"So that's how it is... the number of shackles is tied to the strength of the bloodline?"
After pulling himself together, Uchiha Kirin quickly noticed that the number of shackles shown on his panel corresponded directly to the strength of his bloodline power.
After merging with the remnants of Toneri's bloodline, the strongest—his Ōtsutsuki bloodline—was bound by 18 shackles. Next was the Dragon bloodline, which he had fused twice and evolved by absorbing the power of rules—it had 12 shackles.
Finally, there were the original Uchiha and Uzumaki bloodlines, which were rejected by the Ōtsutsuki power. Those, along with the many Kekkei Genkai he'd previously practiced and fused into one with his Mangekyō techniques, formed his new Uchiha bloodline…
The stronger the bloodline, the more numerous and powerful the shackles.
Golden light flickered in Uchiha Kirin's eyes. This was something born from his mastery of the Ultimate Meaning of Swordsmanship—an ocular power resembling a dōjutsu that allowed him to see the shackles on both his own body and others'.
Just as described on the panel, a total of 36 black shackles were tightly bound around his body and soul.
Unlocking even one would allow him to leap across a massive power gap.
Unfortunately, even in the last simulation, he had exhausted everything and still couldn't break a single one through brute strength alone.
Maybe it wasn't about pure strength. Maybe it required a moment of enlightenment—or perhaps special medicine...
Still, having overwhelming base power was undoubtedly essential!
Uchiha Kirin made up his mind. He would use the Breathing Art of the Sage Path as a foundation, integrating different power systems.
He would aim to forge a completely new kind of power—and continue trying to break the shackles!
Maybe, when he shattered every last one, and his breathing technique condensed a wholly new strength, he would no longer be far from those legendary figures the system spoke of—those who had already neared transcendence...
"Right—where's the Loot System?"
Kirin remembered clearly—at the final moment, the power he unleashed after breaking through the shackles had nearly destroyed the entire Shinobi World. Naruto Uzumaki's power shouldn't have been able to withstand it at all.
『Ding! You're not mad at me anymore?』
"Hurry up and give it to me!" Seeing the system's response, Kirin sighed and urged it on.
〖Target of the hunt confirmed dead〗
〖Extracting two items of highest value as loot〗
『1』Seed of Asura's Will
『2』One-fourth Uzumaki bloodline
"Better than nothing." Despite what he said, Kirin still calmly stored the golden seed in his system space.
Then, he absorbed the Uzumaki bloodline fragment into his body—though the improvement was minimal.
"Looks like if I want the new Uchiha bloodline to rival the Ōtsutsuki bloodline... I'll have to be ruthless."
Still, that could wait. The top priority now was to hunt down the White Ape Sage.
The bastard dared to harm his friends and family—he must have been tired of living!
If not for the simulator giving him foresight, Kirin might've suffered irreparable consequences in reality.
"Heading to the Land of the Ninja Cats, huh?"
Uchiha Kirin activated his Heavenly Ear Technique with practiced ease. Then, drawing energy from within, he instantly teleported—under the boost of Void Rules—into the heart of the Ninja Cat Clan's territory.
Ignoring the shock and panic of the surrounding ninja cats, Kirin calmly sat down to rest, easing the fatigue from the simulation.
In the very next moment, the White Ape Sage, thinking the outcome was already his, appeared as well.
"I've been waiting for you."
In just a single exchange, Kirin severely wounded the White Ape Sage before the latter even had a chance to fight back. As for escaping with some divine technique? Impossible.
The old ape's legs had been severed and instantly pulled into the prototype Divine Tool—the embryonic divine realm.
No matter how broken a technique was, it still needed a physical medium. Sever the medium, and the jutsu fails.
Carrying the White Ape Sage's broken body, Uchiha Kirin traveled at a speed over a hundred times the speed of sound. Sonic booms and residual heat still lingered in the air behind him.
...
"Great Toad Sage, I heard you can see the future. Tell me—can you see mine?"
In a blink—before the Ninja Cat Clan could even react—Uchiha Kirin arrived in Mount Myōboku with the heavily injured ape in tow.
He pushed open the door to the Great Toad Sage's chamber and walked in, asking the meditating old toad whether he could see Kirin's future.
The sage first nodded, then shook his head, playing cryptic and muttering vague prophecies. He even threatened that if Kirin harmed the White Ape Sage, all three Great Holy Lands would hunt him down—no matter who he was.
"Looks like you're just a pretentious, mumbling fraud. Old toad—I'll be borrowing your Dragon Vein."
Uchiha Kirin had long since lost patience with Mount Myōboku's frogs. Now that he held overwhelming power, he wouldn't bother letting the blabbering sage argue.
With a casual wave, he manipulated gravity to hurl the toad away from the Dragon Vein's entrance.
Then he tossed the White Ape Sage and his severed legs inside.
The ape immediately began absorbing natural energy at a frantic rate to heal.
Kirin, meanwhile, unhurriedly retrieved a peculiar-looking seed from his system space.
He held it in his palm.
A sharp wooden spike suddenly grew from it—piercing straight into the White Ape Sage's chest.
"You dare?!"
Behind him, the recovered Great Toad Sage summoned three colossal statues and slammed a hand down toward Kirin.
Susanoo!
A black-armored giant, towering skyward, appeared behind Uchiha Kirin. With a swing of its scythe, it instantly cleaved through all three stone statues.
Then, it grabbed the Great Toad Sage in its palm. A light squeeze would be enough to crush him!
At that moment, the other toads of Mount Myōboku rushed in, surrounding Kirin, ready to attack and rescue the Great Sage.
"My Divine Tree happens to need offerings of this level. I doubt any of you want to see your own sage become one with it, do you?"
The trapped Great Toad Sage quickly shouted for them to stop.
Only then did Kirin release him.
He pulled out two scroll-like items from his system space and tossed them into the Divine Tree.
These were Rule Scrolls—system rewards. Fusing them directly into his body would grant him two true divine techniques. The only downside would be eventual separation, with no real risk.
But Kirin didn't want to take that risk.
Instead, he offered them to the Divine Tree as perfect offerings—transforming the White Ape Sage's lifelong strength into a pure, refined fruit.
The Divine Tree absorbed power from the Dragon Vein and, with the catalyst of the offerings, sprouted roots from the old ape's body, extending along his meridians and bloodstream.
Even a phantom root burrowed into his soul, madly absorbing everything the White Ape Sage had cultivated over nearly a millennium.
Crack!
With a burst of sound, the Sage's so-called indestructible diamond body was torn apart by the Divine Tree's branches.
A towering trunk grew from his withered body.
Uchiha Kirin instinctively activated his Sharingan and infused chakra and Ocular Power into the tree, accelerating the devouring process and helping the fruit mature.
Soon, a small bud bloomed, and a golden fruit the size of a fingernail formed.
As it swelled, both the ape's body and the Divine Tree's branches rapidly withered—as if all nutrients had been funneled into the fruit, condensed into its most essential form.
Several of Mount Myōboku's strongest toads attempted to launch a surprise attack, trying to snatch the fruit from Kirin's hands.
But the Great Toad Sage quickly stopped them and used space manipulation to throw them into the Dragon Vein's channel—presumably to send word and call for reinforcements...