One year later.
The ninja world was still mostly at peace, though local skirmishes continued to flare up from time to time. Prices of ninja tools—kunai, explosive tags, and the like—had crept up slightly.
Orochimaru and the others had also returned to Konoha to recuperate.
A full year of near-constant battles had made them all stronger, and their understanding of ninjutsu had deepened considerably.
Orochimaru, meanwhile, had finally learned of his beloved student's physical condition. After collecting a blood sample, he shut himself away in his lab to begin research.
Unfortunately for him, the results were underwhelming. The only real conclusion he came to was that Uchiha Kaien's cell activity was slightly lower than average. Nothing serious.
Even after passing the data along to Tsunade, the conclusion remained the same. It made Orochimaru wonder—could it really be that Sakumo's sword meditation was working?
Swordsmanship could do that? Should he be learning kenjutsu, too?
"This is the final test. Kaien's cells are completely stable now. When compared with samples from Minato and Kushina, the only real difference is a slight drop in cellular activity."
Orochimaru turned and spoke to the group waiting for results.
It was the conclusion he and Tsunade had reached together—probably the most authoritative medical assessment Konoha could offer.
Among them, Uzumaki Kushina's cellular activity was the highest, followed by Namikaze Minato, then Uchiha Kaien.
"Hmm. Looks like the issue from the single tomoe was easier to solve than expected," Sakumo said with a nod.
He hadn't expected Kaien's progress to be this fast. Still, the boy had clearly grasped the essence of his sword techniques. As for his progress in sword meditation, only Kaien himself knew how far he'd come.
"Really? That's great news."
Kaien's eyes welled up with emotion—he was clearly relieved to hear his physical issues had been resolved.
And it was just as Orochimaru had said: his body was fine now.
Old Madara had been generous, occasionally lending Kaien some of the power to nourish his body.
What was an overabundance of spirit energy when faced with such divine power? It was barely a ripple.
The energy calmed his overwhelming mental force, strengthened his natural attributes, and raised his physical limits. That was the true magic of the power.
Under its influence, there was essentially no difference between a single-tomoe and three-tomoe Sharingan—though the leap in quality between the two remained significant.
By the time Kaien had fully digested that divine energy, even Orochimaru's physical examination could no longer find anything abnormal.
As for the issue of low cell activity—it was simply because Kaien's body had grown too hungry for energy.
His limits had increased, but his usual intake of nutrients could no longer support that growth. That lack of fuel made his cells seem less active.
In other words, he just needed to eat more—his body had entered a growth phase.
Overcome with emotion, Kaien instinctively activated his Sharingan. The scarlet, demonic glow of his eye lent him a colder, sharper presence than usual.
But the chill didn't last long.
Kaien's Sharingan suddenly began to spin, the single tomoe blurring—until it split and reformed into two.
Double tomoe!
Even though his Sharingan had evolved, the eerie aura it once had was gone. In its place was something more... calm. Natural.
None of them could explain it, but it didn't feel like a bad thing.
Most Uchiha who awakened their Sharingan grew emotionally unstable—cold, withdrawn, and difficult to read. But Kaien hadn't changed at all.
"Kaien, your eye…" Minato was the first to speak.
"My eye? What about it?" Kaien tilted his head, feigning ignorance—though inside, he was grinning from ear to ear.
What a joke. I've had three tomoe all along. I just disguised it as a one-tomoe before. Now I'm pretending I've evolved it to two—completely logical after a year of spirit control training, right?
And besides, I didn't awaken my eye from grief or trauma, so of course there's no bloodlust. If anything, this just makes me seem like a decent guy!
"You've got an extra tomoe now," Minato chuckled, amused by Kaien's innocent expression. Still, he was genuinely happy his friend's health issues had been resolved.
Then a thought struck him—if the problem with the single tomoe was fixed, what about the two-tomoe Sharingan?
"That's not something to worry about," Orochimaru interjected. "It's likely Kaien succeeded in mastering the excess spirit energy. That's probably what triggered the Sharingan's evolution. I'll run a follow-up exam later, but there shouldn't be any problems."
That explanation made perfect sense.
Still, Orochimaru's curiosity burned—what was the true mechanism behind Sharingan evolution? Why did Kaien's aura change so drastically this time? The mystery only deepened.
Having seen the wonders of the Sharingan earlier than in the original timeline, Orochimaru's fascination with the Uchiha clan's bloodline was growing stronger than ever.
"Thank you, Orochimaru-sensei."
Kaien bowed obediently. When there were a lot of people around, the key was to act cute and agreeable.
"You know… if that's the case, I guess I've already achieved my dream, huh?"
...
"Then Kaien—do you have a new dream now?"
"A new dream?"
Kaien tapped a pale, slender finger against his lips, striking a thoughtful pose.
"My new dream… I guess it's to live a long life? And once Minato becomes Hokage, I want to be his advisor! And then help build a peaceful world!"
"Why do you want to be the Hokage's advisor?"
Everyone was puzzled by that one.
As for Kaien's comment about Minato becoming Hokage, nobody took it too seriously. Peace, after all, was a shared goal among all idealistic shinobi.
Kids in Konoha—eight out of ten probably dreamed of becoming Hokage. Even if Minato had the talent, it'd still be decades before he could seriously compete for the position.
At that point, Konoha still had plenty of young, powerful ninja in line for the title of Fourth Hokage.
"Because being Hokage is Minato's dream. As his best friend, I can't fall behind!"
Besides, being Hokage's advisor meant a steady job, no real responsibility, and meals on the village's dime. Only a fool wouldn't want that kind of cushy gig!
As for world peace? That was a future problem. Eventually someone would resurrect Uchiha Madara, and even without Uzumaki Naruto, another Asura reincarnation would rise to stop him. Kaien just needed to ride the wave.
There were already plenty of people worrying about the future of the ninja world. Kaien figured he'd just coast along with their dreams.
Of course, that was just his inner monologue. Outwardly, he played the loyal best friend to perfection.
Minato's dream was his dream. What could be more noble than that?
"Kaien…"
Minato was deeply moved. A friend like this… what more could he ask for?
To support each other's dreams, to truly care for one another—if Kaien were a girl, Minato might've already proposed!
Too bad Kaien wasn't a girl. That was probably Minato's only regret.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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