White light flashed, and the figures of Shinichi and Tsunade fell heavily onto a piece of soft and moist land after a burst of space distortion.
"Boom!"
Shinichi landed with his feet on the ground, but because the ground was too slippery, he stumbled and almost fell to the ground.
"Bah, bah, bah... what the hell is this place?!" Shinichi raised his head in embarrassment, with a few pieces of green moss stuck to the corner of his mouth.
Tsunade landed firmly on the ground, looking around with a hint of excitement in his eyes, "This is Shikkotsu Forest... The air here is actually filled with rich Natural Energy!"
Shinichi stood up holding his knees and finally saw the surrounding environment clearly--
In front of you is a forest with rich moisture, with towering trees shrouded in white mist, surrounded by swamps, and the ground is covered with strange mushrooms and vines.
On the distant branches, you can occasionally see some huge Katsuyu crawling slowly, which looks gentle and full of mystery.
"Huh--"
Shinichi took a deep breath, and he could clearly feel that the Natural Energy in this land was dozens of times richer than Konoha anywhere else!
This is much better than the half-baked Natural Energy that I trained myself through systematic electric shock training.
"Welcome to Shikkotsu Forest."
A gentle voice came from the front, and a huge Katsuyu was slowly crawling out of the thick fog.
The size of this Katsuyu is hundreds of times larger than the little Katsuyu they saw in Konoha before. Its skin is dark blue, with faint Natural Energy waves flashing on the surface, exuding an ancient and gentle aura.
When Tsunade saw it, he immediately knelt down on one knee respectfully, "Slug Sage, we are here."
Shinichi stood aside, folding his arms and carefully observing the huge Katsuyu.
"Is this the immortal from Shikkotsu Forest..."
Slug Sage gently swayed his soft body, his tone was calm and peaceful.
"Tsunade, I have been waiting for you for a long time. Your control over Chakra is enough and you can start practicing Sage Mode."
Slug Sage's eyes immediately fell on Shinichi, with a hint of surprise in his tone. "As for this...Uchiha Shinichi, your aura is very special, and you actually have Sage Body?"
Shinichi raised his eyebrows, "Can you tell?"
"Your Chakra flows differently from ordinary people, and you have initially developed the ability to absorb Natural Energy."
There was a hint of admiration in Slug Sage's eyes, "You should be the youngest Sage Body Heir so far."
"Hehe, you're just lucky." Shinichi smiled, modestly, but secretly thinking in his heart.
It seems that his Sage Body has been completely exposed, but it doesn't matter, after all, his goal is to come here to completely master Sage Mode!
Tsunade glanced at Shinichi, the corners of his mouth raised slightly, and a trace of pride flashed in his eyes.
"Hmph, Shinichi, don't hold me back!"
Shinichi glanced at her and shrugged lazily, "Okay, I want to see what is so special about Sage Mode."
"Then let's get started."
--Shikkotsu Forest Immortal Cultivation has officially begun!
Slug Sage's voice echoed slowly in the tranquility of Shikkotsu Forest, with a hint of gentle majesty.
"First of all, you must feel the flow of Natural Energy and try to integrate it with your Chakra. In this process, you must be extremely careful. Once Natural Energy goes berserk and cannot balance the ratio of Chakra and Natural Energy, it may be completely assimilated and eventually turn into a lifeless stone statue, or be corroded into a pile of bones!"
Slug Sage's words are gentle, but they make people shudder.
Tsunade is gearing up, with undisguised excitement and desire in his eyes, "Then I must learn and become the strongest Medical Ninja!"
Slug Sage nodded slightly, then his eyes fell on Shinichi, and asked softly, "Shinichi, what about you? What is your goal?"
Shinichi held his chin and pondered for a moment, then raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a slightly teasing smile.
"The goal..." He deliberately lengthened his tone, then his eyes narrowed and the corners of his mouth raised, "Of course - to develop my own Lightning Release Sage Art!"
Slug Sage was slightly stunned, as if he didn't expect Shinichi's goal to be so unique.
"Lightning Release Sage Art?" Tsunade frowned and asked curiously, "Shinichi, haven't you been studying Lightning Release Chakra Mode? Why do you want to combine it with Senjutsu?"
Shinichi stretched leisurely, eyes flashing with excitement, "Lightning Release Chakra Mode Essence uses Lightning Release to activate cells, enhance body functions, and achieve ultra-high-speed movement and powerful defense. However, it also has shortcomings."
He paused slightly and pointed to his arm, "Lightning Release Chakra Mode consumes a lot of energy and puts an extremely high load on the body. Once it is not properly controlled, it is likely to cause excessive cell loss and even affect lifespan."
Tsunade frowned even more, "So you want to use Senjutsu to optimize?"
Shinichi nodded, his eyes becoming more profound, "If Lightning Release and Senjutsu can be combined, not only can Lightning Release Chakra Mode's endurance be greatly improved, but also the cell activity can be enhanced through Natural Energy, truly 'tempering the body with thunder', forming a nearly invincible high-speed combat form."
Tsunade was dumbfounded and even forgot to refute.
Slug Sage nodded lightly, with a hint of approval in his tone. "Interesting idea... Using Natural Energy to make up for the shortcomings of Lightning Release Chakra Mode is indeed a unique idea. But this road is not easy."
Shinichi grinned and waved his hand nonchalantly, "It's not easy to be interesting!"
Tsunade rolled his eyes speechlessly, "Okay, anyway, you guy will always come up with something amazing."
Slug Sage smiled slightly and said gently, "Well, now that you have decided on your goals, let's get started."
Having said that, it moved slightly, releasing a soft and deep Chakra wave. The entire Shikkotsu Forest air seemed to become thicker instantly, and faintly, a unique breath of life flowed around.
"Relax your mind, feel the flow of Natural Energy, and let it merge with your Chakra..."
Tsunade and Shinichi closed their eyes at the same time, sat cross-legged, and began to feel the flow of energy around them.
In this mysterious Shikkotsu Forest, the two people's journey to immortality officially begins.
"Don't be impatient, don't be impatient..."
Shinichi kept thinking silently in his heart, trying to calm himself down.
Although his rationality told him that anxiety was the most taboo in practicing Sage Mode, the system's time limit still made him feel a faint sense of pressure.
"Time is limited, I must master Sage Mode as soon as possible..."
Shinichi originally thought that with his Advanced Sage Body qualifications, practicing Senjutsu would be easier than Tsunade. However, reality gave him a slap in the face.
Obviously his body was easier to sense Natural Energy, and he could even detect the natural Chakra fluctuations in the air at Konoha, but when he actually started practicing, he found that he was far behind Tsunade.
--Tsunade's progress is actually faster than him!
"What the hell is going on?"
Shinichi frowned and looked at Tsunade not far away. Faint Senjutsu lines had begun to appear on her forehead. Although she had only entered the state initially, it was already much smoother than him.
"Why am I progressing slower than her?"
He couldn't help but recall his past practice process.
--His Chakra capacity far exceeds Tsunade, and his perception ability is far better than that of ordinary ninjas. Logically speaking, he should be able to enter Sage Mode faster.
But the problem lies precisely here.
--He has too many Chakra! Even more than One-Tail and Two-Tails!
In general practice, the ratio of Sage Mode, Chakra and Natural Energy must be perfectly balanced.
Although the amount of Chakra of Tsunade is huge, it is still within the normal range, and the Chakra of Shinichi... is a completely super monster!
He wants to maintain the balance between Chakra and Natural Energy, and the Natural Energy required far exceeds the conventional standard, which makes it difficult for him to control during practice. If he is not careful, he will deviate from the balance and fall into failure.
"That's why my progress is slow..."
Shinichi suddenly realized it, but at the same time he was a little helpless.
"Is this a problem caused by too much talent?"
"This is too outrageous!"
However, he knew in his heart that there was no shortcut to practicing Sage Mode. Any opportunistic approach would lead to failure, and he might even be swallowed by Natural Energy and turn into stone statues or bones.
--He can only calm down and master this new way of energy control in a down-to-earth manner.
"Shinichi, are you okay?"
At this time, Tsunade opened his eyes and looked at Shinichi, with some concern in his eyes.
Shinichi took a deep breath, adjusted his mentality, closed his eyes again, felt the Natural Energy flowing around him, and slowly tried to guide it into the body.
"Take your time, don't rush..."
Shinichi took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and tried to completely immerse himself in the flow of Natural Energy.
His mental power gradually spread, sensing the ubiquitous nature around him Chakra.
However, the problem still exists.
--His Chakra is too large, making it much more difficult to absorb Natural Energy than ordinary ninjas.
An ordinary ninja can maintain a relatively balanced ratio between his Chakra and Natural Energy in a short period of time, but his Chakra is so large that even if he absorbs a large amount of Natural Energy, he still cannot maintain the optimal fusion ratio.
--Either there is too little Natural Energy to trigger Sage Mode; or there is too much absorption, and naturally Chakra loses control and is almost eaten back!
Shinichi's face gradually became ugly.
"This can't go on like this..."
"Shinichi, are you okay?"
Tsunade's voice rang in his ears. Shinichi slowly opened his eyes and looked at Tsunade's face with Senjutsu lines faintly visible. He felt a little uncomfortable in his heart.
--Even Tsunade is about to get started, but the monster Sage Body, which is closest to Hashirama Senju, is still spinning in circles?
"Ha, as expected, this road is not very friendly to me." Shinichi laughed at himself, but quickly regained his composure.
"I can no longer practice without any clue. I must find a method that suits me."
Shinichi began to recall his past cultivation experience--
Whether it is Sealing Jutsu, Ice Release, Lightning Release Chakra Mode, or Flying Thunder God, Six Styles, every time his progress is based on the precise control of Chakra.
"That is to say, I must find another way to adjust the balance between Chakra and Natural Energy."
He no longer tried head-on to fuse Natural Energy with his Chakra as before, but began to try another method - "guiding" rather than "absorbing".
--Instead of letting your Chakra take the initiative to merge with Natural Energy, let Natural Energy take the initiative to adapt to your Chakra!
"If I follow the thinking model of Sealing Jutsu, my Chakra itself is a Vessel, not a Variable that needs to be changed."
"Then, I need to establish a stable 'channel' to let Natural Energy flow in by itself instead of forcibly absorbing it."
Shinichi slowly adjusts its own Chakra operation mode, changing it from an active extraction mode to a passive guidance mode similar to the "Sealing Jutsu formation".
Buzz--
In the air, a gentle yet majestic Natural Energy flowed.
Shinichi's body trembled slightly, and he clearly felt that this time, Natural Energy did not have a rejection reaction, but slowly entered his body like a trickle.
"It's done!"
He was overjoyed, but the real challenge had just begun--
--Can he maintain this state and successfully enter Sage Mode?
"Shinichi, your Chakra fluctuations have begun to change!" Tsunade looked at him in surprise.
Shinichi did not answer, but continued to close his eyes and immerse himself in practice.
Gradually, faint blue lines appeared on the surface of his skin, and a unique energy fluctuation spread throughout his body.
This is the precursor to--Sage Mode!
Tsunade opened his eyes wide, Slug Sage also nodded slightly and said softly, "He has found his own way of practice."
In this Shikkotsu Forest, Shinichi finally took his first step.