Chapter 209: Kimimaro and the Shinigami
Tsunade suppressed her body's instincts, no longer focusing on the fine control typical of a medical ninja, and instead imagined herself amidst raging waves.
Allowing Ino to guide the chakra to rapidly merge and converge within her meridians, she then clapped her hands together. Instantly, countless enormous vines erupted from the ground, tree trunks as thick as wagon wheels shot up, and green life covered the entire desolate island. In what felt like the blink of an eye, it transformed into a boundless, dense forest.
Using the exact same chakra and hand seals, when Ino performed it, it was Flower Style. When Tsunade did it, it was proper Wood Style.
The trees grew wildly for about twenty seconds. When she finally released her hands, gasping for breath and leaning on her knees, the chakra that had been transferred via the Spirilization Jutsu was completely depleted.
She had memorized the entire trajectory of the chakra flow.
Sadly, once this burst of chakra was used up, it was gone. No matter how much she jumped or exerted herself now, it was useless.
The 'trial period' was over, and she was back to her original state.
On the other side, Ino released the Spirilization Jutsu and returned to her own body, utterly exhausted. The consumption was too great; she had transferred 100% of her chakra, yet less than 10% was ultimately utilized by Tsunade. To let Tsunade personally experience the power of Wood Style even once, Ino had pushed her own chakra reserves close to depletion.
Both of them were sprawled on the ground, worn out. Shizune and Tonton quickly hurried over to give them water and wipe away their sweat.
Tsunade, whose physical constitution was clearly superior, was the first to get back on her feet.
"Hahahaha—I finally used Wood Style! I'm so happy! Hahahaha—Jiraiya, that idiot, should see this! Hahahaha—"
Even a trial run was still an experience.
Tsunade was overjoyed, looking around excitedly at the small island that had been transformed into a primitive forest. Her eyebrows danced with delight, clearly reaching the pinnacle of happiness. Many things simply couldn't be fully grasped by just scratching the surface. After experiencing this just once, she had countless new ideas.
Orochimaru was on the first level, only able to research the First Hokage's cells. Ino was on the second level; she could use Flower Style but lacked sufficient theoretical knowledge, often knowing the 'how' but not the 'why.' Tsunade had also been on the first level before, but after this experience, combined with her extensive knowledge, she considered herself to have reached the third level.
This experiment between master and student had truly pioneered the research into Kekkei Genkai inheritance.
While it felt like a 'trial period,' the prerequisites were numerous and complex, making it extremely difficult for an ordinary ninja to replicate. It was practically pieced together by forcing the conditions of Ninjutsu 10, Spirit 10, Water, Earth, and Yang Release Level 5, based on Ino's potential stats.
Both of their Ninjutsu stats were at 10 – that condition was met. Tsunade's Yang Release was definitely at Level 5 – that condition was also met. Ino's Water Style was close to Level 5, just barely sufficient. Earth Style and 'Spirit,' however, were attributes they had to accumulate through sheer hard work.
The remaining conditions included Ino's Spirilization Jutsu, Level 2 Flower Style, her incredibly abundant chakra reserves, Tsunade's bloodline, and the complete trust between the two of them. These were all prerequisites, none of which could be missing.
All these conditions combined ultimately helped Tsunade perform a 'trial version' of Wood Style.
"Let's go! We're heading back to the village to report the mission! When we reach the village gates, you'll infuse me with chakra again. I'm going to make Jiraiya see my Wood Style! Hahahaha—" Tsunade waved her hand like a big boss, ordering her two followers and pet pig to embark. Time to go home!
While Tsunade appeared carefree, the fact that she could become Hokage and master medical ninjutsu to such an extent meant she was also an extremely meticulous person. Her intention to show off upon returning was more about making a statement.
The Dust Style of Iwagakure was passed down between the Second and Third Tsuchikage, master and student who were not related by blood. Tsunade now wanted to send a signal to the outside world.
I, who previously couldn't use Wood Style, can now use it thanks to my research! In the future, if my disciples or collateral branches of the Senju clan learn Wood Style, it will all be because of my efforts!
By taking on these risks herself, Ino, and even Moegi in the future, would be much safer.
Along the way, Ino received a secret message from Kabuto.
Kabuto planned to use her theory of "if life force isn't enough, supplement with machinery" to physically modify Kimimaro. Kimimaro himself had agreed, and according to Kabuto's plan, Orochimaru might eventually be resurrected in Kimimaro's body.
However, problems arose. Modifying a living person into a human puppet was completely different in difficulty from modifying a corpse. Even with Kabuto's medical ninjutsu, which was top-tier in the world, performing several surgeries left him mentally and physically exhausted. Kimimaro's body was simply too weak, and the modification method Ino and Kabuto had devised was too crude.
Kimimaro's own willingness was insufficient; his body couldn't handle it. Just two minor surgeries resulted in him falling unconscious for twenty-four hours. Kabuto was still counting on him to use the 3.0 version of Impure World Reincarnation; he absolutely couldn't let him die.
The human puppet modification had to be put on hold.
Kabuto wasn't optimistic about this resurrection attempt for Orochimaru, believing the chance of failure was high.
Ino, in turn, tried to encourage him. If it doesn't work once, there's always a second time! Fail fast, fail often, but keep trying – that's the true spirit of a Sound Village man! Orochimaru has so many subordinates; if each one tries once, there's no way he won't be resurrected, right?
Kabuto had no other options. Besides, it wasn't his life on the line. He felt this plan was viable. It's just a matter of tricking people, isn't it? He was good at that.
The night she received Kabuto's secret message, Ino sensed that a spiritual connection tied to her secret technique had been triggered. She immediately understood – the Shinigami must have been summoned by some unlucky soul!
Following the spiritual connection of the secret technique, she observed the summoning scene through the Shinigami's eyes.
As expected, the person who summoned him was Kimimaro. His life's flame was so weak that a gust of wind could extinguish it. The fact that he could still perform this forbidden jutsu was a testament to his truly astonishing willpower.
Kabuto, Kidomaru, and Tayuya were all present at the scene. Ino also saw a young man with short orange hair and a robust build. She speculated that this person was the source of Orochimaru's curse marks – the man named Jugo. Beside Kimimaro's feet lay a ninja dressed in Sound Village attire. The body was empty; their soul had clearly been drawn out by the Shinigami first. The 'buy one, get one free' plan seemed to be quite successful.
Except for Kimimaro, the summoner, none of the others could see the Shinigami.
Kimimaro angrily spoke for a long time, but the Shinigami remained unmoved. You think you can just demand I release a soul with empty words? Are you dreaming?
The Senju clan, the Uzumaki clan, the Uchiha clan, the Hyuga clan, the Kaguya clan, plus the families of Kinkaku and Ginkaku – all six families were considered descendants of Kaguya Otsutsuki.
The Shinigami was pleased to collect another high-quality soul and was in no hurry at all. While Kimimaro was stuck, Ino used the time he was buying to study the Shinigami.
Considering the numerous masks in the Uzumaki clan's Mask Storage Temple and how, in the original timeline, Orochimaru only released the souls of the Four Hokage and his own arms when he sliced open the Shinigami's belly, Ino estimated that the Shinigami she was observing was likely just an avatar, similar to the Slug Sage. The true Shinigami was still in the depths of another dimension.
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