Chapter 330: Map

Chapter 330: Chapter 330: Map

There was no doubt that, as fellow descendants of the Otsutsuki, the Hyuga clan, which had carried on its lineage for a thousand years, hid no fewer secrets than the Uchiha clan.

After going through several ancient records in succession, the figure had gained a relatively clear understanding of the Hyuga clan’s Byakugan, as well as the history surrounding the development of the Caged Bird Cursed Seal.

Judging from the descriptions recorded across those ancient texts, the great calamity that had nearly destroyed the Hyuga clan back then was undoubtedly connected to the Byakugan.

To prevent such a calamity from happening again, the clan’s ancestors had devoted all their efforts to developing a cursed seal that could protect the Byakugan from being casually removed. From this alone, it was clear that the calamity had something to do with the removal of the Byakugan.

Yet the Hyuga clan was one of the great dojutsu Kekkei Genkai clans. Even during the chaotic Warring States Period, they had been a powerful shinobi clan whose strength was surpassed only by the Senju and Uchiha clans.

Logically speaking, during the Warring States Period, there had been only a handful of shinobi clans capable of hunting down members of the Hyuga clan and seizing their Byakugan. Moreover, most clans powerful enough to do so possessed Kekkei Genkai of their own and would not have coveted the Byakugan excessively.

For example, the principled Senju clan and the arrogant Uchiha clan were both unlikely to hunt down the Hyuga merely for the sake of obtaining the Byakugan.

Because of this, the figure found it difficult to imagine exactly what kind of calamity could have forced the clan’s ancestors to expend so much effort developing a cursed seal specifically designed to protect the Byakugan.

Closing the final ancient record, the figure let out a long, quiet sigh.

As more and more Uchiha clan members with Mangekyo Sharingan began to emerge, a question started lingering in the minds of every Hyuga clansman: could the Byakugan also evolve or awaken into a higher form?

It was with this very thought in mind that the figure had taken the risk of breaking into the clan’s forbidden archive.

However, the answer he found was disheartening.

According to the ancient records, throughout the Hyuga clan’s thousand-year history, there had never been a single precedent of the Byakugan evolving or awakening. It seemed that the Byakugan Kekkei Genkai simply had no possibility of further evolution or awakening.

"The Sharingan and Byakugan are both dojutsu Kekkei Genkai, so why can the Uchiha’s Sharingan awaken into the Mangekyo Sharingan while our Hyuga clan’s Byakugan can’t evolve at all? Could it be that the bloodline of our Hyuga clan really is inferior to the Uchiha clan’s?"

Feeling somewhat disheartened, the figure lit a candle and held the ancient records over the flame.

But just as he was about to destroy them, he suddenly noticed that faint patterns had begun appearing on the pages that had been heated by the flames.

He pieced together the patterns revealed across the different ancient records and discovered that the scattered fragments seemed capable of forming a map.

However, a large portion of the pattern was clearly missing. It appeared that he would need the other ancient records stored within the forbidden archive to completely piece together the entire map.

"Why is there a map hidden inside these ancient records?"

......

At Hyuga Kagami’s home.

For the time being, Hyuga Kagami set aside the matter of rooting out the spy hidden within the clan.

After all, the other party had only just broken into the clan’s forbidden archive, so they were bound to be extremely cautious for a while.

Moreover, Hyuga Kagami had yet to think of what kind of bait he could use to lure the other party out, so he could only set the matter aside for the time being.

In any case, no matter what the other party did, it was unlikely to have much impact on Hyuga Kagami in the short term. By comparison, studying the Chimera Technique he had just obtained was far more urgent.

Hyuga Kagami was perfectly clear about what took priority and what did not.

If the Great Toad Sage’s prophecy was destined to come true, then it meant that Otsutsuki Kaguya’s escape from her seal was unavoidable.

Therefore, before Otsutsuki Kaguya broke free, Hyuga Kagami’s highest priority was to make his attempt at achieving Kekkei Mora and turn himself into a powerhouse capable of influencing the outcome of the coming battle. Compared to that, matters concerning the clan could all be set aside for later.

Because as long as Hyuga Kagami achieved Kekkei Mora, then even if the Hyuga clan were completely destroyed, he could easily rebuild it himself.

Unrolling the scroll containing the Chimera Technique, Hyuga Kagami began studying it carefully.

The core of the Chimera Technique lay in implanting a special substance known as a "Chimera Bud."

This substance called the Chimera Bud was the very foundation that allowed the Chimera Technique to devour and assimilate virtually anything.

However, cultivating a Chimera Bud was no easy task.

To cultivate a Chimera Bud compatible with one’s own flesh and blood required enormous amounts of manpower and resources. In terms of success rate alone, cultivating a Chimera Bud was even more difficult than Hyuga Kagami’s cell-fusion experiments.

What made Hyuga Kagami frown even more was that the Chimera Bud came with side effects.

And this made Hyuga Kagami realize an extremely serious problem.

If he failed to achieve Kekkei Mora and truly reach the Six Paths level, then he would have no way to eliminate the Chimera Bud from his body.

In other words, once someone used the forbidden Chimera Technique, every outcome other than successfully achieving Kekkei Mora would be considered a failure.

"From the very beginning, Hiruko’s Kekkei Genkai fusion ritual was already a failure..."

Hyuga Kagami sighed inwardly.

Although Hiruko had survived the Kekkei Genkai fusion ritual, in the end, he had merely fused five different Kekkei Genkai. He had failed to achieve Kekkei Mora, undergo a qualitative transformation, and truly reach the Six Paths level.

Because of this, he could never rid himself of the Chimera Bud within his body. The moment the Chimera Bud was removed, his body would immediately collapse from being unable to withstand the five different Kekkei Genkai!

But if he kept the Chimera Bud, he would be forced to endure its endless backlash.

Not only would this leave hidden problems within his body, it would also subject him to a severe period of weakness. And if an enemy managed to determine when the Chimera Bud’s backlash would occur, they could easily exploit that opening.

As for Shinno, who had also used the Chimera Technique, Hyuga Kagami could only marvel at his incredible luck.

After Shinno used the Chimera Technique to devour the demon Moryo, the Chimera Bud within his body had instead been devoured by Moryo itself.

As a result, Shinno had successfully used the Chimera Technique to become Moryo’s jinchuriki, while Moryo had inadvertently taken care of the Chimera Bud for him at the same time, eliminating the hidden danger left behind by using the Chimera Technique.

Hyuga Kagami, however, had no need to use the Chimera Technique to become a jinchuriki, so he could not simply copy Shinno’s approach.

Like Hiruko, he would also have to face the hidden danger of the Chimera Bud’s backlash. If his attempt to achieve Kekkei Mora ultimately failed, then the Chimera Bud inside his body would become a death sentence.

There was only one way to avoid that outcome: he had to succeed in achieving Kekkei Mora on his very first attempt and truly reach the Six Paths level.

Only then would his physical constitution undergo a qualitative transformation, allowing his original body to remain intact after devouring all six clones even without relying on the Chimera Bud.

"I have to succeed on the first attempt. There won’t be a second chance..."

With a bitter smile, Hyuga Kagami sighed.

"Looks like there’s no turning back once I attempt to achieve Kekkei Mora. Either I succeed... or I’ll suffer a fate worse than death!"