"I didn't expect the Fūma Clan to still exist. I thought they had completely vanished. But even though they're still around, it seems like they've fallen into complete decline," Zabuza remarked with a hint of nostalgia after the departure of the purple-haired youth.
The young man's name was Fūma Arashi.
"The Fūma Clan?" Daniel looked at Zabuza curiously, and both Sasuke, Haku, and Karin also directed their attention toward him, intrigued by this mention of the clan.
"Not many people know about this clan anymore. I only learned about them by chance. They were once a ninja clan that was as famous as the Sarutobi Clan and Hanzo's clan," Zabuza explained.
The Sarutobi, Hanzo, and Fūma clans were renowned in the ninja world, second only to the Uchiha, Senju, and Ōtsutsuki clans during the Warring States Period. Each of these clans once ruled their own territories, but with the shift in the world order, the Fūma Clan was the first to be eliminated.
As the Uchiha and Senju clans formed Konoha and other villages like Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Kirigakure were established, the structure of the ninja world solidified into what we know today as the Five Great Nations.
The Sarutobi Clan's early allegiance to Konoha, along with the young Hiruzen Sarutobi apprenticing under the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, allowed the Sarutobi Clan to surpass the gradually declining Hanzo Clan. The only reason the Hanzo Clan remained relevant was due to the rise of the so-called "Demi-God" Hanzo, who single-handedly pressured Konoha's legendary Sannin—Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade—during the Second Shinobi War, thus earning the trio their famous title.
Despite Hanzo's strength, he was still no match for the likes of Madara Uchiha or the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama. While Hanzo was indeed strong, part of his power came from his mastery of poison—a weakness that could be countered, especially by ninja like Konoha's Tsunade or Sunagakure's Chiyo, both of whom were renowned for their medical skills and antidote expertise.
During the Warring States Period, before the establishment of the hidden villages, ninja clans operated as mercenaries, and countless powerful clans were wiped out, including the Ōtsutsuki Clan. It wasn't until Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju founded Konoha that a new ninja order was born.
At first, Konoha consisted only of the Uchiha and Senju clans. Later, other clans such as the Sarutobi, Ino-Shika-Cho, Hyuga, Shimura, Aburame, Hatake, and Kurama clans gradually joined. Other hidden villages, seeing the success of Konoha, followed suit, forming the hidden village system that still exists today.
The four other major villages—Sunagakure, Kirigakure, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure—were originally established to counter Konoha's growing power. As strong as a single ninja clan might be, it couldn't match the combined strength and diversity of a hidden village.
It wasn't just the Five Great Nations that adopted this system. Smaller villages like Amegakure, Kusagakure, Takigakure, Yugakure, and even Sky Ninja Village were established during that time. These villages absorbed various powerful ninja clans, and the survival of those clans depended largely on which village they allied with. Joining a strong village meant survival, while allying with a weaker village merely delayed the inevitable.
After many battles, treaties, and conflicts, the hidden village system was solidified, and the modern ninja world's structure was formed. But the true balance of power wasn't determined until after the First Shinobi War, which broke out following the deaths of Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju.
The Fūma Clan's village was one of those that didn't survive the First Shinobi War.
"They must be trying to use Orochimaru's power to revive their clan. A bunch of fools with delusional dreams," Zabuza commented, dismissing the Fūma Clan after briefly recounting their history.
Having survived the Bloody Mist era of Kirigakure and years on the run, Zabuza was well aware of the struggles and ambitions of dying ninja clans.
Daniel didn't pry further. As Zabuza had said, there were countless fallen clans in the ninja world. The Three Great Ninja Wars had crippled many clans. Even the Five Great Villages couldn't protect all the clans under their banner. Take Konoha's Kurama Clan, for instance. They had faded into obscurity, overshadowed by the Uchiha Clan's dominance in genjutsu.
No matter how skilled the Kurama Clan might be in illusion techniques, they could never surpass the Uchiha, who could cast powerful genjutsu with just a glance.
"Let's rest for now. Orochimaru may take his time to send word," Daniel suggested. Following the purple-haired youth, Fūma Arashi, would have led them directly to Orochimaru, but Daniel wasn't in a hurry. They were already in the Sound Village, and it was only a matter of time before they met Orochimaru.
---
In their rented courtyard, Daniel stood, forming a small spiraling sphere of chakra in his left hand. He couldn't help but grin as he marveled at the technique. As he increased the chakra output, the Rasengan grew in size, expanding to a diameter of nearly one meter—a Large Rasengan.
"So, Boruto's Vanishing Rasengan is a result of chakra nature manipulation?" Daniel wondered aloud. Technically, learning the Rasengan was only the first step. The Rasengan was a technique that manipulated chakra into a spherical form. To truly master it, one had to add nature transformation, as Naruto did with his Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.
The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, had never completed the nature transformation stage of the Rasengan due to his untimely death.
Daniel had mastered two chakra natures so far: Fire Release and Water Release. He learned Fire Release from Sasuke, who, as a descendant of the Uchiha Clan, naturally excelled in fire-based techniques. Water Release was taught to him by Zabuza, who, like most of the Kirigakure ninjas, specialized in water-based techniques.
It wasn't that Zabuza or the other Mist ninja couldn't learn other elemental jutsu, but rather that it wasn't necessary. For most ninjas, mastering one or two elements was more than sufficient. Naruto, for instance, had both Wind and Water chakra natures, but he relied almost entirely on the non-elemental Rasengan throughout most of his battles—his only notable elemental technique being the Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.
A ninja's chakra nature could be categorized into innate and learned attributes. To test innate chakra nature, ninjas would use chakra paper, which Daniel didn't have access to, so he couldn't determine his natural chakra alignment.
As for learned attributes, they were much simpler. Anything beyond the innate nature was considered a learned attribute.
For instance, anyone could technically learn any jutsu with enough effort, though their effectiveness might vary depending on their innate abilities. Natural talent only made the learning process easier. For example, a naturally fast runner would find it easier to get faster with practice, while others might have to work much harder to achieve the same result.
Daniel was confident that he possessed the ability to master all elemental natures, including the special Yin and Yang chakra manipulations. It wouldn't surprise him in the least to learn he had a full elemental affinity, considering the scope of his powers.
The real question now was which type of Rasengan to focus on. Should he prioritize mastering fire or water nature Rasengan first?
---
Bang!
Suddenly, a body dropped into the courtyard, followed by Sasuke jumping down after it.
"What happened?" Daniel asked, glancing at the stranger sprawled on the ground.
"I caught him spying on us," Sasuke replied before walking away.
"Who are you?" Daniel asked, his gaze shifting to the man on the ground.
"My name is Hanzaki," the man replied quickly, sensing that it was pointless to resist.
After a brief interrogation, Daniel lost interest in the man. Hanzaki had been banished from the Fūma Clan and had been spying on them because he noticed their interest in Sound Village.
"You can go," Daniel said, dismissing Hanzaki with a wave. He had no further interest in the man.
Hanzaki, like Fūma Arashi, was part of the Fūma Clan. However, after their clan fell from grace, they joined forces with the daimyō of the Land of Rice Fields, hoping to regain their former strength. Unfortunately, the daimyō was an incompetent leader, and his ambitions led to a failed invasion of neighboring countries, which only weakened the Fūma Clan further.
It was this failure that allowed Orochimaru to gain a foothold in the Land of Rice Fields. He offered to help the country fend off its invaders, and in exchange, the Sound Village was established within its borders.
The ninja world, outside of the Five Great Nations, was made up of countless small countries that were constantly at war with one another.
Many of the remaining ninjas in the Land of Rice Fields, including members of the Fūma Clan, eventually joined Orochimaru's Sound Village,
hoping to restore their former glory. But others, like Hanzaki, were skeptical of Orochimaru, given his reputation as an S-ranked rogue ninja. Those who opposed the alliance with Orochimaru were banished from the clan.
If Naruto had been here and learned about the Fūma Clan's predicament, he would have likely rushed to fight Orochimaru to protect the clan. But Daniel had no such inclination. He wasn't interested in helping Orochimaru eliminate his enemies, nor was he compelled to assist the Fūma Clan. He wasn't Naruto.
Orochimaru's interest in the Fūma Clan stemmed primarily from their unique jutsu, given his desire to learn and master all techniques.
---
Meanwhile, deep in a secret underground base within the Land of Rice Fields, Orochimaru listened intently to Fūma Arashi's report, a gleam of hunger in his eyes.
"So… Uchiha Sasuke?" Orochimaru licked his lips, his eyes flashing with greed.
Initially, Orochimaru's interest in the Uchiha Clan was purely scientific—he wanted to study the Sharingan. However, after witnessing Itachi Uchiha's unmatched genius, he became obsessed with the Uchiha's power. The moment that solidified Orochimaru's obsession was when he watched Itachi practice shuriken techniques, a display of talent that was so flawless that Orochimaru, thinking Itachi would hurt himself, moved to intervene, only to see Itachi complete the technique without a scratch.
After joining the Akatsuki and being effortlessly overpowered by Itachi, Orochimaru's fascination grew. Realizing he couldn't defeat Itachi, he shifted his focus to Sasuke, Itachi's younger brother.
"Kabuto," Orochimaru called softly after Fūma Arashi left.
"Yes, Lord Orochimaru. Based on the information we've gathered, it appears Konoha also doesn't know much about this individual. However, we suspect he may be connected to the recent chaos in Kusagakure and the deaths of a Konoha ANBU squad," Kabuto reported, detailing the intel they had on Daniel's group.
"How interesting… They came straight here, as if they were certain I would be here. Not even Konoha is aware of my location in the Land of Rice Fields, yet they seem so sure. They even know exactly what I desire most at this moment," Orochimaru mused, intrigued.
"Shall we bring them here, Lord Orochimaru?"
"Yes, Kabuto. Make the arrangements. This might turn out to be far more interesting than we thought," Orochimaru said with a chuckle.
Orochimaru was especially curious about how Daniel seemed to know so much about him. The only person who knew about his obsession with Itachi, and consequently his interest in Sasuke, was Kabuto. Kabuto was loyal and wouldn't have betrayed him, so where had Daniel gotten his information?
Given the deteriorating state of his current body, Orochimaru's curiosity was piqued. Perhaps this encounter would provide the solution he needed.
---
Back in the rented courtyard, Daniel was surprised when Kabuto himself arrived.
"He's come in person? Has he really changed his ways?" Daniel thought, remembering how Kabuto often preferred using reanimated corpses to meet with others instead of showing up in person.
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