A Senju Descendant, Chibi Tenten

Countless chakra signatures and even the slightest fluctuations of life could not escape his notice.

He was aware of every one of them.

"Cough, cough..."

Outside the door.

A fit of violent coughing.

It left Rikuto feeling somewhat helpless.

He had kept it hidden for so long. Had it finally become impossible to conceal?

"Whoosh..."

With a thought.

He naturally exited Sage Mode.

The green hair spilling over his shoulders began to shorten at a visible rate, returning to its original state.

The green markings around his eyes vanished as well.

He opened the door, and his eyes narrowed.

Even the corridor outside was covered in flowers and green leaves.

Looking at his grandmother, Chiya Nao, who stood in the main room with a shocked expression, he was at a loss for words. "Grandma, you..."

"Wood Release. I never thought I'd see it appear again before I was laid to rest. Cough, cough..."

Chiya Nao stared in disbelief at the flowers and grass covering the floor, then looked blankly at her grandson.

Her wrinkled old face was filled with excitement and complicated emotions.

Her lips trembled as she coughed repeatedly. "I should have realized sooner. Cough, cough. Rikuto, you've awakened Lord Hashirama's Wood Release..."

"Cough, cough. You were born with an enormous amount of chakra and powerful sensory abilities, and your talent for Medical Ninjutsu surpassed even your father Kawasuke's. You perfectly mastered an A-rank Medical Ninjutsu like the Mystical Palm Technique before you were even eight..."

Leaning on her cane and supported by Chiya Rikuto.

She looked at her grandson, who seemed somewhat unfamiliar yet filled her with excitement, and spoke with indescribable emotion. "That chakra, filled with powerful life force, has been sustaining this old woman's life all along!"

Though she was not particularly strong.

She was no ordinary person, having once been an elite chunin in her prime.

Whenever her grandson examined and treated her, how could she possibly have failed to notice anything unusual?

Over the past three years, if he had not supplied her with a steady stream of chakra every day to nourish her body, which had been all but spent, she would probably have passed away long ago.

"Grandma, aren't you curious at all?"

Chiya Rikuto was utterly astonished.

He looked at his grandmother, Chiya Nao, in confusion.

Though she had realized that he had most likely awakened Wood Release and seemed shocked and excited.

She did not seem unable to understand it at all. She was far less curious than he had imagined, and instead seemed to have readily accepted it.

Anyone else would probably have been utterly bewildered and incredulous by now, wouldn't they?

"Cough, cough. There's no need to be surprised..."

Chiya Nao coughed as she looked at the thoroughly confused Chiya Rikuto.

She smiled faintly and said softly, "Your aunt Kaz Matsuri Sonoko and I were both members of the Senju Clan. We simply followed the clan's arrangements and married civilian ninja from the village!"

"What!?"

Chiya Rikuto's eyes widened...

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Chapter 7: A Senju Descendant, Chibi Tenten [Please support]

"What!?"

Chiya Rikuto was stunned.

As he recalled, he had met his aunt Kaz Matsuri Sonoko a few times.

Unfortunately, she had passed away a few years ago.

He had a five-year-old female cousin named Moegi Kazamatsuri, who had not yet formally enrolled in the ninja academy.

But barring any surprises, she would become playmates at the ninja academy with Konohamaru Sarutobi, the grandson of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

What had really concerned Chiya Rikuto all along was this.

If he remembered correctly, his cousin would not only become a jonin instructor in Konoha in the future, but also seemed to possess the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai.

Though she was not particularly strong, it was still quite incredible.

Chiya Rikuto had always found it strange.

He had even secretly wondered whether Moegi Kazamatsuri would undergo some kind of human experimentation in the future, like "Tenzo" of the Anbu, and acquire the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai by having the First Hokage's cells fused into her body.

At that thought, he nodded in realization. "So that's how it is..."

It seemed that the future Moegi Kazamatsuri had most likely awakened Wood Release through her own bloodline, rather than through some experiment involving the fusion of the First Hokage's cells.

But since she was not a reincarnation of Asura's chakra and lacked the power of Yang Release to strengthen it, her Wood Release was limited in power. It was no better than other Kekkei Genkai, and far weaker than that of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju.

He was different.

The power of the Logia-type Woods-Woods Fruit.

Had made Chiya Rikuto an embodiment of nature.

Being equivalent to the "source of life" itself, he had indirectly gained astonishing power over Yang Release.

Thus, aside from his currently insufficient chakra reserves, the Wood Release he wielded was no weaker than the First Hokage's.

Strictly speaking, it was even better.

Not only could he directly plunder other people's chakra and even the nutrients in their bodies to replenish himself, but he could also perfectly fuse different bloodlines to obtain other people's Kekkei Genkai.

What was more, he had perfectly inherited the Senju bloodline and, through the devouring power of the Woods-Woods Fruit, perfectly fused it with the Uchiha bloodline.

He could be said to have easily reached a finish line that countless ninja could never hope to reach in their entire lives.

With his innate talent and comprehension, far beyond those of ordinary people, he was destined to achieve no less than the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, with just a little effort.

Even if he was not a reincarnation of the chakra of Indra or Asura, the two sons of the Sage of Six Paths.

Given time, he might still have a chance to equal or even surpass the First Hokage, the former "god of shinobi."

"Cough, cough, that's right. And I never expected you to perfectly inherit the bloodline of the Senju Clan from birth, Rikuto, with far more chakra than others your age and an astonishing ability to sense chakra. Cough, cough, cough..."

Chiya Nao coughed incessantly.

Her sallow old face was flushed with excitement and joy as she continued, "Even in the Senju Clan at its former peak, only a small number of people possessed such talents and abilities, far beyond those of ordinary people. The most outstanding among them were the First Hokage, Lord Hashirama Senju, and the Second Hokage, Lord Tobirama Senju!"

"But what I expected even less was that you would also awaken the Wood Release of Lord Hashirama, the First Hokage!"

However-

Chiya Nao did not know.

Chiya Rikuto had not only indirectly awakened Wood Release.

But had also just mastered perfect Sage Mode without a teacher.

Otherwise, she would probably have been too shocked to speak.

Time passed bit by bit.

Before they knew it, evening had arrived.

After confirming again and again that her grandson had awakened Wood Release, Chiya Nao had been so moved that tears filled her eyes. Full of excitement, she had kept Chiya Rikuto talking for the entire afternoon.

Ultimately, she was old and had little energy.

After dinner, she could no longer fight her drowsiness and fell sound asleep.

The flowers and grass left behind in the room when he activated Sage Mode had been cleared away at some point, preventing the secret from getting out.

"I've finished the puppet design over the past few days. It's time to try making it!"

Late at night.

Chiya Rikuto had no intention of going out again.

He fetched several pieces of wood, along with paints, brushes, carving knives, and the like, then set to work in his room.

Before him lay a sheet of designs, covered in writing and drawings, with a complex structure.

After poring over puppet books until he knew them inside and out and committing their essential principles to memory.

He had tried designing this puppet himself.

Or rather, it could only be considered a toy puppet.

Once assembled, the puppet he had designed would fit in the palm of his hand.

As a qualified medical ninja who had handled scalpels since childhood, Chiya Rikuto was naturally skilled with a blade.

"Swish... swish..."

His five fingers moved with extreme skill.

Under his flawless blade work, the pieces of wood were carved with exquisite precision.

They became delicate parts of various shapes and sizes.

He began assembling them one by one.

Before long, he had put together two puppet dolls with different appearances.

He even painted them with a brush.

The one on the left had hair buns, a delicate doll-like face, and a cheerful smile.

It was a cute miniature Tenten.

The other was a lovely, cute-looking girl with a ponytail and a butterfly-shaped hair ornament.

In fact, however, the parts inside the joints of these two puppet dolls were extremely intricate.

If enlarged and made with better materials, either would be an outstanding puppet.

Especially once fitted with sharp blades and concealed weapons.

A deadly weapon, without a doubt.

"Whoosh..."

Rikuto held out both hands.

From each fingertip, on both his left and right hands, he released a fine thread of chakra.

They connected to the two puppet dolls in an instant.

Following the steps and key principles of puppet manipulation he had learned from the relevant books, and combining them with his precise chakra control, he began trying to operate them.

"Click... click..."

In an instant.

The two puppet dolls.

Seemed to come alive.

Under his control, they moved with lifelike animation.

They started by swinging their arms and kicking their legs, then went from walking to running, from jumping to rolling...

He could actually control them as he pleased, with apparent ease.

Finally, the two puppet dolls even began dancing gracefully.

It was just like a Naruto version of Gokuraku Jodo.

"Doesn't seem that hard!"