Rikuto's Ambition, Tsunade's Anger

That afternoon.

After wandering around the capital of the Land of Fire.

Rikuto had experienced the local customs that were, after all, different from those of the ninja village of Konohagakure.

"I might as well train my Taijutsu some more!"

Rikuto returned to the inn.

He saw that Tsunade and Shizune had not returned.

His stamina was plentiful and his Chakra had fully recovered, so he had no intention of resting.

Instead, he activated his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan again.

He immediately used the Dōjutsu, Ōnamuchi.

And entered Kakuriyo Space.

"Wood Clone Technique!"

From Rikuto's body.

Two wooden figures resembling him emerged.

Before his eyes, they transformed into two lifelike Wood Clones.

His eyes burned, brimming with fighting spirit.

Without hesitation, he said to his Wood Clones, each of whom he had given a third of his Chakra, making them nearly equal to his original body, "From now on, attack me with Taijutsu at full strength. Don't hold back!"

He wasn't in a hurry to do everything at once.

He could take his time with those Ninjutsu; there was no need to rush.

With his talent, he believed it wouldn't take long to master them all.

But he couldn't neglect his own Taijutsu, either.

He wanted to develop in every area.

He still remembered how, in the original timeline.

After Might Guy opened the Eight Gates Released Formation.

The immense power of every punch and kick had warped even space itself.

It had truly shaken him and filled him with longing.

He couldn't ignore the power of Taijutsu.

After all, Might Guy had only reached that level by risking his life and opening the Eight Gates Released Formation with the resolve to die, completely burning up his life force and vitality in exchange for that terrifying, fleeting power.

But didn't that also mean.

That as long as his own physique and vitality were strong enough, and he trained his Taijutsu to its limit.

He might be able to reach that level even without opening a Forbidden Technique like the Eight Gates Released.

And with his perfect Yang Release power, incredibly abundant life force, astonishing regenerative ability, and physique far beyond that of an ordinary person, he possessed the potential to make it all happen.

Rikuto firmly believed that as long as he persevered in tempering his body and training himself.

He might one day possess Taijutsu in his normal state that rivaled or even surpassed Might Guy with all Eight Gates open.

He certainly couldn't slack off on ordinary physical training, which required painstaking effort day after day before it bore fruit.

Only fierce combat was the best catalyst for honing Taijutsu.

If he had no opponents, he would create some for himself.

If they could only use Taijutsu.

A single Wood Clone given half his Chakra might not truly be able to match his original body.

But with two Wood Clones, each given a third of his Chakra, one plus one was clearly far greater than two.

In terms of Taijutsu alone, they could overwhelm his original body and put him under the greatest possible pressure.

After all, the one who truly understood him was himself.

The Wood Clones' thoughts and moves...

Might not be a perfect match for the original's, but they weren't far off.

Only by forcing himself into a desperate situation.

Could he break through his own limits under extreme pressure.

And achieve a true transformation.

"Then forgive us, original!"

"Beating yourself up? That's ruthless!"

The two Wood Clones grumbled.

But they promptly activated their Sharingan and held nothing back.

Both charged straight at him.

Wood Clone Number One came sprinting in first.

A Superhuman Strength Fist charged with Chakra.

Slammed fiercely toward the original, making the hair on Rikuto's body stand on end.

Using the Sharingan's exceptional ability to track movement, Rikuto quickly anticipated the Wood Clone's swift attack and reacted.

He jerked his head aside to dodge.

At the same time, he sharply raised his knee.

And blocked the sweeping kick from Wood Clone Number Two.

The next instant, he drove a vicious elbow strike at Wood Clone Number One.

But how could two Wood Clones who had also activated their Sharingan and whose Taijutsu was nearly equal to the original's be suppressed so easily?

"Bang!"

As Wood Clone Number One blocked Rikuto's elbow strike.

He drove a right hook straight into Rikuto's abdomen. Because Rikuto also had to guard against Wood Clone Number Two, he couldn't dodge in time.

His eyes bulged.

He spat out a mouthful of blood and flew sideways like a cannonball.

"Bang!!" His crossed arms barely blocked the incoming right leg.

But the immense force still numbed both his arms.

Even though he did his utmost to dissipate the terrifying force of the two Wood Clones' attacks.

He was still dragged more than ten meters across the ground.

"Sure enough, I'm still nowhere near good enough..."

His face was full of determination and stubbornness.

Thanks to his astonishing healing ability.

Rikuto barely steadied himself, then charged out again without hesitation as though nothing had happened. "Again!"

"Bang... bang..."

"This isn't enough! Again!!"

"Bang, bang... bang, bang..."

"Aaaaaah..."

Inside Kakuriyo Space.

The sounds of fighting and agonized screams continued without pause.

It was a gruesome sight.

The utterly one-sided fight.

Left Rikuto bruised, battered, and disheveled.

He fell again and again, but struggled back to his feet every time.

Before he knew it, he was covered in blood, yet he showed no intention of stopping.

Gritting his teeth, he continued fighting his two Wood Clones.

To hone himself as much as possible.

He had set no restrictions, even allowing the use of the Sharingan and Superhuman Strength Fist.

With his monstrous regenerative ability and the Medical Ninjutsu he had steadily improved since following Tsunade.

He wasn't worried about suffering a fatal injury at all.

He had even deliberately suppressed the elemental transformation of the Logia Woods-Woods Fruit.

All to train his basic Taijutsu and improve his own combat strength.

Perhaps, if he simply stayed with Tsunade and grew comfortably at a steady pace.

Even those two overpowered cheats, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, might not be able to surpass him outright in the future.

But in Rikuto's eyes, that was far from enough.

His enemies had never been the Hokage, the leader of Root, or the people of the Akatsuki.

They were Madara Uchiha, Otsutsuki Kaguya...

Momoshiki Otsutsuki, Kinshiki Otsutsuki, Ōtsutsuki Isshiki...

And perhaps, in the future, the Ōtsutsuki Clan on other planets, whose foundation was unfathomably deep.

Even the most mysterious of them all, Otsutsuki Shibai, who was suspected of having evolved into a true "God of Ōtsutsuki" and appeared to exist on an entirely different plane from the other Ōtsutsuki!

Saving the world had nothing to do with him.

All he wanted was to use his own talent and effort to surpass the legendary God of Ōtsutsuki!

That was Rikuto's true ambition!

After obtaining the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.

And gaining the ability to open Kakuriyo Space with the Dōjutsu Ōnamuchi.

He, who had long been constrained by his body's age and lacked the strength to protect himself, and had therefore exercised restraint in the village, kept a low profile, and quietly accumulated strength.

Had cast aside his reservations completely.

Here, he trained with all his might, no longer holding himself back.

Even fighting and battling his own Wood Clones to train his Taijutsu, as he was doing today.

Was only the beginning for Rikuto.

Chapter 49: Rikuto's Ambition, Tsunade's Anger

"Bang... bang..."

"Come on! Not enough! That's still nowhere near enough!"

Time passed, bit by bit.

Every ten minutes, Rikuto had to leave Kakuriyo Space.

But in an instant, he would activate the Dōjutsu Ōnamuchi again, despite being covered in blood and wounds.

He would immediately plunge back into that parallel space and continue fighting undaunted.

"Huff... huff..."

After an unknown amount of time.

Rikuto suddenly appeared in the room, covered in blood.