Cultivation

A new day began, and the sunlight spilled over Uchiha Zhuang's face like a waterfall, golden and brimming with positive energy. In reality, Uchiha Zhuang was feeling anxious inside, for he discovered he could no longer move. He had been following the perspective of some Kage-level powerhouse, fighting incessantly, and he didn't know how much time had passed. When Uchiha Zhuang was finally exhausted to the point of collapse, the scene finally darkened, and he blacked out. When he woke up again, it was already afternoon. Uchiha Zhuang walked out of his room, knowing that Meiko had gone to work, helping out at the hospital. He then saw the meal left in the dining room, finished it in a few bites, washed the dishes, and headed out to train.

Arriving at the small woods, he chuckled, unable to contain his inner ecstasy. Heh, after playing the fool for a few years, I can finally stand tall! He opened his system, looked at the Chakra Cultivation Technique, sat cross-legged, and began to slowly perceive it. An hour passed, and he still felt nothing. Uchiha Zhuang began to doubt if he lacked the talent for cultivation. Finally, after three hours, he sensed a tiny wisp of warmth wandering through his body. "Hmm, this feels pretty good. Is this Chakra?" Feeling this weak, warm current, Uchiha Zhuang sighed with emotion. Although it's very weak right now, this energy cultivated from my own body feels truly solid. Compared to the eras of magic suppression, seal-casting, locked abilities, and broken genes back on Earth, this place is so much better. What a wonderful world! He had been an incomplete man before, but now he was whole. He puffed out his chest, and a detached, transcendent mindset welled up within him. Uchiha Zhuang felt he had been sublimated, from the inside out.

The sun was setting, and it was past five in the afternoon. Uchiha Zhuang jogged all the way home. The distance from the woods to his house was about five or six kilometers; he used to be out of breath for a long time after walking it, but now, jogging the whole way, he wasn't winded at all. He even felt his body stretching, and his speed didn't drop in the slightest (he wasn't wearing shoes yet, but he was wearing the Golden Armor). Uchiha Zhuang silently noted the growth and changes in his body. When he returned home, the house was quiet. He knew Meiko had two days off a week, usually Wednesday and Sunday; the rest of the time, she left early for the Konoha Hospital and returned around 10 PM. Uchiha Zhuang went to the kitchen, washed and chopped the ingredients for their dinner, plated them, and then returned to his room, locking the door behind him. Looking at the crystal-clear Perfect Warrior Serum in his hand—though he didn't know which universe or genre this "Perfect Warrior" came from—the purple quality told him it was absolutely precious. After a moment of hesitation, he drank it in one gulp. Uchiha Zhuang felt a grape flavor permeate his mouth, then his vision went black, and he collapsed on the bed, unconscious. When he opened his eyes again, it was already dark outside. The stars were twinkling, and the surrounding lakes, trees, and hills were illuminated by the bright moonlight. He could even see figures flickering in the distant woods; they looked like ninjas on a mission. Hiss, Uchiha Zhuang realized, and he was secretly shocked. Since when can I see such a long distance, and even have night vision? At the same time, the leader of a ninja squad wearing animal masks in the woods, an elite Jonin, felt through intuition that a prying gaze had come from a house on the edge of the village, only to vanish a moment later. "Does this operation have a reserve team?" Carrying a complex mood, the elite ninja led his subordinates, their footsteps never faltering as they moved into the distance.

Unlike last time, using the Perfect Warrior Serum brought no pain or intense hunger, only a slight feeling of lightheadedness. Perhaps the genetic serum has already brought my body to a perfect state of biological expression, so this serum didn't need to wash the genes again, but instead directly granted the abilities of a Perfect Warrior, Uchiha Zhuang thought. He then stretched his limbs and found his speed was incredible; even a master martial artist without a "Flash" ability would never be able to dodge him. With a "swish" of wind, he threw a three-hit combo—a left hook, a right hook, and a quick front kick—and it actually carried a hint of momentum, a sense of "strikes that never miss" and fierce legwork.

Stepping out of his room, he checked the clock; it was a little past nine. Uchiha Zhuang entered the kitchen and began to display his beginner-level culinary skills. When Meiko returned home, she found tonkatsu with egg over rice, a small dish of natto, a small plate of fresh carrots, and miso soup waiting in the dining room. Meiko patted Uchiha Zhuang's head. "Little Zhuang, you've grown up!" Uchiha Zhuang shouted righteously, "Meiko, I told you, I am a prophet. I've been an adult for a long time; this life is meant for ruling the world." "Yes, yes, Little Zhuang is a great hero who will bring peace to this world. Your father and I have known that for a long time, haha." With Uchiha Zhuang pouting in frustration, Meiko enjoyed a hearty meal cooked by him. That night, on the sofa, Meiko was organizing patient records while Uchiha Zhuang lay reclined, meditating. This was an unexpected surprise included in the Kage-level insights; meditation helped with rest and recuperation, indirectly improving one's physical quality and potential, though it was very slow. After an hour of meditation, Uchiha Zhuang said to Meiko, "Meiko, can I go out to train?" "You are already training," Meiko said. "I mean, can I leave the village and travel to other countries?" "No, absolutely not." Meiko rejected him immediately. She put down the materials in her hand, looked into Uchiha Zhuang's eyes, and said, "You don't know how strictly the village monitors us. It is absolutely impossible to leave the village; breaking through the barrier only leads to becoming a missing-nin. You can only leave the village to perform missions after attending the Ninja Academy and becoming a ninja, or during wartime, as part of an army. There is no other way. I actually know your thoughts. You crave power, you crave to change everything you don't want to see, and you even hate your own weakness and want to do something for world peace. This is correct; this is the goal and belief a man should have. Although we are the so-called 'belligerent Uchiha clan' in everyone's eyes, we know ourselves that peace can never be brought about by gentle means. Only the strong possess everything, and the strong set the rules. Therefore, our Uchiha clan worships power and firmly believes that power can change our own suffering, the suffering of others, and the suffering of the world. However, our ancestors failed. There was a clan leader named Uchiha Madara; he and Senju Hashirama founded Konoha together, but he couldn't immediately realize his ideas. His philosophy differed from Senju Hashirama's, but he couldn't bring himself to assassinate him. So, he left his clansmen and embarked on a path to find power alone. I believe Little Zhuang will also be a remarkable person, a great hero in the future, but you are still too young. A seedling needs time to grow, to desperately absorb nutrients from the ashes after a fire, and then defeat all enemies to grow into a towering tree." Uchiha Zhuang pouted, staring at this native of the ninja world in shock. He couldn't believe it—was this the insight of an Uchiha woman? How was it so different from what he had imagined? What happened to the weaklings and the ignorant masses? Are you kidding me? This is... this is intentionally increasing the difficulty of this dungeon. Seeing Uchiha Zhuang's stunned expression, Meiko chuckled. "These are conclusions your father and I reached after discussing them for a long time. Although I am not a ninja, I don't think you should look down on anyone, Little Zhuang. People only differ in the size of their abilities and the quality of their character; there is no such thing as absolute stupidity or intelligence!" Uchiha Zhuang looked at Meiko, a thirty-year-old Uchiha woman with an ordinary appearance who hadn't awakened her Sharingan. Now, Uchiha Zhuang's heart grew heavy. He knew that this world was a real world after all; it couldn't be treated like a game. These were people of flesh and blood, even souls. Uchiha Zhuang looked at Meiko and said, "Meiko, you've taught me another lesson in life. Even a tiger needs time to grow. I understand. I will start training properly, develop steadily, and strive to be a person who is well-rounded in morality, intelligence, physique, aesthetics, and labor." Meiko understood the first part, but was confused by the rest. What were morality and labor? Did character have anything to do with work? Before Meiko could speak, Uchiha Zhuang stood up and walked toward his room, saying as he went, "I will continue my training, but I must leave the village. I'm not going to play; I'm going to cultivate. Don't worry, I will come back every night; no one in the Konoha Military Police Force will notice. I have an ancestral cultivation technique." Bang, the door closed.