"It reacted…!"
The realization struck Shinji like lightning. The black dot within his consciousness didn't merely respond to his own chakra — it reacted to another person's chakra as well. Excitement surged through him, making his body tremble.
Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately noticed. He withdrew his hand slightly, his brows knitting together.
"Lord Shinji. Are you unwell?"
"It's nothing," Shinji said, steadying his breathing. "Your chakra… my body is responding to it. Please, Hokage-sama — try again. I believe I'm close to discovering why I cannot retain chakra."
Hiruzen hesitated. Allowing someone to directly receive his chakra without medical supervision was unconventional. But the boy before him showed no signs of distress — only intense concentration.
"…Very well."
He placed his palm forward once more, calmly releasing chakra into Shinji's body.
Inside Shinji's sea of consciousness, the black dot stirred.
Like a whirlpool forming in still water, it began drawing in Hiruzen's chakra. Not violently — but irresistibly. Each strand of chakra vanished into it, swallowed completely.
Hiruzen's eyes narrowed slightly.
"My chakra… is disappearing?"
He could clearly sense the chakra he had sent — it was not circulating within Shinji's coils. It was simply gone. Yet Shinji's expression remained composed. No pain. No instability. Nothing dangerous.
Curiosity overtook caution.
Hiruzen increased the flow.
At this time, Sarutobi Hiruzen was still in his prime as Hokage. His chakra reserves, refined through decades of ninjutsu mastery, were vast and steady. Even as more chakra poured forth, his control remained flawless.
Within the sea of consciousness, the black dot pulsed rhythmically now — like a beating heart.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Shinji watched, astonished.
"It's… alive?"
A strange intuition formed in his mind. The black dot did not feel like a jutsu. Nor a seal. It felt like something gestating.
"An embryo? A seed?"
"What exactly did that lightning strike leave inside me…?"
Wild speculation rushed through him — a summoned creature? A forbidden relic? A fragment of some higher existence?
He restrained his thoughts. Whatever it was, one thing was clear:
It needed chakra to grow.
And right now, the Hokage of Konoha was providing it.
Outwardly, Shinji maintained a carefully controlled expression — calm, thoughtful, slightly pleased. He knew the Third Hokage was watching him closely. Any sign of pain or instability, and the chakra supply would stop instantly.
He could not allow that.
If he had to rely on his own pitiful chakra generation, this "seed" might take years to awaken. But with Hiruzen Sarutobi here…
Opportunity had finally arrived.
Slowly, Shinji let a trace of emotion surface — not excessive, just enough to suggest discovery.
His expression shifted subtly:
Surprise.
Realization.
Quiet delight.
Focused satisfaction.
A researcher finding an answer.
Hiruzen, however, felt an inexplicable unease.
"Lord Shinji," he asked carefully, "what are you sensing?"
Shinji opened his eyes halfway.
"…Please continue."
His voice was low, controlled, earnest — not strange, not theatrical. Simply the voice of someone deeply immersed in an experiment.
Hiruzen exhaled through his nose. At least that was normal.
"Very well," he said. "I will maintain the chakra flow until you request otherwise."
Shinji inclined his head respectfully.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama."
He closed his eyes again.
With Hiruzen no longer staring directly at him, Shinji's lips curved into the faintest smile.
Within the sea of consciousness, the black dot now pulsed like a living heart, steadily drinking in chakra.
Whatever was sleeping inside it…
It was beginning to wake.