With a goal in mind, Natsuhiko felt a surge of motivation.
He knew very well that at his current level, running off to seek the Ryumyaku would most likely end disastrously.
Moreover, with his present identity, he couldn't simply leave the village whenever he pleased.
But that didn't stop him from planning.
And he was confident that within the next few months, he could turn this idea into something far more feasible.
For now, though, his priority was simple:
Improve his strength first.
Only then would he slowly begin to scheme.
Without strength, everything was just empty fantasy—especially in a world like Naruto's, where power was one of the most important currencies.
"Strength… I wonder how far I'll be able to go in the future."
Sometimes, Natsuhiko felt uncertain about which path he should ultimately take to reach that god-like realm where deities seemed to fly across the battlefield.
The era he was currently in could be considered the safest point in time.
The two individuals from fifty or sixty years ago who could destroy villages single-handedly were already dead. And in the decades since, no such terrifying "gods" had appeared in the ninja world.
But within the next decade or so, such figures would emerge again.
Perhaps "cheat characters" would be a more accurate term.
They were Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto.
Both were beings capable of destroying the ninja world alone.
Just look at the final enemies they defeated—every one of them had the power to do exactly that.
Though, in a way, they were also unlucky.
Their "cheats" were reclaimable. After their final battle, it seemed the Sage of Six Paths took back the power he had granted them.
And after them came the Boruto era—where even fire techniques couldn't seem to ignite properly, and the "gods" were even more outrageous.
Perhaps they shouldn't even be called gods.
Perhaps it was more accurate to say—
Aliens invading the ninja world.
All in all, Natsuhiko was fairly satisfied with the era he had transmigrated into.
Too early, and he'd be cannon fodder.
Too late, and he'd still be cannon fodder.
But right now?
He had time to grow.
He could still carefully consider and plan the path he wanted to take.
At the very least, he could attempt to complete the only mission left by the "biggest boss of the ninja world."
"Still… this bloodline-determined ninja world has already locked in many of the high-end power routes."
After thinking seriously about it, Natsuhiko shook his head helplessly.
At the lower tiers, creativity could flourish.
But at the highest tiers, the path was essentially fixed.
For the descendants of Indra and Asura, the optimal method was to obtain the other's chakra—thereby completing one's own power, or rather, genetic structure.
But here lay the problem:
Although Natsuhiko was a descendant of the Senju clan, he was absolutely certain he was not the reincarnation of Asura.
Even if he could approach Naruto and Sasuke—the "Children of Prophecy"—he had no idea when they would awaken Indra and Asura's chakra.
If it happened too late, it would be meaningless for him.
Worse yet, if he somehow gathered that power prematurely, he might end up attracting the Sage of Six Paths himself.
That would be the real trouble.
"The Sage of Six Paths… Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo definitely isn't dead. At his level of power, how could he possibly die?"
Being quite self-aware, Natsuhiko had no intention of pursuing Indra and Asura's chakra.
The waters there ran too deep.
He couldn't handle it.
"Still… I have a cheat. I can acquire all chakra natures through it. That's my advantage."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
The more chakra attributes he gathered, the more complete he would become.
With his cheat ability, he had no doubt he could fully master them all.
And possessing chakra of all attributes would allow him to obtain one thing—
Truth-Seeking Orbs.
There was no need to elaborate much on their power. This was a force capable of nullifying almost every ninjutsu system in existence. It could be said to be one of the most powerful weapons imaginable.
And when chakra of all attributes was completely fused together…
"That would be a Kekkei Mōra!"
Kekkei Mōra was undoubtedly the most powerful and terrifying force in the entire Naruto world—an ability that completely surpassed all Kekkei Genkai.
However, the difficulty of giving birth to a Kekkei Mōra was beyond imagination.
It required the fusion of seven different chakra nature transformations.
How many Kekkei Genkai existed in the ninja world?
Natsuhiko didn't know.
But judging from how every village—Kirigakure excluded—valued shinobi with Kekkei Genkai, it was clear that such bloodline users were exceedingly rare.
An ordinary Kekkei Genkai was formed by the ultimate fusion of just two chakra natures.
And in the entire ninja world at present, only one person possessed a Kekkei Tōta—
The Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki.
Even at seventy-nine years old during the Fourth Great Ninja War, Ōnoki demonstrated combat ability and destructive power beyond imagination.
If someone who fused only three chakra natures could display such strength, one could easily imagine what kind of world-destroying power would result from fusing seven!
And Natsuhiko actually had the foundation for it.
With his cheat ability, he could obtain these chakra natures relatively easily—and mastering them wouldn't require excessive effort.
The only headache was the matter of fusion itself.
But Natsuhiko felt that worrying about that right now wasn't particularly helpful.
"Besides, maybe my cheat can even let me acquire a fusion seed—and produce a fusion fruit."
Fusion was the most troublesome—and most vexing—aspect of all this.
Still, the existence of his cheat gave him considerable reassurance.
Although he hadn't figured out exactly what principle allowed his cheat to extract corresponding chakra from plants, as long as the extraction came from plants, he could attempt experiments himself.
For example, he could try to cultivate special plants that retained a "fusion" property.
If that failed, he could even take some of his clan's ancient texts and seek help from Orochimaru.
Of course, seeking Orochimaru's help would be a last resort.
If possible, Natsuhiko absolutely did not want to deal with him.
Because Orochimaru was far too intelligent—
And far too dangerous.
Interacting with someone like that would be a challenge in itself—and an unnecessary one at that.
If Natsuhiko's strength were sufficient to completely overwhelm Orochimaru, it wouldn't matter.
But unfortunately, at his current level, facing Orochimaru would likely end the same way it had in the original story—when Kakashi tried to pursue the defecting Orochimaru and had his mask shattered in a single move.
Letting out a soft sigh, Natsuhiko looked at the pages before him, now filled completely with writing, and set down his pen.
He hadn't realized that while thinking and writing simultaneously, he had written so much.
But it didn't matter.
Even if it was a bit excessive—
Didn't it simply show his sincerity all the more?