The Second Soul

Having finally figured out the reason for his family's decline, Shiraishi Yoshijo let out a yawn, showing no interest in the topic.

The process didn't matter; the result was that only two members of the Shide Clan remained.

It was fortunate that Senju Tobirama had died early, otherwise, he doubted he would have survived until now.

He was interested in what exactly gave the Shide Clan the confidence to vie for the position of Hokage.

At their peak, their active jōnin accounted for one-fifth of Konoha. Jōnin weren't exactly cabbages; how could a single ninja clan possibly have so many?

"Is our clan special? How did we have so many jōnin?"

Addressing this question, Shiraishi Eizawa took a sip of tea and asked, "What aspects do you think are used to measure a ninja's strength?"

"Chakra reserves, ninjutsu, taijutsu, genjutsu—is that about it?"

"Not bad. Hold out your hand."

Shiraishi Yoshijo extended his hand, and Shiraishi Eizawa gripped it.

A suction force suddenly emerged, and Shiraishi Yoshijo froze.

He felt a portion of his already meager chakra suddenly vanish, and he asked in shock and suspicion, "The ability to absorb chakra?"

Shiraishi Eizawa nodded and said, "You can try it."

Shiraishi Yoshijo moved his mind, and a stream of chakra was drawn from Shiraishi Eizawa's body into his own.

In less than a minute, it merged with the chakra inside him, perfectly becoming his own.

This ability...

If he kept absorbing other people's chakra until the Fourth Great Ninja War...

What were Tailed Beasts? He would be a Tailed Beast himself! Becoming a "Chakra-ton" powerhouse was just around the corner!

Thinking of this, Shiraishi Yoshijo felt happy for the first time about being reincarnated into the Shide Clan, and the excited expression on his face was impossible to contain.

"Don't get happy too soon. You and I are blood relatives; our chakra comes from the same source."

"That is why my chakra entered your body without any obstacles and could perfectly become your own. If you absorb someone else's chakra, it would be good if you could retain even twenty percent."

"This ability to absorb chakra isn't exactly rare; many ninja clans can do it."

"For example, the Kikaichū of the Aburame Clan, and there are all sorts of strange techniques and ninjutsu that can achieve this effect."

"Furthermore, the human body has a limit to how much chakra it can absorb, which is inextricably linked to physical energy, mental energy, and even life force."

"Once you reach a certain level, no matter how much chakra you absorb, it will simply dissipate within your body."

These words brought Shiraishi Yoshijo back down to earth from the clouds. He then remembered that many people in the original story possessed this ability; it was practically a dime-a-dozen skill.

"Then what the hell is the point of this ability? Can this alone produce so many jōnin?"

"I just wanted to tell you that with this ability, chakra will not become an obstacle to your growth. As long as your body can keep up, theoretically, you will never lack chakra."

"Fine, I get it."

Seeing Shiraishi Yoshijo's deflated look, Shiraishi Eizawa shook his head and said, "Now, let's talk about ninjutsu. What do you think is the most important thing for learning ninjutsu?"

"Talent?"

"Some ninjutsu do indeed require talent, but that's not all."

"Hard work?"

"Chakra shape transformation and nature transformation are not things you can learn just through hard work."

"Then what are you talking about?"

"The most fundamental thing: chakra control."

After saying this, Shiraishi Eizawa stood up and spat out a fireball. Only after the fireball dissipated did he ask, "That was the C-rank ninjutsu Enton. Did you notice?"

The power of the fireball wasn't very high; Shiraishi Eizawa must have adjusted it.

But notice what? Shiraishi Yoshijo scratched his head, completely lost as to what he was talking about.

"Let's do it again."

This time, Shiraishi Eizawa began to weave hand signs and then used the C-rank ninjutsu.

Shiraishi Yoshijo blinked: "Hand signs?"

"Exactly. Once your chakra control reaches a certain level, you can use ninjutsu without hand signs. I basically don't need to weave signs for any C-rank ninjutsu anymore."

The power of hand-signless ninjutsu went without saying.

Naruto relied on the hand-signless Rasengan to carry him to the finale.

But that was a true hand-signless technique. Was Enton really a technique that could be used without hand signs?

Using all C-rank ninjutsu without hand signs—hey, is that for real? Is chakra control really that important?

It looked pretty amazing, so Shiraishi Yoshijo asked innocently, "How is that done? Can I use ninjutsu without hand signs now too?"

"Your chakra is too low. It's too early for you to practice ninjutsu. You aren't even qualified for the simple Three Basic Techniques."

Shiraishi Yoshijo had nothing to say. He felt he had been working quite hard; he started throwing kunai at age three and hitting wooden stakes at age four.

Although he had cried from the pain after only two punches, he had at least been doing push-ups, so he wasn't that pathetic, right?

As for chakra, that was simply a fatal flaw.

The chakra he managed to refine was only enough to make him run a little faster. As for walking on water or climbing trees, he had tried, but all attempts ended in failure.

This was the reason he was such a slacker.

Since he lacked talent, wouldn't it be better to just be a content, clock-in-clock-out tool?

Why bother exhausting himself to death?

Saving the world was the protagonist's mission.

If a supporting character wanted to steal the spotlight, it would be fine if they had a cheat code, but trying to force one's way into the protagonist's group without one?

He feared the shockwaves of their battles alone would kill him, and Shiraishi Yoshijo didn't think his head was that hard.

As for the Second and Third Great Ninja Wars, they were still over a decade away; they were far from his concerns.

Who knew what his situation would be by then? Maybe he would be able to toss around Rasengans by then, so why worry?

The worst-case scenario was to find a place to hide, and if that failed, becoming a rogue ninja was also an option.

In short, Shiraishi Yoshijo held a typical "get by" philosophy. He didn't want to overthink things; it was too tiring.

In his past life, he had worried too much and worked himself to the bone for money, only for a single illness to drain all his savings. The feeling of lying in a hospital bed waiting for death—whoever has experienced it knows. Anyway, he came first.

His life was his own. What was a clan? What was the Will of Fire? They weren't worth mentioning.

"Chakra control ability can be cultivated later in life, but the ability to release ninjutsu without hand seals is something even genius ninjas need a massive amount of time to achieve. As for our clan..."

At this point, Shiraishi Eizawa asked, "I am twenty-eight this year. I started training at ten and became a jonin at twenty-three. Do you think I am a genius?"

That was hard to say. Shiraishi Yoshijo hesitated, "I suppose you count as a genius. After all, you're a jonin; some people never become jonin in their entire lives."

"Your grandfather was the clan head at fifteen, and your father reached the level of a jonin by sixteen. They were the true genius ninjas, while I can only be considered mediocre within the clan."

Shaking his head with a bitter smile, Shiraishi Eizawa continued, "But even someone like me still became a jonin."

"Honestly, I am lucky, and you are lucky too. We are both people of mediocre talent."

"If I had been born into another clan, I would be a chunin at best, and you might have been a genin for your entire life."

Being told he had mediocre talent was quite hurtful, and as for being a genin for life, Shiraishi Yoshijo wanted to maintain at least a little dignity.

"Impossible. Even if my talent isn't great, I wouldn't be a genin for my whole life, right?"

"No talent, and you don't even know how to work hard. Do you think I don't know? You only hit that wooden stake in the yard twice and then cried. It's shameful."

"How do you know?" Shiraishi Yoshijo was shocked. Having his most shameful secret exposed was unbearable. His face flushed with a mix of red and blue, "Are you stalking me?"

Shiraishi Eizawa rolled his eyes, "Our clan is famous for our chakra control and sensory abilities. Even from a tavern, I can sense what is happening at home. I know exactly what you do every day."

Sensory ability?

"What is this sensory ability about?"

"You should be able to do it now. Close your eyes, hold your breath, and try to sense with your chakra."

Shiraishi Yoshijo followed instructions, but unfortunately, he couldn't sense anything. When he closed his eyes, it was dark; when he opened them, it was bright. He closed and opened them again.

"You really have no talent. Stand up and turn your back to me."

Could you stop attacking me? Shiraishi Yoshijo felt a sense of powerless rage inside, but he didn't dare say anything and obediently complied.

The next moment, his heart suddenly tightened.

He could see the scene behind him clearly without even turning around: Shiraishi Eizawa was holding a kunai and stabbing it toward his back!

He turned around abruptly, and the kunai stopped.

It was only a hair's breadth away!

Shiraishi Yoshijo broke out in a cold sweat and swallowed hard, "Uncle Eizawa, is there any need to be so extreme?"

"When a person faces a crisis, their sensory ability increases exponentially. You should have sensed what I was doing. How was it?"

Smiling as he put away the kunai, Shiraishi Eizawa patted his shoulder, "You're scared out of your wits by such a small scene. If you faced a real enemy, you probably wouldn't even be able to withstand their killing intent."

I'm still just a child!

"Alright, back to the point. Let's continue talking about chakra control."

"The difference between our clan and other ninja clans is that their strength must be improved through long-term training, whereas our clan improves through time, or rather, through the growth of the body."

"Generally speaking, after you start cultivating the secret techniques at ten and pass through the most difficult larval stage, your strength will increase significantly."

"The larval stage is the period when the larvae in your body turn into pupae."

"This period is the weakest time for our clan. Not only does the Butterfly Seed in your body need to consume chakra, but your own body's growth also requires it."

"This easily leads to a situation where physical energy cannot keep up, and chakra cannot be refined, leading to a weak and sickly body, or in severe cases, even death."

"Butterfly Seeds in their larval stage act primarily on instinct and are extremely gluttonous; if they lack chakra, it is common for them to gnaw on your heart."

"Although it won't be fatal, it will be incredibly painful. This is the reason I had you take the medicine; it is a secret family remedy that replenishes some physical energy and chakra, similar to a Military Ration Pill."

"Once they pass the larval stage, the Butterfly Seeds enter a state similar to hibernation during their pupal stage."

"At this point, you only need to feed them a small amount of chakra to ensure their survival, and you can control the timing of the feedings yourself. Only then can you truly be considered a qualified ninja."

"As the Butterfly Seeds in the pupal stage grow over time, they gradually develop their own consciousness. This is what I meant by chakra control ability."

"It is equivalent to your second soul; not only will it improve your chakra control, but your sensory perception will also be enhanced."

"From then on, no matter what ninjutsu you practice, you will achieve twice the result with half the effort. Becoming a Jonin will become a fairly simple matter."

"This is also the reason why our clan has so many Jonin."

"Those with high talent can become Jonin before the age of twenty, those who are more mediocre can do it in their twenties, and even those with no real talent can become Jonin in their thirties."

After saying all this in one breath, Shiraishi Eizawa picked up his teacup and began to drink.

Shiraishi Yoshijo started to digest this information; it sounded quite simple and easy to understand.

I have to say, the secret techniques of the Shide Clan are quite creative.

To be able to come up with something like a second soul—Shiraishi Yoshijo gave a mental thumbs-up to his ancestors.

The importance of a second soul is self-evident.

In the story, it was precisely because Sakura had a second soul that she had the possibility of becoming the disciple of Tsunade.

During the Chunin Exams, Sakura even used her second soul to break the secret technique of the Yamanaka Clan, and in the end, she perfectly inherited the medical ninjutsu of Tsunade.