Chakra Nature

In the morning, the Third Hokage informed Ueno Kei of the general location of his residence. At the time, Ueno Kei had imagined how grand the Third Hokage's home might be.

Now that he had stepped inside, Ueno Kei was still slightly surprised. Of course, it wasn't the size of the house that shocked him—for the shadow of a village, a large residence was hardly excessive. What surprised Ueno Kei was the antiquity of the place; it looked as if it had been built decades ago.

As far as Ueno Kei knew, the area where the Third Hokage's residence was located had undergone numerous expansions and renovations over the past decade, yet this house showed no signs of any such work.

Passing through the main gate and navigating several corridors, Ueno Kei arrived before a room illuminated by the faint glow of candlelight.

They aren't even using the lights! Ueno Kei shook his head slightly. Indeed, after entering, he hadn't spotted a single light source in the house; it was pitch black.

If not for the excellent vision of a ninja and the brilliant moonlight that night, Ueno Kei would have been completely disoriented.

Gently pushing open the door, the figure of the Third Hokage came into Ueno Kei's view. The Third Hokage was still wearing his Hokage attire.

He was buried in the documents on his desk, which appeared to be quite numerous.

Ueno Kei tried his best to remain silent, walking in quietly, closing the door, and kneeling on the tatami mat not far from the Third Hokage.

When it came to this kneeling posture, Ueno Kei was extremely unaccustomed to it. In his previous life, he had never developed such a habit, but the people in this world seemed to view kneeling as incredibly important, doing so on many occasions.

It wasn't that Ueno Kei had never seen it before; in his past life, kneeling was also popular in ancient times, but in modern society, it was rarely seen in daily life.

However, when in Rome, do as the Romans do. No matter how uncomfortable he felt, Ueno Kei had to slowly get used to it. Besides, one couldn't exactly sit with legs splayed in front of an elder; that would be far too disrespectful.

After about a quarter of an hour, the Third Hokage stopped his work and slowly raised his head. In truth, the moment Ueno Kei had entered the gate, the Third Hokage had already sensed his chakra.

It wasn't that the Third Hokage did so intentionally; rather, powerful individuals were always sensing their surroundings. The sudden appearance of another person's chakra was something they were highly sensitive to.

This was a habit honed through years of combat and experience.

Ueno Kei sat quietly, not making a sound. Seeing the Third Hokage put down his work and look up, Ueno Kei immediately bowed slightly, lowered his head, and said, "Sarutobi-sensei!"

The Third Hokage nodded slightly and said, "Hmm, how was it, Kei? How did your first time in the Anbu feel?"

"Very good, and also not so good," Ueno Kei said slowly after careful consideration. A hint of a smile appeared on the Third Hokage's age-spotted face, and he nodded slightly.

Although Ueno Kei's answer was vague, the Third Hokage understood the meaning behind his words perfectly well.

"Hmm, that's good. The Anbu is a place that really tempers a person. I had you join the Anbu for that very reason. Akamatsu is a very experienced ninja; you should learn well from him."

"Yes, Sarutobi-sensei!"

"Kei, try this first." The Third Hokage curled his finger slightly, and a small white slip of paper flew out. Ueno Kei was momentarily stunned, but it lasted only an instant before he reached out to catch the flying paper.

"Sarutobi-sensei, what is this?" Ueno Kei asked with a look of confusion.

"Hmm, this is Chakra Nature Paper. You don't know your own chakra nature yet; this can determine it for you."

"Oh." Ueno Kei suddenly realized. He knew a little about chakra natures; among the basic knowledge of chakra, there was a classification of natures. The common ones were the five elements: Fire, Water, Wind, Lightning, and Earth. This was also the origin of the five great ninja villages and the five Kage.

Furthermore, one could perform corresponding elemental ninjutsu based on their chakra nature. As for the Three Body Technique and sword techniques he had learned so far, they had little to do with chakra nature.

The same applied to genjutsu; different natures did not affect the execution of taijutsu or genjutsu, only ninjutsu.

Of course, as far as Ueno Kei was concerned, that was all he knew.

Regarding other things like Yin-Yang release or natural energy, Ueno Kei was currently unaware. After all, having just entered the profession of a ninja, there was still so much for him to learn.

Ueno Kei looked at the slip of paper in his hand with curiosity, feeling quite interested that such a small piece of paper could determine a ninja's chakra nature.

The Third Hokage said calmly, "Hold one corner of the Chakra Nature Paper with your hand, then slowly channel your chakra into it."

Ueno Kei nodded and did as the Third Hokage instructed. As he slowly channeled his chakra into the paper, the entire slip first wrinkled, then suddenly burst into flames, turning into ash.

Ueno Kei was slightly startled. Why did it suddenly catch fire? Although the small flame was nothing in his eyes, Ueno Kei, caught off guard, was still slightly taken aback.

At the same time, seeing the change in the paper, the Third Hokage's eyes brightened. Ueno Kei didn't understand the significance of this change, but the Third Hokage knew it very well. Of course, anyone who had been a ninja for a few years would understand what this meant.

It meant that Ueno Kei was born with two chakra natures, which was considered a genius-level talent among ordinary people. After all, most ninjas were born with only one chakra nature, and only after reaching the Jonin level would they attempt to refine a second or even a third.

However, there was still a gap between those refined later and those possessed from birth.

Of course, it wasn't that one couldn't use ninjutsu of a nature they weren't born with, but it consumed more chakra to perform, and the power was not as great as when performed with the corresponding nature.

The reason Jonin sought to refine a second or third nature was to reduce the chakra consumption and slightly increase the power when using ninjutsu of other elements.

After all, except for those born with massive amounts of chakra, most ninjas did not have large reserves, so they had to be careful when using ninjutsu. Still, refined chakra natures could never compare to those present from birth.

Therefore, in this regard, Ueno Kei could be considered a genius.

In the ninja world, some ninja clans possessed Kekkei Genkai formed by the fusion of two innate chakra natures. For example, the fusion of Water and Wind created Ice Release, like the Yuki Clan of the Land of Water.

The fusion of Water and Earth created Wood Release, like the Senju Clan of the Land of Fire, with the First Hokage of Konoha, Senju Hashirama, as the primary representative.

Of course, it didn't mean that a ninja born with two chakra natures would necessarily have a special Kekkei Genkai; there was no inevitable connection between the two.

However, it was certain that a ninja born with two natures would have a better foundation for ninjutsu than others.

Seeing Ueno Kei's puzzled expression, the Third Hokage explained, "The paper wrinkling and then burning means, Kei, that you possess both Lightning and Fire chakra natures."