Unsure about these thick ledgers, Shuji didn't feign understanding and sought someone here who might.
"Oh?" Tsunade's voice held a trace of surprise, eyes narrowing as she eyed the youth. "Something even you don't understand? Now you seem like a fourteen-year-old."
Shuji's gaze fell on the thick ledger she casually pointed to.
"This is Degarashi Port's ledger."
"You think the old man cares so much about this place for nothing? Without it, how to allocate D-rank mission quotas to the port's merchant guilds and associations?"
She shook the half-empty sake bottle beside her, then set it down. "Those endless low-level tasks in the village don't fall from the sky, do they?"
"High-rank missions never lack posters, but weeding, cat-finding, babysitting—such jobs don't require ninja."
She seemed to warm to the topic, leaning back: "When Great-Uncle was Hokage, he negotiated with Fire Country's houses, including the daimyō's estate."
"Monthly, they provide a fixed number of D-rank commissions to Konoha. If unsure what to submit, they just pay the village to post them."
"So many civilian-born genin in the village—without these steady small tasks, how would they find time and money to train, practice ninjutsu?"
"With just that genin stipend, what could they afford?"
The young captain listened silently, incorporating these Konoha underlayer operations—rules he hadn't deeply considered—into his knowledge.
He nodded slightly, acknowledging the guidance, then turned to leave.
Left alone on the corridor, Tsunade watched his back vanish around the garden corner. That faint sense of accomplishment from "successful mentoring" quickly diluted into another emotion.
This kid... among the clan youth, save for surface-level verbal respect, he offered her zero extra deference.
She'd even given away the Shikkotsu Forest contract!
Tsunade irritably raked her brilliant golden hair, ultimately just snorting and pouring herself another cup.
After leaving, Shuji requested a secluded spot from Jirōchō.
Then summoned Katsuyu—still just palm-sized.
"Katsuyu-sama, apologies for the disturbance." Shuji sat straight and proper.
"No need for formality, Shuji." Katsuyu's gentle voice rose, small antennae turning toward him. "This summoning—what service do you require?"
"This is rather presumptuous. Forgive any rudeness." Shuji's tone was solemn. "I'd like to inquire about senjutsu. Are you familiar?"
Katsuyu's rear antennae eyes regarded Shuji.
"I know of senjutsu, of course." Katsuyu's voice remained calm. "But a reminder, Shuji."
"My main body naturally absorbs and digests natural energy, converting it to senjutsu chakra. In human terms, possessing sage power."
Its small body lifted slightly: "However, Shikkotsu Forest's senjutsu inheritance isn't as renowned as Mount Myōboku's. Practitioners number far fewer than Ryūchi Cave's—not without reason."
"Shikkotsu Forest has only one Katsuyu." Katsuyu explained slowly. "Over long ages past, many eager seekers visited, hoping to learn from the main body."
"For us born with this power, needing no acquired training, we've never formalized a 'system.' Absorbing natural energy is like breathing."
"Because visitors were resolute, the main body assisted—splitting a small slug to attach to the practitioner, aiding perception and absorption."
It sounded feasible, but Katsuyu's tone suggested otherwise.
"Early attempts all failed without exception." Katsuyu sighed. "Our power is innate; we can guide absorption but can't instantly dispel excess natural energy at loss of control."
"After generations of refinement by practitioners, relying on the attached slug allows slow extraction of uncontrolled natural energy. But the premise is..."
"The practitioner must endure the initial violent erosion upon natural energy entry—without instant death or petrification."
Shuji, who had experienced natural energy's fury via Wood Clone, instantly grasped the crux.
Mount Myōboku's toad oil enhanced perception, aided absorption, with Sage Fukasaku ready to interrupt failures.
Ryūchi Cave was crude, but White Snake Sage injected measured energy.
Shikkotsu Forest's method... excess natural energy extraction was too slow; success hinged entirely on the practitioner's foundation and luck—nearly fate-dependent.
His current bottleneck was precisely absorbing natural energy, finely blending it with chakra into senjutsu chakra.
"Katsuyu-sama," Shuji admitted candidly, "I can sense natural energy's existence, but attempts at absorption and senjutsu chakra blending have failed repeatedly."
Failed? Katsuyu's tiny body seemed to pause.
It clearly sensed the youth before it was living flesh and blood.
Failed senjutsu blending and still alive? Perhaps toad aid?
But circumstances suggested otherwise.
With toad help, he wouldn't ask her.
"In attempting senjutsu energy blending, I used Wood Release clones; the main body monitored nearby, ready to dispel the jutsu."
"A Wood Release user has emerged in the Senju again... Tsunade-sama would be deeply pleased." Katsuyu's voice held admiration, then returned to topic. "Using Wood Clones to bear natural energy's erosion instead of the main body is ingenious, Shuji."
"However," its tone grew serious, "dividing your mind to monitor the clone violates senjutsu's first iron rule—total concentration."
"Your chakra is exceptional, Shuji." Katsuyu regarded him. "Caution in senjutsu practice is wise. But for one with such potent chakra, excessive care at the threshold has become the key barrier to crossing."
Katsuyu's insight struck the core.
To fully petrify a living person, natural energy must overwhelm the practitioner's chakra—why only the chakra-strong attempt senjutsu.
Insufficient chakra, and one vanishes instantly.
The chakra-potent, even in loss of control, can refine their own chakra continuously, buying precious time to suppress, neutralize, or dispel invading natural energy.
"By your assessment," Shuji raised his eyes, "with my chakra, if the main body directly endures natural energy erosion, how long before total loss of control?"
Katsuyu weighed carefully before answering: "Judging from the quality and quantity shown replenishing Tsunade-sama... over two minutes is feasible."
"As Shikkotsu Forest's contract summoner, I can extract excess natural energy—under such conditions, senjutsu success probability is very high."
Chapters in advance there: patreon.com/Thaniel_a_goodchild