"I hope you understand that I am doing all this for our safety. You will never feel less loved by me."
When Kagami's words reached Uchiha Rinne's ears, her heart suddenly tightened, as if seized by an invisible hand, and a wave of unease washed over her. A deep worry filled her beautiful eyes, her previously calm expression now rippling with concern. If Kagami hadn't told her himself, she would have remained completely unaware of the true danger they had faced the night before.
It was only now that she finally understood. The reason Kagami was so desperate to increase his power wasn't for ambition or glory—it was to protect her and their son. Though a pang of jealousy still flickered in her heart, she knew this was no time for such sentiments. The most critical, urgent task was to help Kagami grow stronger as quickly as possible. After all, hidden in the shadows, an immensely powerful and covetous enemy was watching their small, happy family. Only by allowing Kagami to achieve absolute power could they hope to fend off the dangers that lay ahead.
Her gaze fell upon their precious son, Sukuna, who had just been born, so small and fragile. As a mother, Rinne couldn't bear the thought of her child living in an environment where danger could strike at any moment.
Without the slightest hesitation, she looked up at him, her voice firm and resolute. "Kagami, I'm so sorry. I misunderstood you before. Please, just focus on what you need to do to improve your strength. I will do everything in my power to help you."
Hearing his wife's sincere, loving words, Kagami was deeply moved. He leaned over and gently kissed her smooth forehead. "Thank you, Rinne. You never have to worry about this, because in my heart, your position is untouchable. You will always come first."
The night passed in quiet understanding.
The next day, looking at Rinne who was still sound asleep, Kagami smiled, then quietly got up and left the room. After getting ready for the day, he sat down for breakfast, his mind already sorting through his next steps.
Currently, he saw three paths to increasing his strength.
The first was to rely on the system to draw new templates, which meant having more children. This would take time—at least another year or so. With Rinne's support, all he could do now was let nature take its course. It was a path that couldn't be rushed. Thinking of this, he felt a fleeting moment of regret for Yugao Uzuki, the Anbu kunoichi who had died during the massacre. She would have likely had a high rating.
The second path was to continue evolving his Sharingan into its Eternal form, or perhaps even the Rinnegan. The most direct method for this was to transplant Hashirama's cells. It was the surest way to strengthen his eyes without the risk of blindness. However, the thought of transplanting those cells and having a grotesque face grow on his chest was deeply unsettling. He might need Orochimaru's expertise for that, but the idea was so repulsive that he dismissed it for now. He would only consider it if that horrific side effect could be eliminated.
The third path was to practice ninjutsu. His own aptitude for chakra was still far too low for him to make any rapid progress. The only way around that would be to become a jinchuriki and gain a massive reserve of chakra. However, the thought of sealing a monster inside his body, of having it watch him while he was... intimate... with his wives, was completely unacceptable.
After much thought, Kagami realized with a frustrating sigh that he currently had no quick way to improve his strength. All these methods are not to his liking.
"Oh, forget it," he said to himself with a helpless sigh. "There's still time. I'll just have to take it slow."
With his current power, he was safe from any conventional threat. The only real danger was the Sage of Six Paths, who was watching him from the shadows. And for some unknown reason, though the Sage had shown killing intent, he hadn't acted. Whatever the reason, it meant that for now, he didn't need to live in constant fear. But he couldn't afford to be complacent. He had to seize this time to prepare, to grow stronger. He couldn't bet his family's future on the Sage's continued inaction. He had to be the one in control of his own destiny.
With this in mind, the idea of subduing Orochimaru resurfaced. Though he was against transplanting Hashirama's cells himself, Orochimaru's genius might be able to find another way to evolve his Sharingan. The man was one of the most brilliant, if twisted, scientists in the world. If Kagami was to one day unify the ninja world, a mind like Orochimaru's would be an invaluable asset—more valuable, even, than Naruto or Sasuke.
For now, he needed to stay with his family to guard against any sudden moves from the Sage. He couldn't leave Konoha to find Orochimaru himself, not until he had at least learned the Shadow Clone Jutsu. At his current training speed, that could take some time. But while he couldn't leave, he could certainly send others to search.
Having settled on a plan, Kagami finished his breakfast. He first gave Sasuke his daily "baptism" of cursed energy, then prepared a meal for Rinne and Kurenai Yuhi. After the "lesson" from the previous night, Kurenai seemed to have resigned herself to her fate and had no intention of running away. She quietly ate breakfast with Rinne.
Kagami exchanged a few words with them, then went out, heading for the Hokage Building. As he was walking down the street, he suddenly heard someone call out to him.
"Kagami-sama, please wait!"
He turned and saw Hiashi Hyuga hurrying toward him. Beside him was a small, shy girl with lavender eyes—a young Hinata Hyuga.
"Hiashi, is there a problem?" Kagami asked, his brow furrowed slightly.
Hiashi gave a nervous laugh, then bowed his head. "Kagami-sama, I've come to report that the two individuals you asked us to deal with, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado... they defected from Konoha the night before last. We... ahem..." If he could have avoided it, he never would have approached Kagami with this news. But if he failed to report it and Kagami found out later, the consequences would be dire. He hadn't expected the two elders to flee the moment they heard of Hiruzen and Danzo's deaths. By the time his men had arrived to capture them, they were long gone.
Beside him, and Hinata, influenced by the powerful aura of the Pure Yang Holy Body radiating from Kagami, looked up at him with a shy, blushing face, her mind a flutter of confused emotions.
Kagami didn't notice the girl's reaction. Actually he would not have like to see it at all. A young girl looking at him like that would have made him sick. He waved a dismissive hand at Hiashi, his voice indifferent. "In that case, label them as rogue ninja and put a bounty on their heads. Send hunter-nin after them."
To him, Koharu and Homura were irrelevant trash. If not for their possible connection to Hiruzen's plot, he wouldn't have cared if they lived or died.