"Hikari~! Dinner's ready!"
Might Guy's voice echoed from outside the door.
"Got it." ×5
Five identical voices answered in unison, harmonizing inside the room.
The clones glanced at each other.
"From now on, only the original speaks. No interrupting."
"1."
"+1."
While they bickered, Guy—now untied from his apron—stood bewildered outside.
Why is it so noisy in Hikari's room?
And why are all the voices hers?
Though confused, Guy didn't dare step closer to Hikari's bedroom, as if some monstrous beast might leap out at any moment.
Fuka's words still haunted him.
Legally, they were family—but without blood ties, certain boundaries had to be respected.
Click—
The door opened, and Hikari stepped out.
"Hurry up, wash your hands and eat before the food gets cold."
Hikari hesitated, then wordlessly headed to the bathroom.
Huh?
Is she… mad at me?
Guy froze at her cold response.
Did I do something wrong? She won't even talk to me now.
She was fine earlier!
Then—he watched as more Hikaris filed out of the room.
"Those are my Shadow Clones."
Hikari explained flatly.
"Oh! The Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Guy nodded in understanding.
Then his brain caught up.
"Wait—when did you learn Shadow Clone?!"
"Just now."
"That's a high-level B-rank ninjutsu!! In the FIVE MINUTES I was cooking?!" Guy's eyes bulged like dumplings.
Aside from the Eight Gates, he'd never mastered a single B-rank technique in his life.
And Hikari had picked it up while the food was finishing?
After opening the Fourth Gate, her talent had once again shattered his expectations.
(Technically, it was the A-rank Multiple Shadow Clone Technique—but Hikari couldn't be bothered to correct him.)
Honestly?
With all five chakra natures, the Byakugan's supreme chakra control, and the newfound ability to manipulate meridians via the Shikotsumyaku…
Ninety percent of the world's jutsu were child's play to her.
But learning techniques was just surface-level.
Ninjutsu had limits.
And Hikari knew this better than anyone.
By the late-game?
Elemental techniques without senjutsu chakra were utterly worthless.
What she really wanted was to forge a nin-taijutsu path—mastering chakra nature transformations to achieve Kekkei Mōra, becoming the first-ever Six Paths-level taijutsu specialist.
Ninjutsu would support her, chakra would fuel her—but her body would be her ultimate weapon.
"Stop overthinking it. Let's just eat."
Guy numbly watched as all five Hikaris marched into the bathroom.
At this point, nothing she does will surprise me anymore.
"What?! You want the clones to eat too?!"
Guy nearly choked as five tiny bottomless pits stared back at him, his wallet visibly weeping.
"It's an experiment. Not an everyday thing."
"…Fine."
Guy gritted his teeth and surrendered.
Dinner was over in a flash.
With five Hikaris working in unison, the table was cleared in seconds.
Afterward, Hikari dispelled the clones and analyzed the results:
- Chakra return: When a clone vanished, its energy instantly returned to her, ignoring distance.
- Digestion boost: Five clones eating meant five times the nutrient absorption.
- Efficiency: With enough food, she could turn ordinary meals into military ration pill-tier energy sources—as long as the clones didn't fight, the chakra cost was negligible.
So this is why Kakashi said it's for intel gathering.
Shadow Clones were never meant for combat.
The fatigue stacking alone made them unusable—unless you were a freak like Naruto.
Hikari had no plans to fight with them either.
Better use: Send a clone to school.
As long as it ate enough to sustain itself and avoided battles, a clone could last a full day.
Henceforth, this one shall be known as—
『Academy Hikari』
Role: Maintain social ties, learn basic ninja knowledge, and exploit classmates for resources.
A tenth of her chakra should suffice.
If it doesn't? Eh, just treat it as skipping class.
What's Iruka gonna do—call her parents?
Later, she'd assign five more clones to train chakra nature transformations—laying the groundwork for Kekkei Mōra.
She recalled that merging the Tailed Beasts into the Ten-Tails granted instant Six Paths power.
But the risks were huge.
Do that, and Kaguya might just hitch a ride back to life.
Even if she got the chance, she wasn't fusing them.
Chakra comes from life energy.
Each Tailed Beast is a massive life-force reservoir.
If her Reverse Eight Gates theory worked, she could convert their chakra into pure vitality—bypassing Kaguya's resurrection trigger.
Reverse Eight Gates:
1. Gate of Opening (1-Tail)
2. Gate of Healing (2-Tails)
3. Gate of Life (3-Tails)
4. Gate of Pain (4-Tails)
5. Gate of Closing (5-Tails)
6. Gate of View (6-Tails)
7. Gate of Shock (7-Tails)
8. Gate of Death (8-Tails)
Fuse their life forces step by step—then finally, merge Kurama's yin-yang chakra to unlock the complete Reverse Eight Gates Formation.
(Might need some sealing jutsu support, though…)
Huh.
For the first time, her path to Reverse Eight Gates finally had some clarity.
---
The next morning, Hikari split off a tenth of her chakra to create 『Academy Hikari』 and sent it to school.
(Side note: Since she didn't fully grasp the clone mechanics, she had to create nine clones first, then dispel eight just to isolate a 10% chakra fraction—clunky and inefficient.)
Typical ninjutsu.
Before departure:
Main Hikari (mom mode): "Buy extra chocolate on the way. You'll need the energy."
Academy Hikari: "No money."
"GUY!" ×2
Guy winced as both Hikaris thrust out their hands. Grudgingly, he peeled a few bills from his wallet.
"You promised me an allowance!"
"You wanna talk promises? Give me more!"
Money was a sore spot. If he hadn't burned the house down, she wouldn't be broke!
"What do you even need this much for?!"
Guy's soul ached.
Yesterday's earnings had already gone toward repaying Kakashi, groceries, and household supplies. The rest was supposed to fund the charcoal-remnant-of-a-house's renovation.
"Stop whining, old man. Hand over the cash."
Hikari raised her palm higher.
Defeated, Guy forked over two more bills.
I've adopted a money-devouring monster.
Yesterday's work—gone in a day.
After splitting the cash with her clone, Hikari grabbed her cane and headed out.
Since Kakashi had preemptively blocked her chakra nature training, she'd try a different approach—
Konoha Hospital.
There was a certain wind-style ninja still recovering there…
--- (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ:･ﾟ✧