Just as Seimei expected, the rest of the surgery went smoothly, with the transplant of the Byakugan being a complete success.
About half an hour later, Seimei rose from the stone operating table. He touched his forehead, where a new eye had been implanted. It felt so natural, as though it had always been there, without any trace of surgical alteration.
This seamless result was mainly due to his mastery of the highly advanced *Healing Palm Technique*.
Though everything looked fine on the surface, Seimei could still sense a slight internal disharmony.
Thinking it over, he activated his Mangekyō Sharingan, suppressing the irritation in his eyes, and used his left-eye jutsu: *Human Reign*.
Instantly, an invisible force surrounded him, detaching him from this world.
Taking advantage of the moment, he dispelled the side effects of the suppressive medication from his system.
Seconds later, as he reappeared on the operating table, his body's self-healing abilities had already begun to take effect.
It was this self-healing ability that quickly erased the lingering disharmony in his forehead.
This is the difference between medical ninjutsu and self-healing abilities. No matter how advanced medical ninjutsu is, it's still an external intervention. Only the body's natural processes and evolution truly suit oneself.
After a brief pause to let the remaining discomfort disappear, Seimei began testing the ability of the new eye.
If this eye didn't function, then even a perfect transplant would be useless.
Thankfully, Seimei was relieved to find that his eye, unlike Kakashi's, could be closed at will.
Similarly, Ao's transplanted Byakugan wasn't constantly active either; otherwise, he wouldn't have had to place a "protection seal" over it.
While this was partly to protect the eye, it was also likely meant to restrict its Byakugan abilities and conserve chakra.
Seimei's case was different. Even without any extra effort, his eye consumed very little chakra, resting naturally like an ordinary eye.
**"Inhale… Exhale…"**
After taking a deep breath to calm himself, Seimei raised his hand to focus his chakra and then activated the Byakugan implanted in his forehead.
Immediately, a unique vision filled his mind.
In that moment, it was as though everything around him ceased to exist. His gaze effortlessly pierced through his surroundings, and he could focus intently on any chosen spot.
For instance, he could clearly see the shadow clone he'd posted outside the cave, standing guard on a large tree.
As he observed, the shadow clone seemed to sense something and quickly looked around with vigilance in its eyes.
Unfortunately, it found nothing.
Just as it was about to investigate further, Seimei's voice suddenly echoed in its ear.
Recognizing the familiar voice, the shadow clone finally eased up.
In the underground hall, Seimei deactivated *Linked Minds* and continued to test the Byakugan's capabilities.
After a few dozen seconds, Seimei felt some strain in his eye and stopped observing, allowing the Byakugan to close automatically.
There was no doubt—he had succeeded.
Using this eye, he could clearly see everything within a kilometer radius.
Additionally, without the "Caged Bird" restriction, his Byakugan didn't have the 1-degree blind spot found behind the first thoracic vertebrae of branch-family Hyūga clan members.
This detail alone made it perfect.
The only downside was that the chakra consumption was slightly higher than he had anticipated, likely due to it being a transplant.
Moreover, he couldn't yet maintain the Byakugan for extended periods—whether this was due to the recent transplant and the lack of full integration, or something else, was unclear.
Currently, he could only keep it active for less than a minute before needing to deactivate it and let it rest.
Otherwise, his eye would start to ache, and his mind would become hazy.
These were all issues he'd need to address in the future.
However, Seimei's intuition told him that these weren't major obstacles. First-time surgeries often come with complications, but things improve with experience.
Then again, it's not like he'd have a second chance to perform this surgery.
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Seimei opened the proficiency panel.
The familiar blue screen appeared:
**[Name: Uchiha Seimei]**
**Physical Strength:** 19
**Mental Strength:** 20
**Chakra:** 21600 (109172→117364)
**Bloodline:** Sharingan (Mangekyō) (12880/50000) → (14416/50000)
**Byakugan (Unawakened):** 15/100 ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by nοvelfire.net
- *Chakra Refinement:* lv5 (2630/5000) → lv5 (2886/5000)
- *Wind Style - Rasenshuriken:* lv7 (5900/20000) → lv7 (8200/20000)
- *Healing Palm Technique:* lv8 (28500/50000) → lv8 (37400/50000)
- *Chakra Scalpel:* lv6 (4500/10000) → lv6 (8500/10000)
- *Mind's Reflection Technique:* lv8 (15299/50000) → lv8 (18371/50000)
- *Chakra Control:* lv5 (4550/5000) → lv6 (750/10000)
As he scanned the panel, Seimei's attention was immediately drawn to the **Byakugan (Unawakened: 15/100)** under his bloodline status.
No doubt about it—his theory had worked.
Though he'd anticipated this, seeing evidence of his bloodline awakening was still exciting.
This meant that, from now on, he could enhance his Byakugan, much as he did his Sharingan.
Though the Byakugan isn't highly regarded in the shinobi world, its potential is undeniable.
As an eye naturally possessed by the Ōtsutsuki clan, it can be developed to unlock various abilities.
Seimei didn't expect any extraordinary new abilities; he simply wanted to enhance its telescopic and penetrating vision.
Currently, his Byakugan could only detect things within a kilometer radius, and its penetration varied depending on chakra interference in the environment.
If he could evolve it to see two, three kilometers, or even farther, it would be an immense advantage.
This would completely make up for his current weaknesses in reconnaissance.
As for whether the Byakugan itself could achieve this…
Well, with the proficiency panel and *Human's Reign*, breaking through its natural limitations should be achievable.
Still, figuring out how to fully awaken his bloodline and advance the Byakugan's evolution posed a challenge.
The *Mind's Reflection Technique* was crafted by a former Uchiha specifically for the Sharingan, and though he'd modified it beyond recognition, it wasn't applicable to the Byakugan.
Thus, to evolve the Byakugan, he'd have to find another approach.