Dawn came cold and gray.
Team Taka assembled at the village gates. Each wore dark traveling clothes—nondescript, untraceable. Masks hung ready at their belts for when they needed anonymity.
"Final equipment check," Sasuke ordered.
Suigetsu's Kubikiribōchō rested on his back. Karin carried her standard sensory equipment and medical supplies. Jugo wore modified armor designed to accommodate curse mark transformations.
Sasuke carried minimal gear. Kunai. Wire. Explosive tags. His real weapons were his eyes and his knowledge.
"Target profile review," Sasuke said as they began moving. "Uchiha Kaito. Age twenty-seven. Survived the massacre by being on assignment in the Land of Lightning. Never returned to Konoha. Turned bounty hunter—takes high-value targets exclusively. Two-tomoe Sharingan confirmed."
"Combat style?" Jugo asked.
"Fire Release specialist. Standard Uchiha techniques—fireball, phoenix flower, dragon flame. Close combat with kunai and wire traps. Uses Sharingan for precognition but not genjutsu—his illusion skills are reportedly weak."
"Weaknesses?" Karin asked.
"Arrogant. Overconfident. He's been successful as a bounty hunter, which means he's developed a pattern of underestimating opponents." Sasuke's Sharingan activated briefly. "He'll see another Uchiha and think he understands the threat level. That assumption will kill him."
They traveled fast. Three days of hard movement through forests and mountains. The Land of Hot Water wasn't far from Sound territory, but Sasuke maintained an indirect route—no straight lines, no predictable patterns.
"Kaito is currently in Yugakure," Karin reported on the second day, her sensory abilities active. "The hot springs village. He's hunting a target there—some minor criminal with a bounty."
"Perfect." Sasuke studied a map. "Tourist village. Lots of civilians. He won't expect an attack in a crowded location."
"We're hitting him in a civilian area?" Karin's tone was concerned.
"We're hitting him wherever he is. Civilian presence is irrelevant." Sasuke's voice was flat. "But we'll minimize collateral if possible. No reason to cause unnecessary attention."
They reached Yugakure on the evening of the third day.
The village was everything its reputation suggested—hot springs everywhere, tourists filling the streets, a peaceful atmosphere completely at odds with the shinobi world's usual violence.
"I'm sensing approximately three hundred civilian signatures in the immediate area," Karin reported quietly. They'd positioned themselves on a hillside overlooking the village. "And one that stands out—stronger chakra, more controlled. That's probably Kaito."
"Where?"
"Eastern district. Near the largest hot spring complex." Karin pointed. "He's stationary. Either resting or waiting for his target."
"Suigetsu, Jugo—circle around to the northern approach. Karin, maintain position here and monitor for external threats. I'll approach from the south." Sasuke activated his Sharingan. "We hit him at midnight. Fewer civilians active. Easier extraction."
They waited.
Sasuke spent the hours reviewing everything he knew about Kaito. Combat patterns. Preferred techniques. Psychological profile.
Arrogant. Skilled but cocky. He's been successful, which means he's developed bad habits—assumptions about opponents, overreliance on his Sharingan's precognition.
I'll use that. Make him think he's winning. Then show him what real Sharingan evolution looks like.
Midnight approached. The village quieted—most tourists were asleep or soaking in the hot springs. The streets emptied.
"Moving now," Sasuke said through the communication earpiece.
He descended from the hillside. Silent. Fast. His Byakugan vision let him navigate without being seen—tracking guard positions, civilian locations, Kaito's exact position.
The Uchiha was in a tea house. Second floor. Alone. Watching the street through a window.
Waiting for his bounty target. Doesn't know he's become the target instead.
Sasuke entered through the back. Up the stairs. The tea house was quiet—closed for the night, only Kaito inside.
He opened the door to Kaito's room without knocking.
The Uchiha spun, Sharingan activating instantly. Two tomoe spinning.
"Who—" Recognition flashed in Kaito's eyes. "Another Uchiha? How did you—"
"Find you? I've been tracking every clan survivor for months." Sasuke's own Sharingan activated—three tomoe. "You're on my collection list."
"Collection list?" Kaito's stance shifted to combat ready. "What are you talking about?"
Sasuke's Mangekyo blazed. Both eyes. The spiral pattern with its lavender and red coloring, the single filled node representing his first Sharingan absorption.
Kaito froze. His two-tomoe Sharingan widened in shock.
"Mangekyo... and those patterns... what ARE those?"
"Evolution." Sasuke moved forward. "Something you'll never achieve."
Kaito's hands blurred through seals. "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"
Multiple fireballs erupted, filling the room. A classic Uchiha technique—widespread coverage, difficult to dodge.
Sasuke's hand swept forward. Ame-no-Sakahoko activated—black-red crystalline chakra coating his palm. He struck the fireballs.
They shattered. Dispersed. The fundamental structure of the technique breaking apart on contact with his anti-defense ability.
"Impossible—" Kaito's voice cracked.
Sasuke was already inside his guard. Chidori formed in his left hand. Thrust forward.
Kaito's Sharingan predicted the attack. He twisted, barely avoiding the lightning strike. His kunai came up, aiming for Sasuke's throat—
But Sasuke's Mangekyo had already predicted his prediction. His free hand caught Kaito's wrist. Twisted. Bone cracked.
Kaito screamed.
"You're outmatched." Sasuke's voice was cold. "Your two-tomoe Sharingan can't track my Mangekyo. Your techniques are standard Uchiha—nothing I haven't seen and surpassed. And your combat experience is against normal opponents. You've never fought someone like me."
"What ARE you?" Kaito gasped, trying to pull free. His broken wrist wouldn't cooperate.
"A collector. And you have something I need."
Sasuke's hand moved to Kaito's face. Mangekyo blazed.
Takama-ga-hara activated.
The connection formed instantly. Kaito's two-tomoe Sharingan began transferring—the ocular chakra flowing smoothly, naturally, from his eyes to Sasuke's.
"No—NO—" Kaito struggled, but Sasuke's grip was iron. "You can't—this isn't—"
Four seconds. The absorption completed.
Kaito's Sharingan faded to normal black. Empty. Powerless.
Sasuke released him. The Uchiha collapsed, hands flying to his face.
"My eyes... you took... you actually TOOK my Sharingan..." Kaito's voice was broken, disbelieving. "How is that possible?"
"It's my Mangekyo ability. Takama-ga-hara—divine collection of sight." Sasuke's eyes gleamed. "Every Sharingan in existence will eventually belong to me. Yours was number two."
"Monster," Kaito whispered. "You're a monster who steals our bloodline—"
Lightning blade formed. Strike through the heart. Kaito died with the word "monster" still on his lips.
Sasuke stood over the corpse. His eyes throbbed slightly—two-tomoe integration was more intense than one-tomoe, but still manageable. Barely painful.
He formed hand seals. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu."
The massive fireball engulfed Kaito's body and much of the room. Flames spread quickly.
Sasuke was already moving. Out the window. Into the street. Behind him, the tea house erupted into flames.
"Target eliminated," he said through the earpiece. "Extraction point alpha. Move."
Team Taka converged on his position within minutes. They fled Yugakure as alarms sounded behind them—fire brigade responding, civilians panicking.
By the time anyone investigated the tea house, there would be nothing left but ash.
They made camp twenty kilometers from Yugakure.
Sasuke sat against a tree, eyes closed. His left eye throbbed more intensely now—the two-tomoe Sharingan integrating with his Mangekyo pattern.
"How do you feel?" Karin asked, her medical expertise making her concerned.
"Fine. The integration is stronger than one-tomoe but still manageable." Sasuke opened his eyes—his Mangekyo was visible, the pattern showing two filled red nodes now among the lavender Byakugan nodes. "Four-second absorption time. Slightly longer than one-tomoe but still fast enough for combat."
"And recovery time?"
"Maybe twelve hours. I'll be ready for the next target tomorrow evening." Sasuke deactivated his Mangekyo. "The technique is refining with each use. Becoming more efficient."
"You said Kaito called you a monster," Jugo observed quietly. "Right before you killed him."
"He was correct." Sasuke's tone was matter-of-fact. "I am a monster who steals bloodlines. That's an accurate assessment."
"Doesn't it bother you?" Karin asked. "Being called that by your own clan members before you kill them?"
"No. Because it's true." Sasuke looked at her. "I'm not pretending to be anything other than what I am. A collector. A thief. Someone who takes divine sight and makes it mine. If that makes me a monster, then I accept the label."
"At least you're honest about it," Suigetsu said, grinning. "Most villains try to justify themselves. You just... own it."
"Because justification is weakness. I know what I'm doing. I know why. And I accept the cost." Sasuke stood. "Get some rest. Tomorrow we hit the next target. Uchiha Yuki—three-tomoe Sharingan. She'll be significantly more dangerous than Kaito."
"Where is she?" Jugo asked.
"Land of Water. Kirigakure territory. Former ANBU, so she's skilled at evasion and assassination." Sasuke pulled out a profile. "This one requires more careful planning."
They settled in for the night. Sasuke took first watch, his Byakugan active and scanning the perimeter constantly.
Two Sharingan absorbed. Sixteen more on the immediate target list.
At this pace, I'll have absorbed them all within two months. Then I move on to harder targets—preserved Sharingan, Danzo's collection, and finally Itachi.
Everything is proceeding on schedule. The collection accelerates.
His Mangekyo activated unconsciously. The pattern glowed in the darkness—spiral design with twelve filled nodes now. Ten lavender, two red. Still so many empty spaces waiting to be filled.
When it's complete, when every node is filled and the pattern is whole... what will I be?
Something beyond human. Beyond Uchiha. Beyond any single bloodline.
A collection of divine sight. Every ocular power merged into one ultimate being.
That's the goal. That's what I'm becoming.
And if the Otsutsuki come? I'll be ready. With every dojutsu they possess and more.
He deactivated his Mangekyo and returned his focus to the perimeter watch.
The hunt continued.