Human Brain Walkie-Talkie

"Boom!"

As if an earthshaking roar had come from the depths of an endless starry sky, setting the entire universe ablaze and boiling over, Kato Xu's soul seemed to shatter completely in that instant. An extreme pain seized him, as though it would make his whole body convulse.

His eyes flew open.

"Aah!!"

A long, agonized cry seemed to carry some peculiar ripple with it as a massive shockwave rapidly erupted from the small building.

Nocturnal beasts had been greedily feeding on sweet tubers, but they swiftly vanished into the forest as if they had seen something terrifying, squeaking and hissing as they fled.

A mountain owl perched atop a giant tree, starlight reflected in its sharp eyes. With a beat of its wings, it streaked through the night sky and vanished.

"What happened to me...?"

Kato Xu came back to his senses. His body floated in midair, and he struggled to keep himself balanced as he slowly descended to the ground.

His gaze fell on the little attic. He gently opened its small door, yet somehow stirred up a breeze that slipped inside.

The attic was filled with all kinds of objects, lined up row after row on wooden shelves along the steps.

At the very top were mottled swords and blades, a nearly rotten orange-red wooden comb, and shattered armor. The marks left by time upon them seemed so heavy.

On the lowest shelf lay only several Kunai and shuriken.

Kato Xu could sense that these were all objects that had once contained soul fragments, yet now they were slowly turning to ash in the breeze.

The little weather doll in his hand also turned into drifting sand, slowly slipping away through his fingers as if there were no saving it.

Each time an item vanished completely, an unfamiliar face appeared before him.

A woman in a crimson robe had a head of glossy black hair. A man clad in armor had a face full of wrinkles. A kindly old woman carried three long swords at her waist...

Their gazes seemed to cross endless time and space before settling on Kato Xu. They smiled softly, then slowly faded into the breeze.

Kato Xu bowed slightly to them...

Figure after figure flickered before Kato Xu's eyes. He did not know their names, nor did he know what they had experienced, but he could feel the final thoughts they had left behind in this world.

Until Kato Xu's parents appeared, followed by Uncle Dan, Uncle Yuan...

Only when the entire attic had fallen completely still did Kato Xu slowly emerge from his thoughts.

"When the last person in this world who remembers you also passes away, then the entire universe will no longer have anything to do with you."

Kato Xu slowly rose to his feet. He stared out the window as a dim soul flame appeared in his hand.

"Sorry, someone's here..."

"This ripple..."

Konoha had many powerful clans. Among them, the Uchiha Clan and Hyuga Clan stood at the very pinnacle. Below them, the Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi Clans had been close allies for generations and were the most loyal supporters of Konoha's Hokage lineage.

The Nara Clan, which specialized in Yin Release, excelled in Shadow Techniques. The Akimichi Clan, which specialized in Yang Release, excelled in the Multi-Size Technique. The seemingly least remarkable Yamanaka Clan was similar to the Kato Clan, basing itself on a branch of soul techniques—the Mind Body Switch Technique.

Yamanaka Inoichi, the current head of the Yamanaka Clan, had only taken over as clan head two or three years ago, yet he was already a renowned Jonin of the Yamanaka Clan.

At that moment, Yamanaka Inoichi, who had just fallen asleep, abruptly woke from his dream. When it came to familiarity with spiritual and soul fluctuations, no one in the entire Yamanaka Clan understood them better than he did.

A soul shockwave had silently swept across all of Konoha just moments ago...

As the captain of Konoha ANBU's Analysis Team, he could not possibly ignore it...

"It seems to have come from near Training Ground Five..."

Following the final traces left by the soul shockwave, Yamanaka Inoichi quickly raced toward Training Ground Five.

"Inuzuka Tsume..."

Yamanaka Inoichi confirmed that his senses had not been wrong. On his way to Training Ground Five, he encountered Inuzuka Tsume, a Special Jonin of the Inuzuka Clan.

With a black-furred hunting dog beside her, Inuzuka Tsume gave Yamanaka Inoichi a grave look as well.

"Jonin Inoichi, you noticed it too?"

Inuzuka Tsume and Yamanaka Inoichi exchanged a glance. As if they had both thought of something, their expressions grew even more solemn.

"Kuromaru has been barking nonstop. Something seems to be making him restless..."

"It's a soul fluctuation..."

"There was a faint soul fluctuation. Judging by its trajectory, it swept across all of Konoha..."

"I've already sent someone to inform Lord Hokage..."

The two moved through the treetops. In barely more than ten minutes, they traced the source to the Kato Clan's training ground.

A faint blue glow flashed past, then disappeared without a trace, like an illusion.

"This is... the Kato Clan's training ground..."

It seemed he had not heard that name in a very long time. Yamanaka Inoichi visibly froze for a moment.

"This place should have been abandoned long ago... shouldn't it?"

"No, the little girl at Lady Tsunade's side is also a member of the Kato Clan..."

The two concealed their presence and slowly approached the small bamboo building.

"There's someone inside..."

Inuzuka Tsume gently stroked Kuromaru's head. Kuromaru shot into the bamboo building like a streak of black light, but his sharp barking rang out only twice before abruptly stopping.

"Kuromaru!"

Seeing this, Inuzuka Tsume vanished from where she stood with a Body Flicker Technique.

Yamanaka Inoichi lightly touched his forehead with one hand, linking his consciousness with Inuzuka Tsume's.

"Who are you?"

The blue soul flame had erased every trace of where the soul fragments had once existed. Kato Xu looked at the woman before him with a slightly gloomy expression.

"Kuromaru!"

The large black dog lay motionless on the ground, making Inuzuka Tsume's gaze turn several degrees colder as she stared fixedly at Kato Xu.

"Tsume! Don't act rashly!"

Yamanaka Inoichi's voice rang out in Inuzuka Tsume's mind, allowing her to calm down slightly as she silently examined the child before her.

"Someone disguised as a Konoha ninja..."

She had never seen this child before. Yet among children his age in Konoha, there should not have been anyone capable of releasing such a spiritual shockwave.

"I've seen plenty of spies who infiltrated Konoha, but I've never encountered one as bold as you..."

"If I said I wasn't a spy, I suppose neither of you would believe me..."

"Your ninja registration number..."

Inuzuka Tsume restrained herself and did not attack for the moment, though she had already nearly confirmed that this child was a spy.

Kuromaru was familiar with the scent of most ninjas in the village. He would never have actively attacked a Konoha ninja. Looking at Kuromaru lying on the ground, if she had not been able to sense that he was still alive, she would have attacked long ago.

Kato Xu said nothing. He had no ninja registration number.

In Root, there was no need for such things...

"Hmph. Brat, you can try resisting if you want to die..."

Inuzuka Tsume had already confirmed her suspicion. A Kunai shot toward Kato Xu, while an angry roundhouse kick followed from below.

"You dared lay a hand on Kuromaru? You're asking to die!"

For some reason, Kato Xu had the illusion that he could dodge it. Inuzuka Tsume's movements as a Special Jonin did not seem as swift as he had imagined.

After undergoing that strange experience, something akin to receiving an inheritance, his reactions and spiritual power were no longer what they had once been.

"Stop!" Yamanaka Inoichi's voice suddenly rang out in Inuzuka Tsume's mind, and her movements faltered.

Noticing the change in Inuzuka Tsume's movements, Kato Xu shifted his feet slightly. Accompanied by a rushing whistle of wind, Inuzuka Tsume's shin swept past his ear by a distance so small it was nearly imperceptible.

A heavy stomp sent bamboo splinters flying from the floor of the small bamboo building.

"Jonin Inuzuka Tsume... stop..."

The Third Hokage's voice inexplicably appeared in Inuzuka Tsume's mind, turning all her doubts into respect.

"This child is called Kato Xu. He was registered as a Genin today, so he does not have a ninja registration number yet..."

"As for the unusual fluctuation, I will summon him personally..."

The Third Hokage had not expected Kato Xu to cause trouble again on his very first day after leaving Root. One hand lightly touched the forehead of a Yamanaka Clan Chunin, and like a long-distance call, the two Yamanaka clansmen became mouthpieces relaying messages.

"Yes, Lord Hokage!"

A flash of blue passed through Kato Xu's eyes. He saw Yamanaka Inoichi's and Inuzuka Tsume's spiritual energies linked together through chakra.

Yamanaka Inoichi's spiritual power was exceedingly strong, more than four or five times greater than Inuzuka Tsume's. After linking with her spiritual energy, his spiritual power resembled a signal transmitter, constantly radiating fluctuations at a particular frequency.

"A portable mobile wireless signal transceiver—otherwise known as a walkie-talkie..."