Chapter 154 : Riku Wood Style! ! !
This was the first time Tsunade had heard the full story. Half of Kyubi chakra alone was already terrifying—so what kind of monster would a complete Nine Tails be?
But then she looked at Riku. If half of the Nine Tails’ chakra was already that frightening... what about someone like him, whose chakra was comparable to the full beast?
Seeing the stunned expression on Tsunade’s face, Riku gave a small smile and said, "Don’t look so surprised. It’s not a big deal. Think about the First Hokage—my chakra can’t compare to his. There will always be people who are different."
Tsunade remained frozen. Just how old had Hashirama been when he possessed such overwhelming chakra? And yet Riku was only thirteen years old.
A boy that young already had chakra on par with the Nine Tails... Riku was practically a tailed beast in human form.
And this monster—thankfully—was born in Konoha.
"No wonder you didn’t even flinch from chakra depletion when you used the Strength of a Hundred Seal just now," Tsunade muttered. "You managed to store enough chakra in just a few hours to unleash something that terrifying..."
"But don’t tell anyone about the state of your chakra," she warned sharply. "Not a soul outside of me and Shizune. If it gets out... I’ll kill you."
The killing intent in Tsunade’s voice was real as she turned to glare at Shizune.
Shizune’s heart skipped a beat. She quickly raised her hands in protest. "I wouldn’t! Lady Tsunade, how could I possibly...?"
Tsunade reined in her bloodlust. She hadn’t taken a life in years, but the aura of a Sannin never truly faded.
And since this concerned Riku... she had no intention of treating it lightly.
Once Shizune was properly warned, Tsunade turned back to Riku, and the two of them resumed studying the sealing technique.
Shizune didn’t take Tsunade’s threat personally. She understood that in any shinobi village, information like this—about a living chakra monster hidden within their ranks—would be the most tightly guarded secret.
If leaked, the consequences could be catastrophic.
And she would never betray that trust.
By the time night fell, the entire day had passed. Riku stood to leave, but Tsunade didn’t let him go.
She pulled him to sit beside her in the courtyard of the Senju Clan grounds.
Although the Senju Clan had declined over the years, their estate was still massive—comparable in size to even the Hyuga compound.
Tsunade’s own home was a wooden villa, its porch lit by soft lantern light.
As they sat beneath the stars, Tsunade glanced sideways at Riku and asked playfully, "What else are you hiding from me, hmm?"
"The kind of stuff other people know about, but you conveniently forgot to mention."
Riku leaned back with his arms behind him, gazing up at the starry sky. After a long silence, he finally said, "If there’s anything... maybe my Kekkei Genkai."
Tsunade blinked. "Kekkei Genkai? You’ve got one of those too?"
But... Riku was a civilian-born shinobi. In Konoha, even the smallest clan secrets were tied to bloodlines—let alone Kekkei Genkai.
Riku nodded. "Yeah. Actually, quite a few people already know. Kakashi-sensei, Guy-sensei, Yamato-sensei... and Yugao."
The mention of that name made Tsunade frown slightly. "Yugao...?"
She searched her memory.
"Uzuki Yugao. She’s an ANBU kunoichi. I saved her life when I was younger, so we’re pretty close. She’s helped me a lot over the years."
"I didn’t originally have a Kekkei Genkai. But on a mission, she and Yamato-sensei recovered a secret scroll containing forbidden experiments on Kekkei Genkai integration. I tried studying it... and after years of work, I managed to fuse with one."
Tsunade’s brows shot up. She wasn’t unreasonable, and now that she understood Riku’s bond with Yugao, she let the subject drop. Instead, she narrowed her eyes at him.
"You fused with a Kekkei Genkai on your own? Are you insane? That’s dangerously unstable—you could’ve died!"
Riku shrugged with a half-smile. "I enjoy taking risks. Makes life more interesting."
Tsunade rolled her eyes. She’d already seen how abnormal this boy was.
Anything he tried, he mastered with ridiculous speed.
Even so, it had taken Riku years to succeed in fusing with a bloodline limit—which only proved how dangerous it truly was.
"What Kekkei Genkai did you fuse with?" she asked, curiosity getting the better of her.
Riku paused, then quickly formed a hand seal. "Wood Style: Wood Clone Jutsu."
With a puff of chakra, a perfect wooden clone appeared beside him.
Tsunade stared.
She couldn’t even tell if it was a Shadow Clone or not.
That was the power of a Wood Clone—so lifelike it could fool even seasoned shinobi. Unless the opponent had overwhelming strength or deep familiarity, there was no way to tell.
With a wave of his hand, the clone dispelled and turned into a piece of wood.
Riku laughed softly. "Now you know which Kekkei Genkai I possess."
Tsunade nodded slowly, still staring at him as if he were a monster. "You really did fuse with it..."
"My Wood Style ninjutsu was self-taught," Riku added. "I learned it by secretly watching Yamato-sensei. Back then, he had no idea I’d already succeeded in fusing with Wood Style."
"Later, after completing an S-rank mission, the Third Hokage allowed me to pick an S-rank jutsu from the Scroll of Seals. I memorized several of the First Hokage’s Wood Style techniques from it."
"I’ve also studied Impure World Reincarnation. That, too, was in the Scroll of Seals."
It wasn’t exactly the proudest admission—but Riku didn’t feel guilty about it either.
The Third Hokage was gone now anyway.
Tsunade gave him a sidelong look and sighed. "Well, in that case... there’s a private archive here with my grandfather’s Wood Style jutsu. If there are any you haven’t seen, feel free to look through them."
Riku nodded in gratitude.
But Tsunade raised an eyebrow and said accusingly, "You know... the first thing you asked to study wasn’t Wood Style. It was sealing techniques."
"Were you afraid I’d find out about your Kekkei Genkai?"
She stared at him intently, searching his expression.
Riku understood what she meant—he could tell she was hurt he hadn’t trusted her with something so major.
But back then... Shizune had been with them. He hadn’t wanted to reveal it in front of her.
Riku gave a wry smile. "At the time, I wasn’t sure how to bring it up. After all... who would believe a civilian-born shinobi managed to acquire Wood Style?"
"If word got out... people would assume I’m a threat. I’d probably end up branded a missing-nin."
Tsunade narrowed her eyes and snapped, "Don’t you dare say that."
Then, more firmly: "As long as I’m alive, no one in Konoha will ever call you a traitor."
Riku looked at her, eyes softening.
He knew she meant it.
She was truly on his side. And of course she was—after everything between them, how could she not be?
As long as Riku remained loyal to Konoha, Tsunade would always stand beside him.
And really, there was no reason for him to betray Konoha in the first place.
Before gaining strength, he’d kept a low profile because all he wanted was to live peacefully in the village.
He wasn’t the type to go rogue over something petty.
Not even close.
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