"How should we use this?" Uchiha Fugaku stepped forward, instinctively asking after hearing Kagetsu's words.
"Use it as the main ingredient to create a pill," Kagetsu replied, glancing at the three Uchiha Jonin who were pale-faced and severely exhausted.
He continued, "They need time to recover their strength and adjust their physical states. They also need to be mentally prepared. This experiment is dangerous. During this adjustment period, they can decide whether or not they truly want to participate in the next phase."
Fugaku looked at Akihiko and the other two. As a clan leader, he wasn't someone who imposed his will too forcefully, especially not on these three, who were his confidants and close friends.
"Is this pill really effective?" Akihiko, feeling Fugaku's gaze, looked at the fruit in his hand—one that seemed deeply connected to his own bloodline limit—and hesitated.
"You can choose one person to take it first as a trial," Kagetsu suggested.
"Will it help us awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan?" Akihiko's eyes were full of intense desire as he asked this question.
For the Uchiha clan, their pride in the Sharingan was embedded in their very bones and blood. Aside from the Senju clan, their arrogance extended toward all other ninjas and clans.
The Mangekyō Sharingan was a legendary evolution above the three-tomoe Sharingan, possessing incredible power. No Uchiha who prided themselves on their eyes and craved strength could remain calm in the face of such temptation.
"Do you really think that's possible?"
Kagetsu's rhetorical question instantly cooled Akihiko's excitement and dashed Fugaku's hopes.
"Isn't this fruit supposed to enhance the Sharingan?" Fugaku asked in a low voice, stepping forward.
"What do you think this is? A miracle cure?"
"Its purpose is simply to stimulate the evolution of the Sharingan through illusions. To put it simply, it constructs a mental world tailored to your personality, interests, and thought patterns, pushing you toward a scenario most likely to trigger your eye's evolution."
"If you have enough potential, you might succeed in evolving your eyes to a higher level. But if your talent is limited to just the three-tomoe, it will only enhance your current Three Tomoe Sharingan."
"But all of this is based on the premise that your spirit remains unscathed in the constructed mental world."
"Making it into a pill is just a way to minimize the risk of mental breakdown while retaining as much of its potency as possible," Kagetsu looked up at Fugaku and explained.
Fugaku looked at Kagetsu, then glanced at the silent Orochimaru standing nearby. For a moment, he couldn't understand what this master and disciple were planning.
However, he wasn't particularly disappointed. A powerful three-tomoe Sharingan was already enough to reach the level of a Kage.
As for the Mangekyō Sharingan?
It was indeed a pair of incredibly powerful eyes, with unparalleled ocular abilities, but even in the Uchiha clan's records, such eyes were shrouded in mystery.
In the past century, only two people had been definitively recorded as having awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan: Uchiha Madara and his younger brother, Uchiha Izuna.
Other members of the Uchiha clan, if they can awaken the three-tomoe Sharingan, are already considered highly talented and have the potential to become at least jōnin-level shinobi.
"Fugaku-kun, here are some pills to help them restore their strength. You can give these to the three of them to replenish their physical energy and chakra."
Orochimaru stepped forward, holding out a long, transparent box containing three thumb-sized green pills.
Fugaku had initially intended to give Akihiko and the others standard Military Rations Pills, but seeing the transparent box Orochimaru handed him, he hesitated briefly before accepting it and distributing the pills to Akihiko and the other two.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, the three Uchiha sat down cross-legged and swallowed the pills.
Akihiko immediately felt his weak and exhausted body brimming with newfound strength as the pill reached his stomach. It was as if his nearly burned-out chakra reserves were suddenly refueled.
His physical stamina recovered rapidly, and his previously heavy body regained its agility.
His chakra also replenished quickly. Stimulated by the pill, his Sharingan, which had closed earlier, reactivated, and the three tomoe in his blood-red eyes slowly began spinning again.
In just a few minutes, the three of them had almost fully recovered to their optimal state. Moreover, there was none of the hollow, overdrawn feeling typically experienced after consuming Military Rations Pills.
Orochimaru, standing to the side, narrowed his eyes into slits, looking tempted. However, with Fugaku standing nearby, he restrained himself.
Three small, white snakes slowly slithered out of Orochimaru's sleeves and made their way toward the three Uchihas, who watched intently with their three-tomoe Sharingan activated.
"Give them a little bit of your blood. It's necessary for the next phase of the experiment," Orochimaru instructed.
The three Uchihas hesitated for a moment. Seeing their clan leader nod, they obediently allowed the small snakes to bite their fingertips and suck a little blood.
Afterward, Orochimaru and his apprentice, Kagetsu, left Fugaku and the others behind and returned to the room filled with experimental instruments.
"Who would've thought that even from those failed experimental subjects, we could extract such a substance. This is truly wonderful! It can induce rapid cell division, restoring physical stamina, chakra, and even healing injuries.
While the pill is active, it can achieve an effect similar to Tsunade's Forbidden Jutsu: Creation Rebirth. No, it should only reach the level of some high-level medical ninjutsu recovery techniques."
Muttering to himself, Orochimaru analyzed the blood samples and observed the physical conditions of the three Uchihas.
He realized that by broadening his perspective and changing his approach, Hashirama's cells had turned out to be a treasure trove beyond his expectations!
Although extracting the necessary substances for these pills was challenging and came with a risk of assimilation side effects, the built-in medical and recovery properties made them a game-changer for a shinobi during critical moments.
It was like the Akimichi clan's three-colored pills. Even though the last one came with a severe risk to life, the Akimichi clan members still carried them, ready to swallow them in dire situations.
And the Uchiha seemed capable of resisting the side effects of these pills.
Was it due to the ocular power of the Sharingan?
Orochimaru squinted thoughtfully. In his pursuit of immortality, delving into a few interesting bloodline limit studies didn't seem like a bad idea.
As time passed, a few hours later, Kagetsu and Orochimaru emerged from the laboratory, placing three light blue pills in front of Akihiko and the other two.
"A reminder: this experiment is dangerous. I have no way of knowing what kind of mental world will be constructed for you. But it will definitely be a brutal and painful experience.
You'll have difficulty recognizing that it's an illusion, and I won't be able to know what you're going through inside.
But no matter what, make sure to keep your mind stable!" Kagetsu warned seriously.
****
Support me on my ko-fi account and read upto 15 early chapters,
https://ko-fi.com/pirateking24/tiers