Naruto: Reaching the Stars

When Kisuke arrived home, he saw Kirikou handing a bunch of herbs to an old woman, smiling as she did. After his father's death, Kirikou used the compensation money to open a small shop that sold flowers and medicinal herbs. It wasn't big, but it was successful, providing a steady income for them.

As the old woman left, Kirikou noticed Kisuke and Daiki. "Oh, Kisuke! Daiki!" she called out with a warm smile. "How was training today?"

Kisuke, feeling a bit tired, walked up to her. "It was... good. Uncle Daiki helped me a lot."

Daiki nodded and ruffled Kisuke's hair. "This rascal finally started doing physical exercises instead of screaming about Genjutsu all day. Can you believe that?"

Kirikou's smile grew as she knelt at Kisuke's level, brushing some dirt off his cheek. "That's great to hear. I'm proud of you, Kisuke."

Surprised and embarrassed, Kisuke looked away. "Y-yeah."

Just then, Daiki held up a bag. "I picked up some meat on the way here. Thought it'd be a nice treat after a hard day's training."

Kirikou looked surprised but pleased. "You didn't have to do that."

Daiki waved off her concern. "I don't mind. Besides, Kisuke worked hard today. Consider it a reward."

Kirikou shook her head, still smiling. "You should save your money. Don't you plan on getting married someday?"

Daiki coughed, a bit embarrassed. "Well, I, uh..."

Kirikou laughed lightly. "Just something to think about. But thank you for the meat. Let's go inside and enjoy a nice lunch."

After closing the shop, Kirikou led them inside. As they sat around the table, the aroma of freshly cooked meat filled the room, mixing with the smell of grilled vegetables and rice. Kirikou asked about the training, and Kisuke shared everything that had happened, from morning exercises to kunai and shuriken practice with Daiki. Kirikou listened with a smile, nodding and encouraging him as he spoke. Daiki chimed in now and then, praising Kisuke's efforts.

'Is this what a real family feels like?' Kisuke thought as he watched them. 'It's not bad.'

After lunch, Kisuke excused himself and went to his room. Lying on his bed, he reflected on what Daiki had said about the Kurama clan's members having weak physiques, which is why they focused on Genjutsu rather than physical training. They usually played support roles in teams.

He understood why his clan emphasized Genjutsu and ninjutsu, as Taijutsu training yielded little improvement for them. But Kisuke knew that in the later stages of the series, Genjutsu was rarely decisive. 'What if Genjutsu doesn't work on the enemy, or I'm surrounded, or alone without teammates to back me up? I'd be in serious trouble then.'

He decided he needed to train his body and Taijutsu hard. Even if the results weren't as satisfactory as he hoped, he could use secret techniques to increase his strength. He wanted to be strong enough to stand on his own without always needing his teammates.

Kisuke got up and walked over to his desk. He opened a drawer and pulled out a sealed scroll, then returned to his bed and opened it. The scroll contained a special meditation technique of the Kurama clan, given to him by Daiki when he started training the original Kisuke. Practicing it would help him gain better control over his spiritual energy and increase it over time, making him better at Genjutsu when he eventually started practicing it.

Unfurling the scroll, Kisuke carefully read the instructions. The technique was designed to help practitioners refine their control over spiritual energy and gradually increase its capacity. It involved a series of meditation exercises and visualizations that focused on harmonizing the mind and body.

The first step was to find a comfortable position, either sitting or lying down. Kisuke chose to sit cross-legged on his bed, keeping his back straight and his hands resting on his knees. He closed his eyes and began the breathing exercises, inhaling deeply through his nose and exhaling slowly through his mouth.

The scroll instructed him to visualize a calm, peaceful place—somewhere he felt completely at ease. Kisuke imagined a tranquil forest with a gentle breeze rustling the leaves and the sound of a flowing stream nearby. As he focused on this image, he felt his mind and body relax.

Next, he was to visualize his spiritual energy as a glowing, pulsing light within his mind. According to the instructions, he needed to guide this light through his chakra network, ensuring it flowed smoothly and evenly. Kisuke concentrated, imagining the light starting from his mind and spreading outwards, reaching every part of his body.

Kisuke continued the exercise, guiding the light with each breath, feeling it grow stronger and more stable. He repeated the process several times, losing track of time as he became more absorbed in the practice.

After what felt like an hour, Kisuke slowly opened his eyes and immediately noticed a difference—his mind was clearer, and he felt a sense of calm and focus that he hadn't experienced before.

'Is it really this effective?!'

He had only a basic understanding of spiritual energy, but he knew that increasing it should also boost his chakra capacity. And was tied to Yin Release techniques.

'If the Kurama clan could increase spiritual energy with just a simple, common technique, how powerful must they have been at their peak?'

Kisuke furrowed his brow, trying to recall if he had ever heard of the Kurama clan in the series, but nothing came to mind. Then again, it had been a while since he watched the series, so maybe he had just forgotten. Still, it wasn't surprising. The series mostly focused on the main characters and their journeys. The Kurama clan might not have been involved, or perhaps they faded into history like the Senju.

'It's unlikely they were massacred like the Uchiha, but just to be safe, I'm going to have to double my training just in case...'

Feeling energized from his meditation session, Kisuke decided to push his training further. He remembered the next exercise Daiki had mentioned, tree climbing. Since there wasn't a tree in his room, he decided to use the wall instead.

First, he spread his bed sheets on the floor near the wall to cushion any falls. Then, he stood in front of the wall and took a deep breath to focus his chakra. The goal was to channel the chakra to his feet, allowing him to stick to surfaces and climb vertically.

'Okay, focus,' he thought, recalling Daiki's advice on chakra control. 'Just like the leaf exercise, but through my feet.'

Kisuke formed a needle seal and concentrated, letting chakra flow to his feet. He lifted one foot and placed it on the wall, then the other. For a moment, he felt a rush of excitement as he seemed to stick, but as soon as he tried to take a step, his chakra control slipped, and he slid down onto the bed sheets.

'Not bad for a first try,' he thought, not discouraged. He adjusted his stance and tried again, this time focusing harder on maintaining a steady flow of chakra to his feet. He managed a few steps up the wall before losing control and sliding back down. Each attempt brought different results, but Kisuke could feel himself getting better, even if only slightly.

The process was frustrating. He tried using more chakra, then less and even changed his foot placement, but each time he would climb a few steps before losing balance and sliding back down.

Kisuke wiped the sweat from his brow and took a moment to catch his breath. 'This is tougher than I thought.'

But he knew mastering this skill was essential to his progress in chakra control, so he continued training without complaints.

Over the next month, Kisuke's routine was packed with rigorous training. Each morning started with physical exercises to build strength and endurance, followed by chakra control exercises. After helping Kirikou in the shop, he would meditate, refining his control over spiritual energy. At night, he would read records of the Kurama clan, gaining knowledge that wasn't shown in the series.

He also began memorizing hand signs and practicing them as quickly as possible. He knew the importance of speed in making hand signs, as it directly affected the casting time of Jutsu. Using Itachi as his benchmark, Kisuke aimed to perform six hand signs per second, knowing that Itachi could achieve at least that speed.

Though tempted to test out cool Ninjutsu, Kisuke held back his curiosity, focusing instead on perfecting his chakra control to avoid the same fate as the original Kisuke, who died from exhausting his chakra and spiritual energy due to poor control.

After about ten days, he finally managed to climb the wall. Once he mastered that, he moved on to tree climbing, which was only slightly more challenging. Within a day, he could climb a tree with ease. However, he felt a bit frustrated, remembering that Naruto and Sasuke took just a day to climb a tree, and Sakura succeeded on her first try. Did this mean he had less talent?

He didn't dwell on that thought and moved on to the water walking exercise. It took him a week to master, but only in calm water without any current. He still needed to practice in more challenging conditions.

Having completed these exercises and achieved fine control over his chakra, Kisuke finally felt ready to start learning some Ninjutsu. With a confident smile, he thought, 'It's time to see just how amazing chakra really is.'