Thinking outside the box

Shikkotsu Forest.

High clouds drift, and misty waters stretch as far as the eye can see.

Far from the turbulent ninja world, life in Shikkotsu Forest is peaceful and serene, like a tranquil painting, undisturbed by any ripples.

If we ignore the noise someone makes while practicing.

"Aaaaaah...!"

The pink-haired girl collapsed onto the wooden platform in despair, letting out a frustrated cry like a salted fish.

"Damn it, I failed again!"

Lying sprawled out in a starfish shape, Sakura Haruno gazed at the sky, panting heavily, her eyes lifeless.

"The 182nd time."

As the Katsuyu lay on top of the girl, extracting excess Natural Energy from her body, it kindly offered a reminder.

Although she couldn't see the Katsuyu's expression, Sakura Haruno could detect a hint of schadenfreude in its sly tone...

Once the Katsuyu had drained all of her excess Natural Energy and moved away from her, the girl suddenly sprang up with a somersault.

"Why is it so difficult?" She scratched her messy pink hair in frustration, saying, "This shouldn't be happening. I've already completed the first stage, and I can freely manipulate Senjutsu Chakra. Shouldn't the second stage, sensing Natural Energy, be a natural progression?"

The Katsuyu smiled without saying a word.

The cultivation of Senjutsu progresses from easy to difficult.

In the first stage, Senjutsu Chakra Sakura Haruno very smoothly. However, it's important to know that this was achieved with the help of Katsuyu to absorb Natural Energy. Normal humans may never be able to perceive the existence of Natural Energy in their entire lives. The real difficulty in cultivating Senjutsu lies in integrating oneself into nature, perceiving the existence of Natural Energy without the help of Katsuyu, and autonomously controlling the entry and exit points of Natural Energy in the body.

"Want to do it again?" Katsuyu asked after Sakura Haruno calmed down.

"Wait, let me sort this out first!"

Sakura frowned, racking her brains to think about and review her training session. It wasn't her style to just blindly practice without figuring out the issues involved.

Previously, the Katsuyu had solemnly declared that this training was very difficult, and Sakura Haruno had mentally prepared herself for this, knowing that she would fail many times.

However, unlike the first stage, when I could see myself persisting for longer with each attempt, and each failure brought significant progress, shortening the distance to success.

However, she repeatedly failed in the second stage of her training...

It was just a simple failure.

I feel no hope of moving forward.

She recalled the Katsuyu's guidance to her during the second stage of her training.

"To sense the existence of Natural Energy, you need to remain 'still'," the Katsuyu said at the time.

"Control your breathing, your blood flow, your Chakra circulation..."

"Stop the flow of your life force..."

"When you achieve this, you will be able to merge with nature, harmonize with the flow of natural energy, and thus perceive the existence of Natural Energy..."

"So what the hell is this?!" Sakura Haruno's inner voice suddenly overturned the table. "Stop breathing, stop blood flow, isn't the person already dead? What kind of Senjutsu are you trying to cultivate?!"

"But... this is indeed the original body's understanding of absorbing Natural Energy," the Katsuyu sighed and patiently explained.

"Of course, it doesn't mean you should completely stop the cycle of life, but rather minimize the fluctuations in your life force, slow down the flow of your blood, and harmonize your breath with the breath of nature..."

Sakura Haruno rolled her eyes. "According to you, stones should be born with Senjutsu Chakra."

"Stones are part of nature," the Katsuyu chuckled. "After each meal, the main body finds a quiet place to lie down, controlling its heartbeat and blood flow, slowing down its metabolism, and minimizing its life activities. Sometimes it even enters a light sleep... This is when the main body's absorption of Natural Energy is most efficient."

"The Sage Katsuyu has a heart?" the girl muttered to herself, pursing her lips.

"On another note, the Toad of Mount Myōboku and the snakes of Ryūchi Cave can easily sense Natural Energy in a semi-conscious state during their hibernation each year, greatly reducing the difficulty of their resting Senjutsu, thus allowing the inheritance of these Senjutsu to continue!"

These secrets broadened Sakura Haruno's horizons, but they couldn't help her successfully master Senjutsu Mode.

"I can't exactly go into hibernation too," she muttered.

"Furthermore, my understanding of Water Release's Nature Transformation has always been 'flow,' which completely contradicts the requirement of 'immobility,' increasing the difficulty of training." For Sakura Haruno, who had already cultivated Water Release into an instinct, this subconscious Nature Transformation seemed to have a subtle counter-effect on her training.

To put it more abstractly, it's no longer just the "flow" of Chakra, but has reached the realm of "flowing endlessly and regenerating indefinitely"...

For the first time, she realized that being too skilled in Water Release techniques could also backfire.

"Isn't your Ice Release Nature Transformation 'Freeze'?" The Katsuyu pondered for a moment, then offered a suggestion, "This imagery is quite compatible with 'Immovable,' perhaps you could use this to aid your training?"

Freeze?

Sakura Haruno imagined herself sitting inside a block of ice, practicing her Senjutsu.

"Theoretically possible," she answered affirmatively, but shook her head at the same time, "It just requires reaching a certain level of mastery in Ice Release Nature Transformation..."

"At least I can't do it now. I've only mastered the Ice Release Kekkei Genkai for two or three years!"

If she were to focus on Ice Release now, it would probably take her a few months to reach the point where she could use Ice Release to aid her cultivation.

"If you decide to take this path," the Katsuyu gently swayed its antennae and smiled slightly, "Then we can pause our cultivation for now, and resume the second stage once you're ready."

"How?"

It looked down. The girl looked down at her tender white feet, her expression dreamy, her eyes sparkling, and her mind racing with one idea after another.

While training with Ice Release is certainly safe and reliable, it's a bit too slow, Sakura Haruno thought to herself.

"No," she suddenly looked up and smiled at the Katsuyu, "I have a better way."

The following day, Sakura Haruno briefly returned to Konoha.

They provided food and clothing; because she was busy with her cultivation, she didn't have time to deal with the pile of dirty clothes and took them home to wash, which earned her a lot of complaints from her mother, who said things like, "How can a girl be so lazy? Why are your clothes so dirty?"

Then, in the Hokage's office, they encountered four Kumogakure Ninja messengers who had come to deliver a message.

A seemingly lazy man, but Sakura could sense that he was actually quite strong; a stunningly beautiful woman who made Sakura fall for him at first sight; a talkative man.

Yeah, there's also a irritable woman with dark skin who's just as flat-skinned as her.

After briefly greeting her master, Sakura Haruno turned and left. Finding a quiet moment when no one was around, she slipped into her secret hideout and took out a scroll.

A moment later.

Shikkotsu Forest.

With a soft pop, the scroll was opened, and the diffused Chakra turned into white smoke and emerged.

"So this is what you call a better way..."

The Katsuyu looked at the pale body beneath it, then glanced at Sakura Haruno, and sighed.

What's the word that Sakura Haruno often uses?

A wild idea.

This girl's imagination is truly something that even it can't match!

[The mention of the Jinchūriki's corpse in the previous two chapters was a mistake on my part; I wrote too quickly. The captured Jinchūriki was not dead at the time, but merely unconscious.]

[First Update]