Konoha's Genius is a bit Ordinary?

Deep within the underground ruins of illusions, the remnants of the site were now almost completely buried under soil.

This outcome wasn't just due to the destruction of all entrances, it was primarily because the massive mineral vein that supported the structure had been entirely depleted.

And the one responsible for this? Natsuro.

The vast mineral vein, as large as a lake, had been fully absorbed by him. During the process, he hadn't taken any steps to reinforce the structure.

In truth, the ruins had been on the verge of collapse toward the end of his absorption. He had merely delayed the inevitable.

Today, the ruins finally gave way entirely. Standing atop the rubble, Natsuro stretched for the first time in ages.

The sound of joints popping echoed from his body.

"Ah, that feels great," Natsuro exhaled deeply, savoring the sensations coursing through his body. He hadn't moved for so long that he felt like he was rusting.

It wasn't intentional on Natsuro's part. Initially, he could feel when his body was saturated after training for a while, leaving him plenty of free time.

However, as his body strengthened and adapted to natural energy, the saturation threshold became increasingly rare.

And since time was of the essence, especially with Naruto leaving the village, signaling the Akatsuki's plans were approaching.... Natsuro decided to enter a period of seclusion.

Now, the natural energy in the mineral vein was finally depleted.

As the vein ran dry, he couldn't help but feel nervous. The energy stored in that enormous lake-sized vein seemed endless, yet it had almost been insufficient for his training.

At the time, he had worried about where he could find such a massive source of natural energy for future training.

Thankfully, he had just managed to complete his training before the energy ran out. However, Natsuro chose to suppress the transformation process that his body was ready to undergo, preventing the final stage from beginning immediately.

This was because he had no idea what changes or dangers might occur during the transformation. He needed someone he trusted to oversee the process.

In the meantime, he absorbed the last remnants of the mineral vein, it wouldn't do to let it go to waste.

Now, as Natsuro assessed his current state, he noted that he hadn't changed much compared to before his seclusion.

After all, he had focused entirely on absorbing natural energy and training. His ninjutsu skills hadn't progressed, in fact, they might have even gotten rusty. Natsuro planned to review and refine all the ninjutsu he knew after completing his transformation.

The most significant changes were in his chakra reserves and physical strength.

Inside Natsuro's body, chakra no longer existed and only pure natural energy remained.

However, he didn't yet know how to use natural energy directly. For now, he had to convert it into raw chakra before using ninjutsu.

Although this might seem cumbersome, it wasn't. Using ninjutsu traditionally involved extracting and molding chakra as a prerequisite. Now, the process was simply replaced by conversion, which, to Natsuro's surprise, was even faster than chakra molding.

Moreover, the amount of chakra generated from converting natural energy exceeded Natsuro's expectations.

As a child, he had been frustrated by his meager chakra reserves, dreaming of implanting Hashirama's cells to boost them. Never did he imagine that one day his chakra levels would surpass his wildest dreams.

Currently, Natsuro's chakra reserves rivaled those of the weaker-tailed beasts. Even Kisame Hoshigaki would be left in the dust before him.

Thinking back, it wasn't surprising. Natsuro had absorbed the entire mineral vein. If his reserves hadn't increased, that would have been strange.

The other major change was his physical strength. After automatically strengthening during his training, Natsuro clenched his fists, feeling the powerful winds generated by his movements.

His expression grew peculiar. He realized that silent, diligent training couldn't compare to having a "cheat" ability.

Ever since laying his foundations, Natsuro hadn't dedicated much time to improving his physique, maintaining only a basic level of training.

This was because, at his previous level of physical strength, any significant breakthroughs in taijutsu would have required enormous time investments.

The best examples were Guy and Lee. Natsuro knew he couldn't afford to dedicate that much time to taijutsu, even though its ultimate potential could surpass what Guy had demonstrated.

Such growth required time which was a resource he lacked.

Yet now, as he clenched his fists, Natsuro realized that while his strength might not rival Guy's, it was likely stronger than Lee's.

Compared to Lee's tireless effort, Natsuro's progress felt like cheating. Without actively training his physique, his strength had grown at an astonishing rate!

That said, Natsuro also understood that his physical development had plateaued at some point. His body had reached a threshold beyond which passive training could no longer bring improvement.

However, Natsuro could sense that with just a bit of targeted training, he could break past this threshold. If he increased his training regimen, his taijutsu could improve by leaps and bounds.

This realization led Natsuro to consider incorporating physical training into his future plans. With his current state, further taijutsu improvement might genuinely make a difference.

As he reflected on his transformation, a smile crossed his face. Without another word, his figure disappeared from the ruins.

.....

Shikkotsu Forest

Natsuro's figure appeared in the Shikkotsu Forest. He hadn't chosen Mount Myōboku, his most familiar place, because there were simply too many toads there. Not knowing what might happen next, he decided it was better to come to the Shikkotsu Forest, where only the Slug Sage resided.

After all, the presence of the Slug Sage would have the same effect as the Great Toad Sage.

As Natsuro stood before the massive being, he couldn't help but gape. He knew the Slug Sage was large, but he hadn't expected it to be this massive. The Slug Sage was far larger than any tailed beast, so enormous that even a slight movement could cause mountains to crumble and the earth to quake.

This was Natsuro's first time in the Shikkotsu Forest. The Flying Thunder God mark he used to arrive had been delivered here earlier by a slug carrying one of his kunai.

Thus, this was Natsuro's first time seeing the Slug Sage in its true form.

Soon, a smaller split body of the Slug Sage, about the same size as Natsuro, emerged from the enormous main body and approached him.

"Greetings, Slug Sage," Natsuro said, initiating the conversation.

"Hmm, have you completed your accumulation?" the Slug Sage asked. Its voice was surprisingly neutral, unlike the split bodies, which had a more feminine tone. However, the Sage's tone carried a distinct note of surprise.

"Yes," Natsuro replied, though he wasn't entirely sure what "accumulation" referred to but it likely described his current state.

"Wait a moment," the Slug Sage said, turning its massive body to do something unknown.

Before long, two familiar figures appeared before Natsuro: the Great Toad Sage and the White Snake Sage.

"Slug, you're not joking, are you? Are you saying this brat has completed his natural energy accumulation?" The White Snake Sage immediately spoke, its voice heavy with skepticism.

The Slug Sage didn't respond, clearly inviting the White Snake Sage to see for itself.

The White Snake Sage scrutinized Natsuro, and its serpentine eyes suddenly widened.

"You've really completed it? How is that possible? Where did you get so much natural energy?" the White Snake Sage demanded incredulously.

"I got lucky and barely managed it. Was it supposed to take a long time?" Natsuro asked, puzzled.

"Of course! The three of us were prepared to wait several hundred years!" the White Snake Sage exclaimed.

"Hundreds of years?!" This time, it was Natsuro's turn to gape in disbelief.

After a long pause, he regained his composure and couldn't help but ask, "Even if it took that long, isn't it impossible for a human like me to live that long in the first place?"

"Hmph, brat, a few hundred years isn't that long. Besides, you're underestimating yourself. Your current lifespan is at least as long as ours, perhaps possibly even longer," the White Snake Sage said disdainfully.

"That's impossible. I've never heard of anyone living that long," Natsuro replied skeptically.

"Hmph. It's entirely possible. You underestimate the path you've chosen. Unlike those other ninjas who constantly extract energy from their bodies, sometimes to the point of overextraction to fuel their jutsu, your method doesn't drain your life force. Ninjas rely so much on their physical energy that it's a miracle their lifespans aren't shorter," the White Snake Sage said mockingly.

Natsuro blinked, realizing the truth in those words. Chakra was formed by combining physical and spiritual energy, with the physical energy being drawn from the body's cells.

This explained why excessive chakra usage left ninjas exhausted and out of breath, no matter how little physical activity they had done. It was an unavoidable side effect of chakra's inherent nature: fatigue came with its use.

From this perspective, Natsuro's method of converting natural energy had another significant advantage. Since the converted chakra didn't rely on his body's energy, it meant that even if he exhausted all his natural energy reserves, his physical condition would remain untouched. In gaming terms, his "mana bar" could be empty, but his "stamina bar" would still be full.

The Great Toad Sage then spoke. "Natsuro, the White Snake Sage is correct. Your lifespan is already on par with ours, and that's just your current state. Once your transformation is complete, your lifespan may far surpass ours."

Hearing this, Natsuro opened his mouth to speak but found himself at a loss for words.

So… had he accidentally become immortal while training?

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Currently on Chapter 244 - Kakashi's Marriage Problem

Sneak Peak: Next Chapter Title ~ Natsuro's Sage Transformation