Soft Body Modification

Another month passed, and the year's end drew ever closer.

Inside Orochimaru's Underground Base, a crucial experiment was underway.

"How is the muscle density adjustment?"

"Conditions are good."

"What about muscle extensibility?"

"Once it exceeds a certain length, muscle density decreases significantly. But overall, it isn't far from the values we predicted."

"Excellent."

Before an enormous Culture Tank, Kyosuke and Orochimaru stood side by side, staring intently at the "experimental subject" inside.

As Kyosuke's Human Modification techniques had grown increasingly refined during this period, Orochimaru invited him to participate in an experiment called Soft Body Modification.

What was Soft Body Modification?

As the name suggested, it involved using special methods to make the body "softer."

After undergoing this modification, one's flexibility and elasticity would be greatly enhanced. Limbs, the head, and other body parts could truly be extended freely or twisted to any angle.

It was a Secret Technique created by Orochimaru himself.

In the original story, this ability appeared extremely often on Orochimaru.

More importantly, Soft Body Modification was one of the prerequisites for Orochimaru to perform many of his unique Forbidden Techniques.

For instance, the Ten Thousand Snakes Constellation Orochimaru used during his fierce battle with Tailed Beast Naruto.

Although the essence of that Forbidden Technique relied on the Summoning Technique, without Soft Body Modification supporting the tens of thousands of snakes crawling out of his mouth, his head would have burst apart long ago.

Therefore, Kyosuke absolutely had to master this modification technique.

Not only did he need to master it, he was also deeply interested in the ability itself. He believed that if he could use it proficiently, his strength would rise even further.

And so, the entire morning passed amid the pair's focused experimentation.

Perhaps because Kyosuke was assisting him, this experiment, which had not been easy to begin with, succeeded after only a few attempts.

All that remained was continued optimization, but that would not affect the modifications they were about to perform on themselves.

Three days later

Kyosuke sat on the stone bed in the chamber, looking at the bottle of water on the table across from him. With a slight circulation of Chakra, his arm abruptly stretched out and seized the cup five meters away.

When he brought the cup before him, he found that the water inside remained perfectly calm, without the slightest ripple.

With a smile, Kyosuke drained the water in one gulp, then rose and left the chamber, preparing to test its effects in combat.

After repeatedly testing it throughout the afternoon, he finally confirmed that the modification had been basically a complete success.

Moreover, with Soft Body Modification, when fighting in conjunction with the Sharingan, he now fully possessed the strength to trade taijutsu blows head-on with an ordinary Chunin.

Although the system still rated him as a "Genin," his actual combat strength had already reached the Chunin level.

Unfortunately, the limits of his physical attributes meant he could not be considered outstanding among Chunin. Still, compared with many ordinary Chunin, he was already quite formidable.

At the very least, among those his age, aside from Kakashi, he feared no one.

Less than a month before the year's end, a major event took place within the Uchiha Clan.

The current Uchiha Clan Head announced his abdication on the grounds of poor health.

In an instant, the atmosphere throughout the Uchiha Clan grew tense.

Countless people qualified to run for clan head began eagerly preparing themselves, while the thresholds of the Elders' homes were nearly worn through by the Elite Jonin over the past few days.

Although the clan was currently ruled exclusively by four Elders, the allure of the clan head's position could not be underestimated.

According to the original plot, Fugaku ultimately won this election for clan head. However, the original story never described this period, so Kyosuke had no idea what had happened during it.

But whether for personal feelings or personal interests, supporting Fugaku's rise to power was the best choice for Kyosuke.

Thus, while the clan members were still discussing the matter heatedly, Kyosuke, bearing the title of Uchiha's Greatest Genius, suddenly and publicly announced his support for Fugaku Uchiha.

His action immediately caused an enormous uproar throughout the clan.

After all, even though Kyosuke was only five years old, countless clan members regarded him as the key to the Uchiha Clan's future revival. His declaration caused many previously undecided higher-ups to begin paying attention to Fugaku.

Although Fugaku held the important post of captain of the Military Police Force, everyone knew he was merely the Second Elder's puppet.

He had no real decision-making authority, and due to his personality, many higher-ups did not know much about him.

Yet after turning their attention toward him, they discovered that Fugaku was exceptional in both ability and strength.

He surpassed the other candidates by far, so these people began supporting him one after another.

Over the past several days, Fugaku had been running himself ragged.

Yet even amid such busyness, Fugaku still made time to personally thank Kyosuke and invited him to dinner at his home.

Kyosuke happily accepted and went to his home with curiosity.

He had thought he might get to meet Uchiha Mikoto, who had appeared only rarely in the original story, but after entering Fugaku's home, something happened that left Kyosuke deeply unsettled.

There was indeed a young woman in the house preparing dinner, but she was not Uchiha Mikoto.

At first, Kyosuke still held onto a sliver of hope, thinking she might be some cousin or something similar.

But then Fugaku embraced her with undisguised affection, telling him that she was undoubtedly his girlfriend.

Not long ago, Kyosuke had still been worrying about what would happen if Naruto and Sasuke did not grow up properly.

But now, there was no need to worry anymore.

That damned Fugaku had outright erased Itachi and Uchiha Sasuke.

"What exactly did I do to make the plot change this drastically?" Kyosuke lowered his head in dejection. Even the rather lavish dinner before him could not draw his attention.

Fugaku and the girl named Uchiha Ikezi sat across from him. Seeing this, they exchanged confused looks.

"Kyosuke, is my cooking not to your taste? What do you like to eat? I'll go prepare it," Ikezi said softly to the downcast Kyosuke, her face flushing red.

Fugaku nodded as well and gestured for Ikezi to check what ingredients were still in the house. If necessary, they could make an entirely new meal.

Only after hearing her words did Kyosuke realize that his gloomy mood had caused the two of them to misunderstand.

Recognizing this, he hurriedly waved his hands and explained that he had merely remembered something suddenly, not that he disliked her cooking.

As Ikezi let out a sigh of relief, the dinner officially began.