Taking the First Step

After the mission in Bluestone Town came to an end, Konoha settled into two very different states. On the surface, the village remained peaceful, with everything running smoothly. But Konoha High Command stayed on edge, not daring to let down its guard.

Once Tsukimi and the others turned over every lead from the mission, Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately launched an investigation on three fronts.

First, the Medical Department repeatedly extracted and tested samples from Kawada's and Toji's bodies and the tableware bearing traces of poison, comparing their properties to identify the toxin's source.

Second, he sent elite Anbu to comb through every Green Velvet Grass trading channel and transaction chain in the Land of Fire, screening everyone involved for suspicious activity.

Finally, he handed the Death Soldier Chunin's body to the intelligence department, hoping they could search his brain for information.

Unfortunately, the Chunin was a Death Soldier the enemy had trained in the Land of Rivers. His superior had worn a custom mask whenever they met, so the search yielded nothing of value.

After days of nonstop tests, comparisons, and painstaking investigation, both the Medical Department and the Anbu made crucial breakthroughs at dusk on the fourth day.

Working with Orochimaru, the Medical Department identified the toxin's core structure and distinctive traits. Meanwhile, the Anbu squad uncovered a transfer point. After its initial sale in the Land of Fire, Green Velvet Grass had been scattered across the country, only for most of it to be gathered again through that point. It confirmed that a hidden organization was secretly buying it up.

The two classified reports arrived together and landed on the Hokage's desk.

Hiruzen Sarutobi set down the reports, lit his pipe, and slowly exhaled a plume of smoke. He tapped the desk a few times with his right hand.

"Go get the Two Advisors."

"Yes, sir!"

Before long, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu arrived together. They spotted the documents on the desk as soon as they entered.

"Third, have we gotten results on both leads?"

"Take a look first." Hiruzen Sarutobi handed them the reports.

Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu read them word for word. Only after they had finished did Hiruzen Sarutobi speak again, his expression grave.

"According to the Anbu, all the Green Velvet Grass traded in the Land of Fire since last year has ultimately flowed to a mysterious organization."

Mitokado Homura adjusted his glasses, his voice stern. "An operation buying medicinal herbs on this scale... It seems Nara Tsukimi's earlier guess was right. Another major nation must be behind this. An ordinary organization couldn't pull it off."

"What do you plan to do, Third?" Utatane Koharu set down the documents and looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"For now, nothing."

"We can't do that, Third." Utatane Koharu immediately stepped forward, urgency in her voice. "If another major nation really is involved, sitting still now will put us at a disadvantage."

"Don't rush, Koharu." Mitokado Homura placed a hand on her arm to calm her. "I think I understand the Third's reasoning. You want to wait for news from the Medical Department, don't you?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, his face blurred by smoke.

"Exactly. Once the Medical Department uses the toxin's properties to determine where it came from, we can make our move. If we close the net now without catching them in the act, and the Medical Department turns up nothing, we'll be in the worst possible position."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's analysis left the Two Advisors silent. After weighing the risks for a moment, they nodded in agreement.

"All right. We'll hold off for now and wait for news from the Medical Department."

While Konoha High Command had been busy these past few days, Tsukimi had not been taking it easy either.

He brought out the Second Hokage's research notes on Yin Release Chakra. Hiruzen Sarutobi had given them to him as compensation after Danzo's failed ambush, but team assignments and missions had followed one after another, leaving him no time to read them. Now that he had a break, he could finally sit down and study them properly.

At its core, Susanoo was Chakra made solid. The original story had been clear about that.

The Uchiha clan, however, had a cheat: the Mangekyō Sharingan served as a special "converter," allowing them to use their ocular power to manifest a giant armored warrior directly.

For an outsider to create Susanoo, they would have to meet three conditions. The first was a vast supply of Chakra. Without it, manifesting Susanoo was nothing but a pipe dream.

The second was a deep understanding of how to make Chakra solid.

The third was exceptional Chakra control, which would let them combine the first two and shape that enormous mass of Chakra.

Since the Tara Mask had awakened, Tsukimi's mind and body had grown stronger without pause, and his Chakra reserves had risen with them. Even before graduation, he had already possessed one Kakashi's worth of Chakra.

The Blade Squad ability he had unlocked recently—Shadow Shaping—along with his Rasengan training, had also deepened his understanding of changes in Chakra's form and the more advanced process of making it solid.

Sitting beneath the veranda in his backyard, Tsukimi opened the Second Hokage's research notes. The farther he read, the stranger his expression became.

The notes began with an analysis of the general principles of Yin Release Chakra, which seemed normal enough. But as Tsukimi kept reading, the subject shifted. Nearly the entire second half was devoted to research on the Uchiha clan.

Tsukimi's mouth twitched. That's Tobirama Senju for you. Give him a spare moment, and he'll find some Uchiha to study.

That innately evil white-haired old geezer!

Still, it worked in Tsukimi's favor. Tobirama's notes also contained an in-depth study of Susanoo, and much of it matched Tsukimi's own conclusions. That spared him a great deal of trial and error.

Five days later, Tsukimi stood in the courtyard and cleared his mind, ready to attempt manifesting Susanoo for the first time.

Tsukimi formed the Ram hand seal, refined a large amount of Yin Release Chakra, and focused all his attention and Chakra on his right hand.

With only one Kakashi's worth of Chakra, Tsukimi had no hope of manifesting a complete Susanoo, much less a gigantic one. He planned to take it step by step, starting with a single body part at human scale. Once he had the underlying method working, he could complete it when his Chakra reserves grew.

The ability granted by the Ninja Tribe let Tsukimi control the path of every strand of Chakra with precision. He kept compressing it, packing it tightly against the surface of his right hand.

The process was far from smooth. From palm to fingertips, he had to compress and shape it centimeter by centimeter. Each new stretch required dozens of rounds of hardening and adjustment. The hardness, density, and stability of the Chakra had to be perfectly uniform throughout, with no flaws left behind.

Tsukimi adjusted it and compressed it again and again. After countless attempts, the Yin Release Chakra coating his right hand finally held its shape, solidifying completely into the most basic form of Susanoo.

Tsukimi raised his right hand, turned it over, and flexed it as he studied the black "Chakra glove." Ink-dark and fitted perfectly to the contours of his hand, it gleamed with a cold sheen.

Good. The giant-warrior project had taken its first successful step.