The next stretch of time passed uneventfully.
Sakura studied quietly at a corner table, Shuimu occasionally chatted with curious patrons, and spent the rest of his time rearranging some of the store's decorations. While he still wasn't used to civilian retail life, he tried his best—though he wasn't exactly in the mood for jokes, he found he could still force a few out now and then.
Around noon, Tsubaki arrived carrying several lunch bentos, and the three of them sat casually around a small table to eat.
"Mizuki-sensei, Tsubaki-senpai—how did you two meet?" Sakura asked curiously, eyes glimmering with genuine interest.
"We've known each other since we were kids," Tsubaki replied warmly. "We grew up together—childhood friends who eventually fell in love."
'A little gossiping ninja already?' Mizuki thought with mild exasperation. 'What happened to the quiet, studious type?'
"Ehh?" Sakura clearly wasn't satisfied with such a short answer. "That's so romantic! A bond built since childhood... If only things could go so smoothly between me and Sasuke."
Mizuki chuckled. "You'd better be careful with that sort of thing. Childhood friends usually don't stand a chance when the 'Heaven-Sent Heroine' shows up."
"'Heaven-Sent Heroine'?" Sakura blinked in confusion. "What's that?"
"It's a trope," Mizuki said, smirking. "You know—the mysterious girl who shows up out of nowhere, instantly catches his eye, and takes everything."
"Mizuki," Tsubaki sighed, lightly elbowing him. "Don't fill her head with nonsense."
She turned to Sakura with a smile. "Don't worry. Sasuke will notice your hard work. Just keep doing your best."
---
After lunch, Sakura returned to her studies while Tsubaki quietly pulled Mizuki aside.
"Is something wrong?" he asked, sensing the serious look on her face.
"I think there's something off with your experiments," she said in a low voice.
Mizuki's expression sharpened. "What do you mean?"
"There was a change in one of the samples a few days ago—I thought it was a natural regression. But today, I noticed something... abnormal."
"Did you bring any of it with you?"
"I sealed a few samples into a scroll."
Mizuki turned toward Sakura. "We'll be stepping out for a while. Can I count on you to watch the store?"
"Of course, Mizuki-sensei!" Sakura nodded.
---
Back at his house, Mizuki wasted no time opening the sealed scroll. As he examined the samples, his brows furrowed in alarm.
"This is... not good," he muttered.
The mutation was progressing far more aggressively than expected. Normally, in cases of potion-induced atavism, the mutations would regress as development reached a plateau. Without reinforcement—external chakra stimulus or training—the body should revert. Features like horns, extra eyes, or enhanced musculature would fade. What remained would be inert—the shell of a body lacking the chakra to sustain unnatural strength.
But this was different.
Most of the samples were supposed to be clones of Uchiha Sasuke. The third eye—originally appearing as a vertical slit on the forehead—had vanished entirely. The horns had receded into vague ridges. These signs weren't unexpected. But the clones showed severe and premature aging—cellular atrophy at levels far exceeding Mizuki's own deteriorating samples.
"How is that possible...?" Mizuki murmured. "Sasuke's body and chakra are leagues ahead of mine. Even my oldest clone recovered and stabilized. Why are his failing?"
A grim hypothesis formed in his mind. Could it be that the curse mark's atavistic power is simply too intense? That it burns through life force faster than a clone's foundation can handle?
He reached for a tiny sample—the most deteriorated one—and carefully injected it with a trace of Sasuke's chakra, gathered during the moment his Cursed Seal of Heaven had flared during the Forest of Death.
In moments, the sample reacted violently.
The clone in the nutrient pod twitched, then swelled unnaturally fast. Nutrient solution was drawn in and metabolized in seconds. Jagged red and black markings—familiar signs of the Cursed Seal's second stage—flared across its skin. A sudden shockwave of corrupted chakra pulsed outward, warping the barrier seal of the room itself.
---
At Konoha Hospital, deep in the intensive care wing, Sasuke Uchiha bolted upright in bed.
"GAAAHHH!"
His scream echoed through the halls. Monitors blared.
ANBU immediately rushed in, hands to weapons.
"What happened?!"
"He was stable a moment ago—what triggered this?!"
Just then, Hatake Kakashi arrived, his one visible eye narrowing as he scanned Sasuke's chakra flow.
"Report."
"No contact, no interference. It just... flared out of nowhere."
Kakashi paused. "Sweep the surrounding area. Look for any chakra fluctuations or traces of foreign jutsu—especially curse-related. Go."
"Understood." ANBU vanished in a blur.
---
Across town, in a quiet building not far from the hospital, Kabuto Yakushi frowned as he adjusted his glasses.
"Now that's strange…" he murmured. "They tightened security. Something must have triggered Sasuke's seal."
He sighed and closed his medical kit. "Guess I'll have to wait a little longer."
---
Far to the west, in the Land of Wind, Orochimaru's golden eyes flicked toward the east.
"Interesting… that's the chakra signature of my Curse Mark."
He chuckled darkly.
"Someone's tampering with my gift to Sasuke, are they? Hmph. The Third won't hand the Uchiha to Danzo. Too sentimental. That means… someone else is poking around. Could it be that little pest from the Forest of Death?"
His grin widened.
"Konoha still hides some interesting snakes in the grass."
---
Back in Mizuki's lab, both he and Tsubaki stared in horror.
"Shuimu—what did you do?!" she gasped.
"I… I didn't expect this," he muttered. "Just a spark of chakra… I didn't think it would awaken something like this."
The clone inside the pod was now too large to contain. Its chakra surged and warped the air around it. Even as it stabilized, the price of its rapid growth became clear: limbs began to shrivel and flake into dust.
The creature's aura intensified—its chakra now bloated and unstable. From extremities to core, the body began to decay, turning to ash.
But then…
The clone's eyes twitched. Its skin flushed a deep crimson. Muscles trembled.
"No." Mizuki drew a kunai and hurled it straight into its eyes—blinding the clone before it could fully awaken.
The blind creature screamed silently. Its mouth opened wide, limbs already gone, torso disintegrating. Hair grew unnaturally fast. Then, just above its brow—
The skin bulged.
A vertical slit tore open where the third eye had long vanished. Somehow, it reformed from dead tissue—resurrected in the moment all else had decayed.
A final, pulsing throb.
The clone trembled—then began to disintegrate fully, its final chakra echo hanging in the air like a death cry.
Mizuki and Tsubaki stood in silence.
This wasn't regeneration.
It was rebirth through obliteration.