After confirming with the system that the Third Hokage had truly left—and had conveniently taken the ANBU and Root members with him—Amano Ren finally exhaled in relief. He didn't know why Hiruzen would do such a thing, but it was all beneficial to him, and he didn't want to question it further.
"Alright, time to begin training in innate energy," Amano Ren muttered. "Chakra is ultimately harmful to the body; it doesn't align with the Dao. While it gives early advantages, it can't extend one's lifespan. Besides, I don't even have a proper chakra training method! Thankfully, the system provided the method for cultivating innate energy. Otherwise, the Tongtian Talisman would have to wait."
Sitting cross-legged, he closed his eyes and began his cultivation.
"Innate energy comes from all things.Heaven and earth are originally void; from nothing, everything is born. Qi arises first; water has a mother, mountains, rivers, sands, and trees all exist before man. Life arises from water.This is the primordial qi of heaven, earth, and humanity, the fundamental essence that composes all things.The Dao is void giving rise to one qi; from one qi emerges yin and yang, which combine to form three bodies. From three bodies, all things are born and flourish."
Innate energy was the true master of life, the sun within the human body. Its cultivation attuned one to both the universe and oneself. Training it wasn't merely about enhancing strength; it was a transformation of life itself.
Perhaps aided by the system, or maybe due to the body's innate talent, Amano Ren quickly reached a state of perfect absorption in his first training session in the Ninja World.
Gentle, yang-infused energy appeared within him, circulating and gradually strengthening his body…
Time flew during cultivation.
As he continued, Amano Ren felt his spirit, constitution, and senses increasing at a noticeable rate. He didn't know whether the speed was fast or slow, but he thoroughly enjoyed the gradual growth.
Every gesture in life, every rhythm of nature, provided a unique experience. It felt as though he was merging with the natural world.
Perhaps due to his Uzumaki lineage, his perception expanded constantly. Sometimes, even with his eyes closed, he could sense his surroundings clearly—fifty meters, a hundred meters, three hundred, six hundred…
After just over ten days, his perception had extended nearly a kilometer. By Amano Ren's guess, this was likely the Uzumaki Clan's Kagura Shin'gan. Why didn't the original Naruto develop this? With such terrible food habits, what could he possibly cultivate? Not degenerating was already lucky.
After all, both chakra and innate energy are intimately tied to the body. Though the original Naruto appeared ordinary, much of his potential had been wasted. Without the protagonist's luck and the Nine-Tails, he might have only reached the rank of Jonin—never a Kage.
"The progress in innate energy cultivation is phenomenal… though I have nothing to compare it to, I can't tell if my talent is exceptional or ordinary. Still, as the child of the world in this Hokage realm, my talent shouldn't be too bad. No need to rush future cultivation—power doesn't come in a single day. First, I should improve my offense and defense."
Amano Ren awoke from his training, speaking calmly.
Then there was the matter of the Tongtian Talisman. A talisman that didn't require setting a ritual circle, performing incantations, or circulating energy to unleash what normally took hours of preparation—this was overwhelmingly powerful. Surely there were limits?
Talisman strength depended on the maker's skill. The Tongtian Talisman, however, could be used infinitely without even running energy—a literal Gatling gun of limitless talismans!
Why hadn't the Old Master shown its true power in the original story? Story restrictions, perhaps. Either way, the Tongtian Talisman's status as one of the Eight Extraordinary Techniques was well-earned.
The Daoist art of talismans itself was vast and profound.
Some talismans were named after their creators: Laozi Talisman, Celestial Master Talisman, Nine Heavens Mysterious Lady Talisman, Hu Gong Talisman, Thunder Department Standard Talisman, Five Lords Talisman, etc.
Others were categorized by function: Healing Talisman, Demon-Sealing Talisman, Ghost-Killing Talisman, Protective Talisman, Rain-Invoking Talisman, Home Protection Talisman, Disaster-Repelling Talisman, Insect-Repelling Talisman, Invisibility Talisman…
Some were classified by ritual procedure: altar setup, summoning spirits, sending petitions, raising banners, incense offerings, and report submissions—each step had its specific talisman. There were also talismans for military purposes, spirit control, corpse driving, soul extraction, water traversal, fire evasion, resurrection, disaster mitigation, longevity enhancement, foot nailing, bone transformation, bleeding control, spirit protection, wall penetration, moon summoning, transformation, and more.
Most famous were the Twenty-Four Talismans of Taiqing: Ghost Exorcising, Nightmare Dispelling, Fertility-Inducing, Home Protection & Disaster Relief, Critical Illness Healing, Drowning Spirit Control, Demon Suppression, Fox Charm Removal, Heartstorm Control, Orphan Spirit Sealing, Jealousy Elimination, Poison Neutralization, Official Disaster Control, Gossip Prevention, Suicide Spirit Control, Chronic Illness Healing, Divine Cave Sealing, Tai Sui Offense, Yearly Disaster Control, Water Monster Subjugation, Dragon God Sealing, Life Protection, Evil Repelling, Monster Sight Control…
Talismans were legal tools, heavenly contracts connecting the human and spirit worlds, and were respected by all spirits and malevolent entities alike.
The Tongtian Talisman, able to release any talisman without rituals or energy flow, was practically an overpowered cheat. The original story only showed a fraction—like the Five Thunder Talisman or the Immortal-Trapping Talisman—hardly even one-thousandth of the talisman arts' depth.
Still…
"In the Ninja World, using talismans to exorcise spirits seems a bit… official, huh?" Amano Ren chuckled.
Of course, talismans weren't just for exorcism. But having watched many of Uncle Nine's films as a child, his personal impression of talismans was heavily influenced.
"Alright, time to give it a try."
Amano Ren straightened his expression and began training with the Tongtian Talisman.
Cultivating it wasn't simple. The heavens and earth served as paper, his mind as brush. Though talismans were placed casually in his hands, he had to visualize them mentally—a test of memory and dexterity.
Amano Ren's memory—literally that of his original self, Chuyun—was decent, but mastering the talismans would take time. Fortunately, he had ample time, and his innate energy training improved both memory and comprehension.
Minutes later, he opened his eyes, a bitter smile on his face.
Daoist talismans were incredibly complex. Even simple talismans for protection or ghost expulsion were nearly impossible to memorize and deploy at will. It wasn't that copying them was hard—it was that fully internalizing and spontaneously using them was the real challenge.
"I'll practice talismans at night, paired with innate energy cultivation. During the day, I'll train my body physically. Relying solely on energy development would waste my Uzumaki healing and the Nine-Tails' vitality."