"Um… can I join next time?" Kushina suddenly asked.
As the last inheritor of Uzumaki sealing knowledge, she understood fuinjutsu deeply—and she couldn't hide her interest.
And she also wanted to understand that strange sense of familiarity she'd felt earlier.
Minato and Gen Takuya both paused.
Gen Takuya spoke first. "If Minato agrees, then I'd be honored."
"Hmph. Then it's decided," Kushina said, lifting her brow. "He wouldn't dare disagree."
Minato only smiled and didn't refute her.
Soon after, Kushina took Minato and left.
Gen Takuya watched their backs, pressed a hand to his empty stomach, and glanced at the sky.
Hopefully Ichiraku Ramen was still open.
Minato's visit had been unexpected.
But after a full day of exchange, Gen Takuya considered it a good thing.
In theory, he was a pure sealing specialist—he'd studied longer than Minato ever had.
But Minato had Kushina behind him—Uzumaki sealing techniques as a foundation.
And everyone knew how terrifying Uzumaki sealing was.
In fact, a major reason for Uzushiogakure's destruction was precisely that—
They possessed extraordinary sealing techniques without the corresponding national power to protect them.
Every great nation coveted their knowledge.
From that perspective, Gen Takuya believed Konoha's direct participation in the Uzumaki clan's destruction was unlikely.
Konoha didn't need to.
Kushina's sealing techniques—who taught her?
Uzumaki Mito.
And Uzumaki Mito was whose wife?
Senju Hashirama.
As long as relations remained good and intermarriage continued, Konoha would naturally gain access to Uzumaki sealing research anyway.
Why would Konoha risk joining an extermination?
In Gen Takuya's mind, the most likely truth was either—
Other villages struck Uzushiogakure with lightning speed while Konoha couldn't arrive in time…
Or Konoha simply stood by and watched.
No matter how talented Gen Takuya was, he was still only one person.
One person's research could never match the foundation of an entire clan.
Minato, for his part, had his own thoughts.
If he didn't have access to Uzumaki sealing knowledge, he likely wouldn't surpass Gen Takuya at all.
Even now, he only surpassed him in a few areas.
It was worthy of respect—one man, reaching such depth alone.
If earlier Minato's "senpai" had been purely a polite honorific…
Now it carried genuine meaning.
If Uzumaki sealing knowledge were given to Gen Takuya, Gen Takuya might surpass even Minato—and even Kushina.
The next day, Minato didn't visit again.
Gen Takuya soon learned why: the Third Hokage had dispatched him to the front once more.
This time, Minato likely wouldn't return until the Third Shinobi World War truly ended.
The war had quieted, but there was no official ceasefire. So the war technically wasn't over.
But everyone understood it couldn't last much longer.
The strain on every village was too great.
Even Konoha, rich in resources, was beginning to buckle.
Other villages were worse.
Before long, this war—one that hadn't even lasted many years—would end.
Strictly speaking, the current situation didn't require Minato to go back to the front.
But Gen Takuya understood.
The Third Hokage was preparing to step down.
He was letting Minato build more prestige on the battlefield.
That didn't surprise him.
What surprised him was the news coming from the recent fronts—
Another Uchiha genius had risen to fame.
His name was…
Uchiha Shisui.
"Uchiha Shisui…" Gen Takuya murmured.
This man's greatest feats were almost always spoken of in memories and rumors.
But the key image burned into Gen Takuya's mind was one thing—
Kotoamatsukami.
The strongest genjutsu.
It had barely been shown in the original history, yet its name echoed throughout everything—so powerful it spawned endless conspiracy theories. Some even claimed Naruto's will had been altered by Kotoamatsukami from the very beginning.
Of course, those were only theories.
Still, its abilities were real.
One eye could forcefully overwrite cognition.
The other—held by Danzō—could silently steer a person's thoughts without even requiring eye contact.
It wasn't as absolute as the other eye, and it could be recovered from—Mifune had proven that.
And it likely only affected one person at a time. Otherwise, why wouldn't Danzō simply rewrite everyone at once?
Its limitations were obvious.
Both eyes together might strengthen the effect, but those limits probably wouldn't vanish.
And Gen Takuya didn't believe it could override Six Paths-level will.
But below that?
Even a quasi-superior Kage might barely resist depending on the user.
Below that… there would be no resistance at all.
Did he want Shisui's eyes?
Yes.
But not to implant into himself.
For him, it would be a tool—take it out when needed, use it once.
That said, it wasn't essential.
"…Kamui is still the best," Gen Takuya sighed.
The most broken dōjutsu was still Kamui.
A power capable of threatening Six Paths-level beings with strength below Six Paths.
He set the thought aside.
He hadn't come to the back mountains today to think about eyes.
He'd come to train.
The techniques he exchanged for were already learned—Lightning Release: Grounding, Wind Release: Vacuum Wave, and more.
Now he needed to practice techniques he couldn't reveal publicly.
For example—
Gen Takuya raised his hand.
A sphere of chakra formed in his palm, spinning and roaring.
Rasengan.
He'd learned it long ago.
But back then, it wasn't practical—his chakra reserves were too pitiful. He couldn't use it many times.
Now that his chakra volume problem was solved, he could finally pursue the next steps—
Wind Release: Rasengan.
And beyond that…
Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.
Lightning Release, however, was harder.
Lightning's form in open air naturally resembled Kakashi's Chidori—violent, piercing.
And in a way, wasn't Chidori another version of Rasengan?
After Minato demonstrated Rasengan to them, Kakashi created Chidori based on what he'd seen.
There was a shared root somewhere in their structure.
Gen Takuya's eyes sharpened.
This was only the beginning.
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