Uchiha Hikaru thoroughly enjoyed the breakfast.

After all, the Byakugan no longer held any use for him.

But the presence of those two little girls—Hanabi and Hinata—somehow lifted the heavy mood that had lingered in him since the war. Just being around them soothed something within.

His overall condition had improved significantly.

As for Hiashi... he looked just a little too defeated.

So, after finishing his free breakfast, Hikaru promptly dragged Hiashi out of the Hyuga household under the pretense of needing to head to the Hokage's Office.

But instead, he took him up Hokage Rock and led him straight toward Orochimaru's Ninjutsu Science Research Institute.

They entered through a hidden passageway.

As the door creaked open, Hiashi caught sight of rows upon rows of biological specimens inside the dim hall.

Even as a veteran of countless battlefields, a chill crept through Hiashi's heart.

This was unlike anything he had seen before—jars containing grotesque specimens, humanoid shapes suspended in liquid, and even some still-living prisoners confined in reinforced glass cylinders.

"Uchiha Hikaru… these people…"

"Don't worry, Brother Hiashi," Hikaru replied calmly. "They're all death row inmates from Konoha Prison or captured spies from other villages."

"We never use our own people for experiments."

Hiashi let out a quiet breath of relief.

At first, he had feared this might be like the Root organization—kidnapping innocent villagers for inhumane experimentation. If so, he would've been no better than Danzo. Hizashi's spirit would never forgive him.

But seeing Hikaru's sincerity, his doubts began to fade.

Hikaru noticed his discomfort and smirked slightly.

"Still don't trust me, Brother Hiashi?"

Then he gestured to the specimens suspended in the glass tubes, bubbles rising slowly from their mouths.

"This one's a Chunin who betrayed the Land of Fire during the Third Shinobi World War, leaking classified intel to Iwagakure."

"That one? A bandit leader who slaughtered two entire civilian villages in the Land of Fire—his hands are soaked in innocent blood."

"And that one's an Iwa spy responsible for inciting a failed rebellion. Captured by ANBU."

Hiashi listened in silence, then nodded. The worry in his eyes vanished, replaced by a subtle hostility toward the criminals before him.

"If their bodies can be used to contribute to the future of Konoha…"

"Then I suppose that can be considered their final act of value."

"But, Brother Hikaru—did you bring me here to begin work on the Caged Bird Seal?"

Hikaru nodded, continuing forward through the winding passage with practiced ease.

"Exactly."

"The war delayed everything. But now that I finally have a bit of breathing room, I intend to start working on cracking and improving the Caged Bird Seal."

They arrived at a large metal door illuminated by a green indicator light.

Clack, clack, clack…

The heavy door slowly creaked open, and from the shadows stepped Orochimaru.

"But of course," the Sannin drawled, his hoarse voice echoing softly in the sterile air.

"After all, Hiashi-kun has funded quite a bit of my recent research. How could I possibly take the money and not produce results?"

Hiashi instinctively stiffened.

Then, as if only now remembering, he quickly pulled out the scroll containing the Byakugan that Hikaru had returned to him earlier and handed it to Orochimaru.

Only then did the full picture become clear.

Uchiha Hikaru hadn't simply returned the Byakugan out of kindness—he'd needed to bring it here before the rest of the Hyuga Clan learned of its return.

Once the elders knew, they'd surely reclaim it.

Those old men were rigid, steeped in outdated doctrine. The very idea of using a Hyuga eye for experiments would throw them into outrage—even if it meant improving their future.

As for the branch family's Byakugan, many had already been lost.

Some had gone blind due to the effects of the Caged Bird Seal. Others had died in battle, their eyes rendered unusable.

Orochimaru took the glass container from Hiashi, lifting it carefully and peering into it under the dim lab light.

A faint glimmer of excitement shone in his reptilian eyes.

"A Byakugan untouched by the Caged Bird Seal…"

This was no lifeless husk like those harvested from the corpses of the branch family during the war.

The eye in his hands—pure, white, radiant—was untouched. The light passed through it, unmarred by corruption.

The branch family's Byakugan, in contrast, had always been dull. Lifeless. When Orochimaru had dissected some in secret during the previous war, he'd found the optic nerves were scorched—burned by chakra.

The vitreous fluid had turned cloudy. The lens and cornea showed signs of extreme chakra erosion.

This one, however, was pristine.

Orochimaru gently lowered the bottle, eyes gleaming.

"Hiashi-kun… one eye isn't enough."

"I'll need several more Byakugan from deceased branch family members."

"And, of course, the complete Caged Bird Seal formula."

Hiashi's brows furrowed.

"There are those in the clan who look down on the branch family," he admitted. "But… the Caged Bird Seal..."

He hesitated.

Handing over that technique—even just the formula—would be tantamount to surrendering control over the branch family. It was a tool that kept their internal hierarchy intact.

To give it away… could unravel everything.

Orochimaru saw the flicker of doubt and chuckled lightly.

"Hiashi-kun, you misunderstand."

"I don't need the part of the seal that controls the branch members."

"I'm not interested in that kind of power."

"What I need… is only the part of the seal that protects the Byakugan from being stolen."

"My goal is to transform it—not into a brand of control, but a safeguard. A sealing jutsu that ensures the Byakugan remains secure even in death."

Hiashi blinked in realization.

He had fallen into a trap of old thinking.

Wordlessly, he reached into his robes and pulled out a blank scroll. Then, picking up a nearby brush, he began to write out the complex sealing formulas from memory.

It took a long time.

By the end, the scroll was packed with intricate, overlapping runes and chakra pathways.

Hiashi wiped the sweat from his forehead and handed it over.

"Orochimaru, I'm leaving this in your hands."

"I judged you by my own pettiness. That was wrong of me."

Orochimaru didn't even respond.

He took the scroll and immediately began poring over it, already lost in the labyrinth of sealing theory and research potential.

Uchiha Hikaru smiled quietly to himself.

He recognized that look.

Orochimaru had officially entered his scientific obsession mode.

At this point, it was impossible to get any useful words out of him unless it directly involved research.

So, with a pat on Hiashi's shoulder, Hikaru turned and silently led him out of the Ninjutsu Science Research Institute.

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Send Power Stones

Bonus Chapter at 150 Power Stone

Second Bonus Chapter - 300 Power Stones

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