Kakashi was utterly shocked. He could clearly feel that not only had his Chakra been fully replenished... but it was overflowing!
'What kind of powerful soldier pill was this?! Aside from the bitter taste, it had no flaws!'
'And its effects were incredible!'
Kakashi was deeply impressed. He rarely showed such a serious expression outside of combat.
The shock this single soldier pill gave him even surpassed that of the Chakra Proficiency Book!
After all, the book had been introduced with some buildup, so Kakashi had already mentally prepared himself.
But this was different. Chakra capacity had always been Kakashi's Achilles' heel, and now, with this pill, his Chakra was overflowing!
Suddenly, just as Kakashi was about to speak, a sharp pain shot through the eye beneath his forehead protector, nearly causing him to double over.
Yuto watched this unfold, feeling a bit guilty.
'Wow, this drug is actually strong! Good thing I had someone test it for me.'
'He's going to be okay, right?'
Then Kakashi ripped off his forehead protector, revealing the crimson eye beneath the scar.
Yuto finally got a clear look. The three tomoe in the eye were slowly merging, forming the shape of three scythes.
'This is… Kamui?!'
Yuto was stunned, 'Kamui appeared here? But that doesn't make sense... Didn't Kakashi only unlock Kamui in Shippuden?'
Then he remembered a post from a 'Naruto expert' in his previous life.
He couldn't recall the details, but the gist of it was that Kakashi had unlocked the Mangekyo Sharingan at the same time as Obito.
However, since Kakashi's Chakra Reserves were too low to sustain the Mangekyo Sharingan, it deactivated shortly after being unlocked.
It wasn't until Shippuden that he could use it...
The post had cited some examples, but Yuto couldn't remember them.
'Could it be... as that post claimed? That Kakashi's Mangekyo had always been there, just inaccessible?'
'So this soldier pill had replenished Kakashi's Chakra enough to unlock it?!'
At that moment, Kakashi, still enduring the pain, steadied himself and stood up.
"Sorry about that. Did I... do anything strange just now?"
Yuto swallowed, wondering whether to tell Kakashi the truth.
'If I did… how would the 'Kamui Kakashi' I was planning to develop serve as a 'prophecy'?'
But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, Yuto decided to be honest.
"Congratulations. You've unlocked the Uchiha Clan's Mangekyo Sharingan. Try it out and see how it works."
As soon as Yuto finished speaking, Kakashi's expression turned to one of shock.
'Mangekyo... Sharingan?! Wasn't that the ultimate form of the Sharingan, something only a handful of Uchiha could unlock?'
'I actually...'
Kakashi himself didn't know much about the Mangekyo Sharingan. He had only heard about it from other Ninja, like how it had been used to control the Nine-Tails.
Even within the Uchiha Clan, the Mangekyo Sharingan was somewhat legendary.
Only one or two people in each generation could unlock it.
But Itachi's generation was an exception, as there's also Obito, Sasuke, and even Shisui.
'Could it be that... the Hatake Clan is a descendant of the Uchiha Clan?'
Kakashi was on the verge of an existential crisis.
Yuto walked over and patted Kakashi on the shoulder with a smile.
"Congratulations! It seems you've unlocked the Mangekyo much earlier than expected..."
"Go ahead and test your ability. Each pair of Mangekyo Sharingan has unique powers."
"Oh, and... try to see if you can activate Susanoo. That's another skill exclusive to the Mangekyo Sharingan."
"Keep training, and who knows? You might even transcend the Eternal Mangekyo and upgrade straight to the Rinnegan..."
'Although, without Indra's Chakra, unlocking the Rinnegan was unlikely, and the conditions for the Eternal Mangekyo...'
Yuto didn't say these things out loud. The Eternal Mangekyo was probably out of Kakashi's reach, and the Rinnegan was just something Yuto threw in for fun.
Kakashi's pupils contracted as he listened, completely dumbfounded.
'Wait... what is all this?'
'What's an Eternal Mangekyo? And the Rinnegan? Isn't that the legendary Sage of Six Paths' eyes?'
'And... you're talking like you're the one who unlocked it, not me!'
Although Kakashi complained in his heart, he couldn't help but feel even more respect for Yuto, this mysterious figure whose strength he couldn't fathom.
Perhaps in the original work, Kakashi's unlocking of the Mangekyo had more to do with his own experiences.
But here, it was because he had taken the soldier pill 'developed' by Yuto that he unlocked the Mangekyo.
So, in a way, Yuto was the one who helped Kakashi unlock his Mangekyo...
Maybe Yuto didn't think of it that way, but Kakashi genuinely believed it.
Although he had never used the Mangekyo before, having worn the Sharingan for so many years, it had become a part of him.
Even without using it, he had some idea of what it could do.
It was like when Obito had first unlocked his Mangekyo and immediately used its power to single-handedly wipe out an entire squad of Kirigakure Ninjas.
Kakashi did not stay any longer. He felt particularly thirsty now. He did not know if it was because of the soldier pill or something else...
But more than that, he wanted to test his new power as soon as possible.
So after thanking Yuto, Kakashi left, promising to bring a gift the next time they met.
Yuto hadn't expected things to take this turn...
He hadn't planned to trigger Kakashi's Mangekyo.
But now that it had happened, it wasn't a bad thing, as it had also given Yuto a chance to show off his knowledge.
Yuto felt incredibly satisfied.
He hadn't felt this way before, but when he mentioned the Eternal Mangekyo, Rinnegan, and Susanoo to Kakashi…
Seeing Kakashi's expression shift between 'I didn't read much, don't trick me' and 'Huh? There's such a thing?' was hilarious!
'Turns out, watching a character go OOC is pretty fun.
After enjoying Kakashi's reaction, Yuto's bad mood from the terrible ten-pull instantly lifted.
And through Kakashi, he also got a rough idea of how effective the white-tier items were.
'Oh right... I hadn't asked Kakashi about that, but it seemed the effects were pretty impressive.'
After pouring himself a glass of water, Yuto went back to work.
Then another thought crossed his mind...
'Can the cheerful mood I felt just now be considered as a compensation for my 'invincible' state?'
Yuto could clearly feel that, while he wasn't angry, he had been a bit annoyed. But then Kakashi showed up and made things interesting.
"Whatever, back to work. Let's try to finish the second chapter's storyline within five days..."
Yuto briefly considered it, then pushed the thought aside.
Although he couldn't remember exactly when Team 7 would head to the Land of Waves, he knew they had completed several D-Rank missions before that.
'Five days should be enough.'