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The Sharingan.
The bloodline limit of the Uchiha clan, descendants of Indra, the second son of the Sage of Six Paths.
It awakens through intense emotional stimulation and continues to evolve. One tomoe, Two tomoe, Three tomoe, Mangekyo.
To evolve the Mangekyo into the Eternal Mangekyo, one must transplant the Mangekyo Sharingan of a close blood relative.
As for the Rinnegan, only a reincarnation of Indra's chakra who implants the flesh or cells of Asura's reincarnation can awaken it.
The Rinnegan is the final form of the Sharingan.
"One tomoe."
"The conversion efficiency is painfully low."
Orochimaru murmured as he stared at his reflection in the mirror.
The Sharingan's core abilities were perception, copying, and genjutsu. With only one tomoe, its effects were extremely limited.
He had devoured six eyeballs, yet the return was minimal.
"But that hardly matters."
"This ability alone is already impressive."
With a thought, Orochimaru deactivated the Sharingan. His pupils returned to their usual appearance.
As long as he had Uchiha test subjects at his disposal, he could cultivate as many new eyes as he wanted, As long as the quantity was sufficient, reaching the final stage was only a matter of time.
"Since eyeballs work, I wonder if other things will too."
A thought crossed his mind.
Would drinking blood work?
What about eating flesh?
It seemed further testing was required.
He glanced at the clock on the wall. Without realizing it, two hours had passed.
At one in the afternoon.
The underground base was still terrifyingly quiet.
Aside from the occasional footsteps of staff passing by, there was no other sound.
Orochimaru once again pushed open the chamber where Shisui was being held.
Thud.
The bound youth knocked weakly against the operating table.
"Heh..."
"You're awake, Your vitality really is impressive."
"Too bad you can't speak anymore."
Orochimaru said calmly.
Upon hearing Orochimaru's voice, Uchiha Shisui struck the table again.
He had no idea why Orochimaru was keeping him alive, but no matter the reason, his current existence was worse than death.
He wanted nothing more than to die, rather than live on as a test subject.
"Relax."
"I will not kill you until I have drained every last bit of your value. After all, I just discovered something remarkable today."
"Oh, Right."
"I almost forgot why I came here."
Orochimaru tapped his forehead lightly and calmly put on a pair of gloves.
He prepared a scalpel, a glass cup, and several bandages along with hemostatic medicine.
Expressionless, he sliced open a vein in Shisui's arm.
After collecting half a cup of blood, he used the scalpel to remove a small piece of flesh from the same arm.
He then efficiently stopped the bleeding and wrapped the wound in clean white bandages.
The entire process was smooth and practiced, without a trace of hesitation.
Whether as a physician or as Orochimaru, this was work he had done countless times.
Only after finishing did he smile in satisfaction.
He tossed the gloves into the trash and left the chamber with the half cup of blood and the piece of flesh.
What a marvelous discovery.
This body could devour the power of the bloodline's limits.
Given enough time, he might consume every unique bloodline and power in the shinobi world, becoming the next undying Kaguya.
Perhaps he could even devour Kaguya herself.
Inside the room.
"Let's start with the blood."
Orochimaru lifted the glass, inhaling the sharp scent of the crimson, viscous liquid, He licked his lips.
That familiar hunger surged again.
Gulp~
Like downing a glass of strong liquor, he drank it in one go.
The reaction came faster than before; Stronger, Hotter, far more painful.
Alongside the searing pain came a strange warmth, as if his eyes were soaking in heated water. The flow of blood through his body accelerated noticeably.
Only after half an hour did the process finally subside.
Orochimaru opened his eyes and activated the Sharingan once more.
It was still in the one tomoe state, but its perceptive ability had clearly strengthened. Consuming blood produced a far better effect.
"Next is the flesh."
After briefly admiring his eyes, Orochimaru summoned the White Phosphorus Serpent again.
His right hand transformed into a snake and swallowed the small piece of flesh.
Unfortunately.
The effect of blood was significant, but the flesh produced only a faint response. Its effectiveness was not even a tenth of the blood's.
It seemed that only the eyeballs themselves and the blood of the Uchiha truly mattered.
"The Uchiha clan will be wiped out in about six years."
"When that time comes, most of the spoils will be in Danzo's hands. I can simply take them from him."
Orochimaru thought calmly.
The main characters were still infants. The true story had not yet begun. There was no urgency to grow stronger immediately, Planning for the future was what mattered.
"Next, I will bring Kabuto back, That child's learning ability will relieve much of my burden."
"Then I will go to the Land of Whirlpools to find the Reaper Mask and the method to undo the Reaper Death Seal."
"And one of the three great dōjutsu, the Byakugan, there will be an opportunity for that as well."
The more Orochimaru thought, the more tasks piled up.
His ability to survive was already more than sufficient. It was nearly impossible to erase him completely.
Every curse mark he created carried a fragment of his soul. Even if his main body were destroyed, he could resurrect himself through those remnants.
Still, there was enormous room to grow in raw power.
Time slipped by quietly.
Before he realized it, three days had passed inside the base.
The clones created from cells taken from Shisui were already developing inside fourteen surrogate bodies.
During that time, Orochimaru had drawn blood from Shisui once more.
However, the concentration of Uchiha blood within him was still insufficient. Or perhaps it was because Shisui's original body was not purely Uchiha. The evolution of the Sharingan remained extremely slow.
It was still stuck at one tomoe, barely usable.
"Lord Orochimaru."
"My eyes hurt so much, I have not seen sunlight in a long time, and suddenly."
Anko covered her eyes with her hands.
After going without sunlight for too long, sudden exposure caused intense stinging pain.
"It is fine."
"You will adjust to life above ground again soon, Your body just needs time to adapt."
Orochimaru gently rubbed around Anko's eyes, massaging them carefully.
The girl let out a small sigh of relief, enjoying the rare moment of comfort.
A soothing sensation spread around her eyes, and she could slowly begin to open them.
"Thank you, Sensei."
Anko smiled softly.
Since the underground base was filled with laboratory equipment and prison cells, there were none of the things a girl might need. She was still wearing the same outfit as the days before.
The black mesh outfit looked good on her, but changing clothes would not hurt.
Even if she did not say it, she surely wanted new clothes.
"Let's go, We will stop by the village first and buy you some clothes."
Orochimaru said with a faint smile.
"Thank you, Sensei."
For the first time in days, the girl smiled so brightly.
Like a small flower blooming in frozen wasteland, it brought a trace of warmth even to the darkest heart.
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~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
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Thank you so much for your support and for reading! Cr