Team Taka settled into a routine quickly. Training exercises. Mission preparation. Getting used to working together.
But Sasuke's mind was elsewhere.
He spent every free moment in the library. Researching. Analyzing. His journal had grown thick with notes about Mangekyo awakenings, dojutsu abilities, Uchiha history.
"You're obsessed," Suigetsu said one evening, finding Sasuke surrounded by scrolls. "What's so interesting about old Uchiha legends?"
"Power," Sasuke said simply. "Understanding how to obtain it."
"You've already got Hashirama's cells. Wood Release. You're stronger than most jonin. What more do you want?"
Sasuke looked up. His Sharingan activated unconsciously. "Everything."
Suigetsu backed off. There was something in Sasuke's eyes. Something hungry.
Karin noticed too. "Sasuke-kun, you've been pushing yourself hard. Your chakra feels... different lately. More intense."
"I'm fine."
"You're researching Mangekyo Sharingan, aren't you?" Her sensory abilities were too sharp. "I can feel your chakra spiking whenever you read those scrolls. Like your eyes are reacting."
Sasuke closed the scroll he'd been reading. "The Mangekyo is the next step. I need to understand how to awaken it properly."
"Properly?" Karin frowned. "It awakens from trauma. From loss. You can't just... plan it."
"Can't I?" Sasuke stood. "Every documented awakening followed a pattern. Intense emotion, yes. But more importantly—clarity. Understanding of what you want. What you need. The Mangekyo manifests based on the user's soul."
He pulled out his journal. Showed her his notes.
Itachi Uchiha - Soul: Protector/Martyr → Abilities: Control (Tsukuyomi) and Destruction (Amaterasu)
Obito Uchiha - Soul: Escapist/Idealist → Ability: Phasing/Dimension (Kamui)
Madara Uchiha - Soul: Dominator/Conqueror → Abilities: Unknown but overwhelming power
"See the pattern? The abilities reflect their nature. Their deepest desires made manifest."
Karin read the notes. "So... what's your nature?"
Sasuke smiled. It wasn't a pleasant smile. "I'm a collector. Everything I am, I've taken from others. This body. These memories. The Hashirama cells. Every technique I've learned. I don't create power—I acquire it."
"That's..."
"Honest." Sasuke's Sharingan spun. "My soul craves possession. Collection. Taking what makes others special and making it mine. So when my Mangekyo awakens, it will reflect that."
Karin looked disturbed. "What kind of ability would that even be?"
"Something that lets me take dojutsu. Absorb them. Add them to myself permanently."
Silence. Karin stared at him like she was seeing him for the first time.
"That's... is that even possible?"
"The ancient Uchiha legends speak of warriors who 'consumed the sight of their enemies.' I think it's happened before. Just not in recent history." Sasuke closed his journal. "I'm going to make it happen again."
"But you still need the trauma. The loss. How—"
"I'll engineer it." Sasuke's tone was matter-of-fact. "Create the conditions for awakening. Force my Sharingan to evolve through deliberate action rather than random chance."
"That sounds dangerous."
"Everything worthwhile is."