Chapter 53

Jiraiya, upon returning to Konoha, did not explain the strange prophetic dream foretold by the Great Toad Sage to his teacher, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

As the Hokage, whether to believe in prophecies was still a matter of debate. Even if he did believe, investigating a completely innocent ninja without any basis could easily cause chaos within Konoha.

In many cases, even the Hokage could not casually pry into a ninja's secrets. Jiraiya was well aware of the priorities in such matters.

Therefore, such matters could only be handled personally.

After all, the Great Toad Sage had said that this prophetic dream would directly cause the disappearance of ninjas from the ninja world, including Konoha.

As a staunch supporter of the Will of Fire, Jiraiya could not tolerate such an outcome.

Thus, Jiraiya had two plans: one was to find the person the Great Toad Sage spoke of in Konoha and deal with them directly. This was the first method and the most direct and effective.

However, this was not his style, so the second method was to find the person of the prophecy and educate them correctly. This would not only prevent the disappearance of Konoha but also cultivate an excellent ninja for the village.

Which of the two methods to choose depended on finding the person of the prophecy. Without finding this person, any talk would be mere speculation.

However, Jiraiya had a faint worry.

The Great Toad Sage did not conclude that the person of the prophecy could be guided to the right path. Instead, he directly foresaw the disappearance of the ninja forces led by Konoha, accompanied by unprecedented war that would sweep through the ninja world.

Therefore, Jiraiya was concerned that the person of the prophecy could not be corrected by any means or words, and would only delve deeper into the path of destruction.

If the ninjas disappeared, the ninja world would naturally be destroyed.

This was precisely what Jiraiya was worried about.

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At the end of July, the sun was scorching.

Under the shade of a large tree in the courtyard, Shiro and Ruri were sitting in meditation, practicing the extraction of natural energy from the natural world.

Unlike the physical and mental energy that forms naturally within the human body, the source of natural energy is more extensive, present in the air, water, flowers, and trees. It is a ubiquitous and endless life energy.

The absorption of natural energy can significantly enhance physical and mental vitality, providing a comprehensive boost.

Moreover, after absorbing natural energy, the human body can be improved, making it more robust.

To put it simply, if all the humans in the ninja world mastered the method of absorbing natural energy, their natural lifespan would increase by several decades, and even in old age, their physical condition would not decline much, and their appearance would not look overly aged, maintaining boundless energy.

Of course, this is an ideal situation.

Theories often require logic, but reality is often far-fetched.

Promoting this cultivation method in the current era to benefit all humanity is a pipe dream.

Without a complete system and set of rules, such a hasty promotion would not only put oneself in a very dangerous position but also brew an unprecedented war storm.

The war would no longer be limited to ninjas but would involve the entire human hierarchy.

Therefore, the best course of action was to remain cautious.

Precisely because they had mastered the method of extracting natural energy, they should hide even deeper and not expose themselves unless absolutely necessary.

While Shiro was fully focused on extracting natural energy, Ruri had already opened her eyes.

A small orange-furred cat suddenly landed on her shoulder. This cat was slightly fatter than a normal house cat, looking harmless, but it approached Ruri with a light and silent gait, indicating its speed and agility were far from its fat body.

"Lord Ruri."

From its open mouth, a voice similar to a human's, neutral in tone, came out, making it impossible to tell if it was male or female.

"Hibari, is there something important?"

Hibari was the most capable of the忍猫 (ninja cats) that Ruri had signed a summoning contract with. Normally, it was responsible for managing the hundreds of cats in Konoha and relaying information.

It was not yet the fixed time for relaying information, so Hibari must have come to report something important.

"Recently, the number of toads in Konoha has increased significantly compared to before."

Hibari jumped down from Ruri's shoulder and looked at her face-to-face.

"Toads?"

Ruri frowned.

"Yes. I find this a bit strange, so I came to report it."

"What do you think is the reason?"

Initially, to send the hundreds of cats into Konoha, it took about half a year through various official channels, so Ruri's use of cats to gather information had not been detected by outsiders.

Even the identities of these cats had naturally blended into Konoha, without any inconsistencies.

Because of past experiences, Ruri was always on guard against any abnormalities in her surroundings.

"I'm not sure. Lord Ruri, what should we do next?"

"From now on, have your cats relay information from high places without toads. If there's anything unusual with the toads, report it to me immediately."

Regardless of the reason for the sudden increase in toads in Konoha, whether it was a natural occurrence or someone's manipulation, Ruri had to remain highly vigilant.

At any time, no suspicious detail should be overlooked.

"Understood!"

After reporting, Hibari disappeared with a swoosh from in front of Ruri.

Shortly after Hibari disappeared, Shiro opened his eyes and stood up from the shaded spot where he had been meditating.

"How was it? Did you complete it?"

Ruri was concerned about this.

"Very smoothly. Now I feel an endless supply of energy in my body, and my mental state is much better than usual. I feel like I could stay awake for days without feeling tired."

Shiro stretched his limbs and smiled in satisfaction.

Just as he had expected, natural energy had unimaginable benefits for living beings.

If this method were promoted among humans, it could indeed rejuvenate their bodies and minds, preventing various illnesses. Minor ailments would not require medication and could be eliminated by the body's strong immune system.

Currently, Shiro's body showed no visible changes, but inside, besides chakra, he had also absorbed natural energy from the natural world.

Through his experiments, Shiro had not yet realized that after extracting natural energy, he suddenly felt that even without chakra, natural energy could form a complete energy system.

This was very close to his expectations. Even without chakra as a support, natural energy could serve as a necessary energy supplement in battle.

Especially in enhancing taijutsu.

This had already been proven in previous experiments.

As for whether natural energy could be used to release jutsu and genjutsu, further research was needed.

If natural energy could be used to release jutsu and genjutsu, it would undoubtedly be a superior replacement for chakra.

However, these two complement each other.

The senjutsu chakra produced by the fusion of natural energy and chakra has even greater strength and provides a significant boost to the body's vitality.

Chakra, natural energy, and senjutsu chakra progress in this order.

Theoretically, since natural energy can independently enhance physical and mental vitality, i.e., strengthen taijutsu, it logically follows that it can also be used to release jutsu and genjutsu.

However, this is only theoretically sound.

Even so, Shiro was already very satisfied. His combat techniques mainly came from taijutsu, with medical jutsu as his primary ninjutsu.

Now that he had a better alternative to chakra to enhance his taijutsu—natural energy—he could save the limited chakra in his body. Using natural energy to enhance physical and mental vitality provided a more comprehensive and lasting boost than chakra.

Therefore, calling natural energy an inexhaustible energy source was not an exaggeration.

"By the way, I think I heard Hibari's voice just now. What happened?"

While extracting natural energy, Shiro vaguely heard the voice of the ninja cat, Hibari, and asked.

Ruri did not hide it and said directly, "It came to report that there are many more toads in Konoha recently and asked me to be cautious."

"Toads?"

Shiro tilted his head.

To be honest, if not for someone particularly attentive to this, it would be hard to notice the increase in toads in Konoha. After all, toads are small and mostly hide in dark, damp sewers. Who would pay special attention to this?

"One of the Three Great Sage Places, Mount Myōboku, is the home of toads. And Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, has a deep connection with Mount Myōboku."

"Are you worried about toads from Mount Myōboku?"

Shiro suddenly found this a bit far-fetched.

"According to the Uchiha's records, the Three Great Sage Places have a long tradition and possess mysterious and powerful forces. Regardless of whether it's the Sannin's doing, we cannot be complacent."

"Is that so? Then we should be cautious."

Shiro did not object. After all, Ruri had a complete intelligence system, and such matters did not need his involvement.

However... the sudden increase in toads in Konoha is indeed a bit strange.

Forget it, I just need to stay low and not draw attention. There's no need to get involved in these unnecessary matters, Shiro thought.

So far, he had hidden himself well, and Ruri had handled many follow-up issues for him. At this moment, he was just a simple-minded, ordinary Konoha genin.

He just needed to continue living a simple life.