Five Elements Evasion Arts and the Scale of Chakra

The next morning, the sun cast its light upon the earth. Amber curled into a ball on the roof, basking lazily in the sunlight.

In the courtyard of Hui's home, Hui and Kawa stood facing each other.

"Today, I will teach you what the Five Elements Ninjutsu truly is. Yesterday, you learned that chakra is matter. So, Hui, what then is the Five Elements Ninjutsu?" Kawa asked.

Hui only had to ponder for a moment to understand what his father was asking: "It is matter."

"Correct, it is matter. So, here is the problem: a powerful ninja can release Five Elements Ninjutsu using their own chakra. Phenomenologically, it appears as if one type of matter is being converted into five different types. How do you interpret this?" Kawa asked.

Hui fell silent once more; clearly, this question was far beyond the scope of a six-year-old Uchiha.

"Haha, Hui, I am not asking you to provide the correct answer immediately. Scientific exploration begins with conjecture. No matter how wild your answer may be, it is perfectly fine."

"Open your imagination; do not be bound by past knowledge."

This time, after a brief silence, Hui tentatively offered an answer: "Are the Five Elements Ninjutsu and chakra actually the same substance?"

"Not bad. Any others?"

"Uh, Father, aren't you going to judge whether I'm right or wrong first?" Hui asked, puzzled.

"Hui, verifying a conclusion after considering multiple possibilities is far better than doing whatever comes to mind. Think again, until you can think of no more," Kawa replied.

Hui had a sudden realization and continued to ponder.

"Does chakra combine with different substances from the outside world to form entirely new matter?"

"Does chakra use different methods of combination, similar to how the same atoms can be stacked differently, to form ninjutsu?"

"I apologize, Father, but that is all I can think of for now," Hui said, looking toward Kawa.

"Three, is it? That is enough. Now, Hui, verify whether these three conjectures of yours are correct."

Kawa extended his right hand without forming any seals. He condensed flames in his palm, then dissipated the chakra, and subsequently condensed water, lightning, rock, and a gust of wind in turn.

"This is what is called the Five Elements Ninjutsu. Do you think they are the same substance?"

"If it were only Wind, Fire, and Earth Style, one could argue they are the same substance. But Water and Lightning Style do not seem to be explainable by the same theory."

"Hui, your first and third conjectures are actually quite similar, and neither can easily explain this phenomenon."

"The second conjecture also fails to hold up, because even in a vacuum, a ninja can still release ninjutsu normally. Although a vacuum does not mean there is no external matter, I trust that the conjectures you mentioned were not referring to those."

Kawa's series of explanations left Hui feeling somewhat discouraged.

"Father, then what exactly is the Five Elements Ninjutsu?" Hui asked again.

Kawa kept him in suspense, pointing his hand toward the surroundings. Hui's gaze followed the direction Kawa pointed, sweeping across the courtyard.

"Hui, look around. What do you see?" Kawa did not answer the question directly, but instead asked something that seemed completely unrelated.

"Amber, the house, the walls, the ground..."

"Hui, you know that is not what I am asking. Think carefully. I will give you a hint: look for what they have in common," Kawa interrupted.

Hui fell into silence again, thinking to himself: What could they have in common? These are clearly completely unrelated things; what could they possibly share?

Hui looked up and saw his father watching him quietly. His restless heart slowly settled. He began to look around again, and finally, his eyes landed on the sun in the sky.

Suddenly, he said excitedly: "I understand, Father! It is light! Everything I can see is actually light!"

Kawa smiled slightly: "Beautiful! It is light. And then?"

"And then? What 'and then'?" Hui's brain momentarily crashed from the impact of these abstract questions.

Kawa was speechless: "Have you forgotten we are discussing the Five Elements Ninjutsu?"

Hui felt his face flush: "O... of course I remember."

"Haha, Hui, questions are not asked in vain. Let me be blunt: what is light?"

What is light? This familiar phrasing was clearly asking again whether light is matter or energy. That goes without saying; something intangible and formless like light must surely be...

Hui froze as he thought of this. He remembered what his father had said yesterday.

"Everything observed by any means of observation is matter."

That was what he said, right? Doesn't that mean light is matter?

Hui blurted out: "Light is matter? How is that possible???"

Kawa smiled slightly and said: "I will explain this in detail when I give you your second lesson later. For now, you only need to know that light is also a form of matter. Do you have a new perspective on ninjutsu and chakra now?"

Hui extended his hand and coated it with a large amount of chakra. Even in the broad daylight, a faint glow was still visible.

After pondering for a while, he said: "Father, do you mean that chakra is a form of matter larger than light, and it decomposes into it to form different ninjutsu?"

"As expected of Hui, but that only explains part of the problem." Kawa gave a thumbs up with his right hand.

"In the ninja world, there is a group of people who can absorb ninjutsu and convert it back into chakra. How would you explain this phenomenon according to your current theory?"

Indeed, Hui understood the principle that spilled water cannot be gathered up. Although he did not know how small a particle light was, he knew that the current explanation did not account for this.

If chakra were compared to a large building block, the people his father spoke of could somehow reassemble blocks that had been shattered into dust. If it were only a small amount of chakra, he might understand.

But to absorb ninjutsu directly and turn it into chakra? Hui could not comprehend how they achieved that.

"Well? Do you have any new ideas?" Kawa's voice came slowly.

"Apologies, Father, I do not know." Hui felt a bit dejected; perhaps he simply hadn't studied enough yet.

Chuanhe took in every one of these expressions, and so he said, "Hui, there is no need to blame yourself. When I first verified the theory to this extent, I also struggled for a long time before I figured it out."

"The answer is always so simple; it is just that we subconsciously overlook it when we think about the problem," Chuanhe sighed.

"Chakra being larger than light, capable of spontaneously emitting light—that is indeed one explanation. But there is another possibility when facing this phenomenon."

"What if chakra is smaller than light and can spontaneously compose light?"

Hui seemed to understand something, yet doubt still lingered in his heart.

"But Father, didn't you just acknowledge the statement that chakra is larger than light?"

Chuanhe smiled slightly: "Hui, you must broaden your thinking. Why can't these two statements coexist?"

A fireball formed in Chuanhe's hand once again.

"Look, ninjas decompose chakra and, through a series of changes, form ninjutsu. Although ninjutsu is chakra, they cannot reuse it."

"However, the chakra used by the people I just mentioned is essentially different from that of ordinary ninjas; its scale is smaller than light. Naturally, they can reuse the chakra within ninjutsu."

Hui nodded, half-understanding: "Then Father, can I learn how to extract this high-level chakra?"

Chuanhe let out a dry laugh: "Not at the moment. You should first master the Five Elements Ninjutsu according to this theory. You are not yet ready to touch the issue of this high-level chakra."

Seeing Hui's dejected expression again, Chuanhe patted his head.

Chuanhe took a key from his pocket and handed it to Hui: "Don't be discouraged, this is for you. This is the key to the study, and there is a second-level verification. You will know exactly what those verification questions are the moment you see them."

Holding the key in his hand, Hui said with some excitement: "Really? Can I learn all the ninjutsu in the study?"

"Of course. You are my proud son, after all; you have sufficient ability to master those ninjutsu."

"But Hui, let me remind you: you may teach the ninjutsu in the study to anyone you wish, but the theories I have taught you must not be told to anyone." Chuanhe placed both hands on Hui's shoulders and said solemnly.

Hui also replied solemnly: "Understood, Father!"

"Go on. I imagine you can't wait any longer. If you want to practice ninjutsu, go to the clan's training grounds," Chuanhe said, releasing his hands.

Hui turned and ran toward the study, shouting as he went: "Got it!"

Chuanhe smiled where he stood, then turned and returned to his workshop to continue carving Flame Explosion Talismans.