As the light faded, only a dim glimmer remained, slipping quietly back into the urn inside Kiyohara's mind.
He tried pinging it with his will—knocking on it in his thoughts—but got no response.
'Rogue Kiyohara said he'd slowly fade with time… but who knows how long that will actually take.'
He shook the thought off and turned his attention back to the outside world.
Despite feeling like a long process, the fusion had only taken less than a second in real time—barely a blink.
When Kiyohara opened his eyes again, there was a subtle but noticeable shift in his aura.
The proctor, who had just turned to leave, paused for half a second, glancing back at him with a puzzled expression.
He could've sworn… Kiyohara seemed different.
But the feeling vanished as quickly as it came. Kiyohara was just standing there, the same as before.
'Must've been my imagination…'
The proctor chuckled softly, brushing it off.
Probably just the result of having fought hard and advanced to Chūnin—growth like that naturally sharpens the spirit.
After all, increasing spiritual energy usually comes from a tempered will and deeper knowledge.
He didn't dwell on it and moved on to his post-match duties.
Kiyohara left the stage area and headed toward the base of the stands, where most of the spectators were already trickling out.
Yūhi Kurenai and Shiranui Genma caught up with him, walking together as they exited the building.
"Was this Chūnin Selection Exam specially organized?" Kurenai asked.
Normally, the Chūnin Exams happened on a fixed annual schedule.But this one seemed impromptu—almost like it had been set up on short notice.
"No idea," Kiyohara replied, shrugging.
He was just a lowly, now mid-ranked ninja. There was no way he'd know what the village's top brass were thinking.
"You're not going to treat us to a celebratory meal or something?" Genma joked, chewing on his ever-present senbon needle.
He had a grin that clearly showed he was genuinely happy for Kiyohara.
"Maybe after I finish paying off my loans," Kiyohara said dryly.
He was, quite literally, broke.
Still in debt. And once he took the chakra metal he'd gathered to forge new ninja tools… that'd be another huge expense.
He was in a financial crisis.
"You're in debt?" Kurenai blinked in surprise.
She'd never met a ninja who had outstanding loans.
"Yeah… had to prepare a few things." Kiyohara nodded casually.
Most of the money had gone into forbidden drugs.
At one point, he'd even considered selling the formulas—maybe claim they were a family secret remedy or something.
But the effects were too good. If word got out, he'd definitely draw unwanted attention.
Just look at Shimura Danzo, who worked with Orochimaru right under Hiruzen's nose to perform experiments on civilians, all in pursuit of power.
If he found out Kiyohara had something like this?
There was no question—he'd come knocking under the guise of justice and confiscate everything.
Kiyohara wasn't ready to deal with that snake so early.
He'd rather take more missions on the battlefield and quietly loot corpses to make extra cash.
Once his strength reached a certain level, then he could consider monetizing the formula safely.
"…I see," Kurenai said, casting him a sideways glance.
She couldn't help thinking: 'Just how little confidence did you have in that mission to prepare so thoroughly—even going into debt?'
"Well, alright then."
She didn't press it. If he was still repaying loans, there was no need to burden him further.
After a few more brief exchanges, Kiyohara excused himself, saying he needed to train before his next mission to improve his strength.
He headed home alone—toward his rundown little house near the edge of the village.
The place was small and old, but familiar.
As soon as he stepped into the tiny yard, the fading sunset bathed everything in warm golden light—though it couldn't hide the fact that the place was utterly barren.
Kiyohara didn't mind. He was eager to test his new strength.
He hadn't inherited any new jutsu, but the raw talent gains from the fusion were substantial.
Taking a deep breath, he drew a standard-issue kunai from his ninja pouch.
Time to test out Lightning Release: Lightning Stream Technique.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Stream Technique!"
With his left hand forming signs quickly, and his right hand gripping the kunai, he gathered Lightning-nature chakra with precision and channeled it into the blade.
Zzzzzzzap!
Brighter than ever, arcs of electricity wrapped tightly around the weapon's edge.
This time, he could clearly feel the chakra flowing more smoothly through his pathways—his mastery over this wild and violent element had clearly improved.
It felt almost… instinctual.
Like a math genius who sees a complex problem and instantly knows the steps.
Others might stare at it for hours and only manage to write "Let's solve it."
That's the cruelty of talent.
'I've broken through the bottleneck that was limiting my body…'
Kiyohara stared at the crackling kunai, pleased.
So this is what it feels like to move from "mediocre civilian" to "gifted ninja."
If he kept stacking these fusions… he might one day become the strongest Lightning Release user in history.
He looked at a stone he kept in the yard—a round one about the size of a fist, something he used when practicing Wind Release.
Without hesitation, Kiyohara wound up and threw the electrified kunai!
Whoosh—crack!
The weapon streaked through the air like a blue flash, hitting the stone dead center.
But instead of lodging into it or shattering it…
The kunai drilled straight through—leaving behind a charred, perfectly round hole as wide as a fist.
And it didn't stop there.
It continued forward, embedding itself deep into the wall behind it.
Only the vibrating hilt remained visible—still sparking faintly with fading arcs of lightning.
Kiyohara's eyes lit up.
That was leagues stronger than any of his previous attempts.
Not only that, but his control over the throw, his angle, and the way the chakra maintained itself after leaving his body were all vastly improved.
'Alright. Let's try Wind Release next.'
Dissipating the lightning on the kunai, he put it away and formed a new set of signs.
Dog → Horse → Rooster…
His hands moved quickly.
His cheeks puffed slightly—then:
Fwoooosh—
A burst of wind erupted from his mouth, shooting straight upward.
He didn't aim it at the wall—he didn't want to risk blowing it over and needing repairs.
The upward wind roared, slicing through the air.
Kiyohara immediately noticed—this time, the jutsu consumed less chakra, but produced more force than before.
He'd clearly leveled up.
Now… he wanted more.