The rooftop chat ended quickly. Sarutobi Hiruzen wheeled Hikari back to the hospital room, offered a few comforting words to Naruto and Sasuke, and hurriedly left.
The village had just been attacked, and as Hokage, Hiruzen had a mountain of tasks to handle.
Visiting injured students and teachers, consoling parents who'd lost children in the incident, and arranging financial compensation.
Reassuring the shaken villagers, highlighting the bravery of the students involved.
Finally, holding Kumogakure accountable.
The ninja world had only recently entered an era of peace, and no one was eager to spark a war.
"Accountability" would likely amount to diplomatic squabbles, demands for economic reparations, and maybe some small-scale retaliatory missions by the Anbu.
Assassinating a couple of prominent Kumo ninjas, sabotaging key economic facilities—that was about it.
After all, Konoha's losses weren't significant.
Even if Hiruzen had any desire to stir up a war, the villagers—unscathed by this incident—wouldn't support it.
Hikari had no opinion on the matter.
Not that her opinion would've mattered anyway.
Though she was the primary victim and the key figure in resolving the crisis, the power plays between nations were far beyond her influence as a minor player.
She was already satisfied with gaining the Raiton Chakra Mode.
Yagura Yozuki, relying on the Raiton no Yoroi's defense and reaction speed, had overwhelmed her to the point where none of her techniques could land. She'd been coveting that ability ever since.
After memorizing the training method for Raiton no Yoroi on the rooftop, she wanted it even more.
B-rank ninjutsu: Raiton Chakra Mode, also known as Raiton no Yoroi.
A secret technique of Kumo's Yagura clan, developed by the Second Raikage, perfected, and popularized by the Third and Fourth Raikages.
Yes, the Raiton Chakra Mode itself was a ninjutsu, not a taijutsu.
It only became a taijutsu when paired with complementary techniques like Jigoku Tsuki or Raiyaku Suichū Sendai Mai.
Unfortunately, whether due to the Yamanaka clan's imperfect mind-reading skills or Yozuki's brain cells dying off, the critical parts of those complementary taijutsu were severely incomplete. Reconstructing them would be as difficult as developing a new ninjutsu from scratch.
She had to give up on that.
Thankfully, Yozuki had spent years perfecting the Raiton no Yoroi, so that part was intact, allowing Hikari to glimpse the secrets of the Raiton Chakra Mode.
The Raiton Chakra Mode revolutionized the traditional offensive approach of lightning techniques. Instead of hurling lightning at enemies, it wrapped the body in lightning for defense.
A groundbreaking ninjutsu.
The principle was to convert chakra into lightning, using it to gradually stimulate the body. This enhanced physical attributes while building resistance to lightning.
The stronger the body's resistance to lightning, the more powerful the lightning chakra could be without harming the user.
The result was a comprehensive boost to attack, agility, and defense.
In essence, it was a secret technique that leveraged resistance to deal damage.
The Yagura clan's exceptional resistance to lightning was transformed, through specialized methods, into an all-around physical enhancement, tailored to their unique physiology.
Others, no matter how hard they trained, could hardly reach the Yagura clan's level.
If a novice lost control during early training, their own lightning could surge through their veins and pierce their heart, killing them instantly without a chance for rescue.
The scroll documenting the technique even noted that it was somewhat impractical, recommending it be sealed in the Scroll of Seals. Training required supervision and medical personnel to avoid danger.
The moment Hikari read that line, she understood why Hiruzen had so readily handed her the technique.
Her robust physique could withstand lightning attacks.
For others, not only would training be impossible, but it could also be life-threatening—a losing proposition.
Hiruzen might even be using her as a guinea pig, hoping her success could pave the way for others to train.
But even knowing his intentions, Hikari couldn't resist practicing the technique.
Sarutobi Hiruzen appeared upright, but his methods were all yangmou—open schemes.
His words were polished: "This old man hasn't pocketed your spoils." You couldn't find fault with him, and if you didn't see through his motives, you might even feel grateful.
His offer to take her as a student was the real sugar-coated cannonball.
Tempting her with ninjutsu and power, while subtly pushing the Will of Fire indoctrination package, all while keeping full control over her progress.
If she showed any signs of slipping his leash or acting against the so-called Will of Fire, his friendly demeanor would likely vanish.
In those brief rooftop words, traps were layered one after another.
The scariest part? There wasn't a hint of malice in Hiruzen's emotions.
That was what made it truly terrifying.
His schemes were so ingrained that planning them felt as natural as eating a slice of bread for breakfast.
Even Hikari had nearly been fooled.
When she saw the blinding goodwill emanating from Hiruzen, she'd briefly considered revealing her Byakugan to prove her identity—a foolish impulse.
The moment that thought surfaced, she snapped awake.
Then she saw through the logic behind Hiruzen's friendly facade.
Realizing the Kyūbi's ability wasn't foolproof, Hikari decided to play along.
She pretended to be a slightly precocious kid, gleefully swallowing the sugar coating he offered.
As for the schemes beneath?
Insufficient strength was the root of all problems.
Violence was the most convenient solution.
If she could train her body to withstand even a cannonball exploding inside her, all those sugar-coated cannonballs would just become fuel for her growth.
Next up: mastering the Raiton Chakra Mode.
Lightning chakra nature transformation was an area she hadn't yet explored.
After wind and water, she was about to begin training her third chakra nature. Fortunately, she'd soon have a Kage-level mentor. She could learn lightning techniques directly from the Third Hokage.
The remaining fire and earth natures could be tackled in one go, too.
When you thought about it, that sugar coating was pretty sweet!
Soon, it was the third day since the Kumo attack.
Room 203.
Sasuke was curled up at the head of his bed, lost in his thoughts. The lively Naruto was practicing horse stance on his bed, throwing punches into the air aimed at Sasuke's backside.
Hikari sat cross-legged on her bed, eyes closed, sensing her physical condition.
Thump!
Thump!
Her bright red veins bulged, her fist-sized heart beating slowly.
Each powerful contraction gave her an inexplicable sense of tension, as if an invisible hand gripped her heart, determined to squeeze out every drop of blood and chakra.
Deep within her heart, a chakra seed glimmered like a precious amethyst, flickering with each heartbeat, emitting a mysterious purple glow.
After devouring the Kyūbi's chakra that night, her chakra had undergone a dramatic transformation. The core, once a deep blue ocean, had turned into a noble, enigmatic purple.
The changes in quantity and quality were even more striking.
Her chakra reserves, previously at the level of an average Jōnin, were now slightly less than the aging Yozuki's but roughly on par with a weaker elite Jōnin.
The quality, however, far surpassed that.
Using her Byakugan to observe and test, she found that her new, high-quality chakra doubled the power of her Fūton techniques—more than twice the strength of her old chakra.
When using Kaiten, if one unit of chakra thread from a single tenketsu could previously extend just over three meters, now the same unit with her new chakra reached nearly eight meters.
The power had increased, too, though it was less practical than the extended range.
Against highly defensive ninjas, breaking through with a single chakra thread was tough, even with doubled power.
Against less durable opponents, human flesh was so fragile that the extra power made little difference—one slice would cut them in half regardless.
Moreover, the Kyūbi's "infinite chakra" wasn't just about its vast quantity but also its rapid recovery. Her new amethyst-like chakra core seemed to have inherited some of that trait.
It produced chakra at an astonishing rate.
Even when using the Byakugan, her chakra consumption couldn't outpace the core's recovery.
If she kept her ninjutsu power at her previous level, her combat endurance could stretch three to four times longer.
If she were back at Training Ground Zero now, she could slaughter the entire beast horde without exhausting her chakra.
Using her new chakra for a single Rekkū, Yozuki wouldn't even have a chance to counter—he'd be torn apart by the raging winds.
Beyond quality and quantity, her chakra had gained a new healing ability.
In about a day and a half, working with her Shikotsumyaku, it had pulled her from the brink of death to full recovery.
Under her hospital gown, the bandages around her chest remained tightly wrapped, but the skin beneath was fully healed, smooth without a single scar.
She hadn't removed them yet, worried her rapid recovery would shock the doctors and nurses.
She'd deal with it after returning home in a few days.
Her chakra had changed significantly, and her body was no exception.
Hikari closed her eyes tightly.
Her dōjutsu enveloped her body.
Her flesh hummed with vitality as usual, but her bones exuded a faint lifelessness.
Focusing her vision on her skeleton, she saw that the once-healthy, glossy white bones were now etched with grayish rings, like the brittle bones of a long-dead corpse, lacking the vibrancy of living bone.
The quality was even more extreme.
Her bones, already denser than average and seven to eight times heavier, had grown even denser, surpassing steel of the same mass in both density and strength.
Without a scale, she couldn't be sure, but her bones alone likely weighed no less than 200 kilograms.
After all, she'd broken the wheelchair Hiruzen had brought her. The nurses said those medical wheelchairs had a weight limit of about 150 kilograms.
Now, the blood vessels and muscles attached to her bones were no longer tightly bound.
The muscle fibers, activated by her dōjutsu, recoiled from the gray bones as if encountering a natural enemy—like weeds doused with high-potency herbicide.
This was the Kyōsatsu no Haikotsu?
Hikari frowned.
This wasn't good news.
The first stage of Shikotsumyaku was simple body control, not as strong as hers but capable of boosting adrenaline, dulling pain, and offering some self-healing.
This stage was nearly risk-free, as long as one avoided severe injuries that drained vitality.
The second stage, where Hikari and Kimimaro were, carried the risk of bloodline disease.
Based on the synergy between her Byakugan and Shikotsumyaku, she theorized:
Shikotsumyaku's heavy toll on the body required a vitality-rich Sage Body to use safely.
Much like how Mangekyō Sharingan needed Hashirama cells to mitigate eye damage from overuse.
Now, the situation had changed again.
That night, the Kyūbi's chakra had overwhelmed her, far exceeding her own reserves.
Forcibly absorbing it had caused a chakra imbalance, pushing her toward becoming more like the Kyūbi.
She roughly calculated the limit for absorbing tailed beast chakra.
The formula was simple: the combined tailed beast chakra couldn't exceed her own. The chakra from the Sanbi and Kyūbi could only make up 50% of her total.
Any excess was expelled from her chakra core.
As a result, most of the Kyūbi's vitality-rich chakra was absorbed by her Shikotsumyaku.
Was her Shikotsumyaku evolving to a higher stage under the Kyūbi's influence?
The more it evolved, the greater the demand for vitality.
Could her body withstand such a powerful bloodline ability?
Hikari opened her eyes, a trace of worry in them.
With so many people around in the hospital, it wasn't the place to investigate her Shikotsumyaku's changes. She'd handle it after discharge.
Besides, her Byakugan had already spotted a group approaching the room.
Hiss… hiss!
Nearby, Naruto, drenched in sweat, was panting heavily, his fists blurring as he punched the air, stomping on the bedding.
"Naruto, stop practicing for a sec. I need to talk."
Hikari waved, pausing his training.
Hearing her, Naruto dropped his stance, wiping sweat from his forehead, his damp blond hair falling into a slanted fringe.
"What's up?"
"Don't tell anyone about what you saw that night."
As the only "outsider" in the room, Sasuke held his breath, lying on his bed but perking up his ears.
"Why not?"
"No reason."
Hikari raised a fist. "Spill, and I'll pummel you!"
Recalling Hikari's feral, blood-soaked appearance that night, Naruto shrank back in fear. "G-Got it!"
Tap, tap, tap…
A flurry of footsteps echoed from the corridor, drowned out by lively chatter.
Knock, knock, knock!
The door rattled.
Click!
Hikari, Sasuke, and Naruto all turned to look.
The Ino-Shika-Chō trio, Kiba, Shino, Hinata, Sakura leading Sasuke's fan club—a dozen people poured in, carrying fruit baskets and flowers.
The spacious room suddenly felt crowded.
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