Chapter 260: Breaking the Caged Bird
Three months had passed since the Kakuzu incident.
During this time, in addition to his regular team missions, Kyosuke had dedicated himself to his research, focusing on the Hashirama cells and the Caged Bird seal. With ample funding, his progress had been rapid. His "Cell Transplant Technique" skill had reached level 7, and he was now able to perform successful transplants on shinobi below the Kage level. Not the flawed, unstable transplants of Danzo, but the perfect fusion of Yamato, resulting in a true Sage Body. Two of his "volunteer" assistants were living proof of this.
More importantly, he had learned from Orochimaru's demonstration that natural energy could not only slow the erosion of the Hashirama cells, but could also be used to increase the level of the "Sage Body." Unfortunately, due to the limitations of his current test subjects, he had not yet been able to test this theory on his two assistants.
Upon learning of the successful transplants, Saori, who had been training relentlessly, had eagerly requested to undergo the procedure herself. She had now made the crucial transformation from a mortal to a "Sage."
Perhaps due to her own innate strength, her Sage Body was on a higher level than that of the two assistants. While not yet at the third stage, she was on par with Yamato, and significantly stronger than the current Kyosuke.
With the enhancement to her chakra and physical abilities, she was now on the cusp of the Kage level. He was confident that, with a bit more time, she would cross that threshold and become a true Kage-level shinobi.
In addition to the increase in her strength, the Sage Body had also had a strange, suppressive effect on the curse mark on her forehead. Intrigued, the two of them had begun to study it.
They soon discovered that the chakra produced by the Sage Body could not only suppress the curse mark, but also had a "nourishing" effect on the Byakugan, which would greatly reduce the difficulty of breaking the Caged Bird seal.
However, this method would only work for her. To free the other members of the Hyuga branch family, further research was needed.
"Hah..." Saori felt Kyosuke's warm breath on her skin and instinctively clutched his shirt.
"Don't... wait... I'm not ready," she said, her voice filled with a nervous flutter. She had never experienced anything like this before.
He gently caressed her cheek. "Don't be afraid. Relax. Leave everything to me."
"Alright... I'm counting on you."
But her body was anything but relaxed. As she felt his hand move toward that forbidden place, she tensed up completely.
"Are you ready?"
"...Yes. Come on."
Hearing the tremor in her voice, Kyosuke couldn't help but smile to himself. Then, his expression turned serious.
"Sealing Technique: Curse Sealing Method!"
As he began the jutsu, Saori, who was strapped to the operating table, began to struggle violently, but she bit down on her lip, refusing to cry out.
The sealing pattern slowly enveloped the Caged Bird mark, gradually eating away at it. The look of agony on Saori's face began to soften.
Ten minutes later, with a final, powerful surge of chakra from Kyosuke, the curse mark that had plagued her since birth finally vanished.
But the sealing pattern remained, coalescing into a new mark that looked almost identical to the old one. It was a necessary precaution. If the Hyuga clan were to discover that she could undo the main family's control, it would cause a level of chaos that Kyosuke was not yet ready to deal with.
Neither Minato nor Hiruzen would allow a civil war to break out in the Hyuga clan. To truly save the branch family, they would have to wait.
But not for long. In a year or so, Konoha would face an unavoidable catastrophe. The "Masked Man," Uchiha Obito, would unleash the Nine-Tails on the village. In the ensuing chaos, Saori would have the perfect opportunity to make her move against the main family.
Until then, she would continue her research, while secretly gathering support from those who were dissatisfied with the Hyuga's ancient, oppressive system.
If she succeeded, both the Uchiha and the Hyuga, the two most powerful clans in Konoha, would be at Kyosuke's back.
Then, no one would be able to stand in his way.
"Bang!"
In a massive, specially excavated cavern within the secret base, two figures were engaged in a fierce duel.
"It's no use. You're not fast enough to catch me," one of them said with a laugh.
It was, of course, Uchiha Kyosuke. His opponent was Hyuga Saori, who, after a period of intense training, had finally reached the Kage level. The first thing she had done was to challenge him to a fight.
Hearing his taunt, she took a deep breath. Her pure, perfect Byakugan, now amplified by her increased dōjutsu power, locked onto his form.
With a powerful swing of both of her arms, she unleashed a massive shockwave at the surprised Kyosuke.
"Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Vacuum Wall Palm!"
"BOOM!"
The entire cavern shook from the force of the blow. Her power was on a completely different level now. But against an opponent as fast as Kyosuke, who could also use the Flying Thunder God, it was impossible to land a direct hit. The duel was over.
"Not bad. Your Byakugan's perception and the power of your Gentle Fist have both improved dramatically. You're now one of the strongest shinobi in the world," Kyosuke praised, then added a silent caveat: Not counting the inhuman monsters who have yet to make their appearance.
"Flatterer," she said, rolling her eyes, but she couldn't hide the smile on her face as she walked out of the cavern and back to her laboratory.
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