Chapter 101: Specialization Training
After sending off the Third Hokage, Nan wasted no time. He dove straight into the development of kekkei genkai-level techniques.
That was his nature—once he set a goal, he couldn't sit still for even a moment.
The world was unstable. Though Konoha was already negotiating peace with Sunagakure, wars with other nations could erupt at any time. The shinobi who had just returned from the Wind Country front, Nan included, would likely be redeployed to another battlefield after only a short rest.
Nan wanted to seize this brief window of peace. If possible, he aimed to forge a brand-new elemental affinity—maybe even develop two original kekkei genkai techniques. When the time came to unleash them, the world would be left stunned.
Since arriving in this world, Nan had always tried to keep a low profile. But his overwhelming talent made it impossible—he was already a walking storm of shock and awe for those around him.
Sometimes he couldn't help but sigh. Why hadn't he awakened in this world with some kind of system? Something like a cheat that let him trade collected emotions for jutsu, bloodlines, or techniques.
If such a system existed, given how much he had already astonished the people around him over the past year, he might already have harvested enough "emotion points" to stand unmatched across the entire shinobi world.
Instead, he was left to grind through every step, painstakingly developing new techniques on his own.
For his fusion experiments, Nan created countless shadow clones. Then a thought struck him: Are my clones mentally linked to Yakushi Kabuto's borrowed body as well?
He tried it.
The answer was no.
The mental link extended only between his true body and Kabuto's vessel. Shadow clones created from either body couldn't share in it.
A pity. If even clones were included in this mental network, he would practically be invincible—like a man wielding countless brains in perfect sync. Forget kekkei genkai—even kekkei mōra (bloodline combinations rivaling the Sage's power) might only take minutes to engineer.
Still, even with just two brains, he had a decisive advantage.
The greatest barrier in creating a new affinity was the simultaneous control of two elemental chakra natures.
To use one nature was simple—like making your eyes spin in circles. Anyone could do it. The difference between natures was like drawing different shapes: circles, triangles, squares.
But using two natures at once? That was like trying to make one eye trace a circle while the other drew a square—something genetics simply didn't allow most humans to do.
For Nan, with his twin-core mind, this was the easiest part. The real challenge was not the simultaneous output but making the two energies harmonize.
He thought back on all the Naruto lore he'd consumed in his previous life. Kekkei genkai and combined jutsu were fundamentally different—like the difference between a chemical compound and a simple mixture.
Combination jutsu only exploited surface traits.
For example, when Hiruzen Sarutobi fought Orochimaru, he used Fire Release to heat the Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet, making the flames more destructive. Or when the Mizukage and Raikage combined their Water Dragon and Lightning Release techniques: the water acted as a conductor, sharpening the lightning's power.
Effective, yes—but not true fusion. Vast portions of the chakra's potential were wasted, untapped.
Kekkei genkai were different. They extracted and amplified specific traits from two chakra natures, merging them into an entirely new element. The efficiency skyrocketed.
That was why even within the same bloodline release, users displayed variations.
Take Magnet Release. Sunagakure shinobi, skilled in Wind Release, used it to control sand—gold dust, iron sand, or even common desert grains. Meanwhile, Kumogakure's Toroi, who leaned toward Lightning Release, used Magnet Release to manipulate existing metal weapons and magnetize enemy gear—or even their very bodies.
Same release, but different traits emphasized, yielding different results.
Likewise, when combining the same elements, the chosen traits determined everything.
Hashirama Senju, gifted with fragments of the God Tree's essence, used Water and Earth to create Wood Release, channeling chakra as the very source of life. Mizukage Mei Terumī, however, combined Water and Fire differently, producing Boil Release—a caustic mist capable of melting anything.
That was the wall blocking Nan. He could channel two natures simultaneously, but he didn't yet know how to isolate and strengthen the specific traits needed to forge a new affinity. At best, he was producing high-level combination jutsu, not true kekkei genkai.
Even within the same nature, shinobi showed subtle differences. Naruto's Wind Release had a pale white hue, while Minato's leaned toward bluish-green—evidence of distinct traits at play.
Sasuke, with his unique Blaze Release and Amaterasu, could manipulate his Fire Release far beyond normal limits, bending its nature at will. Naruto, empowered by the Nine-Tails, could freely shape chakra qualities as well. That was why their fusion worked.
Nan had no such gifts—but he had two synchronized minds. If he trained hard enough, he was certain he could do what no ordinary shinobi could.
Compared to those unique chakra mutations, Nan's elemental transformations were excellent, but ultimately still ordinary. By rights, he shouldn't have been able to forge a new affinity.
But Nan wasn't discouraged. He recalled Darui from the Fifth Hokage's era—a shinobi who wielded a special black lightning style. That must have come from pushing one particular trait of Lightning Release to its absolute extreme.
Maybe Darui's body had a natural predisposition. But it could also have been the result of intense, deliberate training.
After all, in Boruto, Kakashi himself created Purple Lightning, a technique that couldn't have been inherited. His parents had never been known for using any unusual form of Lightning Release. Purple Lightning was almost certainly born from Kakashi refining his lightning chakra to a supremely advanced level.
And it made sense. Kakashi's talent with Lightning Release had always been exceptional. Unlike Sasuke, who expanded Chidori into techniques like Chidori Stream and Chidori Spear by focusing on shape manipulation, Kakashi specialized in refining the nature of lightning chakra.
This led to the evolution of Chidori into Raikiri, capable of cutting through actual lightning, and Raiden, which could slice off a tailed beast's tail. Losing his Sharingan later only forced him to seek a new breakthrough, resulting in Purple Lightning.
If Kakashi could achieve that… then Nan, who considered his own gifts far greater, was confident he could do the same.
Thus, he began experimenting with specialized single-element development. If he could successfully refine a unique elemental trait, it would prove he could adjust chakra nature at will—making the eventual fusion into new affinities far easier.
And compared to creating a new elemental release outright, mastering a specialized mutation of a single element should be much simpler.
Every shinobi's chakra carried subtle variations shaped by both body and habit—but habit likely played the larger role.
Nan had once theorized, back in his previous life, how to cultivate a specialized elemental jutsu. Step one was breaking free of his own ingrained habits.
Take Fire Release, for instance. Fire chakra typically had two key properties: combustion and heat.
Some shinobi's flames burned longer, emphasizing sustained combustion. Others produced flames that were hotter, shorter-lived, but far more destructive.
Nan reflected on his own usage of Fire Release. Because he had spent so long training medical ninjutsu, he was naturally skilled at maintaining stable chakra output. That habit had pushed his fire techniques toward prolonged, steady combustion.
If he wanted to push beyond that, he needed to split the paths.
So he began practicing Fire Release chakra nature in both hands at once. In his left, he maintained his usual style—focusing on combustion. In his right, he attempted to alter the quality, concentrating on heat intensity.
If he could learn to clearly separate and control these two different expressions, then he could truly isolate specific traits of chakra and amplify them—laying the foundation for unique elemental techniques.