Chapter 268: Infinity Mode
Konoha, Ichiraku Ramen.
"Sensei Hayama, I heard you were classmates with my dad!"
Slurp. Noodles disappeared into Tianyu's mouth as he spoke to the middle-aged man sitting beside him.
Shirakumo Hayama smiled. "That's right. I can't believe you kids are already this old."
He looked at Tianyu, Maki, and Wataru. Today marked their first day as graduated Genin.
"Hehe, so Sensei, how do you think we compare to my dad? Will we be stronger than him?" Tianyu asked, his face full of expectation.
Now twelve years old, his dream of surpassing his father grew stronger by the day. He wanted to hear from his teacher just how powerful his father had been back in the day.
Maki interjected, "Haven't we looked into it? Dad wasn't impressive at all back then. I heard his grades were just above average. Compared to us, there's definitely a gap."
She was already starting to look like a young lady, her high white ponytail swaying behind her. Her eyes burned with the desire to surpass her father.
"Well, your father's grades in school were indeed just above average," Hayama recalled, feeling the passage of time. "But after graduating and heading to the battlefield, he began to grow rapidly. Eventually, he became the Head of the Analysis Squad and even the Acting Hokage—he surpassed both me and Kakashi."
"Haha! Since we're already this strong right out of school, we'll definitely be better than Dad in the future." Under his black hair, Tianyu's eyes sparkled with ambition.
Wataru added quietly, "I feel like Teacher Tonbo is very difficult to surpass. His wisdom is as deep as the ocean."
Unlike years ago, Du no longer wore bandages over his eyes to imitate Tonbo. He had learned to master the power of his eyes. His gaze alone emitted a sharp aura, as if it could cut through anything in existence.
"You three are indeed impressive. Tonbo's teaching ability is far superior to most," Hayama admitted.
Before coming to ramen, he had tested their skills. They were far beyond what ordinary ninjas could handle. He had heard that Tonbo performed "special ninjutsu training" for the graduates every year at the Academy, but only in actual combat could one see the true depth of that foundation.
Their strength exceeded his expectations. They possessed the experience of veterans; they only lacked the leadership practice to be qualified as Chunin or even Jonin. And that was his responsibility as their sensei. As for ninjutsu and combat, they already had mature systems of their own—he didn't even need to teach them.
"Great! So, Sensei, what's our first mission?"
"Weeding."
"Eh?"
"Even though you're strong, my kid is only three years old. I don't want to take long-distance missions for the time being."
Konoha Hospital.
"Lady Sakura, we have a victim of an explosive tag. We need your help."
"Get him into the operating room and prepare a basin of clean water."
Sakura looked at the patient. One leg had been blown off, and a hole in his side exposed his internal organs. Fortunately, it was mostly a tissue defect; the organs themselves were intact but becoming infected.
As the patient was wheeled in, Sakura moved with precision. Her delicate hands poured a special disinfectant into the water basin. Chakra spun rapidly in her palms, mixing the liquid perfectly in seconds.
With a pull of her hands, she drew a large sphere of liquid from the basin. She applied her medical ninjutsu, pressing the bubble against the patient's wound. Within a second, the liquid began to draw out impurities and necrotic debris.
Step by step, every site of infection was purged. The assisting nurses stood frozen in awe. This level of medical ninjutsu was extraordinary. Only those who had studied the craft knew the sheer level of chakra control and medical knowledge required to pull this off.
In less than ten minutes, she had saved the man's life. Unfortunately, she couldn't regrow the missing leg; she could only wait for him to wake up to discuss a prosthetic.
Konoha Intelligence Analysis Squad.
"The pituitary gland was destroyed by a kunai. We can only collect partial physical data. Bring me the report. Also, where is Captain Tonbo?"
Ino placed her hand on a corpse's head, attempting to read its memories. However, since the enemy had died from a brain injury, she couldn't extract much.
The assistant ninja replied, "I don't know. He said he's leaving everything in the Analysis Squad to you. He said he trusts your ability."
The ninja truly did trust Ino. She was the hand-picked successor for a reason. Beyond her information processing and memory-reading skills, Ino possessed a logic-defying technique: using medical ninjutsu to "heal" corpses, forcing the body to reveal more data. This had become the "treasure" of the Analysis Squad.
"Dammit! My mom went to the Capital today, and I still have to look after the flower shop!" Ino fumed. Tonbo had stood her up again. He had promised to handle his duties as Captain these few days.
An Undisclosed Location.
Achoo!
Tonbo Tobitake suddenly sneezed. He rubbed his nose, knowing Ino was definitely cursing him.
Currently, his cerulean eyes were filled with endless shimmering runes. His hands formed a seal.
"Sage Art: Earth Style: Earth Shore Return!"
He pointed a single finger toward the vast, empty expanse beyond the cliff.
Rumble!
Crack!
Crash!
The terrain ahead transformed instantly. It was as if a gargantuan beast was being birthed from the earth. In moments, a structure the size of a city rose from the ground. Mountains shifted, and rivers were redirected. Birds scattered in terror; wild beasts fled in panic.
"Earth Style that pries into the crust and shifts tectonic plates... under Sage Mode, the consumption is negligible."
Tonbo's lips curled into a smirk. The runic patterns in his eyes restructured themselves constantly. Despite performing such a massive ninjutsu—one that spanned twenty-five miles—he had consumed less than one percent of his chakra.
Calling this "Creation" wouldn't be an exaggeration.
"No, this is my Sage Chakra Mode. I'll call it... Infinity Mode."
This was the Sage Mode he had pioneered—one that could reduce the chakra consumption of any ninjutsu to a mere fiftieth of its original cost.
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