Chapter 386: Chapter 386: Creating Sage Art
Within Ryūchi Cave, at the Dragon Transformation Pool.
Sora sat cross-legged in the emerald-green pool water, his eyes tightly shut, his entire body enveloped by a dense mist of natural energy.
He had been cultivating here for three days.
Over these three days, he had tried dozens of different methods of energy fusion, but none had succeeded.
Natural energy and chakra were like two stubborn children, refusing to merge perfectly no matter what.
’Indeed... creating one’s own Sage Art isn’t that easy.’
Sora smiled wryly in his heart.
In the original story, it only took Naruto a month to learn Sage Mode, but that was using the established formula passed down through a thousand years of Myōbokuzan’s heritage.
What he was attempting now was to create a Sage Art suitable for a "dragon" from absolute zero; the difficulty was on a completely different level.
Sora sighed, preparing to continue his exploration.
At that moment, the "Kū" (Emptiness) ring on his index finger suddenly began to glow with a faint light.
’The Lightning Flesh Clone technique... Nagato is summoning the members.’
Sora frowned slightly.
A summons at this point in time was highly likely concerning the matter of Konoha.
He had long anticipated that Obito wouldn’t let the Uchiha matter rest, but he hadn’t expected the Akatsuki organization to also be involved in it.
"Well, it’s good to see what the situation is."
Sora closed his eyes, and his consciousness sank into the ring.
The next moment, his consciousness appeared within a dimly lit space.
This was a different dimension the Akatsuki used for remote meetings, where all members projected themselves as illusions.
Fortunately, the aura of these projections was a combination of soul and chakra. After Sora converted his Dragon Vein chakra into the sharp nature of Wind Release, no one noticed that the "White Tiger" had been replaced by a different "person."
Sora looked around.
Pain (Tendō) and Konan stood in the main positions, Zetsu stood in the shadows, and Obito stood on the other side.
Kisame Hoshigaki and Sasori had also already arrived.
Additionally, there were two people Sora hadn’t seen before, presumably new members recruited over the past three years.
One wore a ring inscribed with "San" (Three), tall and thin with a pale complexion; it was Hiruko.
The other wore a ring inscribed with "Sei" (Blue), with a robust build and a scratched Iwagakure missing-nin forehead protector; he was likely the Iwa missing-nin, the "Blast Release" hunter, Kari.
"White Tiger, you’ve come."
Pain (Tendō) looked towards Sora, his Rinnegan utterly calm.
Sora nodded slightly and responded hoarsely:
"Leader."
His gaze swept over Hiruko, and a thought stirred within him.
’I wonder what stage he’s at now...’
Sora mused silently. The Kōmyō no Kama technique was related to his ultimate bloodline fusion; he hoped Hiruko would put in some effort.
Just then, Pain (Tendō) spoke:
"Everyone is here. Let’s get to business."
"The organization will have a mission soon, targeting Konoha. We’ll need assistance from some members."
"The mission objective is to create chaos and weaken the Uchiha’s power, specifically... Uchiha Shisui."
As soon as these words were spoken, the reactions among the members varied.
Kisame grinned, showing his sharp teeth: "Konoha, huh? It’s been a while. I wonder if the blood of Konoha ninja is still as fresh as I remember."
Sasori’s voice emerged from the Hiruko puppet, cold and merciless: "Uchiha Shisui... I’ve heard his Sharingan has considerable collection value."
Kari snorted coldly: "Killing Konoha ninja should be quite satisfying."
Hiruko, however, remained expressionless, seemingly uninterested in the mission details.
Obito added: "I’ll be the main operative for this mission. Your role is to assist and provide cover. Try not to reveal your identities."
Pain (Tendō) looked at everyone: "Now, let’s confirm participation."
"Who has the time?"
Sora was the first to speak: "I’m in the middle of cultivating a crucial jutsu. I cannot participate."
He had long decided not to get involved in this matter. If Obito wanted to deal with Konoha, let him. He himself should focus on developing Sage Arts and integrating his clones.
Sasori and Hiruko followed suit:
"I’m still missing a few final parts for my human puppets. I’m busy."
"My experiments are at a critical stage. I can’t get away."
For a moment, three people had actually refused.
Obito’s expression behind his mask soured slightly, but he said nothing.
Seeing this, Kisame shouldered his great sword and grinned: "I’ll go then. It’s not like I have anything better to do anyway."
Kari also spoke up: "Count me in."
Pain (Tendō) nodded: "Alright. The support members will be Kari and Kisame Hoshigaki."
"We’ll notify you of the specific action plan before departure."
Kisame looked towards Sora, a hint of regret in his voice: "Too bad. I won’t get to go on a mission with Mr. White Tiger."
"There will be other opportunities."
Sora replied casually, his consciousness already beginning to fade. The time limit for the Lightning Flesh Clone technique was approaching.
Just before leaving, he cast one last glance at Hiruko.
This scientist remained expressionless, but Sora could sense different chakra fluctuations within his body.
’He’s already fused at least two types of Kekkei Genkai...’
Sora made a judgment in his heart.
He was determined to obtain the Kōmyō no Kama technique.
...
Consciousness returned to Ryūchi Cave.
Sora opened his eyes and stood up from the Dragon Transformation Pool.
"The Akatsuki is going to make a move on Konoha..."
According to the original story, this point in time should be the Akatsuki’s low-profile development period; they wouldn’t actively provoke any of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
But now, with Konoha under Uchiha control, Obito couldn’t sit still anymore. He had actually stepped out from behind the curtain and onto the stage.
In the original story, Obito only revealed himself within the Akatsuki as Uchiha Madara after Deidara’s death.
’Well, let them fight. This is a perfect opportunity for me to create my Sage Art.’
Sora sat back down cross-legged and closed his eyes.
...
Days passed one by one.
Sora was completely immersed in the research of creating his own Sage Art, ignoring all external affairs.
His first attempts involved adjusting the ratios of natural energy, spiritual energy, and physical energy.
The ratio for Ryūchi Cave’s Sage Art was 1:1:1, a balanced fusion of the three energies.
But this ratio wasn’t suitable for him.
Sora began experimenting:
1.5:1:1, with an excess of natural energy – The result was slight petrification of his body, and the energy became extremely unstable, nearly exploding.
1:1.5:1, with an excess of spiritual energy – His resistance to genjutsu greatly increased, but his body became weak, to the point he couldn’t even stand steadily.
1:1:1.5, with an excess of physical energy – His physical strength skyrocketed, but his consciousness became clouded, nearly losing his reason.
None of them worked.
’The ratio isn’t the key issue...’
Sora recorded the experimental data and sank into contemplation.
He recalled what Great Sage Fukasaku had said when Naruto was learning Sage Mode in the original story:
’The key to Sage Chakra lies in balance. However, the baseline amount of the three energies within each person is different, so their ’point of equilibrium’ is also different.’
’Where is my equilibrium point?’
Sora began to introspect.
Spiritual energy originated from the soul.
His soul, having been supplemented seventeen times by the Soul Devouring Refining Technique, was beginning to approach that of an ’ordinary person.’
Physical energy originated from the body.
The Azure Dragon Fruit had granted him a dragon’s physique. Coupled with the tempering from the Eight Gates and Lightning Release Chakra Mode, his physical strength had also reached an abnormal level.
Chakra quantity was relatively weaker, only at the Jōnin level.
However, his Suzaku clone was now the Dragon Vein jinchūriki, with an inexhaustible supply of Dragon Vein chakra for supplementation.
Sora couldn’t help but think of the row of "charging packs" lined up beneath Ascension Island.
Two-tenths of the Nine-Tails, one-eighth of the Eight-Tails, one-third of the Two-Tails, the complete Dragon Vein, and the Three-Tails which had already been reborn but not yet captured.
With many of his clones not yet deployed, Sora still chose the most convenient and preferred Dragon Vein as the charging pack for his Suzaku clone.
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