While Tobirama cursed at Madara, that unfortunate fellow he always disliked, Hibari himself actually knew a bit about his own "flaw."
It was a bit peculiar, to say the least.
Originally, Hibari wasn't supposed to come to this world. His 'ticket' was booked for the world of pirates, One Piece. But wouldn't you know it, the driver was a rookie, and Hibari was such a chatterbox, constantly gabbing with him during the ride. They were having such a good time that the driver accidentally took a wrong turn and dropped him off in this world instead.
Things like this usually had no turning back. Hibari could have complained, but upon closer thought, this world wasn't inferior to that one, equally full of mystery and fun. Plus, the conversation with the driver had been so lively and enjoyable throughout the journey that, aside from the wrong turn, the impression was quite good.
Everyone was just trying to earn a living, so Hibari didn't want to make things difficult for him or complain. He decided to just live in this world.
The driver, hearing Hibari's understanding, was so moved that he wept tears of gratitude on the spot, insisting on giving Hibari a treasure his grandfather had cherished for years as a farewell gift...
Thinking about it now, this damned flaw came from that farewell gift. If Hibari had another chance to choose, he wouldn't just complain about that scoundrel; he'd want to beat him to death.
Why, you ask? Because the farewell gift that bastard driver gave him was a Devil Fruit—specifically, the one notorious for being the most frustrating: the Human-Human Fruit, Model: Human.
And this Devil Fruit had even reincarnated with him... he couldn't shake it off!
That's right, the current Hibari, on the surface, was a third-generation ninja being trained by the Senju clan. But secretly, he was a Devil Fruit user.
What kind of ability, you ask? Well, Hibari would introduce himself...
"Hello everyone, I'm Senju Hibari, a Devil Fruit user. I ate the Human-Human Fruit, Model: Human... My ability is that I can't swim."
Now Hibari understood why those VIP clients, with their 'vast wealth,' didn't want this Devil Fruit. Thinking about it now, if he were a VIP client and could reincarnate with his abilities, Hibari wouldn't want this damned Devil Fruit either!
Of course, everything has pros and cons. Because of this damned Human-Human Fruit, Hibari became the Senju clan's landlubber. Forget about refining Water Release chakra, forget about Water Release ninjutsu, he couldn't even enter water. This was a very obvious weakness, a disadvantage.
But there should be some benefits behind it. According to Hibari's own speculation, he wasn't the reincarnation of the son of the Sage of Six Paths like Hashirama, yet he possessed powerful vitality and chakra reserves far exceeding other Senju clan members, just like Hashirama. This should be related to this frustrating Devil Fruit.
After all, no matter what, it was a Zoan-type ability, and Zoan-type users typically have significantly enhanced physical abilities.
This should be the source of Hibari's abundant vitality. As for why his chakra reserves far exceeded those of his clan, it might be that the Devil Fruit contained powerful energy when he reincarnated, and this energy, now in Hibari's body, had assimilated into chakra under the changes in the world's rules... it wasn't impossible.
However, these were all unproven theories, merely Hibari's own conjectures. A part of the reason he wanted to follow Tobirama and explore the 'truths' of this world was to unravel this mystery.
Of course, the more important point was to see if there was a way to get rid of this damned curse from the Devil Fruit!
In the world of pirates, there might have been no solution, but now he was in a different world, with different rules. Perhaps there truly was a way?
Slightly reining in his reminiscing thoughts, Hibari looked at Tobirama, who had returned to his normal demeanor, scratched his head, and asked, "Ojiisan, let's put the Uchiha clan aside for now. Where do you think we should start to solve this problem of mine?"
Tobirama looked at Hibari, then pondered for a moment and said, "Although my sensory abilities are very strong, and I have some insights into the study of souls and spirits... your situation truly feels a bit tricky. However, there are only a few ways to solve it..."
At this point, Tobirama paused, sat back down in his chair, then casually picked up the water cup on the desk. Then, a glass of clear water magically appeared in the previously empty cup.
Hibari seemed to be used to Tobirama's actions, probably having witnessed them many times before.
Tobirama took a sip of water to clear his throat, then looked at Hibari and said, "The first method, which is both the simplest and the most complex, is to find the origin of this 'curse.' By tracing its source, we should be able to reverse-engineer it and easily undo it..."
Hibari paused at these words, then understood that this method was likely impossible for him to use.
To find the source of this curse... did he mean for him to break through the world's barriers and go to the world of pirates?
If he had that capability, he'd have ascended to immortality long ago, not still be here pondering a small Devil Fruit curse.
So Hibari thought for a moment and asked, "Didn't you say, Ojiisan, that this thing has been with me since birth? Its origin... I'm afraid it can't be found."
"Yes, so we don't need to explore that method... However, anything is possible. If you happen to stumble upon it by chance in the future, it might just be resolved..." Tobirama nodded and said softly.
Hibari chuckled, "Such a mysterious thing, I can't put my hopes on such luck, Ojiisan. What's the other method?"
Tobirama glanced at Hibari, then continued, "The second method treats the symptoms, not the root cause..."
"What method?" Hibari asked, very curious.
"That is, based on your body, develop a specific sealing jutsu to target this situation. Use this sealing jutsu to seal this 'obscure' thing in your soul... or rather, your spirit, within your body. Since you've learned Adamantine Chains, I don't need to explain the effectiveness of sealing jutsu any further, do I?" Tobirama said softly, looking at Hibari.
Tobirama's words certainly made sense. What is a sealing jutsu? It's easy to explain: it's about sealing things away. For example, the Amaterasu's 'undying black flames' can be sealed with the Fire Sealing Method.
And this sealing doesn't mean extinguishing it; rather, it keeps the burning state, but seals it away.
So, if they followed Tobirama's line of thought, developing a sealing jutsu specifically to seal the Devil Fruit curse within Hibari's body, it wasn't impossible. On the contrary, it was highly probable.
If he could seal the Devil Fruit curse within him, then Hibari should be able to escape his embarrassing situation as a landlubber. At that point, let alone Water Release, he'd even try to challenge Hashirama's Wood Release to see if he could master it.
However, there were also flaws. As Tobirama said, this method treated the symptoms, not the root cause. It would only seal the Devil Fruit curse within Hibari's body, not truly eradicate it.
If, someday, something unexpected happened and the seal broke, Hibari would immediately return to his current awkward predicament.
If someone truly conspired against him, they could even kill him, because this thing didn't care how strong you were; as long as you were thrown into water, even a king would be done for.
Therefore, this method could only be considered a 'last resort.' It could be used temporarily, but relying on it indefinitely would be equivalent to entrusting one's life to 'luck,' and Hibari naturally didn't want to be that kind of person.
"A sealing jutsu, huh? It's not a bad method... But as you said, Ojiisan, it treats the symptoms, not the root cause. Perhaps we can use it temporarily until we find a fundamental solution to this problem... So, Ojiisan, are there any other methods?" Hibari scratched his head, looking at Tobirama.
Tobirama's expression became a bit more serious this time. He placed the water cup on the nearby table, looked into Hibari's eyes, was silent for a moment, and then spoke, "Hibari, do you know where a person's soul goes after death...?"
Hibari paused upon hearing Tobirama's words, then hesitantly replied, "An... another world?"
Tobirama chuckled at Hibari's answer, then continued, "You're not wrong to say that. According to my research, after death, people generally have two destinations. The first is the most common destination: returning to the Pure Land... The second is surrendering one's soul to... the Shinigami... So, saying they go to another world isn't entirely illogical."
Hibari swallowed, thinking to himself that he thought Tobirama had seen through his origins.
'So this is the topic you want to explore, Ojiisan. Of course, I know about these things you're talking about. Forget these two; I even came from a third place, which is truly 'another world'!'