One day, two years ago.
After dinner, Seiji and his father, Kaguya Genji, returned to their respective rooms to rest.
Back in his room, Seiji picked up a scroll from the corner, slowly unrolled it, sat cross-legged, and began guiding the chakra within his body according to the method recorded in the scroll.
That's right—at that time, six-year-old Seiji already possessed chakra.
When he was four, Seiji had found a scroll at home that his mother, Kaguya Yukiko, had brought with her when she was expelled from the Kaguya clan. Following the instructions written inside, he began extracting chakra by combining physical energy with mental energy.
Seiji, who had inherited an exceptionally pure Kaguya bloodline, possessed talent far beyond his father's. Within only a few breaths, he successfully guided out his first wisp of chakra.
But Seiji had no teacher. He didn't understand what that speed meant. At the time, he simply followed the steps—mixing physical and mental energy—repeatedly strengthening the chakra inside his body. Unfortunately, he was still too young. Coupled with the harsh environment that stunted his growth, he fainted within a few minutes.
After that, Seiji extracted chakra almost every night. Yet because his physical energy was limited, the growth of his chakra remained very slow.
Even after extracting chakra, Seiji did not stop. He continued guiding the flow of chakra within his body along the circulation route described in the scroll. This was a chakra training method passed down by the Kaguya clan since the Warring States Era. Circulating chakra through fixed meridians and acupoints could refine it, improve control, and increase the speed at which it flowed throughout the body.
It was also said that this method could stimulate the awakening of a kekkei genkai, but throughout the long history of the Kaguya clan, those who awakened bloodline abilities were still rare. Because of that, the claim was not very convincing.
From age four to six, over two full years, Seiji's physical development was still poor, but compared to before he began cultivating chakra, it had improved significantly.
That night, chakra flowed rapidly through his meridians along a familiar route, slowly nourishing his young body. After completing ten full cycles, Seiji prepared to end his practice and rest.
Then, suddenly, his body began to tremble uncontrollably.
The chakra within him—which had already started to calm—unexpectedly accelerated. It circulated faster and faster, as if something had seized control of it.
Seiji panicked.
He didn't know what was happening. He thought he had made a mistake in cultivation and desperately tried to suppress the chakra, trying to force it back under his control.
But the circulation grew increasingly violent. Seiji's body became hotter and hotter, and in a daze, he even seemed to hear the sound of chakra rushing through him like a mighty river.
Just as Seiji was frantic—about to call for his father in the next room—the chakra within his body gradually slowed down on its own.
At the same time, Seiji's chakra reserves began to expand rapidly.
They doubled—then continued to surge.
Even more frightening was the sensation that his physical strength was also steadily increasing, as if his body was being reforged from within.
Seiji opened his eyes, completely bewildered.
"Why… did my chakra suddenly increase so much?"
Because his parents had never told him the truth, Seiji didn't know that he possessed the potential to awaken a bloodline limit—something extremely rare in the shinobi world. And the abnormal change just now was precisely the awakening of the Kaguya clan's signature kekkei genkai:
Shikotsumyaku — the Corpse Bone Pulse.
Its awakening caused a sudden explosive rise in chakra and physical reinforcement.
But Seiji didn't understand any of that.
With only a vague memory of a few things his mother once mentioned, Seiji could only guess, uncertainly, that his current chakra might be… maybe… possibly… much more than ordinary shinobi.
In fact, based on Seiji's bloodline and talent, his Shikotsumyaku should have awakened around age four. However, exile had crippled his development. The harsh environment and lack of nutrition caused his body to grow far slower than normal—likely lagging two to three years behind what it should have been. His chakra reserves had never been able to keep up either.
So after more than two years of steady accumulation and nourishment, the dormant bloodline within him finally awakened.
Seiji was still caught in the excitement of his sudden chakra increase when he felt heat spreading through his limbs again. A strange instinct rose within him—like his body was telling him he could do something.
He slowly moved his chakra, following that instinct, distributing it evenly into all ten fingers. He stretched his hands forward and pointed ahead.
Under the influence of chakra, the cells within his hands rapidly mobilized. Calcium concentration surged.
Then, ten sharp bone spurs slowly grew from the tips of his fingers.
Seiji's expression changed. He thought something had gone wrong with his finger bones.
He hastily tried to cut off his chakra, attempting to force the bones back in. But this was his first awakening—he had no experience controlling Shikotsumyaku at all. And the scroll his mother left behind did not mention the Corpse Bone Pulse.
In his panic, the bone spurs shot forward like bullets.
Boom!
A loud explosion rang out.
The wall in front of him collapsed under the impact of Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets.
Seiji, having just awakened his bloodline and exhausted his chakra in one burst, immediately fainted on the spot.
The collapse woke Genji, who was sleeping next door. Groggy, he rushed into Seiji's room—and instantly saw his son unconscious on the floor, the wall shattered, debris scattered everywhere.
Genji's gaze swept across the rubble, then suddenly froze.
Several bone bullets were deeply embedded in broken chunks of the wall.
"Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets…" Genji murmured, voice low. "So the bloodline has awakened."
At that moment, two figures appeared outside the house at high speed.
They were the two jōnin sent to monitor and guard Seiji's family.
"What happened?" one of them shouted.
"Get lost. Nothing happened!" Genji's low, furious roar answered.
He wasn't surprised by their arrival. They had always been watching. Normally Genji ignored them, but now he had no choice. To prevent the news of Seiji's awakening from leaking out, he stepped into the courtyard to confront them directly.
"Since nothing happened, we'll leave," the other jōnin said with a sarcastic tone. "Take care, Lord Genji."
Genji's eyes turned cold.
"Hmph. My dear brother's lackeys. Our family's affairs are none of your concern. Get lost—quickly. Even if my strength has declined, I can still take one of you down, even if I'm injured. Want to try?"
The two jōnin hesitated. They didn't know Genji could no longer defeat them without paying a terrible price.
After a brief scan of the area, they retreated under his threat.
"Heh… retreat!"
And the courtyard returned to silence.