Ch.258 Blood Clone

"Success..."

Uchiha Shinji let out a light sigh of relief.

Relying on the overwhelming power of his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, he forcibly fused two pairs of Ketsuryūgan using the Susanoo Tomoshibi, finally merging them into a brand-new pair of Ketsuryūgan.

Coincidentally, his gaze fell upon a blood pool nearby, so he focused on it and attempted to activate the new Ketsuryūgan.

Splash, splash, splash...

In an instant, the blood pool began to boil, as if magma beneath it was erupting!

"Without even using blood, just by staring, I can make the blood pool stir?"

He was somewhat surprised.

Previously, he had been able to manipulate the blood pool by dripping his own blood into it. Now, simply by gazing at it from a distance, the blood pool began to stir, as if it were alive and responding to him.

No, it should be said that it was responding to the new pair of Ketsuryūgan he had just fused!

Undoubtedly.

After being fused by the Susanoo Tomoshibi, the Ketsuryūgan's ability to control blood had reached a new level!

Suddenly, Shinji had an idea. He gently bit his finger, smeared the blood on his hands, and then formed hand seals: "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Poof!

Amidst a puff of white smoke, another Shinji appeared.

Shinji's original body walked up to the shadow clone, drew a kunai, and slashed it across the clone's forehead.

"Huh?!"

His pupils contracted, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.

Normally, when a shadow clone is damaged, it would immediately disappear, and the remaining chakra would carry the clone's memories back to the original body.

However, the shadow clone in front of him did not disappear after being damaged. Instead, a trickle of blood flowed from the wound on its forehead, just like a living person.

"Is this still a shadow clone?"

A thought flashed through his mind.

To test the durability of this shadow clone, he attacked it repeatedly with the kunai, targeting various parts of its body. After several attempts, he found that the clone would only disappear if it sustained severe damage. Otherwise, it would bleed and suffer injuries like a normal person!

"The Ketsuryūgan actually has this kind of ability? It's almost..."

Shinji was at a loss for words.

He had simply combined the blood-controlling ability of the Ketsuryūgan with the Shadow Clone Jutsu on a whim, and unexpectedly created an enhanced version of the shadow clone.

It was worth noting that the Shadow Clone Jutsu, developed by the Second Hokage, not only created convincing duplicates but also allowed the clones to perform jutsu just like the original. Even after disappearing, the clones' memories would be transmitted back to the original. Compared to other clone techniques, it was undoubtedly the most convenient and practical.

If there was one drawback, it was that shadow clones were relatively fragile.

For most people, shadow clones would disappear upon being hit, and using the Shadow Clone Jutsu required dividing the user's chakra. Thus, a slight misstep could result in a waste of chakra.

During Orochimaru's Konoha Crush, when he fought the Third Hokage, the Third, due to his advanced age and declining physical condition, dared not use the Shadow Clone Jutsu recklessly.

Even Naruto, who mastered the Shadow Clone Jutsu to perfection in the original timeline, only had clones that were slightly more durable than average. They still shattered upon being hit.

However, the shadow clone Shinji had created was completely different.

In terms of durability, it was clearly a level above ordinary shadow clones. Additionally, its ability to bleed like a living person made it even harder to distinguish from the original, adding to its deceptive nature!

"This is no longer a shadow clone. It should be called a 'Blood Clone'!"

After some thought, Shinji gave it a new name, which also meant he had created a new clone technique: the Blood Clone Jutsu.

However, this technique was clearly not something that could be widely used.

To perform the Blood Clone Jutsu, the user not only needed to master the Shadow Clone Jutsu but also possess an enhanced pair of Ketsuryūgan.

In other words, even members of the Chinoike clan would likely be unable to create Blood Clones as strong as Shinji's.

After calming his mind, Shinji began to assess the ocular power of the new Ketsuryūgan.

With his previous experience of fusing the Hogan, his evaluation of ocular power had become increasingly precise. It didn't take long for him to reach a conclusion about the new Ketsuryūgan.

The ocular power of this new Ketsuryūgan was slightly stronger than the fused Hogan from before, placing it above the Tomoe Sharingan but below the Mangekyō Sharingan.

After reaching this conclusion, Shinji, who was sitting on the ground, rubbed his chin. "If I continue fusing, can I push the Ketsuryūgan to the level of the Mangekyō Sharingan?"

To be honest.

Dojutsu kekkei genkai with ocular power below the Mangekyō Sharingan provided limited help to Shinji.

Previously, he only had two pairs of Hogan, so after fusing them into one, there was no way to continue. Now, however, he had obtained a total of eight pairs of Ketsuryūgan. After fusing two pairs into one, he still had six ordinary pairs left, which was more than enough to support his next attempts.

Looking at the pairs of Ketsuryūgan stored in small nutrient tanks in front of him, he couldn't help but feel eager.

These Ketsuryūgan, obtained from the Chinoike clan members, clearly hadn't been developed to their full potential. Even the newly fused pair of Ketsuryūgan still had room for improvement. Therefore, continuing to use the Susanoo Tomoshibi for fusion was a viable direction.

Thus, he took out another pair of Ketsuryūgan and activated the Susanoo Tomoshibi.

Roar!

Accompanied by a roar from his Susanoo, the fusion process began once again.

This time, the fusion proceeded smoothly. With just a slight infusion of ocular power, the newly taken-out pair of Ketsuryūgan was fused into the enhanced pair.

"Phew..."

After succeeding, Shinji let out a breath.

The ease of this fusion was somewhat unexpected, making him feel a bit uneasy. He quickly began to sense the fused Ketsuryūgan.

The result, however, left him greatly disappointed!

After fusing an ordinary pair of Ketsuryūgan into the enhanced pair, the ocular power of the enhanced Ketsuryūgan had only increased by a tiny fraction.

If Shinji weren't an expert in this field, most people probably wouldn't even notice such a minuscule improvement.

Next, Shinji tested the blood-controlling ability of the enhanced Ketsuryūgan and found no significant enhancement either.

After such a lackluster fusion, Shinji couldn't help but wonder, "Is this the limit of the Ketsuryūgan?"

There was no doubt that the Ketsuryūgan's upper limit was lower than that of the Sharingan.

However, Shinji clearly felt that this enhanced pair of Ketsuryūgan still had room for improvement. Yet, after fusing another pair, the increase was so negligible that he couldn't help but question whether his method was flawed or if the Ketsuryūgan truly couldn't go beyond this level.