Now that Seimei had tested all the changes brought by the evolution of his Byakugan, allocated his chakra, and planned his future training, it was time to get to work.
With that thought, Seimei stood up, glanced at the sun just rising in the distance, and formed hand signs to perform the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique.
Poof! Poof! Poof!
As clouds of chakra smoke dissipated, over 220 shadow clones appeared around him.
Seimei was about to send them off to train, but he paused mid-sentence, his hands freezing.
Then, he dispelled the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique.
Immediately after, he cast it again.
This time, though, he created 250 shadow clones.
Just moments ago, he realized that with his improved mental attribute, he could handle even more shadow clones training at high intensity simultaneously.
So, at the cost of a little extra chakra, he summoned 250 shadow clones instead.
This number was just an estimate.
Moving forward, he planned to adjust it based on the mental strain and training results until he found the perfect balance between efficiency and chakra consumption.
Seimei figured the final number of shadow clones capable of high-intensity training would likely exceed 250.
How many more? That would depend on the results of his tests.
With these shadow clones, his progress in developing Storm Release would undoubtedly speed up.
Speaking of which, he had made some headway in that area.
Over the past month of research, he'd gained some insights into how to combine Water Release and Lightning Release chakra.
With a bit more inspiration, he could start experimenting with fusing the two.
Once that step began, he'd be well on his way to mastering Storm Release.
Though the process might take over two months, completing it without any reference was something he could live with.
Or rather, it was better this way!
After all, his current body couldn't handle a new Kekkei Genkai just yet.
So, taking it slow had its perks.
Of course, to avoid slowing down his Storm Release development or the evolution of his Sharingan, he needed to boost his physical attribute as soon as possible.
With that in mind, Seimei waved his hand, dismissing all the shadow clones.
Then, locking onto a Flying Thunder God mark somewhere in the sea, he activated Lightning Release Chakra Mode, enveloping himself in a protective layer of lightning chakra. With a thought, he triggered the Flying Thunder God Technique.
His vision shifted instantly.
In a flash, Seimei teleported from the bright, comfortable Moon Island to the dark, oppressive depths of the ocean.
The immense water pressure warped the lightning chakra shield around him, threatening to break it.
But in the end, it held.
The pressure at this depth was still within its limits.
Seimei carefully manipulated the chakra around him, reinforcing the shield and adapting it to the external conditions until it stabilized.
At the same time, Palm Sage Technique and Human Defense activated automatically, repairing the internal and external damage caused by the drastic pressure change.
The process took about thirty seconds.
Once it was done, he'd fully adjusted to the harsh underwater environment.
Then, locking onto a direction, he used Earth Release: Ultra-Added-Weight Rock Technique to multiply his body weight and plummeted downward at high speed.
Soon, he reached the spot where he'd previously trained his body.
But Seimei didn't stop. He slowed slightly and continued descending until he hit the absolute limit his body could endure, then paused.
Feeling the immense external pressure and occasional underwater currents, Seimei nodded to himself.
Then, repeating a familiar move, he formed hand signs and used Water Release: Water Severing Wave to create a high-pressure water jet, carving out a training platform on a nearby flat volcanic rock wall.
The platform was quickly finished.
Wasting no time, Seimei began physical training based on the body-tempering methods outlined in Lightning Release Chakra Mode and his own accumulated experience.
He even incorporated some Hyuga clan Gentle Fist techniques to boost efficiency.
Where did he learn Gentle Fist?
Simple. The shadow clone he'd left in the village, while spying on the Hyuga clan to learn techniques for awakening the Byakugan, had secretly picked it up.
It wasn't complete enough to be a standalone skill.
But learned was learned, and Seimei could weave it into his training, just like now.
As various thoughts flashed through his mind, Seimei quickly pushed them aside.
Then, he focused entirely on physical conditioning.
Time ticked by, second by second.
An hour passed in a flash.
Seimei returned to Moon Island and looked at the shadow clones training both on and off the island. With a thought, he dispelled the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique.
Poof! Poof! Poof!
In an instant, all the shadow clones vanished.
They turned into streams of chakra, carrying an hour's worth of training experience and memories back into Seimei's body.
He closed his eyes, carefully reviewing the memories, absorbing and digesting the training insights they contained.
About fifteen minutes later, he opened his eyes again.
Rubbing his temples, Seimei felt his mental stamina could still handle more.
So this time, he summoned even more shadow clones and began a new round of training.
He kept increasing the number, eventually settling on around 280 shadow clones.
That was roughly his current limit. Any more, and he wouldn't be able to fully absorb their training experience and memories, leading to chakra waste.
Seimei wasn't about to let that happen.
So, he capped the number at 280.
On another note, the increase in shadow clones didn't require more chakra.
He'd been allocating 2 million points of chakra daily to Storm Release research and development, and that number hadn't changed.
Why? Simple—he'd optimized how that chakra was distributed, using the 2 million points more efficiently.
So, no extra chakra was needed.
Of course, this was only because the increase in shadow clones was small, and he was still in the theoretical research and experimentation phase, not full-on practical training.
Otherwise, with more shadow clones training simultaneously, he'd definitely need to invest more chakra.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Seimei glanced at the sky.
It was already evening.
Normally, he'd have finished his training plan by now and be heading back to the village.
But not this time.
That morning, he'd spent two and a half hours nurturing his Byakugan and hadn't done any other training. Now, he needed to make up for those two hours.
Plus, before heading back to the village to rest, he planned to visit the Hidden Mist, Hidden Rock, and Hidden Cloud Villages.
It had been over a month since he last replaced the shadow clones in those villages, so it was time to swap them out.
That task was best done at night.
So, he decided to keep training and handle those errands later before returning to the village to rest.