Chapter 179: Natural Energy
White Zetsu possessed an extremely strong ability to disguise itself. Its Spore Technique, which allowed it to implant its spores into another's body, was also extremely difficult to detect. Neither the Sharingan nor the Mirror Eye could see them, because the spores themselves had the same strong disguise ability, able to mimic the host's own cells. In other words, they looked just like a part of you.
At the Five Kage Summit, no one had discovered they had been implanted with spores. Sasuke Uchiha couldn't find them either. Only Orochimaru, who was very familiar with Hashirama's cells and also had Sage Mode, was able to sense them.
Genichi also knew a lot about Hashirama's cells, but before he mastered Wood Release, he couldn't sense the spores either. It was only because he was so familiar with White Zetsu that he knew he most likely had them in his body. However, although he could sense them now because of his Wood Release, he had no way of getting them out before.
But now…
"I can, but I'm in no hurry," he said, giving a definitive answer to Minato. For the time being, he had no intention of dealing with them.
Minato didn't ask any more questions.
Kushina, however, asked curiously, "Genichi, you also extracted the Nine-Tails' chakra before. Can you also enter this 'Nine-Tails Chakra Mode' you mentioned?"
"There shouldn't be a problem," he nodded with a smile. "But for me, the Nine-Tails' chakra is more useful for research. Compared to the other Tailed Beasts, its chakra doesn't have any special abilities, but its quality is very high. It can provide an all-around boost to ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, almost on par with Sage Mode."
"This mode should be very effective for identifying spies," Kushina said with an eager smile. "Ina, let's go for a walk around the village!"
Genichi and Minato looked at each other, both a little helpless.
"Ahem," Minato coughed lightly. "Um, if you find a spy, don't make a scene. Report it to the Hokage first."
"I know, I know!" Kushina replied casually, then grabbed Ina and ran off, like a child with a new toy.
"I'm heading back too, Minato-san," Genichi said. "And remember to train Sister Kushina's chakra control. If the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode is to be used in battle, it will require a lot of training." With that, he vanished from the living room. Minato quickly went after Kushina.
Back home, Genichi's Primordial Spirit went to the sealed space in his abdomen to carefully observe the Nine-Tails' chakra.
"Besides its powerful life force, I can't feel anything special about it. Unlike the other Tailed Beasts, which all have some unique abilities." He secretly raised an eyebrow. Having no special characteristics was probably its greatest specialty. But this also meant that it would be difficult for him to gain anything from it using the methods he had used to analyze the other Tailed Beasts.
"To achieve this quality of chakra, I currently have only three methods. First, to have a constitution similar to Hashirama's, in other words, a Sage Body. Second, to become the jinchuriki of the Ten-Tails. Third, to become a Sage."
He pondered this. The Sage Body came from the Sage of Six Paths. From Hashirama's performance, it manifested as a massive amount of chakra and astonishing life force, or in other words, cell activity.
His own constitution was also constantly transforming. First, the cell activation from the Art of Pyo. Second, the changes from his Kekkei Genkai. Third, the subtle influence of the Tailed Beast power. And fourth, the most important point: his 'cheat.' Repeatedly resetting his body's growth period.
However, neither his cell activity nor his chakra reserves could compare to Hashirama's. And there was another crucial point. Hashirama was special; his power contained the reincarnated chakra of Asura. Its quality was naturally very high.
So, Genichi speculated that even if his chakra reserves and cell activity matched Hashirama's, the quality of his chakra might still be a step behind. Perhaps he needed spiritual enhancement as well? He wasn't sure for now. The quality and quantity of chakra… perhaps a change in quantity could lead to a change in quality.
"I want both the first and third options. My constitution must be constantly improved, and my soul and spirit must be constantly elevated. Even if the improvement is small, I can use my 'cheat' and accumulate it over time." He was very confident, because he worked very hard. If ten years weren't enough, then a hundred. If a hundred weren't enough, then a thousand.
Mountain's Graveyard.
Aloe White Zetsu's head emerged from a stone wall. "Lord Madara," he said to the resting Madara, "some very bad news. The Nine-Tails' jinchuriki in Konoha seems to have mastered the Nine-Tails' power. We can no longer infiltrate the village to gather intelligence."
Madara slowly opened his eyes. "Mastered the Nine-Tails' power? The same ability as Mito? As long as we don't get close to the jinchuriki, there's no problem. We can act when she is giving birth."
"But it will be difficult to know when she's giving birth, won't it?" Spiral Zetsu said. "And what if she doesn't get pregnant?"
Madara raised an eyebrow slightly. "You brat, besides contradicting your master, what else are you good for?"
"I can relieve your boredom, Lord Madara!" Spiral Zetsu smiled.
"Lord Madara," Aloe White Zetsu said with some helplessness, "it's true that there's no problem as long as we don't get close. But without monitoring her, it's very difficult to determine the time. Or maybe we could have Uchiha Tekka infiltrate Konoha? Getting into the Uchiha clan would be a good choice."
"There's no need for such trouble," Madara said coolly. "A jinchuriki will definitely find a remote place to give birth, just in case. And there will be guards."
"Alright, alright. I guess that's the only way," Aloe White Zetsu shrugged. "But we've exposed a lot of intel now. The Hyūga clan of Konoha is also very troublesome."
White Zetsu could travel quickly underground and easily bypass Konoha's barrier. It could merge with the earth and trees without being discovered. But it was not foolproof. Of course, just monitoring some movements was much safer.
Madara slowly closed his eyes. "If we miss it, it doesn't matter. At that time, I will just break into Konoha and take it directly."
The New Year's atmosphere gradually faded, and Genichi returned to his normal life of training. But the ninja world was not at peace; the war was not over. The Cloud and the Mist were still at war with Konoha. And after the New Year, the Sand Village also dispatched a unit to support Konoha in its fight against the Cloud. This was both to fulfill the terms of the alliance and to retaliate for the Cloud's previous attack on them. The Rain Village, on the other hand, did not act in concert.
Winter passed and spring came. Unconsciously, it was now March.
Root Training Ground.
The five members of the Hokage Guard were gathered here. Today was the day they would leave Root.
Suddenly, Genichi appeared silently in the training ground.
"Instructor!" The five of them greeted him respectfully. In private, they were still peers, friends. But on the training ground, they had to address him by his title. Even Obito was obedient.
Looking at the five of them, whose spirit and demeanor had changed from last year, Genichi was secretly satisfied. This was all thanks to his training.
"I acknowledge your performance during this period," he said with a solemn face. "Only now are you qualified to be the Hokage's guards. However, this does not mean you can slack off in the future. On the path of a ninja, if you do not advance, you will fall behind. Because in this world, there will always be someone whose talent is greater than yours, and they may even work harder than you."
"Understood, Instructor!" the five of them shouted in unison.
"The final item before the special training ends," Genichi said noncommittally. "Let's test your current strength. Come on, use all your strength, with the intention of killing me." He beckoned to them with a finger, a smile in his eyes.
In three months, everyone had made very obvious progress. Not to mention the others, just looking at the obedient Obito now, he must have been holding back for a long time, eager to find someone to fight and show off.
As expected, the moment he finished speaking, Obito couldn't wait to jump out. "Instructor, then we won't be polite!" With that, he had already activated his two-tomoe Sharingan and was flying through hand seals.
"Feel free," Genichi said with a smile, meeting his gaze.
Genjutsu: Binding God Technique! He was using Genichi's own jutsu against him.
At the same time, Kurenai and Aoba also cast their genjutsu.
Genjutsu: Bringer-of-Darkness Technique!
Genjutsu: Silent World!
The three of them attacked at the same time, one immobilizing, one sealing vision, and one sealing hearing.
Genma and Raidō attacked from the flanks, but Raidō did not immediately make a move. Because at the same time as the genjutsu, Obito had also used a fire jutsu.
Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!
Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!
BOOM!
A firestorm swept over, instantly engulfing Genichi.
"Did we get him?" Obito said with some anticipation, because he saw that Genichi had not used a water jutsu to defend himself.
Just then, his voice came from within the flames. "Not bad coordination. But your genjutsu is still a bit lacking. And using the genjutsu I taught you against me… you seem to be underestimating me a bit. Also, I'm a little disappointed that you don't have any of your own ideas. Although I wasn't expecting much, I hope that in the future, you won't be confined by the jutsu itself."
The firestorm disappeared, and he was standing in the same spot, completely unharmed.
"That guy completely ignored our genjutsu. But why was he unharmed in the fire?" Obito was in disbelief.
And Raidō, who had descended from the sky, slashed at him with his black-bladed tantō.
Genichi raised his hand and once again caught the blade with his bare hand. He then spat a water senbon from his mouth.
Water Release: Heavenly Weeping.
Raidō was pierced through the ear, and his whole body then collapsed, turning into a stream of water. A water clone.
Water Release: Water Current Whip!
The water that had just fallen to the ground suddenly moved, wrapping around Genichi's body like a whip, hissing and smoking. This was his corrosive water.
The real Raidō appeared on the left. At the same time, Genma spat out the senbon in his mouth, which then multiplied into hundreds, covered in a brilliant white wind chakra, and shot toward him. And Obito, Kurenai, and Aoba also attacked again. This time, Obito didn't use the genjutsu Genichi had taught him, but one from the Uchiha clan.
Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique!
It was a paralysis jutsu. In the original timeline, Orochimaru had been instantly defeated by Itachi with this jutsu.
But the next moment, Obito found that he couldn't move. Damn it, it was reflected… His eyes darted around, but he found that he couldn't break free.
Kurenai hid herself. Aoba quietly used a genjutsu to interfere with him, making him perceive things incorrectly and overlook some details, such as a certain one of Genma's senbon attacks.
Ting ting ting~
The dense cloud of senbon landed on Genichi's body and was then deflected to the ground. He looked down at his slightly cracked ice armor. "Hmm, your Wind Release isn't bad. But you need to keep working hard. This level isn't even enough to break my defense."
Genma was speechless. He felt that the gap between him and Genichi was even greater now. Aoba was also helpless; his genjutsu had been in vain. Genichi hadn't even dodged.
Stretching his body, he easily broke free from the water whip. "Is this all you've got? I'm a little disappointed."
Genma gave a bitter smile. Against any other enemy, even a jonin, they would have been dead three or four times over by now. He really thought he had improved a lot. He had mastered the wind nature transformation, and the attack power of his senbon was on a different level. But who had ever seen someone take it head-on and be completely fine?
"It's not that we're not good enough," Aoba said. "It's that you're too strong, Instructor. Our methods basically don't work on you."
The immobilized Obito could only blink. He was the most frustrated, feeling that he hadn't been able to display his strength at all.
"So you still need to work hard," Genichi smiled slightly. "As the Hokage's guards, the enemies you will face will not be ordinary ninja. Nature transformation, shape transformation, and chakra control. These are the three essential elements of your training in the future. The same goes for the development of new jutsu. As for your chakra reserves, if you have the ability, you can try to develop a Kekkei Genkai."
A Kekkei Genkai? Genma and the others were at a loss. Wasn't that a bit of a big leap?
"Instructor," Kurenai said from behind him, "can a Kekkei Genkai improve one's constitution?"
"Yes," Genichi confirmed. "As the developer, a new nature transformation will fundamentally change your genes."
Aoba pushed up his sunglasses. "Instructor, how does one go about developing a Kekkei Genkai?"
"The basic prerequisites are nature transformation and chakra control," he said. "Then, cognition. When you feel you're ready to start developing one, you can come find me."
With that, he vanished in a puff of smoke. Show off a bit and then run.
"A… a shadow clone?" Aoba's eyes widened, his sunglasses almost falling off.
"It should be pretty normal," Genma sighed.
The now-freed Obito stood up sullenly. "That guy was deliberately trying to discourage us. He didn't even let us show our real strength."
"Obito," Kurenai said, "an enemy won't wait for us to show all our strength."
"Kurenai is right," Genma said. "Genichi was probably also warning us not to become arrogant just because our strength has improved. Everyone, I'm going to continue my wind nature transformation training. See you tomorrow." With that, he was gone.
Raidō also turned and left. "I'm going to the river to practice Water Release."
"I'm going to train my chakra control," Aoba said, pushing up his sunglasses.
Kurenai and Obito waved and also turned to leave. She was planning to go to Genichi's family's dango shop. She wanted some special tutoring.
Obito looked up at the sky, frustrated. "Should I go find that arrogant jerk Kakashi for a match? But he's in the Anbu. He should be on a mission, right?" He had no opportunity to show off his recent training results. He was on the verge of tears. "Forget it, I'll go train too. I don't believe I can't catch up to that guy Genichi. I'm the man who will become the Hokage!" He didn't go anywhere else, just started training in the woods at the edge of the training ground.
Genichi wasn't at home, so Kurenai's trip was in vain. But just as she was leaving the dango shop, she ran into Ina.
"Kurenai!" Ina greeted her with a smile. "Are you looking for Genichi?"
"Yes, Ina-senpai," she nodded. "But he's not at home."
"Just call me Ina," Ina smiled. "Um, Genichi has been training in the Forest of Death recently. Are you here to ask for advice on genjutsu?"
"Yes," she smiled. "Then I'll just…"
Before she could finish, Ina invited her with a smile. "My genjutsu was also taught by Genichi. Perhaps we can exchange some pointers."
"Eh?" Kurenai was taken aback. "You're also skilled in genjutsu, Ina?" She had no idea. She had thought she only specialized in sealing arts and medical ninjutsu.
"Yes," Ina smiled and nodded. "I just don't have many opportunities to use it. I've mastered all of the five senses series ninjutsu he developed. And Kyōka Suigetsu. Has he taught you that jutsu?"
"Amazing!" Kurenai was stunned, then exclaimed. "Kyōka Suigetsu, that's the one combined with Water Release, right? I've heard him talk about it, but I haven't mastered the five senses series yet."
Ina smiled and took her hand. "Come with me."
At the dango shop, Yaji and Minako watched as Ina led Kurenai upstairs, and couldn't help but look at each other. They had already internally decided on Ina and Shizune as their daughters-in-law. Before, they had thought there was also Pakura, but she had left. They hadn't expected another one, Kurenai, to show up in the past few months. Their son's luck with women was really too good.
But they were also worried. The girls were all very good. But what if they started fighting? Now… it seemed they didn't have to worry about that problem anymore.
"Ina is such a good child," Minako said sincerely.
"We have to care for her more," Yaji nodded. "This child has no parents. We can't let that brat Genichi bully her."
The Forest of Death.
On the crown of a large tree, Genichi opened his eyes. "I finally sensed it."
Natural energy.
The Art of Sha was indeed very useful. Of course, the information on Sage Mode he had gotten from Tsunade, which had been left by Hashirama, had also helped. And it had all started with sensing the magnetic field. But sensing natural energy was just the first step.
"Next is to absorb it and create senjutsu chakra. But before that, I need to take care of a little something."
Genichi stood up and vanished from the treetop.
(End of Chapter)
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