Spark Society

Sai obediently ran back home, impatiently asking in his mind.

"Boss Takuya? Are you there?"

"I am here."

"What is going on?"

"Just think of it as a ninjutsu. We can now communicate through our minds; there will never be a situation where we lose contact again. I will teach you a technique so you can contact me directly from now on."

Kimura Takuya taught Sai a technique within his mind.

It allowed Sai to actively communicate with the soul energy Kimura Takuya had deposited within him.

"Is Shin doing alright? How many of the original people are left?"

"Brother is very impressive; he is talented, even better than me. Over these years, a total of 182 of our people have entered Root, and including myself, 127 remain alive.

But aside from me, there are only 63 reliable people left. The others have either been brainwashed or consumed by the darkness, and are no longer trustworthy."

"63 people, is it? Quality is better than quantity; 64 including you is enough. Does that count include Shin?"

"Of course. He is your number one fan, Boss Takuya. 'A single spark can start a prairie fire, life is endless.' He was the first one to vote for that slogan."

"Indeed. A single spark can start a prairie fire, life is endless."

Kimura Takuya had also arrived at his own home.

He lay on his bed.

He recalled his early childhood.

In the orphanage.

Having entered the orphanage at the age of one, he was naturally a veteran there.

One day, he saw a blue-haired boy who called himself Shin.

Later, another black-haired boy arrived, saying his name was Sai.

Kimura Takuya, who hadn't paid much attention at first, happened to see the two standing together.

He felt a sense of familiarity.

He thought about it for a long time but couldn't place it.

Then he saw the child named Sai liked to draw.

It hit him in an instant; wasn't Sai just Sai?

And that Shin was the brother Sai had known during his time in Root!

He had originally thought they met in Root, never expecting they had known each other since the orphanage.

With this realization, Kimura Takuya, who had been living like a slacker, formed a plan in his heart.

A plan to overthrow Root.

He began to unite and influence the children in the orphanage, especially Sai and Shin.

With his adult mind, controlling a group of children was naturally effortless.

Together with the children who were slightly more mature, he formed the Spark Society.

Most of them were children a bit older than him; at that time, Kimura Takuya was already four years old.

Not long after, the older children were sent to Root first and lost contact, Shin among them.

A year later, Kimura Takuya and his peers like Sai entered Root.

Kimura Takuya intentionally failed the selection due to his special abilities, while Sai and the others entered Root and lost contact.

In the days that followed, besides working at the hospital, Kimura Takuya often returned to the orphanage to continue influencing those children.

Now, six years later, it was truly remarkable that 64 people remained.

Of course, he hadn't told these people anything about overthrowing Root.

He had merely spread some ideas and made this group of children regard him as their leader.

Otherwise, with so many people, a single betrayal would have meant the end for young Kimura Takuya.

"However, they seem to have some opinions about you, Boss Takuya."

"Haha, little Sai—oh, I have to call you Sai now. Just say it straight; they've grown up and think my strength isn't up to par with theirs, right?

I will prove myself.

Let me send you a little surprise first."

After Kimura Takuya finished speaking, he remotely manipulated Sai's chakra to use the Flesh Substitution Technique.

Sai's injured hand healed instantly, and even the pain and fatigue left behind by long-term training were cured.

Sai was greatly shocked and marveled repeatedly.

"Hehe, that's nothing. There are even bigger surprises for everyone! It's a gift. Look forward to it, little Sai. I have things to do, let's talk later."

Kimura Takuya rolled out of bed and took out the petri dish containing the flesh samples of the Transparent Escape user, Hayate Gekko, to take a look.

Seeing no issues, he turned around and began cultivating Yakumo's flesh samples as well.

After confirming that everything was in order, he headed out once more, first going to observe Oda Lang, who had received the Ninja Leopard arm transplant.

Once he was certain there were no adverse reactions, he made his way to the taijutsu training grounds.

His research on the body was now nearly complete, and he could begin preparing to open the Eight Inner Gates Formation.

Although Kimura Takuya had never undergone grueling physical training, he understood clearly that the purpose of such exercise was twofold: to improve physical constitution and to enhance spiritual energy.

The combination of the two allowed those who practiced the Eight Inner Gates Formation to possess immense chakra.

The Eight Inner Gates Formation itself was merely a method to release the body's limitations and unleash this powerful chakra.

Therefore, depending on the individual, the quality of their chakra varied, and the power unleashed by the Eight Inner Gates Formation differed accordingly.

Soul energy was spiritual energy, and Kimura Takuya was confident that even without training, he surpassed most people in this world.

As for physical energy, through skin respiration over the past two days, he had keenly sensed that his body was strengthening and the natural energy within him was increasing.

His cells were being influenced by the natural energy, becoming stronger by the moment.

He also kept a constant watch over his body, ensuring he wouldn't absorb an excessive amount of natural energy and turn into a stone monster.

If word of this got out, it would likely infuriate others to death.

He only needed to activate skin respiration to grow stronger every single day.

The gains were even greater than those of people who trained diligently.

Who could he even reason with about that?

Hard work?

It truly seemed inferior to being a genius.

A single thought from a genius could easily subvert the meaning of hard work.

In this light, Might Guy and Lee, those two geniuses of hard work, seemed destined for a tragic ending.

A lifetime of effort couldn't compare to a cheater flipping a switch.

He wondered if he should give Might Guy and Lee a "cheat" as well.

After a moment's thought, he decided against it for the time being.

It wasn't out of stinginess; it was simply because natural energy was a dangerous thing. Even when Naruto practiced Sage Mode, he required someone to watch over him.

If one absorbed too much, they would need an outsider to force the natural energy out, or they would turn into stone.

Kimura Takuya could monitor his own cells and stop skin respiration the moment he reached his limit.

Others did not possess this ability.

So, Kimura Takuya let the thought go, deciding to wait until he had fully mastered natural energy before handing out "cheats" to others.

Lost in these stray thoughts, Kimura Takuya arrived at the taijutsu training grounds.

Ha! Ha! Ha!

"1,000 kicks! If you can't do that, then do 1,000 push-ups!"

"Keep it up, Lee!"

In the training grounds, Lee was engaged in self-torturous cultivation.

His legs were swollen from kicking, yet he continued; when he couldn't kick anymore, he started doing push-ups.

However, looking at the knuckles of his fists, the skin was already torn and bleeding.

Clearly, he had been practicing his punches before moving on to his legs.

On the sidelines, Might Guy was encouraging Lee.

Meanwhile, Tenten and Neji were resting nearby.

Clearly, not everyone was a stamina monster.

How could a normal person possibly keep training with such a workload?

Tenten and Neji both clicked their tongues in secret amazement.

It was already four or five in the afternoon; they had come here to train after finishing their mission.

Both were preparing to rest a bit before heading home.

Suddenly, Neji's eyes lit up.

"Kimura Takuya, you're here!"