Given Kakashi's talent, the fact that it took him this long just to reach the minimum threshold for mastering Current Propulsion basically rules out the possibility of any other Ninja in Konoha being able to learn it.
Perhaps if one searched carefully throughout Konohagakure, they might find one or two Ninja whose talent isn't inferior to Kakashi's, Uchiha Shisui being one example.
But a Ninja whose talent is not inferior to Kakashi's, who specializes in Lightning Release, and also understands a significant amount of Nin-Taijutsu—there is only Kakashi. If it takes him so long to train, there's no need to even ask about anyone else.
"Is it really that difficult to train?" Danzo was the first to question and ask.
Vegapunk couldn't be bothered with him: "Fortunately, the current Fourth Raikage has only mastered the first half of Current Propulsion and not the second half. Otherwise, I think this battle wouldn't even need to be fought!"
The second half of Current Propulsion involves a large number of electromagnetic principles. It achieves a state of near-frictionless magnetic levitation through continuous current effects generated by the Earth's magnetic field.
In other words, reaching that level, the Fourth Raikage would not only see his speed increase again due to the disappearance of his body weight, but he would also gain the ability to fly directly.
By then, even if Ōnoki dared to face the Fourth Raikage, he would be instantly killed in close quarters. The acquisition of free flight capability would provide an absolute and immediate enhancement to fighting space and methods. At that point, the Raikage might be called Super-Kage Level.
And this isn't even the complete state of that Current Propulsion technique? A group of Ninja exchanged glances, their faces showing relief. If this had happened a few months later, everyone would probably have just raised their hands and surrendered, right?
"Then, Doctor Vegapunk, do you have any countermeasures against the current Fourth Raikage?" the Third Hokage asked in a subdued voice.
Vegapunk immediately shook his head: "The first half of Current Propulsion merely enhances a person's neurological reflexes. This is an improvement in basic physical quality; what flaws could it possibly have?"
"If I really had to point out a problem, the current Fourth Raikage's control over his speed isn't entirely perfect due to his previous movement habits. That is probably the only flaw."
Not having perfect control over his speed? Kakashi Hatake immediately touched his Sharingan, recalling when he first developed the Chidori.
Although the Chidori was incredibly fast back then, Kakashi Hatake's own reaction speed was insufficient, making every move a gamble. If the opponent reacted and managed to counterattack, Kakashi would almost certainly die.
However... after carefully recalling the speed of that Fourth Raikage, a bitter smile appeared on Kakashi's face. That speed surpassed normal eyesight, and was even difficult for the Byakugan to track. Even if the opponent's control wasn't perfect, could anyone truly launch a counterattack while they were attacking?
In any case, Kakashi felt that Konohagakure certainly didn't have a Ninja with that kind of strength... No, perhaps there truly was one. If the current Might Guy could open the Eight Gates, he might actually be able to achieve a mutual kill with the Raikage.
But obviously, Kakashi wouldn't mention this. Furthermore, whether the current Might Guy could even open the Eight Gates was another question entirely.
While the Eight Gates greatly increases the speed of human reflexes by making the Chakra frantic, the boost from the first seven gates, although powerful, is only equivalent to the level of the original Fourth Raikage. To deal with the newly upgraded Fourth Raikage, only the Eighth Gate, which brings about a qualitative change, can truly handle him.
Kakashi wasn't the only one thinking; all the Ninja present wore expressions of deep contemplation. They weren't considering using Might Guy for a direct exchange, but rather wondering if they could set up traps or something similar to eliminate the Fourth Raikage.
However, their ideas were clearly mostly futile. After all, the Fourth Raikage wasn't an idiot himself; he was a Ninja who had survived the Third Ninja World War and fought his way through piles of corpses. Coupled with his superhuman speed, even with the flaw of imperfect control, normal traps would certainly not be able to deal with him.
Not to mention whether they could break through the defense of the Lightning Armor, traditional tools like Explosive Tags might not even be able to catch his afterburner when they explode.
The Third Hokage felt helpless. Even knowing a slight flaw, the Fourth Raikage was still difficult to deal with!
Looking up, he happened to see Vegapunk wearing a half-smile. His heart stirred slightly: "Doctor Vegapunk, you must have other methods, right?"
Vegapunk smiled: "There are indeed other methods. If you also become stronger, won't you be able to deal with the Fourth Raikage?"
"Me?!" The Third Hokage was stunned: "At my age, can I still become stronger? And there's no time left to train now, is there?"
"You don't need to worry about time. As long as my experiment doesn't run into problems, you can certainly continue to grow stronger," Vegapunk said meaningfully to the Third Hokage. "And in some respects, your potential is much greater than the Fourth Raikage's!"
Seeing Vegapunk's expression, the Third Hokage felt a chill run down his spine, feeling as though that gaze was directed at some kind of lab animal.
However, at this point, the Third Hokage had no room to retreat: "Doctor Vegapunk, what kind of experiment do you intend to conduct? You must know that the battle between Konohagakure and the Cloud Ninja is about to begin. How long will the Doctor's experiment take?"
"Don't worry, it will be very quick. After all, you have already laid the foundation; having Chakra perfected in all seven natures is extremely rare."
"Oh right, have you heard of... Kekkei Mōra?"
Vegapunk looked at his lab rat, smiling brightly.
Kekkei Mōra, the fusion of seven natures, is the highest achievement of the chakra system. However, according to Vegapunk's original calculations, it would be impossible for an ordinary person to achieve this through Chakra fusion, even if they spent tens of thousands of years trying.
Naturally, Vegapunk couldn't help the Third Hokage suddenly awaken Kekkei Mōra. Forget him, even the Six Paths Sage or Ōtsutsuki Kaguya wouldn't possess that ability.
But if he used human modification to cleverly synthesize a type of Chakra close to the fusion of seven natures, it might not be impossible.
It must be known that Ninja possessing all seven natures are extremely rare, probably fewer than five in the entire Ninja World, and the one with the highest proficiency among them is Hiruzen Sarutobi, who stands before him.
Using the data collected from Hiruzen Sarutobi, Vegapunk had complete confidence in helping Hancock advance further and fully master the Ōtsutsuki Clan's Kekkei Mōra.
According to Vegapunk's research, besides the Truth-Seeking Orb, Kekkei Mōra can actually manifest many reinforced versions of Bloodline Limit and Bloodline Removal abilities. It's just that the Ōtsutsuki Clan never had the concept of Ninjutsu training, so apart from their innate abilities, none of the others were developed.
Theoretically, Hancock, who wields Kekkei Mōra, could almost effortlessly use all the Ninjutsu in this world, and they should all be reinforced versions. However, this clearly requires extremely high knowledge accumulation and a certain level of understanding of Kekkei Mōra, which is why Vegapunk needed to conduct experiments on Hiruzen Sarutobi.
As for himself, he didn't care. Not only did he lack fighting talent, but his electromagnetic abilities alone were enough for him to develop for a lifetime. Learning Chakra was just a way to further develop his own electromagnetic abilities by utilizing the power of Lightning Release Chakra... "Why are you Ninja always like moles? This level of laboratory is completely unacceptable!"
Walking through the cold, damp underground base, Vegapunk couldn't help but speak up.
Although there were many advanced pieces of equipment here, protected by various Sealing Techniques and Barrier Techniques, the dark, sunless environment, the damp walls and floor, and the dim overhead lighting all made Vegapunk extremely dissatisfied.
Danzo, walking at the back, gave Vegapunk a faint look. This was Root's best base, yet he was still complaining about the poor environment!
One must know how much effort was spent building this base. The large number of Barrier Techniques and support structures reinforced by Earth Release gave him a complete sense of security.
Even if the entirety of Konoha were razed to the ground, his Root base would not suffer the slightest damage!
As for the environment... why would they need such a good environment? That kind of environment would only erode a Ninja's will!
"After all, we are Ninja. We focus more on practicality than comfort, so there's nothing we can do if the base's other conditions are somewhat crude. But I can guarantee that in terms of research facilities, they are absolutely the best!"
The Third Hokage spoke quite seriously.
Hearing this, Vegapunk merely sneered: "These conditions can be called the best? Heh, it's only because you Ninja have Chakra and Medical Ninjutsu and don't have to worry about issues like bacterial infection and inflammation. Otherwise, performing human modification under these circumstances would guarantee one death for every one performed!"
In any case, Vegapunk was fed up with the crude surgical environments of the Naruto World. It was only thanks to the Naruto World having supernatural energy like Chakra that, apart from things like Bloodline Diseases, other infectious diseases basically couldn't surface, allowing these people to operate this way.
Even the brutes in the One Piece World, upon seeing the field emergency treatments and eye transplant capabilities of the Naruto World, would have to prostrate themselves in admiration. If this were the normal real world, these people would have died long ago from wound infections.
Hearing Vegapunk's words, the Third Hokage felt a bit embarrassed. He coughed twice and glanced at Danzo, the meaning simple: Shouldn't this place be renovated and the environment improved?
Danzo glared at Hiruzen Sarutobi. No money! Why don't you give Root more funding?
Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately stopped reacting.
Ignoring the interaction between Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo, Vegapunk quickly found the materials he needed for his experiment in the Root base.
It must be said that Konoha truly deserves its reputation as the oldest and largest Hidden Village; it still possesses deep foundations. If the Land of Lightning's steel and electrical technology leads the world, then Konoha's human research and biotechnology similarly far surpass those of other nations.
Otherwise, Konoha couldn't possibly have fostered masters of forbidden techniques like the Second Hokage and Orochimaru, or the Founder of Medical Ninja like Tsunade.
After collecting the necessary materials and equipment, Vegapunk finally showed a slight smile, turning to the Third Hokage: "Not bad. It seems you really weren't exaggerating. At least in the field of biological research, aside from the main body, the facilities here can be called the best!"
The statement sounded strange, but the Third Hokage didn't pay much attention. He just asked with some concern: "Is it enough for your research?"
"Completely sufficient..." Vegapunk nodded: "Give me one night, and I can begin the modification!"
"Come find me tomorrow morning. The modification should be complete around noon. The Cloud Ninja army shouldn't have arrived yet, so you can definitely go and clash with the Fourth Raikage waiting at the gate!"
"Then I leave it to you, Doctor Vegapunk!" The Third Hokage nodded. Although he still felt a little anxious, given the current situation, he had no choice but to take the risk.
The Fourth Raikage blocking the gate of Konohagakure truly brought enormous trouble to Konoha. The biggest problem was that Konohagakure found it difficult to send support to the front lines, as they would be constantly harassed and slaughtered by the Fourth Raikage. No Hidden Village could withstand his ability to cut through forces like grass.
If they wanted to deal with the Fourth Raikage, they couldn't keep up with his superhuman speed. It could be said that this Raikage utilized the essence of guerrilla warfare, which Ninja specialize in, to its fullest extent, tying down the entire Konohagakure single-handedly.
If this continued, the Cloud Ninja army would easily break through the Land of Fire and march straight to Konoha. This would undoubtedly be a fatal blow to Konoha—since Konoha's founding, it had never been attacked by another Hidden Village right outside its gates!
Moreover, although Ninja Villages don't need to worry about national territory, as they don't collect taxes and lack a sense of national sovereignty, if this were to happen, it would undoubtedly be a fatal blow to Konoha's reputation.
At that point, the trust placed in Konoha by both the high-ranking officials and the ordinary citizens of the Land of Fire would inevitably plummet, and the funds allocated to Konoha and the missions issued would drastically shrink—if the situation were more severe, and the Daimyō of the Land of Lightning were more ambitious, a crisis of Nation-Destruction Level might even occur.
Due to the strange relationship between the Daimyō and the Hidden Villages in this world, wars aimed at destroying nations are actually very difficult to occur, especially for the major nations.
Sometimes a Daimyō might have ambition, but if the leader of the Hidden Village refuses, the Daimyō cannot force them. Likewise, if the leader of the Hidden Village wants to expand their sphere of influence, but the Daimyō prefers stability and fears upsetting the balance by occupying other countries' territories, then the Hidden Village leader can only sigh in resignation.
But if Konoha appears too weak, it's hard to say that the Daimyō of the Land of Lightning wouldn't become ambitious as a result. After all, compared to other countries, the Land of Fire's territory is rich and its natural environment is superior, making it inherently coveted.
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