Rumors × Shikaku

"Alright, Lord Nara. Sorry to bother you."

Though Nara Dan had stopped radiating even the slightest trace of his energy, the Anbu members still couldn't help addressing him politely and bowing.

After all, a tiger was still dangerous even when it was dozing.

Then, every Anbu member fled at nearly their top speed, and they almost forgot to take their unconscious captain with them.

He didn't do anything over there. He didn't even feel as fearsome as before.

But my Sixth Sense kept urging me to run, run, run!

It was like standing at the edge of an abyss.

The abyss wasn't doing anything, but its unfathomable depths still made me instinctively keep my distance!

And another thing.

At such a distance, could someone really knock an Anbu Jonin unconscious with nothing but their energy?

Was it some new technique? But Lord Nara was a Taijutsu ninja, wasn't he?

I've never heard of a Genjutsu that could do that, either. Especially not from this far away!

Judging by the distance, the place where they sensed that enormous amount of Chakra was several miles from where they encountered Nara Dan. And less than a minute had passed between the two.

Hey, hey, this isn't about the range of the technique. Isn't it more that Lord Nara's speed is unbelievable?

It's not about his speed, either. That Chakra reaction just now was enormous. I'll let you in on a secret: the only person I've ever seen with that much Chakra is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

At that moment, several Anbu members sprinting in another direction from Nara Dan had been so oppressed by his energy that they hadn't dared speak aloud along the way.

Instead, they had been communicating in Anbu code the whole time.

But the farther they got from Nara Dan, the more freely they spoke.

I heard Lord Nara Dan is not only strong and incredible at Taijutsu, but also has terrifying needs in that department.

How do you know that?

Haven't you seen how Lord Nara Dan has taken on several disciples lately?

But there are both men and women among them.

Look at Lord Nara Dan's build. An average guy would look no different from a girl next to him.

You've got a point.

I can't argue with that.

The next morning, Nara Dan rose early to train again. He stood motionless in the front courtyard, his skin, refined by the cleansing process, glowing softly in the morning light.

His breathing was barely perceptible, and his Life Energy was completely restrained. With each breath, he blended perfectly into the small world around him.

It was impossible to tell which was the object and which was the self.

Sparrows and insects even foraged on him, perching there.

The servants nearby were chatting among themselves.

"Has the lord been standing here for a whole hour?"

"Not only that, he hasn't moved at all."

"I don't think the lord has ever trained like this before."

"If you weren't deliberately looking for him, you'd probably overlook his presence entirely..."

"Look at those birds. They've climbed right onto the lord."

Suddenly sensing something, Nara Dan opened his eyes. The birds felt the danger of where they were and scattered in every direction.

Almost at the same time, a young voice rang out.

"Brother Dan, I've come to visit!"

The Nara Clan's signature pineapple-shaped hair appeared before Nara Dan.

Without a doubt, the enormous commotion the previous night had alerted every force in Konoha that Nara Dan had obtained the Eight Inner Gates—or had developed a Secret Technique even more terrifying than "Release."

But the Nara Clan was closest to Nara Dan and had the advantage of proximity, so they had sent Nara Shikaku to investigate the truth right away.

"Brother Dan, what happened to you...?"

Nara Shikaku stared dumbfounded at Nara Dan, who had shrunk by more than half. For a moment, he couldn't find the words.

As Nara Dan stood now, his build, bearing, and even complexion had changed so much that he was barely recognizable as the same person.

If not for his calm eyes, identical to the Nara Dan of old, Nara Shikaku wouldn't even have been sure this was Brother Dan, the Taijutsu Jonin.

"Don't worry. I've just made a breakthrough."

"All that extra fat from before turned into something more substantial."

Facing the young cousin he'd known since childhood, Nara Dan made a lighthearted joke.

"R-really?"

Nara Shikaku couldn't quite smile. In a single night, Brother Dan had gone from a hulking bear of a man to a lean, muscular one.

But as the clan head's son, he had seen a lot, and he could at least understand what he was seeing.

After all, within the Ino-Shika-Cho combination, the Akimichi Clan had a Secret Technique that transformed the fat they had stored into Chakra, granting them a powerful source of energy.

It was the Akimichi Clan's Secret Technique, the Butterfly Transformation Technique.

And when Nara Shikaku looked more closely, he realized that Nara Dan's condition was fundamentally different from the Akimichi Clan's Butterfly Technique.

The Akimichi Clan's Butterfly Technique was fundamentally no different from the Eight Inner Gates. Both forced the body's potential to provide a powerful supply of Chakra.

The Akimichi Clan simply accumulated fat in advance, allowing them to use it in place of their own life force and thereby avoid some of the side effects of pushing their potential.

But even that couldn't completely prevent the side effects of a Forbidden Technique.

Akimichi Clan members who used the technique often became gaunt, and their physical condition deteriorated sharply.

Nara Dan was clearly different. His skin had become fairer and more radiant.

He also showed none of the gauntness that came from pushing his potential. Instead, there was a gentle sense of power contained within him.

Compared to his previously swollen muscles, he now seemed even more robust.

It was like the difference between a hard boulder and a warm, lustrous piece of jade.

It was almost like an improvement in his very level of life.

"Then congratulations on your breakthrough, Brother Dan."

Nara Shikaku looked envious. Nara Dan wasn't even eighteen yet.

And many ninjas were still stuck at the Genin level even when they were eighteen.

Let alone reaching the elusive rank of Kage, a level attained by only one in ten thousand.

"But, Brother Dan, tell me the truth."

Nara Shikaku lowered his voice and asked Nara Dan.

"Was last night's Chakra reaction caused by the Eight Inner Gates?"

"Did the Hyuga give you the Eight Inner Gates?"

"That's right."

Nara Dan nodded without denying it. He hadn't thought the news would spread so quickly, but with the Nara Clan's intelligence, they could easily have guessed.

Aside from Konoha's High Command, the only ones in all of Konoha who might have the Eight Inner Gates, such a powerful yet impractical Forbidden Technique, were the Hyuga Clan, specialists in Taijutsu.

"How did you know?"

Still, Nara Dan couldn't help asking. He had a bad feeling about this.

"A lot of people in the clan saw that Genin you're mentoring come to your house yesterday."

"And stay for quite a while."

"Tell me the truth, Brother Dan."

"Are you trying to marry into the Hyuga Clan?"

"Bang!"

Everyone, I'm on the recommendation list! It's only a web recommendation, but I'll do my best to evolve into a three-chapters-a-day beast!

But I'm a slow typist, so please bear with me!

If someone happens to tip me ten million coins or so, I'll definitely evolve straight to the next level!

Lastly, thanks again to Hui Tai Lang Marries Mei Yang Yang for the tip. May your success keep climbing!