Morning came with no wind.
The mountains beyond Kumogakure felt… wrong.
Too still.
Too quiet.
Dark storm clouds pressed low across the sky.
Heavy.
Waiting.
Raizen noticed it immediately.
Inside his mind—
Astra spoke.
"Atmospheric instability detected."
Raizen's eyes shifted toward the canyon ahead.
The Lightning Ravine.
They reached the entrance shortly after sunrise.
The terrain changed instantly.
Open mountain ridges disappeared— replaced by narrow stone corridors.
Cliff walls towered overhead.
The path twisted downward through jagged rock and uneven ground.
And above— the storm gathered.
At the entrance stood Takeshi Aran.
"You're training here today."
A few students exchanged uneasy looks.
The ravine had a reputation.
Aran pointed toward the sky.
"This canyon attracts lightning."
The surrounding rock was rich with conductive minerals.
Storm energy didn't just pass through here— it concentrated.
"Most shinobi avoid terrain like this."
He paused.
"But the Storm Run goes straight through it."
Daigo blinked.
"…Of course it does."
No one laughed.
"First exercise," Aran continued.
"Run the canyon."
Then—
"Watch the sky."
That part mattered more.
Lightning didn't fall randomly.
It built.
Kenji moved first.
Kenji Sato stepped into the ravine and accelerated immediately.
Fast.
Direct.
But focused only on the ground.
A mistake.
Thunder cracked— sharp and sudden.
Kenji froze.
A bolt of lightning slammed into the cliff wall beside him.
Stone exploded outward.
Dust filled the air.
Kenji stepped back slowly.
"…Noted."
Next—
Akari.
Akari Mizuta moved with control.
Her eyes never stayed in one place.
Ground.
Sky.
Cliffs.
She waited after each rumble of thunder— then moved.
Timing the storm.
Kaito Ren nodded from above.
"Better."
Then—
Raizen stepped forward.
The air felt heavier inside the ravine.
Charged.
Inside his mind—
Astra spoke again.
"Electrical activity increasing."
Raizen moved.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Step.
Pause.
Listen.
Then— something shifted.
Not wind.
Not sound.
Something deeper.
A ripple.
A disturbance in the air itself.
Astra reacted instantly.
"Environmental anomaly detected."
Raizen's eyes lifted.
A second later—
LIGHTNING.
A bolt slammed into the cliff ahead.
Too precise.
Too early.
Not reaction.
Prediction.
Inside him— something connected.
Heaven Pulse
It wasn't just sensing movement anymore.
It was sensing energy.
From the canyon entrance— the instructors noticed.
"He reacted before the strike," Ren said quietly.
Aran nodded.
"…He's starting to see it."
The final drill began.
"Full speed."
This time— the storm was active.
Thunder rolled continuously.
Lightning flashed across the canyon walls.
"Go."
Students sprinted.
Kenji surged forward.
Rei moved like a shadow behind him.
Rei Kisaragi flowed through the terrain.
Raizen followed.
But something had changed.
He wasn't reacting anymore.
He was moving before the danger appeared.
Step left— lightning struck right.
Drop low— debris shattered above him.
Shift forward— stone collapsed behind him.
Every movement— half a second ahead.
Inside his mind—
Astra accelerated.
"Correlation confirmed."
"Bloodline sensory response linked to atmospheric energy fluctuations."
Raizen didn't answer.
He just moved.
By the time he reached the canyon exit— he wasn't thinking.
He was flowing.
The storm ended shortly after.
Students regrouped at the entrance.
Some shaken.
Some exhausted.
Daigo sat on the ground staring at the sky.
Daigo Mizuta sighed.
"…Why is this part of a race?"
No one answered.
Raizen stood near the canyon edge.
Watching the storm clouds roll away.
Inside his mind—
Astra spoke softly.
"Ability integration detected."
Heaven Pulse.
Lightning affinity.
Storm environment.
All beginning— to connect.
And for the first time—
Raizen understood something clearly.
The storm wasn't just around him.
It was becoming part of him.