Following the merger, the light dissipated. All that remained was a dim point of light drilling into the urn inside Kiyohara's mind.
He tried to tap the urn with his will. No reaction.
'It needs time to recharge,' Kiyohara noted. 'Or perhaps to digest.'
He refocused on the outside world.
The fusion felt like an eternity internally, but in reality, it was less than a second of disorientation.
When Kiyohara reopened his eyes, his demeanor shifted.
The Chief Examiner, who was turning to leave, paused. He looked back, puzzled.
'Did he just... change?'
For a split second, the boy's presence felt older. Sharper. But when he looked again, Kiyohara was just a Genin holding a vest.
'An illusion?' The Examiner shook his head. 'Probably just the confidence boost from the promotion. Mental energy grows with the will.'
He dismissed it and moved on.
Kiyohara walked down to the spectator area. The crowd was thinning.
Kurenai and Genma met him at the gate.
"Was this selection organized specifically for us?" Kurenai asked. "It's not the usual time of year."
"I don't know," Kiyohara shrugged. "I'm just a cog in the machine. High command doesn't consult me."
"Aren't you going to treat us?" Genma joked, shifting his senbon. "Celebrate the promotion with a meal?"
"After I pay off my loan."
Kurenai blinked. "Loan?"
She had never met a ninja in debt before. Ninja were usually well-paid mercenaries.
"I prepared... extensively," Kiyohara said vaguely.
In reality, the money went to the Forbidden Drugs he used in the Grass.
He had considered selling the drug formula to recoup costs, claiming it was a "Family Secret."
But that was dangerous.
Danzo Shimura and Orochimaru were conducting human experiments right under the Hokage's nose. If Danzo caught wind of a potent chakra-boosting drug, he wouldn't buy it—he would confiscate it "for the good of the village" and disappear Kiyohara into Root.
'I'll loot my way out of debt,' Kiyohara decided. 'Better broke than brainwashed.'
"Alright," Kurenai sighed, dropping the subject.
They parted ways. Kiyohara walked alone to the edge of the village, to his dilapidated house.
The sunset painted his courtyard in warm gold, highlighting the cracks in the walls.
Kiyohara didn't care about poverty right now. He cared about power.
He didn't inherit new Jutsu this time. He inherited Talent.
He pulled a standard Kunai.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Flow Technique!"
Ram. Snake. Tiger.
Crackle!
Electric arcs coiled around the blade. They were brighter, tighter, and more controlled than before.
The flow of chakra felt smooth. The "wildness" of the lightning was tamed.
'Talent is cruel,' Kiyohara mused.
Some people look at a math problem and see the answer instantly. Others stare at it for hours.
Before, he was the student struggling to write "Solution." Now, the equation just made sense.
"The bottleneck is broken."
He looked at a stone pillar in the corner—a dense bluestone target he used for practice.
He threw the Kunai.
Whoosh—SIZZLE!
The weapon transformed into a blue streak.
It hit the stone.
It didn't bounce. It didn't shatter.
It drilled.
The high-frequency lightning vibration acted like a laser cutter, melting and pulverizing the stone on contact. The Kunai punched a fist-sized hole clean through the pillar and buried itself deep in the earthen wall behind it.
Kiyohara walked over, inspecting the smooth, scorched edges of the hole.
'Penetration power has doubled. Control is effortless.'
"Now, Wind."
He retrieved the Kunai and stepped back.
Dog. Horse. Rooster.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
Hooo...
He aimed at the sky (blowing down the wall would cost money he didn't have).
A fierce gale erupted from his lungs, shooting straight up like a geyser.
The chakra consumption was lower, yet the wind pressure was higher.
'Efficiency,' Kiyohara smiled. 'I'm getting more bang for my buck.'
He looked at his hands.
If he could stack this talent... if he could find a timeline where he was a Raikage candidate or a Kazekage puppet master...
He wouldn't just be a genius. He would be a god.
....
.....
.....
Support my patreon and get early access to chapters
patreon.com/ImmortalDaoWriter
Don't forgot to give me powerstones.