You have become bald, and stronger as well.

"Smack."
Kisame delivered a slap to Ye Cang’s face, jolting her awake.
To his surprise, less than a minute later, she fainted again.
Helpless, Kisame had no choice but to keep slapping her, rousing her time and again. After several rounds, Ye Cang’s once delicate and refined face was visibly swollen.
Another ten minutes passed.
Just as Kisame, frowning, was about to give up on this woman, finally—
With a whoosh, a surge of scorching flames erupted from Ye Cang’s body, blazing fiercely.
The heat swept through the entire cave in an instant, distorting the air.
Under Kisame’s astonished gaze—
Snap! Snap! Snap!
First, the chakra threads binding Ye Cang’s body were melted and burned away one by one by the flames. Next, the wound on her shoulder rapidly scabbed over and healed; as the scar peeled away, soft new skin emerged beneath.
Even the swelling on her face, inflicted by Kisame’s blows, gradually subsided, restoring her beauty.
A powerful surge of chakra pulsed from within her, like crashing waves, one after another.
It seemed the evolution had succeeded.
Ye Cang was like a phoenix, having endured the terror between life and death, finally reborn from the ashes, returning in Nirvana.
She slowly stood, her whole body still enveloped in flames, transformed into a “woman of fire,” her eyes blazing like embers as she looked at Kisame, her gaze cold and distant, like a deity above all.
Had she lost control?
Kisame narrowed his eyes, ready to act, intending to help Ye Cang regain composure.
Yet before he could make a move, the fiery cloak around Ye Cang abruptly extinguished, and she lost consciousness, collapsing to the ground.
No one knew how much time passed.
Ye Cang awoke slowly, her head throbbing in pain.
It was still the familiar cave, still the familiar man—Kisame Hoshigaki.
“Congratulations, you survived. As promised, you’re free to leave now.”
Kisame, seeing Ye Cang awake, spoke to her.
“The thing you made me eat—what was it, really?”
Ye Cang fixed her gaze on Kisame, her expression complicated as she asked.
She could feel that her body was now brimming with strength and vitality, nothing like before.
“Mutant cells—or you could call them evolution cells. I trust you’ve already sensed the changes in your body.”
“Why did you give them to me? I am your enemy.” Ye Cang pressed.
“It was a whim—a little experiment. You happened to be a suitable subject.”
Kisame let out a light laugh, half in jest, half in earnest.
“Are you truly… willing to let me go? Once I regain my freedom and reveal what you’ve done, can you really remain in the Mist Village? You might not even survive.”
Ye Cang stood and continued, her eyes sharp.
“That’s why I want you to keep this secret, forbidden from telling anyone anything about me. Also, I hope you’ll continue to play the hero of the Sand Village. Whether it was Kurisame Tsurumaru or Munashi Jinpachi, or even Black Hoe Raiga from earlier, you’ll claim you took them down yourself, understood?”
Kisame’s face was calm as he spoke.
He had decided to let Ye Cang take the blame. As long as she drew all the animosity to herself, the Mist would have little reason to suspect him as the traitor within.
In this way, Kisame could remain in the village in peace, at least until he collected all seven legendary blades.
“And if I refuse?”
Ye Cang retorted. Kisame surely knew she could pretend to agree, only to betray him as soon as she returned to the Sand.
“That’s where the mutant cells come into play.”
Kisame had anticipated this. As he finished speaking, he raised his right hand before Ye Cang, clenching his fingers tightly.
At that moment—
Bang!
Ye Cang suddenly felt her heart seize up, unable to breathe. Her heartbeat abruptly stopped, as if gripped by a giant hand, ready to burst at any moment.
As Kisame released his grip—
“Gasp, gasp~”
Ye Cang bent forward, hands on her knees, gasping for breath, finally escaping the suffocating sensation.
Kisame explained,
“The moment you consumed the mutant cells, you became linked with my will. If you ever harbor thoughts harmful to me, I’ll always know—and can end you with a technique, no matter how far apart we are.”
Ye Cang heard this, and her face instantly drained of color.
Did this mean she was destined to be Kisame’s slave, forever?
Kisame saw what she was thinking and spoke truthfully,
“Relax. Aside from the conditions I mentioned, I have no other demands of you. With your current strength, you’re not much use to me anyway.
Moreover, as your chakra continues to grow, you’ll gradually be able to break free from the control of the mutant cells. If one day you reach the level of the Five Kage, you’ll be completely independent, unaffected by me.
So, train hard. If you can, become the Kazekage.”
He silently added in his heart: If you succeed, perhaps you won’t be betrayed by your village and die tragically.
“You…”
Ye Cang stared blankly at Kisame, momentarily speechless, unable to comprehend.
She still couldn’t understand why he did all this. Killing her would have been so simple—why go to such lengths?
She simply couldn’t see through this man’s motives.
Then again, Kisame Hoshigaki, despite his imposing stature, was, strictly speaking, not quite a man yet.
Apparently, he was only twelve years old—a mere child…
A child.
At that realization, Ye Cang’s eyes and lips twitched simultaneously, feeling that everything about Kisame was utterly absurd.
As she was lost in thought,
Kisame picked up a hat beside him and handed it to Ye Cang.
“Here, this straw hat is for you. While you were unconscious, I went out to gather some reeds and wove it myself.”
A straw hat?
“Why… are you giving me a hat?”
Faced with Kisame’s gift, Ye Cang’s cheeks inexplicably flushed, but she soon realized the reason.
Only now did she notice the chill atop her head.
She raised trembling hands to touch her bangs and hair, but found nothing there.
Kisame, ever thoughtful, formed a hand sign and conjured a water mirror, letting Ye Cang see herself more clearly.
“!”
When Ye Cang saw her reflection, she was struck as if by lightning.
Gone—every strand was gone.
Her once orange-and-green, unconventional hairstyle had vanished completely, replaced by a pristine, bald head.
Ye Cang finally remembered—her hair had been incinerated by the flames that erupted during her evolution.
Even her clothes had been burnt away in places, leaving her attire bolder and more revealing, though the remaining fabric covered the vital areas, sparing her from exposure.
For a beauty-conscious kunoichi, losing her hair was a devastating blow.
Ye Cang couldn’t accept it.
Kisame, ever considerate, was truly a gentleman at heart.
He took off his own jacket and draped it over Ye Cang’s shoulders, comforting her,
“Though you’ve lost your hair, you’ve gained strength. That’s something worth celebrating, isn’t it?”