— — — — — —
"So this is Sage Chakra? Incredible! The quality is insanely high! No wonder ninjutsu enhanced by Sage Mode is so powerful!"
"If I could replace all the chakra in my body with Sage Chakra, my strength would skyrocket!"
"I can even faintly feel the nourishing effect Sage Chakra has on my cells!"
"Unfortunately, I don't have much Sage Chakra right now, so the effect is barely noticeable."
"If my chakra control and understanding of my body weren't so refined, I might not have even noticed it."
Tsunade opened her eyes after sensing the small amount of Sage Chakra in her body. She had been experimenting with it and couldn't help but marvel at it.
"Haha! The fact that you noticed it so quickly means you're already quite talented! It seems like you've reached at least the minor achievement level in Life Return, right?" Uchiha Naori, who had just finished his own training, smiled and asked.
This level of perception and analysis wasn't something that could be achieved without at least a minor mastery of Life Return. Even with Tsunade's extensive medical knowledge and deep understanding of the human body, detecting such a minuscule change was no easy feat.
"That's right! I feel like Life Return and the Six Powers (Rokushiki) are a perfect match for my combat style. I also have a natural talent for them, so I've been focusing my training in that area."
"Right now, I've already mastered the Six Powers, and I've been at the minor achievement level of Life Return for over a year now. Give me another year or so, and I should be able to reach full mastery."
Tsunade nodded and smiled as she replied.
Once she fully mastered Life Return, she felt that her control over her body would undergo a qualitative transformation. At that point, she might even gain some unexpected benefits.
"Not bad! Keep pushing forward and aim to break into the Super Kage level as soon as possible!"
Uchiha Naori nodded knowingly. Tsunade's talent had never been in question.
"Looks like they're going to take a while. I've got things to do, so I'm heading off! Kaito, keep an eye on them!"
Uchiha Naori checked the time and realized he had a busy schedule. He turned to Kaito and instructed him.
"Got it, Mom! You go ahead, I've got this!"
Kaito nodded.
He was multitasking anyway—keeping watch while simultaneously refining Sage Chakra. His current minor achievement level in Sage Chakra Refinement allowed him to train continuously even while maintaining awareness of his surroundings.
This was a huge advantage, accelerating his Sage Chakra refinement process significantly.
Of course, he had already split off several shadow clones over an hour ago to handle various Konoha affairs and continue different training sessions.
Particularly for the Edo Tensei (Reanimation Jutsu), he made sure to dedicate two shadow clones every day just to increase his proficiency.
"Alright then!" Uchiha Naori nodded before leaving.
"I should get going too! There's a lot of work waiting for me at the hospital!"
Seeing Naori leave, Tsunade bid farewell to Kaito and also headed off.
An hour later, Minato successfully grasped the basics of the Sage Chakra Refinement Method.
He was soon followed by Mikoto, with Kushina being the last to complete it.
With that, everyone had finished their Sage training.
Kaito then sent them off to the One Piece world to continue their training there.
As for himself, he went to find Uzumaki Mito and spent over half an hour teaching her the Sage Chakra Refinement Method as well.
And Nawaki?
That kid hadn't even reached minor achievement in meditation or the Primal Chakra Refinement Technique yet. He still had a long way to go before he could even attempt Sage training, so he had no choice but to bury himself in practice for now.
"Sage techniques really are amazing! But if we could fully integrate the Primal Chakra Refinement Technique with the Sage Chakra Refinement Method, that would be even better!"
"It would save a lot of trouble and truly perfect both training methods."
"I can feel it—these two techniques merging is the true path of the chakra system."
After getting the basics of the Sage Chakra Refinement Method down, Uzumaki Mito shared her thoughts with Kaito.
"Yeah." Kaito nodded in agreement. "You're absolutely right! I've already made some progress in that direction. Give me a few more months, and I should be able to complete this step!"
"However, when the time comes, it'll require a high level of proficiency in both the Primal Chakra Refinement Technique and the Sage Chakra Refinement Method."
"So until then, you should focus on raising your mastery of both techniques as much as possible."
Unlike Life Force techniques, this wouldn't necessarily require her to reach the highest level of mastery before transitioning.
But at the very least, she needed both techniques at the minor achievement level.
"Got it! I won't slack off!"
Uzumaki Mito nodded with a smile.
— — —
A few days later, in the Land of Fire's capital
Ten days had passed, and all the nobles and wealthy merchants summoned by the Daimyo had finally arrived.
Senju Tobirama also arrived as promised, meeting with the Daimyo to discuss matters with the assembled figures.
They distributed copies of the investment and economic development plan that had previously been presented to the Daimyo.
Once everyone had read through it, a buzz of discussion filled the room.
Reactions were mixed.
Some were highly interested and eager to participate—most of them were major merchants.
The nobles, on the other hand, were mostly hesitant. Some voiced opposition, while a small portion agreed. Those who agreed were primarily individuals who had already been in contact with the Daimyo and stood on his side.
However, even the opposing faction didn't dare to openly object with Senju Tobirama present.
These people weren't fools.
Most of them had personally witnessed Tobirama's power and decisiveness when he was in charge.
Going against him head-on? Not a wise move.
Besides, even if this plan ended up strengthening Konoha too much, the Daimyo himself had already accepted it—so why should they worry?
No matter how strong Konoha became, even if they eventually replaced the Daimyo's government, they would still need the support of these nobles.
Otherwise, governing the territories would be impossible.
So, in the end, with most people agreeing, even the hesitant ones could only follow suit.
"Good!"
Seeing this, Tobirama nodded in satisfaction and stood up. "Since everyone is in agreement, let's move to Konoha and finalize the details!"
As he spoke, Tobirama took out a Flying Thunder God short sword and activated the technique inscribed on it.
In the next moment, Kaito suddenly appeared in the meeting room with a swift "whoosh!"
He first looked at Tobirama, and after receiving a confirming nod, he understood the situation.
He then nodded in acknowledgment toward the Daimyo before scanning the room and speaking up: "I am Uchiha Kaito, the Fourth Hokage of Konoha."
"Thank you all for your support. Now, I will take you to Konoha to discuss and finalize the investment agreements. Please wait a moment."
With that, Kaito formed a hand seal and created four Shadow Clones.
They swiftly moved to the corners of the meeting room and placed their hands on the floor.
In an instant, intricate sealing patterns spread from their palms, rapidly forming a Flying Thunder God group teleportation array on the ground.
"What is this?"
The Daimyo turned to Tobirama and Kaito with a questioning look.
The other nobles and merchants were equally puzzled.
"This is a Flying Thunder God group teleportation array," Kaito explained casually. "It allows me to teleport all of you directly to Konoha."
"Rest assured, I've mastered this technique completely—there won't be any problems."
"You'll arrive in Konoha instantly, saving a lot of travel time."
"What? Flying Thunder God? Group teleportation? Is that even possible?"
"Even ordinary people can be teleported through space?"
"Incredible!"
"This Fourth Hokage is amazing!"
The room was filled with astonished voices.
Tobirama observed Kaito's calm demeanor and the rapidly forming teleportation array, his eyes narrowing slightly.
He was very familiar with this technique.
The upgraded version of the Flying Thunder God that Kaito had taught him included detailed records and training methods for this ability.
But even with his talent, mastering it in a short time was difficult.
The technique required an extremely high level of sealing expertise, spatial awareness, and chakra reserves.
Even if he managed to learn it, Tobirama estimated that, with his current chakra reserves, he could only teleport around 50 people at a time.
That would be his limit.
After all, the farther the teleportation and the more people involved, the greater the chakra consumption.
"I have no idea how this kid managed to develop such an advanced use of the Flying Thunder God technique. He's truly taken it to the next level!"
Tobirama glanced at Kaito and couldn't help but admire his ingenuity.
"Still I'm the one who created it so all credit goes to me."
A little over a minute later, the teleportation array was complete.
Kaito dismissed his Shadow Clones and scanned the room before addressing everyone: "Please stand up and remain still."
"Also, Daimyo-sama, please inform the people outside and make any necessary arrangements. Once everything is settled, we can depart."
"Don't worry, this won't take long. Since everyone has already agreed, I believe we can wrap up the investment contract discussions within an hour."
"After that, I will personally teleport you all back."
He then looked toward the Daimyo.
The Daimyo nodded, immediately giving instructions to his guards and advisors before sending them out.
Once everything was arranged, he walked up to Kaito's side and said, "I've taken care of everything. We can depart now."
There was an excited expression on his face.
It was clear that he was eager to experience this miraculous space teleportation firsthand.
At the same time, the other nobles and merchants also stood up as instructed, looking at Kaito with various expressions—some excited, some nervous, and others skeptical.
"Alright then, let's go!"
Kaito formed a hand seal.
"Whoosh!"
In the next moment, the teleportation array beneath them lit up with dazzling runes.
With a flash, Kaito transported himself and over a hundred people out of the meeting room.
In the next instant, they all appeared in the open space in front of the Hokage Building.
This particular thousand-square-meter area near the Hokage Building had been cordoned off by Anbu shinobi to prevent anyone from entering and causing a teleportation accident.
However, because of this, many curious villagers and even some ninjas gathered nearby, wondering what was happening.
And then, in the blink of an eye, they saw Kaito and the Daimyo appear out of nowhere with over a hundred people.
"Whoa!!!"
The crowd erupted in shock and excitement.
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