Unlocking Potential

Facing Tsunade and the other senior officials' questioning, Takizawa Dan had already decided what to say. He had worked out his explanation on the way there.

"Lord Hokage, I didn't deliberately conceal this," Takizawa Dan said honestly. "Just two mornings ago, after I got up, I suddenly felt that my physical condition had changed dramatically. The weakness I'd felt before was gone, and I was full of strength. My mind felt as if it had been enhanced, too. I was much sharper."

Takizawa Dan's explanation was half true and half false.

The truth wasn't far off, either. It was just that the system had descended from the heavens and changed his fate.

"Utter nonsense! You're saying you woke up one morning and your physical condition changed, and your mind became clearer?" Danzo sneered as he stood up. "Takizawa Dan, you can't even lie properly! You think we'll believe such a pathetic excuse?"

When Danzo finished speaking, he wasn't the only one. The other officials looked at Takizawa Dan with confusion and suspicion, too.

Even if Takizawa Dan had said some mysterious master had guided him, that would have sounded more believable than claiming he'd woken up one morning with a better body and a sharper mind!

This wasn't some novel. How could anything so bizarre happen?

But despite the doubts filling the room, Takizawa Dan remained composed. He stared without blinking at Tsunade, seated at the head of the room, and said nothing.

His intentions couldn't have been clearer: he would answer Tsunade's questions and ignore the other officials entirely!

Seeing him act this way, a hint of warmth appeared deep in Tsunade's eyes.

Although she was now the Fifth Hokage, the village's highest authority in name, she had only just taken the position, and her foundations were still shaky. Many of the senior officials didn't think much of her.

What's more, Tsunade had spent years gambling and frequenting all sorts of pleasure districts, which had damaged her reputation. It was only thanks to her consideration for the villagers lately that she'd managed to repair it somewhat.

In these circumstances, Takizawa Dan's willingness to come forward, pledge his allegiance, and express his loyalty made Tsunade very happy.

I really hadn't misjudged him!

"Takizawa Dan, is what you've told me true?" Tsunade asked, clearing her throat as she looked at him.

Even she hadn't realized how much gentler her tone toward him had become!

"It's true. If a single word of it is false, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!" Takizawa Dan replied solemnly. "The truth is, this whole thing is so bizarre that even I still don't understand what caused it. I entered the Chunin Ninja Exams hoping everyone would see how I'd changed, so I could report the truth to you, Lord Hokage!"

"Lord Hokage, Takizawa Dan is lying through his teeth. He clearly can't be trusted!" Danzo stepped forward, his face dark as he stared at Takizawa Dan. "Please authorize me to interrogate this boy under torture. I'll make sure we get the truth out of him!"

His expression was so vicious, it looked as if he wanted to devour Takizawa Dan alive!

"Don't be rude, Shimura-kun!" Tsunade snapped, frowning.

"Lord Hokage, you..."

Danzo was stunned. This was the first time Tsunade had ever defied him so openly, let alone shouted at him!

In Konoha, his seniority was on a par with that of the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen. He was a venerable old veteran, and although Tsunade was already fifty, she still ought to address him as Uncle.

That had made Danzo increasingly conceited, and he'd thought less and less of Tsunade.

But what was happening now turned everything he'd believed upside down!

"Takizawa Dan's situation... may sound ridiculous, but it isn't impossible!" Tsunade cleared her throat and raised an arm to press against it before continuing. "When I was a medical ninja, I once encountered a boy like him in another village."

"That boy had been frail since childhood, and his talent was mediocre. He had very little chakra, and nobody thought he could become a ninja."

"But one day, enemies invaded and killed his parents and older sister. Overcome with grief and rage, the boy's power suddenly surged, and he killed the two Chunin responsible for the murders!"

As Tsunade recounted the story, her expression was remarkably calm, as if she were describing something that had nothing to do with her.

The other officials listened intently, their expressions grave.

After all, Tsunade was one of the Sannin. She had saved countless injured people by herself and had been the first to suggest that medical ninjas be assigned to teams. When it came to medical ninjutsu, if Tsunade said she was second, there wasn't anyone in the entire Shinobi World who would dare claim to be first!

"Then... what happened to that boy afterward?"

After a moment of silence, one of the officials finally spoke up, breaking the quiet.

Everyone, including Takizawa Dan, looked at Tsunade curiously.

"That boy died in the end." Tsunade's expression grew heavy. "My theory is that he unlocked his Gene Lock—in other words, he unleashed his potential—and gained incredible power in an instant. The two Chunin who'd committed the murders saw only a child and weren't prepared at all, which was why he managed to kill them with a single strike."

"So that's what it was. The Gene Lock..."

The senior officials nodded, their expressions thoughtful.

What Tsunade said made sense, both emotionally and logically. Besides, she was the Hokage and had no reason to lie, so they believed her.

"Then, Lord Hokage, are you saying Takizawa Dan unlocked this Gene Lock, too?" Danzo's eyes flickered, then he asked Tsunade impassively.

"Correct."

"Then why is Takizawa Dan still standing here, perfectly fine? If that example you described is anything to go by, shouldn't he have died already?"

Hearing Danzo wish him dead, Takizawa Dan cursed him inwardly.

You're the one who should be dead, you old fossil! Hurry up and get in your grave!

"That's why I specifically said it was what happened under normal circumstances," Tsunade said calmly. "The Gene Lock exists to protect humanity. It limits how much energy our bodies consume to what they can bear. It's like the potential of the human brain, which is only about eleven percent developed. Unlocking the Gene Lock is essentially suicide. It burns through a tremendous amount of your life force to temporarily grant you overwhelming power. Afterward, your body simply can't withstand the strain."

"But for years, I've had a theory. What if there were extremely rare people whose bodies were different from ordinary humans? Even after unlocking the Gene Lock, their bodies could still withstand those terrible side effects, allowing them to make unleashing their bodies' full potential a regular part of combat. Wouldn't they become ninjas more powerful than any the world had ever seen?"