The selection of candidates to go to the Ancestral Land was still in progress and couldn't be rushed. After waking up the next day, Uchiha Ryo went to see Hiro and Uchiha Akihiko, who were under [House Arrest].
Before he even entered the door, he could hear the two arguing inside.
"Let me take a look. It won't kill you!"
"Hiro! Stop trying to pry into my eyes! I've put up with you for a long time yesterday, you know!"
"I'm not going to pluck out your eyes. What are you so scared of? Besides, who is this for? We're the only two with the Mangekyo in our generation. Do you expect me to look at myself in the mirror?!"
"Then why are you looking at me with your Mangekyo activated?! Do you need the Mangekyo to examine someone?!"
"Nonsense! Who knows if you'll hit me with a genjutsu halfway through?!"
"Bullshit! Do I need the Mangekyo to use genjutsu on you?!"
"Damn it! I can't stand it anymore! Uchiha Akihiko! Dare you have a duel with me?!"
Uchiha Ryo, standing at the door, didn't know whether to knock or not.
[Maybe I came at a bad time. Maybe I should...]
Before Uchiha Ryo could make a decision, the door was violently flung open with a bang. At that moment, the argument between Hiro and Uchiha Akihiko suddenly stopped.
Uchiha Ryo awkwardly scraped his fingernail against the hilt of his sword and forced a laugh, speaking first. "Well... How about pretending I was never here?"
"You're already here. Go ahead and tell us first." Uchiha Akihiko rubbed his temples, suppressing his anger. "Do you have any new discoveries about the Mangekyo?"
Before Uchiha Ryo could say a word, Hiro sniffed the air. "You reek of alcohol... Did you go drinking last night?"
"Really? Is it that obvious?" Uchiha Ryo grabbed his clothes and smelled them. "I thought I washed up and changed properly."
"Yeah, it's pretty obvious." Uchiha Akihiko nodded too. "But the smell of alcohol didn't go away even after you washed up... How much did you drink?"
"Um... I don't really remember. But I did finish all the wine we bought at the civilian market with my father yesterday."
Hiro opened his mouth and took a long time to say, "...You didn't drink the leader of the Uchiha clan into a stupor, did you?"
"Madara told me this morning before I left home that my father was fine when he left. So he should be okay." Uchiha Ryo smiled faintly and pointed behind the two of them. "By the way... If you don't want to fight anymore, can you let me in and talk?"
Interrupted by Uchiha Ryo, the two of them lost the urge to have a duel. They stepped aside to let Uchiha Ryo in.
"So, did you discover something new?" Uchiha Akihiko closed the door and followed behind Uchiha Ryo. "And you actually helped Hiro awaken his Sharingan? How did you do it? Hiro refused to tell me..."
"Ah, that... Actually, it's no big deal..."
"Uchiha Ryo!"
The words on the tip of Uchiha Ryo's tongue suddenly changed direction. "Cough, let's not ask about it for now, shall we?"
Anyway, you'll get some clues from the Senju or Uzumaki clan soon enough..."
Uchiha Akihiko: ...Why those two clans?
But seeing Hiro's face as black as the ace of spades, Akihiko didn't press further. He just steered the conversation back, "So, what did you call us here for?"
"Well, I came to talk to you about the Mangekyo pupil power," Uchiha Ryo faced the two of them. "Hiro might not feel it clearly because his pupil power is unstable and he's the one experiencing it. But in my perception, the difference in your pupil power is like night and day."
"It's normal for two people to have different pupil power, right?" Hiro raised an eyebrow slightly. "If you're talking about the amount of pupil power, I admit I'm no match for this guy. But he won't be able to suppress me easily either."
Akihiko twitched the corner of his mouth but said nothing.
"It's not about the amount, but the feeling the pupil power gives," Uchiha Ryo shook his head slightly. "Compared to Hiro, Akihiko's pupil power feels more gloomy and inauspicious."
"Really?" Hiro grabbed Akihiko's hand and carefully sensed it, but soon spoke up again, "I don't feel much of a difference. Maybe it's just because he awakened his Sharingan earlier and is more familiar with the pupil power?"
"No, the difference is significant. But there are too few comparable examples, so I'm not sure about the reason," Uchiha Ryo gently tapped the hilt of his sword. "It might be related to your chakra natures or your personalities. But I think the most likely reason is the different ways you awakened your Sharingan. Anyway, if someone else successfully awakens their Sharingan later, I hope you'll pay more attention to this aspect.
And Hiro, when you go to the stele in the basement of the clan's ancestral hall later, remember to make two copies for me."
"Huh? Didn't this guy make a copy for you already?" Hiro frowned. "Why do you need so many?"
"Because Uchiha Ryo always suspects someone has tampered with the stele," Akihiko explained. "I've also investigated. No matter how I inject chakra, it can't affect the pupil power already left on the stele. Moreover, the stele can ensure that the subsequent pupil powers can convey their intended messages without interfering with each other.
Although we don't know who made the stele, this sophisticated technique isn't recorded in our clan. Therefore, it's highly likely that an ancestor of our clan in ancient times had an outsider craft it, or it's an ability of the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. In any case, with the current means of our clan, we can't affect the stele at all."
Hearing this, Hiro understood. He walked straight to the table and sat down, dragging out his words, "Oh—so you saw something really suspicious on the stele and suspected someone was up to no good? Got it. Then let's do as Uchiha Ryo says.
But I don't think this is urgent. After all, if it's really as you two said, we can't do anything about the culprit even if we find out. There's a more pressing Mondai right in front of us."
Uchiha Ryo was taken aback, looking somewhat confused, which was quite rare for him. "A more serious Mondai?"
Hiro slapped the table and said, "The more serious Mondai is that Uchiha Akihiko won't cooperate with my research on the Mangekyo Sharingan. When are you going to get me a few more Mangekyo Sharingan as materials for my research? Also, did you find any suitable candidates during your trip to the Land of Lightning? Who do you plan to use as materials?"