Chapter 197: Toneri’s Bloodline

Chapter 197: Toneri's Bloodline

"Sasuke, move!"

Naruto's shout came from behind as Sasuke engaged Hyuga Fuji in close combat.

Sasuke's eyes flashed, and he quickly retreated.

"Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!"

A sharp whistling sound filled the air, so piercing it seemed to make the atmosphere tremble.

Naruto, in his golden chakra cloak, instantly appeared in front of Hyuga Fuji. With a light push off the ground, he launched the Rasenshuriken directly at Hyuga Fuji.

The surrounding air distorted from the immense power.

The Rasenshuriken surged forward, colliding with something unseen before erupting in a brilliant flash of light and a massive shockwave. Even the distant clouds seemed to part, making way for the coming storm.

But before Naruto could show any hint of triumph, a pale hand suddenly struck the side of his temple.

Poof!

Naruto vanished in a puff of smoke.

"A shadow clone?"

The desert cracked open, and a hand reached out from below, grabbing for Hyuga Fuji's ankle. But having already spotted this with his Byakugan, Hyuga Fuji lightly lifted his right foot and stomped down, sending a pulse of energy into the ground that shattered the clone.

Seeing this, Naruto's real body, who had been trying to circle around for a sneak attack, hesitated before retreating to Sasuke's side with a wry smile. "I never thought Toneri would be this troublesome."

Though he hadn't directly fought Toneri before, Naruto had sparred with Neji Hyuga. By all logic, Toneri shouldn't be that much stronger than Neji. Even if Hyuga Fuji was controlling him, the gap in their base capabilities shouldn't be enough to suppress Naruto and Sasuke this thoroughly.

"When someone reaches a certain level of power, abilities with great synergy—like specific jutsu or Kekkei Genkai—become even more terrifying," Sasuke said, his voice heavy as he watched Hyuga Fuji fend off attacks from both Kakashi and Yugito.

"Take Shadow Clones, for example. Or Flying Thunder God…"

Sasuke had witnessed the havoc Naruto's Multi Shadow Clones could wreak. In his golden cloak form, even if an enemy struck a clone, their attacks couldn't penetrate the cloak, making Naruto's clones incredibly effective in combat.

If Naruto had been around during the previous shinobi wars, he could've single-handedly supported multiple battlefronts or even steamrolled other nations entirely.

Then there was Flying Thunder God.

For a ninja, once they reached a certain threshold, there were few techniques that could significantly enhance their combat effectiveness. Even a tenfold increase in chakra might only marginally boost the power of their existing jutsu.

But techniques like Flying Thunder God or Multi Shadow Clones, when wielded by the right person, could amplify their strength exponentially.

Sasuke cast a sidelong glance at Naruto, his expression turning somewhat strange.

Come to think of it, both of those jutsu were inventions of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju…

As Tsunade had once said, everything was Tobirama's fault!

Naruto looked puzzled. "Are you saying I should use a swarm of clones?"

"That would just deplete your chakra faster," Sasuke replied, rejecting the idea outright. "And don't forget, our goal is to rescue Toneri, not defeat Hyuga Fuji. Don't lose sight of that."

"Uh…"

Naruto glanced at Toneri—no, at Hyuga Fuji controlling Toneri's body—and swallowed hard.

Now that he thought about it, he'd been fighting as though he were up against the real Hyuga Fuji, going all out. But when he considered it carefully, this was still Toneri's body. What was the point of injuring it?

Unlike puppet mechanics, where damage to the puppet would harm the puppeteer, injuring Toneri wouldn't affect Hyuga Fuji at all.

As Sasuke had said, rescuing Toneri should be their primary objective!

With this in mind, Naruto turned to Sasuke, who was calmly laying out a plan.

No wonder Sasuke hadn't been putting in as much effort—Naruto had assumed it was due to chakra exhaustion, but now he realized Sasuke had been holding back to avoid harming Toneri.

"...Did you hear me?"

Sasuke's raised voice snapped Naruto back to reality. He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, Sasuke, what did you just say?"

"...Forget it. Just keep distracting him!"

Sasuke glared at Naruto before closing his eyes and sinking into his thoughts.

Naruto scratched his head in confusion but didn't disturb Sasuke. Instead, he created several more shadow clones and sent them into the fray.

In just the brief moment he and Sasuke had been talking, both Kakashi and Yugito had taken direct hits from Hyuga Fuji's God Vacuum Palm. If not for Yugito's Tailed Beast Cloak mitigating the damage, she might have already fallen.

Meanwhile, Kitsuchi from this era stayed at a distance, using Earth Release to support the fight instead of engaging directly in close combat.

Naruto's gaze briefly swept over Kitsuchi, and he couldn't shake the feeling he'd forgotten something. But for the life of him, he couldn't remember what it was.

---

"…"

The future Kitsuchi, whose chakra had been sealed, sat bound and utterly despondent.

Where was everyone? Why hadn't anyone come to save him?

Logically, he understood—captured shinobi were as good as dead, and leaving him behind was the right call.

But emotionally, they were teammates, if only temporarily. Couldn't they show a little compassion?

Just one person. Couldn't just one person come check on him?

---

"Data collection is almost complete. All that's left is for the shadow to finish absorbing Toneri's chakra," Hyuga Fuji mused, his gaze deep and contemplative. Even while controlling Toneri's body in combat, his mind was busy analyzing Toneri's abilities.

Toneri's Byakugan wasn't originally his—it had been transplanted from another Hyuga.

Hyuga Fuji had speculated about Toneri's unusual condition in the past. Born without Byakugan, Toneri's situation was unprecedented, and Fuji had long harbored theories about it. Now, observing Toneri up close and experiencing his power firsthand, Fuji realized that some of his assumptions were slightly off.

Toneri's chakra was incredibly strong, and its volume was immense, just as Fuji had anticipated. This was also why Naruto and Sasuke hadn't opted for a battle of attrition.

Madara Uchiha had awakened the Rinnegan by combining the chakra of Indra and Ashura, manifesting the power of the Sage of Six Paths.

Toneri, on the other hand, resembled a direct descendant of Hamura Ōtsutsuki, as if the bloodline had skipped generations to reemerge in its purest form.

And unlike the divided inheritance seen in other clans, Toneri possessed both Yin and Yang chakra in perfect harmony—only missing the physical manifestation of the Byakugan.

A bloodline regression?

The thought reminded Hyuga Fuji of Boruto Uzumaki.

In this world, the phenomenon of bloodline regression was closely tied to chakra.

Boruto, for example, possessed the Jougan, a power coveted even by the Ōtsutsuki clan. He had been praised by Momoshiki for his pure bloodline.

From a genetic standpoint, this seemed illogical.

Naruto was from the Uzumaki clan, Hinata from the Hyuga clan—neither of which were particularly close to the Ōtsutsuki lineage.

But when considering their chakra, the reasoning became clearer. Naruto had inherited the Sage of Six Paths' chakra, Hinata had gained Hamura's chakra on the Moon, and Kurama's chakra—half of the Ten Tails—was also part of the mix. This combination made Boruto's chakra exceptionally "pure."

Toneri was similar. While Boruto had a natural affinity for the Jougan, Toneri had a unique advantage when it came to awakening the Tenseigan.

"Once the shadow has finished absorbing Toneri's chakra, I can cultivate it the same way tailed beast chakra is nurtured," Hyuga Fuji thought.

As these thoughts ran through his mind, a sudden shift on the battlefield caught his attention, prompting a faint, surprised smile.

Despite previously warning Yakumaru against using genjutsu, Sasuke had just activated his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan and cast a genjutsu after both Kakashi and Yugito had fallen.

At the same time, Ōtsutsuki Shinichi, who had been watching from the sidelines, suddenly turned and rushed toward the Dragon Vein.

(End of Chapter)