Enhancing Chakra Control

On Hokage Rock, Naraku stood atop the head of the Third Hokage, his gaze sweeping across the entire village.

For some reason, during this period following Minato's passing and while Kushina remained in a coma, Naraku often found himself drawn here to stand for a while. Perhaps he wanted to take in the view, or perhaps there were other reasons.

"Yo, Naraku."

Just then, Naraku heard a familiar voice. He looked up to see a green figure standing on the opposite peak, waving at him.

"Guy," Naraku said, a smile appearing as he recognized the visitor.

With a flash of movement, he stood beside Guy a moment later.

"Yosh! Naraku, let us have a youthful duel!" Guy said, his face beaming with joy.

Seeing Naraku reminded him of Kakashi.

A week had passed since Orochimaru's defection, and in that time, Guy hadn't seen Kakashi once.

"That guy Kakashi is really busy," Guy couldn't help but remark to Naraku.

"Kakashi, huh? Perhaps so!" A smile tugged at the corners of Naraku's mouth at the mention of Kakashi.

He knew a little more than Guy did. Just two days ago, Kakashi had sought him out to say he had taken a long leave of absence and might not be seen in the village for a while.

As for what he was actually doing, Kakashi hadn't said, only that he would have a surprise for him when he returned.

Naraku felt good about this. Ever since Minato's death, Kakashi, serving in the Anbu, had been buried in constant missions and had barely rested over the past two years.

The relentless cycle of missions had cost him significant time for training. One had to remember that Kakashi was only in his teens, right in the middle of a growth spurt in terms of strength.

In the original story, Kakashi's strength grew slowly, partly due to the burden of the Sharingan and partly because of his years in the Anbu.

It was clear that Kakashi had realized this himself and had already taken steps to change. With his Sharingan now sealed, Naraku believed Kakashi would surely become someone different than before.

Afterward, Naraku and Guy headed to the village training grounds.

Sparring with a taijutsu master like Guy would also help Naraku improve his own strength.

"Be careful, Naraku," Guy warned before moving to launch an attack.

"Konoha Whirlwind!"

Guy's right leg swung down like a heavy axe. Usually, Naraku would dodge or use ninjutsu to force Guy back, but this time, he opted for a new approach.

"Adamantine Sealing Chains!"

Naraku formed hand seals, and with a soft shout, three pale gold chains erupted from his back.

There was truth to the saying that the fastest way to improve was to fight against the strong.

During his battle with Orochimaru, under that immense pressure, Naraku had improved in every aspect, most notably increasing the number of Adamantine Sealing Chains he could manifest from two to three.

"Kagura Mind Eye, open!"

With the technique active, Naraku closed his eyes. Under his perception, not a single movement of Guy's could remain hidden.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The pale gold chains rang out. One chain whipped toward Guy's attacking leg, while the other two struck toward his body.

Guy showed no panic. Planting his left foot, he spun his entire body, the sheer force breaking free of the chains before they could fully tighten. He then pushed off the ground and retreated, vanishing from his spot.

However, the three chains shifted direction instantly, pursuing Guy to where he had just landed.

"Let me show you the speed of Konoha's Blue Beast!" Guy grinned, revealing his shining white teeth. He moved again, dodging the chains and preparing to strike at Naraku.

Naraku continued to manipulate the chains to entangle him.

Soon, the battle turned into a dance of Guy dodging the chains and trying to close the distance, while Naraku used them to intercept him.

Perhaps to accommodate Naraku, or perhaps to train his own reflexes, Guy never attacked the chains directly, relying solely on his agile body to weave through their reach.

Gradually, Naraku's control over the Adamantine Sealing Chains became more refined. By now, the coordination between the three chains was becoming seamless, and under his command, they attacked Guy from three different directions.

Guy's speed grew faster and faster, until he was little more than a blur.

Even with the combined assault of the three chains, they couldn't even graze his clothes.

When heaven closes a door for you, it also opens a window.

That was Guy. Although he couldn't use ninjutsu, he could undeniably be called a taijutsu genius.

Naraku knew that once Guy fully matured, his taijutsu would be ranked number one in the entire ninja world.

This was a result of both Guy's tireless effort and his inherent talent.

Much like Kakashi—if he had focused solely on taijutsu from a young age like Guy, his future achievements might not have been any lower than Guy's.

Sometimes, direction matters more than effort.

At Konoha Hospital, Naraku returned, drenched in sweat. Though his body felt exhausted, his eyes burned with a brilliant light.

Today's spar with Guy had revealed a new method of training to him.

A method to rapidly increase his chakra control: the Adamantine Sealing Chains were chains formed from chakra, and every time Naraku controlled them, he felt no difference from controlling his chakra.

In fact, there was truly no difference between the two.

He had discovered this today during his sparring session with Guy; at the beginning, he was still somewhat clumsy while manipulating three chains simultaneously, which meant his control over his chakra was not yet strong enough.

The Adamantine Sealing Chains, a special ninjutsu unique to the Uzumaki Clan—this was the very technique Kushina had relied on to suppress the Nine-Tails back then.

The Adamantine Sealing Chains possessed immense potential.

However, upon returning to the hospital, Naraku recalled his previous battle against Orochimaru, where his Adamantine Sealing Chains had been crushed by the man with his bare hands.

He began to ponder the reason for this.

Pale gold chains extended from his back, then drifted in front of Naraku.

Naraku examined the chains carefully.

"Chains, chakra, control," Naraku frowned slightly. He believed the strength of the Adamantine Sealing Chains was definitely more than this; otherwise, how could Kushina have used them to bind the Nine-Tails!

"Chakra, density," suddenly, Naraku's eyes lit up. "It's the density."

"Since the Adamantine Sealing Chains are composed of chakra, wouldn't compressing the density of the chakra increase the strength of the chains?"

Naraku acted as soon as he thought of it. Under his control, he extended the chain by five meters, then closed his eyes and activated his Kagura Mind Eye.

Only this time, he wasn't using it to sense others, but rather focusing all of his attention onto the chain itself.