pjbooks Chapter 378 Like a cheat code
Chapter 378 Like a cheat code
"Heave-ho!"
To give the two young people, who were new to magic, a direct impression, the sage Fukasaku decided to give a small demonstration first.
It stood still and formed a mudra in front of its chest.
The next moment, an invisible flow of energy began to converge on its small body. However, no chakra-like light appeared on Fukasaku's body.
Then it came to a frog statue that was over six meters tall and looked to be carved from a single piece of rock.
The hermit Fukasaku stretched out his two small forelimbs and placed them under the base of the stone statue.
With a soft shout, the solid stone frog statue, weighing at least three or four tons, was lifted off the ground by its body, which was no bigger than an adult's head and weighed no more than twenty pounds! And it was lifted above its head!
The sage quickly put it down, but he himself was also panting heavily, with fine beads of sweat on his forehead.
This scene even surprised Uchiha Satsuki, who had been calmly observing from the sidelines.
It's important to understand that Fukasaku Sage isn't the type of ninja like Might Guy or Rock Lee who specialize in taijutsu and are known for their strength; in fact, his true form is just a small summoning beast.
The physical amplification from merely mobilizing natural energy is already so terrifying? And this is just a simple demonstration of power; imagine if it were used in ninjutsu…
"This is one of the amplifications one can gain after becoming one with nature." Fukasaku took a breath and wiped the sweat from his brow with his webbed feet. "Well then, let's start with the most basic thing: sensing natural energy. Although using toad oil directly might be a bit of a 'forcing growth' for beginners, Naruto, since you were able to unexpectedly summon the Great Sage, this shouldn't be too difficult for you, right?"
"You flatter me," Naruto said, his attitude remaining humble, but a glint of eagerness shone in his eyes. "However, I'd like to try it right away."
"Okay, come here." Fukasaku turned around, hopped to the waterfall that was flowing with a brownish, viscous liquid, and dipped his fingertip in it.
"This is the toad oil passed down through generations at Mount Myoboku," it explained. "It has the special effect of attracting natural energy. Simply apply it to your body, and you can draw in external natural energy."
"However, there may be some 'side effects' from using it, so don't get too excited or impatient. If it is introduced into the body and there is too much uncontrollable natural energy, the body may exhibit some frog-like symptoms."
"But don't worry, once these signs appear, I will immediately step in to help you expel the excess natural energy. Repeat this process until your body gradually adapts and learns to control it."
When Zuo Yue, who was standing behind, heard the words "features of a frog," the surprise on her face was instantly replaced by a hint of panic.
She was not afraid of hardship or the difficulties of cultivation, but the idea of "turning into a frog" was quite a shock to a young girl who was in the prime of her youth and did not completely disregard her appearance.
She subconsciously took half a step forward, as if she wanted to speak up to stop them, her eyes filled with worry about the potential risks.
Naruto noticed her unease, turned around, and gave her a reassuring look.
Naruto did as instructed and walked up to Fukasaku, extending his right hand. Fukasaku carefully applied a layer of toad oil to the back of Naruto's hand using his webbed toes.
The texture is somewhat peculiar; it's cool and a little sticky.
A slight, tingling sensation, like a micro-current, immediately spread through the area where the substance was applied. Naruto could clearly feel that the skin on the back of his hand seemed to have "come alive," and its perception of some invisible entity in the outside world had become exceptionally acute—that must be the "natural energy" that Fukasaku had mentioned.
Then, he held his breath and waited for the impact that might follow, as his body was flooded with natural energy.
Ten seconds have passed...
Twenty seconds have passed...
A minute passed...
Apart from the persistent, gentle tingling sensation and a clearer perception of the flow of external energy, there were no other changes on the back of my hand.
There was no expected surge of energy, and the body showed no signs of "frogification."
Naruto felt a little awkward and looked up at Fukasaku, who also looked confused. "Um... Fukasaku, what should I do next? I don't seem to have any particular feeling?"
"What?!"
The toad-like frog's face was filled with disbelief. Normally, after applying toad oil, a beginner's body would immediately absorb natural energy like a sponge, quickly developing obvious frog-like characteristics due to energy overload. Then, the toad-like frog would need to intervene to "detoxify," repeatedly honing control. But now...?
Could it be that his constitution is special, making him completely unable to absorb natural energy? Fukasaku's heart sank. If that were the case, it would mean that Naruto was completely cut off from Sage Mode.
It immediately extended its webbed feet, grabbed Naruto's arm, closed its eyes, and used all its Sage Mode sensory abilities to probe into Naruto's body.
You wouldn't know unless you investigated, and once you did, even the entire frog, Fukasaku, was stunned!
In its perception, Naruto's body was not empty, but was already filled with a vast, heart-palpitating, lake-like viscous energy—a highly concentrated form of natural energy!
Moreover, this energy is not static; it is continuously absorbed from the outside world through the skin and breathing, with a stable and astonishing efficiency!
It's not that it can't absorb it! On the contrary, the efficiency and upper limit of its absorption and capacity are incredibly high!
The amount of natural energy introduced after applying the toad oil was like a drop of water in a vast ocean to Naruto's body, which was already "soaked" in a massive amount of natural energy and was constantly and efficiently replenishing itself. It couldn't even cause a ripple, let alone the "side effect" of energy overload!
Fukasaku slowly retracted his webbed toes, opened his eyes, and looked at Naruto with a completely different expression, filled with extreme shock and excitement.
It was ultimately younger than the Great Toad Sage and had never seen the Sage of Six Paths in person. But the terrifying talent displayed by this blond-haired youth before it—an almost innate affinity with natural energy, a body seemingly born to bear sage techniques—was something it had never heard of in all its long life!
It wasn't that there was a problem with the cultivation process, but rather that it encountered a true "genius" who is probably unprecedented in the history of immortal cultivation!
"I see... Honestly, that Jiraiya kid, I need to give him a good talking to when we get back. Isn't he just making things worse? He's way too late!"
Fukasaku muttered to himself, it seemed that gentle guidance was not working at all on this gifted child; he had to resort to some "strong medicine".
It turned to face the waterfall that was constantly flowing with brown toad oil, and the pool of oil that had gathered below.
"Naruto, let's try a different method next." Fukasaku's voice was somewhat serious. "Just jump in and immerse your entire body in this toad oil pool. Perhaps... this is the way that suits you best and can truly unleash your potential."
"What?! Submerge your whole body?! Isn't that dangerous?!"
Before Naruto could respond, Uchiha Sasuke, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but gasp in surprise, his face filled with worry.
If it's just a local application, the risks might be manageable, but what if Naruto were to be soaked all over his body and suddenly turn into a frog?
Satsuki's thoughts even started racing uncontrollably—she needed to prepare a sufficiently comfortable and exquisite cage beforehand...
"Little Sazuki, don't worry too much." Fukasaku turned to look at her. "I'll stay here and watch over him. If Naruto's body shows even the slightest uncontrollable sign of frogification, I will immediately disperse all the excess natural energy in his body. I promise."
Hearing Fukasaku's assurance, Naruto took a deep breath. Although a hint of trepidation lingered in his heart, he suppressed it. He took a few steps forward, reaching the edge of the oil pool, and then—
"thump!"
With a muffled thud, he leaped into the viscous pool of toad oil.
Instantly, an indescribable feeling enveloped his entire body. The cold, sticky sensation quickly seeped through his clothes and permeated his skin. Soon, the oil-soaked clothes clung heavily to his body, and Naruto thought that these clothes were probably completely ruined.
Even more intense is the tingling sensation. If applying it to the back of my hand before was just like being gently licked by a cat's tongue, with a slight itch and stimulation.
So now, the feeling of being completely immersed... although that's a bit eerie to describe, it's like being stuffed into a room made of countless tiger tongues that keeps writhing!
The pervasive tingling, itching, and strange sensation of some kind of energy trying to penetrate his pores caused all the muscles in his body to tense up involuntarily.
Fukasaku stared intently at Naruto in the oil pool, his expression grave. Normally, an ordinary person jumping into a pool of toad oil would likely be completely transformed into a frog within three seconds due to the overwhelming influx of natural energy.
At this moment, apart from his expression being slightly stiff due to discomfort, Naruto's body remained unchanged, even his skin color.
Time passed by, second by second.
...About ten minutes have passed.
Naruto was trying his best to adapt to and endure the increasingly intense strange sensations throughout his body. The initial tingling gradually turned into numbness, and his senses were dulled by the viscous energy.
But at that moment, a subtle change finally appeared—he felt his fingers, as if uncontrollably wanting to bend and unfold slightly, with a slight pulling sensation at his knuckles.
Finally, like a lake that was already close to overflowing, after all the floodgates were opened and a torrent of natural energy poured in, Naruto's "natural energy reserve pool" reached a critical point for the first time—it was full.
The body's self-protection mechanism is triggered instantly.
Deep within Naruto's consciousness, a certain instinct was activated.
Immediately afterwards, before he was even fully aware of it, a faint, unnatural energy began to emanate from his right eye.
On the shore, Fukasaku and Satsuki, who had been focused intently, both noticed the subtle change. Fukasaku immediately raised the specially made black rod that he had always kept by his side, ready to "detoxify" at any moment.
However, the anticipated accelerated frogification did not occur.
The barely perceptible frog-like skin texture and bulging eyes that had just begun to appear on Naruto's face quickly disappeared, and he returned to normal.
The next moment, under the astonished gazes of Fukasaku and Satsuki, a bright blue energy origami crane "emerged" from a certain part of Naruto's body, which was submerged in the oil pool, and slowly floated into the air, before turning into specks of light and disappearing without a trace.