Time flies like an arrow, and days pass like a shuttle. In the blink of an eye, six days had gone by.
That morning, Seimei was, as usual, training inside the volcano on Moon Island, practicing the "Body Extreme" technique to strengthen his physique and push his Byakugan toward evolution. Suddenly, a strange sensation washed over him. At first, he was taken aback, but as he continued with "Body Extreme," he could clearly feel that strengthening his body had become slightly easier. The difference wasn't huge, but it was definitely real.
He'd experienced this before. In the past, whenever his Bloodline Limit evolved and his physical potential improved, this same thing happened. Clearly, this time was no exception.
With a thought, Seimei paused his training and opened his proficiency panel. Sure enough, his "Storm Release" had finally leveled up. After ten days of passive evolution, its progress had jumped from (946/1000) to (1/5000), putting it on the same stage as his earlier-evolved "Lava Release" and "Ice Release."
However, because his foundation was already so strong, the boost to his physical potential from this evolution wasn't as dramatic as it had been with "Lava Release" or "Ice Release." Seimei estimated it would only shave four or five days off the time needed for his body's transformation. Factoring in the three days he'd wasted in the village after the Nine-Tails Incident, the timeline for his transformation remained roughly the same—late November to early December.
Still, Seimei wasn't in a rush. His gaze shifted downward on the panel. Unbeknownst to him, his "Body Extreme" proficiency had already reached the peak of Level 8, and he was close to breaking through to Level 9. Based on the effects of reaching Level 8 last time, he could already predict that hitting Level 9 would massively boost his physical strengthening. When that happened, his body would likely reach the tipping point for transformation ahead of schedule. So, a day or two's difference didn't bother him much.
"I wonder how much it'll improve this time?" Seimei mused.
With that, he used the "Flying Thunder God Technique" to teleport out of the volcano and onto Moon Island. Finding an open area, he began testing his newly upgraded "Storm Release."
Sure, he didn't expect Storm Release to be a game-changer in battle, but it was still a Bloodline Limit—and one that had just evolved. He had to test it out to get a feel for it. At the very least, he'd know what he was working with when he used it.
Zzt-zzt-crackle~
Unlike regular Lightning Release, Storm Release—a fusion of Water and Lightning chakra natures—wasn't wild or volatile. It inherited water's pure and gentle qualities, making it incredibly versatile and easy to manipulate, bending to Seimei's will and shifting shapes effortlessly. An enemy facing it would have a hard time defending themselves.
As for its destructive power? No worries there either. When needed, Seimei could suppress the water's softness and unleash the lightning's ferocity. Right now, with a flicker of thought, a blue-black stream of chakra shot from his palm, hitting the ground like a water snake. It swiftly slithered around several trees before lunging at a massive boulder. The moment it made contact, Seimei's eyes sharpened, and the tip of the stream transformed into a straight bolt of lightning, striking the boulder with pinpoint accuracy.
In an instant, the boulder shattered into pieces.
Then, Seimei directed the snake to make a sharp 90-degree turn to the right, morphing it into a razor-sharp sword that pierced clean through a tree several meters away. Even after all that, the Storm Release chakra hadn't fully dissipated. It only faded when Seimei stopped controlling it.
Reflecting on the sensation of manipulating the chakra, Seimei nodded in satisfaction. After a few more minutes of testing, he gained a solid understanding of Storm Release's control and destructive power at its current stage. With that, he returned to the volcano to resume his training.
Notably, over time, he'd grown more accustomed to the harsh environment of the volcano's first chamber. Now, even without the "Lightning Cloak" for protection, he could handle it just fine. Seimei figured that once his body completed its transformation, he could probably start training in the second chamber. That would further accelerate his physical strengthening.
"Sluuurp~"
The thought made Seimei wipe at his mouth, though there was no drool to be found. Shaking off the daydream, he focused, channeling his Sage chakra and diving back into practicing "Body Extreme."
Time ticked by, second by second.
Three days later, just as Seimei had predicted, his "Body Extreme" training paid off. After three days of practice following the Storm Release upgrade, it finally leveled up.
That afternoon, inside the volcano, as Seimei completed a full cycle of "Body Extreme," a sudden clarity hit him. Without hesitation, he teleported to the open area in the center of Moon Island, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes to process the new insights.
Ten minutes passed.
Seimei's eyes snapped open, a glint of brilliance flashing in them. Without wasting a second, he used "Flying Thunder God" to return to the volcano and began practicing "Body Extreme" again, over and over. At first, his movements were identical to before, but soon, subtle changes crept in. By the end, they were noticeably different.
And that was just the surface. If a Hyuga clan ninja were here, using their Byakugan to observe the chakra flow in Seimei's body, they'd see a dramatic shift in how his Sage chakra moved during these repetitions. That was the real key. These changes boosted his body-strengthening efficiency by a whopping 30 percent.
That's right—his "Body Extreme" was now 30 percent more effective at strengthening his body, far exceeding his expectations. He'd thought the Level 9 upgrade would bring a big jump, but 30 percent? That was insane. His current "Body Extreme" was already highly efficient, and improving it by another 30 percent was a game-changer.
Seimei could only conclude that he'd underestimated the qualitative leap "Body Extreme" would take at Level 9 (0/0). With this, his body would likely hit the transformation threshold by mid-November—great news. It meant he could resolve the imbalance between his body and mind sooner and buy more time to keep them in sync moving forward.
As for the extra two million chakra points this upgrade consumed? Seimei didn't care one bit. Before, he only needed five million chakra points daily for "Body Extreme." Now, that number was seven million. Good thing he'd snagged half the Nine-Tails a couple of weeks ago, netting him an extra six million chakra points daily—otherwise, he'd be scraping to make it work.
The only snag? His natural energy reserves were starting to fall short. Before, he had just enough for five million chakra points' worth of fusion. Now, with an extra two million, he was coming up a bit dry.