Chapter 81: Chapter 81: Kakashi’s Book, Gen’s Horn, and Everything in Between
Moonlight shimmered over the village of Iwagakure.
"Tch! That damn brat, Deidara!"
Ōnoki's eyes were wide with disbelief as he stared at the document freshly delivered from Konoha. Beside him, Kitsuchi stood silently, not daring to speak.
Neither Ōnoki nor Kitsuchi had expected this—Deidara had actually done it. The little maniac had run off and ended up in Konoha?!
Luckily, that kid was obsessed with explosions and art. He had zero interest in military secrets or classified intel.
Otherwise, Ōnoki would've gone far beyond mere anger by now.
"What do we do now?"
Seeing his father's rage, Kitsuchi swallowed hard and asked in a hushed tone.
Facing Ōnoki always made him nervous—not just because he was the Third Tsuchikage, but because he was also his father.
"What else can we do? Since Konoha's reaching out, they're clearly trying to use Deidara to extract intel from us."
Ōnoki snorted coldly, then sighed in frustration.
"Fine. We'll go and bring Deidara back ourselves. Might as well use the opportunity to probe Konoha a bit too."
Ōnoki remained perfectly clear-headed. He knew Konoha must be up to something. This entire incident undoubtedly had their fingerprints all over it.
Now that they were willing to open contact, it probably meant their initial plan hadn't gone smoothly—and they were hoping to pivot by coming to him.
He could go along with it… and see what he might dig out of them in return.
"Especially that guy who used the Flying Thunder God Technique!"
"But he didn't look like Hatake Kakashi… So just who is that white-haired guy? I don't recall Konoha having someone like that…"
"Gen, how come you're here so early?"
Morning light filtered into the Konoha Hospital.
Kakashi, still bleary-eyed, glanced at Kitagawa Gen standing nearby with a bouquet of flowers in hand. Instantly, he felt a headache coming on.
"Kakashi-sensei, you're back in the hospital again. Of course I had to come check on you."
"That really wasn't necess—"
"It's fine, really! I'll help you set these up."
Gen didn't bother letting Kakashi finish. He went straight to arranging the flowers in a vase, then casually sat down beside the bed.
"Wait—do flower shops even open this early?"
Kakashi rubbed his temples, still a bit foggy from sleep, but Gen just shrugged and smiled.
"I went too early, but I got lucky. I ran into Ino."
At the mention of Ino, however, a twitch pulled at the corner of Gen's mouth.
He'd just realized—Ino had blonde hair too.
The reason he came so early this morning was because he was worried he'd get wrapped up with another blonde again.
Yesterday's experience had been enough to make him swear off any repeat engagements today.
He'd rather come hang around with Kakashi—it wasn't like he had much else to do. It had been nearly a year since graduation, and he'd been tagging along with Kakashi the whole time.
'Let's see… there was also Guy and Jiraiya…'
Thinking it over, Gen realized that the number of people who'd trained him wasn't very large—but each one was undeniably a powerhouse.
Not just anyone could hope for that kind of mentorship.
"Come on. Be honest—you just couldn't deal with that brat from Iwagakure, could you?"
Kakashi rolled his eyes, now fully awake, and casually pulled out a book from under his pillow to start flipping through it.
"That kid is quite the chatterbox. Bit of a lunatic too. But he doesn't seem like a bad person deep down. Otherwise, the Third Tsuchikage wouldn't have taken him in as a disciple."
It was true. In fact, it was likely the old man was grooming him to be the next Tsuchikage.
Gen nodded and leaned back against the bedframe.
"He's just too unhinged. Keeps insisting that we share the same artistic vision. It was nothing more than a simple application of the Flying Thunder God."
"That already isn't simple, Gen."
Kakashi let out a soft sigh. Thinking back on Gen's performance this time, he was filled with emotion.
And it wasn't just him. Jiraiya, who had been there in person, and even the Third Hokage—who had heard all the details from them yesterday—had been equally astounded.
An endless swarm of puppets, seemingly blotting out the sky—Gen had obliterated most of them in the blink of an eye.
The impact of that feat was hard to put into words.
Now they understood why Ōnoki had reacted so dramatically.
'What a shame I didn't get to witness it firsthand…'
Yesterday, after hearing a detailed account of everything, the Third Hokage couldn't help but let out a heartfelt sigh.
At this point, they had all reached the same conclusion: as long as nothing goes wrong, Kitagawa Gen is destined to surpass the Fourth Hokage.
"But still, you were far too reckless."
Though Kakashi thought this inwardly, he still felt the need to educate his student a bit. More than anything, he hoped Gen could learn to protect himself better.
"Using that kind of technique right in Iwagakure's territory… All it did was provoke the Third Tsuchikage. You need to remember that."
"But it's not like I had any better options at the time. That was the only solution I could come up with—and hey, it worked out, didn't it?"
Gen chuckled casually, clearly in high spirits.
"Well then, Kakashi-sensei, why don't you teach me something even stronger?"
"I wish I could, but you're on your own from here."
Kakashi immediately buried his face in his book. It wasn't that he didn't want to teach him—he simply couldn't.
Not to mention, he himself still had work to do in unlocking the full potential of his Mangekyō Sharingan. His recent fight with Uchiha Itachi had given him a lot to reflect on.
"But I can offer you a few ideas. Jiraiya-sama already talked to you about this—the development of the Rasengan."
"The Rasengan doesn't have a chakra nature by default, which means you might be able to approach it from that angle. For instance, try fusing it with your Purple Lightning."
"Or with other chakra natures—that's worth experimenting with, too."
"Of course, your Purple Lightning is already formidable on its own. And from what I've seen, you're trying to evolve it into something like the Lightning Release: Chakra Mode."
"That's actually a pretty solid idea. If you can combine the two… I believe you'll become even stronger, Gen."
"Mm."
Gen nodded, though Kakashi had misunderstood one thing: his so-called Lightning Release: Chakra Mode was practically a fabrication.
"I've already developed Purple Lightning quite a bit. There's still plenty of room for growth, but you're right—Rasengan does deserve more research."
At this point, Purple Lightning had practically become his signature move. Anyone from the Akatsuki who had fought him would recognize it instantly.
As for the Rasengan, he hadn't used it much—but its biggest advantage was its versatility. That made him think…
'What if I infused the bloodline limits I've collected into the Rasengan?'
The idea made Gen's eyes light up. It didn't seem impossible, did it?
He still hadn't figured how to 'whitewash' the origins of those bloodline techniques—but it felt like a waste not to use them.
After all, they were the result of his own sweat and effort, painstakingly acquired bit by bit!
The Rasengan could offer a fascinating platform to integrate them.
'So if I just combine them with the Rasengan… wouldn't that solve everything?'
Besides, Deidara was still around—and his clay explosions, while labeled as Explosion Release, seemed more like a secret technique.
'I could probably borrow some inspiration from that, right?'
Kitagawa Gen muttered to himself, mulling the idea over.
If he really needed to explain it, couldn't he just call it a 'Chakra Composite Secret Technique'?
0It has great practical potential!'
Gen nodded to himself. This approach actually seemed worth trying—especially since he already possessed two kekkei genkai.
[Name: Kitagawa Gen]
[Age: 13]
[Bloodline: Ōtsutsuki Clan (Unlocked: 28%)]
[Total Chakra Level: SS (High Kage Tier)]
[Chakra Natures: Water, Fire, Earth, Lightning, Wind, Yin, Yang]
[Special Abilities: Ice Release, Magnet Release]
Last night, after fusing the Yang chakra he'd obtained from Nagato, he'd felt an immediate, unmistakable change.
His natural regeneration had grown significantly stronger, and his chakra recovery rate had also increased.
Most importantly, his sensory perception had become terrifyingly sharp.
With that enhanced perception combined with Flying Thunder God, he could now use marked locations from much farther away.
At the same time, the intensity of his chakra had risen once more—boosting the raw power of his techniques across the board.
"And above all that... aside from my improved perception of the skies…"
Almost without thinking, Gen gave a slight flick of his hair.
He could feel it. As his bloodline continued to awaken further, his hair genuinely seemed to be turning white.
And that wasn't all…
"Hmm? Hey, are you getting paler again?"
Kakashi suddenly looked over, puzzled. He studied Gen carefully from head to toe.
"No idea. Must be natural."
Gen smiled. It wasn't something he could explain.
His skin hadn't just turned white all at once—it was happening in stages.
And with this latest jump in his bloodline's development, it had definitely gotten paler again.
He was starting to get genuinely worried. At this rate, he'd not only have to find a way to deal with a potential horn sprouting from his forehead, but also figure out what to do about his increasingly porcelain skin.
"By the way, Kakashi-sensei, what's so interesting about those books you keep reading?"
Not wanting to dwell on the topic anymore, Gen shifted the conversation with a grin.
"You're always flipping through the same ones. Don't you get bored?"
"They're good. I don't."
Kakashi shook his head calmly.
But Gen had already leaned in closer.
"Then how about next time, we take a trip to the hot springs in the Land of Hot Water?"
"??!"
"Didn't Jiraiya-sama already agree? I trust my Transformation Technique. When the time comes, let's go together, yeah?"
"…"
Kakashi wordlessly slapped the book over his face. He had made up his mind—he had to go see the Third Hokage later.
Gen might have the potential to surpass his sensei, but when it came to personality... they couldn't be more different. Something had clearly gone wrong with the education system.
Konoha's academy… needs serious reform.
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