"Is it feasible?"
Inoichi was clearly excited—but he knew better than anyone that no matter how brilliant a concept sounded, it was still just a concept.
Until it was actually created, there was no point celebrating too early.
"There are many approaches," Yagyū Souma said calmly. "We don't have to cling to just one. If this method doesn't work, we can try using Mind Clone Transfer to invade two people's minds at the same time."
"Then—strike and split both of their mental energies, and swap them."
"???"
The more Inoichi listened, the more absurd it sounded.
This technique involved mental bombardment, an altered use of Mind Clone Transfer, and a non-standard application of Mind Transfer.
Each technique on its own wasn't difficult—Inoichi could perform any of them with ease.
But combining all three?
That was far beyond him.
Seeing Souma about to continue, Inoichi hurriedly raised a hand.
"Souma-kun, wait. This… the difficulty just skyrocketed."
"..."
Souma glanced at him sidelong, then let out a soft sigh.
"Then let's go see Kurama Yakumo first. Hopefully, we can get some inspiration from her."
"…Alright."
Earlier, Inoichi had thought Souma's idea of guiding a mental split was outrageous.
Now he realized—that was already the simplest option.
"Let's treat it as research," Souma said. "If we keep staying in our comfort zone, what's the point of studying jutsu at all?"
He handed the scrolls back to Inoichi.
He had already memorized everything.
The Yamanaka clan's techniques relied on Yin Release chakra, which differed from Souma's mental attack and defense methods.
They required extracting Yin chakra first.
But—
Souma vaguely felt that although he couldn't extract Yin chakra directly, that didn't mean he couldn't achieve similar results.
Through repeated use and refinement, his mental strength had been steadily growing.
At this pace, with a few more enhancements related to mental power, a qualitative transformation might occur.
Or—
He could deliberately gather five markings that all related to this domain.
The eleventh marking: mental synchronization.
The twelfth: sensory synchronization, newly derived.
The thirteenth…
Souma pondered silently.
Then, a technique came to mind—
Mind Body Switch Reversal.
Ino had once used it unintentionally. Now, it could serve as a lower-tier substitute for Mental Chaos.
Add that to his mental attack and defense techniques—
That made five.
Before leaving, Souma explained Mind Body Switch Reversal to Inoichi.
Inoichi was ecstatic.
This technique simply targeted multiple subjects with Mind Transfer, then carefully controlled Yin chakra so the user wouldn't be affected themselves.
Finally—something he could actually do!
Then Souma continued extending the idea.
"This will be the first stage. Once it's fully mastered, we can attempt what I mentioned earlier—splitting and exchanging mental states. Let's call it Mind Chaos Technique."
"And the previous one?" Inoichi asked.
"Mind Disruption Technique."
"That works!"
Inoichi nodded repeatedly.
But then he realized he was being a bit shameless and quickly added,
"Souma-kun, you've helped the Yamanaka clan far too much. If you have any other needs, you can mention them all at once."
"I do, actually," Souma said. "Can Sensory Transmission be shared publicly?"
"Sensory Transmission? That requires certain mental techniques, but for you, cracking it would be trivial. Since you're asking our opinion instead of doing it outright—what objection could we possibly have?"
On this matter, Inoichi was surprisingly relaxed.
Souma had already devised techniques that directly bombarded mental energy. Compared to that, Sensory Transmission was hardly difficult—only constrained by clan etiquette.
And now that it was for the village…
Inoichi wasn't stingy.
More importantly—
The two new techniques Souma brought could only be mastered by those who had the mental cultivation method, meaning either the Yamanaka clan or those they authorized.
The foundation had shifted.
Techniques weren't the core anymore.
The cultivation method was.
Inoichi felt a twinge of regret.
If he'd realized this earlier, he might not have taught Souma the mental cultivation method back then.
But—
It was far too late now.
As for Kurenai, even if she learned it, she'd only reach a level comparable to the Yamanaka. That was manageable.
Souma was different.
The Yamanaka clan couldn't restrain him—and in the future, he would only grow stronger.
They could only hope Souma was a good person.
At that moment, Inoichi finally understood how Aburame Shibi must feel.
Working with Souma brought enormous benefits—but also no small amount of inner conflict.
After leaving the house, Souma briefly explained the situation.
"Inoichi-sama, thank you so much for helping!"
Kurenai bowed deeply.
Inoichi waved his hand.
"No, I'm only participating and observing. If this research succeeds, I'll be the one thanking you."
"Let's take a look first," Souma sighed. "There's no guarantee it'll work. Kekkei genkai have never followed common sense."
He knew nothing about Ido.
If they could gain Yakumo's trust, that would help—but the real problem was that Yakumo might not even trust Kurenai anymore.
As for Inoichi, although he had once participated in her mental evaluation, they'd had no contact since. Yakumo—and Ido—might even harbor resentment toward him.
On the way, the three discussed their plan and reached a conclusion.
"Kurenai-senpai," Souma said, "the three of us will use mental synchronization to link our minds. I'll guide you both to apply maximum genjutsu resistance."
"Once inside, Inoichi-senpai will use a technique to swap Kurama Yakumo's consciousness with a kikaichū."
Kurenai hesitated.
"Won't that provoke her resistance?"
"It won't matter," Souma shook his head. "Even if you speak gently, she'll still believe we intend to harm her. That's the result of her personality—and how she's been treated."
Kurenai fell silent, then nodded.
There was no better option.
Outside Konoha—Satomi Hill Estate.
At the speed of three jōnin, they arrived quickly.
On the way, they encountered members of the Kurama clan, who didn't dare provoke them.
The Kurama clan was now a minor family in Konoha.
Kurenai aside, either Yagyū Souma or Yamanaka Inoichi alone could crush the entire clan.
Still—
Kurama Unkai hesitated, then gathered the courage to step forward.
He feared that if these three died here, the entire Kurama clan would be implicated.
"Honored sirs… are you here to deal with Kurama Yakumo, or to take her away?"
"Clan Head Unkai," Souma replied, "we're here to observe her condition and see if it can be treated."
"Treated?! There's… a chance she can be cured?"
Unkai's eyes widened.
Even the Third Hokage hadn't managed that!
"Techniques evolve," Souma said calmly. "What wasn't possible before may not be impossible now. Of course, whether it works—we won't know until we try."
With that, he continued forward.
He had already sensed Yakumo's chakra.
Given her mental strength, she had likely noticed them already and was observing in secret—the clan members themselves had become the inadvertent giveaway.
But Souma wasn't too worried.
Yakumo lacked understanding of him, and he had layered genjutsu resistance on himself. Even Yakumo would struggle to instantly construct a perfect illusion.
There was still a chance.
Provided—
"Clan Head Unkai," Souma added, "please do not follow us."
"Why?"
Unkai looked confused.
Inoichi, however, understood immediately.
"We're using a technique that completely suppresses our chakra signatures. You don't have it. Yakumo could use you as a reference point to locate us."
"…Understood."
Unable to argue, Unkai withdrew.
Once he left, the three accelerated. Souma quietly summoned a kikaichū as well.
Before long, the estate came into view.
"This is Yakumo's residence?"
"Let's go."
Kurenai pushed the door open.
The corridor was dark. Not a single lamp was lit.
Only at the deepest room did they see a faint glow.
Near a fire pit, behind an easel—
Souma frowned.
Who sits in a room like this during the day instead of somewhere bright?
This mental state…
Even without sensing, it was obviously abnormal.
No psychiatric care in the shinobi world was truly insane.
He silently complained.
They moved forward.
"Kurenai-sensei… are you here to kill me?"
"What? Why would you think that?!"
Kurenai was stunned.
Just as Souma had predicted, Yakumo had long twisted Kurenai's intentions into malice.
"Heh."
Yakumo sneered.
She was about to speak again when—
A sharp pain struck her mind.
The genjutsu she was about to activate collapsed instantly. Her mental energy scattered, refusing to gather.
What kind of technique was this?!
So they are here to kill me!
Yakumo's rage exploded.
At the same moment, Inoichi formed a seal at the rear, targeting the kikaichū that had flown out.
Instantly, Yakumo's consciousness swapped with the insect.
"What did you do to me?!"
Yakumo's voice screamed—now coming from the insect.
Its perspective was grotesque.
This was… a bug's view?!
"I'm just letting you clearly see Kurenai-senpai's true enemy—and accept the truth," Souma said flatly.
Then—
"Trying to kill me?!"
"Die! All of you!"
"Yakumo" looked up, madness filling her face.
Inside the insect, Yakumo froze.
That was… her?
But right now—
"If you think I tampered with anything, I apologize," Inoichi said sternly. "I only swapped in a weak consciousness. The one controlling your body right now is the monster inside you."
"I see you've grown stronger since we last met," he added quietly.
"Kill you!"
"Yakumo" raised her brush to draw the final stroke.
But—
Souma flashed forward and unleashed a mental attack.
The combined mental energy of three jōnin slammed down, plunging Yakumo's mind into chaos.
The best way to break genjutsu—
Is to make sure the opponent can't cast it at all.
Immediately after, Inoichi reversed the swap, returning Yakumo's consciousness to her body.
This time, Ido no longer dominated her.
Two seconds later—
Yakumo spat out blood and collapsed to her knees, expelling a strange mist.
A monster manifested.
Ido.
Yakumo trembled in terror.
She couldn't understand why such a monster existed within her—and—
Memories long sealed deep within her mind began to surface.
Back then… it was this monster!
No—ultimately—
"Kind of ugly. Kind of cute," Souma commented casually.
"Oh, and one more thing. As hateful as it is, I hope you don't put all the blame on it."
"Souma!" Kurenai cried anxiously.
Yakumo's voice trembled.
"So… it was me?"
"Everyone has a dark side," Souma said calmly. "I do too. Sometimes I even think about killing everyone who stops my research."
He walked toward Ido.
Though it was a mental construct, influenced by Yin Release, it had truly manifested from nothing into something.
The pinnacle of genjutsu kekkei genkai indeed lived up to its reputation.
He narrowed his eyes and glanced back at Yakumo.
"Mind if we study this thing for a bit?"
"Souma-kun, can you not say such terrifying things so casually?!"
Kurenai shuddered.
That sentence alone wasn't frightening—but paired with what he'd just said, it was downright chilling.
Inoichi thought silently—
Wasn't this "dark side" basically Orochimaru?
"Why not?" Souma replied.
"I'll kill you!"
Ido roared, spewing fire mist—but in the next instant, it saw its opponent engulfed in terrifying golden light.
What was this power?!
Ido recoiled in instinctive terror.
"I don't know ancient exorcism techniques," Souma said, extending his hand, "but this power seems to suppress you quite well. Saves me some time."
A sealing formula spread from his palm.
Golden pillars of light descended.
Boom!
Amid the thunderous roar, Ido was crushed beneath a cage of senjutsu chakra.
Looking closely—
Wasn't this basically Deity Gates?
Inoichi didn't even know what to say anymore.
Kurenai stared blankly at Ido, then at Yakumo—an overwhelming sense of unreality washing over her.
"So… that's it?"
"What else did you expect?" Souma shrugged.
"Three jōnin showing up—if we can't handle a kid who doesn't even understand her own power, we might as well go headbutt a wall."
He didn't even mention—
He'd used Sage Mode.
"..."
Inoichi's mouth twitched. He decided to ignore Souma's answer and focus on studying Ido instead.
This was priceless research material.
After repeated comparison, he finally concluded—
"So that's it. It's a product of mental energy combined with Yin Release nature transformation. The explanation is… complicated."
He completely ignored Ido's howls.
Suppressed by the golden pillars, the creature seemed unable to use any techniques.
"So it really is a part of me… the dark side of my emotions?"
Yakumo's expression was filled with pain.
"Everyone has one," Souma replied. "When your parents disciplined you as a child, didn't you ever think about rebelling? Normal people just can't materialize it."
He looked at Yakumo with a hint of regret.
"The greater the power, the stronger the self-restraint required. Otherwise, it leads to disaster."
"But…"
"Kurenai-senpai," Souma interrupted impatiently, "she's yours to comfort. We'll continue researching for a bit."
Comforting people wasn't his specialty.
Better leave that to Kurenai.
"…Alright."
Advance Chapters available on Patreon
patreon.com/pikachu614