Haori knew that, for many people, the Sharingan was practically hot-swappable.
Transplanting eyes was nothing unusual in the world of Naruto.
But transplanting ocular techniques was a whole different matter. It was hard to wrap your head around.
Eyes were physical objects, at least. But ocular techniques were intangible powers. How could you transplant those?
"Though that Transcription Seal seems to let someone seal their own ocular power onto another person, actually giving someone else their ocular techniques..."
Sitting beside a campfire in the forest, Haori idly roasted some food as he couldn't help pondering the matter.
The Uchiha girl lay sleeping beside him.
He had finished sealing her. He hadn't tied her up or put a blindfold on her, but Haori wasn't too worried anymore.
The idea of transplanting ocular techniques had really caught his attention. If it was possible to permanently acquire someone else's ocular techniques through transplantation after awakening his own Mangekyo Sharingan...
Then it would be an unimaginable temptation to any Uchiha!
After carefully investigating, Haori discovered that this transplantation was also accomplished through Sealing Jutsu.
The technique was simply much more complex, and it caused the recipient far greater pain.
"So, was she the one who knew how to perform the transplant, or was she the one who'd been transplanted?"
Haori couldn't help glancing at the girl beside him.
Just then, he noticed that the girl's brow seemed to twitch.
"Your birth was meant to ensure our clan's prosperity. Go destroy our enemies, prepared to die!"
"Weapons don't need weak names or feelings. You only need to live to the end as a nameless weapon!"
"Endure the pain, for our clan!"
"Don't cry. Crying won't help!"
In her dream, the twisted faces and icy voices of Uchiha clan members with crimson Sharingan echoed through her mind.
She didn't understand why things had turned out this way, or why she was always surrounded by such pain, forever haunted by it in her nightmares.
"That's Uchiha Mumei! After her!"
The scene shifted, and she was back at the moment when the Senju Clan and members of many other clans had surrounded her.
That time, she had been defeated and sealed underground.
She had cried out from the depths of her heart, hoping someone would save her, but no one answered. It was as if the world had abandoned her.
"Why... me?"
At that moment, intense hatred engulfed her heart. She was filled with loathing for this lightless world.
"Why is it always me?!"
Driven by such intense emotions, her dream began to shatter in an instant.
As she slowly opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the silvery moon hanging in the sky.
The girl froze. She had thought that after being sealed and buried underground, she would never see a sight like this again.
"You're awake?"
As she sat there dazed, a voice suddenly came from beside her.
That instantly reminded the girl of what had happened, and her gaze turned wary.
But it didn't take long for her to realize that her body was unbelievably weak, and that she couldn't draw on any chakra at all!
So I've been restrained again.
The girl sighed inwardly. She seemed to have grown used to this sort of thing, but this time she couldn't help clenching her fists.
"Have something to eat. You're very weak."
But then the voice spoke again.
"But I should warn you first: don't activate your Sharingan. I don't know why you seem to have some sort of misunderstanding about me.
But I mean you no harm. Otherwise, I wouldn't have dug you out of the ground, would I?"
No harm, and you still sealed my chakra?
The girl didn't answer. Her body was so weak that even she was surprised.
She also wondered how long she'd been sealed for it to leave her this feeble.
Silently, she forced herself upright and turned to look beside her. She found a boy about her age sitting there.
The boy held out a bowl of freshly made porridge. "Eat. You probably haven't had anything in a long time, so you'd better start with something easy to digest."
The girl's body stiffened slightly. Was he showing concern, or was there something else to it?
Still, she was hungry. She pressed her lips together, then reluctantly reached out and took the bowl.
"I'm not very good at cooking, so make do."
Seeing that the girl hadn't activated her Sharingan, Haori felt relieved. But he needed to find out what was going on.
"By the way, my name is Haori. Who are you, and why were you sealed here?
And we should be clansmen. I'm the one who rescued you, so why did you attack me?"
If he wanted information, he needed to be honest. So even though Haori suspected the girl might harbor ill will toward the Uchiha, he briefly explained the situation.
The girl took a sip of porridge and immediately furrowed her brows. It was hard to tell whether the porridge tasted that bad or Haori's words had caught her attention.
She stopped eating. Even without activating her Sharingan, her hatred welled up again.
"Why I was sealed here? Don't you know?"
She raised her head, stared straight at Haori, and demanded loudly:
"Why is it always me? Why do you never leave me alone? Why?"
Seeing the girl on the verge of losing control again, Haori immediately grew wary.
As expected, the Uchiha were all crazy.
Especially people who had awakened the Mangekyo. Their minds had already been shattered once.
Those who endured it were certainly strong-willed, but who knew what kinds of psychological problems they might have?
"Ever since my parents died, you haven't left me alone..."
"Not just you. Them, too."
"These shinobi... this world..."
"Why? Why?!"
As the girl's emotions spiraled further out of control, Haori couldn't help swallowing nervously.
With that kind of resentment, he could believe the girl wanted to destroy the world!
He suddenly felt like he'd dug up a bomb. If he sent her to Nagato, she might join the Akatsuki on the spot.
Wait, Yahiko wasn't dead yet.
Though the situation gave him a headache, Haori had pieced together quite a bit from the girl's words.
From what he could tell, she'd been treated unfairly by the Uchiha.
They'd likely seen her potential, ignored her wishes, and forcibly turned her into that so-called "ultimate weapon."
At the time, the Uchiha were at war with the Senju and many other clans, and her arrival had given the Uchiha a huge advantage.
But that had also made her a target, which was why she'd been attacked.
And the people from those clans wouldn't have listened to her explanation. In the end, they'd simply buried her.
"So that's why she's consumed by such intense hatred?"
Haori found an answer in his heart. The next moment, he knew he'd guessed right.
"So I'm going to destroy it all!"
The girl still hadn't activated her Sharingan, but her gaze seemed to have grown resolute.
"The clan, the shinobi—I've come to hate them all beyond measure.
Whether you take these words back to them or not, if I get the chance, I'll destroy them!"
That was way too extreme.
As expected, the Akatsuki was where she belonged.
Haori grumbled inwardly, but after learning what the girl wanted, he finally relaxed.
They had some differences, but at least their goals were similar.
Looking at the still-furious girl, Haori thought for a moment, then smiled.
"Let's get properly acquainted. My name is Haori."
Suddenly, Haori held out a hand, smiling.
"I think I understand what you mean. So...
let's burn the Uchiha to ashes!"
The girl, who had been full of indignation, froze at Haori's gesture. Then her expression turned confused.
"Huh?"