Kamihane gazed at Uchiha Hikari with a look tinged with rese.

  After being fervently embraced by Amaterasu, he was truly furious. If it weren't for the uure of his ocur jutsu, he would likely have been reduced to ashes by now.

  The temperature of those fmes was utterly terrifying; even now, his heart still raced with fear.

  Although he could reverse time and space, the pain was undeniably real!

  Madara waved his hand dismissively and said, "Kamihane, let her go."

  "But, she might suddenly attack us again," Kamihane replied, still someprehensive.

  "Don't worry, she 't," Madara's tone was calm, exuding the absolute fidence of a Kage-level powerhouse.

  "Uood, Lord Madara."

  Kamihane plied, moving aside to allow Uchiha Hikari to stand up.

  Madara looked down at Uchiha Hikari, his voice soft but carrying an undeniable weight as it reached her ears.

  "What Kamihane said earlier is all true, but there's ohing… whether the war has truly ended remains to be seen. For the ninja world, peace is only temporary. The distao my envisioned ideal world is still vast."

  "An ideal world…" Hikari murmured to herself.

  "Freeing you means we aowledge your strength. On this path toward our ideals, you walk with us—as a rade, not a on."

  Madara then shifted his tone, "Of course, you are also free to leave and live the life you desire."

  "Huh?" Kamihane was momentarily stunned, gng at Madara with fusion.

  "But face reality; until we succeed, this world remains a false oill filled with tless dissatisfas." With that, Madara turned and walked away without looking back.

  Kamihane was left in disarray. He had nearly risked his life to release Hikari, only for Madara to seemingly disregard her.

  Helpless, he hesitated for a moment, gng at Uchiha Hikari, before ultimately following Madara, leaving her alone where she stood.

  "Does Lord Madara truly not care about Uchiha Hikari? Or is he pnning to win her over with his charisma?" Kamihane frowned, uo suppress the thought in his mind.

  Uchiha Hikari stood there in a daze. After some time, she snapped out of it, her eyes fixed owo figures gradually fading into the distance. Suddenly, she took a step forward.

  ...

  "She's really following us!" Kamihane whispered to Madara as he leaned closer.

  "What should we do? Should we wait for her for a bit?"

  "No need," Madara replied with his usual calm demeanor. "Once she chooses to follow, she will see it through. If she 't even mahat, then she is not truly an Uchiha."

  "Maybe she just wants to catch up and ask for dires…" Kamihaly thought to himself.

  The two of them dashed along a shaded forest path and soon arrived at a small town.

  Kamihane spotted an izakaya and suggested, "Lord Madara, let's take a break here for now."

  Madara nodded, and the two ehe izakaya, choosing a seat he inner hall.

  Kamihaook the menu from the waiter and boldly ordered a variety of dishes: ramen, sushi, braised sea bream, Chikuzenni, and a steaming pot of sukiyaki.

  From st night until now, he haden a sihing.

  While waiting for the food, Kamihaated for a moment before pulling out two scrolls from his robe and presenting them to Madara.

  "Lord Madara, I picked these up yesterday in the Hokage's secret chamber. I'm not sure what they are, but the seals on them are quite tricky."

  Madara took the scrolls, his fiips glowing blue as he effortlessly dispelled the seals.

  "Reanimation Jutsu?" Madara skimmed through the tents, then opehe other scroll, "And this… the Eight Gates?"

  He g Kamihah a slightly scrutinizing look, "Both S-rank forbidden jutsu. You're quite the sger."

  "Lord Madara, you know me," Kamiharaightened his back, speaking with righteous fidence. "Opportunities like this are too good to pass up."

  Fortunately, Madara didn't press further and iossed the scrolls baihane.

  "Since you've got them, there's no reason not to learn them."

  "But… Lord Madara, aren't you going to train in them yourself?" Kamihane probed tentatively. He had thought Madara might be ied in these forbidden teiques.

  "I don't hem," Madara said indifferently. "That Reanimation Jutsu could greatly enhance your spiritual power. You should study it. The strength of one's ocur jutsu is directly tied to spiritual power, and spiritual power is iricably lio Yin Release…"

  Kamihane nodded, half-uanding. He was a brute by nature and had never received any formal guidance or training. All his bat skills were hohrough instinct.

  Even the ninjutsu he knew had been learned from rades otlefield.

  In his vague uanding, he khat ocur power was the energy released through the user's eyes, closely reted to Yin Release. For certain bloodline-based ocur jutsu, ocur power was the measure of a person's strength in that domain.

  And the strength of Yin Release was directly proportional to one's spiritual power.

  Seeing Kamihane's inplete grasp, Madara pondered for a moment before asking, "Do you know the essence of chakra?"

  "I ahat," Kamihane replied. "Chakra is the perfect fusion of a person's spiritual energy and physical energy. Spiritual energy represents the 'Yin' attribute, while physical energy represents the 'Yang' attribute. Different ratios of Yin and Yang give rise to the seven nature transformations of chakra, which correspond to the way Yin and Yang bio create all things in the universe."

  "Correct," Madara nodded in satisfa.

  Kamihane smiled. These were lessons taught to him by a stoic yet kied elder otlefield. But that elder had ter perished in a siege by the Senju . The memory darkened Kamihane's smile.

  Madara seemed unaware of this and tinued, "Among the nature transformations of chakra, Wind, Fire, Water, Earth, and Lightning are the five basic elements. Yin Release and Yang Release, however, are special."

  Kamihahoughts were drawn back as he asked, "So… does that mean spiritual energy is Yin Release, and physical energy is Yang Release?"

  "Beginners often fall into such misceptions," Madara chuckled, sipping his warm tea, clearly in the mood to eborate.

  "Yin Release is special chakra refined by fusing a portion of the 'Yang' attribute with spiritual energy. versely, Yang Release works the same way. What makes them special is that the ratio of Yin and Yang is innate—uhe five elemental natures, which be learer in life."

  He gazed out the window, his voice drifting softly, "For someone born with Yin Release to acquire Yang Release, they would have to defy fate itself…"

  Kamihane was deep in thought. Madara's words had opened his mind, as if clearing away the fog to reveal the clear sky.

  The external maions of the five elemental natures were easy to distinguish, but teiques based on Yin and Yang Release were ofte ninjutsu.

  For example, mediinjutsu, the Akimichi 's Multi-Size Teique, and the Senju 's super strength—most of these, reted to the body, were external maions of Yang Release.

  Oher hand, those reted to the mind were mostly Yin Release, such as the Nara 's Shadow Possession Jutsu, the Yamanaka 's Mind Transfer Jutsu, and the Byakugan and Sharingan—all were external maions of Yin Release.

  It could be said that spiritual energy was a core po of Yin Release, and Yin Release was a direct marker of the strength of one's ocur power.

  Kamihane's eyes lit up as the previously obscure cepts began to unravel.