One of Kakashi's shadow clones emerged silently from the ground using Mayfly. Three unconscious men slumped over his shoulders, bound in chakra-suppressing seals.
"Back already?" Kakashi said, as he turned from the workbench.
"Three death row prisoners. Two jonin-level, one chunin-level. All confirmed rogues." The clone nodded, his eyes calm.
"Perfect."
Kakashi deactivated the clone with a puff of smoke. The real prisoners hit the ground with a thud, groaning.
Orochimaru's clone stepped forward and observed them with mild interest.
"Chunin, huh?" he muttered, nudging one with his foot. "He doesn't look like much."
Kakashi crouched next to the smallest of the three, slightly built, with burn scars on his neck and arms. His chakra signature was faint but steady.
"This one will do for a test," Kakashi said.
"Test?" the Orochimaru clone asked, his curiosity already piqued.
Kakashi stood up and smiled faintly. "Yeah. I want to see if the Genesis Seal can not only synthesize bloodlines into me… but also into others."
"You… want to implant a kekkei genkai into another person?" Orochimaru's clone froze, then slowly turned his head.
"Yes," Kakashi said, excitement growing in his voice. "Imagine it. If this works… I can give Tsunade a trace of Wood Release. It might awaken her dormant senju bloodline. Kurenai could gain enhanced genjutsu through a bloodline. Anko could inherit something powerful. Even Mei…"
He smirked.
"They'd all grow stronger. Not just my women, but loyal shinobi too. Strong. Trusted. Elite."
"What do you need?" Orochimaru's clone was already walking toward the sealed vault.
"Ice release didn't feel suitable for this. Let's try Crystal Release first. Stable, less violent."
The clone returned with a small vial of preserved crimson blood, faintly glowing.
Kakashi held it up and uncorked it.
Instead of pouring all of it onto the Genesis Seal, he focused and willed only a quarter of it to be absorbed. The red, spiky diamond rotated slowly, humming with life.
He stood beside the unconscious chunin and placed his glowing palm gently on the man's abdomen.
"Come on…" he whispered, although he knew that the chimera technique had the ability to synthesize and that function had become even stronger when it evolved.
The Genesis Seal pulsed.
Red lines exploded across the man's skin like spiderwebs. His body twitched violently.
"Too much," Orochimaru's clone warned him.
"I know," Kakashi gritted his teeth.
The man suddenly arched his back as blood vessels ruptured all over his body. His skin turned pale. His breathing stopped.
"He's dying," Orochimaru's clone muttered.
But Kakashi didn't panic.
He summoned the yang chakra, the same energy source Tsunade used in her healing. It had grown stronger ever since he devoured Katsuyu's enzymes and created the Genesis Seal.
He pressed both hands on the man's chest.
"Regenerate," Kakashi said.
Silver chakra poured from his palms. The man's bones snapped back in place. His bleeding stopped. Skin knitted itself together.
A breath returned to his lungs.
The chunin coughed violently for a while and passed out again.
Orochimaru's clone stared. "You pulled him back… from the brink of death. Without anything else. Purely your own chakra."
"Yeah…" Kakashi exhaled. "It's working."
"But the synthesis failed."
"Because his body is too weak. He can't handle the full bloodline."
Kakashi stood up, wiped the sweat from his brow, and looked at the vial.
"Okay… again. But only a tiny bit this time. A fraction."
They repeated the process. Again and again. Each time Kakashi adjusted the quantity, tuned the chakra flow, and watched for signs of overload.
The third attempt caused internal bleeding.
The fourth caused chakra veins to snap.
But the seventh attempt…
The chunin's body glowed faintly. Red crystal-like marks shimmered briefly over his skin, then faded.
He was still breathing.
"That one worked." Kakashi sat back and smiled in satisfaction.
"Unbelievable… the first successful bloodline implantation. Even if it's weak." Orochimaru's clone grinned widely.
"Exactly," Kakashi said. "The Crystal Release will probably be minimal. Maybe weak constructs, or basic control over minerals."
"But it's still real," the clone said, almost laughing out loud. "You just… created a synthetic bloodline carrier."
"And I'm not done."
….
An hour later, the chunin stirred. His eyes fluttered open slowly.
"Wha… where…"
He blinked, then gasped as he saw Kakashi standing over him.
Kakashi's Sharingan swirled into his gaze.
"Sleep."
The man's body froze. Then his eyes became dull.
"You will obey."
"I will obey," the man whispered.
"You will follow orders. And perform chakra-based tests."
"Yes…"
Kakashi handed him a kunai made of crystallized earth.
"Shape it."
The man stared at it blankly.
Then, slowly, his hand glowed red. The kunai's shape began to change. It turned slightly jagged. A faint shimmer appeared on its edge.
"It's there," Orochimaru's clone whispered. "The bloodline is real. Weak, but real."
Kakashi nodded, satisfied.
The man passed all five of the basic tests: chakra shaping, crystal control, minor weapon formation, sensory link, and defensive barrier. All barely passable. But it was enough.
Kakashi placed a seal tag on the man's neck and stepped back.
"He's proof it works."
Suddenly, the ground rippled. The other three Kakashi shadow clones returned with more prisoners, seven this time. All tightly sealed, gagged, and unconscious.
"Delivery," one clone said, then popped out of existence.
Kakashi looked at them briefly, then pointed toward the far side of the lab.
"Orochimaru. Lock them in the deepest cells. Keep chakra suppressors on."
The clone's eyes gleamed with twisted joy.
"And what of the… experiment?" he asked, gesturing to the Crystal Release chunin.
Kakashi looked at the man one last time, then shrugged.
"Do whatever you want. Dissect, test, train. I've gotten what I needed."
"How generous…" Orochimaru's clone chuckled darkly.
He grabbed the man by the collar and dragged him away, muttering excitedly about tissue durability and brain structure.
Kakashi stood alone again, staring at the glowing red seal on his palm.
"This changes everything."