While contemplating, he also completed the modification of the Sealing Jutsu.
His work seemed the simplest, but it was like repairing a precision machine; the repair itself was easy, but locating the fault was the hardest part.
As for the final step, currently, besides Takuno, probably only Minato and Kushina could easily complete it.
Takuno looked at the large barrier slowly enveloping the entire Konoha. From now on, he would no longer need to deliberately leave the barrier to perform the Summoning Jutsu.
Whenever he had free time, he could go to his experimental base to conduct experiments, or leave a Shadow Clone there.
Or, perhaps, he only needed to summon a Shadow Clone over?
That was certainly possible. Naruto had used a scroll to summon a Shadow Clone, who was absorbing Natural Energy far away in Mount Myōboku, to Konoha. Therefore, it could be achieved with only minor changes to the Jutsu formula.
However, for the time being, he was not in a hurry to go to the experimental base.
The meteorite Chakra cultivation had long been completed. As he expected, although he also had activity remaining from the meteorite within his body, the impact on him was not significant. It might only become noticeable when his constitution weakened in old age.
In addition, the experiment of using the Chimera Technique to merge the third body was also underway. The current progress was... very slow. Here, only a fraction of Hiruko's records remained, and he needed to figure out the rest himself, so it was estimated that the research would take a long time.
In terms of Ninjutsu, he could now use the same semi-finished version of Wind Release: Rasenshuriken as Naruto, meaning it was not yet fully effective.
Takuno pondered his own affairs. There was no rush to research the third body for the Chimera Technique; even if he succeeded, he currently had no suitable host body prepared for the merger.
After all, having merged two bodies, he was essentially flawless. What he intended to merge next was not something that offered immediate combat power. Only the Shikotsumyaku might provide immediate combat power after merging, but he did not want to acquire that bloodline disease until a cure was found.
It would be better to first research the combination Sealing Jutsu that could assist him in awakening the Sharingan.
If he could awaken the Mangekyō, although he could not use it freely, it would still serve as a trump card. Even the three-tomoe would suffice.
Therefore, the order of priority was clear.
Next was researching the combination Sealing Jutsu and waiting for the crows to find news of Haku and Jugo.
Takuno looked at the laboratory, decided against continuing research using village funds, and instead needed to report the completion of the large barrier, and hand over the Sealing Jutsu given by Danzo... "You've worked hard, Senpai," Minato said with a smile. He had naturally sensed the changes in the large barrier outside Konoha.
Then, looking at the scroll in Takuno's hand, he asked with a hint of confusion, "What is this?"
"A scroll Danzo gave me, claiming it was a reward for proposing the barrier modification," Takuno replied casually.
"I see." Minato's smile slowly faded. He frowned and opened the scroll. He was actually aware that Danzo had met Takuno; the Anbu had informed him.
After scanning the contents of the scroll, a look of surprise appeared on his face, and he looked towards Takuno.
"He gave you this kind of Sealing Jutsu, Senpai?" Minato asked, slightly incredulous.
Takuno shrugged helplessly, indicating that was the case.
"He... really underestimates you, Senpai." Minato was torn between laughter and tears. Giving this amateur Sealing Jutsu to Takuno was akin to giving a millionaire a few coins.
"Tell me about it," Takuno said, also finding it amusing.
Minato smiled, then said, "If he gives you any more Sealing Jutsu in the future, Senpai, just accept them."
"Alright." Takuno nodded. It was enough to show his stance to the other party; Sealing Jutsu itself was unimportant, and Danzo could not give him the Sealing Jutsu he truly wanted.
After Takuno left, Minato sighed.
A look of distress appeared in his eyes. Most of the people the Third Hokage left behind were quite useful, but Danzo... he was truly tricky. Minato wanted to remove him but was constrained by his status; he still had to show respect to the Third Hokage and those elders.
It was a real headache. What gave him some comfort was that, according to previous records, Danzō must have restrained himself significantly after Minato took office... but still, he was troublesome... Days passed, one after another.
The combination Sealing Jutsu Takuno was researching was slowly approaching its final stage. In the process, he had abandoned the method of extracting memories individually.
That technique was indeed worthy of being a secret Jutsu of the Yamanaka Clan and a special ability of the Human Path; individual extraction was genuinely difficult. Therefore, he chose to merge memory extraction with Genjutsu.
He could actively choose to input memories, which drastically lowered the difficulty.
Of course, its utility was also greatly reduced as a result. After all, memory extraction was highly useful, even if it wasn't used to assist in awakening the Sharingan.
Unfortunately, to fully develop it, Takuno estimated he would need to learn the secret Jutsu of the Yamanaka Clan, which was obviously impossible, so he had no choice but to give up.
Fortunately, the memory extraction function was not essential for him.
Just then, Takuno sensed a Chakra fluctuation transmitted through his body. Were the crows attempting to reverse-summon him?
Had they found Haku or Jugo?
Takuno nodded. Calculating the time, it had been a long while since he had gone out on a mission.
Therefore, if he went to take a mission now, Minato would probably find it unusual, and might even be happy for him. It was quite alarming for a person to constantly stay in the laboratory.
He did not actually enjoy staying in the laboratory all the time, but he had a clear understanding of his path, allowing him to suppress his likes or dislikes. He would do whatever was necessary.
Takuno looked at the research in his hands. There was no great urgency at the moment; he only needed to finish the research before Orochimaru defected.
Thus, under the shocked gazes of the members of the Sealing Team, Takuno walked out of the laboratory, leaving the Sealing Team without 'working overtime' for the first time.
"Did the sun rise in the west today?" a member of the Sealing Team couldn't help but ask.
"It must... have?" The person next to him also felt the same way. "Why am I having such a dream, where the team leader leaves early..."
Takuno was unaware of how much his normal departure surprised his subordinates. After returning home and learning the specific situation, a look of surprise also appeared on his face.
It turned out that he was not notified by the crows searching for Haku and Jugo, but by the ordinary subordinates he had taken in.
They had successfully found a village that met Takuno's requirements, and they had also discovered patterns in the movements of a merchant caravan that wandered all year round, calling themselves wanderers.
"The Gelel Stone?"