"Hmm… I can let you grasp a portion of the Magnet Release's power in advance."
Magnet Release Kiyohara spoke calmly.
The essence of Magnet Release was the simultaneous usage and fusion of Wind- and Earth-nature chakra.
Yet this single, "simple" step was like a chasm that countless shinobis could never hope to cross.
"?"
It was as if an actual question mark was about to pop out from Kiyohara's forehead.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?"
"If I had told you, you wouldn't have trained yourself. A true shinobi must be more cunning, more ruthless, more domineering than the Mist shinobi."
"..."
Fortunately, Kiyohara had not chosen to hand everything over to Magnet Release Kiyohara.
Even without his help earlier, he still had a method to escape on his own.
This other version of himself… was not necessarily reliable.
At this moment, Kiyohara deeply realized this issue.
What if one day a future version of him appeared who was hostile to the entire shinobi world?
What if his "last will" turned out to be enforcing the Eye of the Moon Plan, or even joining Kaguya Ōtsutsuki to rule the world?
What would happen then?
Would Black Zetsu happily "welcome a new father"?
"How are you going to help me then?"
Kiyohara asked while observing the dense fog around them. With this mist as cover, even if he revealed a bit of magnetic power, no one would notice.
He already practiced Wind Release ninjutsu, and had spent considerable time training Earth Release as well—enough to plant the necessary seeds for future deception.
After all, the Shinobi Academy never tested a student's chakra attributes. The only jutsu they formally taught were the Three Basic Techniques. The graduation exam was based solely on those.
In the original story, Naruto had no idea what his chakra nature was. His first time seeing chakra test paper was three years after graduating, when Kakashi finally showed it to him.
Even Kakashi didn't know Naruto's chakra nature…
With Magnet Release Kiyohara guiding him, Kiyohara quickly learned Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique.
To outsiders, it would simply appear that Kiyohara possessed Earth-nature chakra as well.
Then, revealing Magnet Release abilities would only be a matter of timing.
"This is how I'll help you…"
Magnet Release Kiyohara began to possess Kiyohara's body, guiding his chakra flow. Kiyohara suddenly felt a new type of chakra well up within him.
That must be… magnetism.
Kiyohara understood instantly.
This phenomenon was likely not just the result of chakra guidance.
Obito died but was still able to pass the power of the Mangekyō Sharingan to Kakashi.
Dan Katō, even after death, was able to pass chakra to Tsunade and fully restore the Yin Seal.
This proved that a shinobi's soul carried power.
Although Magnet Release Kiyohara wasn't a true soul and more like an information-based spiritual imprint—he still carried traces of the power he possessed while alive.
"Feel it well. My version of Magnet Release is different from anyone else's."
As he spoke, Kiyohara felt the magnetic force expanding across his entire body, extending outward.
"My magnetism can stimulate and influence the surrounding magnetic field. But since you don't yet possess the Magnet Release bloodline, you're merely borrowing it by force. Your physical body will suffer intense strain. Only once you gain Magnet Release for yourself will this burden vanish."
Magnet Release Kiyohara began explaining the techniques he developed personally.
Every Magnet Release shinobi specialized in a different domain.
Sunagakure's One-Tail possessed magnetic power. The earliest Magnet Release likely derived from Shukaku, adapted for human use. Just as Iwagakure's Roshi had learned Lava Release from the Four-Tails.
Later, the Third Kazekage refined Magnet Release to its peak, hailed as the strongest Kazekage.
After his disappearance, Sunagakure was left leaderless, so they chose Rasa as the Fourth Kazekage to prevent other villages from invading during the chaos.
Rasa also possessed Magnet Release, allowing him to manipulate gold dust—solving many of the village's financial crises.
Perhaps later this method spread, which is why Kumogakure's Toroi also used Magnet Release.
Thus Magnet Release Kiyohara discovered that, in reality, the world's magnetic fields were produced by moving electric charge (electric current) or magnetic materials.
But shinobis were different. Their power was still fundamentally chakra.
Their chakra, once transformed, could simulate or generate strong magnetic fields.
""My path of development is to apply magnetism to the body itself… I call it Magnet Release: Magnetic Field Rotation!"
Listening, Kiyohara felt it sounded almost pseudo-scientific.
Was this really science?
But remembering that Magnet Release Kiyohara was literally a master in this field, Kiyohara decided to try.
The next moment, he felt his entire body crushed under a terrifying weight.
It was as if he had put on a heavy iron coat—so heavy he could barely breathe.
"My technique connects your local magnetic field with the vast natural magnetic field around you. In simple terms, it's 'borrowing power.'"
In an instant, Kiyohara felt the magnetic field several meters around him beginning to fluctuate.
The planet didn't only possess "planetary chakra."
It also possessed a magnetic field.
By rotating or manipulating these magnetic fields through certain ninjutsu, one could borrow a portion of the residual force.
Just a little bit…
Yet when Kiyohara moved his body, a series of sharp cracks rang out from his bones and joints.
This kind of borrowed power came with a price.
Without the maintenance of Magnet Release ninjutsu, his body would collapse instantly—bones shattering into powder.
But its effectiveness ultimately depended on physical strength.
Still, for now, it was enough.
"Haaah…"
Kiyohara exhaled a cold puff of white mist that curled behind him.
He savored the sensation carefully.
Right now, everything was being maintained by Magnet Release Kiyohara.
He himself could not utilize this force independently.
Only after fulfilling that future wish would he likely be able to wield it on his own.
'Good thing I inherited some of the Missing-nin Kiyohara's physical energy. Otherwise I wouldn't even be able to move.'
Kiyohara thought.
Every step felt unbearably heavy.
But he still had… the Konoha Body Flicker Technique!
In an instant, Kiyohara vanished from sight.
Ssh! Ssh!
Two more sprays of blood burst into the air.
This time, the sound was deeper, more brutal.
If before he was slicing through necks—
Now it was as if he were smashing skulls off bodies with a steel club.
The sheer force he generated stirred the surrounding air into a spiraling vortex.
Magnet Release: Magnetic Field Rotation!
"What is this…? Did he unleash some powerful jutsu, or is this his true strength?"
Some of the color drained from Mei's face.
She assumed that Kiyohara had simply improved dramatically in the month or two since she last saw him.
She had no idea… that this was all borrowed power.
Now, Kiyohara rampaged like a runaway truck, crashing through the mist.
The mist that should have been their advantage had instead become their prison.
The remaining two or three Mist shinobi gripped their weapons tightly.
Some deeply regretted not choosing a different landing route.
Like Mei, they possessed little to no Wind-nature chakra.
Even if they forced out a Wind Release jutsu, the effect would be poor—far too slow to influence the situation now.
Outside the mist, Kakashi's Sharingan captured the faint shifts in the fog.
But from the outside, it was still difficult to fully sense what was happening inside.
"Kakashi, how is it?"
Rin asked anxiously.
"Kiyohara is safe for now. It seems he's holding them back."
Kakashi said, brows furrowed.
This lime fog also obstructed them greatly.
"This guy… has become somewhat different."
Kaguya Masaru murmured.
The mist around them remained thick, pitch dark, and blinding.
But the Kaguya clan's battle instincts warned him that something within the fog had changed—
And this change was bad for him.
The Kaguya clan was a clan of battle.
Masaru trusted his instincts completely.
"Mei, prepare Wind Release."
Masaru ordered again. Mei did not have the Wind nature, but as a genius, she had managed to learn bits and pieces of many other ninjutsu.
"Got it."
She nodded seriously.
Masaru then turned his attention toward the fog once more.
His blood… was boiling.
Yes.
An opponent like Kiyohara was exactly the kind of enemy he desired.
"I will… defeat you!"
Masaru roared.
At the same time, Mei prepared to weave hand seals.
She felt the bonds she shared with her comrades—
And that gave her resolve!
They would defeat Kiyohara!
(End of Chapter)