He shifted the subject, his voice growing deep and distant.
"But what if we stepped outside that framework? What if, instead of changing the 'nature' of chakra, we directly changed the 'rules' that make up this world?"
Sasuke's pupils abruptly contracted.
Change... the rules? What did that mean?
The smile on Toru Kujyo's lips deepened. Looking at the bewildered Sasuke, he slowly uttered a term that instantly brought the boy's brain to a standstill.
"The S-Rank ultimate technique I'm going to teach you falls into a category called-causality."
A breeze swept over the Naka River, carrying the cool touch of moisture, yet it could not dispel the storm raging in Sasuke's heart.
"Causality..."
He turned the word over and over in his mind, a concept utterly beyond his understanding, and his mind went blank. What kind of realm was that? Was it something ninjutsu could even reach? Changing the nature and shape of chakra-that was what ninja did. But changing the very "rules" that made up the world... that was something only gods could do.
He stared at the man before him. Toru Kujyo still looked as languid as ever, the same smile resting on his lips, as though he had merely discussed today's weather rather than voiced a world-shaking theory. That immense contrast made Sasuke feel truly small and powerless for the first time. His lifelong pride, his confidence in his Uchiha bloodline, had been crushed to dust by the word "causality."
"What, scared?" Toru Kujyo withdrew the light at his fingertips and patted Sasuke's shoulder, neither too lightly nor too hard. "Don't overthink it. You eat one bite at a time and walk one step at a time. Right now, you need to build a solid foundation. As for that ultimate technique, once you can last thirty moves