That evening, Menma stayed for dinner at Kanon's house.
Kanon had prepared a lavish feast.
At the table, Kanon looked at Haku, who was eating elegantly with small bites, and then looked at Karin, who was shoveling food into her mouth like a starving wolf. She couldn't help but sigh inwardly, 'It would be great if Haku was a girl, then I'd have two daughters.'
'Not that boys are bad, but… Haku's just so pretty. He really looks more like a girl…' The more Kanon looked at Haku, the more she felt it was a pity that Haku was not a girl.
After dinner, Kanon busied herself… washing dishes, clearing the table, and preparing a room for Haku.
Originally, she'd considered having Haku and Karin share a room so that the two children could keep each other company. But now that she knew Haku was a boy, that idea was scrapped.
Instead, she cleaned out a room that was originally used for storing miscellaneous items and converted it into Haku's bedroom.
Seeing that Kanon was so busy, Menma decided not to overstay his welcome and took his leave.
…
In the basement laboratory of the medical building, Menma's shadow clones are busily conducting various research tasks.
The medical building sat between the research zone and the residential area, which is close enough for convenience.
However, since Medical Ninjutsu was still in its developmental stages, progress was slow. Though Menma had mastered some Medical Ninjutsu, he was not a specialist in the field. As a result, progress in training medical ninjas was relatively slow.
Truth be told, relying solely on his shadow clones was too difficult, so he needed to recruit more researchers.
"You're here." One of the shadow clones marked with the number 11 on his back raised a hand to greet the original.
"Have you fully deciphered Orochimaru's research data?" Menma walked over to a computer in the lab.
Though the computers looked somewhat outdated, resembling those from the early 2000s back on Earth, their processing power was still remarkably strong.
"I have to say as expected of Uncle Snake… It wasn't long after we gave him the White Zetsu, but he already produced some results." Shadow clone No. 11 pressed a switch.
The next moment, the large screen in front of the computer lit up, displaying detailed data and a human anatomical diagram.
Shadow clone No. 11 explained, "The Iburi Clan worships the forest. They have long lived in tree hollows within the woods, and their bodies contain both Earth and Water Attribute Chakras, which serves as fertile ground for nurturing Wood Release."
"Orochimaru then used the Divine Tree's genes extracted from the White Zetsu as seeds, incubated them with Hashirama's cells to achieve a neutralizing effect, and extracted the most stable cells before implanting them into the skin tissue of an Ibuki Clan's member. This effectively stabilized the genetic structure of the Iburi Clan."
"However, to continue deeper research, live human experimentation is necessary." Shadow clone No. 11 said, turning his gaze to his main body.
"Live human experimentation, huh..." Menma stared at the data on the screen, his brow furrowing slightly beneath his mask.
Even in the Limited Tsukuyomi World, he held firm to his principle of never conducting live experiments on ordinary people.
"Gotta has already volunteered to participate in the experiment." Shadow clone No. 11 pressed another switch and spoke into a microphone, "Tell Gotta to come up."
Before long, the leader of the Iburi Clan, Gotta, walked solemnly into the laboratory.
After seeing Shura wearing a white three-eyed fox mask, Gotta knelt on one knee and said: "Shura-sama, please allow me to participate in the experiment."
"The mortality rate in the early stages of the experiment is very high." Menma's voice came from beneath the mask.
"Shura-sama, I am already twenty-three years old." Gotta looked up at Shura with a firm gaze and said sincerely, "I don't have much time left."
Gotta's initiative reminded Menma of what he had said when introducing the Iburi Clan's situation.
"Due to the instability of our Kekkei Genkai, members of the Iburi Clan rarely live past twenty-five."
It might be a form of genetic illness, so Gotta's life was already on a countdown. If a method to stabilize the Iburi Clan's Kekkei Genkai wasn't developed within two years, Gotta would turn into smoke and scatter with the wind.
Therefore, Gotta was not only pledging his loyalty to Menma, but also offering his life to secure more opportunities for his clansmen.
Understanding Gotta's resolve, Menma no longer refused and instead asked, "Then, have you prepared for the worst?"
Gotta answered solemnly, "My wife is already pregnant, and along with other expectant women in the clan, we should have five newborns next year."
"As for the position of head, I wish to follow the Iburi Clan's tradition and pass it to Yukimi. I seek your permission."
As Shura's private property, Gotta had already entrusted everything of the Iburi Clan to him, including the appointment of the next head.
"Oh?" Menma tilted his head slightly.
'Yukimi was only about fourteen or fifteen. She's not yet fully grown, and there were older clansmen in the Iburi Clan, so why not pass the position of clan's head to other clansmen?'
Gotta seemed to see through Menma's thought, and explained, "Our clan's lifespan is too short… we die before twenty-five. So, each clan's head is appointed by the previous head when they feel their death approaching, choosing a young clansman to succeed them."
"This way, we can ensure a period of stability for eight to nine years."
Children in the Ninja World matured early, and some outstanding ones already had the mindset of adults by twelve or thirteen.
But in the Iburi Clan, taking on the role of head at that age and bearing the clan's burdens until their death, which lasted roughly less than ten years, was a heavy responsibility passed down in an endless cycle.
"In that case, go and prepare." Menma nodded slowly as he looked at Gotta, who was ready to face death.
"I've already said my goodbyes to the clan before coming!" Gotta stood up and took a blue-and-white-striped hospital gown from a lab assistant.
Menma acknowledged this, and while Gotta changed into the gown, he walked over to the glass window of another experimental ward.
Inside the ward, Kimimaro lay trembling on the hospital bed, several tubes inserted into his body delivering sedatives and various medications. A few shadow clones were conducting detailed examinations and diagnostics of his condition.
"Has a treatment plan for Kimimaro been finalized?" Menma asked Shadow clone No. 12, who was overseeing the case.
Shadow clone No. 12, who was in charge of Kimimaro, nodded, took out a document, and reported: "According to the research, the issue with Kimimaro's Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai stems from an imbalance in Yang Attribute Chakra. Fortunately, we didn't recklessly experiment with White Zetsu's Divine Tree's genes or Hashirama's cells for adjustment, otherwise, the consequences would have been disastrous."
Yang Release is the power of life derived from physical energy, which grants form to the formless.
In other words, all physical transformations are related to Yang Release, such as the Akimichi Clan's Multi-Size Technique, the Uzumaki Clan's vitality, and the Senju Clan's rapid healing… all fall under Yang Release's domain.
Conversely, Yin Release originates from spiritual energy, governing imagination, and possesses the ability to create form from nothingness.
For example, the Nara Clan's Shadow Imitation Technique, the Yamanaka Clan's mind-based ninjutsu, and most notably, the Sharingan!
The Sharingan synchronizes with emotional power, and the stronger the emotions, the greater the awakened strength.
This also explains why the Sharingan's Genjutsu, Izanagi, can rewrite reality.
"Therefore, we recommend implanting either a Sharingan or a Byakugan into Kimimaro to test whether Yin Attribute Chakra can neutralize the imbalance in his Yang Attribute Chakra." Shadow clone No. 12 proposed.
"An eye transplant?" Menma pondered briefly.
It's not that transplantation is difficult… After all, eyes like the Sharingan and Byakugan in the Ninja World were practically plug-and-play.
"I remember that the Kaguya Clan and the Hyuga Clan are distant relatives, right?" Menma thought that as distant relatives, transplanting the Byakugan might yield the best results.
"Correct." Shadow clone No. 12 nodded: "The Hyuga Clan, the Kaguya Clan, and the Otsutsuki Clan on the moon are all descendants of Hamura."
"In contrast, the Senju Clan, the Uchiha Clan, and the Uzumaki Clan are descendants of Hagoromo."
"The Byakugan, huh..." Menma mused. While he had acquired two different Sharingan, he didn't possess a Byakugan.
Moreover, obtaining a Byakugan was far more difficult. After all, the Hyuga Clan's Caged Bird ensured that once an eye was removed from the body, the Cursed Seal would activate and destroy it.
While Menma has the [Cage Seal] that can temporarily seal the Caged Bird, it wasn't a permanent solution.
The only Byakugan not bound by the Caged Bird belonged to the Hyuga Clan's main family' members, and one exception: Ao of Kirigakure.
'However, Ao's Byakugan needed to remain where it was to keep causing trouble for Obito. Letting Obito continue manipulating Kirigakure unchecked wasn't an option.'
'It seemed the only way forward was to target the Hyuga Clan's main family directly.'