms."
At those words, Jiraiya parted his lips, the reprimand he had intended to spit out suddenly stuck in his throat.
"Because of that, she developed hemophobia. It's practically impossible for her to ever wield a scalpel herself again!"
Ignoring Jiraiya's expression of unvoiced words, Orochimaru lashed out with a kick to his face, sending him flying once more to smash through several small trees nearby.
"You have no idea how many tears she shed, how she cried even in her dreams. Where were you at the time? What were you doing?"
Orochimaru pinned Jiraiya to the ground, raining blow after blow down upon him. Jiraiya tried raising his hands to block at first, but soon gave up, leaving himself completely at the mercy of Orochimaru's fists.