What Is a Bloodline Limit?

Old Man Jishi pointed the white light at the center of Dada's chest and abdomen. Something miraculous happened: Dada could actually see his own ribs, as well as the writhing internal organs within them.

His ribs appeared translucent, and the organs inside rose and fell slightly with the beating of his heart, looking wet and clammy.

Caught completely off guard, Dada's hair stood on end, and he immediately panicked. The others nearby, who had been keeping watch, clearly noticed something was wrong with Dada as well. They pulled out their kunai, ready to act at any moment.

His orders were to ensure Dada's safety above all else, no matter the circumstances. Yotsuki Ki's expression turned icy.

The sudden sight of his own internal organs was anything but pleasant. The intense emotional upheaval immediately affected Dada's body, and lightning flashed with a crack, striking the old man's hand.

Old Man Jishi had not expected this either. His hand jerked, his legs buckled, and he nearly fell over. Fortunately, the attack did not seem very powerful, and the frail old Jishi appeared uninjured.

As the old man's finger left Dada's body, the strange transparency in his chest and abdomen vanished as well.

All of this had happened within seconds. Only then did everyone realize that it had likely been a unique ninjutsu.

"Sir, what was that just now?"

"Ah... that was a ninjutsu this old man developed himself. You could call it Medical Ninjutsu. It is not particularly useful, merely convenient for examining illnesses. Did it frighten you? I am old, and I forgot to warn you beforehand." Old Man Jishi rubbed his hand, which still ached from the lightning strike.

Not particularly useful? This was insanely awesome, all right?

Dada suppressed the thought. Getting examined came first right now.

After calming Dada down, the old man continued his examination. Now that he was mentally prepared, Dada simply shut his eyes. Looking at his own internal organs was far too damaging to his sanity. Several of the accompanying maids were also frightened enough to turn their heads away.

This time, luck was on their side. Dada did not discharge lightning again until the examination was over. The old man spent an especially long time examining Dada's spine, but since it was behind him, Dada could not see what was happening and had no idea what the issue was.

"Hmm... what a strong body. You are clearly so young, yet your physical constitution is already this formidable... Young man, your condition is very unusual. Why do you believe it was caused by Bloodline Disease?" Old Man Jishi pondered for a while before speaking with a smile.

"Because I cannot store or use Chakra, and I occasionally discharge lightning. Um, my physical constitution is also different from ordinary people's?" Dada answered tentatively.

"Then try refining Chakra for me to see."

At that, Dada closed his eyes and began seriously refining Chakra. Though it was useless effort, Dada believed that one day he could fill a football field with footballs, so he had never stopped his daily refinement.

Old Man Jishi continued observing the situation inside Dada's body with that miraculous technique. After a long while, he told Dada to stop refining Chakra and said:

"Do you know what a bloodline is?"

I came here to see a doctor. Why does it feel like I am about to get a lecture?

Still, Dada answered based on his own understanding. "A certain special ability that can be inherited? Um, something related to Chakra."

"That is not entirely wrong, but it is too broad a definition. Bloodline Limit—the bloodline refers to something that can be passed down to descendants, while the limit means that no one else can achieve it no matter what they do. Both are the result of Chakra altering the human body. Hmm, there are also some formed by mixing two kinds of Chakra, but in this old man's view, most of those are merely special release techniques. If they cannot be inherited by later generations, they cannot be considered Bloodline Limits."

Dada said nothing and simply listened attentively.

"There are many ninjutsu in the Shinobi World. Among them, those with great power, unusual effects, or that are difficult to counter are more favored by certain shinobi. During the Warring States Period..." Old Man Jishi slowly explained.

As everyone knew, there were many Bloodline Limits in the Shinobi World, and their existence long predated the Ninja Village System. Kekkei Genkai Families could miraculously and reliably—or relatively reliably—pass certain traits down to the next generation.

Some of these traits were outward physical changes, such as the famous Byakugan and Sharingan. Others were internal changes that did not affect the body's appearance, such as Ninjutsu: Five Senses Deprivation. Some of these had been passed down from the Sage of Six Paths or the ancestors of the Shinobi World. Such bloodlines were also a fast track to the upper limits of combat power in the Shinobi World, with none having a low ceiling. But the origins of the rest were entirely different.

They came from specific secret techniques or from Chakra affecting the body.

Or rather, with the Otsutsuki Clan now forgotten, this was what the Shinobi World generally understood bloodlines to be.

Throughout the Shinobi World's history, countless geniuses and families had developed all sorts of powerful or bizarre ninjutsu. Some had been lost, some had shone brilliantly, and some were worthless. Yet a small number of ninjutsu could be learned and practiced. In the environment of the Warring States Period, those techniques became an important source of a family's strength and foundation.

Families would continuously improve these ninjutsu. After several generations of refinement and study, the techniques would become stronger and more stable. Many secret techniques were even optimized from ordinary ninjutsu. At that point, the family would no longer permit outsiders to learn them. The inheritance of these particular techniques was kept as a black box, and only then would they be called secret techniques.

There were quite a few secret techniques in the Shinobi World, such as the Nara Clan's Shadow Technique, Shadow Imitation Technique, and other related secret techniques. These shadow-based ninjutsu were tightly controlled by the Nara Clan.

Perhaps these techniques were not exclusive to the Nara Clan, but years of secret technique practice had given them more effective training methods, more comprehensive training materials, and more internal support.

Combined with that black-box inheritance, outsiders had no way of learning how Shadow Techniques were cultivated.

Most importantly, Shadow Techniques were also slowly altering the Nara Clan's constitution, making the Nara Clan increasingly suited to practicing shadow secret techniques.

After generation upon generation of reproduction, every generation of clan members specialized in shadow secret techniques, and their descendants would continue studying them. Apart from accumulating more experience, their bodies would gradually adapt, generation by generation, to the Chakra patterns of shadow secret techniques—or rather, be altered by Chakra.

Perhaps after decades or even centuries, this alteration and accumulation would eventually bind the Nara Clan and shadow secret techniques firmly together, forming a true Bloodline Limit.

Such alteration was uncertain. With good luck, one or two geniuses might create a Bloodline Limit. With bad luck, a clan might be exterminated without ever awakening one.

The Lightning Release Chakra Secret Technique mastered by the Yotsuki Clan was the same.

As Kumogakure's ruling clan, the Yotsuki Clan's trademark was the unstoppable Lightning Release Chakra Secret Technique, which combined offense and defense. This secret technique had a powerful presence throughout the entire story of the Hokage.

Like Shadow Techniques, it was not impossible for someone outside the Yotsuki Clan to learn it. As far as Dada knew, Dodai, who was deeply trusted by the Yotsuki Clan, had mastered the Lightning Release Chakra Secret Technique to a certain degree. However, he possessed other bloodline secret techniques himself, so he did not use it as his primary method.

After generations of accumulation, the Lightning Release Chakra Mode had gradually altered the Yotsuki Clan's bodies as well, making them better suited to mastering this secret technique. Yet it had never formed a bloodline, which was also why the Yotsuki Clan valued Dada so highly.

Nor could families that had already obtained bloodlines simply rest easy. A bloodline did not mean invincibility. Whether it could survive and continue depended on the development of the clan, and deviations could sometimes occur during the inheritance of a bloodline.

Sometimes, descendants would lose their bloodline abilities. This was the most common case. People came in all heights, builds, and sizes; differences in talent were perfectly normal. Many families gradually vanished because their numbers dwindled and no bloodline descendants appeared for several generations.

The other possibility was inheriting an incomplete Bloodline Limit, such as one with certain defects or damage to the body. That was Bloodline Disease.

"And you do not have Bloodline Disease. You are merely too weak." Jishi said.

Dada: "Meow meow meow?"