Before using the Demon Bud Technique to fuse with Uchiha blood, Kurogane Ren had done some research.
Although the Uchiha clan generally avoided intermarriage with outsiders to preserve the purity of their bloodline, there were still a few rare cases in the story where outsiders might have married into the clan.
Of course, Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura didn't count. At that time, Sasuke was the only remaining Uchiha, with not a single woman left in the clan, so he had no choice but to marry outside.
Even so, Kurogane Ren was still a bit concerned. If the one he had chosen happened to be a descendant of an outsider, it would be troublesome.
Because of this, he had checked the person's records. Fortunately, the individual wasn't anyone important within the Uchiha clan and had only awakened the Sharingan just before death, without anyone knowing.
That made the records accessible to him. After confirming that all of the person's ancestors since the founding of the village were Uchiha, he finally relaxed. As for before the village was established, it was even more impossible for the Uchiha to have intermarried with outsiders.
As long as the purity of the bloodline was ensured, awakening the Sharingan could be handled by himself.
As for why he had the authority to access such records, it was naturally because he was no longer idle.
After Minato Namikaze became the Fourth Hokage, he began promoting his own people. Kurogane Ren was fortunate enough to be selected and became the leader of the Sealing Team.
If it had been any other department, he would have refused out of annoyance. But the Sealing Team was different, so he ultimately accepted.
After all, being the leader of the Sealing Team granted access to the village's sealing techniques. More importantly, it allowed him to approach the barrier sealing technique that enveloped the entire village.
This was crucial to whether he could freely use the Summoning Technique to come and go.
At this moment, Kurogane Ren observed the Kaguya clansmen within the dense mist, their expressions filled with confusion as they looked around. He had already tested that the Sharingan could see through this kind of mist.
That was why this technique was called Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Technique, rather than the Mist Hidden Technique used by Kirigakure.
The two were fundamentally different. The Mist Hidden Technique was a specialized jutsu of the Hidden Mist Village, where the generated fog was infused with chakra, capable of obstructing the Sharingan's vision.
For example, Momochi Zabuza had once used the Mist Hidden Technique to restrict Hatake Kakashi's three-tomoe Sharingan.
The Hidden Mist Technique created by Kurogane Ren was fundamentally simple—it combined Water Release and Fire Release to produce mist. This mist contained no chakra, so it couldn't interfere with the Sharingan.
There was precedent for this as well. When the Second Hokage used Water Release and Fire Release to create steam, it didn't hinder Uchiha Izuna's Sharingan.
As for why Kurogane Ren possessed Fire Release, the answer was simple—he was now an Uchiha. It was rare to find an Uchiha who didn't have Fire Release.
However, Kurogane Ren quickly deactivated his Sharingan. This time, he wasn't planning to rely on it to kill.
Instead… he would rely on perception.
He wanted to gradually comprehend it and awaken the power within the Uzumaki bloodline—the Kagura Mind's Eye.
His figure moved silently through the mist. He slowly approached a Kaguya clansman, and by the time the man noticed him and tried to pounce, Kurogane Ren had already slit his throat with a kunai.
Without a change in expression, he moved on to the next target. His footsteps made no sound, and his movements produced no disturbance. Within the dense mist, he was like a ghost.
This was… the Silent Killing Technique.
Kurogane Ren didn't know what Momochi Zabuza's version of Silent Killing looked like. His own version was centered around Wind Release.
Using Wind Release, he completely erased the sound of his movements, ensuring that even the mist showed no sign of disturbance.
He could even use Wind Release during combat to reduce air resistance and generate propulsion, increasing his speed.
But here, it seemed unnecessary.
He walked casually, his kunai continuously harvesting the lives of one Kaguya clansman after another.
Suddenly, he paused.
Within his perception, the Kaguya clansmen had begun attacking each other. Unable to distinguish friend from foe in the mist, they treated everyone around them as enemies.
They showed no mercy, and many had already died at the hands of their own companions.
"How insane," Kurogane Ren muttered again, growing accustomed to their madness.
But that didn't stop him from continuing his slaughter. While they killed each other, when he struck, they usually only realized someone was near in their final moments.
When the mist finally dissipated, Kurogane Ren stood atop a field of corpses. Blood flowed across the ground, yet his clothes remained dry, untouched by a single stain.
Looking toward the Kaguya clan's houses, he sensed that not a single person remained inside.
When they realized an enemy had come, they had all rushed out to confront him.
And now, they all lay here, lifeless.
Thus, the Kaguya clan met its end several years ahead of time.
Kurogane Ren walked through the clan's territory, his perception spread to its limits as he searched for Kaguya Kimimaro.
He remembered that Kimimaro had been locked in a small cell, surrounded by uneven rock walls.
As he thought, he paid attention to buildings matching that description.
After some time, he finally found a house with a basement and entered.
There, he saw a prison cell. Though torches burned, the place was still dim.
Kurogane Ren clearly sensed a faint emptiness in the chakra within the boy's body. When he noticed it, he paused, then a smile curled at his lips.
This should be the function of the Kagura Mind's Eye. As long as he continued like this, he would eventually master it completely.
He stepped forward and stood before the cell, looking at the small figure inside.
At this time, Kimimaro was even younger than in the original story, yet he was already imprisoned.
"Who are you?" Kimimaro hadn't paid much attention at first, but upon seeing Kurogane Ren, he froze. In his memory, Kaguya clansmen didn't dress like this.
"I'm a ninja who enjoys collecting unusual things. I'm very interested in your bloodline ability. So, would you be willing to give it to me?" Kurogane Ren asked.
Kimimaro was stunned. He didn't understand what the man meant. After frowning slightly, he replied, "I don't know what you're talking about… and I don't know how to give it to you."
Chapter 35: Haku and Jugo
Kurogane Ren was also momentarily stunned by Kimimaro's response and couldn't help but examine him more closely.
Even as a child, Kimimaro already had his distinctive appearance—two red dots on his forehead, a bone blade in hand, and the faint scent of dirt lingering on him.
Scratches could still be seen on the prison walls, fresh and recent.
It was obvious that before Kurogane Ren arrived, the boy had been scraping the walls with his bone blade.
Kurogane Ren sighed inwardly. If he needed subordinates, Kimimaro would undoubtedly be among the best.
But he didn't need any, and the boy's bloodline disease doomed him to a short life.
Even Orochimaru, who had the deepest understanding of the human body, and the highly skilled medic Kabuto Yakushi couldn't cure it together. That showed just how stubborn it was.
In the original story, Kimimaro lived to fifteen. Without Orochimaru and Kabuto, he likely wouldn't even reach that age.
Kurogane Ren had no intention of studying the disease. If those two couldn't solve it, there was no point wasting his time.
"Hmm, then let me put it another way. Can you give me your body?" Kurogane Ren said directly. He had no intention of manipulating the boy with words.
Kimimaro immediately became wary. Even at a young age, he understood the meaning behind those words.
However, as soon as Kurogane Ren finished speaking, his finger touched Kimimaro's forehead. Instantly, countless curse marks spread from that point, covering the boy's body.
When Kimimaro tried to use his bloodline ability, he realized he could no longer control the bones that once moved as naturally as his limbs.
Even his limbs themselves began to lose all strength, and he collapsed to the ground.
Kurogane Ren lifted the small body, intending to freeze his time at this moment, halting the bloodline disease before it could fully manifest.
He had no plans to fuse with him using the Demon Bud Technique yet. That disease was no joke.
If it weren't for Orochimaru eventually taking Kimimaro away, he wouldn't even bother taking him now.
As for the bloodline disease, Kurogane Ren believed it couldn't withstand Hashirama cells. But the problem was that the invasive nature of those cells would likely be difficult for him to endure as well.
Therefore, the Shikotsumyaku bloodline would have to wait until everything was ready—until he could withstand the disease—before being fused.
Afterward, he stood within the Kaguya clan's territory, thinking.
In the Land of Water, there was also a young boy named Haku who possessed Ice Release.
Kurogane Ren had no interest in fusing Ice Release through the Demon Bud Technique. At this time, Haku's parents were still alive, unaware of his bloodline, and he was living a "happy" life.
However, unlike the well-known Kaguya clan, Haku lived in an obscure village. Finding him would be difficult.
So the question was—should he spend a large amount of time searching for him?
Kurogane Ren recalled everything about Haku. Since arriving in this world, his memory had improved significantly. Things he might not have remembered in his previous life now came easily.
He knew this was due to the strengthening of his mental energy, which was a good thing.
In the end, he summoned a group of crows and instructed them to search for a village that experienced snowfall year-round.
Even in the Land of Water, such places were rare, so it shouldn't be too difficult.
Although these crow summons couldn't perform reverse summoning and lacked a complete inheritance, making it hard for them to speak, their intelligence was still sufficient.
As long as he gave clear instructions each time, they could understand and execute them well. They were quite useful summons.
Watching the crows fly off, Kurogane Ren noted that this was already the second batch sent to search for people.
Yes, there had been a first batch.
The first group was much larger and was currently searching outward from Takigakure.
Their target was Jugo, the man born with an uncontrollable Sage Body.
Although the original story never specified Jugo's village, his Sage Body was most likely connected to Ryuchi Cave.
After Kabuto emerged from training in Sage Mode at Ryuchi Cave, the first ninja he encountered was from Takigakure. So even if the cave wasn't located there, it should be nearby.
Searching outward from Takigakure was the right approach.
Finding Jugo would actually be simple—just wait for him to speak first. If a crow could confirm that he understood its language, his identity would be clear.
Thinking of Jugo, Kurogane Ren suddenly paused.
After connecting all the characters related to Orochimaru, he finally realized what had been bothering him—the timeline felt completely off.
He looked at Kimimaro in his hands, who was only two or three years old. At this time, Jugo would also be around that age.
But in his memory, the two met when they were already in their teens—nearly ten years later.
Orochimaru's curse mark, as he recalled, was developed based on Jugo's physique. Yet Orochimaru had already branded Anko Mitarashi with the Heaven Curse Mark before defecting.
So the question was—Orochimaru's defection wasn't far off now, at most one or two years away.
Within that short time, would Orochimaru first find Kimimaro, then somehow have him grow into a teenager, and then send him to find a suddenly grown-up Jugo?
Kurogane Ren rubbed his temples. The timeline was a complete mess.
Perhaps he had remembered incorrectly. Maybe Orochimaru had initially researched the curse mark using Jugo's clan, and after Jugo went berserk and destroyed the village, the research materials were lost—but Orochimaru learned of Jugo's existence.
Then, he sent Kimimaro to find Jugo, allowing the two to meet.
That explanation seemed the most reasonable.
Kurogane Ren sighed. No matter what, he needed to find Jugo before Orochimaru did.
He had no intention of fusing with Jugo using the Demon Bud Technique. Jugo's unstable condition made it too risky. No matter how powerful it was, losing one's sanity would always lead to being defeated by someone clear-minded.
Instead of fusing with Jugo, it would be better to use his physique to develop something similar to Orochimaru's curse mark.
After thinking it through, Kurogane Ren used the Summoning Technique to return to his laboratory, settled Kimimaro in place, and then went back to Konoha.
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