Chapter 152: The First Step of the Trump Card
High above the sea.
A giant eagle soared through the sky. Standing atop it with his hands behind his back, eyes scanning the sea surface below, was Tonbo Tobitake.
"Water Spirit training... after Inuzuka Kiba, it's finally someone else's turn to experience it."
The ones experiencing his training were, naturally, his two five-year-old children: Tonbo Tianyu and Tonbo Maki.
A considerable amount of time had passed since the Uchiha massacre, and he had returned to his regular life. His bandages were off now, resting in his ninja tool pouch, to be used only when necessary.
Sigh, being this handsome is such a hassle.
Down below, his two children showed talent in balance and perception that surpassed even Kiba's. A few months ago, he had taught them chakra refinement; now, they were capable of refining it while in motion. In terms of sensory perception, they had inherited his gift, which satisfied him greatly. Their physical talent seemed top-tier as well. Both were excellent shinobi seeds.
"Woo-hoo!"
"This is so much fun!"
Hearing their cheers from below, Tonbo marveled at their courage. Back in the day, Inuzuka Kiba had been a mess of tears and snot.
Tianyu and Maki stood on surfboards, feeling the rush of the crashing waves. Occasionally, they would crest a massive wave, wearing wide smiles at the peak. Looking down at the blue-black ocean, they felt no fear—because they knew that a giant whale summoned by their father was waiting beneath the surface to catch them if they fell.
Even so, falling was unpleasant. They would tumble underwater for a while before the whale rescued them, serving as a lesson. They had already completed the "Heaven's Descent" training; this was step two. Their courage had been there since they were small. Though knowledge usually brings fear as one grows, Tonbo made sure their grit remained.
Confirming everything was fine, Tonbo took a piece of wood from his pouch. He formed a complex series of seals, and branch-like lines extended from his right hand, seeping into the wood. At that moment, information regarding the wood's structure, age, decay level, and fiber density flooded his mind.
"Regardless of how long it took, this research finally has results."
If his previous Genjutsu, Eye of the Creator, and Celestial Ninjutsu were considered "standard" techniques, this new Jutsu—once completed—would be a trump card on the level of Chibaku Tensei, the Reaper Death Seal, or All-Killing Ash Bones.
Even though it was only in its infancy, it combined Yin Release nature transformation, Eye of the Creator, the Mind Reading Technique, and neurological science. It utilized the Yin Release property of "creating form out of nothing" to extend his internal nerves outside his body—much like the Shadow Possession Jutsu—to invade the interior of a living being or object and read its information.
This wasn't a simple Yin Release spell; it was a synthesis of knowledge, the crystallization of Tonbo's wisdom. This would become his core technique. When cast, the surface of the object would show branch-like patterns, but the interior was actually being mapped by his nerves.
Nerves are microscopic. The current flaws were obvious: long casting time, short duration, the brain's inability to process the sensory overload of the neural invasion (which triggered physical defense mechanisms), and the requirement of physical touch.
But it was a brilliant start. His next phase of research would be to overcome these weaknesses and integrate more knowledge. The second step of his vision was to use this ability to solve his "low chakra reserves" problem.
"But first, I need to fix these bugs. Otherwise, it's only useful for research and useless in a real fight!" Tonbo sighed. This was undoubtedly the hardest Jutsu he had ever conceived. Even so, he wouldn't hesitate to trade this small breakthrough for Orochimaru's Living Corpse Reincarnation. This was a true god-tier skill for a scientist.
"Aaaah!" A shout came from Tianyu. Tonbo sensed it immediately—the boy had fallen in again.
The Ninja Academy.
Whiz! Whiz!
Inuzuka Kiba flicked his wrist, sending five shuriken flying toward Sasuke, while simultaneously forming hand seals. Sasuke's Sharingan was active; he threw his own shuriken in response. His powerful visual prowess allowed him to see Kiba's trajectory with absolute clarity.
Clang! Clang!
The shuriken canceled each other out. Kiba wasn't discouraged. He lunged forward with Fang Passing Fang.
"Go, Sasuke!"
"Sasuke, you can do it!"
Outside the sparring ring, a crowd of girls cheered for Sasuke.
"Truly remarkable talent. To think that Sasuke, who awakened his eyes at eight, still can't defeat Kiba," Mizuki remarked, his eyes full of envy as he watched the battle. Why did he have no clan? Why did he have no talent? If he did, he wouldn't be a mere teacher at the academy. Even Iruka was rising in rank, now a head teacher managing several classes.
Iruka didn't notice the look in Mizuki's eyes. He smiled and said, "These two are hardworking. I think Kiba actually motivates him; Sasuke was never this intense before."
It was true. Since enrollment, Kiba had been the top student in both theory and practice. At only nine years old, he was already no weaker than Iruka had been when he first graduated. If this weren't an era of peace, Kiba could have graduated early. His effort put immense pressure on others; he wasn't a quiet genius like Sakura—Kiba was loud and flamboyant. Like a catfish in a pond, he forced everyone to swim faster or face his mockery.
Sasuke was the same. Since meeting Kiba, he had worked tirelessly to surpass him. After the massacre, he spent his nights buried in books and training. Under Kiba's influence, their class was now the highest-achieving of all eight sections in the fourth grade.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball!"
Sasuke formed seals, puffed his cheeks, and unleashed a blast of flame. Iruka refined his chakra, ready to intervene. He hadn't expected Sasuke to master such a high-level Jutsu at this age.
"Too naive!"
Kiba used the All-Fours Technique to leap out of the blast zone, continuously shifting directions as Sasuke tried to aim the flames.
Woof! Akamaru barked from the sidelines—Don't you dare lose, it would be too embarrassing!
"As if I'd lose!" Kiba roared. As he ran, phantoms appeared around him.
Clone Jutsu.
Sasuke wouldn't fall for such a basic trick. Realizing the Fireball was useless, he cut off the chakra flow, pulled out shuriken, and let them fly. With the dynamic vision of the Sharingan and the ability to see chakra, he easily identified the real Kiba. He launched several projectiles at the main body.
"You fell for it!" Kiba grinned. From behind a clone, a kunai attached to a wire shot out, instantly wrapping around Sasuke. Sniffing the air, Kiba dodged Sasuke's projectiles, and even the "Shadow Shuriken" trap Sasuke had hidden beneath the first volley failed to touch him.
Zip!
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