True Clone

Torifu Akimichi exclaimed, "Lady Mito's Sensory Technique? I never expected Nawaki to be a sensory-type ninja! What an incredible talent. In that case, there's no problem at all."

Sensory-type ninjas were divided into categories such as smell, sight, and touch. The most unusual among them were mind-sensing ninjas.

In the Shinobi World, mind-sensing ninjas were even rarer and more valuable than the Byakugan of the Hyuga Clan! They could not only scout over a wide area, but also sense other people's malice. This kind of telepathy was beyond the abilities of sensory-type ninjas such as Byakugan users. Mito Uzumaki's Sensory Technique was also highly effective at identifying spies and interrogating suspects. Mind-sensing ninjas could be called the most versatile of all sensory-type ninjas. No wonder Torifu couldn't help marveling at Nawaki's talent.

In truth, with Nawaki's current chakra reserves, even if he exerted himself to the fullest, he could only sense what was within a hundred meters. That was nowhere near enough to cover a large camp or stronghold capable of holding hundreds of bandits.

But by combining it with another ability, he could easily carry out reconnaissance.

Thanks to the Wish Power System perfectly fusing the Wood Release Bloodline with the Asura Bloodline, Nawaki could turn his entire body into wood. This was even more effective than White Zetsu's spore transformation. After years of research and practice, he had mastered every one of White Zetsu's ninjutsu.

The most important of these were the Mayfly Technique, Object Transformation, and Spore Technique!

The Mayfly Technique let him merge his body with the earth and plants to move at high speed. He could become one with the earth, then travel rapidly anywhere by tapping into the roots of plants underground, underground water, and other parts of the Organic Network. While the technique was active, it suppressed all traces of his presence.

Object Transformation was a kind of Transformation Technique, but unlike ordinary Transformation Techniques, it let the user absorb someone else's chakra and then produce the same chakra in precisely the same form. Zetsu's clone had once absorbed someone's chakra, taken on their appearance, and infiltrated the Allied Shinobi Forces to sow discord from within.

The Spore Technique was even more astonishing. Clones created with it would not disappear even after the original body died! By combining the Spore Technique with the Wood Clone Technique, Nawaki had created the True Clone Technique! The principle was to use the Spore Technique's ability to divide and inject his own cells into a clone formed from Wood Release chakra. This made each clone a complete living being. Even if his original body died, he could be reborn through one of his clones! True Clones could use all of the original body's abilities. Since the Wish Power System was bound to the soul, and his clones shared the same soul as his original body, they could use the system as well!

The True Clone Technique resembled Second Tsuchikage Mu's Kekkei Tōta, Dust Release, and its splitting ability. Both produced physical bodies, and the True Clone Technique was also an ability involving the fusion of water, earth, and yang chakra!

However, Mu's splitting merely divided his strength evenly, while the strength of a True Clone depended on how many cells it contained.

If a clone contained half of the original body's cells, then the two would be indistinguishable, with neither one being the original. To dispel the True Clone Technique, the original body had to come into close contact with the clone and then merge with it.

However, the True Clone Technique also had a major drawback. If a clone died, the cells that made it up would die too, and Nawaki would permanently lose some of his chakra reserves and cells. Losing too many cells could even shorten his lifespan!

Although the God Tree could replenish the lost cells through the Wish Power System, the cost was extraordinarily high! Creating a True Clone identical to himself would cost over 200 million Wish Power points! In other words, replenishing half his body's cells would cost 100 million Wish Power points. The lost chakra reserves couldn't be restored, either; he would have to train again to recover them! And the cost would keep rising as his bloodline advanced!

Since the amount of chakra a True Clone had depended on its number of cells, Nawaki would have to use one percent of his body's cells to ensure it had at least the strength of a Genin. Replenishing that many cells would cost two million Wish Power points. Nawaki currently had one hundred times the chakra of an ordinary Genin. (An ordinary Genin could only use the Three Basic Techniques and couldn't use C-rank ninjutsu.)

If he wanted his clone to have the strength of an ordinary Chunin, he would have to give it one-tenth of all his cells! (An ordinary Jonin had enough chakra to use one B-rank ninjutsu or ten C-rank ninjutsu.) If the clone died, replenishing its cells would cost over twenty million Wish Power points!

So unless absolutely necessary, he wouldn't use the True Clone Technique! A weak clone could easily die. Although he could naturally recover from losing a small number of cells, his chakra reserves would still suffer. If a powerful clone died, he would lose not only chakra but so many cells that his lifespan would be shortened!

However, if he used a True Clone for reconnaissance, combining the Mayfly Technique, Object Transformation, and Sensory Technique, he could transform into a master spy and infiltrate any organization!

Reconnaissance and spy missions focused on stealth and outwitting the enemy, not direct combat, so Genin-level strength was more than enough to handle any situation! Even if his cover was blown, he could use the Mayfly Technique to escape at any time. If something went wrong and the clone was killed, he could spend two million Wish Power points to replenish its cells. It would hurt, but it was still better than shortening his lifespan. With his current reputation, he could earn enough in just six months. As for the chakra lost with a Genin-level clone, Nawaki could train it back in less than a hundred days. That loss was negligible.

Since Nawaki's plan was well thought out and he had already demonstrated his sensory abilities, Torifu said nothing more and decided to follow the plan.

The squad settled down again and continued on its way.

An hour later, Nawaki followed the map and led everyone to the vicinity of the first bandit outpost.

"We're here." Peering through the leaves at the stronghold in the distance, the group stopped among the tall treetops. They could hide there without making a sound that might alert the nearby bandits, even if they were attacked by wild animals.

From their elevated position, they looked down at the large stronghold in the distance. A great many bandits armed with weapons were patrolling it, and guards stood at the gates, along the roads, and outside the important buildings. Judging by the guards' discipline, they were nothing like the disorganized rabble that made up ordinary bandits. They were not only well organized, but kept the entire stronghold completely silent. Was this really a bandit hideout? It was more like a fortified stronghold guarded by a disciplined army!

"What do we do now, Nawaki?" Shinnosuke had lost all his earlier nonchalance at the sight of the stronghold. His expression was grave, and he instinctively lowered his voice.

After all, he was only a Genin who had spent a little over a year doing D-rank missions. He had never experienced combat. He had some ability, but it was hard not to be cowed by a group of well-trained "veterans" who had seen blood.

Nawaki had never killed anyone or experienced bloodshed either, but he had lived two lives and was mature beyond his years. At just one year old, he had already remained calm in the face of Orochimaru's killing intent. The bandits looked imposing, but to a transmigrator with Jonin-level strength, they were just "mobs" he could wipe out by the dozens.