"Naruto: My Ninja Skills"Chapter 206: The Value of Hamura
There are great terrors in the cosmos, but they have nothing to do with the Shinobi World—absolutely nothing at all.
Centaurus might harbor the Trisolarans, but they've never once interfered with the wars Earthlings have waged for millennia.
Yūshin had some estimation of the Ōtsutsuki Clan's strength. Even if that coordinate truly marked the Ōtsutsuki's point of origin, under normal circumstances, ordinary Ōtsutsuki shouldn't pose any threat to him.
He pondered and pondered, finally dredging up some ancient, half-forgotten memories from the corners of his mind... Wasn't there something called the "Ōtsutsuki Ancestor"?
Like the Father of Ultra, this Ōtsutsuki Ancestor seemed extraordinary.
This Ōtsutsuki Ancestor appeared to be dead, yet also seemed to have achieved some form of transcendent existence...
Despite Yūshin's considerable power at this point, he suddenly felt as though he'd reverted to cannon fodder status... This couldn't be right, could it? Had all his investments just gone toward powering up monsters?
Fortunately, even if that entity wasn't exactly the "Blind Idiot God," it was close enough. At least it lacked strong autonomous consciousness and aggression—otherwise, the Shinobi World's story wouldn't be a "family saga of legendary eyes" but rather "Swallowed Star."
Regardless, it was fortunate that Yūshin hadn't fully opened the spatial passage. Without complete connection, the coordinates on both sides wouldn't lock onto each other, preventing certain forces and gazes from transmitting across.
"Whew, I just came back to life and things are already this thrilling? This old man's heart can't handle such excitement... It's too far away. Let's pretend today never happened."
Yūshin's chakra was nearly depleted, so today's "exploration activities" ended there.
He tidied up the room somewhat, even helping to dust off the old popsicle... Items like walnuts for finger exercises or cricket gourds need regular handling to maintain their appearance... Only then did he lay out bedding and rest here for the night.
That evening, Yūshin—having reached a state of equanimity beyond joy and sorrow—should have slept peacefully. However, perhaps the events in the void had left too deep an impression, for he actually experienced a vivid dream.
In the dream, a figure with twin horns, massive yet ethereal, stood in the void, gazing down at that dim yellow planet with a pair of Nine-Tomoe Rinnegan.
Suddenly, his voice pierced the endless void, reaching every living being's ears:
"Have the missus and the gardener been found yet?"
Yūshin jolted awake, sitting bolt upright as if spring-loaded, immediately falling into deep contemplation... Did this dream portend something?
Wait, why did the Ōtsutsuki Ancestor speak with a Tianjin accent?
Well, perhaps he needn't think so deeply. Yūshin was, after all, someone who had stolen Ōtsutsuki property, so when facing the Ōtsutsuki Ancestor, at least on a moral level, he felt somewhat guilty.
Actually, not guilty—he was worried about debt collectors.
In any case, Yūshin—who was essentially "invincible" at this point in time—found his pursuit of greater power becoming urgent again after yesterday's events, despite his original plans for rest and recovery.
Yūshin had spent a thousand years cultivating Yin-Yang Release, and his mastery now exceeded even the "as natural as moving one's limbs" level. Following the principle of steady progress, his next goal should simply be Sage Techniques.
Sage Techniques were the short-term objective; Kekkei Mōra was the long-term goal.
However, before Kekkei Mōra, there was actually an intermediate achievement: Truth-Seeking Orbs... If a ninja's method of obtaining Truth-Seeking Orbs didn't involve evolution, ascension, or bestowal by the Sage of Six Paths, then Truth-Seeking Orb training could actually be linked with Kekkei Mōra cultivation.
Reviewing the Shinobi World's history, those who achieved Truth-Seeking Orbs through self-cultivation seemed to be only Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo and Ōtsutsuki Hamura.
Thereafter, Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo mastered Kekkei Mōra, while Ōtsutsuki Hamura's highest achievement remained at Truth-Seeking Orbs.
Truth-Seeking Orbs, like Kekkei Mōra, are formed by combining the five chakra natures plus Yin-Yang Release. One could say that fusing the seven natures externally creates Truth-Seeking Orbs, while internal mastery results in Kekkei Mōra.
Compared to Sage Techniques or Sage Mode, Kekkei Mōra still seemed quite distant, but regardless, Yūshin wouldn't make directional errors at this point.
"Although I've just awakened and only recently returned from there, it seems I must still undertake something 'not because they are easy, but because they are hard.'"
Yūshin had just returned from the moon, yet decided to go back once more. Since Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo and Ōtsutsuki Hamura were brothers, one couldn't learn only from Hagoromo while ignoring Hamura—that would be unfair to Hamura.
The two "lunar missions" differed in circumstances. Previously, Yūshin had hidden on the moon, considering only how to quietly survive until the future era, nothing more.
In a sense, he had wasted a thousand years. However, if that time hadn't been spent in a vegetative state, who could guarantee he would have persevered until now?
Everything has its reasons. Starting to learn new techniques now wasn't too late.
Compared to learning Sage Techniques, Yūshin decided to return to the moon first.
Because for him at this moment, traveling to the moon was much simpler than reaching secret realms... His Byakugan already contained the moon's coordinates.
This was equivalent to how future astronauts would find reaching the space station easier than traveling from the Fifth Ring to the Second Ring.
For Yūshin, if you don't court death, you won't die. Compared to his previous actions, this kind of space-time travel naturally posed no danger.
Yūshin didn't rush into action. The next day, he wandered leisurely through Konoha... For the elderly version of Yūshin, Konoha was both familiar and strange.
Time inevitably leaves traces on people. Though Yūshin's face and physical condition appeared young, his mindset remained quite aged.
Konoha had developed for thirty years now, with quite a substantial civilian population living in the village. On one hand, not everyone in ninja clans was actually a ninja—when Konoha first initiated its "great ninja clan integration," many civilians became the village's first residents.
One could even say that as Konoha's population base continued expanding, the proportion of ninja within each clan was showing a year-over-year decline... In a sense, this was a positive phenomenon.
The lower the ninja ratio, the further the village was from "militarism."
On the other hand, many surrounding residents had relocated to the village.
Though called a village, Konoha was actually a town. A town of this scale exerted a siphon effect on the surrounding population.
Ordinary people needed ninja protection, while ninja needed ordinary people's productive and labor capabilities... Only a large population could support this town's daily life and normal operations.
As always, ninja essentially didn't engage in productive activities—these work positions naturally fell to civilians.
With such social division of labor, there was no need to criticize the ninja. Everyone was fulfilling their respective roles.
After overcoming the initial discomfort of feeling "like a lifetime had passed," Yūshin found the village scenery gradually becoming familiar.
While passing a flower shop, he suddenly stopped, considered briefly, then entered.
"Shopkeeper, please wrap these bouquets for me."
The shopkeeper was crouched on the ground organizing flower pots, his hands covered in soil and fertilizer. Unable to rise immediately to greet customers, he could only crane his neck and ask:
"Customer, what would you like?"
"Let me think—white chrysanthemums, forget-me-nots, baby's breath, birds of paradise... No, I'll take everything."
"Customer, with this quantity, we can offer you a discount... L-Lord Yūshin?"
This wasn't someone buying bouquets but conducting wholesale business. Upon hearing the customer's requirements, the shopkeeper hurriedly stood up, then recognized Yūshin's appearance.
"Lord Yūshin, I feel like you've become even younger?"
This comment seemed rather presumptuous.
"You are..."
"Lord Yūshin, I was once a Fireflies ninja from the Yamanaka Clan. I'm retired now, running a small business..."
Not wanting to be mistaken for a deserter, he rolled up his left sleeve and pant leg while speaking, revealing pale prosthetic limbs.
"My adaptation to prosthetics is poor, so I can't continue high-intensity combat."
Yūshin stepped back and glanced up at the flower shop's sign, finding it indeed bore the Yamanaka name... The shopkeeper's business acumen was sound—mentioning his Fireflies service first, then his Yamanaka heritage, would naturally please Yūshin.
"Let me see..."
When Yūshin was pleased, there were always benefits. He grasped the man's wrist and used Yin-Yang Release to adjust his body, enabling full adaptation to his prosthetics... If the man hadn't already had prosthetics, Yūshin would have performed limb regeneration.
Ninja adaptation to prosthetics varied greatly. Some could even increase their combat effectiveness after prosthetic installation, while others could only retain basic limb function and couldn't return to battle... Though this wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
After Yūshin released his grip, the shopkeeper immediately felt the changes in his body—all the discomfort had vanished.
"Lord Yūshin, you... I..."
"Stop stammering and wrap my flowers, won't you?"
"Yes, Lord Yūshin."
Despite his words, the shopkeeper first retrieved a hot towel from the back... Yūshin's hands had gotten some soil on them during the contact.
He first had Yūshin clean his hands, then efficiently began wrapping the flowers.
While wiping his hands, Yūshin engaged in complex psychological reflection, thinking that after all these years serving as the Sage's disciple, then raising a wife and children, he'd forgotten that he was actually a big shot.
"Lord Yūshin, they're wrapped."
The shopkeeper hadn't been a ninja for years—his life skills were maxed out. He quickly completed the task.
Then the big shot reached for his pocket... uh, no money.
Yūshin was dressed so simply, white-clothed and white-haired, clearly someone who didn't deal with money... The younger Yūshin would certainly carry money, but the current Yūshin was the elderly version returned from a thousand years ago.
Asking him to pay was rather difficult—the eras he'd lived through didn't even require money.
"Lord Yūshin, how could I possibly accept your money? As a Fireflies ninja, being able to help you would be my greatest honor."
The shopkeeper's emotional intelligence was maxed out, and he didn't mention Yūshin's help with his body... Bringing that up would make it an "exchange," and "exchange" couldn't compare to his "dedication" to the Fireflies and Lord Yūshin.
"No, no, not paying would make me a deadbeat, and deadbeats are the lowest form of humanity—they're not even human... Give me paper, I'll sign an IOU. Go to Hideyuki for payment."
"You must go, or I'll hold you accountable."
Yūshin wasn't indiscriminately disparaging all deadbeats—he was targeting one specific deadbeat who still hadn't repaid his debt... Over the thousand years, Yūshin's mindset had matured, but not completely.
Or rather, his mindset had crystallized. He'd find it hard to dislike new things in the future, but things he'd disliked before, he'd continue disliking.
Yūshin signed the note, took the flowers, and departed.
The shopkeeper watched his retreating figure with deep gratitude.
He would definitely collect the money—this transaction was between a private individual and an organization, so there was no reason not to charge. The shopkeeper genuinely didn't want Yūshin's money and was sincerely happy to help him, but now... heh, life requires a bit of cunning.
More importantly, if he didn't collect the money, how would he have the opportunity to boast about his contact with Lord Yūshin, Lord Yūshin's approval of his flowers, and even Lord Yūshin adjusting his body?
Yūshin carried the large bundle of flowers until he turned a corner. Once alone, he stored the flowers in his alternate dimension.
That evening, feeling his chakra had recovered sufficiently, Yūshin opened a space-time passage once more, stepping across vast distances from the surface to the moon.
The moon remained as desolate as ever, seemingly unchanged by a thousand years.
Upon arriving, Yūshin first glanced at the distant gray city but didn't rush to enter. Instead, he turned toward a cemetery not far from the city.
The stable environment meant everything on the moon lacked erosive forces. In the cemetery, Yūshin quickly found several tombstones.
The tombstones bore inscriptions in thousand-year-old script, firmly declaring the identities of those buried there.
This cemetery was maintained spotlessly, indicating that Ōtsutsuki Nagatsuki's descendants remained.
Yūshin reached into his alternate dimension, withdrew several bouquets, and placed them before familiar names.
"A reunion spanning a thousand years... There's nothing wrong with saying that, right?"
Just as Yūshin was visiting old friends, another ninja entering the cemetery spotted his figure. Considering his location, this person approached Yūshin as quickly as possible.
"Young man, you are...?"
Since Yūshin had just used space-time ninjutsu, he was maintaining his Byakugan state. Combined with his traditional Ōtsutsuki-style clothing, this ninja mistook him for a clan member.
He assumed Yūshin was young, but upon seeing those Byakugan and sensing the endless ancient aura within them, his emotions immediately tensed.
"Oh no, this is some ancient monster who's lived countless years..."
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