Lemme See Them Guts (p. Seb)

Guren's Lab:

Patiently, Guren awaited the arrival of his non - blood brother Seb. Earlier in the day, he had telepathically relayed a message to the Sunagakure sensory force, requesting them to reach out to Seb within a few hours. The Third had told the group that he had a classified level of intel, that required Seb's immediate attention. While the subjects themselves weren't all that pressing, it was still important for him to get his friend up to speed. He'd leave simple orders for Seb to find him within the Center for Surgery, Research, and Development. Once there he'd be greeted by a receptionist, Jade, who'd inform him to proceed to the descending stairwell at the end of the hallway on the right. Seb would be expected to go to the bottom floor which was usually restricted to only the Kazekage. It was none other than Guren's own personal lab, fully kitted to perform intricate surgeries and imbued with his chakra. It'd stimulate the growth of new cells, and thus rapidly accelerated the healing process following transplants. 

While Guren stood within the room, he'd perform a series of handseals to summon a corpse storage seal from his dimension along with a single jar sealed shut and labeled "Byakugan". He'd position the jar on the table, and release the body from the scroll so that the corpse was transported onto one of the two draining beds within the lab. This had been the first time since acquiring the body of Cuervo Chinoike that he had thoroughly inspected it. And though there were clearly signs of damage and dismemberment, his vital organs were intact along with his dojutsu. Guren's face soured slightly, as he cleaned the body and performed the mystical palm aura to repair the damage Zaled had done. It was a shame that a Chinoike had fallen to a fate like this. But at least it wasn't in vein.

When he concluded sprucing the body up, he'd make the seals for the chakra scalpel and carefully sever the tissue around the Chinoike's eyes. Guren would refrain from removing the dojutsu yet, as he just wanted to prime the body for extraction. He'd follow this up by making some pilot cuts upon the surface of the Chinoike's body, where he'd eventually harvest the organs from the body. As he completed this, he'd return to the sink in the corner of the room and wash his hands. Now that the bulk of his preparation was completed, he'd simply await for Seb's arrival while he took a seat in a rolling chair that sat in between the two draining tables.

WC = 435

Meticulously going over new information he recently gained, Sebastian found himself reading interesting material left behind by his master, Kenshin. "Avatar of Destruction? I think this would fit me like a glove". Before he was able to continue his investigation the door of the morgue would suddenly open, revealing a member of the Sensory division who explained his presence was requested by Guren. "Hm, sounds pretty important. Very well, I'll be there soon". Given the importance of the meeting the young Berserker opened one of the wardrobes as he picked out an outfit well suited for the occasion. Once the preparations were done, the Tau quickly put away his research before leaving.

As he made his way to the Center for Surgery, Research, and Development, a place he had yet to visit, Sebastian wondered how the remaining portions of the Chuunin Exams would go. From what he'd seen so far he would have to admit no one truly stood out, but perhaps they were simply leaving the best for the end. Upon his arrival a woman called Jade welcomed the Black Guard Commander, informing him where he'd be able to find the Kazekage. "Thank you, I'll head there now". He offered the receptionist a polite bow before taking the stairwell down to the bottom floor. "A lab? Interesting" the Berserker thought to himself, wondering if he should renovate his own office at the morgue.

After a couple of minutes Sebastian finally entered the room in a way only he could. "There he is. The man, the myth, the le-, is that a dead body? Lovely". As the ANBU Captain walked towards his friend who by then would be sitting in a chair, he figured it was only a matter of time before Guren would make a comment on the Tau's outfit. "What do you think?" he asked, showing off his suit. "Nice huh? A customized Sunarmani, fits perfectly". After all, he couldn't always walk around wearing his Iron Sand Cloak. 

(WC: 330)

As Guren sat within the chair, he'd spin around so that his back was facing the door and his front was facing the corpse. His hood was on, blocking any attempt from Seb noting distinguishable features when he'd arrive. And when he would and the door swung open, Seb's voice warmed the air with liveliness. Guren heartily smiled in response, as Seb made further comments on his new outfit. Sunarmani, a luxury brand that even Guren hadn't dared to empty his wallet on yet. But hearing as his bestie had recently copped some drip from their catalogue, he'd be inspired to do the same. The Third spun back around in his chair, so that he faced Seb, and he'd stand from it and extend his arms out to each side in a celebratory manner.

"Ayyyy look at you Mr. Big Bucks. You make me feel like I've got to go get some new threads for myself...But to your question, yes this is a dead body. Don't be surprised, you know how I get down." Guren joked in response. He'd then take a moment to remove the hood from his read, revealing his long and locked hair which extended down towards the top of his booty. Clearly Guren had appeared much older than what he was, evident by the transformation of his aged facial features to the immense amount of hair growth he had accumulated from being in the aging chambers with Suika. He'd lower his arms and offer an intrigued look at the ANBU Commander, "I've gotten old, huh? I ended up spending a bit too much time in my latest invention. I went to age myself a couple months, and ended up in their for...ten years' time." As Guren elaborated on the surface level details of his advanced aging, he'd motion his hand in a waving fashion to beckon Seb to approach the corpse lying next to him.

"Come, I want to show you something. This body is that of a fallen Chinoike, one who is of the same bloodline as me. Wielder of the Ketsuryugan, though from what I inspected his seem to be far less developed than my own." Guren would say while flashing both of his Inverted Ketsuryugan to Seb. From the time the two last met, Guren had removed his old Byakugan. And so this may come to a surprise to his friend, but all would be explained. "I took the liberty of performing some surgery on myself, where I restored my old organs back inside of my body. Resultantly, I removed that Byakugan from my eye socket and stored it within that jar on this table." Guren would step to the side to reveal the surgical table in between the two draining beds, which held the jarred Byakugan that he had just described. He had inferred that Seb may inquire as to why Guren removed his Byakugan, which would then warrant Guren to describe his time spent within the aging chambers. But should Seb not care to ask, then Guren wouldn't explain his motives nor the details that came with those ten years. 

"And seeing as you are my right hand, best friend, you know the rest...I wanted to exclusively offer you your pick from any of these new...wares that I've got in my inventory."

WC = 551. TWC = 986

Sunagakure's favorite Berserker let out a curse upon seeing Guren's different appearance. "Fucking hell, what happened to you?". Clearly having aged a couple of years the Third went on to explain the change he had gone through. "What kind of invention did you come up with this time?". Whatever it was, it allowed the Kazekage to gain a total of ten years. The topic of Grandpa Guren aside, his friend urged him to come and take a closer look at the corpse laying on one of the tables. "Killed one of your own?" he inquired about the state of the fellow Chinoike, an individual wielding the same dojutsu as the Kage. 

His eyes scanning the dead body, Sebastian continued to listen attentively, paying close attention to Guren's explanation. "Mhm, mhm. I see". The Berserker acted as if he completely understood what was being said, waiting for the big revelation. "But why?". With a dumb look on his face he awaited the Kazekage's response. Apparently Guren made the decision to remove his Byakugan and restored his original organs in the process. "Of course, another jar" the Black Guard Commander voiced upon witnessing the single eye on the table. "If I'm not mistaken, the Byakugan is rumored to be one of the strongest dojutsu in the world. So why would you give it up?". For someone like Sebastian, power meant everything.

As he would wait for an answer, the Sunagakure ANBU captain received an offer to pick any of the DNA available. "What could you tell me about the Ketsuryugan? Even though we're best friends, there is still a lot I have yet to learn abour your bloodline". Hoping to continue Kenshin's research on all the different bloodlines in the world, the Berserker would try and find out more about those available to him. 

(WC: 302, TWC: 632)

He laughed at Seb's abruptness, just like he had always been. Blunt and to the point. 

"Well the Aging Chambers within the Hyperbolic Time Chamber were...unkind to me. And Suika. I meant to age us no more than a couple months, and we ended up spending...ten years time together in there. Ended up with two kids too, so I guess you're an uncle now. Or a Godfather. Not sure what's more fitting. And also, I did not kill this Chinoike before us. I bought his body from a traveler who doesn't seem to understand the...intricacies of the Chinoike." Guren was straight forward with the details here, and provided a short pause for any remarks from the Tau. He seemed to further question Guren's motives, asking about his motives to remove the Byakugan.

"Though I've been a disciple of transplants, I have been wanting to...find my own power. Oddly enough looking upon Suika, and our children, they all seemed so pure. And I'd like to avoid installing transplants into my children for power. So what better way to train them, than by becoming..."pure" myself? And so I ended up restoring my previous organs into my body, looking to perfect the abilities of my bloodline...I figured I couldn't do that with foreign DNA in my body. And truthfully Seb, I think I unlocked quite a bit of potential within myself as a result. Potential that I wouldn't be able to realize even with the power of a Byakugan."

After Guren's offer, Seb seemed to prod more about the Chinoike. This pleased him, as he offered a subtle smile before returning to hover over top of the body of Cuervo.

"One thing you and I share in common, is our interest in Lord First's former work. So I imagined you would ask this question. The Chinoike are specialists at weaponizing our own blood. To me, I'm unsure if it's an ability tied to my eyes or my organs. But what I can tell you of my eyes is that they offer an enhanced version of chakra vision, called blood chakra vision. It expands almost completely around me, and allows me to see the blood, organs, and chakra of anyone. Even with obstacles in the way. I don't know if you've seen me in combat, but some of my abilities are tied to my eyes. While some are not. We are masters at genjutsu, ninjutsu, and iryojutsu. And excel at detecting deception. And as I've lived on with my eyes, they've developed profoundly from what they began at."

He'd continue to flash his Inverted Ketsuryugan so that Seb could take a look upon their design. Simultaneously, he'd lean overtop of Cuervo and open up his eye lids. Though the Ketsuryugan's connection was severed, its infantile state could still be observed. It was comparable to a red byakugan, while Guren's own eyes were much more intricate. 

"Truthfully I only just acquired this stage, so I am still learning its abilities. But I can tell my power has been magnified."

WC = 504. TWC = 1490

Uncle Seb, a title almost as impressive as ANBU Commander. "Well I'll be damned". Apparently Guren and the kunoichi known as Suika found themselves stuck in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber for ten years and what better way to spend that time than to reproduce like rabbits. "Two kids huh? I'm already telling you now, I won't be changing any diapers". Babysitting, fine. But clearing up his schedule to clean up some shit? No bueno. Now that he became a father, things would only get busier for the Kazekage, having to run a village while at the same time making sure the children had everything they needed.

Sebastian paid close attention, listening attentively to how his friend explained he got his hands on a dead body. "A traveler bringing in corpses, I've heard worse". It wasn't any of the Berserker's business, nor did he question any of it. The Kage went on sharing his reasoning for taking out the Byakugan and go for a more pure approach, as he so put it himself. Guren would mention a newly found potential he discovered within himself, one he experienced by looking to perfect the abilities of the Chinoike bloodline and that would even make the Byakugan pale in comparison. 

The two of them would further touch upon the Kazekage's clan, delving deeper into their abilities. One such would be the ability to weaponize their blood, something that sounded similar to how Sebastian was able to use his threads as weapons. However, the Ketsuryugan wasn't limited to only that, it also granted whoever possessed one something called blood chakra vision, allowing them to see the blood, organs, and chakra of anyone within range. From what he was told, Sebastian was able to find out most of the Chinoike's abilities were tied to their eyes. 

The young Berserker watched closely as Guren activated his Ketsuryugan, the Tau taking a closer look at its pattern. "Don't tell Suika we went face to face" he would tease his friend upon inspecting the dojutsu. Sebastian then followed as the Kage started to compare the eye of the corpse to his own. "Looks like you made the right decision" the Black Guard Commander voiced upon noticing the difference between each Ketsuryugan. 

(WC: 372, TWC: 1004)

Guren laughed at the idea of changing diapers from Seb. Interestingly enough, he and Suika barely had to change any considering the accelerated time from the aging chambers progressed the children through the infant stage quite rapidly. While standing adjacent to the dead body, he pondered informing his friend of the actual ages and names of the children. Perhaps later in their conversation though, as it seemed as if the subject was changing at a suitable pace. And as he digressed the information of his clan, he couldn't help but feel comfortable. There had only ever been one person who showed interest in the Chinoike Clan, and that person was dead to Guren now. But their interest seemed to be centered on the rivalry amongst clans. Seb's interest was as if it was derived from a place of unique interest that Guren knew all too well. As both men were disciples of Kenshin, they gravitated towards the intricacies of bloodline transplants. And so they had discussions on the subject, conducted experiments on themselves, and even shared DNA with each other (pause). So hearing Seb ask more and express body language that reflected his curiosity of the Chinoike was warming. If there were anyone who he felt comfortable and confident enough to open his bloodline to, it was Seb. For his creativity and competency matched and rivaled Guren's own. 

As Seb studied the differences in Dojutsu, Guren would escort himself towards one of the cabinets in the room away from the body. This would allow Seb to have a closer look at Cuervo without Guren hovering too much. Once near the cabinets, he'd open them up and retrieve a single jar with an unnamed label attached to it. Grabbing ahold of a pen, he'd mark "Tau Eyes" upon it and unscrew the lid. With the jar in hand, he'd walk over to his bottle of preserving liquid atop a series of shelves and grasp it. A single finger flick would pop the lid open, and he'd direct the bottle to funnel its liquid into the jar. Once filled, he'd snap the bottle back shop and restore it to its location and carry the jar over to the surgical tray in between the two draining beds. A pair of forceps, scissors, scalpel, retractors, and surgical pins also set upon the tray. Guren rarely used these tools though, as he preferred simplifying the process with his mystical palm. Though he figured he may have his hands full, should he be working on the eyes of someone else. But he also wasn't sure what Seb's preference was. Perhaps his friend wanted to conduct the work on himself, like Guren often did. In any case once everything was prepped and the Byakugan and Tau jars were properly opened and positioned on the tray, Guren would turn in place and look at Seb with a stern smile.

"Well then, what do you think? Want to upgrade those eyes of yours?"

WC = 494. TWC = 1984

To say the topic piqued Sebastian's interest would be an understatement, something Guren also picked up on going by his next question. "Hm, might as well. After all, you are aware of my search for power and the dream of continuing Kenshin's research on bloodlines". In the meanwhile, the Tau had taken his time inspecting the corpse of the dead Chinoike, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Having experimented a great deal both on himself as well as other bodies, the young Berserker knew his way around human anatomy. "Rest in peace, even if you look like an idiot to me" he paid his respects to what remained of him on the table.

As he sat there, Sebastian would notice how Guren had prepared a couple of jars and some tools used for surgery as well. "Alright, guess I'll take my pants off. Oh wait, no need for that, eyes, right". Replacing any of his body parts felt like just another day in the office for him. Not only transplants but simply taking out organs and swapping them for new ones, allowing himself to keep his body in prime condition, as such was one of the many perks of the Earth Grudge Fear bloodline, their Ragdoll Physiology. "Alright doc, what will it cost me, besides an eye". Laughing at his own joke the Tau slowly prepared for the procedure. 

(WC: 230, TWC: 1234)

It was another day for Naki, he was just building up his funds after taking so much time dedicating himself to all the missions he took. He found out that he was a bit more than he originally thought but that was fine he can live with that. It wasn't until that he was going through his mail that he found a letter from Guren telling him to come by, he had an eye for him. When he read that he got giddy as it seems Guren had remember that Naki was in search of an eye though he figured it was gonna be one of the ones they talked about, the Byakugan or the sharingan, so he quickly grabbed his robes, the ones he found within his family compound as well as his wallet and made his way to the place. He would hold onto the letter as it was currently his guide to the lab. Once he finally got there and went through whatever he needed to do to get to the back, the young man would be obviously nervous because this is a first for him. Once he was in the room with the other three the nerves really sat in as he didn't exactly know what he was supposed to do. He came into the room a bit before Seb sat down as he was talking prices with Guren as Naki respectfully bowed to both men. "Am I coming in at the wrong time?" He asked as he looked around before he finally noticed the dead body before him though it didn't exactly faze him that much currently as he was looking between the two men.  

WC: 280

Guren would laugh at Seb's witty comments and keep his own response simple regarding pricing. "Normally I'd charge 100,000 Ryo for the Byakugan. As that is what I paid for it. And I'd charge 50,000 Ryo for the Ketsuryugan. But for you, let's say 120,000 for the pair."

As he felt his pricing was more than fair, he'd wait for Seb's response. Assuming he was willing to pay, Guren would respond in turn. "Excellent, hop on the table. And no Seb, keep your pants on. I don't do any surgery on the meat department. You'll have to devise your own enlargement methods for that." Guren joked in turn. Naki would interrupt the pow wow right as Seb laid on the table. Though Guren invited both men, he hoped the timing between them would be staggered enough for him to perform one surgery after another. But no matter, that would just mean that Naki would have to wait his turn. "Naki, please grab an empty jar from the cabinet, filling it with the preserving liquid on the shelf over there, then sit in the corner there while I finish business with Sebastian."

Guren would then begin the process. As usual he'd first form the seals for the mystical palm aura, which its rejuvenating aura would fill the entire room. This would passively heal Seb as the surgery went on, preventing blood loss. With each hand, he'd form a set of hand seals. The left would make the chakra anesthetic seals, the right would make the chakra scalpel seals. Once this was prepared, it was time to start. "Alright, it's going to get a little dark for you." Guren would say as he placed his chakra anesthetic hand overtop of both eyes of the ANBU Commander. Its numbing sensation dulled any pain that Seb would feel from the surgery. Following this, Guren would carefully use the chakra scalpel technique to sever the connecting tissue and nerves around the Tau's natural eyes. With this process precisely completed, Guren would careful grab ahold of each eye and plop them one by one into the jar marked "Tau Eyes". Now that the extraction process was completed, Guren would move over to the corpse of Cuervo. He'd carefully extract a Ketsuryugan from it, and with the same hand lower it gently into the left eye socket of Seb. Following this he'd proceed towards the jar marked "Byakugan" and softly retrieve the eye from it. He'd then repeat the process of carefully inserting the eye, but this time into Seb's right eye socket. Guren then commanded his mystical palm aura's chakra to focus in on Seb's eyes, resultantly restoring the connecting tissue between Seb's new eyes and his optical system. The nerves would replenish as well. Once completed, Guren would bandage up Seb's eyes with a roll of surgical fabric and wrap it around his head. "Well, that's all for you. You may want to keep your eyes out of the light for a couple minutes so you can adjust. It'll take time to awaken those dojutsu, but for now just focus on recovery."

He'd wait for Seb to add any remarks and stand from his chair. In turn he'd respond to them but for now he'd turn his attention to Naki. "Naki, I'll keep this short. Once upon a time ago you inquired about dojutsu. Well, I have come across an eye similar to my own belonging to a fallen Chinoike. If you'd like, I'll install it into you for the price of 50,000 ryo. How does that sound?"

WC = 593. TWC = 2577