"The Shikotsumyaku Cell Serum..."

Hikari murmured the words softly, her eyes tinged with unease. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"Genya-sama... you’re already strong enough. If possible, please don’t fuse with the Shikotsumyaku."

It wasn’t that she didn’t want him to grow stronger.

But—

The Shikotsumyaku was simply too... unique. Its nature was almost on par with Wood Release cells.

Back then, when Genya attempted to fuse with the Wood Release cells, the process was nothing short of a miracle. It had been dangerously unstable—far more so than when he fused with the Uzumaki cells.

But in the end, he pulled through. He survived.

But this... the Shikotsumyaku?

It was wildly unstable.

She had only managed to stabilize the cells two years ago, and just half a year earlier, she’d developed a usable serum.

When she tested it on members of the Jashin Cult, although they didn’t die, their bones began to grow uncontrollably—sprouting endlessly from beneath their skin.

From time to time, she even had to trim their overgrown bones herself.

She had to admit—those Jashin Cultists were natural-born test subjects.

If it had been anyone else, they would’ve died instantly. But these fanatics? They could endure the experiments and remain functional.

As long as they had enough nutrients, they didn’t even feel pain.

Hikari was quite satisfied with them.

But now... Genya wanted to fuse with the Shikotsumyaku?

That worried her.

This—

This might be dangerous.

Extremely dangerous.

"It’s fine. Hikari, you still don’t fully understand my body. My cells can almost devour any special kind of cell and quickly fuse with them." Genya looked at the worried Hikari and spoke gently to comfort him.

Hikari wanted to argue, but... she had no reason to. What Genya said was true. Every time he fused with a new cell serum, he endured unbearable pain—but he had never failed.

And more than that—

Every time he completed a fusion, his strength would skyrocket.

But this time was different.

These Shikotsumyaku cells were extracted from Kimimaro’s bone marrow—his real bone marrow, taken from his core skeletal structure, not the outer exoskeletal marrow that had been exposed.

Which meant—

This time, the cell enhancement would affect Genya’s bones and blood. It wasn’t just ordinary cellular integration.

That was exactly why Hikari was so concerned.

"It’ll be fine. Come on, I’ll show you today that I am special. No one can compare to me." Genya grinned at the still-worried Hikari, pulling her toward the hospital.

His tone was cocky, but his words carried a warm reassurance.

Just like that, Genya entered the underground lab beneath the hospital. Compared to a few years ago, the lab was now far more luxurious and sophisticated, filled with cutting-edge equipment.

Only six or seven people were inside, carefully operating the precision instruments.

When they saw Genya and Hikari arrive, they immediately came over to greet them.

These people were all handpicked by Hikari—trusted aides and top-tier scientific minds.

"This has nothing to do with you all. Get back to your research!"

Hikari waved her hand, signaling the others to return to their work. She then walked over to her own workstation and pulled out a vial of serum.

It was a serum she had personally prepared for the Genya-sama. She knew deep down she probably couldn’t talk him out of this, so she poured everything into perfecting the formula—hoping to ease his pain when fusing the new cells.

"This is the Shikotsumyaku serum?"

Genya stared at the vial. The liquid shimmered like crystal, filled with tiny fragments that resembled bone shards—miniature crystalized bones floating in suspension.

"Genya-sama, are you really going to use this?"

Hikari looked at him with concern, and once again reminded him gently, "This serum isn’t injected into the flesh. It’s meant to go straight into the bloodstream. It will reconstruct your bloodline first, then spread into your bones."

Her tone was serious—because this serum was unlike any other.

If it failed, there wouldn’t even be a limb left to save.

"Don’t worry. I can handle it."

Genya’s voice was calm as he reassured her. Under Hikari’s guidance, he entered a reinforced chamber designed to withstand the worst-case scenario.

Finally, under Genya’s gaze, Hikari inserted the needle and slowly injected the serum into his vein.

Bit by bit, the serum flowed in.

"You okay, Genya-sama?" Hikari asked cautiously. When Genya gave a faint nod, she continued the injection.

Genya turned his focus inward.

He could feel the crystalline particles entering his bloodstream, riding the current through every corner of his body. Slowly, they began attaching themselves to his bones.

At first, it felt like a gentle crystallization. But as the seconds passed, his body’s terrifying devour-and-replace ability kicked in.

His bones began to pulse.

The transformation accelerated.

Then came the pain—an overwhelming sensation, like ten thousand ants gnawing away at his bones.

Every second felt longer than the last, each wave of agony worse than the one before.

"Genya-sama, are you alright?"

Hikari had clearly expected this. Without hesitation, she cast a Wood Release technique, enveloping Genya in a soft, glowing light to ease the suffering.

As Hikari activated her Wood Release, a faint green glow radiated from within Genya’s body, harmonizing perfectly with the light of her technique.

Instantly, Genya felt the pain in his body ease significantly, and under the shroud of that green light, the process quickened.

It felt like... a kind of system update.

But unlike others, the restructuring of his bones progressed agonizingly slow—almost like a torment specifically designed for him.

Time slipped by, bit by bit.

Genya could sense that his bones were beginning to store chakra, and more than that... he could control it.

In fact,

His newly evolved bones were already several times tougher than before. And with the chakra constantly tempering them, Genya was certain—they would only grow stronger.

One day in the future, they might even become indestructible.

Seeing the worry in Hikari’s eyes, he couldn’t help but speak.

"Hikari, do you think... after I completely fuse with the Shikotsumyaku, if I ever use the Susanoo—won’t it be even more powerful?"

After all, Susanoo is made of chakra hardened into bone—and now, he bore the true power of the Shikotsumyaku.

"Maybe... probably," Hikari blinked, caught off guard by his question. Then she gave him a side-eye. "Genya-sama... is this really the time for jokes? You’re still in danger!"

"Haha, who’s joking? I’m being completely serious here! This could determine the upper limit of my future strength!"

"Ah~ is that so?"

"Is it possible?"

"Should be fine," Genya said.

His voice broke the heavy silence in the confined space, easing the tension just a little.

The Hyuga clan...

At Neji’s residence, Neji and his mother had just finished dinner.

Suddenly, Hiashi Hyuga pushed open the door and entered, his brow furrowed with anger. He never expected Neji to cause such a serious problem.

Hinata followed closely behind, worry evident in her eyes as she looked ahead.

Then,

She saw Neji sitting calmly in the courtyard. Yet, when Neji looked at them, his eyes were cold and distant, as if he no longer recognized his father.

It was as if he had already expected them to come.

Hiashi’s anger grew at Neji’s indifferent attitude. He spoke slowly and clearly, each word heavy with accusation: "Did you injure Hyuga Sosuke?"

****

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