A month later, Simu summoned dozens of ninjas to the Forest of Death under the name of the Hokage.
The purpose? To test the results of his research over the past few months.
"This time, the test mission will be handed over to you all," Simu said, looking at the five boys standing before him.
They were Kakashi, Uchiha Obito, Might Guy, Shiranui Genma, and Yamashiro Aoba.
Among them, Kakashi had already reached the level of Elite Jōnin.
Once he fully mastered the power of the Pteranodon Fruit, his strength would increase even further.
If he could awaken the fruit, combined with the physical boost from Chakra-enhanced constitution, reaching Kage-level strength wouldn't be a problem.
As for Obito, under the dual boost of Wood Style and the Sharingan, he had also reached Jōnin-level strength.
Might Guy, Genma, and Aoba were all currently at the Chūnin level.
This difference reflected Simu's scientific approach—testing how the ninja tools affected users of varying strength.
Kakashi nodded calmly at Simu's encouragement, showing no other expression.
Obito, on the other hand, waved his hands enthusiastically and patted his chest.
"Leave it to me! I've got this!"
The other three were visibly excited, admiration shining in their eyes as they exclaimed:
"Leave it to us, Lord Hokage!"
"I can't wait to burn with the flames of youth!"
Compared to the more traditional leadership of the Third Hokage, Simu's energetic and progressive style clearly resonated more with the younger generation.
Watching from the sidelines were several Jōnin, most of whom were Simu's supporters, currently stationed in the village and awaiting orders.
"I'm telling you, Simu, you really called me over just for this?"
Silver-haired Jiraiya frowned at the kids in front of him.
He had just returned from a mission on the Fire Country's border when Simu, now Hokage, called him in to test a new kind of ninja tool.
Among the group, only Kakashi barely seemed worth taking seriously.
The rest were just a bunch of kids.
As one of the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya had the right to be arrogant.
Noticing the disdain in his gaze, Obito was instantly irritated.
"Hey! You're Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, right? Even if you're my teacher's teacher, I won't hold back!"
Jiraiya glanced at Obito and picked his nose indifferently.
"So, you're that Uchiha brat."
"What did you just say?!"
Obito's face flushed red with anger, ready to explode.
Kakashi merely glanced sideways at Jiraiya, silently calculating the odds of winning if he were to go all out against one of the Sannin.
As for Genma, Guy, and Aoba—they were well aware of Jiraiya's reputation.
Even if they were underestimated, they didn't dare do more than tremble.
Simu clapped his hands.
"Alright, Jiraiya-sensei, stop bullying them. This experiment is going to blow your mind."
"Oh?"
Jiraiya's expression shifted to mild interest at Simu's confident tone.
Minato stepped up beside him, also curious about what Simu was preparing to show.
Looking at these two former disciples—Simu and Minato—Jiraiya's feelings were complicated.
Not only had Simu personally killed his own comrade, but the faction he led had also forced Jiraiya's own teacher from the Hokage seat.
Although Jiraiya had no interest in politics, he wasn't a fool.
He understood exactly what Simu's actions meant.
But he was powerless to stop it.
After all, his teacher was indeed old—his judgment declining—and no longer suited for the role of Hokage.
Sigh...
Jiraiya let out a deep breath, shaking the thoughts from his mind.
His gaze turned back to the training field.
"Let's begin testing the power of [Lightning Type I]," said Nara Shikaku, holding a notebook in hand.
"Yeah! Let's burn our youth, Kakashi!" Might Guy shouted eagerly.
Fueled by his energy, Obito's blood began to boil as well.
"Alright! Watch what we can do!"
Just as the two were about to rush in, Simu smacked his forehead and stopped them with one hand.
"Not your turn yet."
Might Guy scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"Oh… Got it?"
Kakashi looked at the two over-enthusiastic goofballs and sighed helplessly.
One Obito was already more than enough. Now he had to deal with Might Guy too?
Peace was no longer an option.
"The first to test will be Shiranui Genma and Yamashiro Aoba," Shikaku announced.
The two stepped forward quickly upon hearing their names.
With Simu's help, they each equipped the [Lightning Type I]—a gauntlet-like device resembling a steel armguard.
"Relax. Just follow what I told you," Simu reassured them.
Encouraged by the Hokage's words, the two nodded and took a deep breath.
"Roger!"
Under the watchful eyes of the gathered Jōnin, they raised their arms in sync.
As they injected their Chakra, glowing blue lines lit up across the armguards, pulsating with a high-tech gleam.
Then, the surrounding natural energy was drawn in, blending with their Chakra to form a controlled quantity of Sage Chakra.
A second later, energy burst forth from small ports at the wrists.
Lightning spears shot out like javelins of thunder, blinding the audience with intense blue light.
The thunderbolts struck the giant boulder set up for testing and split it clean in half.
Black scorch marks lined the stone's surface, smoke billowing from the cracks.
For a second, the crowd was silent.
Then, the Jōnin exploded into murmurs and discussion, all visibly shaken by what they had just witnessed.
Simu nodded in satisfaction.
The power they unleashed was already comparable to the ninjutsu cast by a Jōnin.
If this kind of equipment could be mass-produced and distributed to all ninjas...
Just imagine—every Konoha Chūnin able to unleash Jōnin-level Muji attacks at will. What would that mean?
Every Konoha Chūnin would essentially become a walking war machine!
No one knew who started it, but warm applause suddenly broke out across the training ground.
Yamashiro Aoba and Shiranui Genma continued testing a few more times.
The results were consistent—the output was stable, with no significant fluctuations.
After recording the data, Simu moved on to the next equipment test.
"Everyone, this piece of equipment is called the [Armorer] Type I."
Simu took out a thin, black piece of armor.
Intricate circuitry was etched into its surface, and a circular steel core was embedded at the center of the chest—this was the heart of the entire system.
Might Guy was selected as the main tester for this set of gear.
He could barely contain his excitement as he suited up.
A light blue aura of Chakra instantly surged through the armor's engraved lines.
The circular core began to glow as it came to life.
Chakra flowed from Might Guy into the armor, then merged with the absorbed natural energy at the core, initiating a powerful cycle that rechanneled energy throughout the suit.
"I feel like my whole body's on fire!" Might Guy shouted, exhilarated.
He stomped the ground with both feet and vanished, reappearing instantly in front of a reinforced test board—then smashed it apart with a single punch!
The speed and raw force he generated were simply shocking.
After punching through several reinforced steel plates in a row, Might Guy finally stopped.
And keep in mind—Might Guy was still just a Chūnin.
To unleash this level of power just by wearing the armor—it was clear how much Type I boosted physical capabilities.
Next, Simu moved on to testing the armor's defensive function.
He instructed a Chūnin to hurl kunai and shuriken at full strength.
The projectiles bounced harmlessly off the armor, creating only brief flashes of sparks.
"This is insane," Jiraiya muttered, watching with disbelief.
He could clearly sense the Chakra flowing on the armor's surface—it was Sage Chakra, something most ordinary ninjas could never touch.
And Simu had replicated it in just a few months?
Jiraiya's worldview was starting to crumble.
He had risked turning into stone while spending years at Mount Myōboku, just to learn Sage Mode.
Now Konoha Chūnin could just put on a suit of armor?
"Are you sure it's safe to guide natural energy directly into the body like that?" Jiraiya asked doubtfully.
Sage Chakra might be powerful, but it was notoriously dangerous.
Without the proper control, absorbing natural energy could easily lead to a ninja being assimilated—turned to stone or worse.
From Jiraiya's perspective, Simu's inventions seemed like gambling with the lives of Konoha Shinobi.
Sensing his concerns, Rei replied calmly:
"That's exactly why I externalized the core that absorbs and processes natural energy. The energy channels also run outside the body."
"Even if the ninja tool is destroyed, the user won't be harmed."
Simu watched as Might Guy continued showing off in the training ground, a grin on his face.
"This is all thanks to the toad oil you provided, Sensei."
After all, natural energy couldn't be absorbed through ordinary means.
Simu had combined toad oil from Mount Myōboku and slime from the Katsuyu clan of the Shikkotsu Forest to engineer the device's core—enabling it to automatically absorb and process natural energy.
Jiraiya looked at the armor Might Guy was wearing, his expression complex.
"I just hope these ninja tools will be used for the right reasons," he said quietly.
There was no denying that this level of defense would save countless Konoha lives on the battlefield.
But he also feared it would embolden the village—make it far more aggressive toward other nations.
Once you hold overwhelming power, war becomes an easy option.
And for someone like Jiraiya, who had spent his life seeking the Child of Prophecy who would bring true peace to the world, that was a deeply troubling thought.
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