Awakening, Gazing at Life, Taking Control, Resolving to Begin Deep Fusion

Consciousness was yanked back from a realm of pure, absolute darkness by a powerful force.

There was no confusion, no haze.

The instant Mizuki Han opened his eyes, the entire world was already crystal clear to him, down to the atomic level.

He could hear the faint, anxious heartbeat of a rat hiding in a pile of garbage deep in an alley, a hundred meters beyond the iron door.

He could smell, mingled with the mold and stench of decay in the air, the oxidizing iron molecules left behind by three different blood types.

More than that, he could "see" the streams of chakra flowing through the thoroughly remade, resilient, pristine network of his meridians, pure beyond compare, like a docile river of stars moving in flawless rhythm.

Power.

An unprecedented sense of absolute control over every cell in his body filled his every limb.

The searing pain of the high fever, the agony of his meridians crystallizing, the dull ache of his punctured lung... All the suffering that had once dragged him to the brink of death had vanished without a trace, as if it had been nothing more than a distant, unreal nightmare.

He slowly raised his left hand, opening and closing his fingers beneath the dim red light.

Flawless.

His newly formed skin was unnaturally pale, yet held astonishing resilience and strength. He could even clearly feel that the meridians in this arm were thicker and tougher than anywhere else in his body.

A blessing in disguise.

Under the system's forceful intervention, that near-fatal backlash had become the most complete destruction and rebirth imaginable.

There was no relief at surviving in Mizuki Han's eyes. They remained a calm, fathomless abyss. He simply accepted the outcome, as if everything had gone exactly as it should.

His gaze slowly shifted to his side.

Then he saw Haku.

The little girl was curled up beside his arm. Her thin underclothes were soaked through with damp and cold, clinging to her frail frame. Her little face was dirty, and tears still clung to her long eyelashes. Exhaustion and cold had left her trembling faintly even in her sleep.

Her little head rested beside his palm.

Her breathing was so faint it was almost imperceptible.

Mizuki Han watched her in silence, his expression unchanged.

He didn't check whether she was still alive. He didn't need to. He could clearly sense the faint but tenacious flame of life burning within her.

With inhuman composure, his mind began reviewing everything that had happened before he lost consciousness.

She hadn't run away.

After he'd lost consciousness and become a useless burden, she had chosen to stay.

With what little warmth her body could offer, she had tried to fight the Kekkei Genkai backlash inside him, cold enough to freeze a soul.

It was foolish, almost suicidal.

But... effective.

At the very least, it had bought the system the crucial time it needed to calculate his rewards.

The corner of Mizuki Han's mouth curled into an almost imperceptible, icy smile.

Of course, he wasn't naïve enough to think this was some selfless sacrifice or ridiculous bond. To him, she was simply a clever tool that, in a desperate situation, had made the most profitable investment to protect her only "master" and "shelter."

She had wagered that he would survive.

And she had won.

This levelheaded judgment beyond her years, this ruthlessness that let her carry out the "optimal solution" even in despair, raised Haku's "value" in his eyes by several levels.

She was no longer merely "material" with a high-purity Ice Release bloodline.

She was a perfect "tool" that had proven her loyalty and usefulness.

A thing... that belonged to him.

An unprecedented, deeper possessiveness quietly took root in Mizuki Han's heart, winding around every nerve like a creeping vine. He liked this feeling: the sense of holding his pawns, his tools, and even other people's lives and loyalty firmly in his grasp.

[Hidden quest chain "Death Row Survival" completed. S-rank evaluation rewards have been issued.]

[Chakra purity increased to 150%. Meridian resilience increased to 200%. The Ice Release Kekkei Genkai backlash has been eliminated.]

[Host's strength has been restored to its peak. Total chakra remains at the chunin level.]

[Based on the initial bond established between the host and fusion target 'Haku,' the system's core function module—"Deep Fusion"—has been unlocked.]

The system's notification sounded in his mind, cold and mechanical.

Deep Fusion?

Mizuki Han's thoughts stirred, and detailed information about the new function immediately unfolded in his mind.

Unlike the previous crude "shallow fusion," which merely extracted genetic samples, "Deep Fusion" was a far more overbearing and complete form of plunder and assimilation.

It required a closer means of connection—such as the mingling of blood—to establish a permanent genetic channel.

Through this channel, Mizuki Han would no longer simply "copy" Haku's genetic information. He could directly "devour" the power at the source of her bloodline and make it entirely his own, causing his Ice Release Kekkei Genkai to undergo an exponential evolution.

He might even develop unique derivative techniques of his own in the process.

Of course, for Haku, the "material," this overbearing fusion would be an excruciating process, one that could even cost her life. A large portion of the power at the source of her bloodline would be drained, and her body would endure unimaginable transformation and tearing.

Mizuki Han's gaze fell once more on the little sleeping face beside him.

Pain? Danger?

There wasn't the slightest trace of pity or hesitation in his eyes.

A tool's value lay in being used.

If she couldn't even endure this cost, then his assessment of her value had simply been wrong.

He slowly and carefully sat up, moving so gently that he made no sound.

He lifted Haku's thin, small body and laid her on the pile of old but relatively clean quilts, then covered her with her filthy coat.

When he was done, he stood and walked to the center of the cramped basement.

He didn't immediately begin the so-called "Deep Fusion."

After surviving that near-fatal escape, his ingrained "Persecutory Delusion" and "Firepower Deficiency Phobia" had not eased. If anything, they had erupted with unprecedented intensity.

He needed to review everything.

He needed to dissect every detail from the moment he'd woken in the death row, every mistake he'd made, every gamble he'd taken—with the utmost thoroughness and coldness.

Kisame had easily driven him into a desperate situation.

An elite jonin had pinned him down with unreasonable Earth Release, leaving him unable to fight back.

In the end, he'd even needed to resort to a self-destructive forbidden technique just to snatch a bitter victory.

Too weak.

Still far too weak!

The feeling of staking his life again and again on an information advantage, psychological warfare, and luck filled him with revulsion and unease from the depths of his soul.

He needed greater power.

Not chunin. Not jonin. Not even the Kage.

He needed absolute, unquestionable dominion—the kind that could trample every rule, every fate, and the life or death of every enemy beneath his feet, grinding them all to dust!

Mizuki Han slowly closed his eyes.

His ambition was like a volcano that had lain dormant beneath the ocean for countless eons. At that moment, it erupted into flame.

Upon these ruins drenched in a mist of blood, he would establish an order of his own.

He would turn this cruel world, where human life was treated like grass, into his personal hunting ground.

And the starting point of it all...

Mizuki Han opened his eyes again. His gaze pierced the dim air and landed precisely on the small figure curled up in the quilts.

The cold in his eyes remained, but deep within them lay the absolute control and indifference of a god looking down upon a sacrifice.

Deep Fusion had to begin immediately.

He needed stronger Ice Release to serve as the first cornerstone of his ambition.

He walked over one step at a time and reached out with his flawless, newly formed left hand.

This time, it would no longer be a simple extraction of genetic material.

It would be outright plunder and devouring—a bloody first offering on his road to dominion.

And the girl who knew nothing of the future, even in her sleep: would she become the most important sacrifice in this ritual, or... the first apostle to receive a god's blessing?