"…"
Kakashi was momentarily speechless at being called a "white-haired brat," but he gave Naruto a complicated look before answering Uchiha Hikari's question. "Of course I know him. He's Konoha's Uzumaki Naruto."
"Oh, I thought you didn't recognize him," Uchiha Hikari said, her tone dripping with sarcasm.
Kakashi's relationship with Namikaze Minato was far closer than hers—more than just a "transaction," but a genuine master-student bond that spanned years. During Kushina's pregnancy, Kakashi, then an Anbu operative, was assigned to protect her. Yet despite this, he hadn't spared a glance for his mentor's orphaned son until nearly a decade later…
Losing family and friends and enduring hardship were real, but that was beside the point.
As an Anbu squad leader, if Kakashi had truly wanted to look after Naruto, he could've done so without getting directly involved.
Of course…
Minato's other disciple was an even bigger piece of work…
"So, you'll be handling the surveillance from now on?" Hikari asked.
"…You're exaggerating, Hikari-senpai," Kakashi replied politely. "We're just protecting you and… others from the shadows, nothing more. If it bothers you, we can keep our distance. Also, if you need any errands run while you're in the village, feel free to ask. Yūgao and I would be happy to help."
"Hm."
Hikari gave a noncommittal response.
She could guess why the Anbu had shuffled their personnel. After all, only a Sharingan could counter a Sharingan. The real Sharingan wielders—Shisui and Itachi—were Uchiha clansmen and couldn't be fully trusted, so they settled for the next best thing: Kakashi.
But it didn't matter.
The only things that could truly threaten her were Uchiha Shisui's *Betsutenjin* (Kotoamatsukami) and the *Kamui* from outside the village. Other Sharingan? They were all the same to her—not worth special attention.
For now, Hikari gestured for Kakashi and Uzuki Yūgao to step aside, then led Naruto upstairs to their room.
…
**[Eien_no_Tsuma: Hikari-san, you should be back in Konoha by now, right? How's it going? Root hasn't caused you any more trouble, has it?]**
**[Nameless: Nope, and they probably won't ever again.]**
**[Nameless: I told the Third Hokage about Shimura Danzo secretly abducting villagers for live experiments, transplanting the First Hokage's cells, corresponding with the rogue ninja Orochimaru, and stealing Uchiha clan Sharingan. If all goes as expected, Root should be permanently disbanded. Oh, and… these claims came from your disciple, Hatake Kakashi, so they should hold some weight, right?]**
**[Eien_no_Tsuma: ?]**
In a way, Hikari wasn't lying—she was just adding a bit of speculation to the facts.
Even if Sarutobi Hiruzen was indecisive enough to spare Danzo, there was no way Danzo could make a comeback.
Because…
"Naruto, I know you've been super well-behaved lately, so go eat your ramen before it gets cold. I'm gonna take a quick nap and cook for you later, okay?"
Hikari ruffled Naruto's hair like she was coaxing a kid, tossing out a few words to shoo him off before heading to her room. She lay down and closed her eyes.
Her consciousness slowly sank.
She entered a dark, boundless space.
This was the depths of Uchiha Hikari's mindscape, the core of *Yasogami* (Eight Thousand Spears). In the profound darkness, like a starless night sky, faint glimmers of light flickered faintly.
**[Engraving]**
Since waking up in the coffin, Hikari had used *Koku Tsukiomi* (Engraved Tsukuyomi) to place engravings on several people: Sarutobi Hiruzen, Naruto, the Anbu monitoring Naruto, and Goku and his group in the *Dragon Ball* world. But until now, she hadn't tapped into this power, wary of revealing *Yasogami*'s existence.
—Whether it was pulling someone into an illusionary space regardless of distance or draining their chakra, these abilities were far too alarming. Until she was ready to face the consequences of exposure, she had to keep them tightly under wraps.
At this moment…
Among the array of glowing and dim engraving fragments, Hikari located the one belonging to Danzo. She extended her consciousness like tendrils, carefully probing and observing.
There was a reason she'd spared Danzo's life at Root's base.
That reason was tied to another of *Yasogami*'s abilities—
Beyond draining chakra, *Yasogami* had an even more extraordinary power: the ability to manipulate someone's mind!
But this manipulation was crude.
It essentially involved crushing the target's original will and replacing it with her own, not much different from killing them and turning them into a puppet. While it preserved most of their combat abilities, their memories would be completely erased, and even if the technique was undone, they could never be restored.
That wouldn't do.
Hikari wanted to refine this ability through repeated practice, aiming to alter someone's will without destroying most of their memories.
That's right.
Her goal was to rival *Betsutenjin*!
The idea stemmed from her desire to recruit a particular talent—
Dr. Gero.
Like Bulma and her father, Dr. Gero was one of the top scientific geniuses in the *Dragon Ball* world, especially in bioengineering, where he was arguably the best. He could create androids rivaling Super Saiyans—and not just one.
Unfortunately, Dr. Gero was fiercely loyal to the Red Ribbon Army, even after its downfall, as if his mind had been stamped with an unshakable ideology.
According to the *Dragon Ball* timeline, starting next year, the Red Ribbon Army would join the hunt for the Dragon Balls. If Hikari continued operating in that world, she'd inevitably clash with them. For someone like Dr. Gero, there were only two options: recruit him or kill him. There was no third path.
So…
To recruit Dr. Gero, Hikari needed to master this ability before facing the Red Ribbon Army.
To do that, she needed a test subject to experiment with her ideas—actually, more than one, since the margin for error was bound to be low. A single mistake could turn the subject into a vegetable, so multiple attempts were necessary.
In Hikari's eyes, the ideal test subjects were the demons from the *Demon Slayer* world.
Their regenerative abilities were extraordinary—short of a Nichirin Blade, even a blown-off head would heal. She could experiment on their brains freely without worrying about permanent damage.
But Shimura Danzo was a decent substitute.
He shared some similarities with Dr. Gero, and his favorite pastime was conducting human experiments on orphans, villagers, and shinobi. So, when it came to contributing to medical science with his own body…
He should be thrilled.
*(End of Chapter)*