"Although I don't fully understand yet, I'll work hard," Sakura said firmly, unafraid despite the difficulty of what she was learning.
"It's good to have perseverance, but if you have questions, feel free to ask me. Working alone without guidance isn't very efficient." Mizuki had learned this the hard way himself—researching alone without any predecessors to guide him, discussing things only occasionally with Tsubaki. Reaching his current level had been extremely difficult.
"I understand. Thank you, teacher."
"Mm, starting tomorrow we'll have practical lessons. There's still a little time today—let me test your sensitivity." Mizuki figured there wasn't enough time left today for serious instruction. "There's a barrier set up in this shop. Don't look with your eyes; use your spirit and chakra to sense it. Locate all the runes and structural nodes, then draw them out. Let's see how long it takes you to find them all."
...
Night had gradually fallen. Mizuki, ending his day of teaching, felt utterly exhausted. He felt like he'd spoken more today than in the past month combined, and his throat was dry and sore.
Walking slowly along Konoha's streets illuminated by the gentle glow of newly lit lanterns, he admired this peaceful scene almost comparable to a lively small town from his previous life. The contrast made him sigh—he knew that a month from now chaos, slaughter, death, and ruins would follow.
"Did something happen? You seem troubled," asked Tsubaki walking beside him.
"No, why would you think that?"
"You always look worried lately. You've been getting that distant look in your eyes quite often, thinking about God-knows-what."
"Really?" His fiancée, always observant and close by his side, truly understood his every change.
"Is there something you can't even tell me?" Tsubaki asked, feeling hurt. As his fiancée, not knowing him well enough was indeed difficult to accept.
"Don't misunderstand. I'm just a bit concerned about the village situation."
Seeing that Mizuki didn't want to elaborate further, Tsubaki didn't press. After returning to Mizuki's house, she closed all the doors and windows carefully before calling Mizuki over.
"What is it? So mysterious," Mizuki asked with a smile.
"Look at this." Tsubaki pressed her palms together, channeling chakra, then slowly spread them apart until they were shoulder-width apart. Gradually, sparks of electricity crackled between her hands.
"What is this?" Mizuki asked in surprise. "Have you already mastered the Lightning Release?"
Tsubaki shook her head. "Watch carefully."
Confused, Mizuki observed the chakra attributes manifesting in Tsubaki's hands.
"This is... Wind Release?" Slowly realizing the truth, Mizuki found it unbelievable. "How could this be? You've already mastered both Wind and Lightning Releases?"
He had always known Tsubaki was clever and talented, with a keen attention to detail, though she usually kept these qualities hidden. Still, he hadn't expected such an accomplishment.
"How did you do it?" Mizuki couldn't help asking. He had no idea what kind of chakra nature this was that Tsubaki displayed—it didn't exist in either of his lifetimes' memories.
"You once explained how natural lightning forms, right?"
"Your Single Shot formation worked before, right? This should be pretty much the same thing," Tsubaki explained.
"But that one relied on natural forces, while yours simulates Chakra Nature Transformation. They're completely different."
"I've merely completed Wind Attribute and Lightning Attribute Nature Transformations. Originally they couldn't fuse together, but after hearing you describe how intense friction and massive energy could produce electricity, I tried using rapidly flowing Wind Chakra to create this effect."
"Does that even work?" Apparently Tsubaki was much more skilled in chakra manipulation details than himself. "Why don't you try rubbing Wind and Water Attribute Nature Transformations together to see if you can create Ice Release? Friction on water surfaces could cause rapid evaporation, carrying away large amounts of energy—exactly what would happen remained uncertain though, whether it would generate electricity or actually produce ice."
"I haven't completed Water Attribute Nature Transformation yet."
"Oh, I guess I'm being too impatient."
Among the five chakra natures, Earth and Water shape transformations were relatively easy, while Wind and Fire nature transformations were slightly simpler. Lightning had balanced difficulty between its two forms. It was quite normal for Tsubaki to manifest Wind and Lightning effects first. The unreliable part was their current combined release techniques.
Tsubaki carefully controlled her chakra as a blue-purple lightning sphere formed in her palm, rapidly rotating with dense threads of lightning continuously writhing inside—clearly dangerous at a glance.
Wanting to test its power, Mizuki directly tossed a kunai into it. As soon as the kunai touched the lightning sphere, it collapsed from the tip outward, instantly turning into red iron powder scattered on the ground.
"This power is too overwhelming! Combining two powerful attacking chakra nature transformations shouldn't be this terrifying?" The shocking power exceeded Mizuki's expectations.
"Have you noticed any bodily changes lately?" Mizuki asked. "How much does this drain you? Is there any danger?"
"It definitely takes a lot out of me, but I can handle it. Keeping control really drains my concentration though. Other than feeling physically sharper than before, there's no difference."
"Okay then, stop it." Such a dangerous technique could cause terrible injuries.
Soon after stopping her technique, Tsubaki exhaled deeply. "I should be able to help you now, right?"
"Of course. You're definitely more talented than me." Happy about Tsubaki's gift, Mizuki continued, "[Unnamed Advanced Technique] New developments inevitably attracted greedy eyes. With our current abilities and status, neither Mizuki nor Chiharu Tsubaki could withstand potential repercussions."
"Here, drop some blood in this." He needed to check whether this fusion of nature transformations might actually become a hereditary Bloodline Limit passed through genetics. Fortunately he'd preserved comparison samples a month earlier.
"Tsubaki, take this." Mizuki handed a scroll to his betrothed.
"What's this?" Tsubaki held the scroll while asking.
"This is a very unique chakra," Mizuki said. "I hope you can help me conduct a separation experiment on it. It should be able to split into two or three different types of energy. Just give it a try." The scroll contained chakra collected during the activation of Sasuke Uchiha's Cursed Seal. But this chakra was extremely stable. Mizuki had always hoped to extract pure Natural Energy from it, but never succeeded. Since Tsubaki was far better at fine chakra manipulation, he decided to let her give it a try.
"What is this?" Tsubaki asked. "It feels somewhat similar to the chakra released when we sealed that thing on your arm last time."
"Exactly," Mizuki replied with satisfaction. "Your perception is really sharp. However, this one was collected from Sasuke Uchiha."
"Uchiha? That orphan?"
"Yes. This is also part of Orochimaru's scheme. The village will take care of it. Just finish this separation experiment for me. If you succeed, it might completely eliminate the hidden danger inside me."
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