Side Effects

The atmosphere in the hospital room was somewhat oppressive.

Hyuga Satoru leaned against a white pillow, his brows tightly furrowed as he contemplated the shocking news Orochimaru had brought.

He had discovered long ago that every upgrade of Electromagnetic Force tempered his body, but he had only now learned that this tempering would cause his bloodline to revert to its ancestors.

But on closer thought, the purity of his Byakugan had indeed increased considerably. It seemed Orochimaru had not been lying.

He did not look forward to this process.

The Hyuga Clan possessed only a small fraction of the Otsutsuki bloodline. Whether continuously reverting to his ancestors would eventually turn him into an Otsutsuki was still uncertain.

Besides, there were far too many uncontrollable factors in this process.

After thinking for a while, Hyuga Satoru suddenly noticed a crucial point, and his tightly furrowed brows immediately relaxed.

He had nearly forgotten. Once Electromagnetic Force evolved to a certain level, he would be able to control the arrangement of atoms on a microscopic level. When that happened, he could make it as big as he wanted, or as thick as he wanted.

The Otsutsuki were merely one stage in his body's evolution. What was there to worry about?

Thinking of that, Hyuga Satoru let out a breath, and his mood gradually eased.

"It seems Satoru-kun has already processed this information."

Seeing the change in Hyuga Satoru's expression, Orochimaru suddenly chuckled and spoke hoarsely.

"Even if my bloodline is reverting to its ancestors, any obvious changes will only come much later. What matters is focusing on the present, isn't it?" Hyuga Satoru looked at him calmly.

"As expected of Satoru-kun."

Orochimaru was left speechless for a moment and could only sigh in admiration.

"How is Anko?"

"She is doing very well. That child is a rare genius, and her abilities suit mine exceptionally well. When you see her again, she might even give you quite a shock."

"That's good."

Hyuga Satoru relaxed slightly. After all, Anko had been Orochimaru's disciple in the original story, so Orochimaru presumably would not harm her.

"Then I shall not disturb you further, Satoru-kun. I hope you recover soon."

Orochimaru chuckled and quietly left the hospital room.

Hyuga Satoru sighed and resumed practicing Cell Activation, steadily improving his physical condition.

After recuperating for several days, Hyuga Satoru clenched his fist. The abundant strength within it gave rise to an uncontrollable thrill of pleasure. His Life Magnetic Field had also grown far more vigorous, like a blazing flame.

Compared to before his injury, his strength had actually improved considerably after practicing Cell Activation, and his chakra reserves had increased quite a bit as well.

Because he had previously used Tyrant Mode and forcibly wielded a large amount of Electromagnetic Force abilities beyond his current level, his Electromagnetic Force experience had risen by a small burst.

On top of that, whenever he had downtime after returning from a mission, he would exploit a bug once with the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique.

It was like leaving himself on autopilot to train. Though he would be exhausted to the point of death afterward, it could provide anywhere from 1,000 experience points each time.

[Electromagnetic Force Level LV3]

[Experience until next upgrade: 8945/20000]

With just over ten thousand experience points left, he would be able to reach LV4.

LV1 had brought electromagnetic manipulation, LV2 Life Magnetic Field, and LV3 Electromagnetic Furnace...

What new ability would LV4 bring?

Having tasted the rush of Tyrant Mode's explosive increase in Electromagnetic Authority, Hyuga Satoru was already impatiently yearning for higher-level Electromagnetic Force abilities.

That afternoon, with Aburame Shibi's help, Hyuga Satoru completed the procedures to leave the hospital.

The moment he stepped out of Konoha Hospital, the glaring sunlight shone down on him, making him instinctively raise a hand to shield his eyes.

"Satoru, after resting for so long, it seems you're no longer accustomed to such strong sunlight."

Seeing this, Aburame Shibi could not help feeling a little saddened.

"Shibi-sensei, don't say that. Rest is for the sake of making better progress. I can't wait to start completing missions."

"The Hokage is still waiting for us. We should head over quickly."

"Mm."

Aburame Shibi nodded.

The Hokage's office.

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Hyuga Satoru, who had just left the hospital, his face full of appreciation as he could not help nodding in praise.

"Good! You look full of spirit!"

His opening line was that he looked full of spirit. What an old cadre.

Hyuga Satoru could not help grumbling inwardly.

Naturally, Sarutobi Hiruzen had no idea what Hyuga Satoru was thinking. His eyes remained filled with admiration.

"Satoru, Shibi should have already told you, right? With your abilities, you are no longer suited to being a Genin. Therefore, I have specially promoted you to Chunin."

"From now on, you may independently accept A-rank missions and any missions below that rank. If you have any requests, you may also bring them to me."

Sarutobi Hiruzen took a puff from his pipe and spoke at length.

In truth, he had originally intended to send Hyuga Satoru into the ANBU. After all, his archery ninjutsu and unique Magnet Release were particularly suited for ANBU missions.

However, after considering his status as a member of the Hyuga branch family, Sarutobi Hiruzen hesitated for a long time before ultimately abandoning the idea.

Promoting Hyuga Satoru to Chunin and granting him privileges ordinary Chunin did not possess would not only allow him to grow as quickly as possible, but also prevent him from drawing too much attention.

After all, the Shinobi World was far from peaceful now!

Suddenly, he seemed to think of something. A trace of concern appeared on his face as he cautiously asked Hyuga Satoru.

"Satoru, I heard that you used a forbidden technique with a great cost. Has your body been affected in any way?"

A forbidden technique with a great cost—was he referring to Tyrant Mode?

Hyuga Satoru considered it before speaking. "I developed that forbidden technique by accident. It can greatly increase my strength for a short period of time, and it was only thanks to that move that I survived my encounter with those two Kirigakure ninjas."

"As for the cost..."

"Because this technique temporarily overdraws my life potential and squeezes out my body's strength, it damages the foundation of my cells and shortens my lifespan to a certain extent."

He raised his head and calmly met Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze without so much as a flicker in his eyes.

"Is that so... Then that is rather troublesome."

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt a slight headache coming on. Shortening one's lifespan—the cost of this forbidden technique was simply too great.

He did not doubt him, either. The report from Konoha Hospital had indeed mentioned damage to Hyuga Satoru's cells, and something like a shortened lifespan was difficult to observe with the naked eye.

Hyuga Satoru's expression did not change, as though the nonsense he had just spouted were actually true.

Damaging my lifespan?

It really does damage my lifespan. Tyrant Mode can last a full three minutes!

Three minutes of lifespan is still lifespan, isn't it?

And afterward, my body hurts so badly I can barely function, and I can't make money for days. Doesn't that also count as indirectly shortening my lifespan?

The information Anko had provided only said that he had survived the attacks of those two Jonin.

Hyuga Satoru did not know whether the Hokage had sent ANBU to investigate the place where he had fought, nor did he know whether the Hokage understood Tyrant Mode's true power. In any case, when it came to side effects, exaggerating them was never wrong.

Meanwhile, Aburame Shibi, standing nearby, felt even more guilty because of Hyuga Satoru's fabricated explanation.

Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed and looked at Hyuga Satoru with a complicated expression. "Satoru, you are a true inheritor of the Will of Fire. How about this? The reward for the mission you take this time will be doubled as compensation."

Hyuga Satoru's eyes immediately lit up. From the mission book the Hokage subsequently brought out, he selected three missions with the highest rewards in a row.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's face instantly turned green, but since the words had already left his mouth, he could not take them back.