Thud.
Ao collapsed onto the ground. His short, sky-blue hair, now soaked by water, stuck to his skin, mixing with the blood running down his forehead.
He stared at Kiyohara with unwillingness and disbelief, yet the only thing he could truly feel was his own dwindling life force rapidly slipping away.
At the same time, Kiyohara finally regained full control of his own body.
"Huff… huff…"
He immediately dropped to one knee, using his shinobi blade to support himself as he panted violently.
Youth Kiyohara had just unleashed the S-rank kenjutsu Leaf-Style Willow with a power far exceeding his body's current limits. The pressure it exerted on his spirit and physique reached an absolute peak.
His muscles felt like they were screaming in agony, his chakra pathways delivered sharp bursts of pain, and his chakra reserves were practically drained dry.
Too many times letting the youth Kiyohara take over risked consequences—like earning a cursed title.
Whenever the Youth Kiyohara took over, he used one hundred percent of the body's capability. In other words, if Kiyohara failed to regulate it properly, he would suffer backlash similar to opening the Eight Inner Gates.
But Kiyohara did not allow himself to rest. Instead, he reached into his shinobi pouch and took out another kunai.
Shhk!
Kiyohara hurled it with force, the blade plunging deep into Ao's skull.
Finishing blow were always a good habit.
"It's finally over."
Kiyohara let out a long breath of relief.
Thankfully, the Youth Kiyohara's greatest enemy wasn't too difficult to kill in this timeline. If it had been someone who survived until the Fourth Great Ninja War, only to be casually stomped to death by Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, Kiyohara would have had to resurrect Kaguya first just to fulfill that will.
The spectral form of the Youth Kiyohara manifested behind him, hovering like some kind of guardian spirit.
Though he had finally avenged himself, all he felt was an ethereal, hollow calm.
Besides, the Ao of this world wasn't necessarily the same Ao from his timeline. This felt more like settling for an acceptable substitute—enough to complete his greatest regret, or rather, his deepest obsession.
As Youth Kiyohara gazed at Ao's corpse, fragments of memories rapidly flashed across his mind, stopping at the moment that man's blade pierced through his chest.
Back then… he had been far too arrogant. He thought his swordsmanship could handle anything. He underestimated the enemy and overestimated himself.
"The past me…"
The Youth Kiyohara's voice echoed softly from within their merged consciousness.
"All that nonsense about 'no sword in hand yet a sword in the heart' is useless. If you can get a good weapon, then stack the best materials on it."
"I know."
Kiyohara replied.
This was the blood-soaked lesson of his future self.
Even with his newly forged shinobi blade, something still felt… off. If anything, he thought, he really should find a way to obtain a true Kusanagi sword someday.
Since "Kusanagi" wasn't the name of one specific sword but the collective name for a series—Orochimaru's being a double-edged blade, Sasuke's resembling a straight sword—it wouldn't be impossible.
"Well, hope you don't get sealed away in an urn and shipped off in the end."
Compared to the Missing-nin Kiyohara, Youth Kiyohara lacked the heaviness of age and carried far more sharpness and vigor.
He waved casually, and his form began dissolving into particles of light, slowly melting away like frost beneath the sun.
Those countless light particles, however, surged straight into Kiyohara's body.
At this moment, Kiyohara could only describe those lights with one word—"origin."
Everything blended perfectly, harmoniously merging with his body without resistance.
A massive stream of information flooded into his mind—not just the training method and essential principles of Leaf-Style Willow, but also countless insights about swordsmanship, brilliance born from repeated contemplation, instincts for reading the battlefield, and a unique perception of what "sword" truly meant.
His spirit felt cleansed, becoming more condensed and potent.
At the same time, a natural affinity for the "sword" rose from deep within him—as if he had been born to walk the path of a kenjutsu specialist.
His mind, previously exhausted from battle and the swapping of consciousness, felt refreshed as if washed by a cool stream. Every thought became sharper, clearer.
This was the explosive surge of spiritual energy.
And that surge, like an incredibly effective catalyst, instantly triggered a fundamental transformation in his body!
The chakra that had been nearly depleted just moments ago suddenly began to regenerate—as if some internal valve had been opened.
His muscles, which had been weak and sore from overexertion, regained strength. Fatigue evaporated, replaced by a steadily growing fullness.
"My chakra… they've increased again."
Kiyohara clenched his fists.
If Kakashi was considered the standard "average jōnin unit," then Kiyohara now possessed slightly more chakra than Kakashi—somewhere between 1.3 to 1.5 times.
And this was solid, tangible power.
With the stacking of two future selves, even if they did not pass down their full lifetime's strength, the combined benefit was still enormous.
To think that only a little over a month ago, he had been a mere genin—someone who could only barely touch the threshold of a chūnin through experience from two lives and some quick thinking.
This rate of growth was unreal.
If he had to compare, the only similar case was Obito—jumping from ordinary eyes to two tomoe, then from two tomoe straight to Mangekyō.
Normal people did not grow stronger this fast. Even Indra's reincarnation, Sasuke, after being forced by Itachi to watch his entire clan dying, only awakened one and then two tomoe out of sheer rage.
After resting briefly, Kiyohara stretched slightly.
Though his outer appearance remained disheveled—clothes torn, bloodstains everywhere—the changes inside him were subtle yet tremendous.
Once his initial excitement over his amplified strength faded, Kiyohara's mind quickly turned calm and rational.
Yes, his power had indeed increased—especially his swordsmanship, which could be described as reborn.
But along with it came a serious problem.
Leaf-Style Willow.
Its origin was impossible to explain.
It was Maruboshi Kosuke's personal creation. Using it would inevitably draw suspicion and interrogation.
Claiming that he coincidentally developed the exact same technique?
Impossible.
Kosuke merely chose not to become a jōnin. The Second Hokage himself had taught him Water Release techniques, and every high-ranking member of the village knew he possessed remarkable skill.
Meanwhile, Kiyohara was just a newly promoted chūnin.
"No… this technique must remain hidden," Kiyohara thought to himself.
"This is a trump card—only to be used at the brink of death or when I'm certain no one is watching."
He would need sword techniques he could use openly.
"I need more achievements, enough to access the advanced kenjutsu techniques… and earn the village's direct support."
His gaze sharpened.
"With the merit of killing Ao, a Mist jōnin, I should be able to apply for access to advanced kenjutsu techniques. Konoha's library must have quite a few excellent options."
It was precisely because of powerful civilian shinobi like Maruboshi Kosuke that Konoha's jutsu library included many techniques not bound to clans with impressive power—ninjustu, taijutsu, kenjutsu, genjutsu, everything.
The village rewarded contributions with money, honors, and recognition under the Will of Fire.
With enough merit, anyone could gain access.
"I wonder how Kakashi is doing."
Kiyohara muttered.
Before he drew Ao away, Kakashi had gone alone to hunt the one interfering with the Byakugan—the Red Eye wielder, or something similar.
"Better grab the loot quickly first."
Kiyohara sheathed his sword and began swiftly looting Ao's gear.
Doing this restored a tiny bit of chakra… and rewarded him with spoils of war.
Otherwise, charging over immediately with low chakra would only make him a burden.
(End of Chapter)