Chapter 76: Chapter 75
Chapter 75
Kaen and Anko entered the underground library. At first glance, nothing seemed special, but Kaen found how valuable they were after taking a few books. Not only were they old and contained history from the Uzumaki perspective, but they also detailed many secrets lost in time. And yet, that wasn't what got Kaen so excited.
Some certain books and scrolls had unimaginable knowledge of fuinjutsu. Even to Kaen, who was already a master at fuinjutsu, these books contained immersive knowledge. Only reading for a bit, Kaen already thought of ways he could improve his basics. He could make a squad or two specializing in fuinjutsu if he brought all this knowledge to the village.
Even though the Third Hokage and Kaen possessed immense knowledge and experience in fuinjutsu, the village lacked basic knowledge. That is why it could only be passed through individuals, as the only way to teach others was to pass their experience to them. Kaen learned from Jiraiya, who learned from the Third, and now Kaen was teaching Shino.
Ultimately, no matter how much they improved on each other's techniques, it all came from the same pool. So, having basic knowledge coming from the multiple fuinjutsu masters would certainly boost Konoha's knowledge of it. These concepts were so simple yet so brilliant that even Kaen never thought of them. To him this knowledge was more worth than his Sharingan.
"It's just old books," Anko commented, not understanding why Kaen was acting so excited.
"Kuro, see if there aren't any more places hidden in the ruins," Kaen first ordered his summon before addressing Anko. "It isn't just old books. It is the knowledge that is considered lost. To an untrained eye, all of this wouldn't mean much. Only a few books directly discuss fuinjutsu, but even those that hold the history and biography of fuinjutsu masters hold much meaning for me."
Not only for Kaen but all those who study fuinjutsu, knowing the history and what kind of people were behind some sealing techniques would greatly help to further their skills. But Anko wasn't wrong; to the Uzumaki clan, it was nothing but old books. So, why would they hide a library underground in their village? Something didn't add up.
Uzumaki weren't that simple or foolish people. They were maybe a bit hot-tempered, and even if the seals were dangerous, they could not be left alone. The Uzumaki clan didn't realize how powerful they were, so they had no reason to think that others would try to harm them without provocation. So, they chose to live in an isolated place where no help could have come in time.
"If this is all we can find, I have to wonder why they even bothered hiding it," Anko said as she lazily checked the books. "Since the other villages aren't keen on learning fuinjutsu, to my knowledge, from whom did they hide these books?"
"It isn't the books they were hiding," Kaen concluded after he checked every corner. "It is this place. The books are only a distraction."
Kaen continued to inspect the library as he took the books for a later study. He will have Hiruzen review them and create a comprehensive course for the academy students. It would benefit Konoha a lot, if the basics of fuinjutsu were taught to everyone. It surely would boost Konoha's shinobi forces. And the more shinobi know powerful sealing techniques, the easier it will be to deal with reanimated shinobi in the future.
"Hmm, interesting," Kaen stopped in the middle of the room. "The floor is uneven."
Moving from one side to another side, multiple times, Kaen felt that the floor rose a few centimeters in certain places. Tracing those places with his feet, he quickly discovered that it was another seal. This one was even more complicated, as it was invisible, even for his sharingan. He had to decipher the seal through feeling alone.
"How long will this one take?" Anko asked, seeing Kaen remove his shoes and walk barefoot on the floor.
"I don't know. Why don't you look for Kuro and see if he found anything?" Kaen replied.
Anko nodded with a bored sigh before leaving. Kaen bit his thumb and started recreating the seal in blood. No matter how talented Kaen was, he couldn't break the seal if he couldn't see it. Slowly, he traced his blood along the parts of the floor that felt different. He needed at least a partial concept of the seal before he began.
…
Kaen was sitting in the middle of the room, surrounded by blood patterns. It had been almost a few days since he started studying this seal, and he hadn't slept for three days. But the seal was so complicated and interesting that Kaen couldn't sleep anyway before he broke it. The more complicated the seal was, the more excited Kaen was to learn it.
"Release," With one word, the blood on the ground burst into a fire, and the floor disappeared, revealing a staircase down.
Cracking his stiff neck, Kaen stood up from his place and walked to the staircase. He was excited to see what was hidden down here. Still, he was careful and looked out for any traps left behind. Slowly, he descended deeper and deeper underground. Soon, he reached the end of the staircase into the empty room with only a glass box inside.
"I waited for an Uzumaki," Kaen turned around when he heard the voice, but nothing was there. "At least I expected a Senju; the last thing I wanted to see was a Uchiha."
"Well, I'm sorry for disappointing you," Kaen replied as he looked around, trying to find out where the voice was coming from. "Who are you? Or should I ask what you are?"
"My name is Ashina Uzumaki, the last leader of the Uzumaki clan." An elderly man with long, white hair, a mustache, and a squared-off goatee appeared from thin air before Kaen. "Or at least I was. Now, I am only a part of the memory stored inside this room. Tell me how much time has passed since my clan and village were destroyed."
"More than two decades, close to three," Kaen replied, looking at the ghost with interest.
"And the first to come was a Uchiha," The ghost of Uzumaki replied with an amused tone. "Does my clan not exist anymore? What about Senju? Did the Uchiha finally achieve their dream and destroyed the Senju clan?"
"There are few Uzumaki scattered in the world; one is a member of Konohagakure, son of Kushina Uzumaki," Kaen replied.
"Kushina, that little firecracker," The ghost was amused. "Is she dead, too?"
"Yes, but she died protecting her son and the village. She died with her husband, the fourth Hokage," Kaen explained.
"What about Senju?" The ghost asked. "Surely, at least that little girl Tsunade is alive, right?"
"She is the last of the Senju, a legendary shinobi," Kaen answered.
"Oh, yes, one of the Sannin," The ghost said. "So, the Uchiha clan won in the end."
"The Uchiha clan is almost gone, too," Kaen replied. "The times have changed. Only a few Uchiha, including me, are still alive. I am Kaen Uchiha, the Fifth Hokage."
"Hokage? Hahaha," The ghost laughed. "I never expected to hear that one of the Uchiha would become a Hokage. So Konoha is still intact, or desperation pushed it to accept you as the Hokage."
"The village is as strong as ever," Kaen said. "And with my leadership, it is only getting stronger. Like I said, the times have changed, old man. The days of the clans are gone. It is time to embrace the future and leave the past alone."
"Then why are you here?" The ghost asked.
"To find what is left of the Uzumaki clan," Kaen answered. "To prepare for the war that is coming. Will you provide your help to your old ally?"
"I am just a memory. World affairs don't concern me," the ghost replied. "Too bad; I was waiting for a Uzumaki. But since you managed to find this place and break the seals guarding it, you have proved yourself worthy of what lies here, even if I don't like it."
Suddenly, the dark room lit up. The walls were shining. A warm golden and orange light reminded Kaen of a sunset. The box in the middle of the room opened. Inside it were golden chains. Kaen could tell they weren't simple chains. They were the infamous Adamantine Sealing chains that some of the Uzumaki clan possessed. But these weren't made of chakra, but real material.
"Oh, do you recognize them?" The ghost asked. "That makes it simpler. Yes, they are Adamantine Sealing chains. But these were made by the founding members of the Uzumaki clan. Nobody knows how they were made; it couldn't be replicated again. They were passed from one successor to another until they fell into my hands."
"Incredible," Kaen could tell how amazing those chains were.
"Don't be too excited, boy," The ghost said with a smirk. "I might be giving them to you. But can you wield them? They suck out your chakra like a leech sucks out blood. Even Uzumaki didn't dare to use them as they were too much for them. I can tell you are strong and possess incredible strength to be a Hokage, but even then, can you wield these chains?"
"There is only one way to find out," Kaen replied as he took the chains into his hands.
"Don't die on me, boy," The ghost said as Kaen tried using the chains. "I don't want the last legacy of my clan to be buried with a Uchiha."
And with those words, the ghost disappeared. But Kaen didn't have leisure to think about him as he was fighting for his life. The ghost didn't lie. The chains were sucking enormous amounts of chakra from Kaen. And he was only holding them. Still, Kaen couldn't let go of them. Those chains would drastically increase his strength if he mastered them. He desired them more than Hashirama's cells of natural energy. Having these chains in his hands, he had no desire to let them go.
"Kaen! Kuro suddenly disappeared!" Anko shouted as she entered the room and saw Kaen struggling to control his chakra. "What is going on?"
Kaen didn't reply as he concentrated on his chakra. The chains wanted chakra. Kaen would give them as much as they wanted. The seals around his body started burning up as Kaen released the stored chakra inside them. Like starving snakes, the chains wrapped around Kaen's body, eagerly devouring chakra from his body. At this point, it was a question of pride that didn't let Kaen let the chains go. Even when he collapsed to his knees, he didn't give up. Only when he lost all strength and passed out did he let them go. But at this point, it was already too late.
…
Kaen woke up to the smell of cooked fish. The cracking of the fire made Kaen open his eyes. He first saw the dark sky with countless shining stars. Then he saw Anko sitting by the fire. Seeing that Kaen was getting up, Anko looked at him with concerned eyes but said nothing. She looked kind of mad, and Kaen didn't know why.
"You slept for ten hours," Anko informed Kaen. "There don't seem to be any injuries on your body, and it was only mild chakra exhaustion."
"That's good," Kaen replied, already feeling better. "Where are the chains?"
"They merged into your body," Anko replied, surprising Kaen.
Kaen looked over his body. Around his arms and shoulders, a seal appeared; it merged with his external chakra network. It seemed that the chains liked the taste of his chakra and decided to stay. Trying to feel the seal, Kaen managed to release the chains. But he felt immediately weaker. The chains would take a lot of him if he wanted to use them.
"We should return to the village; I was gone for too long," Kaen said, imagining the chaos his absence had created in Konoha.
"Is that all you have to say?"
"Um," Kaen didn't know how to reply. "Sorry that I dragged you here with me."
"You are an idiot, Kaen," Anko said with a defeated sigh. "You don't need to be sorry. I realized that no matter how reckless I might be, you are a hundred times worse. And you need someone to watch over at all times."
Kaen didn't understand what Anko was talking about, and he was more excited about his new weapon. With the information he found in the hidden library, he started thinking about how to improve his external chakra network. He couldn't wait to return to the village and see what he could do. He might even get the Third to help him. After a long time, he finally felt like he had taken a giant leap in improving his strength.
A.N. As always, If you want more, up to seven advanced chapters, you can support me on pa treon. com \ ironwolf852. And if you have any requests for stories, I will only take them on my pa treon.
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