The moon hung high in the midnight sky.
Hikari's Residence.
After returning home, Hikari did something rare—he didn't go looking for anyone. Instead, he sat there alone, quietly sensing that faint trace of cool yin energy permeating the world.
He raised his hand.
A strand of silvery-white moonlight coiled around his fingertips.
Was this natural energy?
No, it wasn't!
Hikari was proficient in Sage Mode, so he could sense the omnipresent natural energy in the heavens and earth.
Natural energy was wild and untamed, beyond human control.
Sage Mode was indeed powerful, but it placed equally high demands on the practitioner.
First, one's chakra reserves had to meet the standard. Then, one's mental state had to be resilient enough to withstand the immense impact of the world's vast natural energy without having their spirit scattered.
Only by fulfilling these two conditions could one qualify to harness natural energy.
This was a power reserved for the strong.
But the strand of moonlight at Hikari's fingertips was different from the chaotic, hard-to-control natural energy scattered throughout the world. It was a pure form of yin energy. Every time Hikari practiced the Spirit Transformation Technique, his soul would instinctively absorb this energy.
Gradually, a silvery-white humanoid figure emerged from Hikari's body—this was the soul described in the Spirit Transformation Technique.
Ordinary people's souls were transparent, without the slightest trace of color or impurity. But Hikari's soul was now completely filled with silvery white, making it extraordinarily magnificent.
Carefully, the silvery-white palm reached upward once more, fully detaching from the physical body.
The expected burning sensation didn't come. The silvery-white soul showed a joyful expression. Then, with a leap toward the sky, the entire soul broke free from the constraints of the flesh.
Soul projection.
Hikari's soul floated opposite his physical body. Looking at his own appearance, Hikari felt a slight sense of strangeness, but that thought was quickly pushed aside by the current feeling of freedom and lack of restraint.
The body was a cage. Now that his soul had escaped it, Hikari sensed the rare yin energy in the world continuously pouring into his soul.
He felt his soul growing stronger. In this state, Hikari had a peculiar sensation. He raised his hand.
A black staff appeared in his grasp.
"In this state, using Yin-Yang Release seems... easier?"
He muttered softly, then stood up straight. Due to subconscious habit, the clothes on his soul still matched those on his body.
He took a single step—and instantly appeared outside the room.
He floated in the air, moonlight cascading over him. It felt as though the moonlight and his soul were communicating in some inexplicable way, making him feel indescribably comfortable.
A thought stirred.
The soul moved.
With just a thought, Hikari freely wandered through Konoha Village.
No barriers, no ANBU—nothing could detect his presence.
In the shinobi world, the fastest ninjutsu was the Flying Thunder God Technique. With sufficient chakra, one could go anywhere. But now, Hikari felt his current speed was no slower than Flying Thunder God.
Because he was entirely in a soul state, the physical world imposed virtually no restrictions on him. As long as he willed it, he would appear in a place from his memory.
This speed was comparable to teleportation.
Senju Clan Grounds.
Hikari arrived at this rather familiar place, then entered Tsunade's room. He saw Tsunade lying on the bed, sprawled out in all directions without any semblance of grace, fast asleep. Even the blanket covering her had slipped down considerably.
'She's completely exposed!'
Hikari silently complained to himself. Then, he gently reached out and pulled the blanket up to cover the exposed areas.
"Who's there?"
A shinobi's instincts woke Tsunade with a start. She warily scanned the room but found no one.
"Did I imagine it in my sleep?" Tsunade rubbed her head, then used Wood Release energy to sense her surroundings once more. Detecting no one nearby, she stopped worrying and lay back down to sleep.
Hikari turned and left. In the next moment, he appeared at the Hatake Residence.
The room was quite sparse, with only a cabinet in the corner holding some bedding. This was the room where Hikari had stayed when he previously borrowed a place here.
Walking slowly, Hikari arrived at the room of that old pervert Kakashi.
'Should I mess with him a bit?'
The thought had barely formed when the staff in Hikari's hand tapped against Kakashi's body, lightly striking him.
Don't underestimate Hikari just because he was in soul form— if that staff truly landed, it could affect reality and knock Kakashi dead in one blow.
"Who's there?"
Even though Kakashi was a kidney-deficient old pervert, he still had a shinobi's vigilance.
Feeling the abnormality on his body, he woke instantly, then looked beside him with his dead-fish eyes.
No one.
If not for his strong mentality kicking in at that moment, he might have thought his room was haunted.
The sensation of being struck with a stick persisted. Helpless, Kakashi could only resort to his trump card.
Mangekyō Sharingan.
As he pushed up his forehead protector, the originally still three-tomoe Sharingan spun rapidly, revealing the Mangekyō pattern.
"Holy crap!"
Seeing the sight before him, Kakashi couldn't help but exclaim.
"Hikari!? What are you doing here?"
"Wait, what's going on with you right now?"
It was no wonder Kakashi was shocked. Anyone waking up in the middle of the night to see a silvery-white figure at their bedside—especially one that couldn't be seen with normal eyes—would find it bizarre.
"You can see me?"
Hikari was equally surprised. By his understanding, he should currently be in a Yin Release state. The fact that the Mangekyō Sharingan could see him was quite strange.
"Regular three-tomoe can't see you—only the Mangekyō Sharingan can. What's your situation?" Kakashi reached out to grab Hikari, and sure enough, his hand passed right through Hikari's arm, as if through air.
"I'm practicing the Spirit Transformation Technique, and a little unexpected thing happened!"
"So... you're dead now? Quick, tell me the password to your bankbook and where it's hidden. I'll help you..." Kakashi hadn't finished speaking when Hikari whacked him on the head with the staff.
'Dare to eye my money? I'll beat you to death.'
"I'm not dead. I just discovered that this Spirit Transformation Technique is a bit different from what's recorded in the scroll." Hikari said calmly. "The normal Spirit Transformation Technique allows the soul to leave the body and control an enemy's, for assassination or intelligence gathering. But now, I can remain in soul state for a long time without needing to possess a target body."
"In that case..." Kakashi looked Hikari up and down, his eyes lighting up. "Doesn't that mean you can freely wander through the rooms of beautiful women? I'm telling you, kid, you really shouldn't do that. But if you do... remember to get me a copy of the illustrated guide so I can appreciate it."
An ability to ignore physical matter and remain unseen by others—Kakashi wanted it too.
This was even more enticing than transparency techniques.