Escaping the Mist Ninja starts with backstabbing your teacher.

Chapter 151 Jugo Cells, Sage Chakra!

After hearing Izumigawa's words, Momona glanced at Kimimaro standing in the distance and nodded. "Is there anything we need to prepare in advance?"

"The culture tanks and testing instruments will be ready by tomorrow morning," Izumi said. "Let them rest today and get familiar with the environment."

Momona responded and turned to walk towards the group of children who were still looking around.

Neji was explaining the layout of the base to Haku, his tone calm and his explanations clear, displaying a rather mature demeanor.

Haku listened attentively, occasionally asking questions like "What is that place over there?" or "What is this house used for?" Neji answered them patiently one by one.

Xiaoxue squatted beside a snowdrift by the roadside, poking at the ice crystals that had formed on the snow with a small stick, making soft, sweet laughs.

Kimimaro stood not far away, his hands hanging at his sides, his gaze fixed on the port under construction in the distance.

Bai walked over, stood beside him, glanced at him in the direction of his gaze, and then whispered something.

Kimimaro turned his head slightly, glanced at him, and his lips seemed to move, but he said nothing.

As Izumi looked at the group of figures, large and small, a strange feeling suddenly welled up in his heart.

There are more and more people.

When he and Yekura first arrived in the Land of Snow, it was still a desolate ice plain.

Now, the base has been built, people have gathered, and things are being done one by one.

Momona, Neji, Koyuki, Haku, Kimimaro—the fates of these children intertwine on this land.

It formed a strange, yet subtly warm, group.

He didn't know where this group would go, but he knew the direction.

At least for now, they are all here, still alive, and still have a chance to see tomorrow's sun.

"What are you thinking about?" Yekura's voice came from beside him, interrupting Izumikawa's thoughts.

"It's nothing." Izumi looked away and put his hands back in his pockets. "Have the kitchen prepare more food; the children haven't eaten yet."

Ye Cang glanced at him, a slight smile playing on his lips, and turned to walk into the base.

After a meal, Izumikawa, along with Momona and Kimimaro, got down to business and headed towards the underground laboratory.

Only the footsteps of the three people echoed between the cold concrete walls in the stairwell.

The warm yellow light shone down from above, casting long and short shadows of Momona and Kimimaro.

This wasn't Momona's first time here. Her steps were light and natural, and she even had the leisure to run her fingers along the smooth seal patterns on the wall.

Kimimaro was setting foot here for the first time. His footsteps were very light, almost silent, but his light-colored eyes were constantly scanning his surroundings.

The structure of the passageway, the spacing of the lights, and the occasional reinforcement techniques visible on the walls—he silently absorbed every piece of information and stored it in his ever-working mind.

Izumi walked in front without saying a word. He knew Kimimaro was observing him and that Momona was waiting for him to speak.

But he wasn't in a hurry to say it; some things needed to be seen by them before they could understand.

The iron gates closed one after another behind them, each gate covered with densely packed sealing incantations.

The blue light flickered faintly through the gaps in the door frame, like the breathing of some sleeping creature.

After passing through three layers of blockade, the temperature gradually dropped, and the smell of disinfectant in the air became stronger, intertwined with some indescribable odor, similar to a mixture of herbs and blood.

One by one, the lights in the underground laboratory turned on, their stark white light illuminating the entire space as if it were daytime.

Kimimaro's pupils contracted slightly, not because of the glare, but because of those things.

Culture tanks are arranged along the wall, with tissue samples of various shapes soaking in a light green nutrient solution.

Some are small bone fragments, their surfaces covered with fine cracks.

Some of them were dark red muscle tissue, slowly floating in the liquid, as if something alive was still breathing.

There were also several jars containing complete organs: a heart, a liver, and even a complete human hand with slightly curled fingers and nails that had a bluish-gray sheen.

Momona was already used to all of this. She walked straight to the lab bench, gathered together several rolls that needed to be organized, and her movements were practiced and natural.

Kimimaro stood at the entrance, his gaze sweeping over the culture tanks one by one, his face expressionless.

"Are you scared?" Izumi's voice came from ahead, calm and casual.

Kimimaro did not answer immediately. His gaze lingered on the palm for a moment, then shifted to Izumi's back.

"I'm not afraid."

His voice was soft, yet carried an undeniable certainty.

It wasn't bravado; he was genuinely unafraid. He had seen things far more terrifying than this.

The Bamboo Clan's educational methods have never been gentle.

Izumi didn't turn around, but simply hummed in agreement and continued walking toward the lab bench.

"Come here." He sat down in the chair in front of the lab table and patted the stool next to him. "I'll give you a quick check-up first. We'll talk about the details tomorrow when the equipment is ready."

Kimimaro walked over, sat down on the stool, his back straight, his hands on his knees, his posture as dignified as a carefully arranged porcelain doll.

Izumi glanced at him and sighed inwardly. This posture wasn't innate; it was deliberately trained.

"Hand out."

Kimimaro extended his right hand in front of Izumikawa, palm facing up, fingers slightly spread.

The skin on the back of his hand was very thin, and you could vaguely see the bluish veins underneath, which were densely packed like a spider web.

With long, slender fingers and clearly visible bone structure, these were hands used to kill. No one had ever told him that these hands could also be used for other purposes.

Izumi placed her fingers on his pulse, and chakra slowly entered his body, spreading along his meridians.

Kimimaro's body stiffened slightly, then relaxed, allowing the unfamiliar chakra to flow through his body.

"Momona, record this." Izumi's voice echoed in the laboratory. "Abnormal bone density, exceeding the normal value by 1.5 times."

"There are unidentified deposits in the bone marrow cavity, suspected to be calcified tissue."

"There are three blockages in the chakra pathways, located in the middle of the spine, the left scapula, and the right knee."

Momona's pen moved swiftly, accurately recording every piece of information Izumikawa uttered.

"And—" Izumi's brows furrowed slightly, his chakra penetrating even deeper, "There is abnormal proliferation in the bone marrow, which is eroding the normal hematopoietic tissue. This is the root of bloodline disease."

He withdrew his hand, opened his eyes, and his gaze fell on Kimimaro's face.

Kimimaro was also looking at him, his light-colored eyes showing no fear, no pleading, only a calm, almost numb acceptance.

"Can it be cured?" Kimimaro asked.

Izumikawa was silent for a moment. "Yes, but it can't be cured completely, so we need to find the source of the disease."

"Otherwise, even if it's cured, it will still relapse as you use your abilities."

Kimimaro nodded and didn't ask any more questions. He lowered his head and looked at his wrist, which Izumi had pinched, where the warmth of the other's palm still lingered.

Momona put down her pen, looked up at Kimimaro, then at Izumikawa, her lips moved, but she ultimately said nothing.

Izumi leaned back in his chair, already planning his next steps.

Interstitial cells may be the key to solving the problem, but they could also be the final straw that breaks this fragile body.

The power of the Byakugan might be the real reason for the suppression, just like the Sharingan suppresses Wood Release.

However, there are some differences between the two sides, and he is not sure if the white eye can solve this problem.

Don't rush, don't make mistakes.

"Kimimaro, go back and rest. Momona, take him to find Yokura and arrange accommodations."

Momona responded and got up to walk towards the door. Kimimaro stood up from the stool, bowed slightly to Izumikawa, and then followed Momona toward the heavy iron door.

The sound of the iron gate closing echoed in the laboratory for a long time.

Izumikawa sat alone at the lab bench, picked up a sealing scroll from the table, and slowly unrolled it.

That was the cursed seal data that Orochimaru gave him, which was densely filled with records of the natural energy conversion pathways in Jugo's cells, as well as the various reactions of the cursed seal on the test subjects.

His fingertips traced slowly across the fine characters, his gaze focused and calm.

"Sage Chakra—Hashirama Cells—Shikotsumyaku—" he muttered to himself, stringing these words together and repeatedly processing them in his mind, "If only I could find the balance between them—"

He didn't continue speaking, but simply rolled up the scroll again and placed it back into the sealed container.

It's too early to say anything now. Experiments need to be done step by step; we can't rush it.

He stood there, his gaze passing through the glass wall and landing on the tissue sample that was slowly floating in the nutrient solution.

Jugo's cells, or rather, the part separated from Jugo's body that contains the secrets of the rampage of natural energy.

It floats quietly in the pale green liquid, occasionally tumbling gently with the pulse of the circulatory system, as if it is asleep, or as if it is waiting to be awakened.

Sensing Sage Chakra is the first step in mastering Sage Techniques.

Without this step, everything that follows is just a castle in the air.

There are not many known ways to sense natural energy in the ninja world.

Mount Myoboku has toad oil; applying it to the body allows one to sense the presence of natural energy, a crystallization of wisdom accumulated over countless generations.

Dragon Cave contains the shed skin of snakes, and the White Snake Immortal uses some secret method to guide cultivators into immortal mode.

What about the Wet Bone Forest? He had never actually set foot there and didn't know what was there.

He only has Jugo.

To be precise, it was that faint, almost imperceptible fluctuation of Sage Chakra contained within Jugo's cells.

It is a product of the fusion of natural energy and life energy, although the quantity is small and the quality is not pure enough.

But the direction is right. As long as the direction is right, he will find a way to continue along this path.

With just a little nurturing, Jugo was born with the ability to absorb natural energy, and these cells are also capable of doing so.

Therefore, he will still have to go to the Onigumo clan to obtain their method of storing Sage Chakra.