Arts and Natural Energy

The world of Naruto.

Two months had passed since the last exchange.

Orochimaru sat before his laboratory bench, looking at the report on the latest batch of skincare product samples, a subtle curve appearing at the corner of his mouth.

"The first batch has already been shipped out..."

"It's branded under Konoha, utilizing the village's channels."

"Next, it's just a matter of waiting for market feedback, then adjusting the formula based on the situation to launch subsequent product lines..."

The cosmetics business, with the full cooperation of the Nara Clan and the Aburame Clan, had already entered the right track.

The initial investment was almost negligible; after all, he possessed the core technology himself, the medicinal herbs and biological raw materials were provided by his allies, and the facilities and sales channels were backed by the village.

As long as the market response was positive, a steady stream of funds would flow into his pockets.

Then, he would no longer lack research funding in the future...

"The money problem is solved; next, it's time for research..."

Orochimaru put down the report and took a deep breath.

He recalled the exchange from two months ago with Zhuge Qing and Reed Hayrick.

The existence and conjectures regarding the Inner Scene made him realize that the value of the Impure World Reincarnation might far exceed his initial expectations.

What it touched upon was the essence of the two types of energy: chakra and Qi, both in this world and the world of Under One Person.

However, wanting to conduct in-depth research into the Impure World Reincarnation inevitably meant he could not avoid human experimentation.

Although he craved knowledge and pursued the truth, he still had to maintain his bottom line as a human.

Besides, there was ready-made experimental data right here...

Thinking of this, Orochimaru looked toward the direction of the Hokage Rock.

During this period, Danzo had again sent his subordinates to deliver quite a few scrolls to him, making him feel restless.

That old fox must hold a great deal of information in his hands.

It was just that...

Getting things from that old fox was not an easy task.

"Still too weak..."

Orochimaru sighed softly; in this world, one ultimately had to rely on strength to speak.

He examined the progress of his own cultivation.

Regular ninjutsu training, under the support of the super cheat that was the Multi Shadow Clone Technique, was astonishingly efficient.

The nature transformation and shape transformation of his chakra were both steadily improving.

He had basically mastered the changes of the five basic attributes, and his hand seals and the release of various ninjutsu were becoming increasingly proficient.

But the increase in his chakra volume alone seemed exceptionally slow.

This thing seemed to have been limited to a rough range from the moment he was born.

The talent of this body he inhabited was quite good, and his chakra volume was considered top-tier among his peers.

But compared to those true "cheaters," such as the future Naruto Uzumaki or those human-shaped Tailed Beasts, there was still an insurmountable chasm.

The training methods from the world of Under One Person were somewhat useful, but it was hard to see results in the short term.

Therefore, Orochimaru cast his gaze toward two other directions.

The first, naturally, was the Rasengan.

This seal-less ninjutsu, developed by the future Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze, was known as the pinnacle of chakra shape transformation.

He still remembered its principles and training steps; reverse-engineering and mastering it was not too difficult.

After trying for this period, he had successfully broken through the first stage (water balloon) and was currently undergoing training for the second stage (rubber ball).

A mass of high-speed rotating chakra condensed at his fingertips, but the shape was not yet stable enough, and there was some dissipation at the edges.

"Still a bit off..."

Orochimaru felt the flow of chakra in his palm.

"The compression and maintenance of the chakra are not yet perfect."

"At this rate, it should... take about another week to master it completely."

Once he mastered the Rasengan, his offensive capabilities would see a qualitative leap.

As for the other path, it was even more tempting and even more dangerous.

That was—Sage Mode.

This thought had appeared more than a month ago.

At that time, he was attempting to apply some basic techniques he had learned in the world of Under One Person to this world.

To his surprise, he had actually sensed a special energy drifting between heaven and earth, different from chakra!

That energy was vast, majestic, and brimming with the aura of life.

Natural Energy!

At that moment, Orochimaru was almost certain that this was the Natural Energy that formed the foundation of Sage Mode in the Naruto world!

This was not difficult to understand.

The techniques in Under One Person were, in essence, technical means of drawing upon and utilizing the "power of heaven and earth" and "innate qi."

This shared a similar underlying logic with the Sage Mode of the Naruto world, which involved absorbing and utilizing "Natural Energy."

The only difference was that Sage Mode in the Naruto world required absorbing Natural Energy into the body to activate it, whereas the techniques in Under One Person did not.

However...

Perhaps due to the differences in the underlying rules of the two worlds, there was a sort of "system-level incompatibility."

The Natural Energy of the Naruto world could not be guided and mobilized according to the rules of the Qi Men Formation as smoothly as the "qi" in the Under One Person world.

Not only that, but the Natural Energy here appeared exceptionally "violent" and "unruly."

It refused to obey his commands entirely.

It was like a herd of wild horses, filled with primitive ferocity.

Driven by curiosity, he created a Shadow Clone to attempt to carefully absorb a sliver of Natural Energy into its body, just as Naruto Uzumaki had done in the original story.

The result...

The moment that sliver of Natural Energy entered the body, it was like sulfuric acid dripping into clear water, instantly triggering a violent rejection!

The chakra within the Shadow Clone was rapidly eroded and assimilated, as if it had encountered a natural predator!

Even more terrifying was that the Shadow Clone's body began to petrify at a speed visible to the naked eye!

Had he not reacted in time to forcibly wrap, suppress, and expel that sliver of Natural Energy from the body, the Shadow Clone would likely have turned into a cold stone statue on the spot!

"Hiss..."

"No wonder the original story said that practicing Sage Mode requires an incredibly massive amount of chakra..."

"It turns out that it's not just to maintain the state of Sage Mode; more importantly, one needs several times more chakra than the Natural Energy to forcibly suppress its assimilation and runaway nature!"

Recalling the scene, Orochimaru still felt a lingering fear.

Based on his rough calculations, to suppress a single unit of Natural Energy, one needed at least three times as much chakra!

These two energies were simply like water and fire, inherently opposed!

"However, considering that chakra itself is foreign, belonging to the power of the God Tree..."

"It makes sense that it would be repelled by the native Natural Energy of this world."

Orochimaru was lost in thought; to master Sage Mode, he had to find a way to make his own chakra reach a balance with, or even fuse with, the Natural Energy.

But the risks involved were self-evident.

Moreover, he couldn't even use Shadow Clones to experiment, because in the manga, Naruto Uzumaki had used Shadow Clones to absorb natural chakra, and the effects were synchronized back to the original body.

"I must find a sufficiently safe method of practice, or... I need more 'samples' for observation and research."

Thinking of this, a figure flashed through Orochimaru's mind.

That lecherous, unreliable, yet exceptionally dependable guy when it mattered most.

Lately, Jiraiya had been disappearing frequently, and he would stutter whenever asked where he had gone.

If he wasn't mistaken, Jiraiya was most likely going to Mount Myoboku to learn Sage Mode from the Toads.

If... he could find an opportunity to go to Mount Myoboku and "observe" Jiraiya's training process.

He should be able to collect quite a bit of data...

Thinking of this, Orochimaru nodded; if he had the time, he could ask Jiraiya.

He would see if the Toads of Mount Myoboku would let him visit, and it would be best if he could sign a contract as well.

Just then.

Rustle...

A faint, almost imperceptible sound came from the shadows behind him.

Orochimaru's eyes narrowed, and he whipped his head around.

Only to see a few small, snow-white snakes slithering across the floor...