Chapter 234: Congratulations
It had worked. Though not yet verified through full-scale testing, all signs pointed to success.
Uchiha Kei felt as though he had just gotten off a rollercoaster—his emotions swung wildly, leaving him lightheaded, his heart hammering almost painfully in his chest.
For the first time, he understood why that old story about a student going mad after passing exams made sense. Success could be so overwhelming it bordered on madness.
Taking a deep breath, Kei steadied himself, eyes fixed on the vial before him. After a moment of thought, he asked:
"Can this be tested with a skin reaction? Like… an allergy test?"
Ayaka considered it carefully. "To test for rejection or side effects? Hm… I'm not sure. We usually only check for blood-type compatibility, there isn't exactly a precedent for a 'skin test.' But… you could try."
"Then let's try it," Kei said firmly. "As long as it doesn't cause any serious harm."
Ayaka nodded and began preparations. She wasn't entirely convinced it would yield useful data—the matter was beyond the normal scope of her medical knowledge. Still, it wouldn't hurt to try.
She drew a small amount of the fused serum into a sterilized syringe and walked toward Kei.
"Hopefully this tells us something," she murmured. "Also—remind someone to clean out these flies. There are far too many today."
"Too many?" Kei frowned, his expression shifting. "Ayaka… Uchiha Yuu's corpse. How did you deal with it?"
"It wasn't me," she answered evenly. "Other people handled it. As far as I know, it was cremated—completely."
"Is that so… and you're certain these flies only showed up today?" Kei lowered his gaze to the syringe, then to his own arm. His voice was calm, but his mind was sharp.
"Yes. Just today." Ayaka activated her Byakugan. "Roughly one kilometer east of here. Only one chakra signature. If I'm not mistaken… someone from the Aburame clan."
Kei gave a curt nod, then rose to his feet. "How long?"
"Twenty minutes."
"Good. Finish the preparations—disinfect everything, whether we end up using it or not. I'll be back in twenty minutes."
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Aburame Ryoma was one of Danzō's most devoted followers. He had joined Root of his own will, not through coercion. To him, Root's philosophy resonated perfectly. Danzō was more than his commander—he was his pillar of faith.
Years ago, Ryoma had been on a separate mission during the ill-fated Rain operation. He regretted not being there. Even though only Danzō returned alive, Ryoma still wished he had gone. For him, dying at Danzō's side would have been an honor.
This time, his mission was clear: monitor a boy from the Uchiha clan—Uchiha Kei.
Ryoma knew of Kei long before starting the mission. After all, Kei was the Head of the Konoha Police Force—a fact known throughout the village.
But Ryoma wasn't impressed. Through his investigation, he concluded what many in Konoha whispered privately: Kei was nothing more than Fugaku's puppet. After all, who could believe a fourteen-year-old boy truly commanded the entire Police Force?
Still, a mission was a mission. Ryoma executed it with his usual rigor.
The Aburame specialized in insects—for combat, for infiltration, for information gathering. And Ryoma was among Root's finest. His infiltration skills were unmatched, even among ANBU veterans. His ability to gather intelligence was terrifying.
Over several days of observation, however, Ryoma noticed something strange. The Police Force operated entirely under Kei's will. Fugaku's hand was nowhere to be seen. Could it be… the boy wasn't just a puppet after all?
More troubling was Kei's pattern of disappearing for long stretches, leaving no trace. That raised flags Ryoma could not ignore.
He followed Kei one day into the forest and quickly realized the area was heavily secured—traps, patrols, even sealing barriers to ward off intruders. Clearly, something important was hidden here.
Not satisfied with simply reporting back, Ryoma decided to gather more intel first. He mapped out patrol routes, security measures, and sealing techniques. But no matter how skilled he was, he couldn't breach further than a kilometer from the target. Any closer risked discovery.
So he turned to his greatest tools: insects.
The smallest, nearly invisible ones slipped past undetected. But he also used common pests like flies—creatures no one paid attention to.
His gamble paid off. The first insects returned with valuable information: an underground laboratory, massive in scale, beneath Kei's secret base.
And more—Kei was conducting experiments there. Uchiha Shuu was inside as well. From what Ryoma observed, Uchiha Yuu had likely fallen victim too.
He quickly recorded the findings, but when he tried to seal the message for delivery, his instincts screamed danger.
Without hesitation, he substituted himself with a clone of insects. The very next instant, a blade of lightning split the clone in half, burning the insects to ash.
Even from a distance, Ryoma felt the cutting edge of Lightning Release chakra.
There were only two in Konoha known for swordsmanship like that: Hatake Kakashi… and the Head of the Police Force, Uchiha Kei.
And given the location, there was no doubt.
That slash was no ordinary strike—its sheer force carried the crackling edge of Lightning Release chakra, sharp enough that Ryoma could feel it from afar.
"Uchiha Kei…" Aburame Ryoma muttered under his breath. He had little doubt now.
Lifting his head, Ryoma confirmed it: a boy clad in black combat gear stood silently before him. In Kei's hand, his sword shimmered with a fierce, sky-blue chakra glow.
"ANBU… and Aburame, too?" Kei's voice was calm, but his scarlet Sharingan spun with dangerous clarity. His gaze locked on Ryoma. "Who sent you here?"
Ryoma said nothing. His silence was deliberate, but his mind raced. How could he escape? Or better—how could he defeat Kei and drag him back for interrogation?
For ANBU operatives, being exposed meant mission failure. But for Root shinobi, failure meant death. The only way to survive was to bring back intelligence—or something even more valuable.
Kei was clearly conducting some kind of secret research, and Uchiha Shuu was directly involved. More than that, Kei had orchestrated the framing of Orochimaru—a critical piece of information.
If Ryoma could capture Kei and deliver him alive to Root, much could be salvaged. Position, title—Police Chief or otherwise—meant nothing to Root. What mattered was whether Kei posed a threat to Konoha's stability.
Now that Ryoma was certain Kei was hiding dangerous secrets, hesitation was no longer possible.
He inhaled deeply. Swarms of insects poured from his body, covering him like living armor. His stance was clear—combat was inevitable.
"Seems I wasn't wrong after all." Kei's lips curled into the faintest smirk. "So everyone sees me as nothing but Fugaku's puppet? Fine. That illusion has its uses. It keeps most of the trouble small… manageable."
As he spoke, Kei's Sharingan twisted, the tomoe spinning and shifting. In an instant, his eyes morphed into a pair of ominous, triangular-patterned Mangekyō.
A suffocating darkness burst from him. Jet-black chakra surged forth, cold and oppressive. It swirled and solidified into the towering form of a spectral giant.
At first, it was nothing but bone—a looming skeleton radiating crimson light from hollow sockets. But as Kei's chakra roared, sinew and muscle layered over the frame, then a dense armor-like carapace of chakra wrapped around it.
In the giant's hand formed a massive, pitch-black sword, mirroring Kei's own blade.
"This strength… I've yet to test it properly," Kei said, his voice carrying an eerie calm. "Congratulations. You'll be the first."
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