Chapter 145: The Mystery of the Secret Technique (Part 2)
"But Uncle Shikaku, the real reason you had me join Captain Duy wasn't… wasn't…"
As he listened to Shikaku's explanation, Koshino was taken aback. So it turned out that Might Duy mentoring him had been at Shikaku's request all along.
Meanwhile, seeing Koshino's stunned and slightly deflated expression, Shikaku couldn't help but find it a little funny.
And after spending days tied up with frontline matters, Shikaku realized he hadn't had a proper heart-to-heart with Koshino in a long time. So he pushed aside thoughts of the ongoing war for now and sat down beside him, speaking slowly:
"That's right, Koshino."
"Back then, when Blade Squad got ambushed by Mist ninja, my original plan was to place you in another elite team to support our village in the war against the Mist."
"But, Koshino—your growth was just too fast."
"Rapid growth has its advantages, but also its downsides. So I decided to use Duy's training methods to temper you a bit."
"What I didn't expect was that under Duy's guidance, you'd actually achieve another breakthrough."
"And from that moment on, I realized putting you in Duy's care had been the right call all along. The results speak for themselves—Duy truly is an excellent captain."
"But…"
Shikaku paused for a moment, and his expression suddenly grew serious.
"But, Koshino, during that skirmish with the Mist ninja, your chakra was only slightly depleted—just slightly—and yet you collapsed like that. It scared the hell out of me."
"Koshino, you have to understand—you're not just my nephew. You're a gifted shinobi. You're also the future hope of the Nara Clan. But on a chaotic battlefield, who can guarantee you'll never overexert your chakra again? If we have control over the situation, maybe it's manageable. But what if you run out of chakra in the middle of a fight with an enemy ninja and lose your combat ability? What if you die on the battlefield?"
"Ever since you collapsed from that little bit of chakra depletion, I've been trying to come up with a way to solve that problem."
"Unfortunately, even though the Nara Clan is well-versed in medical knowledge and holds countless secret remedies, there's still nothing we can do about the negative effects of chakra overexertion."
"Worse still, repeated overuse of chakra will definitely leave lingering damage within your body. And if that hidden damage ends up ruining your talent—then I'm sure not just me, but Minato, and even Lord Third, would all be heartbroken."
"In the end, after racking my brain for an entire day, I realized there was only one person who could help me—who could help you, Koshino, eliminate this hidden threat."
"That person is the one who holds the key to the Body's Hidden Gates."
"Your captain."
"Might Duy."
By the time Shikaku finished speaking, Koshino had more or less figured out the reason he was able to unlock the Body's Hidden Gates.
And in the process of unlocking it, there were two people who played absolutely crucial roles.
The first was the one who noticed the problem—his uncle, Nara Shikaku.
The second was the one who held the key to the Body's Hidden Gates, and who could help Koshino resolve the issue—Might Duy!
And Duy's training—forcing Koshino through an intense, overload-level weight training regimen for an entire week—was definitive proof that Shikaku had made the right choice.
Because after just a week of grueling cultivation and the initial unlocking of the Body's Hidden Gates, Koshino no longer had to worry about chakra depletion or hidden damage building up inside his body.
The training to open the Gates had Koshino pushing himself through extreme, long-term fatigue under heavy loads. That meant in the future, even if he overexerted his chakra again, he wouldn't immediately lose all combat effectiveness.
He could push through it with his physical endurance—at worst, it would just mean his fighting ability would drop sharply due to the chakra loss.
It wouldn't be like last time—where just a small bit of chakra depletion caused him to pass out on the spot.
As for the second point—the matter of the hidden injuries within his body—that was even more straightforward.
Once the Body's Hidden Gates were opened, Koshino's internal ailments could gradually heal on their own. Even in cases where the damage was too severe to recover naturally, healing through medical means would become significantly easier.
In other words, for any shinobi who managed to open the Body's Hidden Gates, internal damage wasn't a serious concern—it was something that could be dealt with easily.
So when Shikaku instructed Might Duy to guide Koshino through this training and unlock the Hidden Gates, it was nothing short of a stroke of brilliance.
However, when Shikaku first approached Might Duy with the request, even he wasn't entirely confident. He had no way of knowing whether Koshino could truly open the Body's Hidden Gates.
Because, as both Shikaku and Might Duy—the current keyholder of the Gates—understood, not just anyone could unlock them.
That Koshino succeeded in doing so… could only be chalked up to his talent.
But what Shikaku, Might Duy, and everyone else didn't know… was that Koshino's so-called "talent" wasn't purely innate.
In truth, it was a form of "acquired" talent—something that could be cultivated through training!
That talent… was mental energy!
Koshino's ability to unlock the Body's Hidden Gates was inseparably tied to his immense mental energy.
A small portion of that energy came from Koshino's soul crossing into this world—he was naturally born with a tremendous mental reserve.
But the majority of it came from his dedicated cultivation of the spiritual arts of the Uzumaki Clan—accumulated over time, little by little.
So if every shinobi in the village were to practice the Uzumaki Clan's spiritual arts and build up their reserves, then in theory, every shinobi in Konoha would be capable of unlocking the Body's Hidden Gates.
But just as previously stated—what a shame.
The spiritual arts of the Uzumaki Clan could not be taught to just anyone. Even if the Fourth Hokage and Kushina Uzumaki herself truly wished to make the village stronger, secret techniques would always remain secret. They could never be passed on to every shinobi in Konoha.
What's more—even Might Duy, at this current point in time, had no idea what the real reason behind Koshino's ability to open the Gates was.
Because the moment Koshino truly understood that his ability to unlock the Body's Hidden Gates stemmed from his immense mental energy—it was already years later, when he had risen to become a formidable force in his own right!
As Shikaku finished explaining all the reasons why Might Duy was chosen to guide his training, Koshino couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Sure enough—it really did feel like fate playing its games.
After all, if Koshino hadn't performed so exceptionally on the frontlines… If he hadn't developed his unique Swift Style technique… he wouldn't have depleted his chakra so severely. There would've been no cause for Shikaku to consider the situation serious.
And if Shikaku hadn't identified the danger… If Might Duy hadn't been Koshino's captain… then Koshino might never have undergone the grueling weight-training regime that eventually led him to unlock the Body's Hidden Gates and resolve one of his biggest internal threats.
As Koshino quietly reflected on this twist of fate, he also found himself deeply moved by Might Duy's spirit—his willingness to share even his secret techniques so openly.
As mentioned earlier, not every shinobi was like Koshino—able to stand before friends and comrades without hiding the secrets behind his techniques.
That Might Duy was willing to pass on a secret he had developed through his own hard work, all for Koshino's sake—was proof that his title of "Legend" was well-earned.
What's more, while guiding Koshino in his training, Might Duy had never once forgotten about Genma Shiranui and Ebisu.
If they could endure the same harsh training as Koshino, then either of them might very well become the next to unlock the Body's Hidden Gates.
However, the reason Duy never mentioned the Hidden Gates at the beginning was because… he believed in fairness.
Koshino endured the brutal training and made it through. That was his own fortune—his own earned result.
On the other hand, Genma Shiranui and Ebisu… failed to pass Duy's test. From that perspective, it meant they simply didn't possess the aptitude to open the Hidden Gates.
Taking a deep breath, Koshino was about to ask the same question again—to see what answer Shikaku would give this time.
But what he didn't expect was… just as the question reached his lips, Shikaku smiled and gently shook his head.
And the very next moment, before Koshino could press any further, Shikaku turned toward the tent's entrance and gave a small wave.
That's when a familiar figure stepped inside—none other than Might Duy himself.
And the moment his eyes landed on Koshino, Duy's face lit up in surprise. He exclaimed without hesitation:
"Koshino!"
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