Yao raised his right hand, aiming at his left eye socket.
No anesthesia!
No hesitation!
A forceful gouge!
"Urgh..."
Intense pain exploded from the optic nerves, sweeping through half his brain. Blood flowed down through his fingers and cheek.
Yao sucked in a breath of cold air, took out his original eyeball intact, and placed it in the prepared nutrient solution.
Then he picked up a three-tomoe Sharingan and placed it into his eye socket.
Life force surged again, frantically repairing the damage.
This process was several times longer and more painful than the arm transplant.
Beads of fine, cold sweat seeped from Yao's forehead, his body trembling slightly.
Two minutes later, the violent sensation of restoration finally subsided.
Yao slowly opened his left eye.
Chakra flow was smooth.
Visual enhancement was stable.
Nerve connections were secure.
No rejection reaction!
The three tomoe spun.
An unprecedented dynamic vision capability surged up.
Yao could see the trajectory of tiny dust motes floating in the air and the slightest tremor of leaves outside the window.
Obviously!
Three-Tomoe Sharingan...
Transplant successful!
"Step one, complete!"
Yao muttered to himself.
"Time to transplant the Mangekyō!"
Without further hesitation, Yao gouged out his right eye and placed the original eyeball into another prepared solution bottle.
Better save the original eyeball; just in case something goes wrong in the future, it could be transplanted back.
No delay!
Yao opened the small bottle, took out Shisui's Mangekyō right eye, and placed it into the empty right eye socket.
Buzz!
Instantly, a completely different sensation was transmitted.
Cold, powerful ocular power surged fiercely back towards Yao's brain along the newly formed nerve connections.
Unlike the docility of the ordinary Sharingan, this Mangekyō was like a ferocious beast trying to devour its master!
Intense rejection accompanied an explosion of powerful ocular power.
Memory fragments that didn't belong to Yao suddenly flashed.
Moments of darkness, the piercing pain of betrayal, entrustment to a close friend, the coldness and despair of falling into the river...
"Hmph... a coward in life, and restless in death?"
Yao snorted coldly, immediately concentrating all his spirit and will to forcibly suppress this residual mental impact.
The vitality of the Sage's Body also transformed into the most solid backing.
While repairing the trauma, it rapidly smoothed out those restless mental echoes.
Finally...
The rebellious will gradually dissipated, and the cold ocular power obediently blended and merged with his chakra.
The stinging pain at the eye socket also gradually turned into a warm sensation of fusion.
Restoration complete!
Yao adjusted his breathing to calm his somewhat chaotic chakra, then opened both eyes.
Still in the three-tomoe form!
With a thought from Yao.
The three tomoe quickly connected, forming a complex and beautiful four-pointed pinwheel pattern.
It was the unique appearance of Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan.
Yao's mind stirred slightly as he attempted to inject chakra into this newly acquired Mangekyō Sharingan, carefully sensing the unique power contained within its depths.
Soon, a clear "concept" was fed back:
Kotoamatsukami!
This right eye indeed housed the pupil technique Kotoamatsukami!
It was a terrifying genjutsu capable of warping reality and modifying will!
But unfortunately, the Kotoamatsukami at this moment was in a cooldown state.
The cooldown period was despairingly long; judging from his current perception, it would definitely not be unsealed in a short time.
Yao wasn't surprised by this result; since Danzo had used Kotoamatsukami, naturally it couldn't be used immediately.
He didn't care about this.
Only someone like Danzo, who lacked strength himself, would think of using Kotoamatsukami to control others.
He, Uchiha Yao, possessed powerful strength himself; there was absolutely no need to use Kotoamatsukami!
It could be said.
For Uchiha Yao, the Kotoamatsukami pupil technique was the most useless among many Mangekyō techniques.
What Yao truly valued was the Susanoo that came with the Mangekyō!
But the problem was, to activate Susanoo, both eyes must be present.
So, he must obtain Shisui's Mangekyō left eye!
"Itachi!"
"Uchiha Itachi!"
"I hope you appear in Konoha just like in the story; Uchiha Shisui's left eye is mine for the taking!"
Yao muttered a low whisper, temporarily suppressing this thought. He blinked, beginning to adapt to the changes in his eyes.
Going from ordinary eyes to suddenly having a three-tomoe and a Mangekyō Sharingan, the change in vision was immense!
Yao had to seize the time to adapt.
...
The next day.
The smell of gunpowder and grief hovering over Konoha had not yet dissipated.
Explosive news swept through the entire ninja world at an astonishing speed:
During the Chunin Exams, Konoha's S-class rogue ninja Orochimaru, in collusion with Shimura Danzo, a high-ranking official of Konoha and head of "Root," joined forces with the Sand and Sound Villages to launch a massive attack on Konoha!
In this turmoil, the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, who had governed Konoha for nearly forty years... died in battle!
After causing massive destruction, Orochimaru and Danzo successfully fled.
Konoha issued S-class wanted orders, hunting down the original S-class rogue ninja Orochimaru and Root leader Danzo across the ninja world.
This news was an earthquake-level shock to the ninja world.
What kind of place was Konoha?
Since its establishment by the First Hokage, Konoha had always been recognized as the number one ninja village in the ninja world, the military pillar of the Land of Fire among the Five Great Nations, with formidable strength.
And the Third Hokage was not only the longest-serving Kage of Konoha but also a legendary figure who had experienced two Ninja World Wars and was hailed as the "Professor of Ninjutsu."
He possessed significant prestige and influence throughout the ninja world.
His fall...
The impact was too great!
...
Land of Earth, Iwagakure (Hidden Stone Village).
Onoki, the Fence Sitter, looked at the urgent intelligence scroll in his hand, sitting on the Tsuchikage's chair, silent for a long time.
"That old geezer Sarutobi Hiruzen, actually died?" Onoki muttered in a low voice, his tone complex.
As fellow Third generations, Onoki and Sarutobi Hiruzen were old rivals, and they had a mutual appreciation for each other.
But...
The Third Hokage actually died in battle!
Onoki's mood was very complicated, with a slight sigh for the passing of an old rival, and even more sadness.
Sarutobi Hiruzen was dead.
What about himself?
After a long while.
Onoki adjusted his emotions and issued orders: "Pass down the order, strengthen patrol levels on the eastern border!"
"Also, increase the Intelligence Division's manpower by thirty percent, focusing on infiltrating the border areas of the Land of Fire and the outskirts of Konoha."
"I want to know every bit of truth about Konoha right now, the movements of every Jonin! Every bit of strength!"
"Yes!"
The war machine of Iwagakure began to operate rapidly.
A large number of ninja skilled in reconnaissance were sent towards the Land of Fire.
Onoki calculated well: Konoha suffering such heavy losses and the reduction of high-end combat power would inevitably lead to internal instability.
This was the best time to gather intelligence, exert pressure, and even test the boundaries to gain benefits.
There was no helping it.
Who told the Land of Fire to occupy the most fertile land in the ninja world?