To verify his hypothesis, Mutsuki came up with an excuse to adjust the balance between investigation and training time.
Starting from the third day, he dedicated the entire day to training and reserved the evenings for investigation.
No one objected. Whether it was Mutsuki's disciples or Naruto and Yamato, they all followed Mutsuki's arrangement.
The intelligence they had gathered so far was enough for them to complete their respective tasks. The subsequent investigation was only to ensure the mission was concluded more securely and to minimize the impact of the Anrokuzan incident on Roran.
Thus, reducing the investigation time seemed perfectly reasonable.
"Everyone's been training for so long and must be tired. How about a late-night snack?" Mutsuki suggested, glancing at the weary group.
"A late-night snack? Are we going for ramen?" Naruto immediately perked up, his exhaustion vanishing as he asked excitedly.
If they could have a bowl of hot Ichiraku Ramen after a tiring training session, it would be the happiest thing ever.
In fact, Naruto could settle for instant noodles, but when he made them alone, he had to wait the boring three minutes. Going out with everyone to eat ramen might not guarantee instant service, but at least they could chat while waiting.
Yamato looked up at the sky. It was already late at night, and the sky was full of twinkling stars, fresh and brilliant.
"If it's this late, the only places still open will probably be izakayas," Yamato said, his gaze returning to Naruto as he spoke honestly.
Though it wasn't the most timely comment, it was the truth—ordinary ramen shops surely wouldn't be open past midnight.
Yamato was happy to go to an izakaya with Mutsuki, but after some thought, he realized it wasn't very appropriate. Naruto wasn't even of legal age yet, and Kakashi and the others were even younger. It wasn't the kind of place they should be at.
"Looks like you guys are in for a treat tonight, Naruto," Obito said with a grin, immediately thinking that Mutsuki would personally cook up the late-night snack.
After all, this was Mutsuki Sage. If even Yamato had thought of this, there was no way Mutsuki hadn't considered it too.
"We are not going out to eat. I'll cook for you," Mutsuki explained.
Before starting the training, Mutsuki had already completed all the preparations.
Obito gave an expression of "as expected," and Kakashi and Rin began to look forward to the late-night snack.
Mutsuki was their sensei, not their chef, but it had been a while since they had tasted Mutsuki's cooking.
As they waited, seeing how eager Kakashi and the others were, Yamato asked curiously, "Is Mutsuki-san good at cooking?"
He had originally thought about helping Mutsuki in the kitchen, after all, he had learned Mutsuki's Ninjutsu, so he didn't want to just eat for free.
But Mutsuki had declined his offer, saying if Yamato wanted to help, he could clean up the dishes after eating, but when it came to cooking, he preferred to do it alone.
"Not just good, Yumi-sensei's cooking is like it's been enhanced by some super-high-level Ninjutsu. There's absolutely no other food in the entire ninja world that can compare," Obito said, with an exaggerated look on his face.
Though he loved his grandmother's cooking, the truth was, Mutsuki's cooking was in a league of its own, and no other dish could match it.
Yamato's expression was a bit hesitant. If Obito had just said the food was really delicious, Yamato would have believed it right away, but with how exaggerated Obito's praise was, it made it harder to take him seriously.
It wasn't that he thought Obito was lying, but there might be some "idol filter" involved, and the person doing the cooking could make a big difference.
"Yumi-sensei's cooking skills are on par with his Ninja abilities," Kakashi said seriously.
Kakashi even thought that Mutsuki could probably make more money as a chef than as a Ninja.
After all, Mutsuki's cooking was so delicious it could induce hallucinations. Those Daimyo and nobles would definitely pay a fortune just to taste this unique cuisine of the ninja world.
Yamato looked surprised. If it had come from Kakashi, it was much more believable. After all, Kakashi wasn't the type to exaggerate, and he was quite rational.
"I'm really looking forward to it," Naruto said, hearing the praise for Mutsuki's cooking. He leaned forward, peeking into the kitchen, eagerly anticipating the late-night snack.
"By the way, who's the Fifth Hokage?" Obito asked curiously.
Obito wanted to become Hokage, but given his age, it seemed unlikely he could become the Fourth Hokage, so he aimed for the Fifth Hokage instead. Naturally, the Fifth Hokage in a normally progressing timeline would be his rival.
"It's Grandma Tsunade" Naruto answered.
"Ah, Tsunade-sama actually became the Fifth Hokage?" Rin said, her mouth slightly agape, finding it hard to believe.
Rin didn't doubt Tsunade's capability to become Hokage. In fact, at this time, all three members of the Sannin were top candidates for the Fourth Hokage. Anyone among them becoming Hokage would not have seemed out of place to Konoha's ninja.
Rin, who was now somewhat of a disciple to Tsunade, had spent enough time with her to understand her somewhat. She knew very well that Tsunade had no desire to become Hokage.
Tsunade was too lazy to even research Medical Ninjutsu, let alone handle the affairs of the entire village as Hokage.
Rin couldn't imagine what it would be like if Tsunade became Hokage. Could she even show up on time for work? Before noon, the Hokage office would probably be empty without a Hokage at all.
Rin couldn't help but show a look of worry on her face. She hoped that Konoha would be fine in the future and that Tsunade would be able to withstand the heavy workload.
"Granny Tsunade? Isn't she Rin-chan's Medical Ninjutsu sensei? I didn't expect her to be the Fifth Hokage," Obito scratched his head. He remembered that Tsunade seemed to be from the same generation as the Toad Sage, and wondered if being the Fifth Hokage at her age wasn't a bit too much.
"Rin-chan, do you know how strong Granny Tsunade is?" Obito asked, trying to gather some information.
Since Obito referred to Naruto as "big brother," he naturally used Naruto's way of addressing Tsunade, forgetting about the time travel situation.
"She could probably knock you down with one punch and you wouldn't be able to get up, Obito. Also, Obito, you'd better not call Tsunade-sama 'Granny'," Rin warned him, concerned for his safety.
Since Mutsuki had to prepare a late-night meal for six people, all of whom were freshly finished with training, it took him quite a bit of time. During this period, Naruto, Yamato, and Kakashi continued to chat casually to get to know each other better.
Obito then realized that Naruto was also a complete underachiever during his Academy years, both in theory and Ninjutsu.
"I thought you seemed familiar, you're just like Guy," Obito said, feeling like he had discovered the truth.
Kakashi twitched his mouth in a small grimace; some people really had no self-awareness.
After hearing about Kakashi's missions, Yamato couldn't help but sigh. It was incredible that Kakashi-senpai managed to survive; even a C-rank mission, which was supposed to be safe from Ninjas, ended up involving all sorts of Ninja ranks. Even the Chunin Exams had unexpected incidents.
"Wow, this looks amazing! There are so many dishes I've never seen before!" Naruto exclaimed, his eyes widening at the plates of food being brought to the table, each emitting a delicious aroma. It was much more sumptuous than he had imagined.
Since Naruto and Yamato hadn't had his cooking before, half of the dishes were traditional local cuisine from the Ninja world, so Naruto and the others wouldn't feel lost in front of a table full of unfamiliar food.
Many of the ingredients were ones that Mutsuki had stored in scrolls, materials that might not even be available for purchase in Roran.
Facing such a sumptuous late-night meal, everyone solemnly said, "Itadakimasu" before beginning to eat.
Naruto picked up a piece of tempura and put it in his mouth. As his teeth bit into the crispy fried outer layer, he was surprised to find the shrimp inside incredibly juicy and tender. Naruto's eyes widened in astonishment—he really hadn't expected a simple piece of tempura to taste this good.
What happened next was even more surprising. Naruto suddenly felt a sense of disorientation. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a mysterious and beautiful blue world, surrounded by countless fish and shrimp swimming around him.
Naruto tried to reach out, only to realize he had pincers instead of hands. He had somehow turned into a shrimp. He then forgot all his worries and swam freely in the ocean.
When he came to his senses again, Naruto found himself back at the dining table, the ocean and the fish and shrimp all vanished.
"Brother Mutsuki, that was amazing!" Naruto gave Mutsuki a thumbs up. He couldn't think of any other words to describe it.
Naruto remembered what Obito had said before the meal—that eating Mutsuki's cooking would make you see forests, seas, and volcanoes. It turned out that description wasn't far from the truth.
Yamato took a bite of the food and was equally stunned, looking at Mutsuki in disbelief. In that moment, he had thought he was under Genjutsu.
Obito's exaggerated descriptions turned out to be completely true, which really shocked Yamato.
"Come on, eat up," Mutsuki reminded them.
Yamato and Naruto then realized just how exaggerated Obito and the others' eating habits were—their chopsticks were leaving afterimages.
Seeing the food on their plates disappearing rapidly, Naruto and Yamato quickly switched to a battle mode and began eating with fervor.
"This is the best late-night meal I've ever had." After finishing, Naruto still felt unsatisfied.
He thought he hadn't done his best. If he had another chance, he was sure he could eat even more.
"Really sorry to trouble you, Mutsuki-san." Yamato felt incredibly fortunate to have met Mutsuki.
He helped them complete their mission, taught them powerful Secret Jutsu, and now, he had personally prepared such delicious food for them.
Mutsuki smiled but didn't say anything. To him, all of this was just a small effort.
The next day.
Since Mutsuki had changed the training schedule, Naruto and the others began their training early in the morning.
Mutsuki also officially started his test.
"Today, we won't practice Taijutsu. I'll teach you Yang Breathing," Mutsuki said before starting the lesson.
"This will be difficult, so Naruto, try to focus more."
The lesson rewards weren't just about Mutsuki teaching; it also depended on whether the students actually learned.
Since Yang Breathing was a Secret Jutsu still under development, Mutsuki emphasized the difficulty.
"I'll study seriously," Naruto nodded seriously.
Whether it was defeating the Akatsuki Organization or rescuing Sasuke, strength was needed, so he was serious about his training.
And since Mutsuki had been so kind to him, Naruto was even more determined to train seriously, so he wouldn't disappoint Mutsuki.
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Naruto quickly formed the hand signs and released Chakra, creating dozens of Shadow Clones.
He knew that he wasn't a genius when it came to learning, so if one brain couldn't handle it, he would use dozens of them to think together.
"Before learning Yang Breathing, you need to understand two things: Yang Chakra Nature Transformation and Breathing," Mutsuki began the lesson.
He knew Naruto's foundation was average, so he started with the basics, first explaining Yang Chakra.
Dozens of Narutos were attentively listening to the lesson. He really didn't understand Yang Chakra, and the only time he had heard of it was when Yamato briefly mentioned it during his Wind Chakra Nature Transformation training.
After about forty minutes of explanation, Mutsuki paused to give Naruto some time to digest the information.
Realizing this, Naruto dismissed the Multiple Shadow Clones to organize his memories, and when Mutsuki started again, he created dozens more Shadow Clones.
By the end of the morning, Mutsuki had successfully helped Naruto understand Yang Chakra Nature Transformation and the basics of breathing.
Mutsuki had to admit that the Multiple Shadow Clone technique was really useful; Naruto's learning speed was incredibly fast.
But such a hack-like learning method was only suitable for Naruto, as it placed extremely high demands on both his body and mind.
For an average person, not only would using dozens of Shadow Clones be impossible, but even using a few to train together might be too much to handle—it could really cause problems.
In the afternoon, Mutsuki officially began teaching him the still-developing Yang Breathing technique.
Since it wasn't fully developed, Mutsuki spent most of the time explaining the theory behind it.
"When using Yang Breathing, physical energy is enhanced, and techniques related to Yang Chakra Nature Transformation become stronger. To maximize the power of these techniques, the final step in training is to integrate Yang Breathing into other techniques."
Although he hadn't obtained a localized version of Sun Breathing, this didn't prevent Mutsuki from speculating about the effects of a system-localized Sun Breathing based on existing Breathing Techniques.
Sun Breathing and Flame Breathing are both fire-based, and in the original Demon Slayer, Sun Breathing is much stronger than Flame Breathing. According to the system's principle of localized skills, the fire of Sun Breathing would certainly be much stronger than Flame Breathing.
To achieve this effect in the Naruto world, it was likely that Yang Chakra Nature Transformation or Natural Energy was introduced, making the fire of Sun Breathing a combination of Yang and Fire or Natural Energy and Fire. It's also possible that both were involved, since the two don't conflict with each other.
Mutsuki had not yet come into contact with Senjutsu knowledge related to Natural Energy, so he started by focusing on Yang Chakra first.
For Mutsuki's development purposes, the biggest difference between Yang Breathing and other Breathing Techniques is its potential.
Currently, Yang Breathing is quite weak. If we're talking about its early effects, it's only slightly stronger than basic breathing techniques, but the difficulty is on an entirely different level compared to basic breathing.
However, Yang Breathing has a lot of room for growth. If it's cultivated to a high level, it can make physical energy incredibly strong, and No Seal Regeneration might no longer be a dream.
At the same time, Yang Breathing can also be merged with other Breathing Techniques, as Mutsuki envisioned, such as helping Yang Breathing evolve into Sun Breathing.
While teaching Naruto, Mutsuki also taught Yamato some Water Release techniques.
He felt that with Yamato's Chakra, learning some powerful Water Release techniques could make his combat performance potentially as good as, if not better than, using Wood Release.
Of course, Wood Release has its unique advantages, such as suppressing the chakra of tailed beasts. No matter how much you practice Water Release, you can't replicate that effect.
[Lecture Complete]
[Evaluation: S]
[Reward: Yang Chakra Nature Transformation +9, Basic Breathing +12, Yang Breathing +2, Water Chakra Nature Transformation +1]
With the reward settled, Mutsuki's mind gained some additional cultivation memories.
A smile appeared on Mutsuki's face. This was indeed a pleasant surprise. At this rate, he should be able to complete the preliminary development of Yang Breathing within a month.
After the training, Mutsuki, in a good mood, made a hearty dinner to reward his students.
Before the food was served, everyone was laughing and chatting, but once the dishes were laid on the table, not a single person spoke.
After their first lesson, Yamato and Naruto had learned their lesson. They knew that while chatting was fine before and after the meal, during the meal, they had to give their full attention to eating.
After dinner and a short rest, it was time for the investigation task. Mutsuki sent out a Shadow Clone to join Kakashi and the others, while his real self continued to study the Dragon Vein.
After a week of such routine, Obito and the others, having gathered enough evidence, suggested to Mutsuki that they capture Mukade that night.
"This guy not only locks innocent civilians in underground factories to make puppets for him day and night, but he also conducts human experiments. How can he smile at the people without feeling disgusted with himself?" Obito said indignantly.
During their investigation, they discovered that the disappearances of many civilians in Roran were connected with Mukade. With Mutsuki's Byakugan assisting them, they quickly located Anrokuzan's underground factory and uncovered his vile deeds.
"This time, we absolutely won't let this despicable guy escape," Naruto said, clenching his fist. He was eager to take down Anrokuzan.
"Releasing this evidence, there's no way anyone would want to protect Anrokuzan. The civilians would probably want to execute him on the spot," Kakashi remarked, feeling that their preparations were nearly complete.
"Then we strike tomorrow," Mutsuki said after a moment's thought. "I'll contact the Queen and arrange for her to meet Anrokuzan tomorrow."
Anrokuzan is a Puppet Master, and his combat power relies entirely on his puppets. If they were to fight him at his base, Anrokuzan would likely have many backup puppets ready.
By having the Queen of Roran arrange for the fight to take place outside, Anrokuzan would be limited to using only the puppets he brought with him, which would somewhat weaken his combat potential.
Although the enemy's strength wasn't particularly overwhelming, Mutsuki followed the principle that even when fighting a rabbit, one should use full force, striving to avoid any unexpected events.
"Keep your Kunai ready. If there's danger, I can be by your side in an instant," Mutsuki said, handing Naruto and Yamato two Flying Thunder God Kunai from his ninja tool pouch.
Not only was this for protecting Naruto and Yamato, but it was also to protect Anrokuzan. If Anrokuzan died, Naruto and Yamato would be sent back, so Mutsuki wouldn't let Anrokuzan die. He planned to seal him instead.
Naruto hadn't yet mastered Yang Breathing, and Jiraiya hadn't seen him yet. It wasn't time for them to return just yet.
Mutsuki's plan seemed very sound and reasonable, and no one objected. As bedtime approached, they dispersed and returned to their rooms.
...
"Has she finally come to her senses and decided to continue working with me?"
This was Anrokuzan's first thought when he heard that the Queen of Roran had arranged a meeting with him in the western part of Roran to discuss development issues.
After all, Roran was a poor, remote area, and apart from the Dragon Vein, there was nothing much to develop.
Anrokuzan was in a good mood about this. He had already prepared plans to assassinate the Queen of Roran and support Princess Sara to take the throne.
From the information he had gathered, Sara possessed abilities similar to those of the Queen.
Compared to the sly Queen, the naive and sweet Sara would be much easier to control. He might even be able to sell her off and have her help him count the money.
However, Anrokuzan's ultimate goal was to absorb the power of the Dragon Vein, not to control Roran. So for him, as long as he achieved that goal, everything else was irrelevant.
The western part of Roran was the least developed area, with vast open land and abandoned buildings.
Led by the Roran soldiers, Anrokuzan arrived at the site where the Queen was inspecting.
Anrokuzan forced a smile and said, "Queen-sama, I have a great development idea. I believe someone as wise as you can probably guess what it is."
Because they were supposed to be working together, Anrokuzan didn't directly mention the Dragon Vein, instead hinting at it to the Queen.
"Even though it's all Roran, the environment in the west is much worse than the rest of the land. We should develop this area, even if it requires a little cost," Anrokuzan continued, seeing that the Queen didn't respond.
At that moment, the Queen's handkerchief suddenly fluttered to the ground.
Swish!
The four Roran soldiers standing next to Anrokuzan immediately drew their blades and slashed at him.
But to their surprise, it seemed as though they weren't slashing a person, but cutting into steel. The blades barely scratched his clothes before they couldn't go any deeper.
Anrokuzan's expression darkened. A few ordinary people were actually trying to attack him.
In order to withstand the power of the Dragon Vein, he had already transformed his body into that of a Puppet. For him, ordinary swords and knives were nothing more than a scratch.
"Looks like I'll have to make it seem like Roran Queen was unfortunately assassinated, and then Princess Sara can take the throne in the midst of the crisis," Anrokuzan thought, preparing to kill everyone in the area and support Sara's rise to power.
However, before he could act, several wooden stakes suddenly grew from the ground beneath him, rapidly binding him up.
The four Roran soldiers quickly took the opportunity to retreat, while Naruto and the others, who had been hiding nearby, charged forward.
Naruto gathered a massive amount of Chakra in his hand, continuously compressing and rotating it until it formed a rapidly spinning Chakra ball.
Without a moment's hesitation, Naruto raised his Rasengan and slammed it toward Anrokuzan's chest.
"Flash!"
Kakashi seized the opportunity to concentrate his Thunder Breathing to the utmost, enhancing its explosive power, and then swung his Lightning Blade at Anrokuzan's legs with incredible speed.
Anrokuzan furrowed his brows and tried to break free from the wooden restraints, only to realize that the wood was much stronger than he had imagined.
Swish!
Kakashi's White Fang Tanto cleaved through Anrokuzan's legs, severing them completely.
Boom!!
Naruto's Rasengan tore through Anrokuzan's clothes and body, revealing the Puppet parts inside.
"This enemy seems unexpectedly easy to deal with," Obito said, seeing Anrokuzan suffer such a heavy blow, and felt that the battle was already over.
"Don't let your guard down until the enemy is completely dealt with," Mutsuki said, shaking his head as he walked over to the Roran Queen.
Although Roran Queen had chosen to terminate her cooperation with Anrokuzan, he had still absorbed a considerable amount of Dragon Vein power, so he wouldn't be easily defeated.
While Naruto's Rasengan had inflicted serious damage on Anrokuzan, it also shattered the wooden stakes binding him. With a quick roll, Anrokuzan grabbed a scroll and activated the Dragon Vein Chakra within his body.
Inside the scroll was a Puppet, which, under Anrokuzan's control, quickly reassembled and repaired his body, making him look even stronger than before.
"You just won't stay down, huh? I didn't expect you to follow me here," Anrokuzan cursed while dodging.
At first, Anrokuzan thought that Naruto and the others had followed him, so he acted with extreme caution in Roran, using Transformation Jutsu and other tactics to conceal his identity. For a long time, after not seeing Naruto, he became sure that only he had traveled here.
He really hadn't expected Naruto to show up at this moment, especially with several unfamiliar allies in tow.
Anrokuzan quickly took out two more scrolls and released six tall, imposing Puppets.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Obito, who had concentrated his Flame Breathing to the extreme, immediately unleashed a massive fireball.
Boom!
The huge explosion instantly destroyed one of Anrokuzan's Puppets.
"Rasengan!"
Naruto used Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu to create a large number of Shadow Clones. The clones and his main body together used Rasengan to quickly destroy two of the Puppets.
"Wood Release: Impaling Spear Tree!"
Yamato calmly controlled the wooden tendrils extending from his body, piercing and destroying one Puppet.
"Lightning Release: False Darkness!"
Kakashi gathered a large amount of Lightning Release chakra and shot out a lightning spear. The spear was fast and had incredible penetrating power, destroying another Puppet.
Rin swung the Chakra Tanto given to her by Naruto, cutting through the Chakra Threads of one of the Puppets, causing Anrokuzan to lose control over it.
The battle had just begun, and all six Puppets Anrokuzan had released were already down.
Anrokuzan's face darkened considerably. That had been most of the Puppets he was carrying, and he only had ten in total. Now, only three remained.
Without hesitation, Anrokuzan released the last three Puppets and began running frantically toward the location of his underground base.
Though the Puppets he carried were of higher quality, the number of Puppets in the base was enough to overwhelm the ninjas. He planned to exhaust them.
"As long as I can reach that place, there's no problem!" Anrokuzan thought he saw the possibility of a counterattack.
But the battlefield was chosen by Mutsuki and the others. If they didn't set some traps, they wouldn't be true ninjas.
Just as Anrokuzan was about to escape, Kakashi silently triggered the dozens of explosive tags he had planted earlier.
Boom!!!
A Lightning Strike-like explosion erupted suddenly, with a blinding flash of light. Anrokuzan and the three Puppets that were covering his retreat were all consumed by the massive explosion.
Seeing Anrokuzan engulfed by such a powerful explosion, the Roran Queen finally relaxed.
She had originally planned to bring Sara along to show her the dangers of human nature, but for safety reasons, the Roran Queen ultimately decided against it.
The thick smoke from the explosion concealed Anrokuzan's figure. Naruto and the others stared intently at the smoke, unsure of Anrokuzan's condition inside.
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