While possible, transplanting that many Sharingans would be far too easy to expose. He couldn't exactly follow Danzō's lead and wrap his arm in bandages at all times, could he?
Furthermore, Danzō only dared to restrict the Hashirama cells to a single arm, never daring to let them spread throughout his entire body.
And Takuno's ambition was precisely to pursue a more perfect, full-body integration! This required a much firmer foundation.
Of course, he was also aware of another possibility.
Integrating Hashirama cells now could, under the immense pressure of life and death, provide a powerful mental stimulus that might trigger the ultimate qualitative change of the Sharingan, forcibly opening the Mangekyō!
This was like a high-stakes gamble with his own life as the wager.
What were the odds of winning? Takuno assessed it calmly, and the final conclusion was brutal.
The probability of death far exceeded the probability of successfully opening the eyes!
He wasn't Sasuke; he didn't have the protagonist's halo favored by fate to protect him.
This method of gambling with his life did not align with his long-held creed of pursuing "stability and controllability."
As for Kimimaro Kaguya's Shikotsumyaku... over these three years, he had indeed deduced a method to safely integrate a fourth bloodline.
But! A massive shadow consistently loomed over it: the bloodline disease!
The fatal genetic curse on Kimimaro Kaguya's body.
Although the juvenile materials in the experiments had not yet shown symptoms, what about after integration? Who could guarantee this curse wouldn't erupt within his own body?
Takuno did not want to take that risk.
The path he had long since planned was crystal clear: the prerequisite for integrating the Kaguya bloodline was successfully transplanting and perfectly controlling the Hashirama cells.
He had absolute confidence that the bloodline disease existing in Kimimaro Kaguya could absolutely not affect the power of the First Hokage's cells, which contained endless vitality!
And the key to safely obtaining the power of Hashirama cells lay in whether the three-tomoe Sharingan could smoothly evolve into the Mangekyō Sharingan.
Everything was interlinked; any single misstep could lead to eternal damnation.
"Logically, 'the current me' should be well aware of all these risks... why do I still produce such irrational, almost self-destructive impulses?"
Takuno stared at the sleeping youth's body in the vessel, falling into deep thought.
He vaguely brushed against the edge of the answer: "The 'me' in the hallucination... has likely birthed some kind of intense self-destructive tendency?"
He forced himself to calm down and began to review.
Why were the aftereffects of this experiment so obvious? What was the fundamental difference between this and his previous hallucination experiences? He repeatedly retrieved memories and compared details... there seemed to be no significant difference.
"Perhaps... the problem isn't this specific time." A more disturbing thought surfaced. "But rather the residual influence of the previous experiences, like a slowly accumulating toxin that has been forcibly suppressed without erupting. And now..."
Takuno's gaze became solemn. "Is my will... nearing the point where it can no longer suppress these 'forgotten' yet still existing negative impacts?"
A heavy sigh echoed in the cold laboratory.
Takuno understood that he couldn't delay any longer.
"It seems... that matter must be moved forward." He whispered to himself, a flash of decisiveness in his eyes.
The original plan was to wait until the Mangekyō Sharingan was opened and his power had moved up another level before dealing with that deep-seated hidden danger.
However, the situation had taken a sharp turn for the worse. This crazed will constantly battering the seal was like an out-of-control wildfire. If he didn't extinguish the source of the fire soon, he feared he would be consumed by this karmic fire from the "past" before the Mangekyō even opened.
In the cold laboratory, the air seemed frozen.
However, the most important matter at hand was not this, but returning to the Hidden Snow Village.
The research on "Cursed Seals automatically absorbing natural energy" had already reached a successful conclusion previously.
And over at Jūgo's side, the path and control points for the perfect Sage Mode he had explored were now clear.
This was no longer an ethereal possibility, but a source of power within reach.
Takuno's thoughts were exceptionally clear.
Once he could successfully master and harness this power belonging to a Sage, then looking at the present, his strength would truly reach a brand-new height.
At that time, as long as he didn't make a fatal error of underestimating his enemies, he would be the undisputed peak.
Unless the flashing Flying Thunder God of Minato, the space-power-controlling Obito, and Nagato with the might of the Rinnegan set aside their differences to surround and kill him in an almost impossible cooperation...
But how could that be possible?
Furthermore, as long as he didn't intend to fight to the death, even if those three joined forces, he still had absolute certainty that he could escape safely and flee a thousand miles away.
This was the confidence brought by the absolute power he was about to master!
In the face of this power capable of rewriting the landscape, everything else had to temporarily step aside.
The enhancement of power was the overriding priority at this moment.
Takuno took a deep breath, temporarily casting aside the aftereffects that were giving him a headache. He contacted the summoning beast left in the Hidden Snow Village, and shortly after, his figure vanished from this cold laboratory.
......
In the Hidden Snow Village, the piercing cold wind swirled with heavy snow, ceaselessly whipping this bitter land and wrapping the entire village in a vast expanse of white.
Takuno's face was covered by that familiar fox mask. He was currently sitting there, watching the arriving Jūgo and Haku.
At this moment, Jūgo's face was brimming with irrepressible excitement and exhilaration; even his breathing carried a slight tremor.
He had finally done it! He hadn't failed the Lord's entrustment and had successfully mastered that profound and powerful force the Lord called "Sage Mode."
The moment that surging energy truly filled his body and he stepped into that realm, Jūgo clearly perceived an unprecedented transformation.
That power was so vast, far exceeding the limits of any of his past out-of-control rampages.
A sense of power that almost made him dizzy seized him, and a trace of disbelief even flickered deep in his heart.
Is this... truly power I can possess? And surprisingly, without the cost of losing my mind and becoming a beast?
However, the tide of power did not shake his true heart.
He was still him—the Jūgo who craved the ordinary.
During his days in the Hidden Snow Village, though the wind and snow were cold, his heart was warm.
Being able to serve the Lord, having companions of a similar age to laugh and play with, and the meticulous care from Nonō Yakushi, who was like a mother...
All of this had already quietly smoothed over the jagged edges of his childhood memories.
Happiness, a once-unreachable dream, seemed to be turning into the solid ground beneath his feet.
He truly thought: This is enough.
Having enough power to protect himself and be helpful was sufficient; there was no need to be too dazzling or prominent, no need to be the outlier among his companions.
He clung to the current peace and warmth, unwilling for any ripples to break this hard-won stability.
Even though he knew deeply that this newborn power would allow him to do more, he... didn't care at all.
Not everyone regards the pursuit of power as the cornerstone of life.
At this moment, Jūgo's gaze toward Takuno was burning like fire, filled with gratitude and expectation.
Finally! The root of the rampage curse that had eroded his life for so long was about to be personally sealed by the Lord.
The future of an "ordinary person" was clearly beckoning to him.
However, at the very instant this hope ascended, a cold malice capable of freezing blood pierced through Jūgo's joy without warning!
That bone-chilling cold and deadly sense of danger, like an invisible icicle, instantly made his spine turn cold and his hair stand on end.
The source was actually emanating from the Lord!
Jūgo froze completely, the excitement on his face draining away instantly, leaving only shock and confusion.
Haku also keenly captured the sudden change in atmosphere, his eyes filled with worry.
Takuno stood in place, his gaze behind the mask sweeping over Jūgo and Haku.
He clearly perceived a cold and unfamiliar impulse churning deep within himself—an impulse to obliterate the two people before him.
Though this impulse was faint, it was real and undeniable.
He understood that this was not directed at Jūgo or Haku personally, but was a destructive desire pointed at "everyone."
'I see...' Takuno suddenly realized the terrifying nature of that "him" in the hallucination.
That was not just a soul craving self-destruction, but a madman soaked in despair, intending to drag the whole world down with him.
At this moment, he perhaps finally understood why the other was so obsessed with the power of the Mini-Ten-Tails. It wasn't for salvation or rule at all.
It was to obtain the ultimate power capable of incinerating everything, turning all that he hated—along with himself—entirely into dust.
"Lord...?" Jūgo's voice carried a trace of imperceptible trembling as he cautiously tried to ask, breaking the suffocating silence.
Haku also nervously gripped his sleeves, his gaze locked tightly on Takuno.
"...Go back for now." Takuno's voice came through the mask, several degrees colder than the wind and snow of the Hidden Snow Village, carrying a steadiness achieved through strenuous suppression.
"There is a problem... with my state. When I need you, I will notify you."
"Lord, do you need us to..." Haku urgently stepped forward half a pace, his words cut off before he could finish.
"Leave." Takuno's tone was ironclad and left no room for argument.
The order to leave had been given. Jūgo and Haku quickly exchanged a look, both seeing deep worry in the other's eyes.
However, the Lord's orders were not to be disobeyed.
The two eventually bowed silently in salute, and their figures soon disappeared into the vast wind and snow; they were forced to leave almost as soon as they had arrived.
The heavy air seemed frozen around the seat as Takuno sank deeply into the backrest, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the cold armrest.
A belated sense of regret was quietly surfacing in his heart.
I shouldn't have been in such a hurry... this thought echoed repeatedly in his mind with a piercing sharpness.
He should have planned this key step more prudently: first return to the Hidden Snow Village and painstakingly master that profound and mysterious Sage Mode before touching that auxiliary device that could accelerate the opening of the eyes!
Now, due to those aftereffects, embarking on the path to learn Sage Mode was undoubtedly unfeasible.
The power of Sage Mode was beyond doubt; it was a ladder of strength sufficient to set foot on the mortal peak.
However, the dangers it contained were equally real and undeniable—and brutal enough to leave no room for luck!
It exacted a harsh requirement for the user to possess a sea-like reserve of chakra as a secondary matter; more central was the absolute control over the delicate balance between physical energy, spiritual energy, and the surging natural energy from the outside.
That exquisite proportion—missed by a hair's breadth—meant a bottomless abyss!
He wasn't Naruto, and he wasn't learning Sage Mode at Mount Myōboku. At Mount Myōboku, even if one was slightly off, the natural energy could be forcibly knocked out of the body by the "dog-beating stick" in Fukasaku's hand.
But he didn't have such an auxiliary divine tool for learning Sage Mode; he could only rely on himself, so being even slightly off was unacceptable on his end.
It was precisely this fatal precision that even cut off his customary "shortcut" of the Spirit Transformation Technique—using others' bodies for experimental exploration.
To be sure, he had no fear of the backlash from those "materials" after they mastered Sage Mode; even if they luckily succeeded, they couldn't possibly be a match for the current him.
The true shackle preventing him from using the bodies of materials lay in the physical barrier!
those shells' chakra volumes were often below standard, and he, Takuno, even with a spirit as powerful as this, finally had a veil between him and the precision of controlling "another's" chakra, unable to reach the level of being as easy as moving his own limbs required by Sage Mode.
As for Jūgo's body? He would certainly use it as a springboard.
But that was no different from turning on "Easy Mode."
Jūgo's Sage Body, which flowed with his bloodline—no matter how imperfect—was fundamentally far beyond what Takuno's mortal frame could compare to!
Experience? Destined to be different!
He wasn't being unduly humble; Takuno had rock-solid confidence in his current vast total chakra, and that proud chakra control was the cornerstone of his entire ascent.
He was certain that as long as he could use Jūgo's body to personally "taste" and analyze the perfect proportion for constructing Senjutsu chakra, he would have a great chance of replicating and even mastering this power within his own body.
However! Now! The aftereffects left by that damn auxiliary eye-opening device—that mysterious self-destructive tendency lurking in the depths of his consciousness and occasionally stirring—were like a venomous snake lying in wait in the dark!
It seemed to have little impact, like a small ripple occasionally appearing on a heart-lake.
But the practicing of Sage Mode was dancing on the edge of a blade! It was performing the most precise energy weaving at that fragile point of balance!
If, at the critical moment of allocation, this thought suddenly flashed even slightly—even for a split second of distraction or interference...
The consequences... Takuno closed his eyes, and his mind had already sketched the terrifying scene of energy spiraling out of control and his body disintegrating!
Previously, when facing Jūgo and Haku, that uncontrollable, dark thought of wanting to destroy something had already sounded like a cold alarm bell in the depths of his consciousness!
Now was absolutely not the appropriate time to seize the power of Sage Mode!
Only by first thoroughly uprooting these accompanying destructive impulses and clearing the thorns from his consciousness could he step onto the treacherous path toward the Sage realm without distraction.
This was the optimal solution.
At this thought, the regret regarding the wrong timing of using the auxiliary device surged back like a tide.
As for giving up that device? The thought was crushed as soon as it arose.
Impossible! Without it, how could he knock on the final door—the Mangekyō Sharingan—in a short amount of time?
Would he have to rely on... stimulation in reality?