Blackjack612 Reviews of Naruto 584 Kabuto, the Doctor

[blackjack612]

Welcome all to my review of Naruto 584 review and boy is there a lot to unpack. This week's chapter focuses squarely on Kabuto's flashbacks, so if you're one of those readers who've not been enjoying the focus Kishimoto's placed on Kabuto, then you're mileage may vary. As for me, I absolutely loved it and thought it went a long way towards humanizing both Kabuto and Orochimaru, especially the former. But before we get to that, let's go over last review's poll results in which I asked you what Kabuto's glasses truly were. A slim majority of you voted that they were a cherished keepsake (though this chapter proves that he moved beyond that attachment) while in second place, many of you voted that they were just for show. Now for the chapter review...

Naruto 584 Kabuto, the Doctor
The images in this review are credited to Mangastream.


"We would have a fine time living in the night, left to blind destruction, waiting for our sight."

Kabuto, the Doctor begins with Kabuto, the spy, being confronted by Orochimaru. The most infamous sannin offers to tell Kabuto the information he most wants (knowing why Mother tried to kill him) if he agrees to follow Orochimaru back to his lab. There, where Kabuto is the first person to visit, Orochimaru explains the whole story. In a world of deception, information can be a dangerous weapon and Nonou, the mother, and Kabuto were too good at their job. From the beginning, Danzo planned to have both of them assassinated when they inevitably amassed enough information from spying to become liabilities. It's probable that this is also the reason he drew the Mother out of retirement. To that end, after Kabuto left the orphanage, Danzo revealed to the mother that Kabuto sacrificed himself so that the orphanage would continue getting payment. Outraged, the Mother demanded Kabuto be freed. Danzo acquiesced on the condition that the Mother assassinate a specific target: a double agent of Konoha.

The real target of course was Kabuto. Danzo gave the Mother regular updates of the boys progress with photos of him growing and at some point switched Kabuto's photos with photos of a double would would grow to look differently than Kabuto. To ensure the Mother never came across the real Kabuto when they were both out in the field, the two were kept in different infiltration units. Eventually, the order was given and the Mother attempted to assassinate the target she was given, and she never recognized Kabuto for who he was because the Kabuto she knew looked far different. The goal was for the two to mutually kill each other, but in the event one or the other survived, Orochimaru was sent to assassinate the survivor. It is a diabolical plan. A complete betrayal of one's comrades. An unquestionable abuse of power. But also really rather genius and probably the best use of deception depicted in the series thus far. In one fell swoop, Danzo eliminates a lingering liability and gains both an old and new source of intel. This is what I imagine a world of shinobi would be.

"I've been waiting for a guide to come and take me by the hand..."

To say that Kabuto doesn't take the news well would be an understatement. Not only has his whole reason for being been co-opted by Danzo, but his identity has been given to another. He is a marked man without an identity and without motivation. In his fury, Kabuto launches a brutal and surprisingly badass assault on Orochimaru using his medical ninjutsu skills. Seeing an skilled, but not top tier, shinobi so violently attack a renowned member of the sannin is quite a shock.

Of course, Orochimaru is fine. He vomits himself up a new body as per usual then uses some of his trademark persuasion on Kabuto, only here it seems genuine and seems to reflect the values Orochimaru actually believes in.

"It was me, waiting for me, hoping for something more.
Me, seeing me this time, hoping for something else."

He offers Kabuto a chance at a new meaning to replace the fabrication that was his old life. Like Kabuto, Orochimaru was a war orphan and his role in Root meant his life was filled with deception, lacking in any real meaning. So Orochimaru created his own meaning by amazing and cultivating all the knowledge he could. If any one word could describe his motivation or his goal, it would be perfection. His means are unquestionably sadistic and cruel, but the way he's living life is the way we all do: constantly striving towards being better versions of ourselves yet not knowing why. It almost seems as if Orochimaru recognized himself in Kabuto, and that is why he sought to collect him.

The young Orochimaru reveals his ambition. Disillusioned with Konoha after his time in Root, he wants to create a new organization in which the self is nurtured rather than destroyed. He offers Kabuto a chance to join with him in that ambition, to be a doctor who helps build this new world. In return, Orochimaru offers protection, guidance, a peer to confide in, a parent figure to find solace in, and meaning. It's a hell of a pitch and as we know from how this plays out, Kabuto accepts. To be honest, I can't say I wouldn't either placed in his shoes.

The remainder of the flashback story breezes through their partnership. From Orochimaru sending Kabuto to successfully infiltrate Akatsuki as Sasori's spy to their gathering of skilled ninja (Karin, Juugo, Suigetsu, Kimimaro) to the formation of the Hidden Sound Village to Sasuke's eventual betrayal. All the while, an experiment in the background seems to be distilling the essence of snakes (and Orochimaru's remains in the end). As the chapter ends, Kabuto's received a transfusion of the liquid, but he has yet to find the true meaning he was searching for. Just what did he find that gave him the meaning necessary to pull off a long-con on the entire ninja world and manipulate Tobi into becoming an ally?

Holy snake corpses!! Was this a beautifully drawn chapter or what? I have nothing but praise for the art therein. Everything about it worked. There was Orochimaru, whose design underscores how much younger he was in this point in time. There's that lovingly detailed lab filled with all sorts of odds and ends. It looks both effectively creepy (my favorite background detail was the human/snake hybrid growing in the large test tube), a bit regal (every lab deserves a throne), and practical. And to top it off, Kishimoto framed the entire chapter in black which makes everything within seems sinister. But the best artistic flourish is that steadily filling jar, which appears frequently in both the foreground and background and functions as a metaphor for Orochimaru and Kabuto filling themselves with meaning.

This was a wonderful chapter that went places I wasn't expecting it to. Was I expecting a pseudo-philosophical treaty? A sympathetic portrait of two of the series most unrepentantly sadistic characters? The only thing missing was plot progression since the shinobi world war arc is set aside to make room for all the goodness here. The art was, as I said, wonderful. The dialogue was particularly sharp. Both Orochimaru and Kabuto were deepened as characters with both of them showing empathetic sides to themselves. In a sense, they are victims of chance, byproducts of the nurture of the shinobi world overwhelming their natures. They started off with noble intentions in a bid to survive a world whose ugly underbelly they knew intimately.

That character work tied into some of Kishimoto's favorite themes, nature vs nurture, while presenting a more nuanced and darker take on what being a shinobi comprises. Not all ninja work revolves around tackling an enemy head-on with a Rasengan. There's a lot of soul-crushing deception. Speaking of which, Danzo really seems to be the root of a lot of the darkness in Naruto. His organization is now indirectly responsible for the defection of Orochimaru, the formation of the Hidden Sound, Akatsuki's radical transformation, and the Uchiha Massacre. There's an interesting discussion going on here about how effective/ineffective/corrupt the governments in this series are.

Now, I know that some of you guys have been down about the latest few chapters for a variety of reasons, so the following grade is going to be a bit controversial. But I think Naruto 584 is fully deserving of a ...

6 out of 5.

Predictions

Since this chapter ended with Kabuto still unfulfilled, I fully expect next chapter to detail how he mastered the sage arts and maybe we'll get a peek behind how Tobi and Kabuto planned for the war (filled with tons of tension and mexican stand-offs between the two) or Kabuto doing some DNA hunting (or as they call it in the states...graverobbing).

That's it for the review. See you after next week, allied shinobi...

Notable Quotes

• "Humans can't escape from the desire to 'want to know'."
• "You were just too skilled as spies. You knew too much."
• Advice Kabuto took to heart when dealing with Tobi: "Sometimes information can be more powerful than the strongest weapons and jutsu..."
• "I wanted to know what kind of person I was as well... so I collected all I could."
• Some of the best dialogue phrasing in the series, another classic Orochimaru-ism: "Unlike that organization which snuffs out the self, I want to create a clan that brings out the self. The clan of Otogakure, which belongs to no country."
• edit: The more I think about it the more I realize that despite his actions, Orochimaru's philosophy is really rather admirable: live in the moment. The subtext of that windmill speech he gave to Hiruzen + the speech he gives to Kimimaro when they first meet: The world doesn't have any meaning really, so what's the point of having goals. Goals can become co-opted. Instead of obsessing about the future, live in the now. This chapter: Create what meaning you can here now. Better yourself and that becomes meaning enough for the self. If his ends weren't so warped, he might have become a reasonable and very chill Hokage. I wonder how he would have turned out if Danzo had never gotten his one good hand on him.

One Line Reviews

• There's so much to say! So many great chapters up and about, where to start. Maybe the logical place would be the return of a great and sorely missed series with ...
• Vagabond 292 which continues the story of Musasahi Miyamoto in an excellent and meaty chapter. If you haven't seen this series, stop what you're doing and check out the first tankoban's worth of chapters at least. Don't worry, I'll wait for you....Well, now that you're back, this past week also had...
• One Piece 665 which was the fun romp One Piece always is but took a decidely dark turn by having the kidnapped children go through withdrawal due to an addiction to (fictional) drugs.
• Gantz 361-362 delivers a pair of bleak chapters for a grim arc that's becoming borderline existential. More intriguing than outright enjoyable.
• Air Gear 353 - 354 reveals that Ikki, like Sora, was not using the power of the regalia in their battle and Ringo shows off the power of the Storm Regalia she was in possession of the entire time.
• Billy Bat 74 further muddles the plotline as characters intersect without truly meeting and Urasawa teases us with scene that suggests the flashforward of the moon might be the faked footage and not actually what's in space.
• Bleach 480 is getting good but what I'm most interested to see is the actual invasion of Soul Society.
• Tower of God S02 Ch12 was more of the same with the new test ramping up and Viole being a bada$$ as usual.
• But seriously, go read Vagabond! It's back!!

[mattiaildivino]

Black,I'm glad you liked this chapter,although the chronology was a bit altered. I disagree with your statement over orochimaru and root: I think he joined it only after hiruzen chose minato rather than oro himself.moreover,I don't understand when oro left akatsuki(hence with itachi already there).
btw,you mistook one piece and bleach chapters

[3c]

I agree with many of your points. I especially found your thoughts around Orochimaru's character and mindset interesting. I have to agree too, that this chapter had exceptional art. Like you I took notice of the jar and fantastic background art in general. Orochimaru's dialogue was also incredibly sharp and on the spot. Personally I've always liked Kabuto (since he turned snake). However my hype for him went down a lot in between his first appearance at Tobi's hideout and now. However after his fight with Sasuke and Itachi started, I've started to love him again. Fighting wise he brings a lot of new and incredibly refreshing moves (not doujutsu/super power spam). I'm really loving his character now, and this flashback while a bit long has been very good. Especially because of the latest chapter. If I'm to guess, I think the poll results in the chapter discussion is undeserved and not quite accurate. Odds are that many are bored with flashbacks and give the chapter a lower grade automatically because of its content. Personally I welcome character development. Kabuto has been one of the most mysterious characters since the beginning of Naruto, and I'm quite interested in his character. That interest is also now increasing.

I don't want to get my hopes up or start reaching too much. But this whole deal about "finding oneself" can actually be a strong indication that Kabuto is not going to lose here. I mean, what kind of pointless end would it be to his life if he just dies now and goes "so this was me?". It's quite obvious that Kabuto is not going to find himself until he finds his destiny, whether that is in his death or when reaching greater power. Personally I'd like to believe and hope that his destiny is not to get killed Danzou-style (just when he's getting interesting and still holds massive potential), but to reach further.

As always great review, keep it up!

[blackjack612]

btw,you mistook one piece and bleach chapters

Thanks. Fixed the numbering.

I disagree with your statement over orochimaru and root: I think he joined it only after hiruzen chose minato rather than oro himself.moreover,I don't understand when oro left akatsuki(hence with itachi already there).

While this most certainly takes place after Minato was chosen (and likely died given the relative age of Kabuto to Naruto), Orochimaru may have joined Root for more practical purposes. Rather than joining out of spite, he's a capable shinobi and not afraid to get his hands dirty and in the aftermath of the Kyuubi incident, Root was likely pooling its resources to deal with the Uchiha once and for all. As a veteran of war, he may have been part of Root even before Minato became Hokage.

We know from Orochimaru's exchanges with Jiraiya, Hiruzen, and Tsuande that he didn't truly desire the title aside from the resources/power it would grant him, so it's hard to imagine him feeling slighted. And the personality defects that caused Hiruzen to pass him over were present for a while as evidenced by how willing he was to kill war orphans in the Hidden Rain. Whatever the case, joining Root (and seeing the ineffectiveness of Hiruzen to curb Danzo / other unsavory elements) certainly didn't improve his opinions of the Hidden Leaf.

As for the relative timeline it likely goes:

1. Orochimaru recruits Kabuto and begins building up the organization that will become the Hidden Sound.
2. Orochimaru is discovered by Hiruzen performing experiments on Hidden Leaf shinobi to perfect kinjutsu, and so formally abandons the village.
3. Orochimaru joins Akatsuki.
4. Itachi, under orders from Root and the Leaf elders, assassinates the Uchiha.
5. Itachi joins Akatsuki (under his own volition or orders from Root) to keep tabs on the most dangerous missing nin from the Leaf and Akatsuki's criminal activities.
6. Orochimaru fails to gain Itachi's eyes and flees Akatsuki.
7. Eventually, Orochimaru allies with the Sand (whom he later betrays) in a bid to destroy the Leaf.

I don't want to get my hopes up or start reaching too much. But this whole deal about "finding oneself" can actually be a strong indication that Kabuto is not going to lose here. I mean, what kind of pointless end would it be to his life if he just dies now and goes "so this was me?". It's quite obvious that Kabuto is not going to find himself until he finds his destiny, whether that is in his death or when reaching greater power. Personally I'd like to believe and hope that his destiny is not to get killed Danzou-style (just when he's getting interesting and still holds massive potential), but to reach further.

That would go against standard shonen conventions. Typically, heroes win and villains lose. However, in this case, everyone occupies a morally grey area. Sasuke has no stake in the war and is a murderer and avenger. The manga has gone out of it's way to portray that quest as empathetic but not righteous. Itachi committed mass murder/borderline genocide. Kabuto is now a war criminal.

So while it's almost entirely impossible that Kabuto will outright win, it might be that this flashback is setting up his redemption. Perhaps Izanami will be a jutsu that crafts a new purpose for Kabuto through genjutsu that doesn't fail or Itachi, as someone from similar circumstances, will convince Kabuto of a better way to live.

[Suzaku]

Just wanted to note that Mangastream had a few glaring translation errors in this chapter.

The title of the chapter should be "Kabuto Yakushi" -- they mistranslated his surname, Yakushi, as "doctor." It's actually another moniker of Bhaisajyaguru, the Healing Buddha, and the kanji literally means "medicine expert."

Perhaps as a result of that, they also mistranslated the new back story Orochimaru created for him. It should explain that the orphan matron's name was Nonou Yakushi, and after she returned to Danzou's side she was made the captain of a Konohagakure medical squad as part of her cover. She found him after the Battle of Kikyo Pass and adopted him, so he was reborn as Kabuto Yakushi on that day.


In spite of the typically flashback = death setup, I'm thinking Kabuto may survive this and live to fight another day. It stands to reason that, at the very least, he should have a chance to have his promised rematch against Naruto and fight him on equal footing as a Sage.

At the very least, I'm sure Edo Tensei will be stopped and Itachi will pass on, but after that, it'll be up to Sasuke to face Kabuto on his own (Itachi said as much a few chapters ago), and I don't know if Sasuke's got what it takes. Kabuto just might escape once Edo Tensei is dispelled.

[3c]

I agree with Suzaku, this is not the typical win = death for the other part type of fight. Itachi will no doubt end Edo Tensei, and with it end himself and Madara. But Kabuto could still win the fight by taking over Sasuke's body. We don't know the full mechanics of the Rebirth (taking over body) technique, other than Kabuto/Orochimaru becoming the people they take over plus their original selves. It would be possible for Kishi to bust Kabuto out of Sasuke somehow in his fight against Naruto. Then Kabuto would be able to live to fight another day, find himself and his destiny and play a better role as a villain. I find this of course less likely than Kabuto simply losing here, which I posted about in the chapter discussion a week ago or so. But it would be cool if Kishi broke his repetitive cycle. Usually it's an obvious pre-death flashback, but in Kabuto's case I'm actually getting the opposite feeling, that this is setting him up for further character development and importance. But really, all logic points towards Kabuto losing here, finding himself right before his death, Itachi succeeding and ending himself and Madara, and Sasuke moving on to fight Naruto.

[mattiaildivino]

btw,where did you find this chapter on mangastream? I can't find it there. and this title is terrible, "Kabuto Yakushi" is much better,and rest assured that's the one which will appear in the volume edition

[3c]

btw,where did you find this chapter on mangastream? I can't find it there. and this title is terrible, "Kabuto Yakushi" is much better,and rest assured that's the one which will appear in the volume edition

Mangastream only host their Jump titles for 48 hours now for legal reasons. They also release slower than other groups on purpose. So basically make sure to check out MS a few hours after the title have been released on e.g. MR.

[Shonen Jump]

btw,where did you find this chapter on mangastream? I can't find it there. and this title is terrible, "Kabuto Yakushi" is much better,and rest assured that's the one which will appear in the volume edition

Its not on mangastream anymore try this one: http://www.mangareader.net/naruto/584.

Its not as good as mangastream, but its still readible. Mangastream needs to remove there mangas every day or 2 because of copyright infringement.

[mattiaildivino]

Its not on mangastream anymore try this one: http://www.mangareader.net/naruto/584.

Its not as good as mangastream, but its still readible. Mangastream needs to remove there mangas every day or 2 because of copyright infringement.

I've already read it on mangareader. I wanted to chek mangastream,but it doesn't matter. also,I was talking about mangastream's title,which is much worse than mangareader. c'mon,"kabuto yakushi" is far beyond "kabuto the doctor",don't you agree?

[jalix]

A great review of the chapter. I'm one of the people that has been a little down about the recent course of events - but for me it's because I don't feel a big attachment to the way Kabuto has been brought along. If anyone has some suggestions, I'm all ears (or eyes). It WAS well drawn - I forgot about that. I loved the 'shinobi blender'. Kind of crude. And I also really like how Orochimaru has developeed so much character depth without even being a 'living character'. Same with Danzou. Thx for the review - I have to admit it does make me ease up a bit on the chapter. Though I still wouldn't give it 6 stars out of 5!

[mattiaildivino]

Black,I forgot to tell you the most important thing,which concerns the plot analysis: if I were,you,I'd have dealt with that experiment of draining blood more. why I say so? because a lot of readers(and I was amongst them if it weren't for Rikudo King ) didn't notice that kabuto uses Oro's body to drain that in the top of that machine HERE. that's explains how he transplanted oro's body in himself,thing said by kabuto in volume 38. about oro's draining,we don't know what it was,but I would have added to the predictions(long term) that it will be likely revealed when oro will come back from the totsuka sword. what if it contains hashirama's blood?that's his way to turn the sharingan into rinnegan

[blackjack612]

Just wanted to note that Mangastream had a few glaring translation errors in this chapter.

The title of the chapter should be "Kabuto Yakushi" -- they mistranslated his surname, Yakushi, as "doctor." It's actually another moniker of Bhaisajyaguru, the Healing Buddha, and the kanji literally means "medicine expert."

I've already read it on mangareader. I wanted to chek mangastream,but it doesn't matter. also,I was talking about mangastream's title,which is much worse than mangareader. c'mon,"kabuto yakushi" is far beyond "kabuto the doctor",don't you agree?

Thanks for pointing that out. I think 'Kabuto Yakushi' might be the better title, especially since Kabuto's last name alludes to the Healing Buddha. Is this hinting towards Kabuto reaching some sort of enlightenment? Or is Sage Mode his enlightenment? And I wonder how his story plays out when reframed with a Buddhist context.

In spite of the typically flashback = death setup, I'm thinking Kabuto may survive this and live to fight another day. It stands to reason that, at the very least, he should have a chance to have his promised rematch against Naruto and fight him on equal footing as a Sage.

I agree with Suzaku, this is not the typical win = death for the other part type of fight.

There is something about what's happening now that seems to both embrace and subvert traditional plotting in this series, and while I would like to see Kabuto survive and maybe repent, I'm expecting the worst for him even as I'm hoping for the best.

A great review of the chapter. I'm one of the people that has been a little down about the recent course of events - but for me it's because I don't feel a big attachment to the way Kabuto has been brought along. If anyone has some suggestions, I'm all ears (or eyes).

Thanks. I can understand how people's mileage varies with each character. We're not all going to love the same antagonists or protagonists. Personally, I think Kabuto's worked because he's effectively kept an air of mystery about him (up until now of course) and when his motives were explained, they pointed towards something very human. Something I can empathize with closely. Who among us hasn't at some point questioned what meaning they had in life and how they fit in? Or has believed something about their life was stable and unchangeable only to have that belief proven wrong?

It WAS well drawn - I forgot about that. I loved the 'shinobi blender'. Kind of crude. And I also really like how Orochimaru has developeed so much character depth without even being a 'living character'. Same with Danzou. Thx for the review - I have to admit it does make me ease up a bit on the chapter. Though I still wouldn't give it 6 stars out of 5!

It really was. Kishimoto topped himself with this chapter. I kind of wish we had more time to explore this flashback or Orochimaru/Kabuto were given their own spin-off so we could explore that wonderful looking lab and see what other nightmarish experiments they were cooking up.

Black,I forgot to tell you the most important thing,which concerns the plot analysis: if I were,you,I'd have dealt with that experiment of draining blood more. why I say so? because a lot of readers(and I was amongst them if it weren't for Rikudo King ) didn't notice that kabuto uses Oro's body to drain that in the top of that machine HERE. that's explains how he transplanted oro's body in himself,thing said by kabuto in volume 38. about oro's draining,we don't know what it was,but I would have added to the predictions(long term) that it will be likely revealed when oro will come back from the totsuka sword. what if it contains hashirama's blood?that's his way to turn the sharingan into rinnegan

Well, Orochimaru had enough of Hashirama's DNA to splice it into 60 test babies just for funz, so that's a definite possibility. If Kabuto's goal is to become the closest person to the Sage, then that explains his fixation on Sasuke. The sharingan would be the last piece to that puzzle.

As for what was in that vial of liquid... well we know that Orochimaru's immortality jutsu works through that giant snake technique. And we know that the members of the Hidden Sound shown (and the ones Kabuto's most interested in) possess cursed seal marks, so it's not out of the question that Orochimaru and Kabuto were utilizing their genetically altered snake templates in combination with the cursed seal technique to augment their own bodies with unique bloodline limits. In this way, Kabuto has access to Senju DNA from two sources: the original source Hashirama cloning material Orochimaru possessed and Karin's DNA.

[Suzaku]

Thanks for pointing that out. I think 'Kabuto Yakushi' might be the better title, especially since Kabuto's last name alludes to the Healing Buddha. Is this hinting towards Kabuto reaching some sort of enlightenment? Or is Sage Mode his enlightenment? And I wonder how his story plays out when reframed with a Buddhist context.

It's hard to say, since he was given the surname Yakushi way back in chapter 30-something, when he first appeared, which I'm sure is well before Kishimoto came up with these concepts that would be playing out 550 chapters down the roat.

Buddhism mainly deals with the attempt to break the cycle of suffering by seeking enlightenment, which is extremely prominent in Nagato's story (and in fact, Nagato even resembles statues of the Buddha when he was practicing asceticism), but not so much in Kabuto's.

Well, thinking about it, if you interpret Kabuto's many transformations and evolutions as forms of transmigration, you could say that he's trapped in a cycle of suffering, and that his journey to accumulate knowledge and discover himself is a way of seeking self-enlightenment.

It might be worth noting that the Healing Buddha is attended by two bodhisattvas whose names mean Moonlight and Sunlight. In Japanese Buddhism he's also commonly invoked in memorials for the dead, and is protected by the Twelve Heavenly Generals (Vajra, Indra, Mihira, etc.)

The Healing Buddha is a fairly vague figure, so I don't know that any comparisons are intended. And technically speaking, Kabuto Yakushi isn't even his real name. Perhaps, if he survives, we'll eventually learn what his real name is, and who he truly is, if it's relevant.

[mattiaildivino]

Thanks for pointing that out. I think 'Kabuto Yakushi' might be the better title, especially since Kabuto's last name alludes to the Healing Buddha. Is this hinting towards Kabuto reaching some sort of enlightenment? Or is Sage Mode his enlightenment? And I wonder how his story plays out when reframed with a Buddhist context.

Well, Orochimaru had enough of Hashirama's DNA to splice it into 60 test babies just for funz, so that's a definite possibility. If Kabuto's goal is to become the closest person to the Sage, then that explains his fixation on Sasuke. The sharingan would be the last piece to that puzzle.

As for what was in that vial of liquid... well we know that Orochimaru's immortality jutsu works through that giant snake technique. And we know that the members of the Hidden Sound shown (and the ones Kabuto's most interested in) possess cursed seal marks, so it's not out of the question that Orochimaru and Kabuto were utilizing their genetically altered snake templates in combination with the cursed seal technique to augment their own bodies with unique bloodline limits. In this way, Kabuto has access to Senju DNA from two sources: the original source Hashirama cloning material Orochimaru possessed and Karin's DNA.

well,I wonder whether jugo was already there. we saw that jugo and the other members of Hawk (or Kimimaro,who used to call kabuto "master",as if he had come after kabuto) were in this flashbacks after that the organization grew. and the CS comes from jugo,so I think it's hard that the CS is in that bag. yet,anko was affected by the CS when Oro was still in the Leaf: chronological mistake or a hint of jugo already there and oro doing things within shadows?