"I lost." Shisui stopped resisting, the crimson glow of his Sharingan fading away and his eyes returning to their normal black.
His emotions were complicated but not filled with frustration, jealousy, or anger. Surprisingly, he felt a sense of recognition—and even joy—toward Kagetsu.
"You actually won?"
Before Shisui and Kagetsu could perform the seal of reconciliation, an energetic voice stole their attention.
Anko leapt between the two, staring at Kagetsu with a mix of surprise and suspicion.
As soon as Kagetsu opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Anko's curious face, uncomfortably close to his own.
"How did you suddenly get this strong?" she asked, circling him with envy in her tone. "Did Orochimaru-sensei secretly teach you some powerful ninjutsu?"
"Your imagination runs wild," Kagetsu replied lazily, retracting the tendrils of shadow that had entwined around Shisui and pulling them back into his own shadow.
"So I was right, wasn't I?!" Anko huffed in frustration. "That's it—I'm going to Orochimaru-sensei! He has to teach me a forbidden jutsu too!"
"Could it be a Kekkei Genkai?" Shisui speculated, his gaze lingering on Kagetsu. He replayed the scene of his defeat in his mind, still trying to make sense of it.
Could a shadow technique really influence inanimate objects, giving them shape and form?
It had to be an advanced use of Yin Release.
Strictly speaking, Shisui realized he hadn't been defeated by raw power but by the lack of information. He had never expected Kagetsu's Yin Release to have such a unique application.
The training ground wasn't particularly large, and after several rounds of pursuit, they'd naturally ended up retracing their steps. But Shisui hadn't anticipated Kagetsu turning this to his advantage.
Even his Sharingan had failed to detect it.
Unless you were overwhelmingly powerful, ninja battles were battles of information and strategy.
From what he'd seen today, every bit of intel he thought he had on Kagetsu was now useless.
"Kekkei Genkai?" Anko stopped her complaints, glancing down at Kagetsu's shadow and then back at his face. Slowly, her expression shifted as realization dawned.
"Isn't this the Nara clan's secret shadow technique? Or maybe it's that new jutsu Kagetsu created."
Shisui didn't respond to Anko's comment. He wasn't entirely sure if it was a kekkei genkai or just a secret technique. However, as the one facing it firsthand, his perception of it was sharper and deeper than Anko's from the sidelines.
"It's a kekkei genkai." Kagetsu nodded, confirming it.
The three of them would likely remain together under Orochimaru's guidance for some time, carrying out missions as his disciples and subordinates. Kagetsu had no intention of hiding this from Shisui and Anko.
"You've awakened a kekkei genkai?" Anko stared wide-eyed, clearly shocked by the news.
A kekkei genkai!
To a ninja, a kekkei genkai was the hallmark of power and strength.
Only powerful ninjas could create or awaken a kekkei genkai. That was a firmly held belief in Anko's mind.
Yet, to discover that someone she interacted with daily had suddenly gained one was hard for her to process.
"You could say that." Kagetsu nodded calmly.
"But the Nara clan specializes in secret techniques, not kekkei genkai." Anko still found it hard to believe, though she knew Kagetsu wasn't the type to lie about something like this.
"Does this mean the Nara clan might also become a kekkei genkai clan in the future?"
Anko and Shisui exchanged glances, both realizing that this possibility could change everything.
Many times, to outsiders, clans known for secret techniques could seem just as powerful as those with kekkei genkai.
"What exactly is your kekkei genkai? Is it related to that shadow at your feet? Do you need to keep it secret?"
Now that Anko had accepted the reality of Kagetsu's kekkei genkai, her curiosity took over. But the moment she asked, she realized it might sound like she was prying into the Nara clan's secrets, so she quickly shut her mouth.
Prying into another clan's jutsu was a taboo that could easily lead to suspicion or hostility. It was only because of their close bond as teammates under the same teacher that Anko had asked without thinking.
"It just makes using shadow techniques more convenient and adds some other effects." Kagetsu didn't want to go into too much detail. In truth, he was still figuring out how to further develop the unique traits of his kekkei genkai and become more familiar with it.
Anko and Shisui nodded in silent understanding, dropping the subject.
As long as they stayed on the same team, they would eventually observe and understand Kagetsu's kekkei genkai through missions and experience. There was no need to rush.
"Did you create this kekkei genkai with Lord Orochimaru?" Shisui leaned in slightly, as if a sudden thought had struck him, and whispered the question to Kagetsu.
Shisui understood clearly that Kagetsu had always been an assistant, helping Orochimaru with various bloodline limit (kekkei genkai) experiments.
The Uchiha clan involved in these experiments, along with the Kurama clan that joined later, were both considered to be part of the Yin Release bloodline limit.
The Nara clan's shadow techniques also belonged to the Yin Release secret arts.
Shisui speculated that Kagetsu had found some inspiration during the experiments and awakened his own bloodline limit.
"Yes," Kagetsu nodded again. Since Shisui said so, he would naturally go along with it. This was, after all, his excuse.
Otherwise, he couldn't just say that his bloodline limit was awakened because of the incomplete material, the "Left Hand of the Soul King," merging and awakening on its own.
"Congratulations," Shisui sincerely congratulated him.
In his view, Kagetsu, who had awakened his bloodline limit, would surely become a powerful ninja in the future.
As a support and control role in the team, and acting like the brain, he could also give enemies a sudden surprise and turn the tide during crucial moments of a mission.
Kagetsu's personal image was very deceptive. Coupled with his skilled medical ninjutsu, enemies would definitely recognize him as a medical ninja at first glance.
"Let's take a break and continue," Kagetsu said. After their sparring session, he didn't leave immediately. This was a stark contrast to his usual behavior of spending all day in the lab, and even the carefree Anko noticed something was off.
However, Kagetsu didn't say anything further and began to think about developing more uses for his bloodline limit.
Although both belonged to Yin Release, the Uchiha's Yin Release was focused on the mind, or soul, and eyes. The Sharingan reflected the mind of the Uchiha clan members, and all ninjutsu depended on the Sharingan to activate.
The Kurama clan's Yin Release was primarily focused on genjutsu. They used powerful mental energy to create extremely realistic illusions that could cause harm.
His Shadow Release, on the other hand, was entirely based on shadows. The incomplete Left Hand of the Soul King seemed to have fused with his soul, giving life to shadows through Yin Release power.
Kagetsu could feel that the shadows had a will of their own.
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