Feel Pain

After returning home amid "laughter and cheer," Moriyue waved goodbye to Yugito Nii. A month of training had come to an end, and now he had to begin researching forbidden jutsu and training in Lightning Torment.

"Get some proper rest today. Tomorrow, I'll take you to meet those lunatics who research forbidden jutsu. I really don't understand... Forget it. Just know your limits." Yugito Nii let out a deep sigh. She had never been this speechless in her life.

"Got it, got it. Thanks, Teacher Yugito."

"I told you not to call me Teacher Yugito..." Yugito Nii turned and left, waving as she went. The prayer beads on her left wrist clicked softly, crisp and pleasant rather than as dull as before.

Moriyue closed the door. Of course he had a home in Kumogakure, but compared to this house, he had spent far more time in the hospital over the past month.

The previous owner of this body's parents had died fighting the Eight-Tails. They could be considered martyrs, so Kumogakure looked after him to some extent. Moriyue had previously been just a civilian, but his monthly stipend was enough to support him for half a lifetime.

Somewhat unfamiliar with the place, he turned on the lights and picked up the bedding, giving it a shake. Dust immediately filled the entire bedroom.

"Damn, that's a lot of dust..." Moriyue coughed and hurriedly opened the door. The house had been empty for too long, and dust had piled up everywhere.

Moriyue cleaned the modest house while covering his mouth and nose. Only after reaching the window did he dare take a breath.

"Whew, whew, it's choking me. Cough, cough, cough..." Moriyue leaned against the window, gazing at the darkening sky as he pondered something.

"Hm, that figure... Is that Yugito?" Moriyue narrowed his eyes. Not far from his house, he spotted Yugito Nii. She was not alone; three black-clad ninja stood before her, seemingly saying something to her.

"Two-Tails... transform... weapon of war, no need... that guy... make a clean break..."

The distance was too great, and Moriyue could not hear clearly. He only caught a few scattered words. Just as he tried to listen further, the voices abruptly stopped. He did not hear what Yugito Nii said, only saw her chakra erupt as two enormous ghostly blue tails appeared behind her. The others then vanished into the darkness. They seemed to have come to test Yugito Nii's attitude.

Moriyue gently shut the doors and windows. His heart was as still as water, and he did not say another word. He directly opened the training method for Nintaijutsu: Lightning Torment. Every detail of its Chakra circulation and cultivation method was etched into his mind. After silently reciting it once, he began to circulate Lightning Torment.

He was still not strong enough. In his normal state, he was roughly at Chunin level. Reaching the level of a Chunin from an ordinary person in only one month was already impressive, but it was not enough.

The only reason he had been able to trade blows with Yugito Nii before was because she had not used ninjutsu, relying solely on physical combat. But a ninja's greatest strength was ninjutsu. Brute force alone would never be enough.

Violent Chakra, like a pool of dark-red sludge, spread outward from Moriyue's heart. Everyone's Chakra possessed several attributes. Nearly all Kumogakure ninja had Lightning Release Chakra, and Moriyue was no exception.

The wild Chakra within Moriyue, constantly trying to destroy both everything around it and itself, perfectly matched lightning's violent nature. Back then, merely trying to release a ninjutsu had blown him away. Now that he was actively releasing this Chakra, the result was not much different.

Faint crackling sounds arose all over Moriyue's skin. Blood-red lightning covered his entire body almost instantly. Other ninja coordinated their Chakra when using ninjutsu. Moriyue was different—he could not coordinate his. Compared to everyone else's, his Chakra seemed far more eager to kill its own owner.

Lightning Release Chakra transformed into sharp needles of electricity that continuously stimulated Moriyue's muscle tissue. At first, his body merely felt numb and tingly, without much pain. But before long, the current suddenly intensified, and needle-like agony shot through every inch of his body.

In that instant, he felt as though he had been locked inside an Iron Maiden. Inhuman pain tormented him relentlessly, and every strand of his hair stood on end. He finally understood why this Nintaijutsu, Lightning Torment, had such good effects yet no one chose to practice it.

"What doesn't kill me only makes me stronger. It's just pain, not death. What's there to fear?"

"Feel pain, understand pain, control pain, and then... transcend pain!"

"It's just a fatal wound. Grit your teeth and it'll pass."

Moriyue kept hypnotizing himself, hoping to distract himself and ease the pain. And surprisingly, it really worked. Gradually, he truly felt that his body did not hurt as much anymore.

The red lightning faded from his skin, but that did not mean Lightning Torment had stopped. Beneath his skin, the savage lightning continued battering Moriyue's body.

He did not know how he had managed to fall asleep in such agony. When he woke the next morning, the pain in his body had barely lessened, but he was gradually becoming able to endure it. His muscles were tightly drawn from the lightning's stimulation. Pushing open the door, he went to find Yugito Nii. He still had Forbidden Jutsu: Reverse to deal with, and that forbidden jutsu was his most important gain.

"You don't look too well. Did something happen?"

Yugito Nii's tea-brown braid had come partly undone, and a few stray locks stood up from her head. She looked exhausted, as though she had not woken up yet.

"It's nothing. Yawn... Let's go find those lunatics. They're over by the hospital. I'll try to find the guy who used that forbidden jutsu on you that day." After yawning, Yugito Nii stretched and smoothed down her slightly messy long hair. She seemed distracted.

Moriyue knew that those people must have said something to Yugito Nii yesterday, and it was probably related to him. Since she had been training him these past days, Yugito Nii had not taken missions for a long time. Inevitably, rumors had begun to spread.

"Okay." Moriyue also pretended not to know what had happened yesterday. He knew all about those rumors. They merely claimed that it was not worth Yugito Nii putting so much effort into cultivating someone destined to die young; she would be better off completing a few more missions than teaching Moriyue.

Moriyue had always believed in acting instead of wasting words. Once he understood Forbidden Jutsu: Reverse a little better, he would prove through his actions that Yugito Nii's efforts had not been in vain.

"Well, well~ if it isn't the Two-Tails Jinchuriki? What, have you thought it over? Decided to become a volunteer? Don't worry, I've recently been improving Life Burning. Its side effects may be reduced. Want to give it a try?" A somewhat crazed, trembling voice came from the other side of the door. Before the two could enter, the "doctor" from before staggered over and pushed the door open, rambling on to himself.