"But !"
Karin was about to protest further when Menma raised a hand and cut her off.
"Enough, Karin. Let's begin the experiment. Activate all monitoring equipment. If this attempt truly fails, the resulting data will still be invaluable for future research."
Without waiting for a response, Menma removed his shirt.
Years of relentless training, harsh travel, and constant combat had stripped away the fair complexion he once possessed. His skin now carried a healthy bronze tone, and the lean muscles beneath it were packed with explosive strength.
He lay down upon the cold metallic examination table and calmly connected the various monitoring cables to his body.
His actions alone conveyed his determination.
Karin could only inhale deeply and suppress the anxiety in her heart.
She walked to the control station and activated the instruments.
Once every preparation was complete
Pssht!
Menma drove the syringe containing the special blue-green solution into his arm.
With a gentle push, every drop entered his bloodstream.
" !?"
The effects appeared almost instantly.
At first, an icy sensation spread through his veins, causing his body to tremble involuntarily.
Moments later, that freezing chill transformed into blazing heat.
It felt as though molten lava had been poured directly into his blood.
Cold.
Hot.
Freezing.
Burning.
The opposing sensations crashed against each other repeatedly, turning his entire body into a battlefield of ice and fire.
Then came the worst part.
A terrifying pressure surged from every corner of his body, as though each muscle fiber, blood vessel, and bone was being forcibly torn apart before being reconstructed.
The veins on Menma's forehead bulged violently.
His fists clenched so tightly that the joints turned white.
Sweat poured from his body like rain.
His expression twisted in agony.
During the previous rounds of testing, Menma had already understood how violent the effects of this modified cellular activation solution would be.
Yet even he had underestimated the intensity of the reaction when used on his own body.
If an ordinary person were lying here, they would have collapsed long ago.
This was not merely a matter of physical endurance.
Mental fortitude was equally important.
Without both, survival would be impossible.
So it hurts this much…?
Menma felt as though his body were being ripped apart piece by piece.
However, the experiment had already begun.
There was no turning back.
There was no stopping halfway.
He could only endure.
Only persevere.
Only force himself forward.
More importantly, his body was still holding together.
Even without directly observing the internal changes, Menma could clearly sense that countless cells throughout his body were dividing, dying, reorganizing, and regenerating at astonishing speed.
In essence, this method consumed lifespan.
It was similar to Tsunade's Strength of a Hundred Seal and Creation Rebirth technique.
On the surface, it appeared to be high-speed regeneration fueled by chakra.
In reality, however, the technique accelerated cellular division to an extreme degree, consuming the user's natural lifespan.
After all, the number of times human cells could divide was limited.
But Menma did not care.
If he remained weak and his plans failed, he might be dead within a few years regardless.
Why worry about lifespan then?
And if he became strong enough
If his plans succeeded
If his bloodline continued evolving and eventually approached the level of the Ōtsutsuki Clan
Then the lifespan lost through cellular division would become insignificant.
The Ōtsutsuki possessed lifespans that bordered on eternity.
They existed beyond the limits of ordinary humans.
They were a higher form of life entirely.
Because of that, Menma had no hesitation.
Every cell that divided.
Every fragment of vitality consumed.
Every ounce of pain.
All of it was for power.
Endure it.
Endure it!
You must endure it!
Menma gritted his teeth and suppressed the overwhelming agony.
Each passing second felt like an eternity.
Each tremor of his body felt like a descent into hell itself.
Meanwhile, Karin monitored the instruments with complete concentration.
Most of the equipment had been supplied through Takigakure's resources, but the most advanced devices had come directly from Orochimaru's laboratories.
In terms of scientific research facilities, very few individuals in the shinobi world could compare to Orochimaru.
Thanks to those instruments, even microscopic cellular changes could be monitored in real time.
Karin watched the data streams in growing alarm.
The rate of cellular activation inside Menma's body had already exceeded every previous test result.
The numbers were climbing toward the critical threshold they had estimated beforehand.
Once that threshold was crossed
Neither Menma nor Karin could predict what would happen.
"Don't go higher…"
"Please don't go higher…"
Karin clasped her hands together unconsciously.
Her eyes never left the monitors.
The values continued rising.
Higher.
Higher.
Higher.
The instrument readings became increasingly terrifying.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
At last, Menma could no longer suppress the scream erupting from deep within his body.
"Menma!"
Karin's heart nearly stopped.
Yet she could do nothing.
Nothing at all.
She could only watch.
Watch and pray.
Several agonizing minutes passed.
Then
The previously skyrocketing values began slowing.
The increase became weaker.
Then weaker still.
Finally
The numbers stabilized.
Just below the critical threshold.
Karin released a long breath she had not realized she was holding.
Only then did the crushing pressure on her chest ease.
After hurriedly recording all relevant data, she immediately rushed to Menma's side.
"Menma! How do you feel?"
"I'm fine."
Menma exhaled heavily before forcing a smile.
"It hurt more than expected, but it remained within my tolerance limits. How about the data? Were all the values recorded? How far off were they from our projections?"
Karin nodded.
"Everything was recorded. Aside from the cellular division rate being significantly higher than expected, the deviations remained within acceptable parameters."
After a brief pause, she asked curiously,
"So? How does your body feel now? Has your resistance improved?"
All experiments began as hypotheses.
The expected effects were merely predictions.
Reality often differed.
Especially when bloodlines, chakra, and cellular structures were involved.
Even Orochimaru would never guarantee success.
Before Menma, Orochimaru had never possessed a pure-blooded Uzumaki subject for extensive study.
Most of the available data came from indirect sources and incomplete records.
Given enough time, Orochimaru might have achieved more accurate results.
After all
He was Orochimaru.
But this experiment had still involved significant uncertainty.
Fortunately, the worst-case scenario had not occurred.
"It's hard to tell immediately."
Menma closed his eyes and carefully examined the subtle changes throughout his body.
After several moments, he slowly shook his head.
"The improvement isn't obvious."
The enhancement to cellular activity and bodily adaptation was not a purely external change.
It was fundamentally internal.
Even Menma, as the subject himself, could not accurately measure every alteration occurring within his body.
"Let me test it."
He concentrated.
A moment later
BOOM!
Crimson chakra erupted from his body.
Violent chakra pressure filled the room instantly.
Four tails of Nine-Tails chakra manifested behind him.
The fox-like chakra cloak swayed and writhed in the air.
Menma carefully observed the sensation.
Originally, once a Jinchūriki reached sufficient synchronization and chakra output, they could enter a semi-tailed beast state.
Naruto's Four-Tails transformation against Orochimaru had been an example of this.
However, Naruto's transformation had occurred under emotional collapse and partial domination by Kurama's hatred.
Menma's situation was entirely different.
His relationship with Kurama was stable.
Whether to transform or not depended entirely on his own choice.
It was similar to Yagura and Killer B.
A perfect Jinchūriki selected whichever form best suited the battle.
Menma relied heavily on ninjutsu, sealing techniques, and the Adamantine Sealing Chains.
Therefore, he had little reason to assume a full semi-tailed beast form.
For him, combat power was measured by how much Nine-Tails chakra he could safely wield.
Whether he physically transformed was secondary.
Unless he intended to use a Tailed Beast Ball.
And at his current stage
That remained impossible.
The Eight Trigrams Seal had not yet been fully opened.
He still could not access Kurama's chakra completely.
After carefully sensing the changes, Menma slowly opened his eyes.
A trace of disappointment appeared within them.
"There's some improvement…"
"But it's far less than I expected."
He had endured extraordinary pain.
He had risked his body.
Yet the result seemed to be only a fraction of what he had hoped for.
Perhaps one-fifth of the projected outcome.
Perhaps even less.
Menma still did not know exactly what level of adaptation was required to perfectly withstand the Nine-Tails' chakra without suffering backlash.
But one thing was certain.
His current level was still insufficient.
In the original timeline, Naruto only achieved complete compatibility with Kurama's chakra after reaching an entirely different level of strength.
Compared to Sage Mode Naruto, Menma knew he still had a considerable gap to bridge.
"So even this wasn't enough…"
Karin's expression immediately darkened.
She felt disappointed.
More than that, she felt heartbroken.
After everything Menma had endured, the results still fell short.
At that moment, Karin seemed even more upset than Menma himself.
And what troubled her most was not the failed expectations
It was the pain Menma had suffered.
Since her mother's death, Menma had become the most important person in her world.
If possible, she would never want him to suffer even the slightest injury.
"Haha, it isn't that bad."
Menma shook his head and smiled.
"The effect exists. It's just smaller than expected. Besides, the real test comes next."
Karin looked up at him.
"Do we really have to continue?"
"The enhancement didn't reach our target. If Kurama's chakra becomes unstable after we tamper with the seal, things could become dangerous."
"There's nothing to worry about."
Menma shook his head.
"The reason we conducted this experiment was simply to reduce risks. My relationship with Kurama is stable. Under normal circumstances, his chakra won't run wild."
His gaze became serious.
"The seal must be loosened as soon as possible. Only then will I truly possess the strength necessary to confront those people… and those villages."
That was the reality.
The Akatsuki still existed.
Nagato still existed.
Obito still existed.
And beyond them
Madara Uchiha waited in the shadows of history.
Menma needed power.
As quickly as possible.
Only by mastering Kurama's chakra could he gain the confidence to face those monsters.
"But Kurama "
"Trust me, Karin."
Before she could continue, Menma gently placed a hand on her head.
"There won't be a problem."
He offered no further explanation.
Not because he distrusted her.
But because explaining everything about his relationship with Kurama would require revealing far more than was necessary.
Some truths were better left unsaid for now.
Karin stared at him for several moments.
Then she finally sighed.
"…Alright."
A moment later, her expression became serious once again.
"Then we proceed according to the original plan?"
"Using the Four Symbols Seal as a foundation and reverse-engineering a weakness in the Eight Trigrams Seal?"
"Exactly."
Menma nodded firmly.
"The Eight Trigrams Seal is ultimately built upon the Four Symbols Seal. If our analysis is correct, there should be a way to exploit that relationship and gradually create an opening."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"It may not succeed."
"But it's the best option available to us right now."
And so, the truly dangerous stage of the experiment was about to begin.
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