During the week Uchiha Kiyo spent studying ninjutsu at home, he didn't completely cut off contact with the outside world.
Occasionally, he would go out for a walk. After all, his return to the village was not only for self-cultivation but also to relax after two years of high-intensity battles on the front lines.
In two years, many things had changed.
First of all, Uchiha Fugaku had not gone to the battlefield like Uchiha Kiyo. Instead, he remained with the Konoha Military Police Force since the start of the war and had even been promoted to a squadron leader.
The hierarchy within the police force was structured as patrol members, squad leaders, squadron leaders, deputy captains, and captains.
For Fugaku to rise to the rank of squadron leader in just two years spoke volumes about his competence and leadership. This was the man who would later become the Uchiha Clan's patriarch.
However, unlike Uchiha Kiyo, who had been tempered by life-and-death battles on the front lines, Fugaku's growth was relatively stable. His daily routine consisted mostly of patrols and maintaining the village's security. Even though he was in the prime years of his growth, his progress was much slower compared to Kiyo. He had only recently reached the strength of an elite jōnin.
This was how the gap widened between them.
Over the past few days, Uchiha Kiyo had run into Fugaku a few times. At fourteen years old, Fugaku was noticeably more mature than before.
Though he lacked the killing intent and combat awareness of someone from the battlefield, he had gained composure and steadiness. His naïve air from two years ago had been polished away.
Despite his responsibilities, Fugaku still challenged Kiyo to a spar, eager to see the difference in their strength.
While Fugaku had climbed the ranks through his own abilities, he was still far from being Kiyo's match.
In just thirty seconds, Uchiha Kiyo completely overwhelmed him in every aspect.
Initially, Kiyo worried he might have gone overboard, potentially discouraging Fugaku. However, upon seeing how quickly Fugaku recovered, Kiyo was relieved.
"As expected of someone aiming to be clan leader. His mental resilience is much stronger than the average ninja."
Among the people Uchiha Kiyo knew, another individual who had changed significantly was Namikaze Minato.
Due to his connection with Jiraiya, Minato had not been sent to the battlefield and instead trained in the village.
Using the resources left by Jiraiya, Minato had made rapid progress over the past two years.
However, Kiyo had yet to personally assess Minato's growth, as all he knew came from Fugaku's accounts.
That changed today—Kiyo had decided to seek out his "friend."
His purpose? To exchange training experiences.
Developing the Instant Replacement Technique alone was difficult. Discussing theories with Minato, who specialized in speed and space-time techniques, could provide valuable insights.
---
The Mystery of Space-Time Ninjutsu
In the ninja world, space-time ninjutsu was one of the most unique and powerful branches of techniques.
Unlike elemental chakra natures, space-time techniques did not correspond to a specific chakra affinity.
Uchiha Kiyo had never heard of "spatial chakra nature transformation." Most space-time jutsu appeared to be methods of manipulating space rather than a fundamental chakra transformation.
This led him to a hypothesis:
"Perhaps chakra itself does not have a space-time nature, but certain individuals possess an innate affinity for space-time."
If true, this would explain why only a select few—like Tobirama Senju and Minato Namikaze—could master Flying Thunder God.
Moreover, not everyone could use Flying Thunder Formation, a jutsu developed by the Second Hokage's personal guards, even though it mimicked Flying Thunder God. The three-man team could only activate the technique together, possibly due to their weaker space-time affinity.
This raised another possibility:
"What if everyone has space-time affinity, but at different levels?"
Uchiha Kiyo supported this theory because Summoning Jutsu was also a form of space-time ninjutsu.
Since nearly all ninjas could learn summoning, it implied that all ninjas had at least some level of space-time affinity.
However, Summoning Jutsu was facilitated by a summoning contract, meaning it required minimal personal space-time manipulation.
This was likely why the Flying Thunder God technique was much harder to learn—there was no external contract to assist in its execution.
---
Developing Space-Time Affinity
Uchiha Kiyo was certain of one thing—space-time affinity could be developed.
Over the years, he had extensively practiced Body Flicker and Instant Replacement Technique, and he had gradually grown more attuned to spatial perception.
This experience reinforced his belief that space-time affinity could be improved through training.
However, it was clear that most ninjas did not develop their space-time affinity despite using Body Flicker frequently.
The key difference?
Uchiha Kiyo frequently performed long-range spatial displacements of hundreds of meters, while others used short-range flickers of only a few meters.
Because Kiyo's body was repeatedly traversing vast spatial distances, it was more affected by spatial forces, which seemed to accelerate his affinity development.
---
Seeking Minato's Expertise
"I wonder if Minato has started learning Flying Thunder God."
Uchiha Kiyo suddenly realized a potential problem.
He didn't know when Minato started training in space-time ninjutsu.
If Minato hadn't begun studying Flying Thunder God yet, this entire trip might be pointless.
As for waiting until later?
"I may not have another chance in the future..."
Still, even if Minato hadn't started Flying Thunder God, there were plenty of things Kiyo could learn from him.
Sealing techniques, Body Flicker mastery, and combat reflex training—these were all areas where Minato excelled.
Even without help from Uzumaki Kushina, Minato was exceptionally talented in sealing jutsu. Discussing theories with him would undoubtedly benefit Kiyo's training.
Furthermore, Minato's Body Flicker rivaled that of Shisui of the Body Flicker.
While Shisui specialized in blending Body Flicker with genjutsu, Minato maximized pure movement speed.
Since Kiyo also relied on high-speed combat, learning Minato's movement techniques would be invaluable.
And then, there was neural reaction speed.
Flying Thunder God wasn't just about teleportation—it required insanely fast reflexes to utilize effectively.
If Kiyo could refine his reflexes to Minato's level, his Instant Replacement Technique would become much deadlier.
If all else failed...
"Well, if I truly get desperate, I could always sneak into Kumogakure and steal their secret techniques..."
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