Looking at the man tied up tightly in front of him, Takashi began the procedure.
"Implant!"
He carefully inserted a finger-sized branch into the incision he made in the middle of the 'fire' attribute genin's forehead.
"And now, fusion!"
Biting his finger, he let drops of blood fall into the fusion site.
Gurgle!
He connected an infusion tube to the man's body, quickly pumping in a nutrient solution, as if some ferocious beast inside was ravenously devouring it.
This was necessary for the 'evolution' process.
Without the nutrient solution, the subject would fail to evolve due to lack of nutrition, or even die.
After conducting many experiments, Takashi no longer relied on guesswork regarding the effects of his own blood.
If he wanted, he could break the experiment into multiple steps, significantly reducing the consumption.
The trade-off would be a significant increase in time.
Using the nutrient solution was akin to 'spending money to save time'; if you didn't want to wait, you had to pay the extra cost.
One could only say that conducting experiments was indeed costly.
If you don't have money, don't pursue the hard science route; finding ways to mutate is the way to go.
"To evolve the body to adapt to the state of the Fusang tree implant requires a massive amount of nutrient solution!"
Takashi thoughtfully recorded the data while closely monitoring the various changes on the instruments, not missing a single detail.
The man was a ruthless criminal who slaughtered an entire village, treating ordinary people as less than human, so naturally, Takashi treated him the same way.
Yes, Takashi was conducting an 'alien organ implantation' experiment.
The inspiration came from the 'alien' Otsutsuki clan.
They either had an extra eye or a pair of horns, and their powers were terrifyingly immense, fully demonstrating that only by not being human could one break through human limits.
This was a scientific path only Takashi could take.
Without his blood, which allowed the subject to rapidly evolve and adapt to the Fusang tree branch implanted in their body, they would have died long ago.
No! Without the help of his blood, it would be impossible to fuse with the Fusang tree.
It would just be like having a foreign object inside the body, not being accepted by the human body and not attempting to evolve as a whole.
Fusion, evolution! With the two effects of the blood working together, there were endless possibilities.
As the fifth and final can of nutrient solution in the lab ran out, the subject's rate of consumption finally slowed down, and their vital signs began to stabilize.
To be safe.
Takashi moved the subject to the training ground, then securely tied him to a wooden post, fearing any accidents that might damage the precious and rare experimental instruments.
Such situations were extremely common during experiments, so he naturally had to take precautions.
The training ground not only had ample space but also a sealing barrier, making it less likely to cause damage in case of an accident.
After waiting for a while.
"Since you're awake, stop pretending to be asleep. Your disguise skills are terrible!"
Looking at the genin tied firmly to the stake, Takashi directly exposed the man's pretense.
As a rogue ninja, the man hadn't systematically learned various techniques, which is why Takashi could easily see through him.
If it were a trained Konoha jonin, not only could they disguise their breathing, but they could also keep their heartbeat unchanged. That would be true disguise skill.
Hearing Takashi's words, the genin tied to the wooden post opened his eyes and glared fiercely at Takashi, who was holding a clipboard, roaring:
"You damned brat, let me go now, or I'll kill you!"
As he spoke, he felt something strange inside his body.
It was as if there was an endless power, and a continuous warm current was flowing from his forehead into his body.
Seeing this, the genin mobilized the chakra within his body.
Crack!
The belt strong enough to bind a tiger began to tighten under his struggle.
[Strength, physique greatly enhanced...]
Takashi wasn't the least bit surprised by the scene in front of him and began writing on his clipboard.
The experiment was very successful! The implanted Fusang tree had fused with the man, enhancing him in every aspect.
Next, Takashi wanted to see if the part he was most looking forward to would succeed.
Putting away the clipboard, Takashi took out a vial of hot spring water and stepped forward.
Absorbing and storing natural energy was the Fusang tree's instinct, even its most important ability.
Now he wanted to see if this ability remained after being implanted in a human body.
If it did, it meant Takashi had gained a terrifying means capable of overturning the world.
Orochimaru had the 'curse mark,' and he had the 'alien organ plant,' both with similar effects, but Takashi's effect far surpassed the curse mark.
"What are you going to do!"
"Don't come any closer!"
"Get away!"
...The Chunin tied to the wooden stake was initially fierce and aggressive, but upon realizing that Takashi completely ignored his actions, he began to panic.
Takashi, paying no mind to the other's struggles, carefully dripped a drop of hot spring water onto the few centimeters long emerald 'horn' in the middle of the man's forehead.
The hot spring water was liquefied natural energy, which was highly toxic to ordinary creatures, lethal upon contact.
This was why Takashi came up with this outlandish idea.
Since a human's flesh and blood couldn't touch natural energy, what if it was 'filtered' through an organ?
"Ah!"
"What is this!"
"So hot!"
"No, no!"
...
The experimental subject screamed continuously in the training field, as if undergoing torture.
At the same time, his body emitted intense heat.
However, Takashi was not disappointed by this sight; instead, he was extremely delighted.
Even though it was just a single drop of hot spring water, it represented a large amount of natural energy. The fact that the subject didn't instantly turn to ashes actually confirmed Takashi's hypothesis.
The 'filtering' method could allow humans to touch natural energy.
The unique creatures of the Three Great Sage Regions could use natural energy to strengthen themselves and even extend their lifespans.
This was why Takashi was striving in this direction, instead of stopping after achieving Sage Mode.
Once the experiment succeeded, it would mean that humans could also use natural energy to enhance themselves, and the difficulty of mastering Sage Mode would be significantly reduced.
To master Sage Mode, a prerequisite was having a large amount of chakra.
Naturally, this wasn't something a mere Chunin could achieve.
But the ninja world never lacked ninjas with vast amounts of chakra, yet those who could master Sage Mode were few and far between.
By implanting the Fuso Tree, one could touch natural energy, allowing the body to gradually 'adapt' to it. If one had enough talent, they could even master Sage Mode.
Several minutes later.
Bang! In the end, the Chunin was 'burst' by the overwhelming natural energy.
It seemed that even with the Fuso Tree implanted, one couldn't absorb too much natural energy.
But it didn't matter; Takashi's experimental goal had been achieved.
He confirmed that the research direction was correct, and that natural energy filtered through 'foreign organs' could indeed be touched by humans.
Next, he needed to figure out the detailed data.
For example, whether the chakra attribute of the implant recipient must include 'fire', whether the quantity of the implant should be maximized, whether the implantation site should only be the forehead... and so on.
Only after clarifying these details would Takashi use it on himself.
Unfortunately, each experiment consumed a lot of resources. Even if the Fuso Tree could be disregarded, the other materials weren't cheap.
Not to mention, five cans of nutrient solution were no small expense.
Of course, not using nutrient solution was an option, but it would require the surgery to be completed in multiple stages, taking at least several years.
Damn it! So, in the end, he still needed to make money.
After figuring out what needed to be done next, Takashi left the lab to rest.
The next day!
Just after waking up.
Takashi heard someone knocking at the courtyard door (the Anbu and Root were so impolite, they just barged in).
Opening the door.
It turned out to be an ordinary member of the Uchiha clan, who respectfully handed a letter to Takashi before quickly leaving.
Now, Takashi was no longer the 'freeloader' or 'dead last' from a few years ago.
No Uchiha clan member thought he was unworthy of the Uchiha name anymore; their attitudes were much more respectful.
After opening the letter.
Takashi's previously indifferent gaze instantly turned cold.
It seemed the Hyuga clan was forcing him to 'not eat beef.'
Did they really think that just because they were a prestigious family in Konoha, they could scheme against him without paying a price?
He had originally planned to rest a bit before heading to the Hokage's office for a meeting.
Now it seemed he needed to visit the Hyuga clan grounds first.
Face-slapping!
That was his favorite thing to do.
Takashi was most annoyed by those transmigrators who, despite having enough power, still endured grievances just to keep a low profile.
If you have power but still swallow your pride, then what's the point of having power?
The era of operating from the shadows is over, isn't it?
With this in mind, he changed into his combat gear and quickly headed towards the Hyuga clan grounds.
(End of chapter)