A month later, on the eve of the Chunin Ninja Exams.
Lin Ye had completed 300 final wishes, and his Mangekyō Shards had reached 99/100.
Only one last fragment remained.
But that last fragment refused to come. No matter how many final wishes he fulfilled, it never appeared. The system notified him: [The final fragment requires a "catalyst": Intense Love.]
What exactly was love?
Lin Ye sat in the Uchiha cemetery, gazing at the rows of gravestones. Three hundred final wishes had introduced him to three hundred members of the Uchiha clan. They were no longer background characters in the original story, but real, living people.
Uchiha Tekka, the hardliner who had entrusted the key to Matsudaira, had actually loved his clan deeply. He had simply gone about it the wrong way.
Uchiha Izumi had secretly loved Itachi until her death. Her final wish was to tell him, "I don't blame you."
Kagami Uchiha had spent his entire life striving for peace between Konoha and the Uchiha, leaving hope behind in the forbidden grounds at the very end.
Then there were the ordinary Uchiha: a boy who had wanted to open a bakery, a girl who had wanted to become a teacher, an old man who had wanted to travel the world, a grandfather who had wanted to watch his grandson grow up...
They had all died-on the night of the massacre, beneath Itachi's blade, amid Danzo's schemes, under the Uchiha's curse.
And Lin Ye carried their final wishes, their hopes, and their love.
"Love..." Lin Ye murmured.
What exactly did he feel for this world?
At first, he had only wanted to survive, grow stronger, and change the Uchiha's tragic fate. But somewhere along the way, he had formed bonds.
Whenever Naruto found delicious ramen, he brought Lin Ye a bowl. Sasuke never said anything, but he deliberately slowed his movements during training so Lin Ye could observe them. Whenever Sakura learned a new medical technique, Lin Ye was the first person she sought out to test it. Kakashi always appeared when he was in danger. Then there were Shikamaru's board games, Choji's chips, Ino's flowers, Neji's guidance, and Lee's passion...
These people, these moments, had given him-a transmigrator-a sense of belonging in this brutal shinobi world.
Did that count as love?
It did, surely. It wasn't romantic love or the love of family, but it was love all the same-cherishing companions, respecting teachers and students, caring for friends, and being unwilling to leave this world behind.
Suddenly, the system's notification sounded:
["Catalyst" requirement met.] [The final Mangekyō Shards are generating...]
Lin Ye felt his heart pound. A warm current surged from his chest, flowed throughout his body, and finally gathered in his eyes.
[Mangekyō Shards: 100/100] [Synthesis requirements met.] [Synthesize the Mangekyō Sharingan now?]
"Yes," Lin Ye said softly.
This time, there was no agonizing pain.
There was only warmth, like an embrace from someone closest to him. He felt his eyes evolving, his Eye Power undergoing a fundamental transformation. The three-tomoe pattern began to connect and rearrange itself, forming more intricate lines.
His vision changed.
He saw the true nature of chakra-not flowing energy, but a kind of "information." Every person's chakra carried their memories, emotions, and will. The Uchiha's chakra contained information about the curse. Naruto's chakra contained information about Asura's reincarnation. Sasuke's chakra contained information about Indra's reincarnation.
He saw the world's "threads"-threads of fate, causality, and time. Black threads of the curse wound around the Uchiha's threads. Threads carrying countless people's hopes connected to Naruto's. A thread of Itachi's sacrifice was tied to Sasuke's.
He saw... the future.
Countless branching futures: a future in which Sasuke killed Itachi, one in which Sasuke and Naruto fought at the Valley of the End, one with the Fourth Shinobi World War, one with Kaguya's resurrection, one with Otsutsuki's arrival...
And at the end of every future lay one possibility: he, Uchiha Ye, would gather every final wish, synthesize the Rinne Sharingan, sever the curse, and change the Uchiha's fate.
The chance was only one in ten thousand, but it existed.
That was enough.
The light faded. Lin Ye walked over to a puddle and looked at his reflection.
His eyes had changed.
The three tomoe were gone, replaced by intricate patterns of concentric rings, like a mandala flower or the ripples of reincarnation. Three tiny black dots remained at the center of the pattern-the remnants of his three tomoe, and the foundation of his power.
His Mangekyō Sharingan awakened.
[Congratulations, host. Mangekyō Sharingan synthesized.] [Exclusive ocular techniques acquired: Divine Dominion, Time Reversal.] [Divine Dominion: Defensive ocular technique. Creates a field of absolute defense around the body, capable of reflecting all physical and ninjutsu attacks. Cost: varies with the strength of the attack. Maximum duration: 10 seconds.] [Time Reversal: Support ocular technique. Rewinds your own time by 3 seconds. Limited to three uses per day. Cannot rewind anyone else's time.] [Wish System upgraded: S-rank final wishes unlocked. Reward: "Rinnegan Fragments."] [Current Rinnegan fragments: 0/1000] [New feature unlocked: Wish Resonance. Accept multiple related final wishes simultaneously for increased efficiency.]
Lin Ye felt his newfound power.
Divine Dominion, absolute defense. Time Reversal, turning back time. One could keep him alive; the other could reverse a situation. They had limitations, but they were already abilities of strategic significance.
More importantly, he could see chakra information and threads of fate, allowing him to anticipate danger and make the best possible choices.
"It's still not enough," Lin Ye muttered.
The Mangekyō was only the beginning. Breaking the curse required the Rinne Sharingan. Synthesizing the Rinne Sharingan required 1,000 Rinnegan Fragments. That meant fulfilling all 1,344 final wishes-and perhaps even more.
The road ahead was still long.
But at least he had a starting point.
He looked at the Uchiha gravestones, the Mangekyō in his eyes slowly rotating.
"I will break the Uchiha's curse."
"I will change every tragedy."
"I swear."
Beneath the moonlight, the Uchiha orphan began a new chapter.
Meanwhile, far away in Amegakure, Pain suddenly raised his head and looked toward Konoha.
"This feeling... a new Mangekyō has awakened. And it isn't an ordinary one."
"Should we send someone?" Konan asked.
"No. Wait until we've captured the One-Tail," Pain said. "A new Mangekyō, a new variable. We'll have to adjust the plan."
Elsewhere, Danzo sensed something too. His lone eye turned toward the Uchiha compound.
"The Mangekyō... finally awakened. But it isn't enough yet. I must wait-wait for the fruit to ripen further."
Inside the Kamui Dimension, Obito looked at the Uchiha Gunbai in his hand.
"Too many variables have appeared in Madara's plan. Uchiha Ye, the Mangekyō, the Wish System... should I eliminate him ahead of schedule?"
He considered it, then shook his head. "No. Let's watch a little longer. Perhaps this variable will yield something unexpected."
With Lin Ye's awakening of the Mangekyō, the various factions began making new moves.
Lin Ye knew nothing of it.
He knew only that he had to fulfill final wishes, collect fragments, grow stronger, protect the people he wanted to protect, and change the fates he wanted to change.
The road ahead was treacherous, but he would keep walking.
Because he was Uchiha Ye, the Uchiha orphan, the host of the Wish System, and the one who would break the curse.
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