Chapter 148: Temporary Substitute

When it came to preparation, there was really only one actual task—waiting for the Breath-Sealing Art to gather enough chakra. Everything else was more about mental readiness than anything physical. As for what was supposedly the most difficult part, sensing natural energy, that had actually turned out to be a relatively easy step. For Mizuki, the real challenge wasn't there, but rather in control—the balance between chakra and natural energy was what kept him from being consumed by the natural energy itself.

In the past, Mizuki had failed to sense natural energy because he misunderstood it fundamentally. Part of the problem came from the name "natural energy" itself. He used to believe that being in nature would make it easier to sense natural energy, but now he realized this was wrong.

Whoever first came up with the term "natural energy" remained unknown. While Mizuki didn't think the name was entirely wrong, he felt it wasn't fully accurate either. From his perspective, natural energy arose from all existing things—it was born from the convergence of the entire ninja world, making it present everywhere. It wasn't like secluded wilderness or ancient forests made it easier to sense natural energy. Since humans were also part of this world, they naturally contributed to its creation—and their role was significant. In fact, in crowded places, as long as one could calm their mind, they might even sense natural energy more easily.

Though the origins of using natural energy for [Sage Art] cultivation had long faded into obscurity, one thing was certain—the source of chakra lay in Kaguya Otsutsuki. Therefore, practitioners of [Sage Mode] who used natural energy to cultivate [Senjutsu] only appeared after chakra itself had come into existence. Natural energy likely existed far earlier, but it was only with the arrival of chakra that people discovered ways to use it effectively.

However, besides those who practiced [Sage Mode], other beings in this world, such as those with the Rinnegan, also seemed capable of absorbing natural energy. The tailed beasts, too, could take in natural energy without being destroyed by it. Humans were different. Their weak bodies simply couldn't endure the pressure of natural energy. Worse still, when humans worshipped the God Tree, producing the God Tree Fruit while revering Kaguya Otsutsuki as the Goddess of the Rabbit Hour, this mistaken devotion nearly brought about their downfall. That's why human sensitivity to natural energy had dropped to nearly nothing.

Humanity's separation from the ninja world inevitably weakened the foundation supporting natural energy. Logically speaking, if humans—the spiritual core of all living beings—were removed, natural energy should have greatly declined. Yet, reviewing records over recent years, Mizuki found no solid evidence of this. One possibility was that information among summoning beasts hadn't spread widely. Another was that no such decline had truly occurred. One theory explained this well—that during such times, the tailed beasts took over the role once held by humanity. Human faith created the God Tree, the God Tree Fruit, and even the divine power of Kaguya Otsutsuki. As descendants of this lineage, shaped by human will, the tailed beasts became excellent replacements. In effect, between humans and the ninja world itself stood a massive barrier formed by the tailed beasts.

Humans are actually still contributing to the very existence of the ninja world, even though most of the benefits have gone to the tailed beasts. Even more regrettable is that relations between humans and tailed beasts remain hostile, causing humans to lose blessings and protection that should have naturally come from these creatures.

"Using jinchuriki wasn't a bad idea—it just got used all wrong."

The poor relationship between humans and tailed beasts largely stems from human actions like sealing them away and restricting their freedom. The technique for creating jinchuriki would've worked better if they'd done it my way—like making physical clones. This is the correct approach. If it weren't for the destined child, Naruto Uzumaki, showing up when he did, jinchuriki would've remained nothing but tragedy upon tragedy.

Short-lived and insignificant individual humans have silently borne the consequences of their ancestors' ignorance for thousands of years. Those ancient predecessors have long since vanished into the torrent of time; probably only Kaguya Otsutsuki and Black Zetsu remain until now. After so many centuries, humans absolutely shouldn't keep being treated unequally. Time heals all wounds; perhaps humans can never regain their former status as favored darlings of the world. But they definitely shouldn't be punished for mistakes made a thousand years ago. The chances of this kind of scenario actually aren't high. If we consider the entire ninja world as one being, it's likely developed an allergic reaction or rejection toward its "human organ." Since God Tree's invasion, the ninja world has lost full control over itself—it can't even correct certain possible errors. Another possibility is the belief that real threats still hide among humans—for example, Kaguya Otsutsuki's will, Black Zetsu, or other unknown deities like Jashin.

Mizuki thinks the most likely explanation is interference from outside sources—Mount Myoboku or Ryuchi Cave, for example. Take Mount Myoboku as an example: the Great Toad Sage has directly or indirectly manipulated nearly a century's worth of fate in the ninja world.

The sages from these summoning beast sanctuaries add their own agendas into the natural energy they gather before passing it along for elite humans like Jiraiya to use. In some ways, they indeed lowered the difficulty level for humans attempting to master Sage Mode. However, those petrified elite human ninjas at Mount Myoboku, along with countless others who failed snake sage training and were swallowed by White Snake Sage, clearly indicate that summoned beasts certainly don't help humans without ulterior motives. Even with the help of summoned beasts, very few manage to master Sage Mode. Thus, most elite warriors carrying humanity's hopes perish pointlessly. Even someone like Jiraiya—who managed to succeed—becomes exactly the kind of useful tool summoned beasts want for meddling in human ninja affairs. Not even a few decades after his success, the ninja world saw several massive wars that killed countless lives. Before that came centuries of continual Warring States chaos which reduced the ninja world to utter devastation. During the Fourth Great Ninja War, internal human conflicts nearly brought total annihilation to the entire world.

In a world that already looks down on anyone with a criminal past, it's really no shock. And then there are those scheming bastards making things worse by stirring the pot—humanity's situation just keeps getting worse. As for the Summoned Beasts and their tricks with the contract scrolls, those could be part of some long-term schemes too. The specifics will need to be investigated further in time.

As for Mizuki's method of absorbing chakra, it's actually quite simple—just use tailed beasts. Since humans themselves aren't great at sensing natural energy, borrowing from other creatures is a common practice. Jiraiya needed Elder Fukasaku and Elder Shima to fully utilize [Sage Mode]; Naruto, as a Jinchuriki, naturally had an advantage in sensing natural energy thanks to the tailed beast chakra, making his [Sage Mode] naturally superior to Jiraiya's. As for Kabuto Yakushi, it's just the triumph of obsession. And what about The Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze's clumsy [Sage Mode]? That must have truly showcased raw talent.

With a miniature tailed beast shadow clone of the One-Tail Shukaku at his disposal, Mizuki had access to massive amounts of single-tail chakra to waste as he pleased. This gave him the freedom to test his ideas, running multiple experiments on Artificial Jinchuriki over the last few days, gradually uncovering patterns and practical techniques. For example, letting in just a bit of tailed beast chakra seriously messed with his Chakra Control, but if handled skillfully, it did allow him to sense the presence of unfamiliar energy nearby. This energy was remarkably dormant, impossibly thick, and endless, giving off an overwhelming pressure.

At this point, Mizuki used tailed beast chakra like Frog Oil, helping boost his sensitivity to natural energy. The Ten-Tails once boasted that it "was" natural energy itself, of course Mizuki would never believe such nonsense. At best, the Ten-Tails was merely part of natural energy or simply a force of equal standing. As for the Nine Tailed Beasts split from the Ten-Tails, their chakra was also highly effective at amplifying sensitivity to natural energy.

"Still, the disruption to Chakra Control is way too intense. Never thought I'd live to see the day I worry about poor chakra control. After all, there's no such thing as the strongest—only someone stronger."

Mizuki had to admit—he really respected how Naruto managed to keep [Sage Mode] active while using Nine-Tails' power in the later part of the original story. For someone like Naruto, who lacked any real finesse in chakra manipulation, to accomplish something even Mizuki couldn't yet pull off—it could only mean one thing: Ashura's reincarnation truly was extraordinary. This world sure does love spoiling that destined child.

Another headache for Mizuki regarding [Sage Mode] came from the cursed seal's influence, which continued causing Yin and Yang imbalance within him. While improving his medical ninjutsu was good news, it became a big issue when practicing [Sage Mode]. Yin and Yang respectively corresponded to physical and spiritual aspects of a person. Only by balancing bodily energy, spiritual energy, and natural energy could one master [Sage Mode]. But right now, he couldn't even begin to consider natural energy—not when achieving Yin and Yang balance within himself was such a challenge.

At first, using normal ninjutsu wasn't a problem—actually, it came with some perks. But now, though, things were starting to get seriously complicated for Mizuki. The tailed beast chakra he'd taken in just to sense natural energy was already giving him trouble, and keeping the balance between his internal chakra and natural energy had gotten even worse.

"Yin Attribute huh… what should I do?"

There weren't many options really. Getting something like a transplanted Sharingan would probably be best. But right now, finding a usable Sharingan was extremely tough. Plus, Mizuki didn't have the surgical skills needed for such a transplant. As for those people who later on could swap eyes like changing clothes, Mizuki could only dream about that kind of thing.

Since the Sharingan wasn't realistic, the Yamanaka and Nara clans' secret Yin Attribute techniques were probably off the table too. So Mizuki had no choice but to figure this out himself. And at this point, the first thing that came into his mind was naturally the cursed seal itself—the root of all these problems. Originally, the cursed seal did have an indirect ability to absorb natural energy, but its side effects were simply beyond Mizuki's control. If the cursed seal acted up again, considering Mizuki's already fragile body and limited lifespan, dying wouldn't even be surprising. Without any detailed records on the cursed seal technique, reckless experiments weren't advisable. So he needed to find some alternative way to handle the Yin Attribute.

At this moment, Mizuki couldn't help but remember the hidden trick within the dog summoning contract scroll that Kakashi Hatake had once given him.

"A technique that draws on the summoner's spiritual energy fluctuations? Perfect—I have summoned beasts of my own—and plenty of them. Using the Genjutsu Magical Formation to gather their energies as substitutes for Sage Mode consumption."

Tapping into all that power wasn't hard at all. These were proven methods, already well-developed and easy to apply. Though they were just temporary alternatives, right now he only needed a way to use Sage Mode. Other concerns could wait until later. Although lacking the pocket dimensions offered by Frog Sage Art or Snake Sage Art eliminated certain risks, he still had to face directly the dual corrosive effects of natural energy on both body and spirit. Messing around with something this powerful—the raw force born from human will itself—was asking for trouble.

Although the general direction had been decided, actual implementation would take some time. At times like this, patience was especially important—particularly under strict surveillance when success seemed so close. Mizuki kept reminding himself to stay cool. This wasn't the time yet to act freely. Even after mastering Sage Mode in the future, there would still be many gaps to fill.

By noon on the third day, Kakashi Hatake finally returned, bringing news that Mist village had fallen into chaos. Since the turmoil wasn't aimed at Konoha, the higher-ups in Konoha didn't need to pay much attention for now. With Konoha barely holding on as it was, there was little bandwidth to focus on another ninja village with no special ties to them. Two days later, Asuma Sarutobi finally came back—but was immediately swamped with work. Mizuki never got a chance to talk to him, so he remained pretty clueless about what was really going on in the Land of Earth.

A week later, Jiraiya and Naruto Uzumaki finally came back — this time bringing along Tsunade with her flowing golden hair and Shizune cradling that cute little pig of hers.

At last, the village finally had a new Hokage to look up to, which instantly calmed the anxiety and tension that had been hanging over everyone. Even though Tsunade had just gotten back, there was already a pile of unfinished business stacked up waiting for her. Even though her inauguration was set for three days later, things were moving fast — Tsunade barely got back before she had to start doing the Hokage's job anyway.

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