Secret Technique

Hiss...

That insult, which went straight for Danzo's birthplace, instantly made the man who'd been sneering turn red with rage. It was as if steam were shooting from both his ears.

"Tch, putting on a fucking Steam Girl act?"

Uchiha Ao rolled his eyes at him, picked up the cardboard box, and turned to leave.

He didn't believe Danzo would dare defy Tobirama Senju's One Month Pact and attack him on the spot.

Sure enough, when Danzo saw him leave, his head was practically ready to explode with rage, but the hand gripping his ninja tool still didn't dare draw it.

Uchiha Ao had guessed right. Danzo really didn't dare make a move.

His goal was the Hokage Position. Beyond that, there was nothing he couldn't—or wouldn't—do to carry out Hokage's arrangements.

Not even if it meant killing a man on his deathbed!

"Just you wait. When the time comes, I'll make you suffer every torture imaginable!"

Danzo watched Uchiha Ao's retreating figure and silently vowed revenge.

Rumble...

Lightning flashed and thunder boomed overhead. With a light rain falling, Uchiha Ao strolled along Konoha's main road, carrying the cardboard box.

People passing by held their umbrellas and started to approach him with concern. But when they saw the Uchiha Clan clothes he wore, they all gave him cold looks and walked around him instead.

Ever since Konoha was founded, the Uchiha Clan had been disliked by the other major clans. They'd always kept to themselves, neither marrying into other clans nor associating with the other great families.

From the older generation's Uchiha Madara to the new generation's Uchiha Sasuke, it had always been the same. Come to think of it, that was understandable. If you had to live with a bunch of Uchiha Sasuke types who turned dark at the drop of a hat, you probably wouldn't be in a great mood either.

The Uchiha Clan, however, saw things differently. They directed their anger at the other major clans, believing those clans were deliberately isolating them.

Uchiha Ao understood the situation and didn't care much about it.

After all, he was Chinese at heart. Even with some of the original owner's emotions stirring within him, he wasn't going to get worked up over it.

Whether it was the Uchiha, the Senju Clan, or Konoha, none of it mattered.

Now that he had the Heaven Rewards Diligence Destiny, all he had to do was make good use of every resource at his disposal and keep getting stronger.

When that time came, he'd be able to break through any monster or demon with sheer strength.

As he thought, he dropped the thoroughly soaked cardboard box into a trash can, then headed for the woods around the village.

There was still plenty of time before noon, so he decided to practice the Ninjutsu he had on hand.

Uchiha Ao searched for a quiet place as he studied the Skill Interface in front of him.

[Sharingan Activation Secret Technique (Incomplete): 0/10]

[Great Fireball Technique: 89/100]

[Phoenix Sage Fire Technique: 32/100]

[Kage Bunshin no Jutsu: 28/100]

"Judging by the progress, the Great Fireball Technique is the closest to completion. But with my current amount of chakra, releasing it even once would use up at least a third of my reserves."

Ration Pills could replenish chakra, but each person was allowed only one per day.

Besides, they were Strategic Material belonging to the clan. With the stock he had on hand, he'd be lucky if it lasted two or three days.

In other words, there was no way he could master the Great Fireball Technique in a single day.

With that in mind, Uchiha Ao focused on the Sharingan Activation Secret Technique.

"It's incomplete? If I remember right, the original owner was willing to take a risk because this secret technique was a major factor."

Half of the Uchiha Clan's power came from the Sharingan. If this technique really could awaken it in the original owner, his strength might have rivaled a Jonin's in a short time.

"I'll give it a try. It may be incomplete, but with the Heaven Rewards Diligence Destiny backing me, the risk shouldn't be too great."

As he thought, Uchiha Ao arrived beside a secluded lake. Trees surrounded the area. Though it was only a mile from Konoha, its hidden location made it a good place to practice Ninjutsu.

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Following the instructions in the secret technique, he drew chakra up from his Dantian. Instead of letting it flow through his limbs, he sent it surging upward, all of it converging on the intricate network of channels around his eyes.

The unstable chakra made his eyes sting with a sudden chill, as if tiny ice needles were pricking his eyeballs.

Flickering black-and-white fragments began to appear in his vision, like the broken images on an old television with a loose connection.

At that moment, fragments of forgotten memories surged uncontrollably through his mind: being bullied by a class bully at school, working under a monstrous boss, the treacherous relationships with his coworkers, and his parents' disappointed expressions after he'd quit his job, unable to bear the strain...

The memories made his expression shift beyond his control, now crying, now cursing in anger.

In just over ten minutes, his expression had shifted hundreds of times. The immense flood of emotion swallowed Uchiha Ao's consciousness. Whenever he sank too deep, his Destiny in his Sea of Consciousness released wisps of clear light and pulled him back out.

And so it went, over and over.

[Sharingan Activation Secret Technique (Incomplete): 1/10]

[Sharingan Activation Secret Technique (Incomplete): 3/10]

[Sharingan Activation Secret Technique (Incomplete): 6/10]

Several hours later, the rain stopped.

Uchiha Ao slowly opened his eyes. They were still an ordinary black, but the light and sharpness in them were completely unlike before.

[Sharingan Activation Secret Technique (Incomplete): 10/10 → Mastered (Incomplete)]

[Derivative Ability Awakening:

Dynamic Vision (Basic): Allows the user to track the movements of fast-moving objects more clearly.

Genjutsu Recognition (Basic): Provides a degree of resistance to and recognition of basic Genjutsu.

Eye of Insight (Basic): Allows the user to predict an opponent's next move by observing their smallest movements.]

[Note: The secret technique is incomplete and cannot directly awaken the Single Tomoe Sharingan. However, it has paved the way for a qualitative transformation in spiritual power. When extreme emotions arise, awakening the eye will come naturally, without further difficulty.]

[Total Chakra Consumed: About 98%]

[Maximum Chakra Capacity Increased by 30%]

[Chakra Level: Mid-Chunin]

Uchiha Ao wiped the sweat from his forehead and gave a wry smile.

"That was no easy feat!"

This incomplete manual really did have a major flaw. Not only could it be used just once in a lifetime...

From the moment he began performing the technique, the memories had kept dredging up painful experiences and building up extreme emotions. But whether the process stopped or continued was beyond his control.

If anyone else tried it, they would probably have been swallowed by that terrifying flood of emotion long ago, reduced to a mindless idiot—or even killed by brain death!

At the thought, Uchiha Ao gazed toward the clan compound, his eyes dark and deep.

"So in the eyes of those bigwigs, I'm nothing more than cannon fodder and a test subject."

Heh... It was fine. He didn't have much attachment to the Uchiha anyway.

Still, he'd remember this debt.

He stood up. The two black pupils in his eyes began to move from side to side. The tiny mosquitoes that had been almost impossible to see, and were flying extremely fast, now seemed to move at half speed in his eyes, clear as day.

"This is only a precursor to the Sharingan, and it's already this powerful. If I fully awaken it, that power might instantly raise my strength to Special Jonin!"

As he thought, Uchiha Ao pulled three Kunai from his waist and threw them in three different directions.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The three Kunai stuck into three separate tree trunks. Two or three mosquitoes were impaled on the tip of each one.

"My Taijutsu is definitely at Chunin level now. Too bad I haven't awakened the Copy Function yet. Otherwise, I could raise my combat power by another level."

A smile tugged at Uchiha Ao's lips.

With his current level of ocular powers, all he needed to awaken the Sharingan was the right opportunity.

The original owner still had some relatives, but even if he killed every one of them, the emotional impact probably wouldn't be that great. Unless he started growing close to them now, then...

Uh, forget it. If I did that, how would I be any different from those tragic Uchiha Sasuke types?

Besides, there was nothing stopping him from grinding his way to the top.

As he'd practiced the incomplete secret technique, his Destiny had continuously granted him insights and feedback.

In other words, he had gained a profound understanding of the incomplete manual. If he could use that understanding to complete it, he might be able to break through the limit on how many times it could be used. And then...

All he'd need to do was keep grinding his progress. What awaited him would be more than just the Single Tomoe Sharingan.

With the Heaven Rewards Diligence Destiny backing him, even the Mangekyo and the Rinnegan were no longer distant dreams.

"Life's looking better and better!"

Uchiha Ao grinned, pulled the Kunai from the tree, and headed straight in the opposite direction from the clan compound.

Before returning to the compound, he still had one small thing to take care of.