Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms

Life remained as uneventful as ever, but Kanna had grown used to the loneliness. He had little social contact and little fun. Every day, he got up early and greeted his mother, then began refining chakra after breakfast. He took short breaks to practice his punches and kicks, review Tree Walking and Water Walking, and read through his parents' collection of books. Most were about history or certain philosophies, along with a few ninja manuals on ninjutsu and chakra. When Kanna Tokiomi came home for lunch, he would sometimes test Kanna on his studies or ask what he thought about the Ninja Way, life, being a ninja, the village, and other matters. He was helping Kanna develop a sound outlook on life and the world.

After stealing the power of Shikotsumyaku, Kanna's body had grown stronger. At ten years old, he was entering the age when his body began to develop, and his growth was steady. In just over ten days, he had grown five centimeters, but he had forcibly compressed his bones back down, so he didn't look any different.

Kanna had a theory. In the original story, Kimimaro was slender but didn't look particularly burly. That was strange for Kirigakure, a village known for producing burly men. And his kekkei genkai was specifically designed to strengthen his bones. So there was a good chance he had compressed his bones, creating a kind of "iron skeleton" with high density and tremendous hardness.

Kanna had also clearly felt his body growing heavier—not with the weight of fat or bulk, but with a solid, substantial heft. Shikotsumyaku's power strengthened more than just the bones; some of it spread into the flesh as well, naturally making his body stronger. As a result, Kanna's chakra refinement was progressing quickly, too.

Only now did Kanna feel a genuine sense of security. Strength gave him confidence. Though he hadn't been through any real combat, he was sure he had already reached Chunin-level strength.

So if he wanted to take the Chunin Ninja Exams three months from now, he needed to start preparing.

No matter which village they came from, those taking the Chunin Ninja Exams had to form a three-person team. The problem was that the only students left from Kanna's class were him and Zabuza. The graduates from earlier years already had their own teams. How he would take the exam was a problem.

Of course, the Chunin Ninja Exams were only a test. They were more symbolic than practical. The exams were generally held to identify promising ninja and give all the candidates a chance to train and broaden their horizons.

But to Kanna, the Chunin Ninja Exams meant more than simply becoming a Chunin. They also presented a rare opportunity.

Kanna knew that sometime next year or the year after, the Sunagakure missing-nin Sasori would secretly return to the village, assassinate the Third Hokage, hailed as the strongest Kazekage in history, and turn him into a Human Puppet. Kanna planned to see whether Sunagakure would hold joint exams in the next couple of years. If it did, he could use the Chunin Ninja Exams as an opportunity to leave a Flying Thunder God marker there. With luck, he might even get involved in that battle and see whether he could obtain some of the Third Hokage's and Sasori's flesh.

When Kanna asked his father about it, he got this answer.

"The Chunin Ninja Exams?" Kanna Tokiomi furrowed his brow. "That exam is the main way to become a Chunin, but it isn't the only way. Since you don't have any teammates, you're not suited to an exam that tests teamwork. You should give up on it."

"But..." Kanna hesitated.

"Isn't this the path you chose for yourself?" Kanna Tokiomi said calmly. "You were the one who decided to stay home and train alone. You're a ninja, and you're a man. You have to take responsibility for your own words. I won't help you with this. Of course, if you can find companions willing to take the Chunin Ninja Exams with you, you can sign up yourself. I can recommend you."

"I see." Kanna gave a self-deprecating smile. That was right. People had to take responsibility for their actions. If he chose to walk alone, he had to be prepared to bear the loneliness.

"I understand." Kanna nodded and didn't bring up the Chunin Ninja Exams again.

"Ahem. If you feel your training has hit a bottleneck, I could introduce you to one of the departments." Kanna Tokiomi still cared about his son. He had seen how hard Kanna had worked lately and was quite pleased, so he was willing to give him a hand.

A position in Kirigakure? Kanna thought it over. As the son of the Mizukage Aide, his identity and standing would make joining Anbu no problem at all. But how could he put it? That place was too dark. Kirigakure was oppressive enough as it was; joining Anbu might drive him crazy.

The other departments weren't suitable either. Kirigakure's medical division lagged far behind Konoha's. Though important, Kanna had no desire to become a medical ninja. A ninja's time and energy were limited, and studying medical ninjutsu as well would be a poor trade. The Intelligence Department and the regular forces weren't suitable choices, either. It was peacetime. At most, the great villages engaged in a bit of espionage; there was no real fighting. So, after all, staying at home was probably best.

Build high walls, stockpile provisions. Naruto Uzumaki's path of growing stronger through one battle after another was an exception. Uchiha Obito's approach—training in seclusion until he was strong enough, then emerging—was the more practical one.

The key was knowing when to press on and when to let go. Kanna had simply been a little impatient. After testing Highland and learning that it could analyze kekkei genkai, it was only natural that he would covet those extraordinary bloodline abilities. With Highland at his disposal, as long as he survived, sooner or later he could draw those bloodline techniques and become truly powerful.

On New Year's Eve, ten days after his last draw, Kanna decided to pick a B-rank ninjutsu.

B-rank ninjutsu were already quite good, and they suited Kanna at his current level. The Flying Thunder God Technique and Shinra Tensei consumed far too much chakra to be anything more than trump cards; they couldn't be used as regular ninjutsu.

After giving the order to draw a B-rank ninjutsu, Kanna received a new technique the next moment.

"Hm?" Kanna pursed his lips and muttered helplessly, "My luck's not very good..."

The new technique was undeniably powerful. The problem—and the reason he felt his luck was bad—was with Kanna himself.

Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms was one of the Hyuga Clan's advanced Gentle Fist techniques. Neji had been hailed as a prodigy because he learned the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms at a young age. The Hyuga Clan didn't know he had learned the Eight Trigrams: Air Palm, a secret technique of the Main Family. Hinata, meanwhile, had remained stuck at Thirty-Two Palms for a long time before breaking through, which showed just how difficult the technique was.

This set of palms used the Byakugan to discern an enemy's tenketsu and then, at just the right moment and from the right angle, unleashed a total of sixty-four strikes in an instant. It could leave an enemy paralyzed from head to toe and sever their chakra pathways, effectively sealing their chakra. It was an exceptionally powerful style of combat.

However, this technique had been developed for the Hyuga Clan and required the Byakugan. If Kanna used it, his movements would look stiff. He could only rely on experience and his naked eye to judge an enemy's tenketsu and guess where their chakra was concentrated. He couldn't compare with a true member of the Hyuga Clan.

Still, he couldn't return a technique he'd drawn, so Kanna had no choice but to accept it. He immediately erased the Flying Thunder God formula and inscribed the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms in its place.

Come to think of it, the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms formula was more complex than the previous two techniques, though an ordinary person could still understand it. It wasn't that difficult. Following the eight trigrams' directions, the technique consisted of one set of general principles and eight fixed forms. Each fixed form could then be transformed into eight variations, for a total of sixty-four strikes. It was an extremely flexible style that required intelligence and intuition.

He divided Highland into eight equal sectors, inscribed the eight fixed forms one by one, and then watched as the formulas faded away and a single character, "Trigram," appeared.

Kanna moved the furniture aside, clearing a three-meter-wide space, and tried the technique.

He began with the opening stance, stepping wide and lowering his waist, his chest neither puffed out nor caved in. His hands were spread at different heights, palms open.

Kanna gathered his focus, lowered his center of gravity to his heels, straightened his waist, drew in his chest, and lifted his back. Whoosh! His right palm shot out, his fingers curling naturally until only his index finger pointed into the air.

According to the fixed form, that finger strike targeted the enemy's carotid artery and throat.

He turned his right palm over into a lifting pose, fingers curled inward, one hand reaching high while the other struck low. At the same time, his left hand darted out like a serpent from its lair, thrusting a finger forward.

Twist the enemy's neck! Tear open their throat! Strike the death point in their heart!

He stepped and turned, raising the big toe of his left foot and cutting horizontally with it like a blade. Then he drew his right hand back to his waist and jabbed upward.

Break the enemy's balance! Strike their lower back, internal organs, tailbone, and spine!

As he went through the moves one by one, Kanna grew more and more shocked. In the original story, the Gentle Fist seemed like a technique that merely struck pressure points, but in reality, it contained all sorts of ways to kill. Its attacks covered every vital point on the enemy's body: gouge out their eyes, strike their groin, hit their lower back. It was unbelievably brutal.

"So striking pressure points is only one of its sets of variations?" After completing the entire sequence, Kanna stopped and began to reflect.

"If that's the case, then I was wrong before. Even without the pressure-point strikes, this technique is one of the finest forms of Taijutsu in the Shinobi World. Hm, I suppose I neither gained nor lost."

A sharp bang rang out beyond the window, followed by a clattering sound. Kanna's face lit up. He pushed the window open and leaned out.

Outside the apartment building, lights shone everywhere. Fireworks burst overhead, lingering in the sky in shapes like flowers, Kunai, and hand seals. Red lanterns hung all along the streets, and people in bright new clothes were exchanging greetings.

"Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year!"

The noisy voices reached Kanna's ears. He smiled faintly and murmured to the bright moon above, "Happy New Year."