Kiyohara continued.
When the final talisman was removed, Uchiha Hikari's eyelashes trembled lightly, and then she slowly opened her eyes.
Black eyes.
But only for an instant.
Those eyes immediately turned crimson.
Three tomoe slowly appeared in her pupils, then began rotating faster and faster.
"Who are you?"
Uchiha Hikari's eyes showed only a brief moment of confusion before she entered combat mode.
She took a kunai from her ninja pouch and pointed it at Kiyohara.
Clearly, Hikari had been sealed in the middle of battle.
Kiyohara looked at her without speaking.
Hikari's gaze landed on Kiyohara's eyes, and she narrowed her own slightly.
She immediately noticed his unmistakable Byakugan.
"You're a ninja of the Hyūga clan?"
Her voice remained cold, but now there was a trace of killing intent in it.
The moment she finished speaking, her figure vanished from where she stood.
Kiyohara's brow moved slightly.
As expected of a weapon of war. That speed already surpassed the vast majority of Uchiha clan members.
In that respect, perhaps only Shisui could compare with Hikari in speed.
Of course, that excluded Kiyohara himself.
In the next moment, Hikari had already reached his side. Holding her kunai, a layer of pale-blue chakra appeared over the blade as she stabbed toward Kiyohara.
But to Kiyohara, all of this was far too slow.
Hikari's strongest point was her dōjutsu, not her taijutsu.
The next moment, Kiyohara's white eyes slowly changed.
His pupils shifted from white to crimson. Three tomoe appeared within them, rotating, connecting, and transforming into a complex Mangekyō pattern.
"!!"
Hikari froze in shock.
For the first time, confusion appeared in those crimson Sharingan.
"What are you…?"
The killing intent in her voice vanished, replaced by bewilderment.
As a weapon of war, her primary purpose was to eliminate ninja who were not of the Uchiha clan.
But how had Kiyohara suddenly turned into a Sharingan user?
And not just Sharingan—Mangekyō Sharingan.
Had she fallen into a genjutsu at some point?
Hikari began checking the flow of chakra inside her body and found everything smooth.
The three tomoe in her own eyes also quickly connected, transforming into a Mangekyō pattern.
But she discovered that Kiyohara's eyes still remained Mangekyō Sharingan.
That proved she was not under genjutsu.
"Mixed blood?"
Hikari tried offering a possibility.
"More or less."
Kiyohara spoke.
The bloodlines in his body had indeed fused several future Uchiha and Hyūga bloodlines together.
The blood in his bones was as pure as pure could be.
Calling him a mixed-blood of the two clans was not wrong.
The only difference was that Kiyohara had inherited his blood afterward.
Hearing this, Hikari's delicate face showed a thoughtful expression.
Clearly, in her past life, she had never encountered a mixed-blood between an Uchiha and an outsider clan.
Even if such cases existed, they were usually with ordinary people.
There had never been mixed blood with another major ninja clan.
For both the Uchiha and the other ninja clans, that was absolutely forbidden.
During the Warring States era, the only ninja clan with a decent relationship with the Uchiha had been the Hagoromo clan.
The Hagoromo clan had once allied with the Uchiha against the Senju, making them the Uchiha clan's allies.
"Mixed blood…"
The Mangekyō pattern in Hikari's eyes regressed into three tomoe, then turned back into black eyes.
No matter what, Kiyohara also possessed Uchiha blood.
And Hikari could keenly sense that Kiyohara was powerful.
More powerful than any Uchiha clan member she had ever seen. Even the Uchiha clan leader of her era had not been as strong as Kiyohara.
With such power, he would surely be greatly welcomed in the Uchiha clan.
After all, she was the only one who had been treated as a weapon of war.
Then Hikari crouched down, knelt on one knee, and lowered her head.
Her black hair slipped from her shoulders and fell onto the cold cave floor.
"Then who are you?"
Hikari asked curiously.
"I am the current Hokage of Konoha, Kiyohara."
Kiyohara said calmly.
"What is Konoha?"
"Mm. You can understand it as an organization where many ninja have gathered. It includes many ninja clans, civilian ninja, and even ordinary people."
Kiyohara said.
In the Warring States era, ninja were organized by clan.
They accepted mission commissions from lords so that each ninja clan could continue surviving.
Simply put, each clan was like a small ninja village with the same surname.
The Uzumaki clan's Uzushiogakure was somewhat similar.
"You've been asleep for more than a hundred years. It's normal to be confused."
Kiyohara said.
"More than a hundred years? Are you lying to me?"
Hearing this, Hikari immediately felt Kiyohara's words were unreliable.
"I have no reason to lie to you."
Kiyohara shook his head.
"If you don't believe me, come outside with me later and you'll know."
Hearing Kiyohara's words, Hikari raised her head. For the first time, emotion other than confusion appeared in her black eyes.
She looked like a bird that had lost its direction, not knowing where to fly.
"That's fine. My mission isn't complete yet."
After thinking for a minute, Hikari gave her answer.
"I will eliminate the Senju clan and Sarutobi clan as soon as possible to make up for my mistake."
Hikari stood and walked toward the cave exit.
Her memories still remained at the moment she had been sealed. Even in the current era, she still could not temporarily break free from her old thinking. She believed she still needed to fight those two clans.
"Your mission is already over."
Kiyohara stopped her.
"What do you mean?"
"The war between the clans ended decades ago."
Kiyohara looked at her.
"The Uchiha clan, the Senju clan, and the Sarutobi clan are no longer enemies. They have already made peace. The Warring States era has ended. This is now the era of ninja villages."
"…"
There was too much information in Kiyohara's words, and Hikari found it difficult to accept all at once.
A thousand-year feud had just been reconciled?
Looking at Hikari, Kiyohara secretly sighed.
Only after the establishment of the Ninja Academy did ninja begin to receive systematic education.
Before that, ninja only needed to fight. Not everyone was literate or educated.
Someone like Hikari probably had even less education.
And with her age, she was actually old enough to be Kiyohara's great-grandmother.
She could only compare youth with the three great snake princesses. Even Tsunade's age counted as that of a little girl before Hikari.
"Then are you the current leader of the Uchiha clan?"
Hikari asked.
Although she was extremely confused and shocked to have arrived over a hundred years later, there was no other possibility now.
In the Warring States era, a strong person like Kiyohara would not suddenly appear out of nowhere.
"Of course."
Kiyohara nodded.
In the ninja village era, clan leaders had to obey the Hokage.
He counted as the indirect leader of the Uchiha clan.
Even if Kiyohara raised his arm and declared that he wanted to become clan head, there probably would not be many clan members who opposed him.
At most, Fugaku's loyalists, such as Uchiha Yashiro, might be dissatisfied.
"So you could say you're free now. There's no need to think about missions anymore."
Kiyohara shook his head.
"Free…"
Hearing that word, Hikari's first reaction was unfamiliarity.
Being turned into a weapon of war had left enormous resentment in her heart, but she had always suppressed it.
And now, all of a sudden, she was free?
A hollow feeling instantly appeared inside Hikari.
It was not that she liked being a weapon of war, but that she did not know what she should do.
After all, according to what he said, she had arrived more than a hundred years later.
Everything familiar to her from the past had already vanished.
"If you have nowhere to go, you can follow me for now."
Kiyohara said.
He had come here for Uchiha Hikari's dōjutsu, Yachihoko—no, for Uchiha Hikari herself.
The uniqueness of this dōjutsu was incomparable to other dōjutsu.
And Kiyohara was also very curious. Hikari only had ordinary Mangekyō, so how could she withstand using it so much?
Kiyohara himself had a special constitution and abundant Yang Release chakra, which was why even as a normal Mangekyō user, he had never felt much pressure.
But both of Hikari's parents were pure Uchiha, and she was not Indra's reincarnation. Why was she so special?
The only explanation was probably the unique nature of her dōjutsu.
"What is your name? I still don't know your name. You already know mine."
"I don't need a name. You can call me Nameless."
Hikari's tone was still cold.
Having long been treated as an emotionless weapon of war, Hikari's human warmth was fairly faint.
"But people still need names. Do you really not have one?"
Kiyohara pretended to be confused.
He did not mind Hikari's cold attitude.
Most Uchiha were like this. Tsundere.
Cold at first meeting, but once familiar, they became passionate. It was just that this passion was usually restrained.
"A name…"
Hikari fell into a brief memory.
Before those gray years when she became a weapon of war, she had indeed had a name.
Back then, her parents had still been alive.
And they had given her a very warm, bright name.
"Hikari. You can call me Hikari."
Uchiha Hikari said.
"Come with me, Hikari."
Kiyohara held out his hand.
"The outside world is different from what you imagine now. I'll take you to Konoha."
"But I only know how to carry out missions."
Hikari said.
"Mm. Do you have any specialties?"
"My specialty is killing people."
Hikari looked at Kiyohara with a serious face.
"Especially ninja like the Uzumaki and Senju."
"…"
Kiyohara thought for a moment. Perhaps it would be better to place Hikari in the Anbu first.
Others might feel that it was full of blades, shadows, darkness, and blood, but it was currently the only field Hikari was familiar with. It could serve as her transition.
"Very good. Konoha needs talent like you."
Kiyohara took a few steps forward and held Hikari's hand.
Hikari did not show any shy expression.
She only lowered her head and looked at the hand holding hers.
Kiyohara's hand completely wrapped her fingers in his palm.
She raised her head. In her black eyes, there was no shyness or resistance, only pure confusion.
"Why are you holding me?"
Hikari asked curiously.
"To take you out."
The moment Kiyohara spoke, the scenery changed.
The feeling beneath their feet shifted from cold, hard stone to soft soil.
The night wind carrying the scent of grass and trees blew against their faces. Overhead was a sky full of stars. In the distance, there were brightly lit buildings packed row upon row.
Konohagakure.
Uchiha Hikari stood in place.
Her black eyes were filled with shock.
Hikari no longer knew how many times she had been shocked in this short span.
During the Warring States era, space-time ninjutsu was an extremely rare existence.
The only space-time ninjutsu Hikari knew was the Summoning Technique. More advanced than that were the Reverse Summoning Technique and some long-lost secret techniques.
Every one of them was treated by the major ninja clans as a secret never to be passed down, and they would never be easily displayed before outsiders.
"You…"
Hikari turned her head and looked at Kiyohara, only to realize she did not know what to ask.
"The era is different now."
Kiyohara released her hand, knowing why Hikari looked like this.
"After the Warring States era ended, many new ninjutsu appeared."
Kiyohara explained.
Hikari fell silent.
That was true. She had been asleep for over a hundred years.
So it was normal for new ninjutsu to appear.
At this moment, a figure emerged from the shadows.
Konan wore an Anbu uniform, the hood pulled low, and a mask covering her entire face.
She did not have space-time ninjutsu. Whenever Kiyohara went out, she could only wait inside the village.
After Kiyohara returned, she would come over to protect him again.
Konan's gaze fell on Uchiha Hikari and swept over her.
Black hair, fair skin, delicate features.
The distinctive cool beauty of the Uchiha clan.
Another woman.
Konan's brows furrowed slightly beneath the mask.
She had already lost count of how many women Kiyohara had brought back.
"You actually have this kind of hobby."
Konan teased in a flat tone.
Kiyohara turned and looked at her.
He leaned closer, so close that Konan could feel the warmth of his breath.
"Jealous?"
Kiyohara asked.
Konan's heart skipped. Her body leaned back slightly, and she turned her face away, her voice still cool.
"You're overthinking it."
She paused.
"I'm only here because of a transaction, to cure Nagato."
"Is that so?"
Kiyohara smiled and did not continue pressing her.
He straightened and lifted his chin toward Hikari.
"Arrange a place for her to stay."
He looked at Konan.
"For the next few days, you don't need to follow me. Take her around Konoha and let her get familiar with the environment."
Konan's gaze returned to Hikari.
Hikari was also looking at her.
The two stared at each other for a moment.
"Where did she come from?"
Konan asked.
Kiyohara thought about it.
"The mountains."
Konan's brows furrowed again.
The mountains.
A remote, poor backwater.
No wonder she was dressed like this.
The clothes Hikari wore were still the same set she had been wearing when sealed: a dark-blue ninja outfit, simple in style, rough in fabric, with edges already worn and frayed.
The ninja pouch at her waist was made of leather, embroidered with a flame fan.
This outfit indeed made her look like she had walked out of some isolated mountain village.
Just as Konan was wondering why Hikari had the Uchiha crest on her body, Kiyohara spoke.
"She's also an Uchiha."
Konan looked carefully at Hikari.
An Uchiha.
Aside from Kiyohara, there was also an Uchiha bloodline left outside?
"Follow me."
Konan said to Hikari.
Konan turned and walked in another direction through the village.
Hikari glanced at Kiyohara.
Kiyohara nodded to her.
Hikari stepped forward and followed Konan.
The two figures, one in front and one behind, disappeared into the crowd.
Kiyohara stood in place and watched them leave. Then he turned and walked in another direction.
…
The next day.
Kiyohara enjoyed some alone time with Nohara Rin.
He dozed off for a while, then opened his eyes.
The thing supporting the back of his head was soft and warm.
It was Nohara Rin's thighs.
There was a faint fragrance there, Rin's own scent.
He raised his head slightly.
In his field of vision were two round curves wrapped in clothing. From this angle, they looked like two connected mountain peaks, completely blocking Rin's face.
He could only see her brown hair and a few strands falling beside her ears.
Rin's fingers were pressing against Kiyohara's temples, the pressure gentle as she circled them again and again.
"Kiyohara-kun, you're awake?"
Rin's voice came from behind the mountains.
"Mm."
Kiyohara did not move.
The softness supporting the back of his head made him reluctant to shift away.
"When did you come back last night? I didn't even know."
Rin's fingers moved from his temples to his forehead, slowly sliding along the curve of his brow bone.
"I didn't check the time."
Kiyohara closed his eyes.
"I went to handle some things."
"I see."
Rin did not ask what those things were.
"Kiyohara-kun, are you going out in a few days?"
Her voice suddenly softened.
"Mm."
Kiyohara answered.
"I'm going to the Land of Lightning to send the Fourth Raikage and the others back."
"How long will you be gone?"
"A few days. Not too long."
Kiyohara paused.
"This time, I plan to bring Tsunade-sensei with me."
When he said this, his tone was casual, as if he were talking about something insignificant.
"Tsunade-sama… That's good. With Tsunade-sama there, your safety will be even more guaranteed."
Rin did not know Kiyohara's real purpose in bringing Tsunade.
Finding a hot spring on the return trip and having an in-depth exchange with Tsunade.
Naturally, Kiyohara would not say such a plan out loud.
In Rin's view, Kiyohara was simply bringing his teacher along on an official trip.
"You've worked hard."
Rin said gently.
Her fingers left his face and settled on his shoulder, lightly kneading.
"Being Hokage really is hard. You have to run around every day."
Kiyohara adjusted his position. From this angle, he still could not see Rin's face.
He raised his hand.
His fingertips touched her chin and gently nudged it to the side.
The two mountains shifted aside, revealing the pretty face beneath.
Rin blinked. Her brown eyes reflected his face.
"What is it?"
She asked.
"I wanted to look at you."
Kiyohara said.
Rin's face flushed slightly.
She pressed her lips together without speaking, and her fingers returned to his temples, continuing the massage.
The pressure was lighter than before.
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
Knock, knock, knock.
Rin's fingers stiffened.
She instinctively wanted to get up, but Kiyohara raised a hand and held her down.
"It's fine."
Kiyohara sat up and moved his neck.
Rin also hurriedly sat upright, smoothing the wrinkled hem of her clothes before placing her hands neatly on her knees and returning to a proper sitting posture.
"Come in."
Kiyohara said.
The door opened.
Uchiha Shisui walked in.
Today, he wore a dark-black high-collared robe. The collar covered half of his neck, leaving only his Adam's apple exposed.
His black hair was a little longer than the last time they met, and the hair falling over his forehead covered his brows.
Behind him followed another person.
Uchiha Tekka.
Tekka also wore a high-collared outfit today. His steps were quicker than usual, and his face carried unconcealed excitement.
"Hokage-sama."
Uchiha Shisui stopped before Kiyohara and bowed slightly.
Tekka also bent down.
"Hokage-da…"
He had only said one word when he suddenly froze.
A few years ago, he and Kiyohara had still been classmates at the Ninja Academy.
Back then, he had called him "Kiyohara," never anything like "sama."
But now, Kiyohara was sitting there, while he stood here.
Tragic.
Uchiha Tekka still remembered when he had once challenged Kiyohara to a sparring match several years ago.
Now there was already a thick wall between them.
"…Hokage-sama."
Kiyohara looked at Uchiha Tekka.
"No need to be so stiff."
Kiyohara stood and walked in front of Tekka.
"You've confirmed it clearly?"
"I've confirmed it."
Tekka nodded hard, the nervousness on his face replaced by excitement.
"I'm willing to transplant the Hashirama cells."
Kiyohara nodded.
"I will personally perform the surgery this time."
He paused.
"Go back and prepare first. This afternoon, Konoha Hospital operating room."
"Yes!"
Tekka's voice became loud again, full of energy.
He turned and strode toward the door. When he reached it, his steps suddenly paused. He looked back at Kiyohara.
His mouth opened slightly, as if he wanted to say something.
But in the end, he only nodded, pushed the door open, and left.
Shisui also bowed slightly to Kiyohara, then turned and followed Tekka's steps.
The door closed behind them.
The room became quiet again.
Rin stood and walked to Kiyohara's side.
"Kiyohara-kun, do you need me to assist?"
She asked.
Kiyohara turned and looked at her.
"That works."
Rin smiled.
Just as she was about to say something, she suddenly noticed Kiyohara's gaze had landed on her neck.
Her face instantly reddened.
"Kiyohara-kun…"
She instinctively raised a hand to cover her neck and took half a step back.
But Kiyohara had already leaned in close.
She could feel his breath, warm and rhythmic, brushing the skin at the side of her neck.
In that instant, the air became scorching, as if something were burning across the surface of her skin.
Kiyohara's hand wrapped around the back of her waist, his palm against her skin.
Then it slowly slid downward.
Rin's body suddenly tensed.
She bit her lower lip, tilted her neck back, and let out a suppressed whimper.
Her fingers gripped Kiyohara's sleeve tightly, her knuckles turning pale.
After quite a while, her heaving chest gradually calmed.
Her breathing shifted from heavy to light and quick, like the sea after the tide had receded, still carrying faint ripples.
"Should I postpone the surgery and do it tomorrow?"
Kiyohara held her, letting her rest against him.
When he lowered his head, he felt softness at the side of his neck.
It was Rin's lips.
She pressed against his neck, her lips slightly parted, as if she wanted to say something, or as if she wanted to bite down.
Kiyohara could imagine what she looked like right now: face flushed, brown eyes covered in a layer of moisture, only able to protest in this way because she was flustered.
"No need, Kiyohara-kun."
Her muffled voice came from beside his neck.
"We should prepare for the surgery early."
The corner of Kiyohara's mouth lifted slightly. He knew Rin was embarrassed, so he did not laugh out loud.
…
Noon.
When Kiyohara came out of Konoha Hospital, the sun was blazing.
Rin had already gone back to rest.
She needed to recover her energy for the afternoon surgery.
Kiyohara stood at the hospital entrance and closed his eyes.
His sensory ability spread from his body like an invisible net, covering all of Konoha.
Streets, buildings, crowds.
The Ninja Academy, Hokage building, training grounds.
Every chakra signature was clearly distinguishable.
Very soon, he found his target.
Two chakra signatures, one in front of the other, were slowly moving through the commercial street on the southern side of the village.
Kiyohara opened his eyes.
The next moment, his figure vanished from where he stood.
…
Konoha's southern commercial street.
This street was one of the liveliest places in Konoha.
Both sides were packed with shops: dango shops, sweets stores, ninja tool shops, flower shops, fabric stores, their signboards one after another.
It was noon, and people came and went through the street.
Ninja hurried along, while merchants loudly called out to customers.
Konan walked in front.
She was not wearing her Anbu uniform today. Instead, she had changed into ordinary clothes.
Her short blue hair was pinned up with a hairpin, revealing the pale nape of her neck.
However, she still wore that animal mask, covering most of her face.
Uchiha Hikari followed behind her.
She still wore the dark-blue ninja outfit she had been wearing when she woke from the seal.
After becoming familiar with things last night, Hikari was now able to roughly accept these dazzling sights.
Her gaze landed on a street stall.
It was a stall selling taiyaki.
More than a dozen fish-shaped pastries were neatly arranged on the iron griddle. Their outer crust had been baked golden and crisp, and they were giving off steam.
The sweet scent of red bean filling mixed with the toasted fragrance of the batter and drifted over with the wind.
Hikari stood there, staring motionlessly at the taiyaki.
Konan walked a few steps before realizing the person behind her had not followed.
She looked back.
Hikari was staring at the taiyaki.
Beneath the mask, Konan's brow moved slightly.
She walked back, took some money from her pocket, and handed it to the stall owner.
"Two."
The stall owner efficiently placed two taiyaki into a paper bag and handed it over.
Konan took the bag and gave one to Hikari.
Hikari lowered her head and looked at the paper bag in her hand.
Heat passed through the paper into her palm.
She picked up the taiyaki and took a bite.
The crust was crisp, the filling soft and sticky, and the sweetness of red bean melted on her tongue.
Hikari's eyes widened slightly.
She did not speak and simply took another bite.
Then another.
She ate with great concentration.
Although her face remained expressionless, both cheeks were stuffed full of food.
Like a squirrel eating nuts for the first time, she had a rather contrasting cuteness.
"You've never eaten these?"
Konan asked.
Hikari swallowed the food in her mouth and shook her head.
"No."
Hikari's voice was flat.
"I've only eaten some compressed rations."
"Is that so."
Konan nodded slightly.
Ninja compressed rations were usually high in calories, rich in nutrients, and easy to preserve.
Their only problem was that they tasted like chewing wax.
Looking at Hikari's puffed cheeks, Konan suddenly understood a little why Kiyohara had brought her out from the "mountains."
Then Konan noticed that Hikari kept glancing toward the stall, so she bought a few more for her.
In total, Hikari ate seven.
Just then, a figure appeared from the crowd.
Kiyohara walked up to the two of them.
"How are you adapting?"
He looked at Hikari.
Hikari stuffed the last bite of taiyaki into her mouth, chewed, and swallowed.
Konan briefly told Kiyohara about the situation.
Kiyohara had not expected Hikari to like eating this.
"You don't have to eat compressed rations anymore."
Kiyohara looked at her.
"You also don't have to keep living as a weapon of war. Just obey my orders. At other times, you can live normally like everyone else."
Hikari froze.
She raised her head, and Kiyohara's face was reflected in her black eyes.
Obey orders.
Live normally.
Putting those two phrases together felt indescribably unfamiliar to her.
In the Warring States era, her life had only contained the first half.
Obey orders, carry out missions, return to the dungeon, wait for the next order.
Repeat again and again, without end.
As for what a normal life was, she had never thought about it.
No one had ever asked if she wanted one.
And now, Kiyohara had added the second half.
"Mm."
She did not know how to answer, so she only nodded.
Looking at her like this, Kiyohara understood.
It was not that he was so charming or that Hikari had accepted things quickly.
It was simply that Hikari lacked love too much.
Since childhood, she had been treated as a weapon of war. Her parents had died early, her clan treated her as a tool, and her enemies treated her as a monster.
In her life, she had received almost no kindness without an ulterior motive.
This kind of person was the easiest to win over.
Give them a bit of sunshine, and they would bloom.
Kiyohara did not continue the topic.
"You two keep walking around."
He said to Konan, then turned and walked back the way he came.
Konan watched his back disappear into the crowd, then turned to look at Hikari.
Hikari was still standing in place, head lowered, looking at the empty paper bag in her hand.
"Let's go."
Konan said.
"There's a dango shop up ahead."
Hikari raised her head and followed.
…
Afternoon.
Konoha Hospital, operating room.
The shadowless lamp hung from the ceiling, and cold white light illuminated the entire operating room without leaving a single shadow.
Rin had arrived early.
She stood beside the operating table, counting the instruments.
Under her white lab coat, she wore a high-collared purple sweater. The collar completely covered her neck, reaching all the way to her chin.
"Isn't that hot?"
Kiyohara's voice came from the doorway.
Rin raised her head and glanced at him.
"What do you think?"
There was a hint of reproach in her tone.
If she didn't wear a high collar, how was she supposed to hide the marks on her neck?
Rin very much wanted to say that.
Kiyohara smiled faintly and walked to the other side of the operating table.
"I'll be more careful next time."
"There's a next time?"
Rin glared at him, but her eyes were full of softness and had no killing power.
The two discussed a few details about the surgery process.
Rin counted the tools on the instrument tray again: scalpel, hemostatic forceps, suture needle, chakra-guiding instrument.
After a while, the door opened.
Uchiha Tekka walked in.
He had already changed into surgical clothes. The pale-blue fabric hung loosely on him.
His face was a little paler than it had been in the morning, and his lips were slightly dry.
Clearly, when it came time for the actual surgery, he could not avoid nervousness.
"Lie down."
Kiyohara pointed at the operating table.
Tekka took a deep breath, walked over, and lay down on the table.
The white light of the shadowless lamp shone directly on his face, and he instinctively narrowed his eyes.
Kiyohara raised his hand.
A strand of chakra as thin as hair extended from his fingertip and pierced the chakra pathway in Tekka's neck.
Local anesthesia.
Tekka could feel the sensation below his chest slowly fading.
It did not hurt, but that feeling of losing control was more unsettling than pain.
His fingers instinctively clenched the edge of the operating table.
"Relax. It'll be fine."
Kiyohara said.
Uchiha Tekka swallowed and nodded.
Kiyohara picked up the scalpel.
The blade reflected cold light beneath the shadowless lamp.
He chose a spot on the left side of the chest, directly above the heart.
This was one of the largest chakra pathway nodes in the human body.
Only if the transplant region had enough chakra pathways could sufficient ocular power be mobilized in time to suppress the proliferation of Hashirama cells.
And Uchiha Madara had also transplanted cells into his left chest.
The blade fell.
A fine incision was cut into the skin.
Rin stood beside Kiyohara, holding hemostatic forceps.
Her gaze followed Kiyohara's blade closely, ready at any moment to handle bleeding points.
Kiyohara's hand was very steady.
Uchiha Tekka's chest was slowly opened, revealing the beating heart beneath.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Protected by the ribs, the heart beat powerfully, pumping blood throughout the body with each contraction.
Kiyohara set down the scalpel and picked up a pair of forceps from the tray.
Rin also picked up forceps and took a small white piece of flesh from the petri dish.
White Zetsu body tissue.
That piece of flesh was very small, only the size of a fingernail.
Kiyohara accepted the tissue and placed it into the incision in Uchiha Tekka's chest.
Then came the truly difficult part.
Connecting the chakra pathway system.
The human chakra pathway system was extremely complex, from the largest chakra points to the smallest cellular mitochondria, layered and interconnected.
To connect the pathways of foreign cells with the host's pathways, the precision had to reach the cellular level.
Ordinary ninja would need instruments to complete such surgery.
But Kiyohara had the Byakugan and the Sharingan, so naturally there was no need for such trouble.
Three tomoe appeared in Kiyohara's eyes, slowly rotating.
In the Sharingan's vision, Uchiha Tekka's chakra pathway system was clearly visible. Blue chakra flowed through the pathways like glowing rivers.
Those rivers varied in thickness, with main trunks and tributaries, densely woven into a three-dimensional net.
Kiyohara began connecting them.
His chakra turned into countless threads thinner than hair, finding the corresponding severed pathway ends on the White Zetsu cells, then aligning and fixing the two together.
The invasiveness of Hashirama cells far surpassed ordinary cells.
When they began fusing with Uchiha Tekka's chakra pathway system, a violent life force surged from the cell nuclei. It followed the newly connected pathway channels and spread through Uchiha Tekka's entire body.
That power was too strong.
The anesthesia was instantly broken through and dispersed.
Tekka's eyes suddenly widened.
"Ah!"
A scream burst from his throat, like a pig being slaughtered.
But his eyes changed in that instant.
Three tomoe spun wildly in his pupils, so fast they were almost impossible to see.
Ocular power surged from his eye sockets and poured into the chakra pathways throughout his body.
Kiyohara ignored Tekka's scream and continued connecting the remaining pathway ends.
"Kiyohara-kun…"
"Almost done."
Kiyohara said.
Rin bit her lower lip and continued assisting.
Finally, the last chakra pathway was connected.
Kiyohara withdrew the chakra threads and began suturing the wound.
At the same time, the wound on Uchiha Tekka's chest began changing.
The transplanted area had originally only been a small white patch, but the surrounding skin began being assimilated, rapidly expanding in area.
Then the skin slowly bulged and sank, eventually forming a face.
The facial outline of Senju Hashirama appeared.
"It's done."
Kiyohara set down the suture needle.
He raised his hand, and green chakra appeared over his palm as he pressed it against Uchiha Tekka's chest.
Warm Yang Release chakra seeped into the wound, accelerating the healing.
Then he gently stimulated him with chakra.
Uchiha Tekka's body trembled.
He had passed out from the pain, but now he woke up.
"You're finally awake. The surgery was very successful."
Tekka gasped for breath.
He braced himself against the edge of the operating table and slowly sat up.
Then he lowered his head.
He saw the human face on his left chest.
Senju Hashirama's face.
Its tightly shut eyes were facing him.
Uchiha Tekka's face instantly turned white.
Even paler than when he had lost blood just now.
He almost fell off the operating table in fright.
"T-t-t-this…"
His lips trembled as he pointed at the face on his chest.
"What is this?"
"A small, insignificant price."
Kiyohara said.
"Try your strength."
Tekka opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but the words were all stuck in his throat.
He took a deep breath and forced down the horrifying feeling.
Then he supported himself on the operating table and stood.
Kiyohara handed him a clean shirt.
Tekka took it and put it on.
The shirt covered the face on his chest.
He moved his shoulders, then clenched his fist.
Only then did Uchiha Tekka discover that his chakra reserves had become far greater than before.
And he felt that his ocular power had also increased dramatically.
The joy brought by his sudden improvement in strength completely washed away the earlier fear and disgust.
"This little price is nothing."
After hesitating for a moment, Uchiha Tekka accepted reality.
In any case, no one could see the face beneath his clothes.
What was sacrificing a little appearance for strength?
Kiyohara nodded.
"Go back and adapt to it. If there are problems, come find me anytime."
"Okay!"
Uchiha Tekka nodded hard and strode toward the door.
The door closed behind him.
The operating room became quiet again.
Rin took off the bloodstained gloves and threw them into the waste bin.
She exhaled, and her tense shoulders slowly relaxed.
"It seems transplanting them into Uchiha clan members isn't a problem."
Rin paused.
"After optimizing it further for a while, we can try transplanting them into ordinary people."
Kiyohara nodded.
"When that time comes, many disabled ninja will be able to obtain prosthetic limbs no different from normal arms."
He thought about it, then added,
"There's no need to make them perfect. As long as they can be used normally and allow chakra to flow smoothly, that's enough."
Rin nodded.
She lowered her head and looked at her hands that had been stained with blood.
If this succeeded, who knew how many people they could help?
What Kiyohara was thinking about was whether he could use Hashirama cells and White Zetsu cells to clone flesh without consciousness or thought, then use it as nourishment for the Divine Tree.
Kiyohara stroked his chin.
The Chakra Fruit was practically something that allowed one to ascend in a single step. It could instantly create a top-tier combatant.
Of course, the prerequisite was enough energy.
According to Boruto, Earth was also a very rare case. Its fruit was far larger than those of other planets.
"I can start collecting tailed beasts now."
Kiyohara stroked his chin.
He had already found ways to collect some of the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails while they were in the dungeon.
Nohara Rin had the Three-Tails inside her.
The remaining tailed beasts would also be easy to collect. Kiyohara only needed to find an excuse to make contact.
At that time, he could stuff them into the artificial tailed beast.
In theory, the artificial tailed beast could not only become a vessel for dragon vein chakra, it should also be able to become a vessel for other tailed beasts.
This way, Kiyohara would skip the Gedo Statue step.
Would Kaguya Ōtsutsuki still have a backup plan?
Even if she did, if Kiyohara controlled the artificial tailed beast's precision in advance and limited its strength to a certain range,
then laid down sealing techniques…
Would it be possible to capture… Kaguya Ōtsutsuki?