Fifth Chapter: The Drawbacks of Secret Techniques

There was just one thing that bothered him: age.

Ten years old. Shiraishi Eizo had said he began training at ten, and it seemed most of the clan members had started at that age, too.

But he was only six this year. Thinking of the terrible consequences of the larval stage, a cold sweat broke out across his forehead.

"Uncle Eizawa, you didn't start learning the Secret Technique until you were ten, and I'm only six. Will that cause—"

"You're pretty perceptive. But don't worry. You're the only one left in the family line. I wouldn't hurt you."

As he spoke, Shiraishi Eizawa took off his shirt and formed Hand Seals. Slowly, layer upon layer of black markings appeared across his body.

Shiraishi Yoshijo stared at the markings in shock. "A Sealing Technique?"

"You know about Sealing Techniques?" Shiraishi Eizawa asked, surprised. Then he said, unconcerned, "It is a Sealing Technique. Your grandfather developed it to suppress the loss of life force. But the technique is unfinished, and it doesn't work very well."

Suppress the loss of life force?

"Don't tell me you're dying. That's not funny at all."

Shiraishi Yoshijo's voice grew strained, and his expression turned strange.

He had never acted as if he cared much about the clan, but this man before him was the last family he had in this world. If he died, too...

Then he really would be all alone.

"This isn't a joke. It's the truth."

Shiraishi Eizawa smiled and patted his head. "But death doesn't mean an end. It just means taking on a different form of life."

Dead was dead. Having died once already, Shiraishi Yoshijo was deeply afraid of death.

Taking on a different form of life? Don't think you can fool me just because I'm a kid.

He remembered the time in his previous life when he'd been alone, waiting to die. A jumble of emotions welled up inside him.

"Is it because of Danzo?"

A voice full of venom came from his mouth. Shiraishi Eizawa jumped, his gaze turning complicated.

"It has nothing to do with Danzo. I used the Sealing Technique myself after abandoning the battlefield."

"I was already badly wounded, and the Butterfly Seed inside me started acting up. When it sensed my life was in danger, it began draining my life force desperately. I had no choice but to use this Sealing Technique."

"I thought it would at least keep me alive until you came of age, but the technique didn't work as well as I'd hoped."

"I hadn't planned on telling you. But you have no talent as a ninja, and the family's Secret Techniques can't be allowed to die out, so I have no choice but to teach you some things early."

"As for your young age and lack of Chakra, I'll give you some of mine every night from now on. You don't need to worry too much."

"Won't giving me Chakra make your condition even worse? And did you really abandon the battlefield? What exactly happened to my parents? You never used to drink, but now you get completely drunk every day, even though you're already in this condition. Are you really not going to tell me anything?"

Shiraishi Yoshijo fired off a string of questions and was about to continue, but Shiraishi Eizawa stopped him.

"This really isn't like you. You never used to ask about these things on your own. Just keep being yourself."

"Grow up safely in peaceful Konoha, then get married and have children, and pass down the Secret Techniques. That's your responsibility. Everything else is over."

"What if I don't do that?"

"What you want to do has nothing to do with me. From the moment I abandoned the battlefield, my responsibility became you. That was your parents' dying wish, too."

"My parents' dying wish... So you really didn't abandon the battlefield."

"That depends on how you look at it. Whether it was for duty or something else, one fact remains unchanged: I left your parents behind and ran back alone."

The two looked at each other, then fell silent.

After a long while, Shiraishi Eizawa spoke. "If I give you Chakra every day, I probably have about five years left. I'll pass everything the clan has on to you during that time."

"How long would you live if you didn't give me Chakra?"

"Eight years."

"Then don't give me any. I'll work hard at training from now on."

Shiraishi Eizawa frowned. "I should have told you that a Butterfly Seed in its larval stage acts only on instinct. You shouldn't be thinking about training right now. Staying alive is what matters most."

"And there's something else I haven't told you. The clan's Secret Technique doesn't only have benefits. It has plenty of drawbacks, too."

Shiraishi Yoshijo sat in silence.

Shiraishi Eizawa said helplessly, "I'm telling you this now so you're prepared. Besides, death isn't the end."

"When I passed the Secret Technique down to you, you should have heard your mother's voice. I'll become a being like that someday, too. So don't be sad. You should be happy."

It was true that he had heard his mother's voice during the transmission of the Secret Technique. But she had been a butterfly. Could it be...?

At the thought of a certain possibility, Shiraishi Yoshijo's expression grew incredibly complicated. Could a person really become a butterfly—a Summoning Beast?

Shiraishi Eizawa pulled a Ninjutsu scroll from his robes and handed it to him. "Memorize this Ninjutsu. It must never fall into outsiders' hands."

Cocoon Binding Technique!

After studying it carefully, Shiraishi Yoshijo's mouth twitched. "A suicide Ninjutsu?"

That was right. To him, the Cocoon Binding Technique was a suicide Ninjutsu.

It involved sending all the Chakra in the user's body into the Butterfly Seed in an extremely short time, while forming a thick cocoon around the body.

After absorbing all the user's Chakra, the Butterfly Seed would emerge from its cocoon inside the body. Then it would devour everything the user had.

Shiraishi Eizawa nodded. "This is the final destination of our clan."

What the hell? He'd never expected the first Ninjutsu he came across to be a suicide technique.

"Our clan sees life and death differently from ordinary people. We have our own Pure Land, where every clan member who dies is reborn. You might not understand right now, but you will someday."

This was getting more and more absurd. Shiraishi Yoshijo felt like his brain couldn't keep up. He had no idea what Shiraishi Eizawa was talking about.

He knew the Pure Land existed in this world, and that the dead went there.

But did the Pure Land have different territories?

And rebirth? Did his uncle think he was the Six Paths' own son?

"The Cocoon Binding Technique makes the Butterfly Seed inherit everything from the user after devouring him. It can even inherit the user's memories completely. Then it will release the Kuchiyose no Jutsu and return to its summoning grounds, where it will live on."

"Exactly the same memories?"

"I told you just now that the Butterfly Seed living inside you is like your second soul. Even if it doesn't inherit your memories, all its memories are the same as yours."

"Rather than saying it inherits your memories completely, it's more like two identical souls merging. When it returns to its summoning grounds, isn't that the same as being reborn?"

He's crazy. Shiraishi Yoshijo really thought his uncle was a little unhinged. Even if their memories were the same, could a butterfly and a human be the same?

"A butterfly is a butterfly. A butterfly isn't a person, and a person isn't a butterfly. Could you please get a grip?"

Shiraishi Eizawa didn't argue. He just stared up at the sky, lost in thought.

Shiraishi Yoshijo continued, "So when you say Pure Land, you mean the summoning grounds. But butterflies die, too. Only then do they go to the real Pure Land."

"It's good that you can think of it that way. I guess I don't need to worry you'll do something rash. Well, different people see things differently. There's no need to dwell on it."

"I'll never use this Ninjutsu, and I won't die. If I can, I even hope to live forever."

"Hahaha!" Shiraishi Eizawa burst out laughing. He laughed so hard he started coughing violently, tears streaming from his eyes.

"Live forever? If you can do it, go ahead. Just let me know when you do."

After he'd finished laughing, he continued, "Let's leave this topic here. I hope you don't change your mind. Now I'll tell you about the drawbacks of the clan's Secret Technique."

"So there are side effects after all?"

"Nothing comes for free in this world. You have to give something up to gain something. Do you think you can just sleep once and become invincible?"

"All right, I get it. What drawbacks are you talking about?"

"Lifespan. During the Warring States Period, the average lifespan of our clan's ninja was under forty. Even after peace came, it was still under fifty."

At that, Shiraishi Yoshijo could no longer sit still.

Are you kidding me? I'm planning to live to the end of the story, and you're telling me I won't make it to fifty?

"If you'd told me this earlier, I'd never have learned the clan's Secret Technique, even if you beat me to death."

"That's why I'm telling you now."

"Fair enough. Why does it shorten your life?"

"The Butterfly Seed doesn't just absorb Chakra. To form a soul, it must devour your life force. During the Warring States Period, any clan member who reached the rank of jonin had to cultivate a second Butterfly Seed. That's why they didn't live to forty."

"You can cultivate more than one Butterfly Seed?"

"Of course. And the more you cultivate, the stronger you become."

"According to the clan records, the person who cultivated the most was the eighth clan leader. He had four, one for each of the five elemental natures. He was also the strongest in the clan."

"How old did he live to be?"

"Twenty-seven."

Clearly, the more he cultivated, the faster he died. That eighth leader had to have been nuts.

Shiraishi Yoshijo ranted internally.

Having all five elemental natures sounded impressive. The Third Hokage had all five, too, and was hailed as the strongest Hokage, though his actual combat ability was pretty underwhelming.

But the Third Hokage in the story was old and frail, so that wasn't a fair basis for judgment.

Shiraishi Yoshijo thought for a moment, then asked, "What does it mean to have all five elemental natures? Can Butterfly Seeds enhance your elemental affinities?"

When his good uncle nodded, Shiraishi Yoshijo was stunned. Their ancestors were incredible. They'd found so many ways to use a Butterfly Seed.

"Which elemental nature do I have?"

"You have Lightning Release. The Butterfly Seed has Water Release."

"So I have both Lightning and Water Release now. Why not cultivate a Butterfly Seed with Wind Release?"

The Water Release Ninjutsu in the story seemed so weak. If he had the choice, he'd much rather have Wind Release. He'd been eyeing the Rasengan series for ages.

"Water Release Chakra can nourish your body and help you live a few years longer. If you really like Wind Release, you can cultivate one yourself once you have enough Chakra to be a jonin."

The more you cultivated, the faster you died. He'd never cultivate a second one in this lifetime.

Shiraishi Yoshijo rolled his eyes. "Water Release is fine, too. I'm not picky."

Shiraishi Eizawa smiled. "Good. You understand the clan's Secret Technique well enough now. Next, you need to study the theory. You'll have to do that yourself. I'll organize some materials for you tonight. You can look through them tomorrow."

With that, Shiraishi Eizawa got up and headed for his room.

Shiraishi Yoshijo watched him go, hesitated for a long time, then finally spoke.

"You should really quit drinking. You're not well, so don't push yourself."

Without turning around, Shiraishi Eizawa waved and went into his room.