It was reliably known only that the eyes of a person possessing dojutsu transformed into something incomprehensible. Their structure merely resembled ordinary human eyes but had many peculiarities, and foremost—a completely new type of chakra produced only there and unusable anywhere else but the eyes.
Previously, Kenshin had tried many times to detect and study this amazing chakra, but the task was too difficult for his current world-perception abilities. The only thing he managed to ascertain was the strongest influence of this unknown chakra type on the laws of reality.
After Twenty Second reached Jonin level, Kenshin gained access to all his experience, which differed somewhat from Fifteenth's. Analyzing this information took him several long hours, which under a hundredfold focus turned into several weeks.
If Fifteenth reached Jonin level under the influence of the strongest emotions, Twenty Second approached it purposefully and worked on himself. The more Kenshin pondered and cross-referenced guesses with stray information, the more his eyes burned.
"Everything genius is simple..." he whispered with a thoughtful smile, arriving at an understanding of what to focus on first for reaching Jonin rank.
He still wasn't one hundred percent sure of his conclusions but believed he had reached highly secret insights on achieving Jonin rank. Apart from contradictory philosophical sayings, there wasn't much public information on reaching this rank. It was reliably known only that starting from Jonin rank, progress could no longer be achieved just by eating a lot and fighting a lot to develop physical stats.
All the Jonin he had dealt with had mastered one element to a very high level and could manipulate it without seals. Twenty Second, having mastered Fuuton, became completely indifferent to heights and could easily control air currents for his needs.
Full flight was still far off, but maneuverability gave a huge advantage over enemies. Maintaining concentration and control, Twenty Second could rise to a height of several hundred meters and then hover in the air for some time, slowing his fall. This easily allowed him to survey a vast area with Byakugan and gather invaluable intel.
After lunch on the 468th day, Kenshin received quite alarming news of an investigative team from the capital. A team of five Jonin was a very formidable force almost anywhere they went.
As soon as the unknown Jonin approached the small developing settlement, Kenshin himself came out to meet them, accompanied by ten sons, the strongest of whom, thanks to the "Patriarch's Aura," had strength close to the peak of Jonin rank.
"Who are you, and what is the purpose of your visit?" Kenshin asked indifferently.
"My name is Harada Taito. I am the head of the investigative team sent by order of Miyamoto Masahide himself!" the sturdy forty-year-old man at the head of the five Jonin declared authoritatively, unfurling a small scroll clearly bearing the Daimyo's seal.
"And what brings friends from the capital to visit my insignificant little family?" Kenshin asked softly, making Taito's eye twitch, for an organization with ten Jonin in its ranks could hardly be called "insignificant." He inwardly cursed the head of the Scout Regiment who had given him erroneous data that the Nakayama Family had at best two weak Jonin, forced a light smile, and continued the pleasantries.
"Someone dared to kill the Daimyo's relative named Abe Keitashi, and we are here to conduct an investigation. Our information shows he was last seen heading to your territory," Taito said emotionlessly, pondering his action plan. He clearly understood he couldn't dictate terms by force, so he hoped for a peaceful resolution.
"Abe Keitashi? First time hearing... Fine, you may conduct the investigation, but under the supervision of my sons," Kenshin replied with a slight smile, leaving Taito to grimace and nod.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Kenshin took his leave, while Fifteenth, Ichiro, and Twenty Second took charge of escorting the Jonin team to prevent any foolishness.
The investigative Jonin were very displeased with such treatment, but Taito decided not to escalate the conflict, knowing it could turn into another clash with Konoha forces and spill into civil war.
Kenshin calmly observed the investigative team's actions from a comfortable armchair, stroking Makoto pressed against him. The company of beloved women always helped him shed tension and quell stress, so the young girl was tenderly caressed and leaned her head back with closed eyes.
"Why are you petting her again and not me?!" Karin declared indignantly, feeling a twinge of jealousy and hurt that her father loved her less than the others.
"What are you saying, sweetie? Aren't I petting you?" Kenshin asked tenderly, pulling her into his arms and seating her next to the slightly shifted Makoto.
"Not like her..." Karin muttered displeasedly, receiving a light kiss on the cheek.
"She's my wife, and you're my daughter. We've discussed this already..." Kenshin sighed wearily, not ceasing to watch the strangers out of the corner of his eye.
"Meyumi and her always brag about where and how you touched them, and they tell me I'm too little for that!" Karin said, pouting her lips and complaining to her father about the unfairness.
"Meyumi? I'll talk to her. And I didn't expect that from my little Makoto..." Kenshin said with feigned surprise.
"Karin! You promised not to tell!" Makoto said in a displeased tone, adding: "Fine, then I'll tell about your sneaky plan!"
"No!" Karin squealed, covering her friend's mouth with her palm.
"She said she dreams of becoming your wife when she grows up!" Makoto said mentally, looking into her friend's eyes.
"You! How could you!" Karin exclaimed in shock, realizing her friend had spilled everything.
"Stop fighting. Sweetie, you're too young and don't realize your desires yet. Let's return to this when you grow up?" Kenshin said with boundless tenderness, tenderly hugging Karin and pressing her to him.
"O-okay..." Karin whispered, her face fully red as a lobster, hugging him back and burying her face in his chest.
For the next half hour, Kenshin calmed both girls and quickly reconciled them with a joint game. He always chose athletic games for them to add training elements, so both demonstrated phenomenal flexibility during the latest agility game.
Both wore black tight leggings and light tops in raspberry and blue. Kenshin tried not to stare at Makoto's protruding nipples and her small, neat ass, but she did everything to draw his gaze. Her leggings were so tight, and her mood so aroused, that no detail of her young, toned body escaped Kenshin's eyes.
Karin, in turn, held no sexual interest for him, and the only thing he wanted to do with her was kiss her cheeks and stroke her magnificent raspberry hair.
Lately, the question of Karin's future had come up more and more often. Keiko was primarily concerned about her daughter's fate and tried to probe his intentions. She knew Kenshin loved little Karin dearly but couldn't fully grasp that he felt only a father's love for his daughter.