At the training ground.
Boom!
The moment her fist touched the ground, there was a massive explosion, blasting a crater several meters in diameter; gravel flew everywhere, and her figure was obscured by the sudden whirl of dust and sand.
As the dust cleared, the pit was riddled with shocking cracks that stretched deep into the earth below.
The skin on Ruri's fist was slightly red, and she felt a faint pain in her knuckles, but soon the pain faded away, vanishing without a trace.
"So this is the power of Natural Energy? It really can't be underestimated—a casual punch produces the exact same effect as a ninja technique."
Not only that, Ruri felt her body become incredibly light. Using Natural Energy instead of Chakra to boost her physique was noticeably effective.
This made Ruri start to feel a sense of awe at the power of nature.
Compared to all of nature, the Natural Energy within her body was just a drop in the ocean.
As she fell into such thoughts, Ruri suddenly felt that humans—or ninjas—were awfully insignificant.
Life depends on this land, and cannot exist without this sky.
No matter how strong one becomes, one can never transcend this world.
Everything is granted by nature.
And the Chakra produced by the human body is nothing in the face of such power.
"What's wrong? You look lost in thought."
Hakushi was carrying a portable medical box, just in case either Ruri or himself got hurt in the upcoming experiments, so he could quickly provide treatment.
He saw Ruri test the power of her Taijutsu and then fall into contemplation, and couldn't help but wonder.
"Nothing, I just suddenly realized how tiny humans are in the face of nature."
Hakushi laughed out loud when he heard that.
"What are you laughing at?"
Ruri squinted her eyes, a fierce glint sparkled inside, and she raised her fist.
"Ah, it's nothing—just that musing about life here doesn't seem like your style, Ruri."
"..."
"Alright, alright, there's really no need for that. When it comes down to it, humans are just an inseparable part of nature. We're just a standout group of animals. Never think humans are some high species that stand above nature; that's not how to consider our place in the world. You know, there's a saying: the more you know, the more you realize your own helplessness."
Ruri thought through Hakushi's words and quite agreed.
She was ignorant in the past, and so feared nothing.
As she grew older and broadened her horizons, she understood what vastness truly meant.
In the presence of that great power, she realized she had just been a frog at the bottom of a well.
"Well then, how does Natural Energy feel?"
Hakushi got back to business.
Ruri didn't reply. Instead, she suddenly threw a punch at Hakushi's face.
Hakushi tilted his head slightly, letting Ruri's fist breeze past his ear as if he'd calculated it perfectly.
"Just as you said, it feels incredibly powerful—a whole new level compared to how I used to be. With the power of the Sharingan added, I should be able to catch up to Sakumo-sensei's speed and react in time."
Ruri felt endless energy in her body; every cell seemed to be cheering, making her feel more invigorated than ever before.
"That's right. Next, let's test whether Natural Energy can be directly used in Ninja Techniques and Illusion Techniques."
Natural Energy, like Physical and Spiritual Energy, must be extracted through multiple steps.
Absorbing Natural Energy from the environment is just the broad outline. How to efficiently absorb it, preserve it in the body, and which body part is best suited as the entry point—all of this needs constant experience.
The same goes for Physical and Spiritual Energy.
The amount and type of food intake, the day's emotional state—these factors all affect how much Physical and Spiritual Energy can be drawn.
In theory, Chakra can be used for Taijutsu, Ninja Techniques, and Illusion Techniques. Now that it's proven Natural Energy can enhance Taijutsu, Ninja Techniques and Illusion Techniques should be possible, too.
Ruri had no objections; she was eager to see if Natural Energy could be used to cast Ninja Techniques and Illusion Techniques.
As she spoke, she began forming Seals, aiming to better balance the Natural Energy gathered in her mouth to release a ninja technique.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
As the Uchiha Clan's signature Fire Style Jutsu, it was far stronger than ordinary ninja's Fire Style Techniques.
Although Ruri successfully formed the seals and gathered Natural Energy in her mouth, there was little reaction.
"What's wrong?"
Seeing Ruri's face slightly unnatural, seemingly in some pain, Hakushi worriedly rushed over to ask.
Ruri turned her head, opened her mouth, took a deep breath, and looked a little better.
"I burned my tongue…"
Hakushi: "..."
Looks like she failed.
Natural Energy only produced unimaginable heat in Ruri's mouth, but it didn't transform into a Fireball or take physical shape.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
"Fire Style: Giant Fireball…"
...
Afterward, every time Ruri used Great Fireball, she had to gulp down water to lower the heat in her mouth.
This kept up until evening, finally wrapping up this test of using Natural Energy to perform ninja techniques.
The result was a failure.
◎
A week passed after that.
Every experiment using Natural Energy instead of Chakra to perform Ninja Techniques and Illusion Techniques ended in complete failure.
In other words, currently, pure Natural Energy, while it can boost physical and mental activity, cannot replace Chakra for casting Ninja Techniques or Illusion Techniques.
But that didn't mean the experiment had totally failed. Hakushi believed the problem was simply with the method.
Just then, headquarters sent a new order: the Sakumo Squad needed to move out immediately to the Land of Fire's frontline, for support.
So Hakushi had to halt his work, quickly hide everything in the lab, and hand over the equipment to a Ninja Cat summoned by Ruri for transfer.
After nearly twenty days of leisure, the Sakumo Squad was about to embark on a new round of missions.
They met up at the gate of Konoha.
When Hakushi and Ruri arrived, Ayane and Sakumo had already been waiting for a while.
Because they'd spent time hiding the lab equipment, Hakushi and Ruri were a little late, but there was still half an hour left until the agreed meeting time, so they weren't really tardy.
The four met and exchanged few words. After more than half a month, all four showed slight changes. Sakumo's presence was most noticeably sharper, his aura radiating out; it was clear his swordsmanship had reached new heights.
"Sakumo-sensei, everyone's here. We can head out now."
Hakushi, seeing the whole group assembled, prepared to move.
"Let's wait a bit longer—another squad will be joining us. They should be arriving soon."
Sakumo smiled and settled on the side, waiting calmly.
Another squad? The other three looked puzzled.
Just as Sakumo said, about half a minute later, two figures arrived: one adult, one child.
The adult—just like Sakumo—wore a Konoha Jonin uniform. He was a white-haired man who looked a bit slick and unserious, but his demeanor was notable.
The kid trailing behind him was about the same age as Hakushi and his friends. His shining blond hair glowed, and his sunny, handsome smile now seemed more mature—a big kid compared to his shy, bashful self a few years ago.
——Namikaze Minato.
Hakushi recognized the boy.
Just like the three of them, Minato had entered Ninja School at the same time—they were classmates.
However, Minato had skipped a grade and graduated in his fourth year, becoming a Genin earlier than the three of them and started taking missions.
Never expected to meet again like this.
Hakushi greeted Minato warmly, Minato smiled back.
"Sorry, sorry—we had a few delays. Hope we didn't hold up anything, Sakumo?"
The white-haired ninja scratched his head, laughing. He was chatty and easygoing.
"No worries. But I didn't expect you to be back in the village already, Jiraiya. It's been years since we met, hasn't it?"
Sakumo called the white-haired ninja by his name.
One of the Konoha Sannin, Third Hokage's pupil, Jiraiya.
On hearing the name, Hakushi sized up Jiraiya.
Judging by his aura, he was indeed a formidable Jonin; every move was solid and composed, showing his Taijutsu was definitely strong.
If that were all, Hakushi wouldn't pay him much attention.
But recently, Konoha was suddenly teeming with toads, and Jiraiya was the most likely culprit.
Jiraiya quickly struck up conversation with Sakumo, both laughing and talking—Hakushi quietly nodded to himself.
This guy is trouble—thick-skinned, immensely sociable. When dealing with him, it's best to avoid awkward topics. Even casual chats can have hidden agendas with him.
Strength aside, his personality was exactly the kind Hakushi didn't want to deal with.
After only a brief catching-up, Sakumo and Jiraiya took the lead, heading for the frontline battlefield.
On the way, Jiraiya sighed quietly to himself.
Even though he'd left some toads from Mount Myoboku in Konoha, Jiraiya wasn't confident he'd discover anything.
Besides, he now needed to head to the front lines—no time to dwell on it.
If only the Great Toad Sage's prophecy were more precise.
Seriously… Is there really such a powerful ninja in Konoha?
But the strong ninjas he knows in Konoha are all close to him. Maybe not totally familiar, but their loyalty to Konoha is unquestionable.
So, who is this prophesied person, destined to bring endless war and destroy the ninja world—and where are they hiding in Konoha?