Middle School Knowledge Must Not Be Forgotten

After opening the seventh of the Eight Inner Gates, his training came to a temporary end.

"Having opened the seventh gate, I should be able to contend with Madara and Hashirama as they are now, right? I, Uzumaki Xuan Xuan, am back!" Masahiko muttered.

"Hiss... But this hurts way too much." Masahiko bared his teeth in pain. He was not as thick-nerved as those bushy-browed fellows.

"It is better not to use the Eight Inner Gates unless necessary. I got another 20 Witness Points earlier, enough to add points and unlock Dust Release!"

Earth Release: (Can Fuse 1/3) LV7(606598/1000000)(+)

Wind Release: (Can Fuse 1/3)

LV7(607738/1000000)(+)

Fire Release: (Can Fuse 1/3)

LV7(602243/1000000)(+)

After using 42 Witness Points, Masahiko looked at his three Earth, Wind, and Fire attributes and nodded in satisfaction.

"Sure enough, LV7 can fuse three attributes. Here I come, Dust Release!"

Masahiko impatiently fused the three attributes together.

"They are connected end to end. Hasn't that fused them?" In Masahiko's eyes, the three attributes within his body linked together at their ends, forming a triangle. Wind connected to Fire, Fire connected to Earth, and Earth connected back to Wind.

Dust Release: LV7(1816579/3000000)(+)

"Whew..." Masahiko let out a long breath. He had finally obtained Dust Release, but it seemed as though something was missing...

Without thinking too much about it, Masahiko immediately headed for the Clan Outer Forest to test his ninjutsu.

As for why he did not go to Training Ground 1... this was the Uzumaki Clan, after all, not the Senju.

After scouting the area with Mind's Eye of the Kagura and sensing that no one was nearby, he formed hand seals. "Dust Release—Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!" The cone-shaped crystal swept across the area. Countless trees snapped apart, and a deep trench was plowed through the ground.

"This power..." Masahiko fell silent. "It does not feel that strong... In terms of destructive power, it is not much stronger than my Rasenshuriken." He scratched his head, feeling slightly disappointed.

Only when Masahiko walked closer did he discover the difference. Dust Release annihilated whatever it struck, while the Rasenshuriken could only blast things to pieces.

Masahiko nodded, finally satisfied.

"Then it is time to try another move... If I guessed correctly, I should be able to..." Masahiko focused slightly and sensed that even the dust in the air could be controlled. Only LV7 Earth Release could accomplish this.

Masahiko carefully manipulated the dust, attaching it beneath his feet. His entire body rose from the ground and began floating.

"Just as I thought! I can fly now!"

Masahiko smiled and floated into the air.

"Let's try the other move." Masahiko formed hand seals. "Dust Release—Particle Style: Level Splitting Jutsu!"

White light emerged from his palm, then vanished in a flash.

Masahiko staggered, nearly falling from the sky.

"I cannot even use the enhanced version? That makes sense. In the original story, Tsunade and Ōnoki had to use it together... Then..."

Sage Mode, activate!

Masahiko entered Sage Mode and formed hand seals again. "Sage Art—Dust Release—Particle Style: Level Splitting Jutsu!"

This time, the white light in his hand finally shot out. After that, all Masahiko could see was white. He could not even hear the boom of it striking the ground. The world was silent.

Only after a minute did the white light fully dissipate. Before Masahiko lay nothing but a massive pit. There was no forest, no weeds...

"The forest... disappeared?" Strangely enough, Masahiko did not marvel at the technique's power at that moment. Instead, he thought that he should find time to drag Hashirama over to do some landscaping for the Uzumaki Clan.

After his thoughts wandered for a while, Masahiko finally realized what his technique had actually done.

"It used nearly half of my Sage Art Chakra, more than three times the cost of the Rasenshuriken... This technique's power is probably around thirty times greater."

Masahiko was ecstatic. After sixty-six years of life in the Warring States period, he finally had a technique he could consistently use as a trump card. Even Madara's Perfect Susanoo would probably not emerge unscathed if it took a direct hit.

"This move is even somewhat more destructive than Hashirama's True Several Thousand Hands during the Mine War..."

As Masahiko pondered this, Mind's Eye of the Kagura detected a large group of Chakra signatures approaching. At their head was the Uzumaki Clan Head.

Masahiko looked at the forest he had destroyed. "Carry forward the spirit of Lei Feng—do good deeds without leaving your name behind..." He gradually rose higher and flew away through the air.

After returning to the training ground, Masahiko's excitement had not faded, though half his Chakra had been consumed.

"I should undo Dust Release first and recover my Chakra..." Masahiko muttered.

"Undo it, undo it, undo it..."

"Why is there no option to split it apart after Dust Release?"

After studying it for a long time, Masahiko found that the three attributes remained tightly connected, with no sign of separating.

"Earth Release—Earth Flow Spear!" Masahiko formed hand seals with both hands and watched an earthen spear thrust out of the ground, letting out a small sigh of relief.

"That is right. The Tsuchikage used Earth Release before..."

"Come out, my Small Fireballs!"

"Small Fireballs?"

"Lava Release—Lava Armor?"

After repeated tests, Masahiko discovered that he could still use the elemental techniques of Fire, Wind, and Earth, but those Kekkei Genkai had completely failed. After all, once their ends were connected, they could no longer fuse together.

"Ah! My Scorch Release and Dark Release! I have not even used Lava Release once! Why can't Dust Release be split apart?!" Masahiko shouted inwardly.

A tall, middle-aged man wearing glasses appeared in his mind. "A triangle is the most stable structure!"

That was Masahiko's middle school math teacher. Memories from over seventy years ago surfaced once more.

"A triangle is the most stable structure?" Masahiko muttered, revealing a bitter smile. "This story tells us that Middle School Knowledge must not be forgotten!"

"Forget it. With Dust Release available, those Kekkei Genkai are somewhat useless anyway." After his breakdown, Masahiko became optimistic again.

However, his expression quickly darkened again, because a clansman came to inform him that the Uzumaki Clan Head wanted to see him. He had just wiped out the Clan Outer Forest, so he felt a little guilty.

When he arrived at the clan head's Main Hall, Masahiko saw that his grandnephew's expression was normal, and he secretly sighed in relief.

"Second Uncle, what ninjutsu were you researching? It had such tremendous power," the Uzumaki Clan Head asked.

Masahiko froze. "Huh? Ninjutsu? No, I was not."

"Second Uncle, do not deny it. Such a huge disturbance happened outside the clan just now. If it was not you, how could you possibly not have gone to take a look?" the clan head said with a smile.

Masahiko's expression changed. He had not expected to expose himself there. Just as he was about to explain, the clan head continued, "It is fine. You developed such a powerful ninjutsu—I am too happy for you to say anything else! These are troubled times. So what if the forest is gone?"

"Troubled times?" Masahiko stopped trying to explain and asked in confusion instead.

"Uchiha Madara has appeared again. He fought Hashirama and changed the terrain for a hundred li around them. They were evenly matched. I sent people to investigate, and it simply did not seem like something human strength could achieve. Now all the clans call them the Twin Gods of Shinobi World!" the clan head explained.

Masahiko froze, then revealed an ecstatic expression.

"Madara has finally appeared again? The final battle is not far off! Konoha is finally coming!"