Chapter 213: Lightning Release Chakra Mode
Land of Rivers.
Konoha and Sunagakure Main Camp.
Since entering November, the temperature had dropped considerably, and the occasional cool breeze was quite comfortable.
Hoshikawa stood by the river not far from the main camp, forming hand signs. His body rapidly softened, turning into liquid water, and merged with the river. On the surface, it was impossible to tell that a ninja was hiding in the river.
Hoshikawa released the Hydrification Technique and returned to his human form. He nodded in satisfaction. This Hydrification Technique was indeed excellent. Not only could it grant immunity to physical attacks, but it could also be used as a stealth ninjutsu.
Two months had passed since the last attack on the Kirigakure island base. After capturing Mangetsu Hōzuki alive, Hoshikawa had the Yamanaka clan ninja interrogate him, successfully obtaining his secret Water Release technique. In addition, he acquired the summoning scrolls for the seven ninja swords of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. Now, the set was complete. When peace negotiations took place later, he could sell them for a higher price. Including Mangetsu Hōzuki, whom he also planned to sell to Kirigakure. After all, he was a short-lived individual.
But in these two months, Hoshikawa hadn't just learned the Hydrification Technique; his B-rank title, 'Lightning Release Body', had finally been upgraded.
Mind's Eye! Hoshikawa closed his eyes, ensured no one was observing nearby, and formed hand signs again. A large amount of chakra spread throughout his body, followed by a discharge of lightning. However, unlike the widely diffuse lightning of the Chidori Stream, this lightning enveloped Hoshikawa 's body, forming an armor.
This was the Fourth Raikage's Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
[S-Rank Ninjutsu Title: Lightning Release Chakra Mode.]
[Trigger Condition: Promotion of the B-rank title 'Lightning Release Body' and learning the Lightning Release Chakra Mode.]
[Effect: Body strength is increased by 200% on the existing basis, including attack, speed, and defense.]
Is it actually S-rank? Hoshikawa was slightly surprised. Above the Lightning Release Chakra Mode, there was an even stronger Nintaijutsu, the Strongest Lightning Release Armor. Simply put, the Strongest Lightning Release Armor was considered the maximum state of the Lightning Release Chakra Mode. Moreover, 'Lightning Release Body' was B-rank, and Hoshikawa had expected its upgrade to be A-rank, not S-rank.
Regardless, this was a good thing.
Hoshikawa 's body blurred, he quickly ran a circle in the vicinity, and then returned to his original position. The entire process took less than a second, making it seem as if he hadn't moved at all. Hoshikawa clenched his fist, feeling an unprecedented power.
He suddenly thought of a question. In the Lightning Release Chakra Mode, if he then used the Flying Thunder God Technique, wouldn't he be the fastest ninja in the world?
However, the Flying Thunder God Technique was indeed very difficult to learn. After two months of practice, he had only just scratched the surface. Hoshikawa was not in a hurry. After all, he had already learned the Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
In addition, Hoshikawa had also learned the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique. This ninjutsu was an enhanced version of the Shadow Clone Technique; the only difference was the chakra restriction. Hoshikawa had already learned the Shadow Clone Technique, so the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique didn't take much time.
The lightning dissipated. Hoshikawa slowly exhaled. The power receded, and the loss of that feeling made him slightly unaccustomed.
Hoshikawa adapted for a few seconds, then began contemplating his next goals.
The Konoha Dragon God from Chen Baojun. This taijutsu could, at a crucial moment, mask the movement produced by the Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
Minato Namikaze's Flying Thunder God Technique. He had already achieved the introductory level, and learning this ninjutsu was just a matter of time; he just needed to keep grinding.
Acquiring the 'Water Release Jōnin' and 'Earth Release Jōnin' titles to combine for Wood Release. Although it would be the Yamato-version of Wood Release, it was still a lifeline in Konoha. Hoshikawa would gain significant tangible and intangible value from the Wood Release, thereby securing a higher status.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's Five Elements Great Combo Ball Technique. The reason for learning this was simple: a massive, powerful area-of-effect ninjutsu could not be ignored.
Hoshikawa rubbed his chin. If he learned all of these, he would truly be integrating the strengths of the successive Hokage. First Hokage's Wood Release, Second Hokage's Water Release, Third Hokage's Five Elements Release, Fourth Hokage's Flying Thunder God, and Fifth Hokage's Medical Ninjutsu.
When Hoshikawa became Hokage later, he could confidently declare, "I am the strongest Hokage."
However, all of that was still far off. The immediate priority was to make Tsunade the Fourth Hokage. Through Hoshikawa 's efforts, Tsunade had already somewhat relented. Now, all that was needed was an opportunity to propel her to the position of Hokage.
Footsteps sounded. Hoshikawa turned around and saw Rin Nohara.
"Hoshikawa ." Rin Nohara walked over, her voice a little excited. "I've finally mastered the Mystical Palm Technique!"
The Mystical Palm Technique was taught by Hoshikawa . Therefore, she immediately sought him out to share the good news.
"Congratulations." Hoshikawa was not surprised. She had actually learned the Mystical Palm Technique before but was not proficient.
"Are you only missing the Chakra Scalpel among the standard medical ninjutsu?" Hoshikawa asked after a moment of thought.
"Mmm!" A smile appeared on Rin Nohara's face.
"Purely in terms of medical ninjutsu, you could already be promoted to Jōnin." Hoshikawa said with some emotion. Although in his memory, Rin Nohara's strength was average, in reality, she was not bad. At her age, learning so many medical ninjutsu was extremely rare.
"Huh?" Rin Nohara was startled and quickly shook her head. "Compared to you, I'm still far behind." In her view, since Hoshikawa hadn't become a Jōnin, she was even less qualified.
"Don't underestimate yourself." Hoshikawa smiled, reached out, and patted her head. "You are already an excellent Medical Jōnin." Medical ninja were given certain preferential treatment in terms of promotion compared to other ninja. First, medical ninja were scarce. Second, medical ninjutsu was very difficult to learn. Third, medical ninja weren't typically required to fight. Hoshikawa saying Rin Nohara could be promoted to Jōnin was not just to comfort her.
"I..." Rin Nohara felt her heart tremble at his touch, and her face flushed hot.
"When I have time, I'll teach you the Chakra Scalpel." Hoshikawa smiled at her obedient appearance.
"Mmm." Rin Nohara said softly.
Just then, the ground suddenly shook violently, as if an earthquake had occurred. Rin Nohara lost her balance and fell into Hoshikawa 's arms. She instinctively grasped his arm tightly.
"What's going on?" Hoshikawa reached out and put his arm around her slender waist. He looked around and finally found the culprit. A gigantic toad, over ten meters tall, had descended from the sky and landed on the open ground in front of the main camp.
Hoshikawa raised an eyebrow slightly. This was a summoning animal from Mount Myōboku. Had Jiraiya arrived? But why such a grand entrance?
Hoshikawa thought for a moment and understood the reason. This was likely Tsunade's arrangement, intended to intimidate the Kirigakure ninja. To be honest, the war in the Land of Rivers had reached a point where it had little meaning. Kirigakure's war strategy was clearly to stall for time. Stalling for time wasn't the main issue. But Tsunade didn't want to see Konoha ninja lose their lives in such a war of attrition. The best way was to force Kirigakure to negotiate peace.
However, Yagura Karatachi had been avoiding direct confrontation, and they still had the Three-Tails Jinchūriki, making it difficult to find a good opportunity. But now that Jiraiya had shown up, the situation was different. The strength of the Konoha Sannin was well-known throughout the ninja world. Tsunade alone was proving troublesome for Kirigakure. With Jiraiya added, they had even less chance of victory. Continuing the fight would likely incur huge losses. They had been fighting for nearly half a year, so negotiating peace now would be fair to Kumogakure.
However, these were all Hoshikawa 's guesses. Whether Kirigakure retreated depended on Yagura Karatachi's decision. It was highly probable they would retreat, though.
Hoshikawa naturally hoped Kirigakure would retreat so he could return to Konoha and enjoy a peaceful new year. He recovered his senses and suddenly heard faint gasping sounds. Hoshikawa instinctively looked down. Rin Nohara seemed to have lost all her strength, leaning against him, her face flushed, breathing in small gasps. He felt she might pass out from oxygen deprivation in the next second. This kind of reaction was usually only seen in some unconventional anime.
"Rin." Hoshikawa cleared his throat, dispelling the strange thoughts from his mind.
"That... I..." Rin Nohara awoke as if from a dream, released his arm, and quickly retreated half a step.
"Why are you so flustered?" Hoshikawa 's smile grew wider as he watched her incoherent state.
"I... I... I'm seeing such a huge toad for the first time." Rin Nohara stammered.
The taste of lying. But Hoshikawa didn't press her. After all, if she fainted here, it would be difficult for him to explain.
"That's Jiraiya-sensei's summoning animal." Hoshikawa paused. "Let's go back to the main camp and see what's happening."
"Mmm." Rin Nohara secretly sighed in relief and obediently followed behind him.
Upon reaching the main camp, Hoshikawa could better appreciate the enormous size of the toad—it truly couldn't be stewed in one pot. However, having already seen the Tailed Beasts, he only marveled for two seconds. In fact, in terms of sheer size, the slug Katsuyu should be the largest of all summoning animals in the ninja world.
"Hoshikawa , Rin." Kurenai Yūhi greeted them. "Jiraiya-sama and Tsunade-sensei are discussing matters in the main tent."
"As expected." Hoshikawa 's heart stirred. "I'm going to the main tent." Jiraiya certainly didn't come specifically to help them fight Kirigakure. It was clearly related to the Wood Release experiments, indicating he had found results.
"Tsunade-sensei said no one is allowed to enter." Kurenai quickly shook her head.
"It's fine." Hoshikawa patted her head. "That certainly doesn't include me."
"Then go ahead." Kurenai tilted her head.
"Master." Hoshikawa walked to the door of the main tent and called out.
"Come in." Tsunade's voice sounded.
Hoshikawa walked in and immediately sensed the serious atmosphere. He greeted Jiraiya, then went up to Tsunade. She was reading a document. Hoshikawa looked down and scanned it; it was indeed documentation related to the Wood Release experiments. Furthermore, it mentioned that the Wood Release experiments were conducted collaboratively by Danzō Shimura and Orochimaru. No wonder Jiraiya and Tsunade looked so upset.
Orochimaru was their teammate for over a decade and two decades; their bond was deep enough to consider him half a family member. In the original story, after Orochimaru defected, Jiraiya never gave up trying to bring him back to Konoha. Tsunade was similar, later pardoning Orochimaru and removing his status as a rogue ninja. Although the main reason was that Orochimaru assisted Konoha during the Fourth Great Ninja War, atoning for his past actions.
"Tsunade, what do you plan to do?" Jiraiya asked after Tsunade finished reading the document.
"..." Tsunade fell silent upon hearing the question. If it only involved Danzō Shimura, she wouldn't hesitate. But Orochimaru was not only her teammate but also Nawaki's teacher. She couldn't bring herself to kill Orochimaru.
"Orochimaru and Danzō Shimura are both currently on the Kumogakure battlefield; let's not alert them for now." Tsunade said slowly.
"And after the war ends?" Jiraiya asked again.
"We'll do what must be done." Tsunade gritted her teeth and said heavily, "They violated Konoha's rules and must be punished!"
"But..." Jiraiya hesitated.
"You know they won't die." Tsunade shook her head.
"True." Jiraiya sighed in relief. "The old man likes to balance merits and demerits." Of course, the most important reason was that Hiruzen Sarutobi himself couldn't bring himself to execute Danzō Shimura and Orochimaru.
"I only have one demand." Tsunade said with a serious expression. "They must step down from Konoha's high ranks and relinquish their power."
"I think the old man will agree." Jiraiya was momentarily stunned, then understood her intention. Without power, Danzō Shimura and Orochimaru couldn't conduct any more Wood Release experiments.
Hoshikawa wasn't surprised. This outcome was already quite good. From then on, Tsunade would have no competitors, and becoming the Fourth Hokage was a foregone conclusion. Moreover, with such a scandal coming out, Hiruzen Sarutobi would likely have to step down voluntarily. At least he could save some face.
He just wondered if Orochimaru would defect again. Honestly, the ninja world scientist was quite useful. If Hoshikawa were Hokage, he would definitely lock him up and make him furiously conduct research, producing more results.
"If he doesn't agree, I'll make him agree." Tsunade thought of a way that Hiruzen Sarutobi would have to accept: she would become the new Hokage. However, she didn't want it to come to that.
Jiraiya was startled. For some reason, he felt Tsunade had changed so much that she was somewhat unfamiliar to him. Perhaps it was because it involved the Wood Release.
"I see no mention of the surviving Wood Release ninja in the documents." Tsunade frowned slightly.
"I couldn't find him either." Jiraiya shook his head. "He might be right by Danzō Shimura's side now."
"No need to rush. When we capture him later, we'll naturally find out where that Wood Release ninja is." Tsunade changed the topic. "You should stay in the Land of Rivers for a few days and make your presence known."
"That's no problem." Jiraiya knew what Tsunade wanted. He had been running around outside all this time without contributing to Konoha, so now was the time to help out.
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