Samui's Melancholy, Lightning Release Ninja Trait

"What is it?"

"Nothing."

The words reached her lips, but Samui thought of her younger brother's face again.

In the end, she excused herself and left the secret chamber.

If she told Samodo and the higher-ups, they would all see at a glance that the important thing was not those words, but that Yotsuki Kiyoshi was using them as a pretext.

Even if she had not said them, Yotsuki Kiyoshi would have found some other excuse.

At heart, he was simply dissatisfied with the benefits he had been given and wanted to demand more.

And as long as it remained within acceptable limits, the higher-ups would inevitably satisfy him bit by bit for the Uchiha Clan's Kekkei Genkai.

If Kiyoshi truly returned to Kumogakure one day,

she herself would bear a political stain for having said something detrimental to unity.

It would also implicate her younger brother's future. He had only recently become a ninja, and his future was so bright.

Samui suddenly felt irritated and melancholy.

Why did she have to be the one assigned to handle Yotsuki Kiyoshi's affairs? And Yotsuki Kiyoshi had just happened to set his sights on her.

Uchiha Compound, Kiyoshi Residence.

Moonlight spilled across the courtyard as Kiyoshi returned home and pushed open the sliding paper door.

He held two ninjutsu scrolls in his hands.

Reading Comprehension (White) and Basic Memory (White) allowed Kiyoshi to quickly understand the words on the scrolls and memorize the entire contents.

Kiyoshi had long since committed the Lightning Release: Lightning Finger he had obtained earlier to memory.

But he had never actually trained with it. This was his first time beginning Lightning Release ninjutsu training.

For the previous six days, Kiyoshi had been learning E-rank ninjutsu from scratch.

After several days of foundational tree-climbing practice, along with the help of Muscle Memory (White), Kiyoshi had mastered the minimum Chakra control required for E-rank ninjutsu.

The next step was to move on from tree climbing to water walking.

Kiyoshi began extracting the Chakra within his body.

Strands of Chakra were extracted from Kiyoshi Cells and flowed through his meridian system.

No matter what ninjutsu it was, Chakra was needed to drive it.

Even the Eight Gates Formation, the representative of pure taijutsu, still required Chakra to perform.

The first official databook, the Book of Confrontation, stated that the mixture of physical energy and spiritual energy produced by the body's 130 trillion cells was called "Physical Energy."

And Physical Energy was actually what was known as Chakra.

However, to use ninjutsu, one needed to convert Physical Energy into Chakra.

That was why running out of Chakra meant death. In truth, one had simply been worked to death.

In the Shinobi World, everyone possessed Chakra. Even flowers, grass, trees, birds, and beasts possessed Chakra.

Beginning with Boruto, the concept of Planet Chakra had been introduced. The ninjutsu created by the older Boruto, Rasengan: Uzuhiko, used this type of concept.

If Chakra was injected into someone else's body, that Chakra would rotate with the planet's rotation. So long as the planet did not stop rotating, Rasengan: Uzuhiko would never stop.

It was also the most powerful Rasengan in terms of sheer display so far.

Of course, those things were still far too distant for Kiyoshi.

He extended his right index and middle fingers, transforming his non-elemental Chakra into Lightning Release Chakra.

Among Kiyoshi's Chakra natures were four attributes: Lightning, Fire, Yin, and Yang.

Therefore, he had an advantage in learning Lightning Release ninjutsu.

Weak electric currents began to seep bit by bit into the muscles beneath his skin, making his fingers tingle and go numb.

Kiyoshi endured the sensation and continued carefully controlling his Chakra.

Who knew how much time passed? The night was silent, while the shadows of trees outside the courtyard swayed and rustled.

"You have gained the trait: Apprentice Lightning Release Ninja (White)."

Trait: Apprentice Lightning Release Ninja (White)

Requirement: Successfully use a Lightning Release ninjutsu once.

Progress: (Completed).

Effect: Your talent for "Lightning Release" nature transformation increases by 10%.

Note: It can continue to advance in the future.

Advancement Route One: Fuse "Muscle Memory (White)" and "Strong Physique (White)" to advance into "Lightning Release Genin (Green)."

Kiyoshi quietly listened to the voice in his mind and finally gained some understanding of how advancement worked.

Most likely, once he met most of the conditions for advancement, it would reveal the advancement route.

The so-called apprentice probably referred to his current level.

Strictly speaking, ninja students were also referred to as ninja trainees and ninja apprentices.

"Strong Physique... this trait should mean I need to train my body well."

Kiyoshi looked at his body, which had become somewhat stronger than before, and already had an idea.

A mere White trait had increased his talent by 10%. Once he obtained a Green trait, the boost would probably be even greater.

Shortly afterward, Kiyoshi opened the scroll in his hand and prepared to train his second ninjutsu.

Lightning Release: Lightning Finger was an offensive ninjutsu. As long as he could release it, that was enough.

He planned to focus first on the second Lightning Release ninjutsu and strengthen his body.

The deeper a ninja's understanding of ninjutsu and the greater their proficiency, the more power they could unleash.

For example, when Sasuke first learned Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique and when he used it after becoming familiar with it, the size of the fireball was completely different.

"Alright, time to train Lightning Release: Iron Skin."

Hokage's Office Building.

"Hiruzen, Kiyoshi Uchiha must be monitored around the clock."

Shimura Danzō spoke.

More than a month ago, ninjas from the Uchiha Clan had found Kiyoshi Uchiha and brought him into Konoha.

During that time, they had continuously investigated Kiyoshi to determine whether he was a spy.

"Danzō, didn't you send Root's best spy ninja to watch him?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his pipe and exhaled a mouthful of smoke.

The entire Hokage's Office gradually became filled with smoke.

Shimura Danzō frowned slightly.

According to the information from Yakushi Nonō, and based on microexpression observation, Kiyoshi truly was not a spy and had done nothing to betray Konoha.

But Shimura Danzō still could not rest easy.

Not being a spy did not mean he possessed the Will of Fire.

That Uchiha brat was evil by nature, and he also carried the bloodline of those Kumogakure bandits. Just how twisted would he become?

Such an unstable element had to join Root and receive the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal before it would be safe.

"Hiruzen, give Kiyoshi Uchiha to me. I will make him wash away everything from his past and become a new Konoha ninja."

"No. The Uchiha are currently in a delicate situation with the village. This would provoke their dissatisfaction."

Without even thinking, Hiruzen Sarutobi rejected Danzo's proposal.

As someone who had personally experienced the First and Second Shinobi World Wars, he could smell the coming storm.

Kumogakure was building up its military strength and showed signs of dangerous military expansion.

Konoha had only recovered for a few years. If war broke out again, he had a feeling it would be even fiercer than the previous Shinobi World War.

How could they possibly provoke the Uchiha Clan's dissatisfaction now?

The Uchiha Clan's ninjas were an important fighting force for the village.

"Hiruzen!"

Shimura Danzō raised his voice.

"Enough, Danzō. I am the Hokage!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi set down his pipe.

In his view, Danzo's grasp of the bigger picture was far too poor.