Inside the cave, a pair of bloodshot eyes stared ruthlessly out into the mouth of the grotto.
Whish—whish!
A flurry of cold flashes streaked outward as sharp kunai embedded themselves in the surrounding rock.
But when the madman saw that the first things to come at him were not a man or woman but a rain of kunai — many of them wired with sparking explosive tags — his pupils snapped wide.
"Argh! None of them are! Haha — then charge out and kill them all!"
Boom—boom—boom!
A terrible series of explosions erupted from the cave, blending with the thunder overhead.
"Get out!" someone shouted.
With a thunderous blast, a figure burst from the cavern, and Uchiha Mikoto shouted a warning.
When the figure emerged, Uchiha Ye's face registered confirmation — just as he'd suspected from Mikoto's intel.
"Haha!" the monstrous figure laughed madly. Dark, terrifying patterns crawled across its face and were spreading — evolving it into a monster.
This was not a tattoo.
This was a cursed seal.
"Jūgo! Cursed seal! A natural sage-type body!" Ye said with a flash of surprise.
Mikoto, beside him, gasped, "Ye — you know?"
Seeing the monster and the black patterns still spreading, Ye barked coldly, "I've heard rumors like this — finish it fast. Don't give the cursed seal time to evolve."
Without hesitation, the two moved in perfect sync, leaping to two separate trees.
The creature that charged out of the cave laughed bloodthirstily.
"Ha! Blood! I want your blood!"
The beast lunged for Mikoto, and Ye, on the opposite side, formed hand seals.
"Kill!"
Screech—
A harsh snap sounded as steel wires gave way — the monster had fallen into a prearranged wire trap. But empowered by the cursed seal, the creature screamed and snapped one steel cable after another with brute force.
At that moment, Ye released chakra and spat a massive fireball.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Mikoto also cried out, completed her seals, and unleashed a fireball even larger than Ye's.
Two great fireballs, one after the other, flew at the monster from different angles at such close range that the creature had no chance to dodge. Even more strangely, it didn't try to evade — it roared and charged straight into the inferno, using sheer brute force.
Boom!
The fireballs detonated in the rain; the thunder masked the sounds of battle. Explosive tags and jutsu detonations rocked the forest; the scene was chaos. The monster, scorched and disfigured, no longer looked human.
"Damn it! It's evolved to this level?" Mikoto panted from her perch on the trunk, eyes grave. Ye frowned, sorting through memory.
In the original timeline, Orochimaru later discovered Jūgo's existence and developed cursed-seal research from it. This family wasn't a bloodline kekkei genkai so much as a special physiological trait — a "sennin-type" body. Unable to control the absorption of natural energy, such people could go berserk.
Berserk. Emotional instability.
Ye made a decision and shouted, "Mikoto-senpai — use genjutsu! This thing can't control its power; exploit its fear!"
Trusting him absolutely, Mikoto didn't hesitate. Her Sharingan's two tomoe spun; she formed seals.
"Genjutsu: Naraku's Vision!"
Instantly, under the rain, the monster's pupils trembled when it met her eyes. Its deepest fears erupted into its mind.
"No — I didn't kill them… don't cast me out… don't—"
Memories flooded up; the creature screamed, overwhelmed by terror.
From its frantic words, Ye inferred it had been unable to control itself, slaughtered people in its village, and was driven away — a broken, wandering man consumed by the sennin power.
"Good opportunity!" Ye called, and while the beast wailed, he launched kunai wired with explosive tags aimed at the mouth and throat — the vital points.
Boom—boom—boom!
Countless detonations swallowed the creature's frantic cries.
Mikoto groaned, clutching her eyes — the mental strain of using genjutsu against a mind saturated with natural-energy influence was immense. Blood tears flowed from her sockets; the battle had bled her vision dry.
Ye used the smoke cover and drew his blade, slipping into the haze.
"No… I didn't kill them… I didn't—"
Gush.
Blood sprayed. A kunai-thrust finished it — a blade driven through the throat. The creature's torso had already been blown apart by explosions; still, the old man's hoarse voice repeated his denial.
Forbidden Art: Chimera Technique — Perfect Version.
Using the smoke, Ye released the forbidden technique he'd kept sealed in his mind for twelve years. He raised a hand; a distinctive diamond-shaped sigil glowed in his palm, and he pressed it to the fallen man's forehead.
At once, the palmed sigil generated a powerful suction.
That pull began to devour the man's special physique energy.
Before their eyes, the monstrous form receded; the body reverted to its original shape.
An emaciated white-haired old man — a person with no chakra — who, after absorbing natural energy, had transformed into a monster.
"Ye!" Mikoto called as the dust settled and rushed forward.
What she found was a mangled corpse with its throat impaled by a kunai driven into the ground.
"I didn't kill… everyone…" the old man rasped again and again as rain rinsed the blood away; his pupils disintegrated as he slipped toward death.
Ye panted, expression grave, and let out a heavy sigh. He was shaken: this man had been an ordinary person with no chakra, not some Jūgo-level shinobi, and yet the cursed-seal sennin physiology had made him horrifically powerful.
"Mikoto-senpai, this intel was off. If we hadn't had enough explosive tags and traps, we might both have died here," he joked darkly.
Mikoto's Sharingan stared unmoved at the lifeless figure.
Ye exhaled, and the diamond sigil in his palm faded. Under his skin, a faint pattern of a seal glimmered and then receded — hidden again.
The Perfect Version of the Chimera Technique could absorb and fuse bloodline traits, but the "perfect" label only meant the technique itself was complete; in practice, it still required long fusion times and gene-stabilizing reagents to let the body adapt.
Yes, the art was "perfect" — but the follow-up still required "funding." Ye cursed inwardly at the thought: everything was a money trap.
He had originally planned to experiment with people from his own clan (closely related blood would fuse more easily). But this cursed-seal sennin's body was a rare, lucky find — and now he wanted to test one of his hypotheses, which might even be useful for Tsunade's plan.
With that thought, Ye's expression grew serious.
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