Shinsei dared not slack off in the slightest, and used all his physical and mental energy to try to envelop the Natural Energy that was constantly flowing into his body.
Ah! A sharp pain struck.
The pain was like a surging tide, instantly pulling him out of his state of Embryonic Breathing. Every part of his body felt as if it were being burned by fire.
Shinsei hurriedly gathered his Chakra, desperately pushing the Natural Energy outwards. At the same time, a suction force emanated from the Katsuyu beneath him, helping him expel the Natural Energy.
Shinsei slowly opened his eyes and saw the Katsuyu separating a small Katsuyu from itself, Katsuyu then turned into a puddle of water.
"I'm so sorry, Lady Katsuyu! I'm the one who caused you to get hurt!" Shinsei apologized hastily, filled with remorse.
The Katsuyu's gentle voice remained unchanged. "It's alright, I'm not hurt. It's as normal as you humans losing hair. However, the Natural Energy you absorb is indeed quite different from mine."
"Are you alright?" Tsunade, her face full of worry.
Shinsei then noticed that the hair on his body was starting to fall out, as if it were rotting.
He inwardly groaned, wondering if he would end up bald from cultivating Sage Mode. It would be incredibly embarrassing if his enemies called him "Bald Immortal."
"It's alright, teacher." Shinsei put aside the hair that had fallen from his head for the time being; he needed to analyze the reasons for this failure.
In summary, it's because I'm not familiar enough with Natural Energy and haven't been able to achieve a balance among the three types of energy.
Like Mount Myōboku, the Sage Mode of Shikkotsu Forest involves a 1:1:1 ratio of spiritual energy, physical energy, and Natural Energy. Shinsei also attempted to replicate this ratio.
" Katsuyu Sage, I'll continue. Thank you for your help."
"No problem, leave it to me."
Shinsei closed his eyes again. Through his long period of meditation and cultivation, the Qi within his body had become quite substantial.
Currently, the Ren and Du meridians in his body have formed a circulation, and the remaining eight extraordinary meridians will probably take another one to two years to form Macrocosmic Orbit.
At that time, the Qi within the body will be able to interact with the Natural Energy outside the body at any time.
If that were truly possible, he could instantly activate Sage Mode if he wished, and even maintain that Sage Mode permanently. This would be a kind of permanent proof, provided, of course, that he first learns Sage Mode.
He felt his pores open, and Natural Energy began to enter his body again. He quickly mobilized his physical and mental energy to merge with it.
The familiar stinging sensation returned, but this time it was different. He had no choice but to expel the Natural Energy from his body again, together with the Katsuyu.
Opening my eyes, I saw the Katsuyu separating itself from the small Katsuyu that was enveloped in Natural Energy.
Seeing the teacher's concerned look, Shinsei smiled.
"I'm fine, this was all expected!" A gentle breeze blew by, and the stray hairs at the ends of Shinsei's hair drifted down in the wind.
"It's okay, "Shinsei comforted himself. Even if he went bald, he was still young, and his hair would grow back quickly.
Then, Shinsei closed his eyes again.
Cultivating Sage Mode was far more difficult than he had imagined. Even with his unparalleled Chakra manipulation skills, which were unmatched in the Shinobi World, he still felt powerless when faced with Natural Energy.
When I opened my eyes again, it was already dark, and the teacher had long since left.
For Tsunade, even her disciples training in Sage Mode was less important than her going back to the source.
Shinsei's stomach had been rumbling for a while now, and he wondered what delicious food his mother had made today.
When he got home, his father, Nobita, was closing the door. Seeing his son, he asked in surprise, "Why are you so late today? Hey? What happened to your hair?"
"Oh... there was a slight accident." Shinsei didn't want to explain too much and hurriedly ran upstairs.
"What happened to your hair?" Riya, the mother, stood at the kitchen doorway wearing an apron, looking at her son's once thick, black hair, now thin and sparse, her face full of surprise.
"Mom, don't worry about it. I'm practicing a Ninjutsu; I'll be fine soon."
Riya tried to turn her head away, but couldn't help looking back, and finally chuckled.
Dinner included pan-fried pork chops, which Shinsei liked, but he didn't have much of an appetite.
Because when he looked down, a stray hair fell into the bowl.
Riya finally couldn't hold back anymore and, supporting Nobita, laughed so hard she couldn't stand up straight. Nobita was also trying hard to suppress his laughter, wanting to maintain his fatherly dignity, his face turning bright red.
Shinsei simply put down his chopsticks, got up, and went back to his room.
Riya chased after him, saying, "Son, Mom's not laughing anymore, eat some more!"
I'm full!
Back in his room, Shinsei took off his clothes and looked at himself in the full-length mirror.
He saw that his body was completely naked, without a single hair, and the hair on his head was sparse, with even bald patches visible.
A line from a TV drama from his past life suddenly flashed into his mind. "Skinless and unkempt, wearing only a tattered, worn-out coat."
He stretched out his left hand, using Chakra to create a stream of water, and washed his entire body. The water, carrying a clump of black hair, rushed into the toilet bowl.
Forget it, let's go to sleep. I won't meditate today. I'll continue cultivating Sage Mode tomorrow. I need to succeed as soon as possible and get out of this awkward situation.
The next morning, Shinsei finished breakfast and left home early. He needed to buy a hat; given his current appearance, it was really inconvenient for him to go out.
The shop assistant who Gate of Opening looked at him and covered her mouth, trying to stifle a laugh.
Shinsei randomly picked a hat, put it on his head, and headed to the Hokage Building to report for duty.
Teacher Tsunade hadn't arrived at work yet; she probably spent too much time studying last night. After saying goodbye to Shizune, Shinsei continued on to the place where he had trained the day before.
Shinsei bites his finger and summons Katsuyu.
"It's Shinsei! Are you continuing your Sage Mode training today? Your hat is so cute, I won't make fun of you, haha." The Katsuyu waved its antennae happily.
But you've already smiled.
Shinsei sat on the Katsuyu's back, took out an alarm clock, and this time he wanted to calculate the time it would take to enter Embryonic Breathing.
He closed his eyes, calmed his mind, and seemed to forget everything around him. The sound of the wind, the birdsong, and the babbling brook could not disturb him.
The familiar Natural Energy surged into his body once again, Shinsei quickly enveloped it with his physical and mental energy.
The familiar stinging sensation returned, spreading throughout the body. The Katsuyu, working in tandem with Shinsei, expelled Natural Energy from the body.
There's no fixed standard for the Natural Energy Shinsei inhales each time, and there's not enough time for him to adjust gradually. If the ratio is off, he has to expel the Natural Energy immediately, which makes it difficult for Shinsei to maintain a proper balance.
In Shinsei's vision, ideally, the Qi within his body would also participate, helping him resist the invasion of Natural Energy, allowing only a small amount of Natural Energy to enter his body each time, instead of having to recalculate each time as it is now.
Shinsei opened his eyes, checked the time, and saw that ten minutes had passed.
Balancing Natural Energy and expelling it from the body doesn't take long, so the time it takes to enter Embryonic Breathing should be about ten minutes.
This time will decrease as your proficiency increases, but generally speaking, entering the Embryonic Breathing won't be very quick.
Even if Shinsei is highly skilled at meditating, regulating his breathing, and entering a state of tranquility, he could never instantly activate Sage Mode like Hashirama Senju.
Therefore, even if one cultivates to the Sage Mode, one still needs to find other ways to apply it in practice.
After the pain subsided, Shinsei closed his eyes once more...