That was a despair-inducing strength. To this day, Sarutobi Hiruzen had no idea where on earth this Uchiha Brahman had popped out from, nor how he could possibly be so powerful.
One had to know that prior to this, there had never been the slightest rumor regarding Uchiha Brahman.
If he were claimed to be a hidden power of the Uchiha clan, given the Uchiha's typical personality, keeping such a hidden force was simply out of the question.
It was impossible to keep it hidden!
After dissuading Jiraiya, they began searching for Tsunade, seeking out greater strength.
***
Meanwhile, the shinobi villages of the other major powers were still standing by and watching. However, large quantities of Divine Blessing Potions had already begun flowing outward from the Land of Fire into other nations. The Daimyo of the other great powers had even begun contacting the Land of Fire to establish manufacturing plants for the Divine Blessing Potions.
A nameless unease began to grip the hearts of the Kage from every village.
Yet, upon observation, they discovered that those who had been injected with the Divine Blessing Potion showed not the slightest trace of being controlled. Moreover, because of the injection, ordinary people who previously possessed chakra but could barely refine any suddenly found their internal chakra reserves surging.
Many people acquired the aptitude to become shinobi. Furthermore, for the shinobi who took the Divine Blessing Potion, not only was their internal chakra enhanced, but all manner of wounds on their bodies were healed.
Even severed hands and feet grew back anew.
Elderly individuals even had their lifespans extended, experiencing a form of rebirth.
In essence, the Divine Blessing Potion was not actually a malicious thing. It was a potent concoction created by Uchiha Brahman after extracting and modifying massive amounts of human genes, infecting and ultimately engineering them to optimize human DNA and even grant a certain probability of awakening various Kekkei Genkai.
It was fundamentally harmless—aside from being manufactured a bit too hastily, carrying one tiny little flaw that caused those who injected it to face Death, it was otherwise entirely positive!
By the seaside.
A group of shinobi were using Ninjutsu to catch fish. Once vast numbers of fish were hauled ashore, these shinobi used Shadow Clones to sort the fish by species, injected each type with its corresponding Divine Blessing Potion, and then released the fish back into nature.
Now, as time passed, these blessed fish—stronger and more intelligent than their normal counterparts—would ultimately spread continuously, transforming every marine creature in the ocean into devoted followers of the great Brahman.
"Praise Brahman!"
The shinobi chanted with deep piety before returning to their work.
Everything was changing in an orderly fashion. As the number of thralls grew ever greater, Uchiha Brahman's own strength was increasing at an accelerating pace. Right now, he could easily beat his former self to death.
Konoha.
Uchiha Brahman gazed at the two eyes resting in his palm.
These were Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyou Sharingan, eyes containing the formidable pupil technique known as Kotoamatsukami.
Regarding this pupil technique, Uchiha Brahman had always harbored deep wariness, because he did not know whether it would exert an effect on him. Perhaps it would, perhaps it wouldn't—who could say?
Over this past period, Uchiha Brahman had continuously conducted research into Kotoamatsukami.
And today, he had finally achieved a breakthrough!
Ninjutsu: Mind Defense Technique! In the Shinobi World, so-called Genjutsu were, at their core, arts that manipulated chakra.
Within the recesses of his own mind, Uchiha Brahman utilized vast amounts of chakra to construct a specialized barrier specifically designed to counter Genjutsu.
Once attacked by a Genjutsu, this layer of chakra would flow into motion, shattering the Genjutsu while simultaneously possessing the ability to continuously maintain his mind and memories, capable of detecting whether the user's memories had been tampered with. With this technique, Uchiha Brahman no longer needed to worry about his own will being influenced by Genjutsu.
Moments later, he raised his hand. Flesh began to writhe as massive networks of nerves and blood vessels sprouted forth, wrapping around and connecting to one of the eyeballs in his hand.
Uchiha Brahman instantly felt as though he had gained an extra perspective, while simultaneously acquiring complete control over Kotoamatsukami.
"Come on! Let's test it!" He raised his hand, aimed it at his own eyes, and activated Kotoamatsukami.
Water is highly toxic! Buried deep within the seemingly carved-in Genjutsu, the technique descended silently into Uchiha Brahman's mind. The very next instant, the defense protocols within his mind activated passively, purging Kotoamatsukami completely.
He pulled out a cup of water and drained it in a single gulp.
"It worked!"
A smile curled the corners of Uchiha Brahman's lips.
Relying on his peerless intellect, he had successfully developed a powerful ninjutsu capable of immunizing against Kotoamatsukami—no, not just Kotoamatsukami, but all Genjutsu based on chakra, even those that altered memories.
Yet it was still not enough. He recalled a certain special ninjutsu.
***
Time flowed quietly onward.
The number of living beings injected with the Divine Blessing Potion grew steadily greater. The world gradually grew more peaceful; conflicts dwindled, and an era of peace was descending.
The Five Great Nations, and even the Daimyo of those smaller countries, united completely and arrived in Konoha.
"Praise Brahman!"
These Daimyo knelt on the ground like devout believers, kowtowing, bowing, and praising the great Brahman.
Uchiha Brahman sat upon the seat of honor, looking down at these mortals with a smile on his face.
"I accept your praise! Mortals! Rise!"
Uchiha Brahman spoke in a gentle tone, watching the Daimyo as if they were mere playthings.
"Praise the great Brahman!"
The Daimyo offered their praises once more, then slowly climbed back to their feet.
Not every Daimyo had necessarily wished to be injected with the Divine Blessing Potion, but sometimes, whether or not you received a blessing was not up for you to decide.
A divine blessing meant that even if you didn't want it, you still had to drop to your knees and devoutly receive it; otherwise, you were showing disrespect to the gods and would be struck down by lightning!
"Oh, great Brahman, how dazzling you are, how magnificent you are! You are the heavens, you are the earth, you are our father, our master! You are the sun in the sky, your supreme radiance shining down upon us lowly creatures. Your grace is something we can never fully repay..."
Utterly devout praises, exhausting every superlative vocabulary imaginable, poured forth from the lips of these Daimyo. Praise Brahman!
Listening to the praise of these mortals, the smile on Brahman's face deepened.
Grace—this was grace, this was the grace bestowed by Brahman!
"For the sake of this world, for humanity, for all things in heaven and earth, for this universe, we beg the great Brahman to become our leader! We beg the great Brahman to become the master of the world!"
The Daimyo spoke with utmost reverence.
"Oh, great Brahman! Please become the master of the world, ruling over the life and death of us lowly scum! You are destined to become our sovereign!"
Brahman! Brahman! Brahman! Brahman! Countless cheers erupted all around, the voices of surrounding civilians and shinobi soaring high, a tsunami of sound engulfing the entire village of Konoha.
Praise Brahman!