Sasori stood before the main control console, streams of data pouring through his red pupils like waterfalls. The final safety protocol was confirmed.
"Activate the deep-consciousness awakening program."
The command went out silently.
Soft pulses of light filled the Life-Support Pod, traveling along fiber-optic cables to the girl's temples and spine.
On the instrument screen, the nearly flat brainwave trace suddenly spiked wildly!
The next second, the girl in the Life-Support Pod snapped her eyes open!
Against a deep crimson background, black Tomoe twisted, warped, and stretched until they formed an intricate, uncanny pattern.
Three blades seemingly forged from black flame revolved slowly around a tiny diamond at the center, fractured like the lens of a kaleidoscope.
The instant her eyes opened, a cold ocular power spread faintly through the room. It carried ancient hatred, utter loneliness, and a hollow obsession, making even the laboratory air seem heavier.
Yet Sasori of the Red Sands stood before the Life-Support Pod and did not so much as blink at the Mangekyō Sharingan, though it was enough to shake most ninja to their core.
His red synthetic pupils swept calmly over the uncanny pattern as though he were examining a complex circuit board or data model. There was no emotion, only analysis and recording.
"Mangekyō Sharingan activation confirmed. Pattern type: unrecorded. Energy response rating: high. Mental fluctuations abnormal. Beginning stabilized output..."
The instruments increased their energy output, attempting to gently draw the girl's restless consciousness out of centuries of slumber and establish an initial interface for communication.
The Mangekyō pattern in her eyes slowly stopped turning. Its violent ocular power gradually subsided. At last, those uncanny eyes closed again, while the instruments helped her breathing and heartbeat settle into a steadier rhythm.
The first stage of awakening seemed to have succeeded. All that