Beneath the Hokage Tower, the silence of Hajime's personal lab was deep and profound. Humming lights above cast sterile brightness across rows of scrolls, monitors, and sealed containers, each containing something extraordinary.

Among them, four rested on a reinforced altar: a pair of Rinnegan, a Byakugan, and a Kokugan, each encased in chakra-sealed crystal. These weren't relics, they were weapons, knowledge, and keys to dominion.

Hajime stood still, his silver armor gone, wearing only his simple under-tunic, his long black hair tied back, his golden psychic halo dim and pulsing softly behind his head.

He began with the Rinnegan.

Hovering one hand above the eyes, he channeled psychic tendrils into the orb-like vessels of power. He didn't implant them, there was no need. His mastery of psychic force and chakra control allowed him to interface directly.

His mind entered the whispering silence of the Rinnegan's memory. Patterns flowed, familiar, vast.

"So this is the true depth of the Rinnegan."

He first reviewed the Six Paths Techniques:

Deva Path: Manipulate attractive and repulsive forces, Shinra Tensei and Bansho Ten'in. Nagato used these brutally. But Hajime saw deeper possibilities: manipulating gravity to warp projectiles midair, or form invisible gravitational shields.

Asura Path: Mechanized transformation of limbs, weapons, and hidden artillery. Limited for him, but a roadmap for augmentation.

Human Path: Extraction of memories and souls. Dangerous but effective in interrogation.

Animal Path: capable of controlling corpses of beast, and implanting them with the Black Rod to control and give abilities.

Preta Path: Chakra absorption. A perfect countermeasure against elemental jutsu.

Naraka Path: The King of Hell, used to extract lies or restore the bodies of others in the cost of chakra especially restoring living ones. A horrifying yet useful tool.

But then he saw it, the power Nagato never accessed.

Limbo.

A separate dimension, a veil next to reality.

From it, invisible clones, real as any body, could strike, guard, or mislead. Madara wielded it freely because his body had evolved to match the Rinnegan's threshold.

"So Nagato can't use the true abilities of Rinnegan."

More than that, the Rinnegan offered mastery of all five elements, even Yin-Yang Release. Hajime's mind absorbed the structure of every elemental rotation, weaving them into his already overwhelming psychic matrix.

He did not implant. He didn't need to.

Next, the Byakugan.

He touched the pale eye, its veins still dormant. A rush of perception surged into him. Fields of chakra, 360-degree awareness, microscopic and telescopic sight, all projected directly into his mind.

"Perfect clarity. Their so-called 'weakness', a blind spot, is irrelevant to someone with my awareness."

He could see how the Hyuga clan had limited its usage, focusing only on Gentle Fist. But there was far more hidden potential. The Byakugan could measure internal chakra pressure, detect foreign chakra interference, or even identify disguised genjutsu layers miles away.

He moved on to the Kokugan, the most alien.

A pulse of psychic probing revealed the nature of its terrifying shinjutsu powers.

Sukunahikona, an instantaneous size manipulation. He watched in his mind as massive weapons shrank to nothing, then expanded in ambush.

Daikokuten, a timeless void where shrunk objects were stored. No decay. No energy cost. Instant deployment.

"A pocket armory… one could access without delay."

But more than that, the Kokugan allowed access to a conventional space–time portal, and conjured massive black cubes that distorted the senses of even sensor-type shinobi. They could also suppress chakra detection, a perfect tool against tracking techniques.

The final ability intrigued him most: the user could perceive a strange shadow-flame aura around people, a representation of their life force or chakra.

"So it's a battlefield tool, a mobility enhancer, a sensor disruptor, and a death gauge all in one."

Hajime's mind detached from the objects. Sweat lined his brow. He hadn't moved in hours.

He opened a scroll and began drawing seal formulas, testing ways to externalize their abilities through focus lenses, puppets, or chakra mirrors, anything but direct implantation.

He refused to taint himself with foreign Chakra, and did not need other people organs to strengthen himself.

Not even for power.

Then, a flicker in his psychic field.

Someone approached the lab's entrance.

He didn't react aggressively.

The door slid open, not by chakra, but by Hajime's will. Only those he allowed could enter unbidden.

Footsteps echoed down the metallic stairs.

Sakura Haruno appeared, her pink hair tied up, clothes dusty from travel, but a bright smile lighting her face.

"Hajime…?"

He turned, face calm, golden eyes warm.

"Sakura," he greeted, offering a chair with a motion of his hand.

She sat, brushing sweat from her brow. "We just got back. On the way home, Sai tried to cheer Naruto up by painting him a portrait post-battle. Naruto got so distracted trying to pose that he tripped, rolled down a hill, and crashed straight into a Tree."

Hajime raised a brow. "And Sai didn't stop painting?"

"Nope," she smirked. "He just titled the piece 'Idiot in Motion' and said it captured Naruto's essence perfectly."

He chuckled, just enough to make Sakura's cheeks warm. He always listened when she spoke, even the trivial things.

Then she grew quiet.

The light humor faded, replaced by something deeper.

She stood and walked to him, her green eyes looking up into his unreadable gaze.

"Hajime…" she began, voice soft but clear. "I don't want to be a burden to you. I've trained hard. I've grown stronger. But it's not enough."

He didn't interrupt. She stepped closer.

"I want to fight with you. I want to be there, not protected, but useful. If you're going to face things like Akatsuki… or worse… I want to stand beside you."

Hajime watched her for a long moment. She wasn't impulsive like Naruto. This was a decision she had thought through.

He turned his gaze toward the Rinnegan again.

There were possibilities.

Implant.

A body strengthened by design. Organs created from scratch using Rinnegan Yin and Yang manipulation and his own gene-seed base. Augmentation without mutation.

It would take time. Research. Stability. Consent.

But perhaps…

Sakura followed his gaze.

"Those are…?"

"Artifacts," he said softly. "And perhaps, the key to making you stronger."

He met her eyes again.

"You're not a burden. But if you truly wish to follow me… we'll make sure you're ready."

Her eyes widened with quiet hope.

She nodded once, serious.

"I'm ready."

Hajime turned back to the table of eyes.

He had gathered them as weapons.

But now, they were something more.

Tools to shape the future.