616: ???%

That same afternoon, Doumu was sitting on the floor of his room in a lotus position, on the rug, in a focused meditative state. He had been practicing the basic principle of Ten for a few hours, and he used Zetsu to alleviate the growing physical and mental fatigue that training the first fundamental principle of Nen caused him, in the moments following the dissipation of the control technique.

"... The aura is the vital energy produced by all living beings, it is something vital for survival and is directly linked to a person's resistance. The points on the body from which the aura flows are called aura nodes." Doumu said, in his inner thoughts, while taking a deep breath through his nose and then exhaling the air in his lungs through his mouth after long periods of 12 minutes. "The aura is invisible to non-Nen users, and it can only be seen after the user's aura nodes in the eyes are opened. However, some individuals particularly sensitive to this aura can sense its presence without being aware of its existence."

With a briefly disheartened expression, but which quickly turned into resignation after a few moments, he continued, with seriousness on his face, "My vision was lost permanently and completely through an irreversible injury. And severe injuries can completely interrupt the flow of aura in this part of the body. Thus, since this is my case, I will not be able to see my own aura, nor that of any other living being."

Doumu sighed, appearing slightly irritated with his situation for a brief moment, but he did not stop focusing on his training and, above all, on his observations of his thoughts.

"Since every living being subconsciously emits an aura, learning to feel the aura is a useful and important skill for those who are trying to track living things or who are looking for non-living things that have been infused with aura." Doumu thought and, again, he felt a bit disheartened. "But... But I am in a universe where this aura and, by extension, Nen, don't really exist. No one really possesses these abilities that are so specific, so complex, so restrictive, and so abstract in this universe where I am. Even though Chi is somewhat similar, in parts, this type of energy that flows in everyone's body around here is really not the same as Nen."

"Chi is a bioelectric energy that, here in this reality, all living beings possess, but only a few people have managed to train themselves enough to improve both their minds and bodies, and it can also be used to heal themselves and others. Many martial artists they possess some level of skill and mastery in the manipulation of Chi and can use it to perform feats that are undeniably extraordinary and fantastic And one of those extraordinary feats is being able to stop or even reverse someone's aging by decades, in addition to the fact that people who are capable of manipulating Chi can overcome opponents much stronger than themselves." Thought Doumu, smiling slightly. "If I were being honest in answering this, I would say that Chi is something that, even though it is a type of undeniably powerful energy, is still a bit weak compared to what a Nen user can achieve through training and, moreover, by developing skills that express all their previously latent potential and release that potential into the world."

"Nen abilities can have activation conditions that increase their power. And first of all, these conditions also make the abilities viable, either because the user does not have the required level of skill for the ability to work or because the effects of the ability in question often exceed what can be achieved with Nen without an exchange."

"The conditions operate on the principle of equivalent exchange, but they occasionally become redundant if the user of such a technique has a high proficiency and mastery in Nen. But that's not my case, it never was. I am a complete beginner in this practice that requires a lot of physical, mental, and also, but not least, spiritual effort."

"The three categories that are located at the bottom of the Nen category chart seem to be the ones that most depend on these conditions to make these Nen abilities viable and powerful, and it does not seem possible to violate the conditions of an ability, even though it is possible to take advantage of loopholes by creating abilities where it is possible to bypass certain restrictions of other abilities, in order to circumvent these restrictions in very specific situations."

"I recognize that I am not ready to develop any Nen abilities right now, and with my temperament and current mental turmoil, it is very likely that I could develop something that does not fit my main criteria and, most importantly, end up killing me in the future and more quickly than I would like, in some way." After a few more seconds, Doumu returned to his breathing exercise. "At the moment, one of my main priorities is to train the first three of the four basic and fundamental principles of Nen. I need to train enough to achieve an acceptable level of mastery in Ten, Zetsu, and Ren. I also need to train physically, but I think that, at the moment, the walks I take around the area in the morning and before dusk are sufficient physical exercise."

"I know that walking regularly is an excellent help when it comes to improving physical endurance. It also tones the leg muscles, improves cardiovascular endurance, increases flexibility, strengthens the core muscles, helps control body weight, reduces the risk of heart disease, among other beneficial things, such as improving mental health and enhancing sleep quality."

"Before this afternoon, before hearing those words on the news, I imagined i was a human. I still am, but not the same kind of human being. People with superpowers derived from genes are colloquially and popularly called mutants. And just like some scientists, I call them Homo Sapiens Superior."

"The genes that give rise to the powers with which this species is born originated from the evolution of primitive humans. Mutants are just a group of humans who, as a result of a sudden evolutionary leap, were born with latent superhuman abilities, which usually manifest during puberty. And from what I discovered after a more in-depth analysis, the power I was born with is not really as useless as I imagined. From the back of my body, in the lower back region, I can manifest up to a maximum of 24 tentacles that are very similar to those of an octopus, but are enhanced in some way."

"Octopuses are curious and intelligent animals that can think with their legs, and they have tentacles that act as small brains independent of their main brain, but most of their brain cells are present in the tentacles. The approximate number of neurons in a common octopus is 500 million, and this places them in the same "brain classification" as dogs."

"However, I am a human. And humans have about 86 billion neurons. Each suction cup of a common octopus can contain up to about 10 thousand neurons, and they have around 2 thousand suction cups, with about 300 suction cups on each tentacle. Octopuses have 8 tentacles, but I have 24. That would mean that, approximately, I have 7200 suckers. A quick mental multiplication shows that I have approximately 72 billion neurons that are not concentrated in my main brain. There are fewer neurons than humans, of course, but something with 'billions' written next to it is not a small number." He thought, at the same time feeling a slight headache and blood beginning to trickle from his nose after that.

Manifesting one of his tentacles in the left region of his lower back, Doumu moved, stretched, and expanded that tentacle to grab a tissue from a box, a few meters away from where he was sitting. Bringing the tentacle that held the tissue closer to him, Doumu wiped the blood with the tissue before crumpling it into a ball and throwing it into a trash bin on the other side of the room with the same tentacle. Next, Doumu made an effort to make the tentacle disappear, with a concentrated look and beads of sweat on his forehead, until the tentacle vanished into his lower back.

"This approximate number also shows that, with my new brains, my mental capabilities are on another level. However, I don't see any instant increase in intelligence. But it is easy to notice that my memory has greatly improved, as I am able to remember the words I read on various websites on the internet with greater clarity, even though I originally viewed them for only a few seconds before closing the browser tabs." Doumu continued to breathe through his nose and exhale through his mouth. "That's something incredible, if I think about it. And I'm thinking that my mutant classification is Alpha level... And, well, Alpha-level mutants make up about less than 10% of the mutant population. They possess extraordinary powers and no significant flaws, according to what I've read."

Sighing as the Ten dissipated, Doumu stretched his limbs and elongated himself before rising from the floor while activating the Zetsu concept, aiming to gradually alleviate his physical and mental fatigue. Bending down and moving his hand across the floor of his room until he reached his cane, which was near the door, Doumu turned the doorknob before stepping out into the small hallway and descending the stairs. Feeling the texture of the carpet under his bare feet, Doumu turned left, following the direction indicated by one of the carpet's patterns, until he reached the kitchen.

Stepping on the carpet, Doumu stopped when he faced the refrigerator, and extended his right arm forward, moving his hand until he reached the door handle, which he pulled. When the refrigerator opened, Doumu felt a bit cold and sneezed.

He reached into the refrigerator, taking a glass jar as carefully as he could. Continuing with the jar in hand, which he placed on the kitchen table, Doumu picked up a glass.

With slow movements, he poured some of the orange juice from the pitcher into his glass until it was filled to the brim. After placing the pitcher back on the table, Doumu picked up his glass of juice and drank slowly. He drank another glass of juice before putting the rest of the juice in the fridge and going to wash his glass in the kitchen sink.

When his hand reached the faucet, Doumu turned it with moderate force. Then, he took a detergent and pressed his finger on the plastic, pouring a few drops of detergent into the glass, which he scrubbed with a sponge before rinsing it thoroughly with water, repeating the same process two more times.

Leaving the kitchen, Doumu sat in his usual armchair as relaxed as he could, placing his cane across his lap, horizontally. For the next few minutes, leaning back in the green armchair enough to seem as if he were being swallowed by it, he suppressed his aura until his fatigue had completely vanished.

He didn't get up from the armchair immediately, however. Doumu decided that he would think a little more about the capabilities of his power. Or, in his case, powers.

Doumu's mutant powers are not just his tentacles that function as individual brains or merely extra arms. Gradually, he noticed an improvement in his perception and hearing, even without the principles of En and Gyo, which also seemed to have improved significantly after his awakening.

Doumu thinks that, most likely, he ended up developing an improved lung capacity. This power is characterized by an enormous lung capacity and/or an ability to use oxygen very effectively, allowing them to hold their breath for long periods of time while remaining active.

In Doumu's case, he noticed that he could hold his breath for longer periods, even while doing his daily activities.

Doumu laughed, thinking that he had lungs with capacities similar to those of birds, which gave him lungs full of fresh air for long periods. He also thinks that perhaps the only limitation of this power is that the user will still need air at some point, regardless of how long they can hold their breath.

Enhanced hearing is the ability to hear with incredible clarity, distance, and even frequencies beyond the normal range of hearing. Users of this superpower can distinguish and decipher layer upon layer of different sounds and conversations, locate the source of a noise, or pick up a sound from a kilometer away in a busy city. Some known limitations include that noises can limit the user's hearing range or their ability to detect smaller sounds.

On the other hand, enhanced perception is where the user has advanced analytical and observational skills, as well as a keen eye for details. Individuals with this power are quick to detect the tiniest details that others overlook.

Thus, Doumu thought more clearly about his mutation. He acknowledges that some individuals with these abnormal powers may exhibit certain mutations at birth or even during adulthood, although this is particularly uncommon and most mutants display these mutations during puberty.

Analyzing the memories of the original Ohno Doumu with greater clarity, seeking to better observe the smallest details, the current Ohno Doumu had some glimpses of a somewhat quiet child, but who, due to spending a lot of time in silence, remained analyzing the things he saw or heard.

And surprisingly, Doumu saw that his predecessor was already doing things like that even in the early years of his childhood, especially when his older sister was at home. Moreover, his predecessor cried only a few times during the first months and years of his childhood.

Ohno Doumu, the child, spent most of his time at home, playing or reading a book. When he finally went to school, this boy exhibited moderately superior intelligence, and he spent most of his time at school talking and playing with friends or reading a book in silence.

Sighing and shaking his head to dispel some darker thoughts about his reincarnation situation, Doumu decided he would think about what he should do now, since he discovered he is a mutant and, with this realization, he knows he is in a reality where threats arise at every corner, and he might need to dodge laser beams when leaving the supermarket. He is not trying to be metaphorical when he thinks these words, however.

He is a mutant and, therefore, is part of the small portion of the Earth's population that the majority of the population, those without powers, tries to eradicate. This eradication often happens with extreme measures that include torture, dubious scientific experiments conducted by even more dubious people, equipment used to suppress these people's powers, or, in many of these cases, with death.

The group called Friends of Humanity is one of those groups that try to eradicate, in one way or another, the population of Homo Sapiens Superior, the mutants. Knowing this, Doumu quickly remembers that the Friends of Humanity are a pro-human hate group founded by an individual named Graydon Creed, in their opposition to mutants. According to what he read in his previous life, under Creed's leadership, the Friends of Humanity promoted intolerance and violence against mutants, always pressuring politicians to pass anti-mutant laws with a fervor that Doumu finds truly disgusting.

And at some point in the future, the Friends of Humanity expanded their prejudice to include all non-humans and, especially, the symbiotes, in their hatred.

As a mutant, even possessing another power as extraordinary as this one, Doumu recognizes that if someone discovers this new secret and it leaks to others, his survival and daily, social, and very likely emotional life will be at risk.

According to what he read on sites like that, there are mutants not only in the USA and in this distorted and dangerous version of New York that this reality has, but in many other places around the world. In some parts of Japan, especially in Tokyo and Kyoto, there have already been sightings of mutants.

In the USA, in New York, there is a place where these mutants are accepted. This place is the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters, or Xavier Institute for Mutant Education and Other, or simply the X-Mansion.

This mansion is the base of operations and training location for the X-Men. It is also used as a school for teenage mutants; this gigantic mansion is much more than a sanctuary for these young people who, most of the time, end up suffering at the hands of someone when their powers awaken before they go to this school, one way or another.

In this place, there are powerful mutants, and among them is one that Doumu fears the most: Charles Xavier.

Charles Xavier is a mutant endowed with complex telepathic powers and is a specialist in mutant biology and sociology, as well as the founder of the superhero group known as the X-Men, being called Professor X.

Doumu read that, after becoming paraplegic in the Himalayas, Xavier transformed his family's ancestral home into the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters, which became a sanctuary for mutants, where they train and learn about their abilities.

The X-Men, according to what Doumu read and watched a few times on television, are a group of mutant superheroes founded by Xavier to defend his dream of "peaceful coexistence between humans and mutants," while secretly defending humanity from the "evil mutants." Since their founding, the X-Men have lived in a constant battle, defending a world that fears and hates them.

Doumu is afraid of Charles Xavier because he has a tendency to invade the minds of his students for their thoughts and, from what Doumu read at some point in his previous life, Xavier has already read the thoughts of all humans once. And if Xavier didn't do this action in the present moment, it would still happen, at some point in the unknown and easily changeable future.

And somewhere in the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters, there is an advanced computer created by him and designed to identify the location of mutants around the world. The Cerebro, a device with complex extrasensory perception.

The supposed main objective of this piece of technology is to detect mutant brain waves around the world, and sometimes beyond. Some of the limitations of this detection are that it cannot be used to detect triggered ectoplasm, ghosts, and some individuals have managed to protect themselves from the Cerebro through technology or other superhuman means.

The Cerebro has something called telepathic amplification, and it can be used by any mutant telepath. This advanced thing can enhance the telepathic abilities of its users, including the capacity to allow telepathic communication over long distances.

However, the capability of this technology that terrifies Doumu the most is truly frightening.

The main and true ability of Cerebro works to create a copy of the mind of all the mutants on the planet, after the moment their enhancement occurred. Thus, the ability to detect mutants is merely a secondary function.

Doumu is literally praying that this doesn't happen now. Kneeling on the floor, with his hands clasped in prayer, he prayed to someone who could hear him before a look of fear and restlessness appeared on his face and he immediately stopped praying.

"The Friends of Humanity exist here. Therefore, I think I am in the main reality of the comic books from that publisher, where a threat arises every week. Thus, if this terrifying hypothesis is correct, I definitely shouldn't pray," thought Doumu, sighing. "A good part of the gods and other types of supernatural beings that exist here, except for that figure who works for love, are not really that benevolent, regardless of what we mortals think and say. And I'm sure these guys will hear me if I say their names or even make a discreet mention related to them, one way or another."

He sat in his armchair once again, staying there for a few more minutes before deciding to take a walk to clear his mind.

"It's just a matter of time before Xavier and his crew come and knock on my door." He said, before laughing with an awkward laugh.

When he was putting on his sneakers, not far from the front door, he could hear the sound of the door opening from outside before he heard the sound of footsteps. Then, his keen sense of smell detected, once again, the scent of fresh fish coming from the door.

After finishing putting on his sneakers and tying his laces in a bow knot, Doumu picked up his cane before feeling his way along the floor and walking to the small hallway near the front door.

Activating one of the advanced principles of Nen that he had a certain degree of mastery over, En, Doumu could perceive the relaxed movements, the shape, and the breathing of the person at the door, taking off a pair of boots. With his hearing, he could also briefly hear the sound of that person's heartbeat when he focused for a few seconds.

This person, a woman of average height with shoulder-length hair, who had a physical appearance and face and eye shape quite similar to his, wore a uniform that, according to some of his predecessor's last memories, is made of a comfortable and soft light blue fabric. Moreover, this woman had yellow gloves protecting her hands.

The woman, Ohno Suzume, his older sister, lifted her head, looking at him, before smiling.

"Hey, good afternoon, Doumu." She greeted, in a friendly tone.

"Hey, good afternoon, Suzume." Doumu greeted back, with a light smile and the same friendly tone. "How was it today with the penguins?"

"Well, it would be normal if five of them hadn't learned how to press a switch to turn off the lights before turning them back on." She said, laughing. "I thought it was funny when those penguins did that. And Ueda was so impressed that he ended up spilling hot coffee on himself and screamed before running in circles. After that, it wasn't so funny anymore."

"Is Ueda okay, though?" Asked Doumu.

"Now, he is fine. As quickly as we could, Masaki and I applied cold compresses to the burn area until his pain eased." Suzume replied as she went to the kitchen, and Doumu heard the sound of the refrigerator door opening. "Did you eat anything after you got home from school, Doumu? Do you want me to make you a sandwich?"

"I ate an apple about three hours ago, I think. And just a little while ago, I drank two glasses of juice." He responded honestly, calmly. "I accept the sandwich, however."

"Okay." Suzume replied.

Doumu walked to the kitchen and pulled one of the four chairs from the rectangular table that stood in the center of the kitchen. Sitting slowly, Doumu carefully observed every corner of his environment with the radius of his En, which he reduced to form the shape of a circle with approximately a 25-meter radius.

With his almost limitless omniscience, Doumu perceived the shape and movements of everything and everyone in the kitchen. He could "see" the particles of cold vapor coming from inside the open refrigerator, while his sister took some things out of the fridge. He was facing away, and his sister and the refrigerator were a few meters behind him; however, En allowed him to perceive almost everything within his circle, and this also included things and people in different directions.

He can also "see" what is most likely a family of mice inside the walls, behind a hole located behind the refrigerator. The mice were small and had large ears, with triangular, pointed snouts and long whiskers, and long, thin tails. The mice were snuggled in a nest inside the walls, sleeping.

While humming a melody that came to mind softly, Doumu observed Suzume's movements, who was slicing ham into thin pieces before placing two slices of ham on a slice of whole grain bread, on top of some lettuce leaves, before placing another piece of bread with lettuce on top of the ham. She did this with another piece of bread until she formed another sandwich, which she bit into while handing another one to Doumu.

Doumu bit into a part of his sandwich, and inwardly thought about something that is also important.

"In the future, I could develop a Hatsu with abilities that are not only useful for my survival, but I could create some loopholes that benefit me in some way."

"And I have all the time in the world before finally developing these abilities."