Mwu.
Kyle poked the Dark Patronus—or rather, the Dark Slime—resting on his hand. It had a surprisingly bouncy, jelly-like texture.
He reached out and gave it a tug on what could arguably be called its face.
Hermione leaned in cautiously, though she didn't dare to pull and stretch the creature like dough the way Kyle was doing.
After a series of tests, Kyle discovered that this thing seemed to be a permanent existence. Unlike a conventional Patronus, it didn't dissipate once its mana was exhausted. Furthermore, he felt an unprecedented sense of blood-connection with the creature, as if it were truly an extension of his own will.
That said... I used a massive amount of negative emotion to create this thing, Kyle thought. Surely those emotions won't turn Black Zetsu into some world-ending master conspirator, will they?
"Legilimens."
Without hesitation, Kyle delved into Black Zetsu's mind. Though his mastery of Legilimency was still somewhat unrefined—and he ran the risk of turning his target into an imbecile—Black Zetsu wasn't human. He had no reason to hold back.
To Kyle's surprise, all he found was a vast blank slate. It wasn't that Black Zetsu was using some method to block his perception; rather, it was more like a completely ignorant, innocent newborn. It was a blank page, simply waiting for Kyle to instill it with knowledge and ideals.
Beyond that, Kyle could feel his own spiritual imprint upon the creature. It felt as though he could decide its life or death with a single thought.
Even so, Kyle didn't quite dare to place absolute trust in this Black Zetsu he had created with his own hands. In the original story, Lord Madara thought he had created Black Zetsu himself, only for the creature to eventually give him a literal "heart-to-heart" before...
Well, there was no "after" for Madara.
Kyle crouched on the ground, chin in hand as he pondered whether he should actually raise Black Zetsu. Even if it turned out to be a double-crosser, if utilized properly, he could still make it work for him.
Hermione was in the same posture, though she was simply spacing out. She stared blankly at Kyle's handsome face, wondering why such a sunny boy always enjoyed tinkering with such wicked Dark Arts.
Ultimately, Kyle decided to bestow a portion of his personality upon Black Zetsu and instill it with certain memories and concepts. First and foremost, he had to establish several immutable principles for the creature, similar to the Three Laws of Robotics:
First: Be loyal to Kyle Grindelwald. Obey all his orders unconditionally and never defy his will.
Second: Never harm Kyle Grindelwald or anyone he marks as an ally.
Third: Protect yourself as much as possible, provided it does not conflict with the first two rules.
Kyle drew his wand once more and pressed the tip against his temple. His eyes gradually lost focus as a portion of his memories replayed before him like a revolving lantern. Soon, he drew out a fine, shimmering silver thread. With a sudden motion, he thrust the wand—wrapped in the silver silk—directly into Black Zetsu's body.
Something indescribable flowed through the wand and into the creature.
Black Zetsu's yellow eyes gradually grew clear and lucid. They no longer stared blankly like those of a simpleton.
"Mother?"
The first thing Black Zetsu did upon opening its mouth was call out for its parent.
The moment it spoke, Kyle froze. Hermione froze as well. The two exchanged a look, seeing the profound shock in each other's eyes.
Countless black lines seemed to drop from Kyle's forehead like a waterfall. He turned back to Black Zetsu and barked a curse:
"Get out! I'm your father!"
"I... I am sorry, Father," Black Zetsu stammered.
Unbelievably, both Kyle and Hermione saw a look of grievance on a face that consisted of nothing but eyes and a mouth.
Hermione wanted to say something about not being so rough with a... well, a child? But it didn't really seem like a child. At the thought of this strange creature being a product of the Dark Arts, Hermione immediately swallowed her words. She had always been opposed to the Dark Arts; though she was used to Kyle using them and didn't resent him for it, she still maintained an inherent resistance toward the craft itself.
Therefore, while she wouldn't go so far as to blast this strange Dark creature with Incendio, she certainly wasn't going to give it a friendly face.
After instilling the memories, Kyle placed a mountain of various magical restrictions and seals—every single one he could think of—onto Black Zetsu before finally feeling a slight sense of relief.
Looking at the limp puddle that was Black Zetsu on the ground, Kyle considered how to dispose of it. If this thing truly was an extension of his will, then the Pain's Six Paths he planned to release to restore the "glory" of the Akatsuki would have a reliable supervisor and intelligence gatherer.
However, there was still nearly a year to go before the construction of the Six Paths of Pain would be complete. In the meantime, there wasn't much "dirty work" for Black Zetsu to do.
"Black Zetsu, can you shapeshift into a human form to move on your own?"
"Black Zetsu?" Hermione internally deadpanned. In this short amount of time, you've already given the child a name?
The sludge on the ground began to writhe frantically. After a period of struggling, it collapsed back into a limp pile.
"Father, I cannot do it," Black Zetsu's voice was full of apology.
Kyle rubbed his smooth chin. "What about possession?"
"I can." As Black Zetsu spoke, it climbed onto Kyle's body. Like a certain symbiote that enjoyed tater tots and chocolate, it transformed into a black combat suit over Kyle.
However, this suit was different from the one formed by Venom; it only covered the right half of his body. Kyle didn't even need a mirror to know he looked hideous right now.
He had no desire to cosplay as a pitcher plant. His goal had always been to emulate the "Battlefield Rose," Madara Uchiha. But no matter how much he wanted to learn from old man Madara, he couldn't let Black Zetsu pierce his heart just to pay homage to the predecessor!
"Get off me! You idiot!" Kyle's tone was one of utter disgust. "I meant possess my clothes!"
Venom... no, Black Zetsu, did as it was told. It peeled away from Kyle's skin, reverted to its sludge-like form, and wiggled its way up to his chest. It slowly merged into the fabric of his robes.
Kyle reached out and tugged at his clothes. Aside from the fabric feeling slightly more durable, there was nothing unusual. This was much more normal.
Still, having Black Zetsu attached to his clothes forever wasn't a long-term solution. He'd have to find time to use his own cells to create a White Zetsu to keep it company. Then it could go off and cosplay as a pitcher plant on its own.
Over the following hours, Kyle conducted various tests on this peculiar Dark Patronus. This accidentally created creature possessed two basic abilities identical to the original Black Zetsu: possession and control.
When possessing a host, it could take over the body, using the host's physical form to exert a certain level of combat power. Perhaps because Kyle had transferred some of his combat experience to it, Black Zetsu was actually able to spar back and forth with Kyle while possessing Hermione.
Furthermore, even without a host, it wasn't completely powerless like the original version in Naruto. On the contrary, by using its tentacles as a substitute for a wand to perform wandless magic, Black Zetsu could manifest a degree of magical ability.
However, Kyle hadn't provided it with much mana during its creation—roughly the equivalent of two or three wizards of the same age combined.
Well, when you have "tons" of chakra—or in this case, mana—you can afford to be willful. Without a host, Black Zetsu could, at most, bully the younger students who hadn't yet graduated from Hogwarts.
All in all, Kyle was quite satisfied with the Black Zetsu he had created.
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