B-Rank Jutsu: Shadow Piercing Bullet!

Nara Kaikei left the pavilion with the clan head and arrived at the Temple of Fire's courtyard.

Master Chūkaku quietly appeared at that moment, as though he had sensed the path the two would take in advance.

Nara Shikano was not surprised. He merely lazily voiced his request to rest in the guest hall for a while.

Master Chūkaku readily agreed, then looked toward Nara Kaikei.

"Abbot Chūkaku."

Nara Kaikei bowed slightly, his manner polite.

"If it is convenient, could you provide me with a quiet room?"

Nara Kaikei did not rush to test the practical combat effects of the [Chakra Crystal], as the clan head had suggested.

Although he did indeed have that idea, and the Temple of Fire was indeed a very good "mission trigger location."

Compared with testing the [Chakra Crystal]'s practical combat effects, however,

what Nara Kaikei most wanted to do now was find a private space and see exactly how much the power and effects of the several advanced jutsu he had previously acquired had changed after equipping the A-Rank Ninja Tool [Chakra Crystal].

Master Chūkaku's attitude was as accommodating as ever.

"Please follow me."

Under Master Chūkaku's guidance, Nara Shikano found a place to rest, while Nara Kaikei found himself a quiet room.

Inside the quiet room.

Nara Kaikei first found a meditation cushion, sat cross-legged upon it, and calmed his mind.

According to the itinerary the clan head revealed earlier, we'll stay in Kyoto for a day while the Daimyo's Mansion prepares the first batch of war supplies.

Tomorrow morning, after collecting the supplies from the Daimyo's Mansion, we'll leave Kyoto and return to Konoha, continuously clearing out the surrounding bounty hunters along the way.

The upcoming schedule flashed through Nara Kaikei's mind as he carefully arranged his training plan.

Roughly speaking, I still have more than half a day of free time to use as I please.

There's no point trying to improve [Super Beast Imitation Painting] in such a short time, and I can forget about merging [Camouflage Concealment] with [Shadow Secret Technique] too... I should focus my energy for now on the easiest jutsu to modify: the B-Rank Jutsu [Blood Piercing Bullet]!

But first, let's test the effects of an A-Rank level Chakra amount!

Using [Super Beast Imitation Painting] required the aid of "special ink."

Nara Kaikei did not want to use his own blood to practice [Super Beast Imitation Painting] in a quiet room at the Temple of Fire.

Practice for this B-Rank Jutsu could only be postponed further.

Let's test the effects of [Camouflage Concealment]!

After roughly settling on his plan, Nara Kaikei activated [Lacquer Eye] and swept his gaze across the surroundings, finding no traces of residual Mental Energy.

The next moment.

The [Chakra Crystal] on Nara Kaikei's index finger flashed with a faint glow, and his entire body vanished into the air, becoming transparent and formless.

With the help of the [Chakra Crystal], I can finally extend [Camouflage Concealment] across my entire body!

At a thought from Nara Kaikei, his figure reappeared atop the meditation cushion, his smile brilliant.

Taking advantage of his excellent state of abundant Chakra, Nara Kaikei repeatedly practiced [Camouflage Concealment] several times.

Only after ensuring that he could activate the transparent state at will

did Nara Kaikei shift his attention to [Blood Piercing Bullet].

He truly had the intention of improving the B-Rank Jutsu [Blood Piercing Bullet].

The Chinoike Clan could skillfully use [Blood Piercing Bullet] because their Kekkei Genkai, the "Ketsuryūgan," allowed them to control their own blood as they pleased.

Accelerating blood flow, multiplying blood cells... these were all specialties of the Chinoike Clan.

Thus, using [Blood Piercing Bullet] posed almost no hindrance to Chinoike Clan shinobi.

But Nara Kaikei was different.

He did not possess the Chinoike Clan's Kekkei Genkai.

Even though he had obtained the Jutsu Scroll for [Blood Piercing Bullet] and could use this special B-Rank Yin Release Secret Technique,

Nara Kaikei still had to continuously consume his own blood while using [Blood Piercing Bullet].

Most critically, Nara Kaikei could only lose blood; he could not replenish it.

For Nara Kaikei, [Blood Piercing Bullet] was undoubtedly a self-harming ninjutsu that "injured the enemy by a thousand while damaging himself by eight hundred."

If he had no choice, perhaps he would have continued using it while holding his nose.

But Nara Kaikei clearly possessed better "combat ammunition" than blood—

Shadows!

Perhaps because both were Yin Release Secret Techniques,

the process of merging [Shadow Secret Technique] with [Blood Piercing Bullet] went far more smoothly than Nara Kaikei had imagined.

Nara Kaikei extended his index finger toward the ground. A deep shadow gathered at his fingertip, forming a pitch-black pellet the size of a fingernail.

"Bang!"

Nara Kaikei opened his mouth and mimicked the sound of a firearm firing.

Following his will, the black pellet shot out from his fingertip. Without the slightest trace of smoke or flame, it flew like a bullet into the humanoid shadow on the ground.

A notification abruptly popped up on the panel.

[B-Rank Jutsu: Shadow Piercing Bullet]

[Jutsu Effect: Self-developed jutsu, advanced Shadow Secret Technique]

[Jutsu Effect: Infuses one's Yin Release Chakra into shadows, materializing them into condensed, sturdy pellets that are fired in a concentrated burst like bullets. Initial firing speed can reach the speed of sound.]

[Jutsu Evaluation: Black bullets!]

[You have independently developed a B-Rank Jutsu [Shadow Piercing Bullet]. Your [Ninjutsu] and [Sage Wisdom] attributes have increased slightly!]

A B-Rank Jutsu, [Shadow Piercing Bullet]. This counts as a proper long-range offensive ninjutsu!

Nara Kaikei was in an excellent mood.

More importantly, compared to other B-Rank ninjutsu, [Shadow Piercing Bullet] consumes very little Yin Release Chakra and is much more covert!

Beyond that,

Nara Kaikei believed that [Shadow Piercing Bullet] still had plenty of development potential.

Setting distant possibilities aside.

Once Nara Kaikei "developed" the [Rasengan] and incorporated the [Rasengan]'s ultimate Shape Transformation into [Shadow Piercing Bullet], could he raise the power of this B-Rank Jutsu by several times?

Around noon.

Nara Kaikei had intended to use a Soldier Pill in the quiet room to settle lunch.

But the clan head unexpectedly arrived and invited him to sample the Temple of Fire's special vegetarian meal.

Nara Kaikei could not very well refuse, so he could only follow the clan head.

During lunch.

Nara Kaikei quietly glanced at the Old Clan Head seated opposite him, who was chewing his food slowly, while silently calculating in his heart.

Whether in jutsu rank or overall value, [Shadow Piercing Bullet] cannot compare to [Lacquer Eye].

[Shadow Clone Technique] has sufficient rank and value, but an S-Rank ninjutsu is simply too difficult.

Nara Kaikei knew he had another option—[Super Beast Imitation Painting].

In terms of versatility and practicality, [Super Beast Imitation Painting] was no less valuable than [Lacquer Eye], and it was not even inferior to the Nara Clan's basic [Shadow Binding Technique].

But the problem was that [Super Beast Imitation Painting] was a gift Princess Tsunade had given Nara Kaikei.

If he truly wanted to offer [Super Beast Imitation Painting] to the clan and earn an S-Rank [Ninja Scroll] from it...

Nara Kaikei felt that he should at least ask Princess Tsunade for her opinion.

I should put aside the idea of wrangling another S-Rank Mission out of the clan head for now. My current abilities are already enough for me to study and practice...

Perhaps it was merely psychological, but Nara Shikano always felt that this vegetarian meal was more grueling than usual.

It was as though someone were secretly plotting against him.

After glancing at Nara Kaikei across from him, who was quietly eating, the Old Clan Head finally put aside this baseless unease.

It probably isn't Kaikei causing some incredible new ninjutsu to appear again...

After lunch came a short rest.

Nara Shikano looked at Nara Kaikei, who was resting with his eyes closed, and spoke.

"Kaikei, do you want to go watch the Temple of Fire's warrior monks during training?"

"Would that be all right?"

Nara Kaikei opened his eyes and looked toward the clan head.

He had originally planned to ask Master Chūkaku about it later.

After all, Nara Kaikei was well aware of the Temple of Fire's strength.

Not merely through the clan head's descriptions.

There was another reason as well.

According to the intelligence Nara Kaikei possessed, the Temple of Fire's warrior monks had mastered a special ability called "Sage Clan Talent."

The concept of a "sage" carried a very particular designated meaning in the shinobi world.

Sage Mode!

By Nara Kaikei's estimation, the Temple of Fire's "Sage Clan Talent" was most likely a rudimentary ability inherited from the Shinobi Sect that allowed one to use Natural Energy.

Perhaps it could not compare in power to the Sage Mode passed down by the Three Great Sage Lands—Mount Myōboku, Ryūchi Cave, and Shikkotsu Forest.

But at the very least, it was a path through which one could come into contact with Natural Energy!

"Absolutely no problem."

Nara Shikano guaranteed.

"Perhaps you don't really understand the concept of the 'Shinobi Sect'... I don't really understand it either.

"In any case, the Temple of Fire believes that Chakra does not belong exclusively to any one person, but to all living beings in the world.

"So the Temple of Fire does not shy away from spreading their skills and abilities to the outside world."

Since Nara Shikano had put it that way,

Nara Kaikei naturally did not stand on ceremony. He took the initiative to follow behind the clan head as they headed together to the Temple of Fire's training grounds.

At the same time.

Somewhere in the Land of Fire.

A tall man with green pupils carried a corpse and silently entered a public restroom.

Through a hidden door in the restroom wall, the man entered a special space concealed beneath the public building.

The Bounty Exchange.

Also known as the underground Bounty Exchange.

A place where bounty hunters gathered and conducted their daily activities.

"Mr. Kakuzu, you're here again?"

The Bounty Exchange attendant recognized the visitor at once and greeted him warmly.

Kakuzu paid it no mind. He tossed over the corpse and spoke coldly.

"I brought the body. Settle the bounty."

"Of course! Mr. Kakuzu is a legendary figure among us bounty hunters!"

The attendant was extremely enthusiastic. While counting out the money, he casually handed over a scroll.

"This contains the latest intelligence circulating within the Land of Fire.

"Apparently, a rogue shinobi who fled from the Land of Hot Water is carrying all of his clan's wealth and assets."

As soon as those words fell,

a wolfish green light immediately blazed in Kakuzu's green eyes.

"Give me his information!"

Sorry, I forgot to set the time...