Kekkei Genkai

"Since that's the case, let me take a look at your fundamentals first."

Jiraiya folded his arms and looked at Namikaze Minato.

Namikaze Minato took a deep breath, then quickly performed the Three Basic Techniques he had learned at the Ninja Academy.

A cloud of white smoke burst into the air. When it cleared, two figures stood in its place: Hyuga Shinichi and Nawaki.

Seeing this, Hyuga Shinichi commented,

"Oh, you used the Clone Technique, then the Transformation Technique to turn into Nawaki and me? Your fundamentals are solid."

It inevitably reminded Hyuga Shinichi of how, back then, he couldn't make a proper clone of himself, and Nawaki, Gai, and Tomohiro had laughed at him for ages.

But later, Grandma Mito had taught him the more useful Shadow Clone Technique, which he learned faster than the other three.

Just as he finished recalling that embarrassing memory, Nawaki said,

"Not bad, Minato. Your Clone Technique is better than Shinichi's was back then... Mmph!"

Hyuga Shinichi immediately clamped a hand over Nawaki's big mouth. They had agreed long ago not to tell anyone about it.

The fake Hyuga Shinichi and fake Nawaki that Namikaze Minato had transformed into exchanged a glance and continued with the next move. The fake Hyuga Shinichi swung a fist at the fake Nawaki's face.

Seeing this, Nawaki was about to protest. Why was even his fake self getting punched by fake Shinichi?

The fake Nawaki suddenly popped into a wooden log. It was the Substitution Technique.

Jiraiya nodded, privately praising Minato's exceptional talent for someone his age. The effects of the Three Basic Techniques had all been demonstrated.

Minato hadn't graduated from the Ninja Academy yet, and his family hadn't left him any inherited scrolls of ninjutsu, so these were all he knew for now.

To teach Minato ninjutsu, they first needed to know what chakra natures he had.

Hyuga Shinichi took a sheet of Chakra Induction Paper from the ninja pouch at his waist and handed it to Namikaze Minato, who had changed back from the fake Hyuga Shinichi.

"Infuse this paper with chakra and see what chakra natures you have."

Taking the Chakra Induction Paper, Namikaze Minato closed his eyes and controlled his chakra, infusing it into the paper in his hand.

The Chakra Induction Paper first split down the middle, as if it had been cut in two.

"So you have Wind Style, just like me. Then—"

Before Hyuga Shinichi could finish, both halves of the paper crumpled, then burst into flames, burning to ash.

"Oh! He naturally has three chakra natures: Wind, Lightning, and Fire. And they all seem quite strong. I never expected to take on such a gifted student. What a wonderful surprise!"

Jiraiya was delighted by Namikaze Minato's talent.

Hyuga Shinichi recalled that, in the original story, Minato's listed chakra natures were Fire, Wind, Lightning, Yin, and Yang. At first, he had thought Minato had Wind Release like him and had learned the other chakra natures later.

What a surprise! Minato had been born with three chakra natures!

Hyuga Shinichi also thought of how he had spent all these years by Grandma Mito's side, diligently studying various ninjutsu techniques.

Yet, to his confusion and frustration, he couldn't seem to learn any chakra nature other than Wind Release.

Grandma Mito had carefully studied and analyzed this phenomenon. She believed it was most likely because my natural talent for Wind Release was simply too exceptional.

That extraordinary talent made it easy for me to understand and use Wind Release, but also made it tremendously difficult for me to learn other chakra natures.

Perhaps it was like how everything in the world needed a certain balance. Being exceptionally gifted in one area often meant lagging behind—or even falling short—in others.

But it was also thanks to my outstanding Wind Release chakra that I had developed the Wind-Riding Sword Technique.

Among the Konoha Ninja who had gone on missions with me, there had been no shortage of talented Wind Release users. But none could perform the techniques of the Wind-Riding Sword Technique like I could. Their Wind Release slashes couldn't match mine for cutting power or the sharpness that let them slice through anything they touched.

Now that they knew Minato's chakra natures, Jiraiya and Hyuga Shinichi could teach him ninjutsu that matched them.

Next, Jiraiya took out several low-level ninjutsu scrolls for Minato to study, explaining the techniques as he went.

There was just one problem: no one present knew Lightning Style, or how to teach it. They could only set it aside for now and have him learn other techniques.

But then Hyuga Shinichi had an idea, inspired by his earlier fight with Nawaki.

It was about Nawaki's combination ninjutsu. They didn't know Lightning Style, but they could combine Lightning Release chakra with other techniques. Maybe it would create a different effect.

That brought Kekkei Genkai to mind. Nawaki's combination ninjutsu already showed the beginnings of one; he just hadn't truly fused the techniques together yet.

Because Hyuga Shinichi was here, Minato had become Jiraiya's student earlier than he would have otherwise. With Shinichi's help and Minato's own talent, it might even be possible for him to develop a Kekkei Genkai.

"Minato, do you know what a Kekkei Genkai is?"

Hyuga Shinichi's sudden question interrupted Namikaze Minato's lesson with Jiraiya, and both of them turned to look.

"I do. The First's Wood Style and Zhenyi's Byakugan are both Kekkei Genkai, right? What is it, Zhenyi?"

"Right. But did you know, Minato, that it's possible to fuse chakra natures and create a Kekkei Genkai yourself?"

Jiraiya immediately understood what Hyuga Shinichi was thinking. Minato was certainly talented, but talent alone wouldn't guarantee he could develop a Kekkei Genkai. If the fusion failed, it could cause injuries that would never heal.

In mild cases, all the chakra pathways in the body could die, leaving the person to spend the rest of their life bedridden, barely clinging to life. In severe cases, they would die in agony.

"Shinichi, I know what you're thinking, but we can't let Minato try fusing chakra. We both know what could happen. We can't risk his life."

Jiraiya stared seriously into Hyuga Shinichi's pale eyes.

"I know. But think about it, Jiraiya. What if Minato succeeds? And I'll be right there to help him. With my Byakugan, I can see the flow of chakra in his body. If anything goes wrong, we'll stop. That way, we can keep him safe."

Jiraiya still seemed hesitant. Minato's life was at stake, after all.

"sigh Then let's have Minato try combination ninjutsu like Nawaki first, so he can get a clear sense of what happens when two kinds of chakra are fused."

"Eh? Do you mean I might be able to develop a Kekkei Genkai too, Shinichi?"

Nawaki, who hadn't been able to join in when it came to practicing ninjutsu, had heard Hyuga Shinichi mention his combination techniques and asked the question that had been on his mind.

"Right. Kekkei Genkai can be inherited, after all. You don't have the talent for Wood Style, but it's still possible for you to develop a new Kekkei Genkai."

Kekkei Genkai were new forms of ninjutsu that a very small number of ninja developed by combining changes in their chakra natures. Once successful, the new technique was recorded in the ninja's genes and passed on to their descendants through blood ties.

And Nawaki's grandfather, Senju Hashirama, had possessed Wood Style, renowned throughout the Shinobi World. Although Nawaki couldn't meet the requirements for developing Wood Style, it wasn't impossible for him to develop a new Kekkei Genkai. The official Naruto novel Akatsuki Hiden even featured a boy who used Mud Release.

"Jiraiya-sensei, I want to try."

After speaking, Namikaze Minato looked at Hyuga Shinichi and smiled brightly.

"And I trust you, Zhenyi. You'd never let anything happen to me."