"Pfft!"
Kokomi couldn't help but laugh out loud at her son's adorable expression.
She reached out and pinched Riku's slightly chubby cheeks, teasing him: "Well, that's because your changes are just too drastic!"
"Not only your spiritual power, but even your constitution, vitality, and more have increased by several dozen times."
"Just over an hour ago, you weren't like this at all."
"Tell me—did you awaken your Sharingan?"
Although she hadn't sensed any eye power from Riku's eyes, you never knew.
If he had awakened his Sharingan, then these drastic spiritual and physical changes would make perfect sense.
Every Uchiha who successfully awakened the Sharingan underwent such a transformation in spirit and body.
Of course, normally the spiritual transformation was far greater than the physical.
But Riku's case was quite different.
"Nope!"
Riku knew exactly why his mom asked, and shook his head with a smile. "No Sharingan awakening or anything like that."
"Really?"
Kokomi frowned slightly and pondered. "Then maybe... after refining your chakra, you awakened some kind of taijutsu-based kekkei genkai?"
"Did you feel any new special abilities?"
Although it was nearly impossible for an Uchiha to awaken a bloodline other than the Sharingan...
You never know.
"Does getting super smart and feeling like nothing is hard to learn count?"
Riku put on a thoughtful look and replied with a hint of curiosity.
"Uh..."
Kokomi blinked and drew out her voice awkwardly, "Maybe... it does?"
"Well, anyway! I won't pry too much. As long as you're clear on what's going on with your body, that's all that matters!"
"Just remember—don't tell anyone about this. Keep it between you, me, and your father."
"From today on, we'll start spreading the word that you're a genius. Got it?"
The label of a "genius" was much safer than "awakened kekkei genkai."
It wouldn't attract unnecessary attention from certain people.
As for hiding her son's genius?
No need. The Uchiha weren't in such a fragile state that they had to keep even that under wraps.
"Got it!"
Riku felt a warm current run through his chest and nodded firmly.
This kind of love and care from his parents felt wonderful.
"Alright, come with me. I'll take you to the family's archive room."
Kokomi, now reassured, waved him over and led him into the archive. She pointed to several rows of bookshelves and said:
"Here—these books are all available for you to read."
"Most of them are general texts about the ninja world, Konoha, or Uchiha history. They won't help your strength directly, but they're essential for a ninja's foundation."
"I'll go get the scrolls specifically about chakra refinement."
Without waiting for Riku's response, Kokomi walked deeper into the room, stopped before a sealed door, formed hand seals, and pressed her hand against it.
The seal on the door deactivated. Then, using a key, she opened the door and entered.
Riku didn't follow her inside. Instead, he grabbed a general book from a nearby shelf and began flipping through it rapidly.
Several minutes later—
Kokomi returned, her arms full of scrolls, only to see Riku flipping through the book in his hands so fast it looked like an afterimage. Confused and amused, she asked:
"Are you sure you're actually reading that fast?"
"Of course."
Riku finished the last page as she spoke, closed the book, and returned it to the shelf. Then he looked at her and said:
"Didn't I already tell you? My comprehension and mental strength have increased a lot."
"Now I have photographic memory and rapid learning capabilities."
"These kinds of general texts—just skimming them once is enough to memorize and understand them."
After that, he glanced at the bundle of scrolls in Kokomi's arms, his eyes lighting up:
"Mom! Are all of those scrolls about chakra?"
"Uh… yes!"
Kokomi blinked, still a little dazed, and placed the scrolls on the large desk beside them. Clearly, she hadn't fully processed what he just said.
Photographic memory and rapid learning...
She stared at her son for a moment, then took a deep breath.
"Looks like I've seriously underestimated your current talent and comprehension."
"You'll definitely surpass your big brother Fugaku someday—maybe even become someone like Uchiha Madara."
From what she knew, even Madara didn't have comprehension this monstrous.
"Maybe."
Riku replied with a vague shake of the head. "Who can say what the future holds? All I can do now is improve step by step."
"Mom, you should go do your own thing. I'm going to read through these scrolls."
With that, Riku sat down at the desk, picked up a scroll, and opened it, diving into serious study.
"What, now you're kicking your mother out?"
Kokomi gave him a speechless look and pretended to cry, half-covering her face while peeking at Riku.
Riku glanced over, caught her melodramatic act, and couldn't help but show a helpless expression.
"Mom! Don't act—it's too fake!"
"Why would I ever kick you out? I just didn't want to delay your day."
Hearing that, Kokomi dropped the act and grinned. She reached out and pinched his cheek again.
"Our Riku is just too cute with that serious face!"
"Alright, I won't bother you then. Take your time reading—Mom's heading out!"
With that, Kokomi hummed her way out of the archive room in light steps.
Riku finally let out a breath and fully immersed himself in reading the scrolls.
In just three hours, he had read over a hundred scrolls on chakra.
At the same time, his understanding of Uchiha chakra refinement skyrocketed—he had almost completely mastered it.
He had even absorbed methods from other clans, and his insights into chakra refinement—and chakra itself—underwent a qualitative leap.
But instead of rushing to ask his father for access to the clan library, he left the archive, informed his mother, and returned to his room to begin deeper chakra refinement training.
He began extracting more chakra, constructing energy channels in his cells, and putting all the knowledge he'd just absorbed into real practice.
With his comprehension, spiritual strength, and deep understanding of chakra refinement, he rapidly opened up energy pathways in his body.
His chakra levels started to soar.
Several hours later—
The sky outside was beginning to darken. Riku had completed constructing energy channels in 1% of his cells.
He had fully tapped into that portion's chakra potential.
His chakra reserves had skyrocketed—many times greater than before.
(End of Chapter)
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