To be honest, after reading the scroll, Shiraishi was a little disappointed, but on second thought, it was normal.
If it recorded the method of cultivating immortal techniques, Ruri would not have taken it upon herself to give such a thing to him.
By now, Shiraishi's research into chakra had reached a bottleneck, and he needed something new to break through his further understanding of chakra.
He had originally hoped to gain some inspiration from immortal techniques, but the knowledge on the scroll was not of much use to him.
No… giving up so early is not like me.
Actually, the things on the scroll were still a little useful.
Although it didn't specifically state how to merge with nature and sense natural energy, if this hypothesis was valid and correct, how was he supposed to enter a state of merging with nature and sense the existence of natural energy?
Therefore, merging with nature was the key.
How to merge?
Shiraishi took out his old notes on chakra.
In Shiraishi's research, he had already discovered some hidden information about chakra.
For example, the synthesis of chakra was traceable, a collection of physical energy and spiritual energy, which had already formed a stable 'system'; by following the path of this 'system', chakra could be stably produced.
And senjutsu chakra, on the other hand, was the addition of natural energy on top of this 'system'.
It transformed from a system of two energies into a stable system with three energies.
The senjutsu chakra 'system' must exist, and it must be stable and sustainable for people to master.
There was some deep connection between ordinary chakra and senjutsu chakra.
This connection might be the key to drawing out natural energy.
So, how could ordinary chakra be used to draw out natural energy?
When merging with nature, what role did ordinary chakra play in it?
"The production of physical energy can be achieved through physical exercise, or by maintaining the body's essential life sources. Carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, when oxidized in the human body, are essential substances for maintaining a person's physical activity…"
Spiritual energy is related to consciousness, or more broadly, to the soul.
The Uchiha clan's Sharingan awakens based on emotions, requiring intense emotional stimulation; according to Ruri, this is also a form of spiritual energy.
So, emotions are also spiritual energy… more precisely, the fluctuation of emotions depends on each person's mental strength.
At the end of his notes, Shiraishi wrote down his conclusions.
Chakra refinement is related to the amount of life substances ingested that day, the emotional state of the day, and one's innate soul and physical strength.
These factors all affect the efficiency of chakra refinement.
Having solved the problem of ordinary chakra's source, he further analyzed the specific sources of physical and spiritual energy.
Natural energy comes from the air and the earth, and it is ubiquitous.
"I breathe air every moment; does this count as absorbing natural energy?"
Shiraishi looked at the pitch-black night view outside the window, the evening breeze crisp and dry, and murmured to himself.
Hmm, it seems like there's something to this.
◎
Another Sunday off.
Shiraishi arrived at the famous Uchiha clan compound.
It was clearly a village within a village.
The Uchiha compound was located in the middle section of Konoha Village; to be honest, for a prominent family, its location was a bit far from the village's core.
After all, the Uchiha controlled a powerful department like the Police Force.
How powerful? For example, the Hokage's direct Anbu generally had no right to directly apprehend people; they needed to present the Hokage's order.
However, the Uchiha clan's Police Force did not require such an order; they could apprehend anyone at will, although the final judgment required the Hokage's arbitration.
But it also meant that the power of the Uchiha clan's Police Force was above that of the Hokage's direct Anbu.
For a ninja clan, such excessive power would ultimately not end well.
However, this was the Uchiha; they, along with the Senju clan, founded Konoha Village, and as the two founding ninja clans of the village, it was normal for them to have such power.
And only members of this clan had the qualifications and ability to manage the Police Force.
The moment Shiraishi stepped into the Uchiha compound, he saw a huge and luxurious building, which was the headquarters of the Uchiha clan's Police Force.
At the entrance of the Police Force building, two Uchiha Chunin guards stood as usual.
They saw Shiraishi, an outsider, walk into the Uchiha compound but did not stop him or drive him away.
The Uchiha clan compound did not prohibit outsiders from visiting; as long as they didn't cause trouble, they were actually quite easy to get along with… right?
Shiraishi followed the map Ruri had given him, searching for Ruri's home.
The Uchiha clan compound covered a vast area; while searching for Ruri's residence, Shiraishi saw many large training grounds and grand houses one after another.
The shops were also lively, and occasionally, he saw some adults who were not from the Uchiha clan shopping there, suggesting they got along quite well.
Although Shiraishi had heard that the Uchiha ninjas in the Police Force were arrogant and unruly, he had only heard it from others and had never personally witnessed what an arrogant Police Force ninja looked like.
However, it's impossible for everyone in a family to have the same personality; where there's gentleness, there's naturally irritability.
Just like some Konoha civilians aren't necessarily honest; Shiraishi sometimes got ripped off when eating out, and there were always some drunken troublemakers on the streets.
More often, there were those honest and law-abiding civilians, who were kind and sincere, possessing many precious human qualities.
Therefore, neither prominent ninja clans nor commoners should be generalized.
While thinking about these things, Shiraishi also found Ruri's residence at the end of the map.
Shiraishi looked at the massive mansion before him; it was the most luxurious residence he had seen on his walk, none of the previous grand houses could compare to this one.
Shiraishi estimated that this mansion covered at least several thousand square meters.
Through the walls, he could also see the blooming cherry blossom tree canopy in the courtyard, with a few pink cherry blossoms drifting out from within the walls, bringing a fragrant scent.
His first impression was how huge it was here.
His second impression was that Ruri's family was very rich.
This property would cost at least a hundred million Ryo.
Shiraishi felt like his own living place was no different from a dog kennel.
Those wicked capitalists.
"Hello, are you here to see Lady Ruri?"
A young woman in a kimono saw Shiraishi standing at the door, stopped her cleaning, and came up to him, asking with a gentle smile.
"Yes, I am Chiba Shiraishi, I believe I have an appointment."
Hearing Shiraishi introduce himself, the maid in the kimono continued to smile gently at him and nodded.
"Please follow me, Lady Ruri is waiting for you inside."
Her movements and politeness were impeccable, and she even used an honorific.
Shiraishi followed the maid into this ridiculously large mansion.
The building materials here were mainly two-hundred-year-old Japanese cedar wood, and the wooden floorboards of the corridor were clean and bright, reflecting a blurry image of a person walking on them.
The doors and windows were mostly simple and translucent, and there was a pond in the courtyard, as well as many different species of old trees, some of which were quite old.
While walking down the corridor, Shiraishi also encountered many passing maids, all dressed in neat kimonos, who smiled kindly at Shiraishi as they passed, showing their politeness.
Even with so many maids, cleaning such a large mansion was probably not an easy task.
And this was just a small part of the front yard.
Ruri was in the largest house in the backyard; the maid slid open the wooden door and respectfully bowed to the person inside:
"Lady Ruri, the guest has been brought."
"You may go."
"Yes."
The maid obeyed Ruri's command and left.
Shiraishi walked in, curiously looking around.
The huge room was almost empty, with only some floor cushions and a low tea table; besides that, there was only a seemingly high-end futon.
The simple and unpretentious life of a capitalist.
Shiraishi suddenly didn't want to work hard anymore.