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Chapter 88: The Conditions for Awakening the Mangekyō
Having fought both Sasuke and Obito, Konan was well aware of the power of the Mangekyō Sharingan. It offered insight a level above the three-tomoe, powerful dōjutsu housed in each eye, and the ultimate defense and destructive power of Susanoo. If she could awaken the Mangekyō, her strength would undoubtedly rise to another level.
How to awaken it? Alex pondered, finding it difficult to answer for a moment. People like Sasuke, Obito, Shisui, or Itachi had all awakened their Mangekyō after experiencing immense emotional trauma. Even the first owner of the Mangekyō Sharingan, the Sage of Six Paths, had awakened it after witnessing the death of a woman he cared about. Did it really require such trauma? Alex was doubtful. Awakening it was one thing, but what about the subsequent blindness and eye-swapping? Sasuke, Madara, and others had all gained the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, which never lost its light, by transplanting eyes. The Sage of Six Paths never swapped eyes; it seemed his awakened as Eternal Mangekyō from the start. His son, Indra, was much the same: his visual prowess was extremely strong, with no need for an eye swap. Besides, their respective brothers didn't even have Mangekyō to give them.
Alex couldn't give a precise answer and could only offer the conventional one: [Sasuke, Obito, and the others all experienced a powerful emotional shock to awaken their Mangekyō.]
"Is that so... it requires a shock..." Konan looked at Alex, recalling the moment the arrow pierced his chest during yesterday's battle. If she had possessed the Sharingan at that time, she definitely would have been shocked into instantly awakening her Mangekyō. That bone-deep feeling of grief would have been more than enough to trigger it. Unfortunately, that moment had passed. Even thinking back on it now, what she felt most was lingering fear, and the Sharingan didn't react at all.
Konan suddenly held Alex, her expression extremely serious. "If it truly requires extreme trauma to awaken, then I'd rather not awaken this Mangekyō. I don't want you to be in any danger ever again, not even a little, and I certainly won't allow it!"
For her emotions to fluctuate to the point of awakening the eye, at this stage, there could only be one reason: Alex falling into a fatal crisis, or dying right in front of her! This was something she could never accept, under any circumstances. She would never trade Alex for power!
Seeing Konan so agitated, Alex comforted her: [Don't worry, something like that won't happen. Besides, awakening the Mangekyō might not necessarily require extreme trauma.]
The Sharingan was, after all, the ultimate representation of Yin Release. Perhaps if her spiritual energy and soul became strong enough, the eye would awaken naturally. If that happened, she might even be able to avoid the drawback of blindness and the need for an eye swap.
Konan relaxed, listening to Alex's speculation. "Are you saying that strengthening my soul or spiritual energy might also give me a chance to awaken it?"
Alex nodded: [To be more precise, it's about increasing the power of your Yin Release.]
Every ninja is born with both Yin and Yang Release, but apart from a very few individuals and clans, most can't utilize them. Yin Release originates from spiritual energy. The Uchiha's Sharingan and the Nara clan's Shadow Imitation Technique are both manifestations of Yin Release. Yang Release originates from physical energy. The Senju clan's Sage Body and the Akimichi clan's Expansion Jutsu are manifestations of Yang Release. Alex believed that by training in corresponding Yin Release ninjutsu, she should be able to strengthen her Yin Release. As for other methods of increasing spiritual energy, he didn't know of any for the time being.
Konan smiled. "It would be great to awaken the Mangekyō, but it's fine if I can't. At the very least, the three-tomoe Sharingan has already made me much stronger. In any case, the ultimate goal is to achieve the Ōtsutsuki bloodline. I'll just do my best for the Mangekyō and not worry about it too much."
Alex nodded silently, though he was still pondering. After a bloodline fusion, the Chimera Technique's power would continuously work to deeply develop that bloodline. He wasn't sure if this applied to the Sharingan, or if she might just wake up one day with an automatically awakened Mangekyō. Or even a Rinnegan.
Ugh... let's forget the Rinnegan. The Rinnegan, which evolved step-by-step from the Sharingan, required one more indispensable trigger: the fusion of Indra's and Asura's chakra. Thinking of this, Alex suddenly paused. Or maybe it doesn't have to be the brothers' chakra. When their powers combine, isn't that just a complete set of the Sage of Six Paths' power... As long as she had the Sage of Six Paths' power, the Mangekyō could also evolve into a Rinnegan.
No, wait... Alex had another thought. If you already have the Sage of Six Paths' power, wouldn't the Rinnegan be a given? What's the point of fusing anything? To put it bluntly, the Rinnegan and the Sage of Six Paths' power were practically equivalent. Having the Sage's power allows you to awaken the Rinnegan, but only the Rinnegan possesses the Sage's power. It was an unresolvable chicken-and-egg problem. Asura's and Indra's chakra were the variables inserted into the equation, lowering the bar for obtaining the Rinnegan. Otherwise, where would Madara Uchiha have found a complete set of the Sage of Six Paths' power to evolve his Eternal Mangekyō into the Rinnegan?
"Yin Release..." Konan mused. "Jutsu of that nature are extremely rare in the ninja world. It probably won't be easy to find."
Alex pulled his thoughts back to the present, saying optimistically: [Don't worry, we'll find a way. Right now, our power is just insufficient. Once we're stronger, the problems we're facing now might not be problems at all. The most urgent task is to fuse the six bloodlines as soon as possible and achieve the Ōtsutsuki bloodline.]
Konan had already fused the Uzumaki, Shikotsumyaku, and Uchiha bloodlines. That left Senju, Hyūga, and Hagoromo.
Konan deactivated her Sharingan and asked, "Alex, which target is next?"
Obtaining any of these remaining bloodlines would not be easy, much more difficult than before. After all, they would have to go up against the two great villages, Konoha and the Village Hidden in the Clouds. Neither was lacking in high-end, Kage-level combatants and jonin. Konoha had Danzō, Naruto, Kakashi, and Might Guy. The Village Hidden in the Clouds had the A-B Combo. None of them were easy to deal with.
Alex didn't answer, saying instead: [Let's get the information on natural energy from Jūgo first, then we'll decide.]
Konan nodded and walked out of the room with Alex. Unsurprisingly, Kameda appeared at once, hurrying over from a corner. "Lady Konan, do you have any orders for me?"
"Take me to the brig."
"Yes, this way, please." Kameda wasted no words, respectfully leading the way from her left front. They walked down to the lower level, arriving at a dark corner. "Lady Konan, we're here." Kameda pointed to a closed iron door. "The prisoner captured today is locked inside."
Alex looked left and right. All the other doors were wide open. There were quite a few cells. For now, only the one in front of them was occupied. The iron door was shut tight, with almost no gaps, making it impossible to see inside.
Konan ordered, "Open the door."
"Yes!" Kameda fumbled with a heavy key, making a clanging sound. With a click, the lock turned, and the iron door was pulled open. Light shone into the cell, but it was still dim. They could only vaguely make out the silhouette of a human body. All four limbs were suspended in mid-air by refined iron chains. An iron ball was stuffed in his mouth to prevent suicide.
Seeing the figures at the door, Jūgo reacted violently. He struggled with all his might, making muffled "Mmph, mmph" sounds as the chains rattled. Konan waved a hand at Kameda. Kameda bowed and quietly departed, waiting at a distance.
Alex, wrapped in his white paper, flew behind Jūgo. He extended several white threads, probing his physical condition. After a while, he returned to Konan's side, somewhat disappointed: [It's not a special Kekkai Genkai. His talent for absorbing natural energy is likely due to the environment he grew up in. The place where he lived since childhood must have a high concentration of natural energy. That, combined with some coincidence, is what created his talent for absorbing it.]
He couldn't acquire this "ability-that-wasn't-an-ability" through the Chimera Technique. Alex guessed: [Perhaps that place is near the entrance to one of the three great Sage regions, and natural energy is leaking out, causing the high concentration.]