Naruto: Stormbreaker

Chapter 55: Chapter 55: UNLIMITED POWAAAAAAH!

This state felt incredible. Chakra flowed smoothly and effortlessly throughout my body, saturating every muscle and nerve, primed and ready to activate at a moment’s notice. This newfound clarity gave me an idea.

I focused chakra into my legs, and in an instant, I activated Lightning Flicker without any hand seals. My body shot forward, faster and farther than ever before. My eyes widened in disbelief.

Was this because my body was already saturated with lightning chakra that I could activate techniques this quickly? I wondered, immediately forming my Static Field. It manifested effortlessly, spreading far beyond its usual radius, stronger and more vibrant than I had ever achieved.

Next, I raised my finger, focusing a dense sphere of lightning chakra at its tip. A small, brilliant ball crackled to life, radiating intense blue and white sparks before rocketing forward with frightening speed. It left behind vivid trails of electricity before striking a small tree in the distance, shattering it into countless splinters.

Euphoria surged through me. This power, this overwhelming strength. It was mine. I couldn’t stop the sinister smile that nearly split my face.

A fitting name for this miraculous state immediately formed in my mind.

”Stormdrive.”

I felt incredibly pleased with the name. It was strong, memorable, and perfectly captured the explosive potential of this mode.

But then it happened. Without any warning, my entire body shut down, collapsing unceremoniously onto the ground. Confusion flooded my mind as I tried to understand what had just occurred, before mentally facepalming.

While Stormdrive was undoubtedly incredible, I’d been circulating a ridiculous amount of lightning chakra at full throttle. The immediate boost was amazing, but clearly, my body wasn’t yet strong enough to handle such intensity. Normally, when using chakra circulation, I had only channeled a fraction of this chakra before. From now on, I would avoid Stormdrive until I was stronger. By using minimal lightning chakra in my circulation, my body could gradually adapt until it became strong enough to handle the immense strain of Stormdrive.

Still, despite the current humiliation, I had gained a powerful trump card. Hopefully, I wouldn’t have to rely on it anytime soon. Honestly, I doubted I’d need it in the immediate future, which gave me plenty of time to strengthen my body to better handle the technique and to fine-tune it along the way.

An hour passed with my face still planted firmly against the ground. Some birds took advantage of my vulnerable position, generously depositing droppings all over me. Clearly, this was their revenge for my past offenses against their species. Instead of remorse, I silently promised retaliation. And thus, the cycle of hatred continued.

After that humiliating hour passed, I slowly regained enough strength to raise my head. Just as I thought things couldn’t get worse, mosquitoes swarmed me, biting freely since I was unable to defend myself. As they buzzed around, extracting their revenge for what I’d done to their brethren during Static Field training, I once again swore vengeance. Truly, nature was harsh and unforgiving.

Another half hour passed before I could shakily stand. Moving deliberately and slowly, I shuffled toward my apartment, looking every bit like a child desperately trying to reach a bathroom. I completely ignored the strange looks from passersby, dignity was a luxury I couldn’t afford right now.

When I finally reached home, I exerted monumental effort to remove my shirt before collapsing onto my bed, instantly falling asleep.

I woke up a few hours later to the urgent knocking on my door. Shizuru’s voice carried a growing note of panic the longer I took to answer, prompting me to muster just enough energy to call out weakly, ”I’m coming.”

Dragging my exhausted body to the door, I unlocked it. The moment I saw Shizuru, my legs gave out again. She reacted quickly, catching and supporting me on her shoulder.

”What happened? Are you okay?” she asked, clearly panicked.

”I’m more than fine,” I said with a reassuring but tired voice. ”I did something incredible.”

A strange look crossed her face as she helped me back to bed, where I collapsed once more.

She pulled over a chair and sat beside me, glancing down and noticing the discarded shirt on the floor, covered with bird droppings. Her face contorted into a mixture of confusion and disgust. She subtly moved her chair slightly away from me. ℯ

”Why is your shirt like that? What exactly were you doing?” she asked cautiously.

I chuckled weakly. ”I overdid my training, and those damned birds took advantage of my momentary weakness to exact revenge. Don’t worry though. I’ll pay them back soon enough.”

Shizuru’s expression shifted to a blend of confusion, caution, and mild concern.

She sighed softly, clearly deciding to set the matter aside. ”I guess we won’t be walking out today. So, care to explain exactly what kind of training left you in this state?”

I hesitated briefly. It wasn’t yet the right moment to openly discuss my new ability, but I also didn’t want to lie to her. Choosing my words carefully, I answered, ”I was training a new enhancement technique for my movements and jutsu. Don’t worry too much. I should be fine by tomorrow after eating and drinking plenty.”

She nodded slowly in understanding. One of Shizuru’s best qualities was her ability to pick up hints and respect boundaries. Despite her obvious curiosity, she never pushed further than was appropriate.

She stood and walked toward the kitchen, returning shortly with some food I’d prepared earlier. As she handed it over, she shook her head with mock amazement, remarking, ”It’s incredible that you can eat all this and not explode.”

I laughed at her remark, immediately diving in and devouring the food with the intensity of a hungry hippo. After eating everything in sight and practically draining the apartment of water, I finally felt better.

”Thanks, Shizuru,” I said gratefully. ”You arrived at the perfect time.”

She smiled proudly, lifting her chin slightly with exaggerated poise. ”Of course, that’s to be expected from your best friend.”

She broke into laughter, and I chuckled along with her. Honestly, my days had become much less lonely and significantly more enjoyable with her presence. Shizuru wasn’t insufferable to talk to like other children our age. Sure, she had her childish moments, but most of the time she was intelligent and mature enough that her presence didn’t annoy me. I decided right then to make sure this friendship lasted.

Excitement lit up her eyes as she said, ”The second year starts in one day! I can’t wait to learn some ninjutsu.”

I raised an eyebrow, momentarily tempted to ask about her clan’s secret techniques and whether she’d already begun training. But I quickly dismissed that thought, realizing it would raise unwanted questions. Instead, I smiled and nodded, matching her excitement for the coming year.