Tobirama Senju, now sporting a pair of three-tomoe Sharingan, was holding a small mirror, admiring his reflection from every angle—left, right, up, down, you name it.
"Hah! As expected of me! I'm ridiculously handsome!" he declared.
"Ugh!" came a retort. "I've never seen someone so shameless! Tobirama Uchiha? With that face, you look like a toad from Mount Myoboku that gained sentience! If it weren't for our clan's Sharingan boosting your looks, that mirror you're holding would probably puke! Most people get compared to slop, but you? You're the slop they compare people to!"
CRACK!
The mirror in Tobirama's hand shattered under his grip.
Tobirama had been in a great mood before this. Sure, the Sharingan he'd transplanted weren't Mangekyo, but three-tomoe Sharingan were nothing to scoff at. They'd massively boosted his strength, and the dynamic vision they granted sharpened his awareness, especially when it came to sensing chakra. With these eyes, he could develop even more forbidden jutsu!
Plus, his Senju blood meant he had chakra reserves that, while not as insane as his big brother Hashirama's, could still be measured in tons. And let's be real—he was already good-looking. Paired with those three-tomoe Sharingan? He was on another level.
Sure, the Uchiha clan might be a little evil by nature, but you couldn't deny their Sharingan made you look good.
But all that good vibes? Gone. Obliterated by Izuna Uchiha's savage verbal attack.
"Aargh! You vile Uchiha, Izuna!" Tobirama roared. "My name is Tobirama Senju! Call me that again, and I'll slice you in half with a Flying Thunder God Slash! And you're one to talk! You're not even a Mount Myoboku toad—you're a tadpole that gained sentience!"
"Hah! Uchiha Tobirama!" Izuna cackled. "Heh heh heh heh!"
"I'm gonna kill you!" Tobirama bellowed.
And just like that, Tobirama and Izuna vanished from the research lab using Flying Thunder God, off to who-knows-where to settle their score.
That left just Orochimaru, Hirofumi Ito, and the Rookie Nine (plus a few extras) in the lab.
Naruto Uzumaki was still marveling at his new Sharingan. Unlike Hashirama, who'd instantly awakened a Mangekyo after his transplant, Naruto hadn't hit that level yet. But he could feel something—a strange fusion happening between his new eyes and some energy in his body. It wouldn't be long before he was piloting his own metaphorical Gundam!
Sasuke Uchiha, meanwhile, ran a hand over his chest, where a tattoo of Naruto now sat. He clenched his fist tightly. His Mangekyo Sharingan was changing. The Yin and Yang chakra in him were starting to merge, which meant one thing: he was on the path to awakening the Rinnegan, just like his ancestor, Madara.
When that day came, he'd finally have his revenge. He'd kill that man. He'd seen what Madara could do with the Rinnegan—power that rivaled the Sage of the Six Paths himself. Once Sasuke had those eyes, he'd make Itachi Uchiha feel true despair.
"You want to test my resolve, huh?" Sasuke muttered to himself. "Let's see how your pathetic little Mangekyo holds up against my Rinnegan."
Just then, Orochimaru, who was tidying up the lab equipment, felt a sudden chill. His back tingled, like someone was staring daggers at him. He spun around to find the rest of the Rookie Nine (minus Naruto and Sasuke) staring at him with fiery, eager eyes.
"Uh… why are you all looking at me like that?" Orochimaru asked, unnerved.
Kiba Inuzuka grinned mischievously. "Orochimaru-senpai! You've got all those Sharingan in there. Can't you hook us up with a few?"
Orochimaru glanced at the petri dishes holding the Sharingan. Those were for research! He was planning to use them to potentially clone even more Sharingan—maybe stronger ones, or ones that used less chakra. Did these kids think it was that simple?
"Transplanting a Sharingan isn't some walk in the park," Orochimaru said, clearing his throat. "You need massive chakra reserves to sustain them. Otherwise, they're just a burden. Naruto can handle it because he's Ashura's reincarnation, has the Nine-Tails sealed inside him, and comes from the Uzumaki clan, who are born with insane chakra pools. For you guys? A Sharingan could hold you back instead of making you stronger."
He gestured to the dishes. "Besides, I need these for my research. In the future, I might be able to clone better Sharingan—stronger, more efficient. If you're still interested then, I can hook you up."
The Rookie Nine nodded, reluctantly dropping the idea. They got it—if a Sharingan slowed them down instead of powering them up, it wasn't worth it.
Hinata and Neji Hyuga, though, had their own thoughts. Hinata's mind wandered to Naruto. He had a Sharingan now. If she got one too, would that make them a matching couple? Neji, on the other hand, touched the forehead protector covering his cursed seal. Could a Sharingan free him from the Branch House's Cage Bird seal?
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