Uchiha Byakuya could tell that what Yoshimura Eto was asking about was his Mangekyō Sharingan, which resembled a ghoul's kakugan, as well as his Susanoo, which looked like a kakuja transformation.
He immediately explained, "Yes, I am a half-human, but I don't have a kakuhou. You can think of it as a mutation in my eyes."
Aside from the "Dual Kamui," which was an absolute secret that could never be revealed, he was actually being quite open with Eto.
Both "Dual Kamui" and his transmigrator status were things he could never let anyone know.
"I don't believe you. How could you possibly release a kagune without a kakuhou? What you just did was clearly a kakuja transformation," Eto said, convinced that this damn lolicon was trying to fool her again.
Indeed, in the world of Tokyo Ghoul, the idea that only ghouls with kakuhou could release kagune was a fundamental truth.
But Byakuya had unintentionally broken that rule.
Even he himself was a little surprised by his Susanoo, which looked so much like a kakuja transformation.
He hadn't expected his Susanoo to mutate due to the influence of RC cells.
Essentially, his Susanoo was formed from kagune, because RC cells, when materialized, became kagune.
But he didn't have a kakuhou in his body.
It could only be explained as a mutation caused by the combination of his Mangekyō Sharingan and RC cells.
"Let me show you my eyes first."
With a single thought, Byakuya activated his Mangekyō Sharingan.
The "Dual Kamui" pattern appeared in his pupils, the scythe-like tomoe spinning momentarily before settling into place.
"See? Doesn't it look completely different from a normal ghoul's kakugan?"
Eto immediately leaned in closer, carefully examining his eyes.
Sure enough, while both were blood-red pupils, the shapes were completely different.
"What the hell is this…" Eto was completely baffled.
This was the first time she had ever heard of a mutation like this in a half-human.
"And I don't have a kakuhou in my body, nor can I freely release kagune. If you don't believe me, see for yourself."
Byakuya removed his shirt, exposing his bare back to Eto.
There were four types of kagune, and the four different types of kakuhou all appeared on the back, though their exact positions varied.
Although nothing was visible on the surface, a powerful ghoul like Yoshimura Eto could sense if someone had a kakuhou, especially when she was observing from this close up with her kakugan activated.
"…You really don't have one…"
Even though it was hard to believe, Eto couldn't deny the truth in front of her.
"So, like I said, I'm basically a mutated half-human. If you really want to categorize me, I guess I'd be somewhere between a half-human and a one-eyed ghoul."
Byakuya continued, "Maybe you're unaware, but the Washuu Clan has been conducting experiments on human-ghoul hybrids for a long time."
"I know that. That's how half-humans like you were created…"
Before Eto could finish speaking, Byakuya interrupted her, "That's not what I'm talking about. I mean the experiments where they directly transform normal humans into ghouls through surgery."
In the original Tokyo Ghoul, there was a company called "Sphinx," run by Akihiro Kano, the father of Yasuhisa Kurona and Yasuhisa Nashiro.
On the surface, this company supplied RC solutions to the CCG.
RC solution is an essential material for making Quinques and RC suppressants.
But in secret, there was also an underground laboratory, a human ghoulification experiment facility run by Akihiro Kano in collaboration with the CCG.
However, within the CCG, only members of the Washuu Clan were aware of this secret.
In the original storyline, Yoshimura Eto eventually learned about this, but in this current timeline, she clearly didn't know yet.
"Human ghoulification… They really went to every possible length to create one-eyed ghouls, huh."
Eto couldn't help but sigh.
She only knew that the Washuu Clan had been trying to produce one-eyed ghouls by having humans interbreed with Washuu ghouls, which was how the half-humans of Sunlit Garden were born.
But she hadn't known that the Washuu Clan was also secretly experimenting on turning humans into ghouls.
"That's right. Because the greatest wish of the Washuu Clan is to become human, and one-eyed ghouls are the closest thing to fulfilling that wish."
Byakuya explained.
A natural-born one-eyed ghoul, like Yoshimura Eto, had absolute power, yet could still blend perfectly into human society; this made her the ideal creation in the eyes of the Washuu Clan.
As for artificial one-eyed ghouls like Kaneki Ken, those were incomplete experiments.
Moreover, Kaneki's ghoulification was conducted privately by Akihiro Kano, without the approval of the Washuu Clan.
By the time of the original story, the Washuu Clan had already abandoned these experiments, and Kano was silenced because of it.
Eto let out a cold chuckle.
"Heh… Figures. If they could become human, the Washuu Clan would be able to manipulate the world even more openly."
Right now, the biggest fear of the Washuu Clan was having their true identity as ghouls exposed; because if that happened, their power over Japan would crumble.
"Well, whatever the case, I believe you now. In a way, you're even more unique than I am. No kakuhou, yet you can still transform like a kakuja…"
Eto continued with a small frown, "At least the Washuu Clan managed to produce one natural-born one-eyed ghoul before. But what you are? I've never even heard of something like this."
Eto finally accepted Byakuya's explanation, though to her, it still felt like nonsense.
Then, she suddenly asked, "By the way, you know about that taboo of the Washuu Clan, don't you?"
"Yeah."
Byakuya nodded.
"You mean the King of the Underground, right? Also known as the first One-Eyed King."
Technically, he was the first true One-Eyed King, not Byakuya himself.
The real first One-Eyed King was a natural-born one-eyed ghoul who had rebelled against the Washuu Clan and opposed them with everything he had.
In the end, he underwent "Dragonization" and was banished to the Underground, specifically the deepest depths of the 24th Ward.
That's why he was called both the One-Eyed King and the King of the Underground.
"The remains of that guy's dragonized form are still down in the deepest part of the 24th Ward, you know? Say, if you could Dragonize too, wouldn't that give you a huge advantage in overthrowing the Washuu Clan?"
Eto mused, her thoughts drifting to the idea.
"You do have Washuu blood in you, after all. Theoretically, you should be able to Dragonize."
The Washuu Clan, due to their centuries-old practice of cannibalism, had developed absurdly strong bloodlines.
Nowadays, any member born into the Washuu family was automatically a natural kakuja, meaning they were born as kakuja-level ghouls.
And because of this powerful bloodline, anyone with Washuu DNA had the potential to undergo "Dragonization."
"Yeah… No thanks."
Byakuya immediately shot down the idea.
Between Dragonization and using his full-body Susanoo, he would much rather go with Susanoo.
At least that way, he could freely switch back to being human.
Eto had just been joking, but seeing Byakuya's immediate refusal made her quickly abandon the thought.
"Yeah, that's fair. I wouldn't want you turning into some mindless monster either."
She continued, "Who knows? You might never be able to turn back…"