THE UCHIHA ASCENSION

The development of Mokuton went beyond Uchiha Kiyo's imagination.

The incorporation of Hashirama Cells, the root material, and the theories of Chakra fusion and genetic inheritance had greatly accelerated Mokuton's progress.

"Perhaps, the development of Wood Release will not be slower than Ice Release."

The speed was astonishing!

Developing one Kekkei Genkai per year—if the other shinobi in the ninja world knew about this, their jaws would surely drop in disbelief.

Even the Third Hokage would be speechless.

Despite his mastery over all five chakra natures and extensive ninjutsu knowledge, the Third Hokage had never developed a Kekkei Genkai. It wasn't for lack of trying; he simply couldn't. The Bloodline Limits were inherently superior to standard combination ninjutsu. If he could have developed one, why would he have spent time mastering combination ninjutsu instead?

This underscored the immense difficulty of developing a Bloodline Limit.

At this moment, Uchiha Kiyo felt grateful.

Grateful that he had begun his research early, long before he even started refining Chakra. Grateful that he had accumulated a wealth of theoretical knowledge over the years.

None of this was achieved out of thin air. Without years of meticulous research and categorization, Kiyo would not have had such a solid theoretical foundation, and the development of his Bloodline Limits would not have been so smooth.

The most critical factor was that Kiyo had started his research before extracting Chakra for the first time.

Back then, he had intentionally delayed his first Chakra extraction by half a month—a decision that had yielded great benefits.

In those two weeks, although he lacked sufficient control over his mental energy and had no practical research results, his body had not yet developed the "chakra seed" that allowed for spontaneous chakra fusion. During this period, Kiyo was able to gain a deep understanding of his own spiritual energy.

Once a shinobi extracts Chakra for the first time, their body forms a "Chakra seed"—a mechanism that allows for automatic fusion of spiritual and physical energy. This process becomes second nature and is difficult to manipulate consciously.

Without those two weeks of study, Kiyo would not have gained such clear insights into spiritual energy, nor would he have been able to perceive spiritual energy within Chakra. Without this foundation, his self-cultivation methods would have been impossible, rendering all of his research meaningless.

Much of Kiyo's theoretical work stemmed from this foundation, particularly his vital research into the essence of spiritual energy—an insight that became the cornerstone of his most important theories.

Thus, all of Uchiha Kiyo's achievements were the result of his own efforts.

"In a year, I'll be able to wield the legendary Wood Release. Even though I know it won't be as powerful as Hashirama Senju's, I can't help but feel excited."

Ultimately, the strength of Mokuton depended on Chakra.

Especially the jutsu of Hashirama Senju—anyone with the Mokuton Bloodline Limit could use them, but only if they had enough Chakra. Techniques like the Wooden Golem Jutsu, Wood Dragon Jutsu, and Deep Forest Emergence could all be executed with sufficient Chakra.

Even if they weren't as powerful as Hashirama's, they would still be formidable. At the very least, they could contend with Susanoo in its early stages.

But, as always, everything depended on Chakra.

"Ah… Chakra."

Once again, Uchiha Kiyo found himself worrying about his Chakra reserves.

This hadn't been an issue since he reached Elite Jōnin level, but now, facing the demands of Mokuton, he was feeling the strain again.

No matter how powerful one's techniques, everything ultimately came down to Chakra.

While reaching the Kage level didn't necessarily require an immense Chakra pool, breaking through to the Super Kage level certainly did.

Uchiha Kiyo was beginning to understand.

Super Kage-level fighters possessed enough power to reshape their surroundings, but such feats consumed vast amounts of Chakra.

Take Hashirama Senju, for example—his Chakra reserves rivaled those of the Nine-Tails. Madara Uchiha wasn't far behind, as his fully formed Susanoo was entirely constructed from Chakra. Tobirama Senju also possessed far more Chakra than the average shinobi. Then there was Uzumaki Mito, whose vitality exceeded even the Senju Clan's—let alone the fact that she was the most prominent member of the Uzumaki Clan.

"Chakra… I can't expect to have the same reserves as the Nine-Tails, but reaching the level of a lesser Tailed Beast is a must."

A new research topic had emerged: understanding Chakra capacity and how to increase it.

Life wasn't easy, and Uchiha Kiyo sighed.

Although he hadn't started his research yet, he knew that Lightning Release would play a key role. Training in Lightning Release was absolutely necessary.

Currently, Uchiha Kiyo relied on his clones for ninjutsu training. His Wind Clone specialized in Wind Release, his Earth Clone handled Earth Release, and his Water Clone trained in Water Release. These clones also cross-trained in secondary elements—occasionally practicing Lightning and Fire Release as well.

However, there were no clones dedicated specifically to Lightning or Fire Release.

Regarding Lightning Release, since both the main body and clones needed to increase their Chakra reserves, Kiyo decided that all of his clones would practice it. This eliminated the need for a specific clone to major in it.

That left Fire Release.

And Kiyo had just one clone left unassigned.

"The Land of Rain is covered in constant downpours… Is it really suitable for my Rain Clone to practice Fire Release?"

This was Kiyo's dilemma.

Fire Release was heavily hindered by the Land of Rain's climate. While a skilled practitioner could mitigate environmental disadvantages, that level of mastery only came in the later stages. His Rain Clone needed to improve quickly, and assigning him Fire Release training felt like setting him up for failure.

"But I have no other choice…

Besides, it's not like he can't practice Water Release—he just needs to specialize in Fire Release.

And my proficiency in Fire Release is already high enough. Even in the rain, with enough training, the impact can be minimized."

Fire Release and Earth Release were the first chakra natures Kiyo mastered, and they remained his strongest elements. His Earth Clone, who specialized in Earth Release and dabbled in Fire Release, was currently Kiyo's most powerful clone. However, this clone was now primarily focused on Lava Release.

Although the Land of Rain posed challenges, mastering Fire Release under such conditions would ultimately strengthen his clone's abilities. Once removed from the rain, Fire Release techniques would become significantly more powerful.

This was another form of training.

On another note, it was time to begin experimenting on his eyes—his Rain Clone needed an upgrade.

Currently, the Rain Clone could keep up with the Akatsuki Organization, but in a few years, things would change. Nagato would unleash his full power, and others like Konan might also break through their limits. If the Rain Clone couldn't keep pace, it would be a problem.

After infiltrating Akatsuki for over a decade, he still hadn't obtained a ring. That would be embarrassing.

As for the eye modification, Kiyo was confident in his ability to enhance the Sharingan's perception and Genjutsu resistance. Among the three fundamental abilities of the Sharingan—insight, replication, and Genjutsu—Kiyo had thoroughly studied perception and illusion resistance. He could modify the eye structure to improve these aspects. The only thing left was testing and refinement.

With his plans set for the Rain Clone, Uchiha Kiyo turned his attention back to Lightning Release.

Since both his main body and clones would be training in it, careful planning was necessary to avoid redundant efforts. Different perspectives on the same training could yield unique insights.

In the past, Kiyo had collected numerous Lightning Release techniques from the Lightning Country's black market, but his research on Lightning Body Forging remained limited.

Now that Chakra limitations were becoming a concern again, he was ready to explore it.

The journey continued.

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