CHAPTER 14

Chapter Summary: Suzuki Hiroshi explores the main library of the Vault of Scrolls with Uzumaki Kushina and Sarutobi Hiruzen. He finds the missing piece of his fuinjutsu style. Kushina and Hiruzen realize the dangers of the knowledge within the Vault. Hiroshi talks about the Sage of Six Paths and the Bijuu. He figures out a crucial part of his new signature jutsu and completes it.

The three of us climbed up the stairs and saw the entirety of the library.

Kushina-nee-san must have not realized how big the library really was a while ago as she now had concern written all over her face. "This library is too big! Where do we even start?"

I just smiled mysteriously at her. "Don't worry, Kushina-nee-san. The Keepers have absolute authority here. The previous Keepers made it possible to find what a Keeper would be looking for as long as he wished for it."

Hokage-sama and Kushina-nee-san showed me their confused looks while I closed my eyes and wished for the Air Scrawling technique.

I felt my body shift so I spoke to them while still closing my eyes. "Follow me. I know where it is."

My body moved through the aisles of shelves until I stopped in front of an especially unkempt shelf. It was filled with much more dust than the other shelves, making me conclude that this shelf was probably one of the first shelves ever to exist in the library.

I picked up the scroll directly in front of me and swiped away the dust with my hands. I opened the scroll and in a big font wrote 'Air Scrawling'. This was it.

"Kushina-nee-san, I found it! The Air Scrawling technique!", I shouted to where Kushina-nee-san lost me.

She and Hokage-sama were able to find me. Their faces scrounged up upon looking at the very dusty shelf.

"Why is this shelf so much dustier than others?", Kushina-nee-san asked no one in particular.

Hokage-sama was more observant than her. "Could it be that this shelf and its contents are the oldest? Probably the first in this whole library even."

I shared my own ideas. "I think you're right, Hokage-sama. If Air Scrawling was a lost technique during Uzushio's prime, the other books and scrolls in this shelf might also have knowledge thought to be lost."

Their eyes shined at what I said. As expected of the Professor and an Uzumaki Seal Mistress.

Kushina-nee-san asked. "Should we bring them back with us to the Lounge?"

I smiled. "I have a storage scroll prepared."

We were back at the Lounge and were now silently reading through the scrolls.

I prioritized the Air Scrawling technique. It was complicated in theory but really simple in execution. Basically, you project your will into the air and draw out the seal you want to employ using Yin Chakra. It was exactly how Minato-sensei would mark his Flying Thunder God Seal on enemies and places mid-battle. This one just requires refined, perfect chakra control which I already had. The problem was that it used a ton amount of chakra. The ancient Uzumaki was able to use it effectively in battle because they had a lot of chakra to exhaust. I may have to resort to modifying the technique itself to suit me.

While I was extensively studying the Air Scrawling technique, they were skimming through the other scrolls.

"The ancient Uzumaki sure have such ferocious courage. They devised a technique to use their own vitality and lifespan to significantly boost the power of their jutsu. It's a suicide technique that was created exactly for the Uzumaki. No wonder these were lost; they weren't even probably using these techniques because of the dangers they pose. Hiro-kun, make sure that Air Scrawling technique you need doesn't have any side-effects whatsoever."

"This here I'm reading details the experiments they did to reform the Adamantine Sealing Chains into other weapons."

"That can be done?"

"Yeah. The scroll even detailed how they screamed and how their bodies squirmed from the procedure, hoping to find a pattern of some sort. Eventually, they succeeded in reshaping the chains. The successful participants were able to shoot out spears and swords instead. I'd like to try it myself but the way they described the side-effects are too much to think about."

"It's probably best to not even think about it, Kushina. Your chains are useful as is, anyway."

Kushina-nee-san nodded in understanding then opened another scroll.

I finished studying the Air Scrawling technique and helped them with reading the other scrolls.

The scroll I read was a little disturbing. "Wow. The ancient Uzumaki tried to make their own dojutsu!"

At my words, the other two focused their attention to me. Seeing as they were waiting, I continued. "It says here that the dojutsu was made through a painful process of etching a seal into the eyes. The abilities manifested varied for each participant. The general enhancements, though, included dynamic vision, night vision, and zooming sight that allowed them to see for as far as a hundred kilometers! The special abilities recorded include spatial manipulation, temporal distortion, retrospection, and clairvoyance."

Kushina-nee-san was awed. "How did we not continue this if it was possible? Clairvoyance? Surely, the Uzumaki realized its value.", Hokage-sama nodded at her words.

I dropped a bomb on them. "Participants were thought to have been overwhelmed by sudden increase in abilities. Others went clinically insane and just kept wreaking havoc through the abilities of their dojutsu. Those that received clairvoyance and retrospection, though, didn't go crazy. Instead, after 36 hours, their heads exploded from the inside."

Hokage-sama nodded. "So, it was not worth it."

Kushina-nee-san pondered. "How crazy were ancient Uzumaki to have tried all of these?"

I'd say very.

Having lost all the interest in the lost techniques of the ancient Uzumaki, we scoured through some shelves to get our minds off of the gruesome experiments that we read a while ago.

Kushina-nee-san suddenly shouted. "Wow! Original and detailed notes on the Flying Thunder God Jutsu! Can I bring these back with me? Minato would be thrilled to read through them."

It was good that Kushina-nee-san was asking for permission. "You'll have to copy it. We probably shouldn't take the originals out of the Vault."

I heard her shout an 'Okay!' as I saw her leave for the Lounge.

Hokage-sama was reading a scroll from another shelf near me when he spoke. "Oh dear. This library is very dangerous. Just judging from the techniques that the ancient Uzumaki devised, it is imperative to keep this Vault out of the hands of dangerous individuals.", he implied.

"Of course, Hokage-sama. The only ones I'm giving knowledge and access to these for now are you and Kushina-nee-san. I might give access to some people after the war together with the issue regarding the Senju but for now, I'll be making sure that the ones I'm thinking of entrusting knowledge of the Vault would be trustworthy."

Hokage-sama nodded. "That's good, my boy. Just remember that being cautious is different from being paranoid because there exists only a thin line between them."

I nodded my head as I took in his wisdom.

I thought it was a perfect time to open up a topic that I thought would change the future a lot.

We were back at the Lounge eating some sushi that Tsurutatsu previously brought back from the Cranes' Summoning Realm.

"I realize that this is an S-rank village secret but I can't really stop myself from asking any longer. Am I correct in assuming that Kushina-nee-san holds the Kyuubi in her?"

At my inquiry, Kushina-nee-san's face turned white as a sheet while Hokage-sama reaction was just pure astonishment.

I reassured Kushina-nee-san. "Before you ask, Kushina-nee-san, I don't really care that he's sealed inside you."

She was able to breath a sigh of relief at that.

"The reason I asked is because I'm curious. What's the Kyuubi's name?"

The Hokage looked at me with interest while Kushina-nee-san was shocked.

"What do you mean 'name', Hiro-chan? It's a demon who destroys everything in its path.", Kushina-nee-san said.

"Why do you assume the Kyuubi has a name, Hiro-kun?", the Hokage asked before making any judgement.

"Oh? You guys don't know about the story of the Sage of Six Paths and the Bijuu?"

What I said caught their interest so I proceeded to tell the tale?

"You see, the Bijuu were originally just one entity called the Juubi, or as conveniently called the Ten-Tailed Beast, that only knew to cause destruction so the Sage of Six Paths set out to tame the monster and become its Jinchuriki. He lived with the Juubi inside him but at some point, he thought that his mortal body would die. So he severed his connection with the Juubi and split them into nine other beasts, they are what we call now as Bijuu."

Although they were a little skeptical at first, they seemed enthralled with my story now.

"The Bijuu were taught and raised by the Sage of Six Paths. They were basically his children and so proceeded to name them himself as well. By the time they grew up, the Bijuu had put to heart the beliefs and aspirations of the Sage. And like all other children, the Bijuu went their separate ways. However, the Sage of Six Paths gave them a mission and purpose before they all went to travel the world; to work with humans, walk with them, and to help lead the world to everlasting peace."

"That was all there was to the story. I could imagine what happened next though. Humans started to attack them or tame them for their own greed and agenda. The Bijuu probably hated how easily humans could wage war against one another. They must have been resenting humans as we forgot the teachings of their father, the Sage of Six Paths. They were probably enraged when Uchiha Madara controlled a Bijuu to wage war. And they probably forgot their purpose and lost all care for the world as they were treated like weapons when Senju Hashirama distributed them to the other Hidden Villages as if they were property."

"And they must have such bitter grudges against humans when we started to imprison them in our own people, taking away the freedom that their father especially granted them."

The Hokage had a look that seemed to be thinking far away while Kushina-nee-san grabbed her stomach where the seal was placed.

"I hope you at least try to talk to him, Kushina-nee-san. He must have been very hurt and lonely all this time." I could feel my face form a solemn and sad look as I thought of how the Bijuu have lived their lives.

Kushina-nee-san looked hurt at the story I told so she hesitantly nodded her head. "I'll try, Hiro-chan. But if it's already been so long, its- I mean his resentment must run so deep. I'll probably have a hard time but I'll try nonetheless." I nodded feeling thankful.

The Hokage turned his head to me. "Where did you learn of this story, Hiro-kun?"

Time to put on my best performance yet. "It was here in the Vault some months ago. I was looking for something interesting to read when this very old parchment caught my eye. It told the story. I had to leave immediately though since I was just on a break when I was working at Konoha R&D. The next time I came here, I couldn't find it. I even tried wishing for it but there was nothing. I think it was a one-time thing."

They nodded looking around the Lounge as if questioning how peculiar the Vault of Scrolls was.

Some hours must have passed when the Hokage suddenly panicked about the work he left.

I laughed at his dilemma but quickly explained how I mastered the time difference function of the seal to the Vault.

I discovered a few months ago how I could infuse chakra into the seal in a specific way to set the time difference.

We were sucked in and out of the vortex and everything was the same way as it should be. According to the time difference I set, only ten minutes should have passed.

"Oh thank Kami its still bright. Well, anyway, you have given me a lot to think about once again, Hiro-kun.", the Hokage said as he sighed a breath of relief at the start.

I chuckled. "It's my pleasure, Hokage-sama."

He then proceeded to kick us out of his office to continue his paperwork.

Kushina-nee-san told me training for today was over so we headed to where Team Minato was.

Obito, Kakashi, and Rin were sitting in front of a standing Minato-sensei when we arrived at Training Grounds 3.

Seeing us approach, Minato-sensei greeted us. "Hey! You're here! Right on time, actually. I was just going to show them my new jutsu. I'm no Hiro-kun but I believe my jutsu is quite an achievement of its own right."

I sat with the rest of them while Kushina-nee-san went to where Rin-chan was. She then proceeded to hug Rin-chan who didn't mind.

Minato-sensei got ready for the demonstration. He held out his hand and slowly but surely formed a blue sphere made out of chakra. Oh, it was the [Rasengan]. I was wondering when he would make that.

I clapped as he formed it and the others followed suit when I realized something.

Oh kami. The Rasengan was the missing piece.

Just two months ago, I was able to finally improve on my [Water Release: Torrent Arsenal] not only did I just require four hand signs to change the weapon, I also made it sturdy and durable to the point that it could endure all types of obstacles.

The trick was actually really simple. Water was in a liquid state by default. It was shaped according to its container and its atoms weren't compact enough to create its own shape. So why not just make the water have its own shape? I compressed the water with chakra to its extremes for the atoms to condense and just settle near each other to the point that it was as hard as a real sword all the while still retaining its liquid state.

The problem remaining was its lethality and cutting power. But it was just solved by the demonstration of the [Rasengan]. I then searched through my past life's memories to learn anything it has on the [Rasengan].

Minato-sensei probably sensed I was in a state of deep thinking as he tried to get my attention. Thankfully, my information gathering was complete so I was able to answer him.

"Are you okay, Hiro-kun?", Minato-sensei asked with concern.

I didn't bother to answer his question and directly went to the point. "Rotation. Power. Containment."

The others were wondering what I was saying.

"Is he still okay in the head?", Obito asked jokingly.

Minato-sensei, on the other hand was shocked with what I just said. "No. He's okay. He just figured out how my new jutsu worked."

Kakashi was uncharacteristically baffled. "In one glance? That's crazy."

I continued on with what I was saying. "Rotation refers to how the chakra moves within the jutsu. Chakra needs to move in multiple directions, to be erratic, for the jutsu to have the potential lethality. Power refers to how much chakra is used for the jutsu. Depending on the volume and density of chakra, it determines how lethal the [Rasengan] you are forming will be. Containment needs the first two processes. It completes the jutsu and makes the shape of the [Rasengan]."

Minato-sensei sighed dejectedly. "I worked hard on this jutsu for a while and you just cracked it in a moment. The world is too unfair."

I laughed in unbelief with his attitude. He would feel so cheated if I said that I knew beforehand about his jutsu. "Don't sell yourself too short, sensei. I was able to crack it because you made it in the first place. Plus, I have been trying to work on something similar to your [Rasengan] for half a year now. If you didn't show it to me, I would have had to work on it for at least two years. You just helped me create something good."

I stood up and weaved through the signs for [Water Release: Torrent Arsenal] and formed a uniquely-shaped sword. It looked was a broadsword that looked very much like the 'Buster Sword' in my past life's memories only a little bit shorter and much stouter in appearance with a shorter hilt that was covered with a knuckle bow guard.

The others saw me form the unusual sword and can't help but gasp in amazement. I smirked for a moment but brought my attention back to the task.

I focused on the blade of the sword and applied the principles of the [Rasengan]. The chakra guided the water to move in multiple directions to create the potential of lethality. I then added as much water chakra into the blade of the sword for its power. And to combine the two, I shaped it similarly to the blade instead of a sphere. The bladed edge of the sword slightly glowed and hummed in an excited yet stable way. I think I could cut anything now.

I dashed towards the nearest tree I could find and used the sword to attempt to slash at the tree. My eyes opened wide when the tree was neatly sliced in half. It might have worked too well.

I turned back to the others only to see them backing away as far as possible. I laughed awkwardly. "Sorry about that. I didn't think it would be that strong. I'll need to tone down the power a bit." And I was serious as I felt a third of my chakra reserves gone after that stunt.

I weaved through the hand signs once more and formed another weapon, a bow. I pulled back its string and, in its place, formed an arrow made out of water. I focused on the tip of the arrow and did the principles of rotation, power, and containment but on a smaller and safer scale. I released the string of the bow and the arrow shot out. The arrow hit the tree, creating a fist-sized dent.

I smiled in satisfaction.