My Chakra Reserves

Mingye's casual reminder made Kaede's heart sink.

He was Uchiha Kaede, after all—the naturally evil brat of the Uchiha!

In Konoha, the Uchiha seemed to hold a lofty position and throw their weight around. They were the most powerful clan in the village, bar none. The Senju Clan, once their equal, had already been turned into seeds by the First, Hashirama Senju, and scattered throughout Konoha.

Beneath the Uchiha's glorious reputation lurked the threat of extermination.

The Sharingan Bloodline was coveted by countless shinobi.

The village's suppression of the Uchiha Clan had never ceased since the Second Hokage. The Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, had spent much of his life working toward the clan's destruction.

Aside from his Water Release techniques, which he created to increase his own strength, all the Forbidden Jutsu he developed were, openly or otherwise, aimed at the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan.

[ Flying Thunder God ], [ Flying Thunder God Slash ]—the speed of Space-Time Ninjutsu was too much for even the Sharingan's kinetic vision. The shinobi's body simply couldn't react in time.

[ Impure World Reincarnation ], a Forbidden Jutsu that controlled life and death. Kaede had always thought Tobirama had created it because he wanted to summon his big brother back from the Pure Land.

Wood Release was said to be the natural enemy of almost every Ninjutsu.

[ Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags ]—one Explosive Tag could summon an endless chain of tags, which would explode over and over again at a single point. Once an Explosive Tag stuck to you, there was no escaping it.

Just listen to that. Was that any way to treat people? Was Tobirama planning to unleash one on Uchiha Madara, or give every Uchiha a taste of [ Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags ]?

Every powerful Forbidden Jutsu Tobirama created was impossible for the Uchiha's Sharingan to evade.

And impossible to copy, too.

The devious Tobirama Senju would never leave such a weakness.

After Tobirama's death, his successor, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, inherited his will. He, too, never stopped keeping the Uchiha in check.

In his prime, the Third Hokage stood at the pinnacle of the Shinobi World, one of its most powerful shinobi. In this era, no one dared casually face his powerful Compound Ninjutsu, except Madara, who was licking his wounds.

More importantly, Sarutobi was a man of many faces.

When it came to the village, he was the Third Hokage who had inherited the First's Will of Fire. "Wherever the leaves dance, the fire burns on." He was Konoha's light, the beloved Third Hokage in the villagers' hearts. Even the Uchiha Clan couldn't find fault with him.

But in the shadows, Danzo, another of Tobirama's students, handled all kinds of dirty work. As the Hokage who controlled the village, how could the Third Hokage not know?

Kaede even believed the Third Hokage had been involved in certain things. For instance, he knew about Orochimaru's human experimentation in the Land of the Sea later on.

The radiant Third Hokage wore the Will of Fire like a mantle and used his love for the village to brainwash countless idealistic young people.

And Kaede believed that he was every bit as wary of the Uchiha as the Second Hokage had been.

Just as Orochimaru had said to the Third Hokage when he confronted him during the Konoha Crush.

The Third Hokage was a hypocrite.

For the Uchiha Clan, the best Hokages had been the First, Hashirama Senju, and the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. Neither had ever harbored any hostility toward the Uchiha, but both had died far too soon.

"Don't worry, Father. I won't go around telling everyone about my talent for Ninjutsu."

His joy had vanished. Now he was even worried that the Third Hokage might be watching them with the [ Telescope Technique ].

"Kaede, you're a clever boy, but there are many things you're too young to get involved in. You still have your father and the Uchiha Clan, so just enjoy your childhood."

Perhaps he felt his earlier warning had been too harsh for a child. Mingye softened into a warm smile, stroked Kaede's hair, and reassured him.

It wasn't yet time for a child like Kaede to shoulder the Uchiha Clan's responsibilities.

"Father, I'll study hard under you. I promise."

After several years of living a comfortable life, sheltered by his parents, Kaede had finally remembered that he was in the dangerous Shinobi World. As an Uchiha, he faced dangers both outside the village and within it.

Kaede decided it was time to work hard.

"Let's test your Chakra reserves first. You've been curious about them, haven't you?"

Mingye gestured for Kaede to keep using Ninjutsu.

Though the Uchiha Clan possessed the powerful Sharingan Bloodline, its members didn't have exceptional Chakra reserves. Still, their reserves weren't low; they were about average for a major clan in the Shinobi World.

They didn't have as much Chakra as the Uzumaki Clan or the Senju Clan, but they had more than smaller clans like the Nara and Yamanaka.

There were a few rare exceptions, such as the former clan leader, Uchiha Madara. Rumor had it his Chakra reserves rivaled those of the First.

"Then here I go. Lightning Release: Ground Run!"

Kaede used Lightning Release over and over. The more he did it, the more tired his body became, but the happier and more excited he felt.

He even noticed that each time he used Lightning Release: Ground Run, his understanding of the technique deepened. Before, it had been a clumsy imitation, but now it had become a real Ninjutsu with the power to kill.

Mingye was genuinely shocked this time.

At ten uses, he nodded slowly. At twenty, he watched in confusion. At thirty, he opened his mouth to warn Kaede. By forty and fifty, he'd gone numb.

By now, Mingye had stopped counting. There was no point. This wasn't normal for a beginner.

"Don't you feel your Chakra running low?"

Mingye stopped Kaede from using any more Ninjutsu. Releasing it so frequently—even a low-level technique like Lightning Release: Ground Run—could attract the attention of anyone watching for an opportunity.

"No! It feels like I've only used up a little bit of my Chakra!"

In fact, each time he formed the Hand Seals and used Lightning Release: Ground Run, he drew a little Chakra from his lower abdomen. But once the technique was released, the Chakra he'd used was quickly replenished.

It took about as long as preparing and releasing the technique.

In other words, he didn't just have a lot of Chakra; he recovered it quickly, too. In theory, using Lightning Release: Ground Run didn't reduce his total Chakra at all.

And he'd only just started refining Chakra. After refining it more times in the future, the Chakra he accumulated in his body might even rival the Nine-Tails.

Kaede started daydreaming again.

He wasn't wrong. The Divine Body Rune and Divine Soul Rune had changed the very nature of his body.

He could not only wield lightning, but also had virtually unlimited Chakra.

"I can feel the Thunder Emperor beckoning me. Heh... heh..."

This time, Kaede couldn't stop grinning.