"Heh heh~ That kid's been pretty interesting lately."
Kurama chuckled mischievously. "Ever since you struck him dead with lightning last time, he's managed to get himself killed two more times in just half a month—relying on his cloned Sharingan and Izanagi."
"He got himself killed—twice?"
Naruto thought for a moment and quickly guessed what Sasuke had been up to.
"Although Sasuke died again, he actually achieved some impressive breakthroughs," Matatabi cut in, giving Kurama a sidelong glance. "Without even using Storm Release, Sasuke developed a forbidden jutsu using only Fire and Lightning Release. It draws upon natural lightning and its power is comparable to your Thunderfall Purgatory. If he can solve the control issue, it would qualify as a true 'secret art' by your human ranking standards."
Naruto smiled but said nothing. From what Kurama had said earlier, he already suspected that Sasuke had been working on something similar to the Kirin technique from the original timeline.
But what caught his attention more was why Sasuke had to burn two Izanagi uses. In the original story, he didn't need Izanagi to master Kirin.
"Sure, developing forbidden jutsu is risky," Naruto said, "but with his current strength, it's hard to believe he needed to use Izanagi just to survive the backlash."
"That's related to what you told him about Uchiha Itachi," Matatabi began, but Isobu cut her off in a gruff voice.
"That lightning jutsu was tough to develop, sure. But with the help of his chakra armor and Sharingan, he managed to pull it off in one attempt. The problem started after he remembered what you said—how Itachi didn't even need to use Izanagi to withstand attacks of that level. So the brat decided to test himself."
Naruto's eyes gleamed. "What kind of test?"
"Pffft—haha!"
Kurama suddenly burst into laughter. "The kid originally wanted your help—or maybe a shadow clone—but after some comparisons, he realized his technique still didn't match up to your Thunderfall Purgatory. He was too proud to embarrass himself in front of you… Plus, he suspected you'd just 'accidentally' strike him dead again."
"Hahaha…"
Kurama laughed heartily but didn't offer details. Still, Naruto could already picture it.
Sasuke had likely believed his Sharingan could accurately track natural lightning's trajectory and speed. Once he confirmed he could guide it down, he shifted focus to defense—since Naruto told him Itachi could defend against such attacks without using Izanagi, he skipped precise shaping of the lightning entirely.
Now that Sasuke was close to mastering Storm Release, he probably didn't bother refining natural lightning anymore. Storm Release's guidance function would solve all the control problems soon enough.
Still, Naruto was curious—how exactly did Sasuke get himself zapped to death?
Just as he was about to leave to check the mirror world records, Matatabi lowered her head close to his.
"Not wanting to embarrass himself in front of you, Sasuke decided to do it alone. After preparing everything on the frozen plain, he had a shadow clone wear chakra armor and fly into the sky—to channel lightning directly down onto himself."
Kurama suddenly stopped laughing. He exchanged a look with Isobu.
"Heh~ The idiot actually tried to block it with Chidori," Isobu said gleefully. "Got completely disintegrated by the very jutsu he created."
"Chidori?"
Naruto burst out laughing. Sasuke's logic was hilariously misguided.
He had seen Kakashi's memories. True, Kakashi had once used Chidori to cut through a lightning bolt summoned by a temporary barrier from Iwagakure. That's when Chidori earned its new name: Lightning Cutter.
But that was a fluke—Kakashi only succeeded because the Iwagakure jutsu was too slow and the users were too cautious to fully channel the bolt. Their chakra was nearly depleted by the time the lightning struck, giving Kakashi a tiny window to slice through it.
(That was from Episode 508, one of Kakashi's big hero moments.)
Even though both Chidori and Sasuke's new move were high-level Lightning Release jutsu, Lightning Cutter struggled to defend against something as basic as Kakuzu's B-Rank Lightning-style "False Darkness".
In comparison, Sasuke's new forbidden jutsu—modeled after Naruto's Storm Release—was orders of magnitude faster and wider in scale.
Sasuke might've blocked one bolt, but there was no surviving nature's fury like that.
…But with Izanagi, he could afford to die a few times.
"Anyway—how's Minamoto Gi doing lately?" Naruto asked, turning to Matatabi.
"That kid's improving fast," she replied, lifting her head proudly. "Thanks to constant battles in the mirror world, he's earned lots of rewards. Aside from mastering the Hyuga clan's Gentle Fist, he's now proficient in four major chakra natures."
"He still hasn't unlocked any new chakra affinities?" Naruto asked, a bit surprised. "And what about his Byakugan—any special traits?"
"Nothing remarkable," Matatabi replied, puzzled by the question. "His Byakugan doesn't seem any different from others in the Hyuga clan."
"I see…"
Naruto lowered his head in thought.
He had studied the cloned Byakugan extensively—and each one's purity was identical. Seems like Gi's living Byakugan wasn't any different from the clones.
In that case, after the upcoming Takigakure mission, it was probably time to let Gi try fusing with other Byakugan sources.
As Naruto was lost in thought, the three Tailed Beasts exchanged glances, then suddenly went silent—each withdrawing emotionally.
"I'll head out first. You—"
Naruto stopped mid-sentence, noticing their change in mood. Shaking his head slightly, he exited the sealed space.
He had to go help Sasuke install a new eye.
Nightfall.
"You want to seal my chakra?"
Sasuke glared at Naruto, both his eyes glowing crimson, each with a single black tomoe. His brow furrowed tightly.
"Relax," Naruto said, placing one hand on Sasuke's shoulder. With the other, he rapidly formed seals. A swirl of dark sealing runes spread across Sasuke's shoulder.
"This seal just limits you to using only Fire and Lightning Release tomorrow."
Sasuke memorized the seals Naruto used and asked grimly, "What happens if I try using another chakra nature?"
"Easy," Naruto said with a smirk. "Try it and find out."
Sasuke's face turned cold. "You think I'm that stupid?"
"Too bad. If it were me, I'd be too curious not to test it," Naruto said with fake disappointment. "Anyway, you've been warned. We'll see how you perform tomorrow."
With that, he activated Flying Thunder God.
SWOOSH!
In a flash, the two appeared in the forest near the Naka River. As soon as they landed, Naruto flickered away again.
Sasuke's cheek twitched. He was certain Naruto did that on purpose—he could've just sent him home, but instead dumped him here.
"Hmph."
With a snort, Sasuke turned toward the river. But after only a few steps, something clicked in his mind.
He stopped, formed hand seals, and created a shadow clone.
The clone took two steps back and began forming seals for Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet.
POOF!
The moment it finished the sequence, it exploded into smoke.
The next moment, Sasuke clutched his stomach—
A sudden and urgent need to use the bathroom.
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