The next morning.
Dawn broke over the small Western-style house.
A brand-new day had begun.
Yusuke opened his eyes.
Although he had drunk more than Kurenai and Tsunade combined the night before, he felt no dizziness, no headache, and no stomach discomfort.
He woke as if nothing had happened.
His strength had already reached the peak of the Demi-God Realm. Dispelling alcohol's negative effects from his body was a simple matter.
The rain had made for comfortable sleep.
Now that he was awake, however, he didn't feel like moving at all.
Instead, he lazily opened the system interface.
[Fire Release Chakra Mode (Proficiency 99.9999…%)]
[Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan (Proficiency 15.8%)]
[Extreme Flow Taijutsu – Eighth Gate: Shock Gate (Proficiency 31.2%)]
[Great Swordsman-Level Swordsmanship (Proficiency 35.7%)]
Overall Evaluation: Demi-God Peak (Normal-state Uchiha Madara / Senju Hashirama Level)
The Fire Release Chakra Mode was on the verge of reaching 100%.
Once it broke through, it would evolve again.
What new ability would it unlock?
Yusuke felt anticipation rise within him.
After lying in bed for a while, he finally got up.
Stepping out of his room, he saw that both guest room doors were still shut.
Tsunade and Kurenai were clearly still asleep.
Understandable.
They had drunk heavily last night, passed out, and even woken up in the middle of the night in drunken chaos.
If they weren't exhausted now, that would be strange.
Shaking his head, Yusuke went downstairs.
After washing up, he headed into the kitchen to prepare breakfast.
He had always maintained the habit of cooking at home—only eating out when truly busy.
When breakfast was ready, and the two women still hadn't emerged, he didn't wake them.
He left their portions on the table and headed to work.
Konoha had recently suffered the Sand Village and Orochimaru's attack. The Third Hokage had died.
Public order was unstable. Minor crimes and petty disputes had increased.
As Director of the Konoha Military Police Force, Yusuke had been busy.
The door shut with a firm click.
Moments later—
The two guest room doors upstairs opened at the exact same time.
Kurenai and Tsunade stepped out.
Their eyes met.
The air turned awkward.
The most frightening thing—
Was sudden silence.
Kurenai spoke first, forcing a smile.
"Tsunade-sama… you're up too?"
Her face felt hot.
Thinking about last night made her unbearably embarrassed.
Tsunade wasn't faring any better.
Her heart was in complete disarray.
"Cough… Red, you're up early too…"
She forced a polite smile.
Inside, however, she was mortified.
What was she thinking last night? How did she just walk in like that—
She couldn't think about it.
The more she did, the more she wanted to bury herself underground.
...
Yusuke, of course, knew nothing of the scene upstairs.
In high spirits, he arrived at the Konoha Military Police headquarters.
As usual, he handled stacks of routine reports.
But as he worked—
He felt something surging within him.
A new power was swelling.
A familiar sensation.
A breakthrough.
He set his pen down.
"System."
In his mind, a mysterious interface appeared.
[Fire Release Chakra Mode (Proficiency 100%)… Evolving!]
[Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan (Proficiency 15.8%)]
[Extreme Flow Taijutsu – Eighth Gate: Shock Gate (Proficiency 31.2%)]
[Great Swordsman-Level Swordsmanship (Proficiency 35.7%)]
Overall Evaluation: Demi-God Peak (Normal-state Uchiha Madara / Senju Hashirama Level)
It had reached 100%.
It was evolving again.
Yusuke immediately left the building and headed to a secluded forest outside the village.
Evolution required time.
He waited quietly.
After a long while—
The system notification appeared.
[Fire Release Chakra Mode (Proficiency 100%) has evolved into Fire Release Chakra Mode – Nine-Dragon Thunderflame Form (Proficiency 0.1%)!]
Nine-Dragon Thunderflame.
The flames had evolved.
Yusuke was not unfamiliar with this name.
A silver-white flame streaked with lightning, within which faint azure dragon spirits writhed and roared.
The dragons seemed to howl, their draconic might suppressing the soul itself.
Suddenly—
Silver-white flames erupted across Yusuke's body.
Lightning crackled through them.
Vague outlines of thunderous dragon forms flickered within.
The surrounding temperature skyrocketed.
Within dozens of meters, grass and trees withered instantly, igniting into ash.
The earth cracked.
Even exposed stone split apart.
Yusuke felt as though he stood within a volcanic inferno and a thunderstorm combined.
Blazing heat and lightning assaulted him from every direction.
At the same time—
A vast new power surged into every limb, every vein.
"Ghh—!"
His face contorted.
He clenched his teeth, enduring the agony.
It felt as if his entire body were burned to nothing—
Then reconstructed from the ashes.
Fortunately—
The torment passed as swiftly as it came.
The new power stabilized.
The silver-white Nine-Dragon Thunderflame gradually withdrew into his body—
Finally settling within his heart.
The origin flame.
The searing, soul-scorching sensation vanished.
"Haah…"
Yusuke exhaled heavily and opened his eyes.
He checked the interface again.
[Fire Release Chakra Mode – Nine-Dragon Thunderflame Form (Proficiency 0.1%)]
[Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan (Proficiency 15.8%)]
[Extreme Flow Taijutsu – Eighth Gate: Shock Gate (Proficiency 31.2%)]
[Great Swordsman-Level Swordsmanship (Proficiency 35.7%)]
Overall Evaluation: God Realm (Uchiha Madara / Senju Hashirama Level)
God Realm.
His true combat power—
Had finally stepped beyond the Demi-God Peak.
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