Identity and the Mangekyō

A bright windowsill.

A slightly antique, elegant atmosphere.

When Liu Heng opened his eyes again.

Two young, immature faces came into view.

"Brother?"

"Oh! Brother's awake!"

"Grandma! Brother woke up!"

The moment they saw Liu Heng open his eyes.

Joy appeared on the faces of the two small figures.

A little boy of around two immediately dashed toward the hallway, while the slightly older little girl remaining behind first picked up a cup of warm water from the tatami floor beside her and handed it to Liu Heng. Still wearing a concerned expression, she asked, "Shouji-nii, do you feel any better now?"

Liu Heng took the cup of warm water. After taking a small sip, he smiled gently at the worried little girl and instinctively replied, "Little Saki, don't worry. Brother was just overly exhausted earlier. I'll be fine after resting."

"Mm!"

Although the little girl named Saki obediently nodded, her small face remained filled with worry. The way her little hand still tightly gripped Liu Heng's sleeve made that clear. Just as Liu Heng was about to say something else.

A gentle voice came from the hallway outside. "Shōji, how are you feeling? Do you need Uncle Satoru to come take a look?"

As the little boy who had run off earlier once again rushed in first.

Another slightly stooped figure appeared behind him.

Silver hair covered her head, and her face was aged.

When those caring eyes fell upon him.

Liu Heng immediately felt a sense of closeness, and the atmosphere became especially warm. He leaned forward slightly and answered with a trace of respect, "I'm fine, Grandma. There's no need to trouble Uncle Satoru. I just overtrained yesterday. I'll be fine after some rest!"

The elderly woman stared steadily at Liu Heng, her cloudy eyes seeming capable of seeing through everything.

Liu Heng met her gaze calmly. When she saw the clarity in his black eyes.

The elderly woman slowly nodded. "Such a serious incident has just happened in the village. Yang and Saki are still young, so you need to take even greater care to control and protect yourself."

"Yes, Grandma. I understand!"

Liu Heng nodded with a very serious expression and replied.

"Come, leave with Grandma first. Your brother has just woken up and needs proper rest. Don't disturb him here!"

The elderly woman seemed slightly reassured. She then shifted her gaze to the little boy and girl beside her. As soon as she finished speaking, the little girl obediently stood up. The little boy named Yang had originally looked unhappy and wanted to stay, but when the elderly woman's expression turned slightly stern.

The little boy shrank back and immediately got up.

"Brother! Get some good rest!"

"Shouji-nii, get some good rest!"

After the little boy and girl walked to either side of the elderly woman and each said their piece, they left the old-fashioned room under her lead. Liu Heng smiled and gently waved. Yet the moment the door closed again.

A deeply complicated, bitter smile surfaced directly on Liu Heng's face.

Liu Heng!

Or, to be more precise, he should now be called Uchiha Shōji!

A fourteen-year-old member of the Uchiha Clan.

Though he could not compare to Shisui Uchiha, the Uchiha prodigy two years younger than himself who was already renowned throughout the shinobi world.

Shōji could still be considered one of the more outstanding geniuses of the Uchiha Clan.

He graduated from the Ninja Academy at nine, awakened his Sharingan at ten, and was sent to the battlefield of the Third Shinobi World War to face the Kiri Ninja army.

After surviving many brutal battles.

His Sharingan evolved to the Two-Tomoe stage.

In Konoha Year 46, he was promoted to Chūnin!

More than a dozen Kiri Ninja had died at Shōji's hands. With the Sharingan's formidable power, Shōji could even challenge an ordinary Jōnin from Kirigakure!

But even so.

Until the end of the war, perhaps because he had never encountered a true life-or-death battle.

Shōji's Sharingan had remained at the Two-Tomoe stage, unable to advance any further. Liu Heng's estimate yesterday had been somewhat off.

The Uchiha clansman whose body he had crossed over and taken over.

Had not been among the Uchiha Clan's very strongest.

Before his transmigration, he had only possessed the Two-Tomoe form. It was likely because he witnessed the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox's Attack and suffered some kind of stimulus that his Sharingan evolved to the Three-Tomoe stage!

In other words, the previous Uchiha Shōji had roughly been a shinobi somewhere between Elite Chūnin and Special Jōnin level.

And now, although his strength had indeed increased dramatically.

It had instead become difficult to judge his current level of strength.

Because.

Is this the Mangekyō Sharingan?

Liu Heng stood before the full-length mirror in the bedroom, looking at the Four-Pointed Windmill Sharingan reflected within the scarlet color of his pupils. He gently touched the corner of his eye and murmured softly.

That was right!

Uchiha Shōji's pair of Sharingan.

Were no longer merely Three-Tomoe Sharingan!

They had directly evolved to the level of the Mangekyō Sharingan!

With the enhancement of these eyes, it was simply impossible to determine what level of strength he possessed before he formally clashed with someone.

As for why he had leaped from Three-Tomoe directly to the level of the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Liu Heng guessed that it was probably the result of the collision and ultimate fusion of the "two soul personalities" yesterday!

Moreover, Liu Heng, who had known nothing about this body yesterday.

Had been able to immediately recognize the identities of the little boy, little girl, and elderly woman after waking up because the violent impact last night had actually been the result of the soul named "Liu Heng" and the soul named "Uchiha Shōji" colliding and merging!

"Liu Heng," who had perfectly inherited both sets of memories, personalities, and everything else!

Did not feel the slightest unfamiliarity toward everything he possessed now.

When he saw those three people, a feeling of closeness naturally arose from deep within his heart.

The memories and intense emotions buried in the depths of his heart made Liu Heng clearly understand that these three were the people closest to "him."

His parents had long since passed away for their own respective reasons.

His grandfather had died of illness fifteen years ago, before his parents, while his maternal grandfather and grandmother had also long passed from the world.

The elderly woman named Uchiha Chihaya, the little girl named Uchiha Saki, and the little boy named Uchiha Yang were Uchiha Shōji's closest family members!

It could be said that from the moment their two souls perfectly fused.

"Liu Heng" was "Uchiha Shōji."

"Uchiha Shōji" was "Liu Heng"!

That was also why, the moment he opened his eyes, he could accept everything so naturally and face his closest family members.

The further evolution of his eyes was most likely due to this as well. After all, Dojutsu itself was a manifestation—or perhaps an extension—of Yin Release Chakra and spiritual energy.