Ryu slept in the Hamura compound, but his mind was elsewhere.
In Ryu's dream, Kiyomizu Otsutsuki had a sphere of Yang chakra blooming above his left hand.
The exercise was simple in description and cruel in execution: pull the sphere using opposite-nature chakra.
Ryu gathered Yin chakra in his hand. The orb resisted, then slowly drifted closer than the last time.
"Better," Kiyomizu said. "Your progress accelerates with each session."
They had been training twice daily for about two hours, playing tug of war with chakra spheres to increase control over Yin-Yang chakra and to gather it faster and purer.
Kiyomizu then said, "That sword you forged. Senbonzakura. A beautiful piece of work."
"How did you know?" Ryu asked.
"The Tenseigan energy vessel," Kiyomizu said. "A system that is powered by hundreds of Byakugan combined into one cohesive whole. It grants vision far beyond what any individual Byakugan possesses."
"An eye with a hundred-times zoom," Ryu thought. "I can't wait to observe their machine, which has the ability to amplify an ocular bloodline. Madara would have killed for such a machine."
"Sensei," he said, tone changing without the training slipping, "how long have you been watching me?"
"Quite some time," Kiyomizu replied calmly. "That underground house you're planning to build... I know it will serve as a prototype. Techniques and machines to build a new city for us."
Ryu's hand wavered for just a moment before steadying. "He's been watching closer than I realised. Which means..."
"Then you must know about the Iburi clan," Ryu said. "And their condition."
Kiyomizu's expression didn't change, but his attention sharpened. "Yes. The smoke-release users whose bodies destabilise into smoke."
"Do you have a jutsu that could help them?" Ryu asked.
Kiyomizu tilted his head, considering. "No. There is no such jutsu. Are you trying to create one?"
Ryu nodded as he spoke. "Opposite chakras attract. If I can attract their smoke back into their bodies and stabilise their molecular structure using Yang chakra, it might anchor them."
Kiyomizu nodded slowly. "What a sound theory. You truly deserve the title of smartest man on the planet. I do have a minor jutsu that could assist, but it was not for this purpose, and they would need to be at least half-trained in Yang manipulation first. They must learn to gather at least seventy to eighty per cent Yang chakra. It doesn't need to be as pure as the sphere I'm holding, but the intent and focus must be specific."
Ryu absorbed this, understanding the requirement. "Could you teach them? Or allow me to teach them?"
Kiyomizu said, "I can teach you enough to develop the foundation they need. I will inform Master Taro. If a minor jutsu can save the lives of an entire clan, I'm confident he won't object."
He paused, then continued. "Moreover, the Yin-Yang knowledge you already possessed was good enough to eventually design a jutsu for this purpose on your own. The training you are doing now will simply accelerate the process significantly."
Ryu nodded.
"And it will also speed up your training," Kiyomizu added. "Teaching others forces you to refine your own understanding. Go. Start training them to gather Yang chakra but inside the body. Use your own Yang manipulation to give them the initial push, a primer to help them feel the correct flow. I will give you a seal when we meet next time that will help form a yang core."
Ryu nodded. "A Yang core. If I could stabilise that for them... The constructs melt. They must lack anchoring. A Yang core might provide exactly that foundation."
"Sensei," Ryu said after a moment, tone changing again, "regarding dreamscape invasion, can I also learn this?"
"Focus on your current training, and try not to learn too much at once," Kiyomizu said.
"I am focused," Ryu said. "I have my own bloodline limit of a mental nature that gives me [Parallel Thinking] and [Fast Thinking]."
Kiyomizu's expression changed. "A mental kekkei genkai. That would explain his exceptional learning speed and control."
"Superior focus and thinking... Impressive," Kiyomizu said. "That bloodline is why you progress so quickly. At this speed, you will master perfect Yin-Yang control soon."
"To answer your earlier question, no," Kiyomizu continued. "You cannot learn this particular jutsu."
Ryu expected this but he just wanted to be sure.
Kiyomizu continued, "It is intrinsically linked to the Tenseigan Energy Vessel, and it also requires our bloodline. Maybe if you were from the Hyuga Clan, you could have..."
"Right now we are in your mind, not mine. The ability to project one's soul out of the body is not simple..."
Ryu continued, "I know someone who can do that... and you are right, it is not simple."
Kiyomizu paused. "Why did you ask? I know it was for a purpose. You do not ask unnecessary things," Kiyomizu asked, turning the question back.
Ryu replied, "I wanted to know if I could manipulate reality like this inside a Jinchūriki's mental world."
Kiyomizu questioned, "The mental scape of a Jinchūriki?"
"Yes," Ryu said.
"No." The denial was fast. Kiyomizu continued, "That is not the dreamworld inside a Jinchūriki."
Ryu nodded and said, "Just as I thought."
"Here, in the dreamscape, damage is spiritual," Kiyomizu said. "Attacks wound the soul and leave scars on consciousness itself. Death here means death in reality."
Kiyomizu explained, "But in the internal world of a Jinchūriki, there is no physical damage. No soul damage. Only chakra backlash, and only for those with weak will."
Ryu's memory surfaced instantly. "Sasuke and Orochimaru have once crossed the internal world of Naruto. If I'm ever pulled there, if my only concern is a chakra backlash, I can fight knowing I won't die."
"You plan to confront a tailed beast inside its host... that funny boy?" Kiyomizu observed.
"I call it contingency planning," Ryu replied. "Preparation for scenarios I hope never occur. One day I might have to conduct business in another country, which would involve me with Kages and other high-level ninjas. I have a list of them in my mind, and I am constantly building contingency plans for everyone."
Kiyomizu nodded once. "Wise. Hope for peace, prepare for war."
Ryu continued his questioning but towards the next jutsu, "Sensei. The visual power your clan possesses, the sight without eyes – how does it work?"
Kiyomizu tilted his head, considering. Then he raised one hand.
A small canvas shimmered into existence before Ryu, materialising with faint ripples in the dreamscape air. A palette and brush followed, appearing beside it with the same ethereal quality.
"Draw a portrait of me," Kiyomizu said.
Ryu stepped closer and picked up the brush. The palette held only one paint. White.
He paused. The canvas was white too.
"A white canvas and white paint," Ryu said.
Kiyomizu asked, "So what's missing?"
"Colours different from white," Ryu answered.
The paint shifted. White became black.
Ryu studied the difference. "Now I can draw a silhouette. Basic shape. Shadow and edge. But a portrait, or even something similar, would need many colours."
"You sense a single chakra with normal chakra sensing," Kiyomizu said. "A chakra that represents a single colour on a non-existent blank canvas you call perception... a self-image of the world inside your mind."
The palette changed again. Two colours appeared, one pale blue, one deep crimson.
Kiyomizu gestured toward the canvas. "Now, with two colours, can you draw me on that canvas?"
Ryu saw it. Two colours. Two types. Yin and Yang.
"Yes," Ryu said, slower now, because the idea was unfolding faster than language. "With two distinct colours, I can create depth. Shading. Detail."
Kiyomizu lowered his hand. "Exactly. Yin and Yang are two colours. Most shinobi sense only one, undifferentiated chakra. They see black against white. But we perceive many shades of chakra. And do not forget the blank canvas. The absence of chakra is as important as its presence. All that combines and forms an image in mind."
Ryu stared at the two colours, the Yin-Yang, and the blank canvas.
"Different ratios," Ryu murmured. "Different shades."
"Yes," Kiyomizu said.
Ryu smiled and said, "With just two colours and infinite ratios, I can create a masterpiece."
"When you have perfect control of Yin and Yang," Kiyomizu said, "you will learn to visualise them. To give colour to them in your mental world. For the uninitiated, the inner landscape is dark and undefined. But once initiated, once you can perceive and manipulate both Yin and Yang perfectly, you can close your eyes and still see the world in your imagination. It won't be an exact image but still..."
"Train in control for now," Kiyomizu instructed. "You will be trained in sensing Yin and Yang separately only after the foundations are strong."
Ryu nodded and finished the rest of the training without further questions.
Kiyomizu said, "Enough for today. You have done well, but the strain is building. Rest your mind and soul before the next session. Also, you need to start training by yourself in the real world as well. Training here brings a load to the Tenseigan Energy Vessel. So try to do some training by yourself. When you start working with that clan, it will be training by itself too, as you will need to form a core by yourself at first."
Ryu bowed. "I will. Thank you for your hard work, Sensei."
A/N:
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