"If there were a way to save the Uzumaki Clan, not only could we gain access to a vast trove of sealing techniques, but we might also secure a powerful ally," Ren Takashi murmured to himself.
"Unfortunately, time may not be on our side."
"Even if I could convince Father and the clan to send aid, the Third Hokage would never allow it."
"And the Uzumaki wouldn't trust the Uchiha unless they were truly on the brink of annihilation—after all, they're long-standing allies of the Senju."
"They've never been friendly with the Uchiha."
Shaking his head helplessly, Ren added, "The most we can do is have Father quietly assign people to monitor the situation in the Land of Whirlpools."
"If the opportunity presents itself, we might be able to rescue some survivors and secure a portion of their sealing techniques."
Of course, if he had more time—enough to build real strength—he could do far more and reap much greater rewards.
But for now, the priority was to have his father quietly gather intelligence on the Uzumaki's fate and pin down the exact time their homeland would fall.
"No point overthinking it. Right now, the best way to access high-level sealing arts is to become Tsunade's disciple—and learn from Mito Uzumaki directly."
That made his top priority clear: secure Tsunade as his mentor.
Until he developed a safe method to neutralize the hidden risks of the chakra seed, the Chakra Circulation Technique couldn't be passed on to his family.
"Just a little longer—it won't take much time."
With those thoughts settled, Ren resumed his training. After completing another chakra circulation cycle, he noticed the time for one full rotation had already dropped to fifteen minutes.
A bit more practice and he was confident he could bring it down to ten minutes per cycle.
"At this stage, I haven't opened the Heavenly Bridge, so I can't draw in natural energy from the world around me. I'm still burning through cellular energy during each cycle."
"That means there's a cap on how many full chakra circulations I can perform daily."
"I can't afford to overdraw cellular energy... this stage is basically 'refining essence into energy.'"
"The only difference is that chakra includes spiritual energy."
From his observations, it was clear that in order to open the Heavenly Bridge and begin drawing in nature energy, he'd first need to accumulate a solid reservoir of chakra in his middle dantian, strengthen the eight extraordinary meridians so they could withstand natural energy, and elevate his spiritual power to a level where he could guide and suppress nature energy safely.
Only then would it be possible to connect to the Heavenly Bridge.
Feeling that his body had reached its limit for cellular energy extraction, Ren brought his training to a close and rested.
The next morning
"Huh? Big Brother isn't here today?"
Ren looked around the breakfast table. Not seeing his older brother, he turned to his parents in confusion.
"He's on a mission outside the village," Uchiha Shinmei said, smiling. "He won't be back for a few days. Why, missing him already?"
"Miss him? Please." Ren rolled his eyes. "I was just surprised not to see him at breakfast."
"Oh right—Dad, I'd like to start studying the clan's knowledge on sealing techniques. That alright with you?"
Ren hesitated to bring up the Uzumaki matter right now. Without a logical reason to explain how he knew the Land of Whirlpools would fall soon, it was better to wait.
"Huh?"
Shinmei gave his son a strange look and frowned. "Why are you interested in sealing arts all of a sudden?"
"That stuff's tough, you know—not easy to learn. Besides, your chakra reserves are strong now, and your Chakra Refinement Technique is nearly complete, right?"
"You should focus on ninjutsu next."
"Don't take on too much. Even geniuses can burn themselves out. Don't push yourself too hard, understand?"
Optimizing a chakra technique, inventing a body-refinement art, trying to create a method to awaken the Sharingan through meditation… Ren was even studying medical ninjutsu.
To Shinmei, it felt like his son was constantly forcing himself forward, driven by some invisible threat.
And Ren Takashi was only five years old.
"Relax," Ren replied, his heart warming at his father's concern. "I know my limits."
"My chakra refinement is already stable—an hour or two a day to keep it sharp is enough."
"Same with martial arts—I've got the routine down, and I'm confident I'll break into the Bright Strength stage within a month."
"And medical ninjutsu? I've already mastered Healing Palm."
He lifted his right hand, and a soft green chakra glow appeared with a hum.
"...What?"
Both Shinmei and Uchiha Konomi leaned in, eyes wide. They could sense it—it was real Healing Palm.
"Didn't you just teach him that yesterday?" Shinmei asked his wife.
"I did," Konomi said, then turned to Ren. "Tell me the truth—how long did it take you to learn it?"
Ren paused, then raised one finger.
"One hour?"
Ren shook his head and twirled his finger. "I learned it in one try."
"This jutsu is pretty simple, actually."
"As long as you've got excellent chakra control and a solid understanding of Yang Release, it's not hard to pick up."
"..."
Both parents stared at him blankly.
Did he hear himself?
This was one of the most difficult medical techniques in the entire village. Most jōnin didn't even meet the chakra control requirements, let alone the Yang Release comprehension.
Even in all of Konoha, fewer than five shinobi outside of Tsunade could use it proficiently.
And their son learned it in one attempt.
Just… what was this child?
After a long silence, Shinmei gave in with a sigh and a helpless wave of his hand. "Fine. I'll tell Elder Zen. You can access the sealing texts."
"You can review them at your own pace."
He wasn't going to intervene anymore. Whatever had awakened in his son after that "breakthrough"… he simply couldn't fathom it.
All he could do now was trust that Ren Takashi knew what he was doing.