Chapter 164

Throwing such a punch made him feel much more at ease.

"One bone? So there might be two bones, three bones?"

The Third Hokage's thoughts churned, yet he continued praising aloud: "Truly formidable taijutsu."

Ishihara nodded, then turned to look at the people behind him.

Uchiha Fugaku, Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, Akimichi Chōza, Aburame Shibi, Inuzuka Kiba, and others…

All the ninja families of Konoha, including the elite Jonin, were nearly all present.

But there was no sign of Danzō.

"Hokage, have you reached an agreement on the sealing?"

Ishihara's gaze returned to the Third Hokage, and he waved his hand lightly, clearing the dust from the air.

The Third Hokage nodded, his voice low:

"Since this is your condition, we naturally agree—but we have a demand: Konoha must inspect this seal!"

By "inspect," the Third Hokage meant he was worried the seal might have hidden dangers, and also coveted Ishihara's sealing technique.

After all, if Konoha mastered it, they would control a powerful method of intelligence security.

Ishihara nodded indifferently, unwilling to waste time on such matters.

His sealing technique was incredibly complex, involving knowledge of cursed seals—impossible for ordinary people to comprehend, let alone replicate.

Soon, Konoha's Sealing Division and Barrier Division arrived.

Then Ishihara wrote out the improved Sealing Technique: Sealed Shut.

Merely writing it out took him nearly half an hour; the technique's runes covered the entire courtyard.

Watching the stunned Konoha personnel, Ishihara sneered inwardly.

In truth, this was the most orthodox way to use the technique—he'd merely preferred other methods before.

Even ninja with little sealing expertise could grasp the complexity of this technique.

The Third Hokage frowned deeply.

He understood sealing techniques—he knew many—and that was precisely why he recognized the difficulty, sighing inwardly.

Konoha would never be able to master it!

Hours passed, and the Barrier Division, drenched in sweat, finally reached their conclusion.

"Hokage-sama, after our inspection, the Sealed Shut technique preserves designated memories and intelligence; if forcibly read, it damages those memories!"

"But there is also a risk of causing the sealed individual's death!"

"Moreover, this technique possesses one-time replication capability, meaning it can be passed on once—but the replicated version cannot self-replicate for three years!"

"Other than that, there are no other hazards!"

"But this seal is too complex—we cannot understand it, nor can we master it!"

Watching the humiliated Barrier Division, the Third Hokage did not harshly reprimand them; he patted their shoulders and told them to stand aside.

Thus, Sealed Shut Version 2.0 passed Konoha's review and would be used throughout the entire transaction with Konoha.

Soon, Kakashi was the first to accept the seal, then Might Guy!

After the sealing ended, Ishihara handed Might Guy the three secret techniques related to the Eight Gates.

Hiss!!!

After scanning the three secret techniques, Might Guy sucked in a sharp breath, his face filled with shock.

·· ······Requesting flowers· ·

"What's wrong?"

The Third Hokage stared at him eagerly, his eyes brimming with longing.

Might Guy exclaimed excitedly:

"No wonder it's Ishihara—these three secret techniques are incredibly powerful; in value, they've already surpassed the Eight Gates!"

"This is youth!"

What he didn't say was that with these techniques, he was confident he could open the Eighth Gate within two or three years!

Master the Eight Gates Formation!

"Good! Good! Good!"

The Third Hokage's face beamed with unhidden delight.

Might Guy's words had become the ultimate proof of Ishihara's secret technique development ability.

Instantly, every family was stirred.

Several clan heads glanced at each other, all holding back.

Then Nara Shikaku, who had long made up his mind, stepped forward and addressed Ishihara solemnly:

"Mr. Ishihara, the Nara clan wishes to make this transaction with you!"

The other families instantly regretted their hesitation, silently cursing themselves for being too slow.

The Third Hokage's expression shifted slightly, but he said nothing, watching Nara Shikaku in silence.

"What kind of transaction do you want?"

Ishihara's eyes lit up, intrigued.

The Nara clan's secret techniques were precisely what he had decided to obtain before arriving.

So he was deeply interested.

"The Nara clan wishes to offer all our clan's secret techniques in exchange for Mr. Ishihara's help in refining them and enhancing their power!"

Nara Shikaku spoke slowly, as if burdened by heavy emotion.

Boom!

His words struck the ears of the other families, instantly shocking them into wide-eyed disbelief as they stared at Kafu Shika.

"Mad! Absolutely mad! To give up an entire clan's secret techniques!!"

For families like theirs, without bloodline limits, secret techniques were their very foundation—surrendering them was suicide!

Kafu Shika was courting his own destruction!

Ishihara, upon hearing this, also looked surprised, studied him for a moment, then nodded.

"Agreed. I accept this deal."

"Good!"

Kafu Shika immediately exhaled a long breath of relief, a smile of joy spreading across his face.

He was not afraid that Ishihara would see all of the Shika clan's secret techniques—he feared only that these techniques might fail to interest Ishihara.

The clever man had already seen the coming tide!

Ishihara—unstoppable!

Beaming with joy, he handed the clan scroll to Ishihara and said solemnly, "Mr. Ishihara, I entrust this to you."