Chapter 127 (Patreon)

One month later.

In a secluded valley near Konoha.

It had been several years since Nerona Mihawk and Hinata last visited this place. Now, they had returned and turned the valley into Hinata’s private training ground.

After a month of training and experimentation, Mihawk had gained a clear understanding of the abilities granted by Hinata’s Tenseigan.

Hinata’s bloodline itself did not seem to have evolved to the level of the Ōtsutsuki clan.

Nevertheless, the Evolution Catalyst had pushed her Byakugan beyond its natural limits and caused it to evolve into the Tenseigan.

Unlike Toneri Ōtsutsuki, Hinata could not immediately enter Tenseigan Chakra Mode upon awakening her eyes. Neither could she use advanced techniques such as the Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion or Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion.

At present, the only combat abilities she could actively use were attraction and repulsion.

After personally testing both powers, Mihawk discovered that Hinata’s attractive and repulsive forces appeared to be far more powerful than the Rinnegan’s Banshō Ten’in and Shinra Tensei. They were also considerably more flexible and convenient to use.

The difference was not minor.

Her abilities were several times stronger.

That was hardly surprising when the Tenseigan’s control over gravitational forces was powerful enough to move the moon itself.

Even with only attraction and repulsion, Hinata’s strength had already reached the Kage level.

Unless her opponent possessed an unusual secret technique, space–time ninjutsu, or a physique powerful enough to withstand her repulsive force, it would be nearly impossible for anyone to approach her.

Aside from attraction and repulsion, Hinata’s Tenseigan possessed two additional traits.

The first was her ability to switch freely between the Byakugan and Tenseigan.

Unlike Toneri, whose Tenseigan had been formed from Byakugan that did not originally belong to him, Hinata’s eyes had always been her own. Because of that, she could activate and deactivate the Tenseigan whenever she wished.

Mihawk was not surprised by this.

Uchiha Madara had been capable of switching between his Sharingan and Rinnegan, which showed that someone could freely control a dōjutsu that naturally belonged to them.

Nagato and Kakashi were different.

Because their respective dōjutsu had been transplanted from someone else, neither could deactivate them normally. Their eyes constantly consumed chakra, and mastering their abilities was far more difficult.

Whenever they actively used those powers, the chakra consumption became even more severe.

The second trait of Hinata’s Tenseigan was its enhanced perception.

Its visual range and clarity were far beyond anything her Byakugan had previously possessed.

How great was the difference?

Hinata’s simple statement that she could see beyond Konoha was enough to demonstrate the terrifying range of her vision.

Attraction, repulsion, and enhanced perception.

These were the three powers Hinata could currently use.

Her attractive and repulsive forces, combined with the extraordinary range of her vision, had already elevated her to the level of a powerful Kage.

Even so, those abilities represented only a fraction of the Tenseigan’s true power.

There were still several abilities far more formidable than those Hinata had already awakened.

One example was the ability to create green chakra spheres with powers similar to the Rinnegan’s Preta Path. Those spheres could extract chakra directly from an opponent’s body, absorb incoming ninjutsu, and even turn the absorbed power back against the enemy.

Madara had used the Preta Path to absorb both Dust Release and a Rasenshuriken infused with senjutsu chakra.

That meant this absorption ability should also be effective against kekkei tōta and senjutsu-enhanced techniques.

Of course, absorbing senjutsu chakra without being capable of controlling the natural energy within it carried the risk of petrification.

Then there were the Puppet-Cursing Spheres.

They could extract information from a target and even control that person’s will and actions.

Neither of those abilities was inferior to attraction or repulsion.

However, they still were not the Tenseigan’s greatest powers.

Its wielder could use a Summoning Technique to call forth a colossal stone golem powerful enough to suppress the Nine-Tails. As long as the Tenseigan’s wielder remained standing, the golem would not disappear. Even if its body were shattered, it could quickly restore itself.

There was also the ability to control vast numbers of puppets from a distance. Those puppets could move and fight with a degree of independence, placing ordinary puppet masters at an overwhelming disadvantage.

Beyond those abilities were Tenseigan Chakra Mode, the Truth-Seeking Balls, and its two greatest destructive techniques—the Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion and Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion.

If Hinata succeeded in awakening and mastering all those powers, her eventual ceiling would be the realm of the Six Paths, far beyond even the strongest conventional Kage.

Because of that, Mihawk temporarily set aside his own daily training and devoted the remaining period of peace to personally training Hinata. He wanted to help her become familiar with the Tenseigan as quickly as possible.

If she could awaken even one additional ability before the Fourth Shinobi World War began, that would be ideal.

Each new ability would raise her strength to an entirely different level.

Not only would Hinata possess enough power to protect herself, but she could also become Mihawk’s greatest source of support.

In his eyes, Hinata would no longer be limited to a supporting role in the coming war.

She would be one of its main combatants.

On the surface of a small lake beneath the waterfall, Mihawk and Hinata stood upon the water.

Mihawk folded his arms and silently watched Hinata, whose eyes remained closed.

The only sounds filling the valley were the roar of the waterfall and the chirping of birds throughout the surrounding forest.

Boom!

The tranquillity of the valley was suddenly shattered by a deafening explosion.

Flocks of startled birds burst from the trees.

At the same time, the waterfall that had been pouring down like a vast white curtain was violently scattered by a terrifying force, revealing the shattered rock face behind it.

Crack! Splash!

Fragments of stone, both large and small, fell into the lake and sent ripples across its surface.

More than ten seconds passed before the falling water once again covered the damaged cliff.

Hinata had opened her eyes.

The pale-blue irises and white, flower-like patterns of the Tenseigan shone clearly as she maintained the stance of the Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm.

A nearly solid mass of chakra had erupted from her palm moments earlier. It compressed and distorted the air, forming a tremendously powerful air cannon that had scattered the waterfall and shattered the rock face behind it.

“Hinata, a technique that powerful can’t be called Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm anymore,” Mihawk said after observing the damage. “How about Divine Vacuum Strike?”

“Divine Vacuum Strike?”

Hinata repeated the name before nodding enthusiastically.

“Mm. I like it.”

“Your chakra control has already surpassed Sakura’s, even after all her training under the Fifth Hokage,” Mihawk praised without hesitation. “Next, try using attraction and repulsion together. You’ve been training them for an entire month, so it’s time to see whether our theory is correct.”

“Mm!”

Hinata nodded repeatedly before closing her eyes once more.

After a short while, a massive ripple suddenly spread across the previously calm lake.

An invisible repulsive force pressed down upon the water beneath Hinata’s feet, creating a deep depression in its surface.

Hinata did not descend with it.

Instead, her feet slowly separated from the water and began hovering in the air.

Half a minute later, her body gradually rose higher.

Even Mihawk was lifted from the lake as though a pair of enormous invisible hands were carrying him upward.

The two of them continued ascending until they had risen above the valley.

Hinata opened her eyes, which were now filled with undisguised joy.

“Mihawk-kun, it worked!”

“Yeah. I can see that.”

Mihawk glanced down at the lake far below them and nodded with a smile.

By using attraction and repulsion together, Hinata could not only fly freely but also carry Mihawk through the air with her.

In that respect, the Tenseigan’s abilities were indeed several times more powerful and versatile than those of the Rinnegan.