Click.
The long-closed door creaked open.
The faintly dazzling sunlight brushed against Hyūga Arata's face, warm, ticklish. Having stayed inside for so long, he squinted slightly as his eyes adjusted to the light.
Yesterday's rainfall had washed the village clean, and today, Konoha was basked in perfect weather.
Puddles on the ground reflected the blue of the sky, like patches of painted clouds on white paper.
All the dull stillness from his two months of seclusion had been rinsed away, flowing off with the rainwater down the drains.
"Seems like today will be a good day," Arata murmured to himself.
Beside him, Might Guy's booming voice burned with boundless energy as the two walked out of the Hyūga compound. Arata casually opened his personal system panel:
[Name:] Hyūga Arata
[Age:] 15
[Bloodline:] Ōtsutsuki (5.5% → 6.8%)
[Chakra Capacity:] S-Rank
[Chakra Attributes:] Wind, Fire, Water, Earth, Lightning, Yin, Yang
[Ninjutsu:]
Clone Technique (C-Rank),
Wind Release: Wind Cutter Jutsu (B-Rank),
Chakra Scalpel (A-Rank),
Lightning Release Armor (B-Rank),
Lightning Release: Chidori (A-Rank),
Lightning Release: Chidori Stream (B-Rank),
Lightning Release: Chidori Spear (B-Rank),
…
[Taijutsu:]
Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms (C-Rank),
Eight Gates: Gate of Pain (Forbidden),
Gentle Fist: One-Strike Body (B-Rank),
Divine Air Strike (A-Rank)
[Kekkei Genkai:]
Tenseigan – Second Stage (12% → 20.1%)
Ability: Seal of the Divine Mind
[Achievements:]
[Crying Cat, Crocodile Tears], [Sweet Talker], [Bluffed His Way Through], [Into the Game], [Honeyed Words, Hidden Knife], [Lies Become Truth], [Smooth Talker], [Played Deaf], [False Emotions], [Charming Disaster], [Feigning Sincerity], …
[Remaining Reality Points:] 10,651
"Finally done," Arata exhaled, smiling faintly at the sight of his upgraded stats and the new ninjutsu listed.
This body, imbued with traces of Ōtsutsuki blood, far exceeded his expectations in training efficiency.
In just two months, he hadn't only mastered the Lightning Release Armor but also developed Chidori on top of it.
The Lightning Release Armor, a B-rank jutsu, also known as the Lightning Chakra Mode, channels lightning chakra throughout the body to stimulate cells, greatly enhancing physical activation, defensive power, and neural transmission speed.
When perfected, its speed could rival that of Namikaze Minato's Flying Raijin, swift enough to dodge Amaterasu itself, a flash of blue lightning across the battlefield.
As for Chidori, it was an evolution of Raikiri, though the two were not the same. The latter was S-rank, the former A-rank; the difference lay in the degree of chakra shape manipulation.
"Chakra Shape Transformation" and "Chakra Nature Transformation" were both methods of enhancing a technique.
Simply put, the former shapes chakra, giving form to what is formless, like a blade or a needle, while the latter imbues it with elemental properties, wind, fire, water, earth, and lightning.
In use, Raikiri emphasizes destructive piercing power through intense "shape transformation," while Chidori favors versatility and control, allowing the user to morph the lightning chakra into various forms.
For example:
Chidori Spear – lightning shaped into a long lance;
Chidori Blade – a sword of crackling chakra;
Chidori Sharp Edge – lightning infused into a weapon for cutting precision.
Arata had the idea to create Chidori after mastering Lightning Armor, after all, in the original story, Sasuke mastered Chidori in just a few days.
If Sasuke could do it, there was no reason he couldn't.
That said, developing Raikiri, the perfected form, was still far off. Its mastery of chakra shape transformation was on an entirely different level.
And Purple Lightning, the variant Kakashi later developed after losing his Sharingan, leaned more toward the extreme end of chakra nature transformation.
"Even so… this training speed is insane," Arata admitted to himself with awe.
No wonder even the ever-optimistic Guy looked momentarily shaken when he saw him last time.
Naruto, also known as The Eye Chronicles of Five Village Wars, The Temptation to Return Home, My Grandpa, Father, and Teacher Are All Kage, and Black Zetsu Saves His Mom,
this world was, indeed, one where bloodline supremacy ruled all.
But perhaps that's what made Might Guy's kind of strength even more admirable.
Thinking this, Arata looked ahead at Guy, who was already ablaze with youthful vigor, almost literally surrounded by flames in Arata's mind's eye.
"Guy-senpai…"
"Arata!"
Before Arata could finish, Guy turned back, flashing his signature grin. "From now on, just call me Guy! No need for 'senpai' anymore!"
Arata paused, instinctively about to refuse, maintaining humility was important for his image, but the seriousness in Guy's eyes made him stop.
So it's true… pure hearts really do counter schemers.
With a quiet sigh, he met Guy's gaze and smiled. "Alright… Guy."
At that, Guy's grin grew wider.
"Guy," Arata continued, "what's happening in the village? I saw everyone heading toward the gates."
"No idea," Guy said with a shrug, then brightened. "Let's go find out! Race you there, first to the gate wins!"
Before Arata could reply, Guy was already sprinting off. Arata chuckled softly and followed.
But deep down, he already knew what awaited them.
The villagers were gathering to welcome the delegation from Kumogakure, the Cloud Village, who had come to sign the Alliance Treaty with Konoha.
Though he had been in seclusion, his intelligence network was still active.
Arata valued information above all and had made sure to keep a few lines open.
He knew the real key to this diplomatic move wasn't Hiruzen Sarutobi, but Shimura Danzō.
Despite his reputation for scheming and underhanded politics, Danzō had played an active role in both the Second and Third Shinobi Wars, earning the title "The Darkness of the Shinobi."
It was he who manipulated Hanzō of the Rain and engineered the fall of the original Akatsuki, splitting them apart before they could threaten Amegakure's control.
Without that move, the entire outcome of the Third Shinobi War might have changed.
Filthy or not, Danzō's shadow tactics were undeniably effective.
And this time was no exception.
By stirring up conflict between Iwagakure and Kumogakure, he'd pushed the two villages toward hostility, ironically paving the way for a warmer relationship between Fire and Lightning.
Still, Arata knew all too well: this was part of Kumogakure's greater plan.
He looked toward the growing crowd in the distance, a faint smile forming on his lips.
"This day… has finally come."