Cultivating Sage Arts

After bidding farewell to Namikaze Minato and returning home, Li Yu sorted through the details of his last two battles.

Li Yu realized that he had only specifically studied Wood Release and medical ninjutsu; he hadn't learned any other types of ninjutsu at all.

He couldn't keep relying on large-scale techniques like Deep Forest Bloom, the Wood Dragon Technique, or the forest-wide manifestation of blooming flowers.

In a one-on-one fight, using such techniques felt like using a cannon to swat a mosquito.

At the very least, due to his current age and physical limitations, his chakra was restricted.

He needed to be able to release the right ninjutsu at the right time to counterattack, maintaining his stamina throughout the battle.

Li Yu immediately went to the clan's secret vault to find scrolls for Earth Release and Water Release. The Senju Clan possessed techniques for both these natures; the First Hokage, being a master of Wood Release, naturally used Water and Earth, and the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, was renowned for his mastery of Water Release.

The scrolls contained many high-level ninjutsu.

"What are these scrolls?"

Two of the scrolls were labeled with Summoning Technique.

Li Yu jumped for joy; the Senju Clan's summoning technique had to be for Shikkotsu Forest.

He couldn't wait to open one of them, which contained the Senju Clan's summoning techniques and their descriptions.

"So many summoning techniques and formulas."

He found it: the First Hokage's Fivefold Rashomon, capable of blocking a Tailed Beast Bomb from Susanoo head-on and deflecting it, known as the strongest defense in the Hidden Leaf.

It belonged to the item-summoning category of the technique, requiring the contractor to use blood and perform the hand seals: Boar—Dog—Bird—Monkey—Ram to summon the Rashomon. The gates themselves could not move and would disappear after performing their defensive action.

One could also summon the Triple Rashomon, just like Orochimaru.

Depending on the need and the amount of chakra used, one could summon a different number of gates to withstand attacks.

He also found instructions on how to summon Katsuyu, then opened the other large scroll. Following the requirements, he signed the name Senju Nawaki and pressed his bloody thumbprint onto it. He noticed many other names of the Senju Clan on the scroll, including familiar ones like Senju Hashirama and Senju Tsunade.

"The bond between the Senju Clan and Shikkotsu Forest runs deep."

"Does this mean the Sage Art used by the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, was learned in Shikkotsu Forest?"

"If that's the case, I should go to Shikkotsu Forest to learn Sage Art first. I can learn other ninjutsu later using Wood Clones."

With that, Li Yu bit his finger and shouted, "Reverse Summoning Technique!"

The scene shifted instantly, and he arrived in a vibrant, lush forest where the air was thick with moisture and swirling mist.

A slug the size of a fist crawled out from the grass, reached Li Yu's feet, and spoke.

"Lady Katsuyu already knows you are here. I will show you the way."

It then crawled into Li Yu's clothes, climbed onto his shoulder, and led him to the main body of Katsuyu.

When he arrived before the mountain-sized Katsuyu, he realized that the size of the slug Tsunade summoned was far too small; it was merely a tiny fraction of the main body.

"Child, you are of the Senju Clan, aren't you? What have you come to seek from me?"

"Lady Katsuyu, I have come to learn the Sage Art of Shikkotsu Forest from you."

"Sage Art is not something everyone can master. Since you wish to learn, I shall teach you. As for whether you can master it, that depends on you."

The slug on his shoulder led the way again, bringing him to the edge of a lake where the mist was even denser.

"Feel and absorb the natural energy here. I will attach myself to you, and when you are on the verge of turning to stone, I will interrupt the process."

Having seen the original story, Li Yu intended to learn Sage Art just like Uzumaki Naruto to master it as quickly as possible.

He performed the hand seals, and multiple tentacles sprouted from his body, instantly creating ten Wood Clones so they could train together.

Seeing this, Katsuyu also split into multiple smaller versions.

"You are truly clever; training in Sage Art this way might be faster."

When Uzumaki Naruto trained in Sage Art, Fukasaku the toad could only help him with three clones at a time because he couldn't keep up with the physical strikes. Katsuyu, however, could split infinitely, so there was no such concern.

The eleven Li Yus sat cross-legged and began to sense the natural energy.

Learning Sage Art was no simple task, but there was strength in numbers; training in Shikkotsu Forest came with a quantity buff.

After staying in Shikkotsu Forest for three days, he had nearly mastered the Sage Art.

Unlike the toads of Mount Myoboku, the Sage Art of Shikkotsu Forest manifested a circle of green markings on his forehead with a green dot in the center, and green eyeshadow appeared at the corners of his eyes.

His appearance was identical to the First Hokage's Sage Mode.

"Haha, I've finally mastered Sage Art."

"When a Jonin's chakra isn't enough, Sage Art will make up for it."

Relying on the strength of the Senju body and the unique nature of the Shikkotsu Forest slugs, he could create more clones to absorb natural energy.

At his peak during the battle against the Six Paths of Pain, Naruto could only activate Sage Mode three times in a row, for five minutes each.

As a member of the Senju Clan, Li Yu could currently activate it four times in a row, for seven minutes each.

"Haha, the Senju constitution is strong, and having awakened Wood Release, I have a great affinity for natural energy."

He spent his three-day break training in the Sage Art of Shikkotsu Forest, but it was time to put his mask back on and return to his duties in the Anbu.

He continued his daily patrols within the village, while two of his clones stayed home to study Water and Earth Release ninjutsu, and incidentally, to research the Flying Thunder God technique.

The Senju Clan had quite a few precious scrolls in storage, which only strengthened Li Yu's resolve to restore the clan to its former glory.

He would also practice the Rasengan using the method Naruto used in the story to see if he could master it; as an A-rank ninjutsu without hand seals, it was a valuable asset that could become an S-rank technique once he added his nature transformation in the future.