I Will Definitely Fulfill My Promise to My Companion!

The mountain stream camp was filled with the damp chill of the evening breeze.

Kakashi remained silent for a moment before speaking slowly:

"I apologize."

For a ninja, the leakage of ninjutsu intelligence signifies danger.

If Jiraiya had possessed information regarding Pain, he would not have been buried in Amegakure.

Thus, Kakashi made a decisive choice to apologize.

Kazuhiko looked at Kakashi, not speaking immediately.

If apologies were useful, what would be the need for the police?

"You will certainly provide a detailed report of this mission to the Hokage. I hope you can keep this matter a secret for me."

Kakashi frowned slightly.

What Kazuhiko said was a fact; Anbu ninjas report every detail of their missions to the Hokage.

This is the duty of an Anbu ninja.

The Anbu is the extension of the Hokage's will, another pair of eyes used by the Hokage to control the overall situation.

Kakashi began to ponder.

For this escort mission, he needed to ensure Kazuhiko's personal safety and conduct a detailed assessment of the treatment of Tsunade to determine if the other party had any intention of healing her.

And the unknown Kekkei Genkai that Kazuhiko had just revealed was clearly unrelated to the content of this mission.

Thinking of this, Kakashi looked at Kazuhiko, his tone carrying a hint of caution:

"As long as it is not a forbidden jutsu or a ninjutsu that could endanger the life of the target, I can keep it secret for you."

This statement hit the funny bone directly.

It made Kazuhiko laugh on the spot.

Would a ninja of the Uchiha clan dare to research forbidden jutsu?

Under the all-encompassing, blind-spot-free surveillance of Konoha, if an Uchiha were truly foolish enough to research forbidden jutsu, there would be only one outcome—

The person would be arrested in the morning, and the forbidden jutsu would be perfected by the Root organization by the afternoon.

As for using Storm Release to endanger Tsunade's life, that was even more absurd.

If one could take out Tsunade with a single Kekkei Genkai, the grass on the graves of the Sannin would likely be three yards high by now.

"I wouldn't do something as self-destructive as that."

Kazuhiko shook his head and began to demonstrate.

The next moment, the chakra within his body began to fluctuate violently.

Two distinct streams of lightning and water chakra began to merge in his palm like a flowing brook.

The pale blue lightning, wrapped in gentle water, showed no signs of repulsion; instead, it erupted into a brand-new, sharp, and majestic energy reaction.

"Watch closely, I will only perform this once."

As Kazuhiko's voice fell, the two different elemental chakras fused perfectly, and a beam of black lightning appeared in his hand, piercing through tree trunks and grazing past rocks.

Wherever the beam passed, trees toppled and rocks were sliced and crumbled, revealing smooth, flat cross-sections.

At the cuts, residual black lightning continued to leap, carving out traces of scorched and saturated chakra.

"This is... a Kekkei Genkai formed by the fusion of lightning and water!"

Kakashi's pupils constricted; seeing this with his own eyes made him even more shocked.

He had seen countless Kekkei Genkai—Sharingan, Byakugan, Shikotsumyaku, Ice Release, and so on—all of which were innate talents and bloodlines.

But this bloodline of Kazuhiko's was a brand-new Kekkei Genkai, clearly and explicitly fused from two chakra nature transformations right before his eyes!

"Storm Release."

Kazuhiko withdrew his hand, and the black beam in his palm slowly dissipated.

"It is not some forbidden jutsu, nor is it a special ninjutsu developed with the intent to harm Tsunade."

"This is simply a ninjutsu bloodline I developed after mastering both lightning and water chakra nature transformations and practicing their fusion countless times. That is all."

Kakashi stood where he was, his heart churning with stormy waves.

He possessed accurate intelligence on Kazuhiko, which indicated that the other party was not born with lightning and water chakra affinities.

To first study and master new chakra affinities, then practice chakra nature transformation, and finally fuse the two attributes to develop a corresponding Kekkei Genkai—

For an ordinary person, mastering one chakra affinity is already difficult; being able to master two or more is the basic requirement for promotion to Jonin.

Yet, this Uchiha before him had not only cultivated two non-innate nature transformations to a "perfect" level but had also broken through the attribute barrier to fuse a brand-new Kekkei Genkai. The effort behind this was likely beyond what an ordinary person could imagine.

"How did you do it?"

Kakashi's voice was somewhat dry.

He was born with all five elements and had become famous throughout the ninja world by using his Sharingan to copy thousands of ninjutsu.

Precisely because of this, he understood better than anyone just how difficult it was to cultivate a change in chakra nature.

This was an innovation that could not be described by the simple word "genius."

"I can keep your secret, but..."

Kakashi looked somewhat puzzled.

"The process of developing a Kekkei Genkai must have been incredibly arduous. Since you succeeded, why choose to remain obscure?"

"That's right. Everything I've achieved up to this point is the result of my own step-by-step efforts, watered by countless drops of sweat."

Kazuhiko met Kakashi's stunned gaze, his tone calm and composed.

Of course, he didn't deny that Deep Blue had provided a tiny, insignificant bit of help along the way.

"I don't actually have much interest in ninjutsu. Compared to developing a Kekkei Genkai, I prefer to prove myself through psychological therapy and earn everyone's recognition."

Kakashi looked at the determined eyes of Kazuhiko, feeling momentarily dazed.

"I see..."

He thought of Guy, who was always full of vitality, shouting slogans about "youth."

Guy had no talent for ninjutsu, yet through day-after-day of taijutsu training, he had risen to the rank of Jonin and become the Blue Beast of Konoha.

Perhaps Kazuhiko's dedication to psychological medicine was to him what taijutsu was to Guy.

Thinking of this, a sense of shame stirred in Kakashi's heart.

He was hailed as a "genius among geniuses" and showered with endless praise.

By developing the Chidori to cut through lightning, his ninjutsu had become famous throughout the ninja world, earning the name "Lightning Blade."

Kakashi asked himself: although he didn't care for fame, he had indeed felt a sense of complacency because of these hollow titles.

Compared to Kazuhiko, his own achievements suddenly seemed like nothing to be proud of.

He took a deep breath, his expression becoming incredibly solemn:

"Regarding the matter of your Kekkei Genkai, I will not report it to the Hokage."

[Kakashi's favorability toward you has increased significantly to: Trust (If even Kazuhiko, who has little interest in ninjutsu, can develop a Kekkei Genkai, what about you, Kakashi?)]

[Jonin-level trait draw chance +1]

Having obtained the answer he wanted and gained favorability, Kazuhiko was in a great mood.

As expected, Talk-no-Jutsu was one of the strongest techniques in the world of Naruto.

"I trust you. You will definitely keep a promise made to a comrade, right?"

"A comrade...?" Kakashi was taken aback.

Kazuhiko winked at him, "Of course. Don't forget, we are now comrades who share a secret."

The word "comrade" caused ripples to spread across the long-stagnant lake of Kakashi's heart.

Since the passing of Uchiha Obito and Rin, how long had it been since he had a comrade?

Kakashi couldn't quite remember.

He only recalled his time in the Anbu, where teammates were replaced batch after batch. They executed missions and fought side-by-side, yet no one had ever said the word "comrade" to him again.

Kazuhiko's figure began to blur, slowly overlapping with the memory of Uchiha Obito in Kakashi's mind.

"Those who break the rules of the ninja world are called trash, but those who do not cherish their comrades are worse than trash."

After a few seconds of silence, the trance in Kakashi's eyes faded, replaced by a hint of softness.

He nodded gently, his voice very soft:

"I will definitely keep a promise made to a comrade."

[Kakashi's favorability toward you has increased significantly]