Heart Concealment, Obtaining Secret Technique

Uchiha Tunan hurriedly returned home, closed the door, poured himself a cup of tea, and fell into contemplation.

Uchiha Tunan had noticed Kushina Uzumaki's strange gaze today.

That look was very unusual, filled with intense wariness.

It was like a herbivore in the dry season, forced to drink from the crocodile-infested pond.

Uchiha Tunan didn't know where he had slipped up, which was why he put on a show and quickly left.

He was afraid that staying any longer would expose too many flaws.

Where had he gone wrong to make someone he'd just met wary of him?

She had mentioned that people in the village had been discussing him recently.

But his actions were clearly on the side of justice and tragedy, with not a single fault to be found.

Strange...

Uchiha Tunan deeply understood the principle of self-reflection.

Only then could he continuously improve on the path of the hunt.

If there was anything special about Kushina...

It would naturally be the Uzumaki clan's physique and the Nine-Tails within her.

Could it be that Kushina possessed a talent similar to mind-reading or telepathy?

Was she able to see through his flawless disguise and gaze directly into the essence of his soul?

This would be problematic...

Kushina, her death time was during the Nine-Tails Rebellion?

Uchiha Tunan took a sip of tea, his fingers tapping rapidly on the tabletop.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck Uchiha Tunan, and his tapping fingers stopped.

Got it!

Gazing into the soul, was it? Then I'll add a layer of disguise to the soul.

Uchiha Tunan's lips curved slightly as he approached the mirror.

Within his eyes, the Three Tomoe spun rapidly.

Genjutsu, Hypnotic Eye!

I deeply respect Kushina.

I even see her as a mother, seeking maternal love from her.

She is like a bonfire in the dark night, illuminating my heart.

Whenever I see her, the Heart Fire ignites, dispelling the darkness.

When Naruto is born, that will be the day the Heart Fire extinguishes itself.

Uchiha Tunan felt a wave of dizziness. In the dark space of his mind, a flame bloomed.

In an instant, Uchiha Tunan's eyes overflowed with tears of blood, his ocular power greatly depleted.

But the effect was also very significant. Now, whenever Uchiha Tunan thought of Kushina, he felt a sense of genuine closeness.

"Prey is still prey, you can't escape.

Hiss~ This damned heartache..."

In the dim room, a magnetic low hum echoed.

In the evening, the Great Elder came to Uchiha Tunan's home and took him to a specific location.

Naka Shrine.

This was the most core place of the Uchiha clan, and its spiritual symbol.

Only the clan head and the Great Elder could enter and exit freely.

There were no electric lights here; illumination still relied on oil lamps.

In the room, the dim lamp flickered, casting the shadows of the Great Elder and Uchiha Tunan onto the wall.

"Tunan, this is the birthplace of the Uchiha clan.

Important matters are usually discussed here in gatherings.

I've called you here for two reasons."

"Your provocation of Konoha's higher-ups last time was very well done. Hiruzen Sarutobi, under pressure, gave the Uchiha clan generous compensation.

This portion belongs to you."

As the Great Elder spoke, he pushed a brand-new passbook in front of Uchiha Tunan.

Uchiha Tunan glanced expressionlessly at the numbers on the bankbook.

Six hundred thousand Ryo.

This was already equivalent to the reward for completing an A-rank mission.

If converted to Tonkotsu Ramen, that would be ten thousand bowls.

Seeing that Uchiha Tunan showed no interest in this vast sum of money, the Great Elder admired him even more.

"This compensation is already quite good, after all, we couldn't find conclusive evidence.

You are still young, and the clan worried that too much money might cause you to lose yourself.

So, we decided to only give you six hundred thousand Ryo.

The remaining money will be deposited with the clan.

Just let me know when you need it."

Uchiha Tunan smiled slightly, picked up the bankbook, and put it into his Ninja Tool Pouch.

"It's already a lot, thank you, Great Elder."

The Great Elder nodded with satisfaction and handed a scroll in front of him to Uchiha Tunan, saying:

"You have now been promoted to Genin and can choose three techniques from the Inheritance Scroll. These techniques are a bit more advanced than the last ones.

However, after discussing it with Fugaku, we decided to give you the clan's strongest Secret Technique.

This one Secret Technique will take up two of your slots. Take a look."

Uchiha Tunan had never heard of any powerful Secret Techniques in the Uchiha Clan before.

Could it be Izanagi?

Uchiha Tunan unrolled the scroll.

At the beginning of the scroll, the name of this Secret Technique was recorded:

Instant Body Flicker Technique.

"This is..." Uchiha Tunan was slightly stunned.

The Great Elder's lips curved slightly as he began to explain:

"The cultivation difficulty of this technique is Super S-rank, belonging to the Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Genjutsu categories.

However, due to its extreme difficulty, later generations studied it and split it into the Body Flicker Technique and the Clone Technique.

Later, the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, drew inspiration from this technique to create the Shadow Clone Technique, which creates solid clones."

Instant Body Flicker Technique, Body Flicker Technique.

Uchiha Tunan suddenly thought of someone from the original work.

Shisui the Body Flicker.

His Body Flicker Technique wasn't a movement-type ninjutsu; instead, it created many solid clones during combat.

These solid clones wouldn't disappear upon being attacked like Shadow Clones.

It was truly a divine technique.

Uchiha Tunan rolled up the scroll and said gratefully, "Thank you, Great Elder."

The Great Elder then unrolled a large scroll in front of him and pointed to it, saying:

"Choose another technique. It's not that the clan is unwilling to offer more techniques, but these are the rules set by our ancestors."

"I understand." Uchiha Tunan wasn't greedy; more ninjutsu wasn't always better.

He then focused his gaze on the scroll.

The ninjutsu recorded on this scroll were clearly much more advanced than the ones he had seen last time.

Most of them were combination techniques involving Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Genjutsu.

Their cultivation difficulty was extremely high, and their power and effects were not comparable to simple ninjutsu.

Finally, Uchiha Tunan saw a technique in the latter half of the scroll, his eyes lit up, and he pointed to it, saying:

"This one."

The Great Elder followed Uchiha Tunan's gaze.

Secret Technique: Beast Devour.

The Great Elder immediately narrowed his eyes and frowned slightly.

"Beast Devour is a technique that acts on Ninja Beasts.

It normally modifies the Ninja Beast's physique using Chakra and can cause the Ninja Beast to enter a berserk state at critical moments.

This technique was developed by an Uchiha ancestor, drawing inspiration from the Aburame Clan's Insect Devour.

Its practical combat effectiveness isn't very high, and it consumes a lot of Chakra. Are you sure you want it?"

"I'm sure," Uchiha Tunan replied with certainty.

"Alright then."

The Great Elder nodded, formed a hand seal, and tapped the scroll.

A small scroll appeared before him.

The Great Elder gave Uchiha Tunan a look.

Uchiha Tunan understood, reached out, took the small scroll, and put it into his Ninja Tool Pouch.

"Tunan," the Great Elder's voice suddenly became deep.

Uchiha Tunan adjusted his glasses and sat up straight, saying, "What are your orders, Great Elder?"

"Where do you think... the future of the Uchiha lies?"

Uchiha Tunan paused and said, "Blindly obeying will not change the current situation of the Uchiha Clan."

The Great Elder narrowed his eyes and said, "You mean..."

Uchiha Tunan stood up, looked down at the Great Elder, and uttered four words in a resolute tone.

"The Strong Rule."

After speaking, Uchiha Tunan turned and walked out.

"Very good, I look forward to that day."

The Great Elder squinted his eyes, turned, and looked back at the stone tablet deep within the room, muttering to himself:

"Everything, for the Uchiha."