For Ronin, none of the ninjutsu were particularly difficult. There wasn't even any real distinction between elemental attributes. As long as he wanted to, he could perform any ninjutsu that had a clearly defined "rank" in his mind simply by forming hand seals and releasing chakra.
Even taijutsu techniques like the Eight Gates didn't require him to carefully study meridians or pathways. He could use them as naturally as eating or drinking—just by forming seals and releasing chakra.
The only time he ran into trouble was when he tried to open a "Gate" beyond his current limits. That was when rank restrictions would prevent the technique from activating.
That said, there were still abilities Ronin couldn't use.
For example, bloodline limit abilities, or certain special and forbidden techniques.
There was also one particularly iconic and popular ability from the Naruto world that Ronin simply couldn't use at all—summoning jutsu.
Without a contract, even if he knew how to perform the technique, there was nothing he could summon.
And since there was nothing to summon, the jutsu itself couldn't activate.
Unless Ronin could find a suitable summoning beast and form a contract with it, summoning jutsu would remain unusable.
He planned to look for an opportunity to find an appropriate wild beast and give it a try. Maybe he really could make summoning jutsu work.
At the same time, another thought crossed his mind—what if he broadened his perspective?
If he analyzed the relationship between chakra and Nen, and then factored in Vows and Restrictions, could he reinterpret his own abilities?
The idea made Ronin's eyes light up.
Chakra itself might actually be a derivative form of Nen.
Viewed from that angle, a lot of things suddenly made sense.
The level restrictions, the need to find Scarlet Eyes and absorb them, and the fact that higher levels required merging more Scarlet Eyes—all of that clearly counted as a restriction.
And under that restriction, the transformation of Nen into chakra, the explosive power and convenient elemental changes of ninjutsu, as well as the enhanced abilities of his evolved eyes, were the benefits granted by the vow.
In other words, from the very beginning, when Ronin transformed into a Scarlet-Eyed state, he had already acquired a Specialist-type Nen ability.
It was just a simpler, more efficient version—one that only suited him.
You could call it "ninja," or you could call it "Sharingan." After all, everything began with those eyes.
He wanted to use these special eyes to see what secrets this Hunter x Hunter world was really hiding.
And thinking about it more carefully, Nen wasn't just life energy—it also contained mental energy.
After all, whether it was Gon cultivating his mind while in Zetsu, or Chairman Netero's punches of gratitude, both involved intense mental training.
When Gon broke Wing's imposed restriction, and later broke Knuckle's ability constraint, the results were different. In the first case, his aura became calmer and more stable, matching his mental state at the time. In the second, his total aura output skyrocketed.
That alone was proof.
Proof that Nen and mental energy were deeply intertwined.
When mental energy grew strong enough, that strength was reflected directly in one's Nen.
When Ronin applied this understanding to himself, he finally understood why his own growth had been so rapid.
As a transmigrator, he had absorbed the soul of the original body just before it dispersed. That absorbed portion had become pure mental energy, giving him far more mental strength than ordinary people.
That was also why he retained the previous owner's memories.
And when he thought about it closely, he realized that many childhood memories were vague and blurry.
Only the more recent ones—especially those related to the clan's massacre—were unusually clear.
Perhaps, in his dying moments, the original owner had also formed a vow and restriction.
Trading his own soul for a new one—Ronin—capable of bringing change.
The price of that restriction might have been total annihilation, never entering reincarnation again… if reincarnation even existed.
After sorting all of this out, Ronin felt he had gained a much deeper understanding of Nen, and of vows and restrictions.
Nen carried a sense of being all-encompassing.
Chakra, on the other hand, was more like a specialized energy—used mainly for casting ninjutsu and activating the Sharingan.
Both Nen users and ninjas had their own weaknesses.
Powerful Nen users like Chairman Netero, the Ant King, and the Royal Guards clearly excelled in offense, defense, and speed. They were well-rounded in every sense.
But ninjas—even Hokage-level ones—were often glass cannons.
Their destructive power was terrifying, but compared to Nen users—especially Enhancers—their defensive capabilities were frankly lacking. They relied much more on special techniques to avoid taking damage.
Take Ronin's earlier fight with Uvogin, for example. When he opened the Eight Gates and used Primary Lotus, the damage inflicted on his own body was clearly greater than what Uvogin suffered.
That gap came down to physical durability.
After converting himself into a chakra-based state, Ronin's defense was noticeably weaker than when he was purely in a Nen-user state.
Even in a hybrid state, there was still a drop.
His strongest defensive form was clearly when he remained fully in Nen mode.
Maybe once he fully mastered Lightning Release chakra mode, that weakness would improve.
Lightning Release chakra mode was also a B-rank technique, but it consumed an enormous amount of energy. On top of that, Ronin still couldn't fully control the extreme speed it granted, which was why he hadn't used it against Uvogin.
Even with the Sharingan's assistance, adapting to that level of speed required extensive training.
That Raikage guy really was a monster.
If Ronin had been able to use Lightning Release chakra mode back then, fighting Uvogin might have been much easier. He might've even broken through head-on.
Next time—if there was a next time, and if Uvogin could still fight—Ronin would defeat him decisively, head-on, in Uvogin's strongest domain.
As for his own Hatsu, Ronin's plan was simple: use it to assist in generating even more chakra.
That way, whether he was in a Nen-user state or a chakra mode, both would be boosted to their maximum potential.
Ideally, he'd become something like Kisame Hoshigaki—a tailless Tailed Beast.
Or better yet, he could take it a step further and develop toward becoming an actual "Tailed Beast," creating one inside his own body.
But how exactly would he create such an existence?
And in his view, no matter how a Tailed Beast was created, becoming a jinchūriki always carried risks. It didn't seem as reliable as simply turning himself into a tailless Tailed Beast.
As for being greedy and choosing everything—that was a bad idea.
After all, the foundation of his power was still Nen, and Nen development had something like a "memory capacity."
People like Chairman Netero, who walked a highly specialized path, were able to fully exploit the strengths of the Enhancement system.
Unfortunately, Ronin wasn't a Conjurer.
If he were, he wouldn't mind creating a Samehada-like weapon. That could help make up for his chakra shortage.
But if he were a Conjurer, his taijutsu would suffer instead.
Thoughts collided endlessly in his mind. Ronin felt he still needed more time—to think, to test, and to experiment—before he could find the optimal way to maximize his aura reserves.
He looked up through the window.
Golden wheat fields streamed past his vision.
Molding City was close now.