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At that moment, everyone who laid eyes on Ishigami Hara's gaze was frozen in shock, but none more so than the female puppeteer. Her astonishment stemmed from the fact that the pattern in Ishigami Hara's right eye was not the familiar three tomoe of the Sharingan. Instead, it was a design she had never seen before.
An uneasy memory surfaced in her mind—the ancient legend of the Uchiha clan, a whispered tale of an ultimate eye technique far beyond the standard Sharingan. Could it be possible that the boy before her had unlocked that legendary power?
The realization sent a chill coursing through her body.
Her eyes met Ishigami Hara's cold, indifferent stare.
In the next instant, a sharp pain struck her heart.
The female puppeteer's body went rigid, and when she looked down, she felt her strength rapidly fading. An overwhelming sense of powerlessness engulfed her, though she couldn't understand why.
Thud.
She collapsed backward, blood pouring from her mouth and nose, while more seeped from her chest and back, staining the ground beneath her a deep crimson.
She had died—silently and without warning.
Meanwhile, in Ishigami Hara's hand, the short sword had vanished, replaced by a warm, still-beating heart. Blood gushed out of it with each pulse.
With a shake of his head, the heart disappeared, and the short sword reappeared in his grasp as if nothing had changed.
The female puppeteer's death had been sudden and mysterious, but Uchiha Izuna, the voice in Ishigami Hara's mind, had witnessed it all. His voice trembled with disbelief and confusion.
"What is your ability? No... you activated the Mangekyō Sharingan!? How is that possible?!"
Uchiha Izuna, a former wielder of great power, couldn't comprehend what he was seeing.
Ishigami Hara merely smiled. "Nothing is impossible. Don't forget, I already had the three tomoe Sharingan. When your chakra stimulated me, it was only natural that my Mangekyō would awaken."
"No, no! That's impossible! You shouldn't be able to do this! It's unrealistic! My chakra isn't yours. To awaken the Mangekyō, you need the ultimate Yin Release chakra produced by intense emotional stimuli!"
Izuna's denial was strong, but the reality in front of him left him baffled.
Ishigami Hara chuckled. "What if it's not emotions that matter for awakening the Mangekyō, but rather any ultimate Yin Release stimulation? As long as the Yin chakra can trigger it, the Mangekyō can be awakened."
His smile deepened as he spoke.
"Don't forget, you're in my body. Your chakra is also manifesting in me."
There was a long pause as Uchiha Izuna processed the information, his shock evident in his voice.
"You... you little brat! You activated the Mangekyō by using my Yin Release chakra! But... if that's the case, shouldn't it be my Mangekyō ability? How do you have a new power?"
Ishigami Hara's expression turned curious, almost amused, as he listened to Izuna's realization.
"You, a senior who activated the Mangekyō, can't even guess this trick?" Ishigami Hara taunted.
Uchiha Izuna's voice went silent for a moment, but he quickly pieced it together.
"Yes, the soul is like a mirror… You, little brat, absorbed the chakra while stimulating my Yin Release chakra, which allowed you to awaken your Mangekyō and gain your own unique ability."
Ishigami Hara smiled. "You guessed it right, but no prize for you."
As the conversation continued, Ishigami Hara walked forward, not sparing a glance at the fallen female puppeteer. His focus was now on the male puppeteer.
"Mai!" The male puppeteer screamed, his voice sharp with grief and rage. His eyes burned red with murderous intent as he abandoned his fight with Nawaki and charged straight toward Ishigami Hara.
Ishigami Hara's lips curled into a smirk. "So, you two were married. My apologies for killing your wife. As compensation, I'll let you cut me once with your blade."
He stood completely still, allowing the male puppeteer to rush at him unhindered.
In an instant, the distance between them vanished. Without hesitation, the male puppeteer commanded his gecko puppet to unleash a torrent of flames, engulfing Ishigami Hara in a fiery inferno.
"Be careful!" Nawaki shouted, dashing toward him.
A blood-curdling scream filled the air, but it wasn't from Ishigami Hara—it came from the male puppeteer.
If one looked closely, they would see that the male puppeteer's skin began to char, flames scorching his face and spreading across his body. It was as if the fire that had been aimed at Ishigami Hara had reversed course and was consuming its own master.
"No… how is this possible!" he screamed, thrashing about in a desperate attempt to extinguish the flames, but his efforts were in vain. His body continued to burn, the flames rapidly turning his skin to ash.
Within mere seconds, the male puppeteer's body had carbonized. He collapsed with a dull thud, lifeless.
Ishigami Hara, on the other hand, stepped out of the fire unscathed. The flames that had surrounded him flickered out, leaving not a single mark on his skin or even his clothing. It was as if the inferno had never touched him at all.
In his mind, Uchiha Izuna's voice was filled with disbelief. "This… what kind of ability is this? Izanagi? No, it's not Izanagi, but the principle is similar. Did you transfer the damage you suffered away from your body?"
Ishigami Hara casually stepped on a small wisp of flame at his feet, extinguishing it, but he didn't immediately answer. "Close… guess again."
"Damn kid! How many abilities did you unlock? One? Two?" Uchiha Izuna asked, his voice a mix of frustration and awe.
Ishigami Hara didn't hesitate. "Two."
He wasn't hiding anything.
"One is the ability to transfer objects, and the other is to transfer damage away from yourself, right?" Uchiha Izuna continued, pushing for clarification.
"Yes, that's right," Ishigami Hara confirmed without denying it. Whether he was telling the full truth or not, only he knew.