In front of the Third Kazekage Human Puppet, Lan's head drooped naturally as he sat cross-legged, looking completely unconscious.
As the "Third Kazekage Human Puppet" bent down and lifted Lan's eyelids, it discovered that his once-golden Tenseigan had reverted to an ordinary Byakugan. Its light was dim, as if it had lost all vitality.
As expected, after my spirit leaves my body, the Tenseigan's state deteriorates. It looks like I can't use its power while possessing the Third Kazekage Human Puppet.
The Third Kazekage Human Puppet let out a sigh. The one controlling it was Lan. At that moment, he was using another of the Tenseigan's abilities: Spirit Possession.
By borrowing the Tenseigan's power, he could leave his body as a spirit and possess a puppet, producing an effect similar to the Spirit Transformation Technique.
In the original timeline, Otsutsuki Toneri had used the power of the Giant Tenseigan to do something like this. Lan's Tenseigan was very similar in ability to the Giant Tenseigan, so it naturally possessed this remarkable ability as well.
He had never tried this technique before because the puppets he'd made in the past were simply too poor in quality. He'd worried that possessing one of them might damage his spirit.
Now, though, he had obtained a powerful Human Puppet. Naturally, he couldn't resist giving it a try.
Lan controlled the Third Kazekage Human Puppet's body and moved it around a little. He seemed to have already adapted to his new body.
He beckoned, without making any Hand Seals, and a mass of black Iron Sand gathered in front of him.
The black sand shifted constantly, taking the shape of various weapons. This was the power of the Magnet Release Kekkei Genkai.
The former Third Kazekage had been called the strongest Kazekage in history, and he owed that reputation to his Magnet Release Kekkei Genkai, which allowed him to control Iron Sand.
Iron Sand was not only powerful but also easy to produce. And since the deserts of the Land of Wind concealed vast deposits of iron ore, the Third Kazekage, with his Magnet Release: Iron Sand, could easily suppress the One-Tail Shukaku in the desert.
Magnet Release: Iron Sand could also magnetize iron puppets, making it a natural enemy of puppeteers. That was why the genius puppeteer Sasori had set his sights on the Third Kazekage and turned him into a Human Puppet, which he considered his finest work.
Now that this Human Puppet had fallen into Lan's hands, Sasori was probably going crazy with worry. But then again, he'd gained the bodies of quite a few Kekkei Genkai users during the Mist Village Rebellion. Perhaps the next time they met, he'd have another surprise for Lan.
Just as Lan was testing the strength of the Third Kazekage Human Puppet, a puppet entered the secret chamber to deliver some information to him.
Whatever it had told him, even in the body of a Human Puppet, the delight on his face was plain to see. It was clearly good news.
"That guy finally woke up. At least all the chakra and effort I've spent on him these past few days weren't wasted."
In an underground laboratory.
The young Kaguya Clan Head had been placed inside an elaborate life-support chamber.
During the Mist Village Rebellion, the Kaguya Clan Head had used Shikotsumyaku repeatedly. Then, in his subsequent battle against Sasori, he had not only used Shikotsumyaku's most powerful secret technique, Dance of the Seedling Fern, but had also been poisoned by Sasori. So when Lan treated him, he discovered that the Kaguya Clan Head's injuries were extremely severe, and that he was nearly at death's door.
With injuries like these, anyone else would have died long ago. It was only because he possessed the Sage Body of Hamura's lineage, making him far stronger than an ordinary shinobi, that he had managed to hold on until now.
What truly gave Lan a headache was that the main reason for the Kaguya Clan Head's dire condition wasn't Sasori's poison, but the hidden danger posed by his own Shikotsumyaku.
The Kaguya Clan Head's condition reminded Lan of Kaguya Kimimaro from the original timeline. He, too, had been a Kaguya with extraordinary talent.
Kimimaro had once been the body Orochimaru most wanted to take over, but the existence of Kekkei Genkai Disease had cost him that opportunity.
Given Orochimaru's nature, he must have tried everything he could before deciding to give up. That made it clear how difficult the Kaguya Clan's Kekkei Genkai Disease was to treat.
And now, the Kaguya Clan Head was suffering from an active case of the disease, and was already on the verge of death.
Because the Kaguya Clan and the Hyuga Clan were distantly related, Lan's Tenseigan chakra could help suppress the Kaguya Clan Head's Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai Disease to some extent. But this only treated the symptoms, not the cause. If his body developed a resistance to Lan's chakra over time, the treatment would gradually stop working.
Lan had to find a way to cure the Kaguya Clan Head's Kekkei Genkai Disease, or at least prolong his life until the day his plan succeeded.
"Cough... cough..."
Amid a fit of coughing, the Kaguya Clan Head gradually regained consciousness.
When he saw the masked figure before him, deep confusion flashed in his eyes.
He knew his own body best. He had thought that forcing himself to use Dance of the Seedling Fern would completely exhaust him. Yet, for some reason, another power seemed to have appeared within him and forcibly kept him alive. Had the person before him done this?
Who was this man?
Why had he gone to such lengths to treat him? What was he after?
The Kaguya Clan Head shook his head and said, sounding resigned,
"Though I don't know who you are or why you captured me, my body won't last much longer. Whatever you're planning is bound to come to nothing."
"It seems you knew about the drawbacks of the Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai long ago. No, the entire Kaguya Clan must know.
"I imagine your clan has spent a thousand years trying to cure this disease. If there were a way, then you, as the Kaguya Clan Head, would surely know about it."
Seeing Lan turn his attention to him, the Kaguya Clan Head gave a bitter smile and said,
"Perhaps there used to be a way to cure it, but now there's no possibility at all."
"What do you mean?" Lan frowned, forming a troubling suspicion.
When the other man refused to answer, Lan gave a soft snort beneath his mask. If he thought that silence would keep Lan from finding out, he was underestimating him.
"You think I can't find out if you don't tell me? The methods at my disposal are beyond your imagination."
With that, Lan's hand was enveloped in golden Tenseigan chakra, and he plunged it into the other man's chest.
When he pulled his hand back out, a glowing orb containing the Kaguya Clan Head's memories rested in his palm.
Under the Kaguya Clan Head's shocked gaze, Lan began examining the contents of the Memory Orb.
When he learned how the Kaguya Clan had tried to cure the Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai Disease, his expression froze in shock.
So that was it. No wonder the other man had said there was no longer any way to cure the disease.
For a thousand years, the Kaguya Clan had tried to cure its hereditary illness. What drove them to despair was that the disease stemmed from the very Kekkei Genkai they took pride in: Shikotsumyaku. It was a Kekkei Genkai Disease.
The severity of the disease varied according to one's talent. The more gifted someone was, the more severe the disease and the shorter their lifespan. By contrast, those with little talent—even those who couldn't awaken Shikotsumyaku—could live out their natural lives without ever suffering from the disease. In other words, the Kaguya Clan's Kekkei Genkai Disease was a disease of geniuses.