Special Genetic Sequences

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From Naoki's hazy memories of his previous life, the Tenseigan was the Byakugan's upgraded form, a devastating power capable of standing alongside the Rinnegan.

As far as he knew, there were two ways for the Tenseigan to evolve.

The first was the path Toneri Otsutsuki had taken: combining the bloodline of the Moon's Otsutsuki branch with the bloodline of the Hyuga main family on Earth.

The second was to fuse a large number of Byakugan.

Naoki ruled out the first method immediately. He was not from the main family, and he had no way to obtain the Byakugan of Toneri's lunar bloodline. The second method was just as impossible. Because of the Caged Bird Seal, the Byakugan of the branch family would be destroyed the moment it was removed from the body or after death. Relying on the main family alone, he could never gather enough eyes.

Both methods seemed blocked, but the second one gave Naoki a new angle.

The Byakugan, the Sharingan, every kekkei genkai - all of them were ultimately visible manifestations of genetics. If he could not gather enough actual Byakugan, could he approach the problem at the genetic level instead? Could he collect enough Hyuga genetic material, fuse the necessary sequences, and evolve the Byakugan into the Tenseigan from the inside out?

That bold hypothesis was why Naoki had focused so heavily on learning genetic research from Orochimaru.

Through repeated study and observation, he made a startling discovery: every Hyuga clan member carried thirty-three special genetic sequences.

Further observation revealed something even more important. Among different clan members, the number of activated sequences within those thirty-three special sequences varied.

In Naoki's own body, only sequences seventeen through thirty-three were active. Sequences one through sixteen remained dormant. The dozen or so other Hyuga samples he had collected were broadly similar. Each carried only a portion of the thirty-three special sequences in an activated state.

That discovery further confirmed his theory.

He even suspected that if all thirty-three special genetic sequences could be activated, any Hyuga clan member might be able to evolve their Byakugan into the Tenseigan.

The idea took root in his mind at once and spread like wildfire.

Thanks to the war, Naoki had been assigned to a field hospital under Orochimaru's command, which made it easy for him to collect a large amount of Hyuga genetic material. After screening and comparing hundreds of samples, he successfully extracted activated special genetic sequences four through sixteen.

Combined with the activated sequences seventeen through thirty-three already present in his own body, the only pieces he still lacked were activated sequences one through three.

He had gathered more than enough branch-family samples, but none of them contained active versions of those first three sequences. Naturally, his attention turned to the main family.

But main-family members rarely went to the battlefield in person. Even when they did, they were heavily protected, far beyond the reach of a shinobi at Naoki's level. For a long time, he had been unable to obtain a main-family genetic sample.

Because of that, he had no choice but to ask Orochimaru for help.

Orochimaru did not refuse him, but even for one of the Sannin, stealing genetic material from the Hyuga main family was hardly easy.

The matter dragged on for more than a year, and Naoki's experiment was forced to stall.

It frustrated him, but he understood his position. He was only a minor figure struggling to survive. If he wanted to change his fate, he had to find his own opportunity. He could not sit around waiting for a gift to fall from the sky.

Just as Naoki began considering the soon-to-be-born Hinata, a newborn of the main family, Orochimaru unexpectedly brought him a piece of main-family flesh during their farewell.

As he processed the tissue, Naoki thought, 'Orochimaru should defect within the next few days. He has no intention of taking me with him, and yet he brought me the exact material I needed before leaving. What's he after? Does he want me to stay in the village as his spy?'

Based on Orochimaru's recent behavior and Naoki's hazy memories of his previous life, he could tell that Orochimaru's interest in the Byakugan had already faded. If he was still handing over this badly needed experimental material now, it clearly was not for the sake of Byakugan research. He was trying to pacify Naoki.

At that thought, Naoki mocked himself inwardly. 'Looks like the Caged Bird Seal isn't entirely useless after all.'

Without a doubt, the decisive reason Orochimaru chose to leave him in the village was the Caged Bird Seal on Naoki's forehead. The branch family had no right to defect. If he tried, the seal could deal with him directly. Naturally, Orochimaru had no interest in dragging away a useless corpse.

As the experiment progressed, Naoki pushed aside his scattered thoughts and focused completely on the work in front of him.

The tissue Orochimaru had brought was full of vitality. If Naoki's guess was correct, it very likely came from the clan head, Hiashi Hyuga. It was also the genetic material he wanted more than anything else.

Because the tissue was so fresh, the extraction process went exceptionally smoothly. After comparing the sample, Naoki was shocked to discover that twenty-eight of Hiashi Hyuga's thirty-three special genetic sequences were active, including the sequences one through three he needed most.

'Twenty-eight activated special genetic sequences. No wonder he's the clan head.'

When he thought of Hiashi Hyuga's near Kage-level strength, Naoki's awe quickly settled into understanding.

Hiashi, in the prime of his life, was undoubtedly the strongest member of the Hyuga clan. It was only natural for someone like that to carry the finest genetics in the family.

Naoki pushed the thought aside and devoted every bit of his attention to extracting the three activated sequences he had dreamed of obtaining: one, two, and three.

With that, all of the activated sequences he had been missing from one through sixteen were finally complete.

'This is it. My one chance to overturn fate.'

Joy, hope, anxiety, fear - all of it surged up at once, leaving Naoki dazed for a moment.

He wanted to throw back his head and roar. He wanted to release the fear and pressure that had weighed on his heart for so many years. But the one-eyed viper on his shoulder made him bury every impulse before it could show.

After a quiet breath, Naoki drew those emotions back under control one by one.

Then, without letting anything show, he loaded the extracted genetic solution into a small temperature-controlled vial. He took out a scroll and sealed the vial inside.

Orochimaru's defection would shake the entire village.

To make sure he was not implicated, Naoki still had a long list of loose ends to handle. The first was this laboratory. He had to erase every trace of himself from it, including every trace of his experiments. Otherwise, the village might follow the trail back to him or discover his special genetic sequence fusion experiment.

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