Time passed in the blink of an eye.
During this period, Toji’s life was calm.
Every day, he moved between Gospel Hospital and the underground lab of the Zenin estate.
Fūinjutsu, curse mark research, development of the Earth Grudge Fear secret technique, and Uchiha human experiments… all drained his energy completely.
The only variation in his routine came on weekends.
He would go to the Ninja Academy to teach the medical class, playing a game of teacher and student with Wakako.
The second change involved Naori.
Her treatment had already ended, yet she didn’t cut off contact.
Instead, every weekend, she would take the initiative to invite him to dinner and request a check-up.
Toji didn’t refuse.
Maintaining a good relationship with the acting head of the Uchiha clan, a powerful ninja who possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan, was beneficial to him.
The check-ups were legitimate.
He regularly conducted brain examinations for her, while also observing her Sharingan and collecting first-hand data.
Naori was very strong, but her story only lived on through word of mouth among later generations of the Uchiha.
Toji believed her bloodline illness carried the same risks as Itachi in the future.
If she didn’t undergo early screening and proper care, she might suddenly fall ill and die one day.
As time went on, their relationship grew closer.
But that closeness was only from her perspective.
For Toji, he had no energy to spend on women.
Aside from that, he didn’t offer any further suggestions regarding the village’s development, such as establishing the Anbu or the Police Force.
First, one should act within their role.
Interfering too much would easily lead to him being labeled as “ambitious.” Only by focusing on medicine and education could he maintain his image of being detached and selfless.
Second, for someone secretly involved in kidnapping and human experimentation, organizations like the Anbu or the Police Force were nothing but obstacles.
They would only increase the risk of exposure.
Toji’s goal had never been to strengthen Konoha.
Everything he did was for himself.
* * * On this day, six months later, the weather was clear.
At last, Toji successfully mastered his first fūinjutsu since arriving in this world, the Five Elements Seal.
He refined chakra, guiding it through specific hand patterns and concentrating it at his fingertips.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
On each of his five fingers, faint purple flames ignited, gently swaying.
“Still not very smooth, but it worked.” Toji turned and walked into the underground room, heading toward Yanagi.
The next moment, without warning, he pressed his hand, filled with sealing power, directly onto her face.
In the original story, Orochimaru used the Five Elements Seal on Naruto’s abdomen, disrupting the stability of the Four Symbols Seal.
By the same logic, to suppress Yanagi’s Izanagi, the seal had to target her eyes.
“Hey, what are you doing?!” she cried out in pain, about to react, but Toji had already withdrawn his hand.
“You’re free.” After saying that, he released the chakra points that had been sealed on her body, allowing her to refine chakra again.
“What did you do to me?” “A fūinjutsu.” Toji didn’t hide anything, speaking plainly.
“Your chakra now has a limit.
If you try to activate Izanagi, your chakra will instantly become unstable, and the jutsu will fail.” “Tch.
I already said I wouldn’t touch my own eyes…” Yanagi closed her eyes and licked the corner of her lips.
Her body instinctively began refining chakra again, and when she opened her eyes, the crimson Sharingan appeared.
At first, it was only two-tomoe.
But then, all the extreme emotions she had built up since being captured, carefully guided by Toji, surged into her mind like a broken dam.
They struck her brain and stirred the sensitive nerves unique to the Uchiha.
The two-tomoe in her eyes spun wildly, twisting and distorting, until they finally stabilized and a third tomoe formed.
Three-tomoe Sharingan.
Their efforts had not been in vain.
Toji calmly watched Yanagi, whose face was filled with joy.
The sudden leap in power was obvious in her expression, yet she still held onto her reason.
She wasn’t overwhelmed by the surge of strength or her long-held anger, and didn’t attack him.
This result was exactly as he expected.
The success of his research was worth noting, but far from enough to make him lose composure.
At her core, Yanagi’s talent was average.
At twenty years old, even after witnessing the collapse of her beliefs, she had only reached two-tomoe.
That alone showed her natural limit.
Everything he had done was simply pushing an average person beyond that limit.
Three-tomoe was only the beginning.
In the long run, the gap to the Mangekyo Sharingan was still vast.
“How does it feel?” Toji asked.
Yanagi stood there, murmuring in a daze, “So this is the power of three-tomoe… it’s truly addictive.
My brother… after gaining this power, he chose to rebel against that woman.
But…” She snapped back to her senses, and a greedy look appeared in her eyes.
“It’s not enough.
This is nowhere near enough.
I want more.
I want even greater power!” Even her brother, who already had three-tomoe, had been forced to kneel before that woman.
So what chance did she have?
The Uchiha were reckless, often losing themselves when emotions ran high, but they weren’t fools.
Based on reality, she knew her own limits.
No matter how hard she tried, she could never become the person she imagined on her own.
Toji had imprisoned her and taken away her freedom, yet during this time she had lost nothing.
Instead, her Sharingan had advanced further.
Without him, she would likely still be wandering the ninja world, searching desperately for Madara-sama’s whereabouts, all while being hunted endlessly by both her clan and the village.
“You said it before, didn’t you?
That you’d let me reach Naori’s level… even surpass her.” Seeing the undisguised greed and desire on Yanagi’s face, Toji understood.
He had succeeded.
He now had a willing servant.
In the end, what a person desires most is what enslaves them.
The Hyuga were slaves to freedom.
The Uchiha were slaves to power.
Curses and fūinjutsu alone could not bring true submission, but if you used what they craved most as bait, they would willingly obey.
After experiencing the thrill of a leap in power, Yanagi could no longer forget it.
Once tasted, it was impossible to turn back.
“Of course,” Toji said calmly.
“You’ll have it.” His tone was full of confidence.
Through long-term contact with Naori, he had already uncovered parts of the secret behind those eyes.
Not just a small part.
A deliberate understatement on his part.
“When?” she asked.
“Too much stimulation will damage your brain.
For a while, you need to settle down and adjust your body to its best state.” Then Toji shifted the topic.
“I’ve shown my sincerity.
Now it’s your turn.” Yanagi recalled what he had previously said about equivalent exchange, and a bloodthirsty smile curled on her lips.
“What do you want me to do?” “Ninja,” Toji answered simply.
“Use any method.
Bring me ninjas who have lost the ability to move, but must still be alive.
The stronger, the better.
No more than two at a time.” “Don’t act too frequently.
You’ll attract attention.
Bring them to me on the last day of the month.” ** ** ** Thank you for reading!
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