The Essence of Flying Thunder God, Pressing Forward!

"Can I take another shortcut?"

Accustomed to taking shortcuts, Uchiha Xiu activated his Mangekyo Sharingan's Kamui, trying to catch a glimpse of the principles behind the Flying Thunder God.

Just as he had done not long ago, when he used the properties of Gene Lock to train in the S-rank Yin Seal under Tsunade's comprehensive guidance!

In the next instant, his space-time Kamui eye connected to a special pattern of spatial flow.

It really worked!!

His vision left the cave, and everything around him faded away in an instant.

Jiraiya, Shisui, Hyuga Tokuma, Elder Setsuna, and the Sarutobi Clan's ninja force all blurred into hazy afterimages.

There was no world around him, no up or down, only countless overlapping folds, twisting together in layers. Silver-blue streams of spatial light sped along the creases.

Fine cracks covered every direction, and behind each crack lay a different instantaneous coordinate.

Points of light from the Flying Thunder God formulas flickered at the end of this void, guiding his way.

"I've finally caught a glimpse of it. It's like sticking my head through the door and getting a hurried look inside."

"Unfortunately, whether I can succeed from here depends on how much time and effort I'm willing to spend, and even what resources I can put into it."

Through Kamui's vision, Uchiha Xiu could see countless fragments of time and space intersecting and drifting about. He did his best to remember everything, especially the strange sensations.

"Now I'm beginning to understand Orochimaru. He's using a finite lifespan to pursue limitless jutsu, without knowing the correct answer. All he can do is slowly explore with the Ninja World's most obscure science. No wonder it makes people become so sick and extreme."

He wished he could see a thousand years in a single glance. Guided by the Flying Thunder God formula he had placed at a designated point in Konoha, Uchiha Xiu stepped forward.

Kage Rock appeared before him.

Under the streetlights, his own face—absurdly young—stood out.

The best-looking Hokage~

Before long, he would inevitably become the strongest Hokage, too!

"Whew. It's great if I can pull it off, but I don't need to obsess over the Flying Thunder God and lose sight of what matters. Reaching the source of my bloodline is the right path. Once I ascend to the level of a pure-blooded Otsutsuki, forget instantaneous travel across the Ninja World—even superluminal travel between stars will be no problem."

"Treat the universe like an orchard for growing fruit."

Having grown more confident after several major battles, Uchiha Xiu stopped wearing himself down with pointless doubts and gathered his thoughts.

Meanwhile.

The on-duty Sealing Jutsu jonin hurriedly initiated the emergency assembly protocol.

"Roar—"

"Sage of Six Paths, keep your descendants in line!!"

The temporarily lucid Four-Tails Son Goku realized that after waking from a nap, he had been trapped in a barrier prison that Uchiha Xiu had hastily created inside himself. He flew into a frenzy.

Vaguely, he could even smell Indra's aura on Uchiha Xiu.

But when he tried to identify it, it wasn't quite the same.

In any case, anyone with a Sharingan had to be a descendant of the Sage of Six Paths. So he might as well roar and rage.

The red-furred giant ape's body churned with Lava Release chakra. The ground sizzled and smoked under the scorching magma, and as his four tails lashed about, the chains of the Five Elements Seal trembled violently.

If they had used the Uzumaki Clan's bloodline secret technique—Adamantine Sealing Chains—he wouldn't have been able to act up like this.

"Wood Release."

Uchiha Xiu couldn't be bothered to waste words. He simply used his ultimate move, swiftly building a giant wooden cage in his inner world.

The giant ape caught the scent of the God Tree again and instantly changed his tune, nearly calling himself Xiao Sun.

The entire Sealing Team had assembled, each member taking up their post. They immediately activated the prepared scrolls, layering multiple Four Symbols Seals until they formed the more advanced Eight Trigrams Sealing Style.

With Uchiha Xiu's consent, chakra chains formed in his inner world, one after another.

They tightly bound the Four-Tails' limbs and torso, tethering him like a watchdog.

But Son Goku, who had just backed down, immediately grew fierce again and started acting up. He opened his mouth and spewed a stream of lava, burning through several sealing chains. The Tailed Beast Chakra continued to run wild, resisting every outside restraint.

"Are all monkeys like this? They back down in a second, then turn vicious again. What an unstable temperament."

Unfortunately for him, Konoha's sealing techniques were no third-rate rubbish.

They had a long history!

And generations of Hokage had refined them.

Before long, the Sealing Team had filled in every detail on the foundation Uchiha Xiu had laid.

Forget the Four-Tails—even the complete Kurama, with Yin and Yang reunited, would have to bow his head and accept the reality of being locked up.

Even if an external sealing technique struck and disrupted it, there was no chance of anything leaking out.

Inside the inner world, Uchiha Xiu's spiritual body walked straight through the sealed wooden door and slowly entered the center of the barrier. Without making any unnecessary moves, he stared directly at the ferocious giant beast with his Kamui Mangekyo.

"Our clan had a clan leader named Madara several decades ago. He forcibly controlled the Nine-Tails and created a jutsu."

Uchiha Xiu calmly explained, "It was called Beast Difficulty. He directly called Kurama a beast."

"..." Son Goku.

"You don't want to be treated like that, do you?"

It was the first time he had talked like that, and Uchiha Xiu caught a strong whiff of a certain kind of manga.

"Besides, I looked through Roshi's memories. He never called you by your real name. He was utterly arrogant, taming you as a tool while refusing to show you the slightest respect."

The intelligent Four-Tails understood the situation and hurriedly took the lifeline Uchiha Xiu had tossed him. "Then are you willing to call me Son Goku?"

"Of course. I look forward to working with you, Son Goku. Old Sun."

"Ha ha ha! I like that name!"

In an instant, all the ferocity vanished from Son Goku's eyes, leaving them clear and calm. His Lava Release stopped leaking out, and he no longer struggled. Instead, he offered, "Lord Hokage, whenever you want to use my power, go ahead. I, Old Sun, will do everything I can to cooperate."

What else could he do? If they fell out, he'd be called a beast, a dirty dog, then forcibly controlled with genjutsu and drained of his power.

The outcome would be the same.

Better to be smart about it.

Following the most outstanding living descendant of the Sage of Six Paths wasn't beneath him.

Thinking of that name, Son Goku—who had reluctantly talked himself into accepting the situation—felt even more at ease. The old man had treated the Nine Tailed Beasts well, staying by their sides from the time they were young and had only just awakened their own intelligence.

Well, he had shown favoritism to Gyuki and Kurama when dividing up the chakra.

He'd been bad once!

"Everything's going smoothly." Uchiha Xiu stretched.

A faint fragrance drifted over.

Tsunade dashed over from the Hokage's office. Her usually cold and proud face showed a rare hint of panic as she hurried forward.

"You... You just got back from making a scene in Iwagakure, and now you can't wait to master the Four-Tails' power? Do you really think you're the First Hokage?"

By habit, she reached out and began examining Uchiha Xiu with Medical Ninjutsu.

Tsuchikage Ōnoki was a formidable opponent.

His Dust Release was exceptionally troublesome.

Those penniless Iwa ninja were even good at wearing their enemies down with sheer numbers. They had a record of killing the Third Raikage that way.

Soon, Tsunade confirmed that the Fifth Hokage was completely unharmed and that his chakra had barely diminished. Her tone softened a little, though she still tried to sound tough.

"What would happen to the two million ryō you promised me if you died?"

As she spoke, Tsunade stepped closer, rose onto her toes, and glared at Uchiha Xiu, her tone tinged with a threat.

"When are you going to pay me? Hmph. If I hadn't helped you master the Yin Seal in time, this mission wouldn't have gone so smoothly."

Up close, and with Uchiha Xiu standing taller, he could easily see the pale skin rising and falling beneath Tsunade's neckline.

Those deep, dazzling curves nearly blinded him.

Most people would have had a hard time handling them, but Xiu wasn't afraid. As a man with a strong desire to climb, he loved challenging the highest peaks.

"Don't worry, you can come to my house and get the money now. First, tell me about the situation on each front..."

"You little pervert, where are you looking?"

Tsunade complained, but didn't move an inch. She remained just as generous.

Jiraiya, Shisui, Hyuga Tokuma, and Han, the Steam Ninja who had become a prisoner of war, were still at the border behind them. Nothing unexpected would happen.

Kumogakure.

The Fourth Raikage, A, stood with his arms folded, eyes closed in thought.

The intelligence laid out before him had been relayed in time by spies using techniques such as Summoning.

A surprise attack.

A Tailed Beast incapacitated.

A brazen retreat.

"The Uchiha were nobles who left our Land of Lightning in the early Warring States period."

"Over the years, quite a few antiques bearing the Gunbai have even been unearthed outside the village."

The dark-skinned Raikage spoke sourly, his voice laced with frustration.

Kumogakure was desperate for talented people!

Especially after Kinkaku and Ginkaku—the two bloodline monsters—died. Ninja born with terrifying natural talent had become few and far between. The village's strong had to rely on grueling training, building on the efforts of their predecessors and avoiding internal strife.

Besides, Uchiha Xiu's personality was right up his alley!

A real man got things done instead of talking.

"What do you think?"

The Fourth Raikage's deep voice sounded again. "Konoha's response was quite forceful... How about we withdraw from the Land of Moon and focus all our efforts on looting the Land of Earth?"

Admittedly, Kumogakure had always presented itself as a bunch of savages, and took pride in it. But the Raikage who inherited the name A had always shown a meticulous side when it came to major matters.

They rarely acted arbitrarily.

The so-called hotheadedness, savagery, and obsession with Taijutsu were just a facade, meant to secure them more benefits.

"I never expected the Fifth Hokage—the one who killed Danzo and Sarutobi Hiruzen, two Kage Level fighters, and seized power in a coup—to be so tough. What's more, he actually succeeded..."

Darui, the Raikage's bodyguard, remained expressionless. "I agree that we should redirect our forces and take a good haul from the Land of Earth."

The Land of Lightning and the Land of Earth had a long-standing grudge between them.

His father had died at the hands of the Iwa ninja while holding them off alone so Kumogakure's forces could retreat. Ever since, the Fourth Raikage had wanted revenge every moment of every day.

"How much can we squeeze out of a bunch of penniless losers? Of course, we should keep up the pressure, but Ōnoki has too many ninja under his command, and the Fifth Hokage hasn't killed enough. We need to kill at least another two thousand of his ninja. Better yet, send the old man himself to his grave. If not... kill his designated successor, Kitsuchi."

"Kill my father? Then his son can pay with his life!"

The Raikage slammed his hand on the table, like a savage wolf.

Whoever showed weakness or fear, he bit them at once!

Off to the side, Samui—whose chest was no less impressive than Tsunade's—gave a helpless pout.

The Fifth Hokage wasn't ruthless enough? Hadn't killed enough?

The spies' conservative estimate was that Uchiha Xiu's Kage Level squad had directly and indirectly killed two thousand Iwa ninja, many of them key personnel.

Civilian casualties were impossible to count.

And the real bloodless blow was the utter collapse of Iwagakure's economy!

"Samui, what's your opinion?"

The Raikage turned to the village's most famous ice queen. In a village full of hot-blooded men, she had stood out—not as some pretty face, but as a valuable talent who stayed calm and completed her missions. She was someone they could trust without reservation.

"Tell me, with your looks and abilities, do you think you could seduce the Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Xiu? Heh heh, young men like him fall in love easily. Shisui could work, too."

"You're the Raikage. Can't you keep that lewd junk out of your head for once, you bastard?" Samui snorted, rejecting him without hesitation.

Then she got back to the point. "We should attack the Land of Earth. We can't let this opportunity slip by. As for Konoha... it'd be best to put some pressure on them, too."

"First, it'll tie down the Land of Fire's ninja forces and stop them from occupying too much territory and growing stronger. Konoha already has the greatest potential for war among the Five Great Nations."

"Second, it'll let us test how many Kage Level fighters are left among Konoha's high command... The spies saw that the Uchiha called Shisui wept blood in public, so we should try to achieve some results and force them to the negotiating table. The Four-Tails, Five-Tails, and Nine-Tails—Konoha's number of Tailed Beasts has suddenly..."

Before she could finish, the Raikage cut in, his eyes practically glowing. "Exactly! We need another Tailed Beast, too! We need to establish a new strategic balance with Konoha. How about the Five-Tails, Kokuō? It's unbelievably strong, and would suit Kumogakure perfectly!"

His greed had kicked in.

Just like back when their envoy had attacked the Hyuga Clan, coveted the Main Family's Byakugan, and caused all kinds of trouble!

"Then I'll go to the front line and face off against Konoha." Darui, the Storm Release bloodline user, spoke calmly. "With Lord Killer B, who's already arrived there, we can seize some territory by force and hold on to it."

"Good. I'll lead Yugito and personally attack the Land of Earth. Samui will serve as a mobile force and provide support as needed!"

"Understood." The ice queen nodded.

All the Kumogakure leaders present were optimistic. They were all making the same stereotypical mistake.

Namely, they assumed that this tough fight with Iwagakure must have cost Konoha's high command some of its strongest fighters, and that capturing two unfamiliar Tailed Beasts would greatly hinder the Fifth Hokage.

After all, Uchiha Xiu was far too young. So what if he had mastered Wood Release and the space-time Mangekyo?

His strength had its limits.

—Even the most outstanding shinobi in a thousand years, Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara, hadn't been overwhelmingly powerful at the same age.

Besides, they thought the Land of Lightning, the strongest on paper, could handle a two-front war.

There was no reason they'd fall apart!

I, the Raikage, have unmatched Taijutsu!!

Konoha.

At the edge of the public training grounds.

Tsunade had just finished saying that the northeastern front was quiet when she crossed her arms and grumbled unhappily. "Uchiha Xiu, are you a training addict? Can't you take a break for even a moment?"

In the center of the brand-new training hall, Uchiha Xiu held up a steadily spinning sphere of azure chakra—the Big Ball Rasengan.

"Old Sun!"

He called out in his mind.

"Coming~"

Son Goku, who had completely surrendered and let himself be soothed, called back loudly from the space inside him.

In a single breath, the Rasengan in Uchiha Xiu's hand gave off a low hum. It visibly swelled three times in size, while a streak of blazing red chakra rapidly spread out from its core!

In an instant, a brand-new sphere appeared.

A violent storm of Lava Release chakra filled it inside and out!

Even before it hit its target, the intense heat radiating from it warped the surrounding air into a vast shimmer.

"Monster. Konoha is finally about to welcome its first Perfect Jinchuriki. Grandmother could only keep the Nine-Tails under tight control; she couldn't make it submit and cooperate completely."

"And this jutsu... Its destructive power must make it an S-rank forbidden technique." Tsunade swallowed, her mouth parched.

"I'm thinking of calling it the Lava Release: Scorching Flame Rasengan."

The name was simple and direct, highlighting its nature as a release technique and its origin in the Rasengan. It also suited the Uchiha style.

Better than the Fourth Hokage, who was hopeless at naming things.