Rinto traveled south for four full days.
He avoided villages, towns, and main roads, choosing only remote mountains and wilderness. When thirsty, he scooped up cold stream water; when hungry, he caught a pheasant or rabbit. At night, he made do in a sheltered rock crevice, setting off again before dawn. The mountain wind stung the wound on his arm. Whenever he moved too sharply, the scab split and healed again. His bandages had long since hardened with blood, tugging painfully at his skin, but he only changed the medicine carelessly during breaks and wound on a couple of fresh layers. His mind was not on the wound at all.
Two things occupied his thoughts day and night.
One was that seamless switching between the five attributes had worked. The next tough nut to crack was attribute fusion for Kekkei Genkai. The Lava Release and Explosion Release he had made before used fixed configurations engraved in advance; fundamentally, they still involved switching and reconstructing single-attribute structures. True Kekkei Genkai, however, required the precise, synchronized fusion of two chakra attributes to produce an entirely new nature transformation-water and wind became Ice Release, fire and earth became Lava Release, and water and fire became Boil Release. That was what would truly overturn the Shinobi World's rules: with his configurations, even a Genin who could barely combine two attributes could casually unleash Kekkei Genkai that were supposed to be monopolized by bloodlines.
The other was how to deal once and for all with those flies that refused to leave him alone. That night in the mine had thoroughly woken him up-hiding would not work. Konoha must have put the highest possible bounty on him. Publicly, it was a hunt for a rogue ninja; behind the scenes, Danzo, the Third, and even the other four great shinobi villages were searching for him like mad. Before, he had always preferred avoiding trouble, content simply to drive them off. All that had earned him was their pushing further, charging right up to his workbench to destroy the things he had spent over a decade accumulating, things as precious as his life. He could not remain passive this time. He had to build his walls first. Whoever dared step inside again would leave their life behind.
On the evening of the fourth day, he finally found a place to stay that suited him.
It was a natural limestone cavern halfway up a cliff, its entrance thoroughly concealed by hanging vines and jumbled rocks. Only a narrow stone path led up to it, with a sheer drop on one side-easy to defend, hard to attack. A dozen or so meters inside, the cavern opened up, dry and level. Its walls were hard limestone, so he did not have to fear a blowout. There was even a small side chamber deeper inside, perfect for storing his blueprints and materials, beyond the reach of the wind.
Instead of rushing to set up his workbench, he spent an entire night laying down overlapping defenses. Throughout the forest, mountain paths, and cliff faces within three li of the cavern, he placed sensing anchors and trigger traps-Explosion Release stones that detonated underfoot, paralyzing Lightning Release that disabled on contact, and scrambled-frequency anchors that disrupted sensing. The moment any living creature with chakra intruded, he would detect it from three li away. At the entrance, he added three layers of concealment barriers, sealing in the light and chakra fluctuations so thoroughly that even a top sensory ninja might notice nothing standing at the foot of the cliff.
By the time he finished engraving the final trap, dawn had broken. He ate two half-cooked roast pheasants before taking the pack off his back. Finding a flat stalactite platform, he wiped it clean, covered it with oilpaper, and made it into a temporary workbench. As before, he wrapped his core experiment records, drafts, and old notebooks of discarded designs in three layers of oilpaper, locked them in a waterproof bag, and kept them within reach, never letting them out of sight.
This time, he did not touch the Kekkei Genkai fusion blueprints first. Instead, he settled down and made a batch of serious defensive gear.
First came two concealment rings, engraved with suppression configurations that reduced his chakra fluctuations to those of rocks and vegetation. Even when he scanned himself with a sensing anchor, he detected only the presence of a "lifeless object." Never mind ordinary sensory ninja-even a specialized tracking squad might fail to pinpoint him.
Next came wrist guards. He completely revised the defensive configuration Kabuto had given him, adding Earth Release hardening, Wind Release force dispersal, and Lightning Release backlash. They could withstand Jonin-level ninjutsu bombardment head-on. He would no longer have to block kunai with his bare arm to protect his blueprints, as he had in the mine.
Last came over a dozen disposable burst crystal jades. He engraved combined five-attribute attacks into the tiny pieces of jade. No hand seals or chakra control were necessary-crush one, and it exploded. Earth Release blocked the road, Lightning Release paralyzed, Wind Release broke defenses, Fire Release burned the area, and Explosion Release finished things off. Even an elite Jonin would be half-crippled after taking that sequence.
All of that cost another full day. Only after securing the gear close to his body did he breathe easier. At least when pursuers came again, he would not have to fight with his hands tied, protecting his blueprints while dividing his attention in battle, much less be forced to blow up his laboratory and flee.
Once he finally calmed down, spread out his rough paper, and began working through the logic of Kekkei Genkai fusion, he discovered that it was more than an order of magnitude harder than switching between five attributes.
His previous dynamic reconstruction had been "demolish the old, build the new," processing only one attribute structure at a time. It had gone smoothly. Kekkei Genkai fusion, however, required two completely different attribute structures to activate and circulate in sync within the same medium, then fuse precisely. The slightest error in their ratio or a timing discrepancy of even one ten-thousandth of a second would either make the fusion fail to produce a Kekkei Genkai effect or cause the two chakra attributes to collide and blow up on the spot.
"Fuck. Harder than I thought." Biting his pen, he knitted his brows tightly, sketching one parallel anchor structure after another and crossing each out. How should he arrange the channels for two sets of anchors running in sync? Putting them together caused interference; separating them made the fusion fall out of sync. Then there were the fusion ratios: Ice Release needed seven parts water to three parts wind, while Lava Release needed four parts fire to six parts earth. How could he embed those ratios into the primer so it automatically adapted to different Kekkei Genkai?
He dug out the old notebook he had salvaged from the fire. It recorded the pitfalls he had encountered while engraving his first Lava Release configuration, along with the composite wind, earth, and Magnet Release structures copied from Shukaku's scroll. He turned through it page by page, fingertips tracing the yellowed paper as he muttered constantly. His earlier fixed Kekkei Genkai configurations had hard-coded fusion logic into their patterns. What he wanted now was dynamic, switchable Kekkei Genkai fusion-the equivalent of cramming dozens of Kekkei Genkai configurations into one tiny medium and driving them with the same adaptive logic.
He drew, revised, and discarded designs for two entire nights before finally smoothing out the core framework. He did not need two parallel sets of anchors. He could still use his earlier adaptive primer: identify the two injected chakra attributes first, automatically match the corresponding fusion ratio and anchor structure, then build the structure while completing the fusion in a single channel. That would avoid taking up space with extra anchors while ensuring synchronized timing.
The theory worked. All that remained was engraving it and giving it a try. He did not dare use his dwindling supply of top-grade starfall iron. Instead, he took an ordinary piece of crystal jade and engraved a simplified Ice Release fusion configuration, testing only water and wind to get the most basic logic running first.
He was especially careful while engraving. Crystal jade was brittle and more prone to breaking than starfall iron. Too light a stroke would not cut deep enough; too heavy, and it would crack. Holding his breath, his fingertips perfectly steady, he spent over half an hour finishing the simplified configuration.
Holding the crystal jade, he walked to the rock wall at the very back of the cavern, drew a deep breath, and simultaneously injected water- and wind-attribute chakra.
The primer responded instantly, identifying both attributes at once. Anchors rapidly formed, and chakra fused precisely inside the channel. Bone-piercing cold immediately poured from the jade. With a flick of his fingers, an Ice Release: Icicle Bullet shot out and slammed into the wall, instantly spreading a thick sheet of solid ice that froze even the cracks in the rock.
It worked!
Rinto's eyes lit up. No blowout, no failed fusion. He had truly achieved Kekkei Genkai attribute fusion through dynamic reconstruction. Moreover, he did not need to engrave a fixed configuration in advance. Injecting the corresponding pair of chakra attributes automatically produced the corresponding Kekkei Genkai effect.
He did not stop. Taking hold of the crystal jade again, he injected fire- and earth-attribute chakra this time. Scalding lava instantly sprayed from his fingertips and struck the wall, melting the hard limestone with a sizzling hiss and white smoke. Lava Release worked too. He switched to water and fire, and Boil Release's hot mist spread instantly, scorching even the stone walls until they cracked.
All three Kekkei Genkai worked.
Holding that tiny piece of crystal jade, he stood stunned for quite a while, then suddenly laughed and swore, "Fuck." Back in Konoha, he had spent months figuring out the fixed Lava Release configuration. Now, with this adaptive fusion logic, he could simply switch to two different attributes and generate the corresponding Kekkei Genkai without even redrawing the blueprints.
Before his excitement faded, the sensing anchors three li outside the cavern suddenly began vibrating one after another. Not just one presence-over a dozen disorderly chakra signatures were approaching through the mountain hollow. Their chakra fluctuations varied widely. They were not regular village forces, more like a ragtag band, and they were heading straight for his cliff.
Rinto frowned immediately. The smile vanished from his eyes, leaving only coldness. He had only just finished setting his traps, and already some fools were blundering into them?
He did not panic. First, he carefully packed the crystal jade, blueprints, and experiment records into his waterproof bag and put it on his back. Then he slipped the newly made burst crystal jades into his pocket before strolling to the entrance and lifting the vines to look outside.
In the dense forest at the foot of the mountain, over a dozen ninja in assorted clothing were edging toward the cliff with sensing instruments, cursing as they went. "Damn it, why aren't the sensors reacting? The intel said that brat was hiding around here!"
"Cut the crap. Konoha's offering five million ryo alive, or three million for his corpse with the documents. That's enough to live it up for the rest of our lives. Search carefully!"
"I heard this brat can throw out Kekkei Genkai at will. Creepy stuff. Be careful, all of you. Don't get yourselves sunk in a gutter."
So they were bounty hunters after the reward. Rinto's lips twitched into a cold expression. Perfect. He could test his new traps and gear, and send the underworld a message while he was at it—anyone who wanted his bounty should first consider whether they had the life to collect it.
He stayed still, leaning against a rock at the entrance as he watched them step into his trap perimeter.
The three at the front had barely crossed the forest's warning line when lightning suddenly lit the stones beneath their feet. High-intensity Lightning Release erupted instantly. Before they could even scream, all three fell convulsing to the ground, foaming at the mouth. The sensing instruments in their hands exploded under the electrical current.
"Traps! Watch out!" the lead bounty hunter shouted. Before his voice faded, over a dozen Wind Release blades suddenly flew from a nearby tree trunk, instantly slashing two men who failed to react until they were covered in wounds and collapsed, unable to rise.
The rest panicked at once. Before they could form defensive hand seals, the ground beneath them exploded. An Explosion Release shock wave carrying shattered stone hurled four or five of them into the air. They slammed into rocks and died on the spot.
In less than a minute, more than half the group had fallen. Only four remained standing, their faces white. They had nearly been wiped out without even glimpsing Rinto. None dared charge farther. They turned to run.
"Since you're here, don't leave."
Rinto's voice drifted down from the cliff, light yet bone-chillingly cold. He raised his fingers, sending Wind Release blades slashing out in succession. They precisely cut off the men's retreat, forcing them back toward the stone path on the cliff.
Cornered, the bounty hunters could only steel themselves and charge up the path, hoping to gamble on catching Rinto for the money. But they had climbed only a few meters when he casually sent down an Ice Release attack. The path instantly froze into a mirror-smooth surface too slippery to stand on. Lightning Release immediately spread down the ice, numbing their hands and feet. Unable to hold on to the rocks, they plunged straight off the cliff, dozens of meters high, their screams carrying far through the valley.
The whole valley soon fell quiet, leaving only the rustle of mountain wind through the vines. Rinto surveyed the wreckage below and frowned, but neither went down to inspect it nor finished anyone off. He had no interest in exterminating them. He only wanted those hiding in the shadows to know what happened to anyone who came looking for trouble with him.
He turned back into the cavern, closed the entrance barrier, and sat at the stone platform. The fight left his mind in a second, replaced entirely by the details of his Ice Release fusion. The Ice Release he had casually thrown out still had a slight error in its fusion ratio. Its burst of cold was a little weak. He needed to adjust the primer's ratio adaptation again.
He picked up his charcoal pencil and was just about to revise the parameters when the outermost sensing anchor vibrated again. Two chakra signatures that had stayed far away earlier, not daring to approach, were now scrambling out of the mountains. They were two bounty hunters lucky enough to have survived.
Rinto did not pursue them. Good. Let them spread the word, so fools would stop coming to their deaths every few days and wasting his research time.
Over the next few days, the cavern remained peaceful, with no more fools disturbing him. The outer sensing anchors occasionally vibrated, but only for passing wild animals or scouts who took one look from afar and fled in fright. No one dared enter his trap perimeter again.
At last, he had an uninterrupted stretch of time and plunged into researching Kekkei Genkai fusion. From basic two-attribute Kekkei Genkai to more complex composite attributes, he refined the logic on paper and engraved simplified versions on crystal jade for trial and error. When they exploded, he revised them; after revising, he tested again. The discarded drafts in his pocket grew thicker, and his understanding of attribute fusion deepened.
During that time, Kabuto's chakra lingered once near the edge of a town dozens of li away. He did not dare approach, staying half a day before leaving. Whether he had come for information or to deliver something was unknown. Rinto noticed but did not care. As long as Kabuto did not come in and bother him, he could wander wherever he liked.
One problem, however, grew increasingly troublesome: he was running out of materials. Fewer than five pieces of the top-grade starfall iron Kabuto had delivered remained. He had worn out nearly a whole box of diamond engraving tips, and consumables such as charcoal pencils, rough paper, and conductive crystal jade were nearly exhausted too. He had long since spent all his money. The little he had earned selling small ninja tools on the black market was not enough to buy even half a piece of starfall iron.
He could hardly return to a town crawling with all sorts of people just for materials. If someone targeted him again, it would mean another heap of trouble. Besides, the materials available on the black market were nowhere near pure enough. Engraving delicate fusion configurations on them could easily make them break.
Leaning against the rock wall, Rinto stared at the discarded drafts in his hands and pondered with a frown. He could not stay holed up in this cavern forever. Once his materials ran out, even the best ideas would be impossible to engrave. Yet he could not enter the territories of the Five Great Nations. Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure were all searching for him; going there would be walking into a trap. The little border towns did not sell the top-grade materials he needed, and visiting them could easily expose his whereabouts.
As he pondered, the sensing anchor on the stone platform suddenly vibrated. It was not an outer trap being triggered. The scattered anchors he had placed dozens of li away to monitor movements over a wide area had detected a large-scale chakra movement-at least twenty elite ninja were heading in this direction. Their chakra was orderly and cold: Danzo's Root, along with Konoha Anbu.
Rinto's expression darkened instantly.
Had those bounty hunters failed to spread his ruthless reputation? Or did Konoha simply not care, determined to capture him? No, their route wasn't aimed at his cavern at all. They were heading for the southern border, apparently only passing through these mountains.
Frowning, he sensed them carefully. Among their chakra signatures were those of the Sealing Squad, as well as numerous sealing implements. They did not seem to be specifically searching for him. It looked more like another mission.
What could be happening south of the Land of Rivers to make Konoha send such a force?
After pondering for a while, Rinto suddenly remembered something Kabuto had occasionally mentioned back in Konoha's Research and Development Department. A major underground auction was coming up at the black market in the southern Land of Rivers. Many valuable things would be auctioned, including Tailed Beast chakra samples, Kekkei Genkai cells, top-grade forging materials from across the Shinobi World, and even fragments of the Six Paths Tools.
Could these Root operatives be heading for the auction?
His eyes suddenly lit up. An auction? Wouldn't that have the top-grade materials he needed? There might even be things he had never dared dream of before, like Tailed Beast chakra samples that could help him unravel more complex attribute-fusion logic.
But the risk was great too. An underground auction at that level would surely gather forces from across the Shinobi World. People from Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure would attend. Orochimaru's people would certainly be there, perhaps even Akatsuki scouts, all after the valuables. Showing himself would be putting himself right under every faction's nose. Leaving afterward would be difficult.
Rinto tightened his grip on his engraving knife, then looked at the few pieces of starfall iron remaining in his bag and the half-finished Kekkei Genkai fusion blueprint. He gritted his teeth.
Go.
If he did not go, once his materials ran out, he would be stuck in the mountains, unable to do anything. If he went, not only could he obtain the materials he needed, he might also acquire more valuable samples. Even with the risk, it was better than sitting there exhausting his supplies.
Besides, he now had concealment rings, defensive ninja tools, seamless five-attribute switching, and the ability to unleash Kekkei Genkai at will. If he hid well and left as soon as he got his things, he might not be discovered. Even if someone did target him, he could simply fight his way out. Whoever blocked him would get blown up.
Having decided, he first wrapped his core blueprints, experiment records, and most important configuration drafts in oilpaper, hiding them in a rock crevice deep inside the cavern. He laid overlapping concealment and explosive traps-anyone who dared touch them would be blasted to ash. They absolutely could not fall into anyone else's hands.
He took only his essential engraving knives, a few pieces of starfall iron, defensive ninja tools, and the five-attribute starfall iron ring, hiding them close to his body. He also put on the concealment rings and activated their suppression configurations, completely suppressing his chakra fluctuations and even softening his breathing.
Before leaving, he took one last look at the cavern that had let him stay in peace for nearly ten days and checked his traps once more. Only then did he lift the vines and leave. A few bounds took him down the cliff and into the dense forest, heading toward the southern black market.
He had no interest in the great shinobi villages' damned affairs, nor did he want to seize any Six Paths Tools. He only wanted enough top-grade materials to return safely and thoroughly refine his Kekkei Genkai fusion configurations. If anyone dared block his way or scheme against him at the auction, he did not mind giving them a proper taste of dynamic Kekkei Genkai fusion.