After the Kurama Yakumo incident, Yagyu's life gradually became peaceful and blissful. Every day, he either chatted with Tsunade at the Hokage's office or helped out with various tasks. He often visited the training grounds to check on the progress of Hinata and the others, sometimes joining in to assist in their training, often collaborating with Shizune to teach the girls.
Occasionally, he would spar with Kurenai, further cultivating their teacher-student relationship.
During his free time, Yagyu would also visit the Hyuga clan, guiding his now-adoring fan, Hanabi, or taking her out for fun, strengthening the bond between him and his future sister-in-law.
Sometimes, when the atmosphere was just right, Yagyu would gather Hinata, the other girls, Kurenai, Hanabi, and even Kurama Yakumo at Tsunade's mansion for parties to further cement their bonds.
He also took Team 8 out on missions, using the time to relax and bond with Hinata on a more personal level.
This phase of life, while reminiscent of the time Yagyu and the girls spent at the Ninja Academy, was also markedly different.
After all, they had grown up!
Although only a year had passed since their graduation, Hinata and the others had experienced much.
They had forged bonds with their jounin instructors, developed camaraderie with their teammates, faced numerous challenges and even life-or-death battles, witnessed the departure of comrades, the disbanding of teams, and tasted both helplessness and despair.
Their encounters with these trials, along with their evolving relationships with those they admired, had made Hinata and the others more mature.
They no longer trained hard merely to earn Yagyu's praise. They now understood what strength meant and why pursuing power was important.
Just as Yagyu had hoped, Hinata and the others began to move away from their reliance on him, shedding similar patterns and starting to shine with their own unique light.
Konoha's blooming flowers—each one distinct!
While Hinata and the others worked hard, Yagyu was also striving.
Since discovering that the game system could drop chakra attributes, Yagyu had used his clones to farm jutsu like the Mayfly Technique and Impersonation Technique from White Zetsu's clone, deploying thousands of Wood Clones across the ninja world.
Even remote islands outside the mainland were under Yagyu's surveillance.
He had only deployed four-figure amounts of clones because Wood Clones, unlike regular shadow clones, required chakra from others to recover their own, which made finding suitable targets difficult.
If not for this limitation, Yagyu might have recreated the ten thousand White Zetsu and had them monitor the entire ninja world.
The thousands of clones scattered across the world, many would disappear after failing to recover chakra, reverting into seeds or trees. However, those that succeeded in replenishing their chakra often took the opportunity to gather equipment for the main body.
Over time, Yagyu regularly saw glowing orbs flying toward him from afar, merging into his body.
These orbs, in shades of blue and white, contained chakra attributes or even ninjutsu.
Over the past half year, Yagyu had absorbed hundreds of chakra attributes alone.
Quantity led to qualitative change!
As Yagyu had guessed, merging similar chakra attributes seemed to enhance his talent in those specific chakra natures.
Not only had this improved his ability to change the nature of chakra, but it also made jutsu requiring shape transformation significantly easier to learn.
At this point, Yagyu's ability to learn ninjutsu from the five elements felt like he had a cheat code, and the power of those techniques also felt similarly boosted.
Whether low-level or advanced elemental jutsu, none posed much of a challenge for him anymore.
As a result, Yagyu's clones had already begun researching combination jutsu.
At this rate of growth, it wouldn't be long before Yagyu developed combination techniques that fused all five chakra natures, similar to Hiruzen Sarutobi's creations.
Aside from the five elemental jutsu, Yagyu's clones were also diligently working on the forbidden techniques from the Scroll of Seals.
Yagyu's main body joined in this effort as well.
Each day, he absorbed several Gelel Stones, rapidly advancing his Sage Body. The level of fatigue his body could endure had now reached terrifying heights.
Already a genius, Yagyu now put in many times more effort than the average person.
If it weren't for the immense gap between Kage-level and super Kage-level strength, Yagyu would already be the strongest in the ninja world.
Even so, at this point, there were only a handful of individuals in the world who could truly compete with him.
——————
Time flew by, and it was now late October in Konoha Year 61.
Swoosh—
On this particular day, Yagyu's Wood Clone, using the alias "Hundred Faces," was, as usual, training Uchiha Sasuke.
Throughout the past year, Hundred Faces, whose chakra was similar to Sasuke's, hadn't rushed to lower his strength to extract Indra's chakra from Sasuke. Instead, he first taught Sasuke fire and lightning techniques, steadily increasing his power to improve the drop rate.
In collaboration with Orochimaru, with one of them aiding Sasuke during the day and the other at night, they had even helped Sasuke develop Chidori Nagashi and proposed the theory behind the S-rank lightning technique, Kirin.
At this rate, Sasuke would surpass his strength from the original series' "Battle of the Brothers" long before he turned sixteen.
Once Sasuke's power had been built up and he had developed a bond with his "clanmate," Hundred Faces finally planned a series of sparring matches where Sasuke, whose chakra had already exceeded his own, could challenge him.
After a year of effort…
On this particular evening, after a sparring match where Sasuke won some and lost some—neither damaging his pride nor allowing him to become arrogant—Hundred Faces finally saw the golden glow he had been waiting for.
In that moment, Hundred Faces's emotions were indescribable.
There was no sudden elation as if winning a lottery, but rather a deep sense of accomplishment akin to watching a tree bear fruit after years of care.
A golden beam of light emerged from Sasuke's body, transforming into a golden orb before floating upwards and heading in a specific direction.
Hundred Faces knew his mission was complete.
Looking at the somewhat disheveled Sasuke, who was reflecting on how he had lost, Hundred Faces smiled warmly and said, "Sasuke, your strength has reached a bottleneck. All you need now is a breakthrough in your ocular power and to master that ultimate lightning technique. Then, you'll have the power to face Uchiha Itachi."
Hearing this, Sasuke didn't show any pride but instead wore a slightly somber expression. "Are you leaving?"
"Yes," Hundred Faces nodded, taking out the vacant Akatsuki ring he had received from Orochimaru. "Next, I will use a secret technique to change my appearance and infiltrate the organization where Uchiha Itachi resides."
"Orochimaru will be your final test. Once you've gained the strength to escape his grasp, you can seek revenge against Itachi."
"Then, I will provide you with his whereabouts and intelligence."
"…Alright," Sasuke nodded without hesitation, his face emotionless, though his voice carried a trace of concern. "Be careful."
"You should be telling yourself that. Don't let that snake steal your body," Hundred Faces chuckled before his form was surrounded by red powder, and he disappeared without a trace.
This was the combination of Red Eye Illusion and the Mayfly Technique.
Even Sasuke, with his Sharingan, couldn't see how Hundred Faces had left. It was as if he had vanished from existence.
At first, this used to make Sasuke's heart race in unease.
But now, it gave him a sense of relief.
Though Hundred Faces wasn't overly powerful, his escape techniques ensured he wouldn't face much danger.
Sasuke glanced up at the starry sky. Taller than he had been a year ago, he turned and slowly walked back toward Orochimaru's lair.
Under the moonlight, his solitary figure walking across the plain seemed lonelier than before.
Starting tomorrow, he would once again be alone.
Yagyu, of course, didn't know that his Wood Clone had managed to make Sasuke care about him so deeply. If he had, he might have altered his plan and staged a dramatic "Chidori Through the Heart" moment, just to see if Sasuke would awaken his Mangekyo Sharingan on the spot.
Unlike Hundred Faces's sense of fulfillment from nurturing Sasuke, Yagyu's main body was filled with joy.
Indra's chakra, the ultimate Yin power, had finally been released!
It hadn't been easy—it really hadn't!
Yagyu had been eyeing this power since he was six, and now, at the age of thirteen, he had finally acquired it.
When the golden orb flew over a great distance and merged into Yagyu's body, he realized just how valuable the "Beginner's Gift Pack" the system had given him truly was.
Over the past year, Hundred Faces had defeated Sasuke countless times, always with less chakra than him.
Yet, it still took a full year to finally trigger Indra's chakra.
In comparison, when Yagyu farmed chakra attributes and kekkei genkai with his Wood Clones, it usually only took a few days at most to acquire the blue and red orbs.
From this, it was clear that the highest-level golden orbs had an incredibly low drop rate, even when using clones to increase the odds.
If Yagyu had tried to farm these orbs with his main body, he would have needed a stroke of unbelievable luck just to obtain a red orb containing a kekkei genkai.
The only targets likely to drop items for him at a decent rate were those stronger than Yagyu himself.
But in this era, there were few stronger than Yagyu. Beyond Nagato, there was only Otsutsuki Isshiki, who was hidden somewhere in the ninja world—or in some other dimension entirely.
Even Nagato only had overwhelming combat strength, but his stamina was already outmatched by Yagyu's.
As for threats to Yagyu's life, only Onoki, with his Dust Release, and Itachi, with his many hidden cards, posed a genuine risk.
Though Uchiha Obito's Kamui made him a tricky opponent, it just meant Yagyu couldn't kill him yet.
Still, Yagyu knew that until he obtained the "Power of All Things" or fully mastered his Sage Body, his position as one of the strongest in the ninja world was only temporary.
Once Shippuden began, Naruto and Sasuke would surpass him within a year unless Yagyu managed to break through to Six Paths-level strength.
And if the Fourth Great Ninja War broke out before Yagyu could reach that level, he would only be able to play a supporting role—unless he managed to acquire something on par with Six Paths powers or had Hagoromo Otsutsuki himself grant him a boost.
Otherwise, even with his current strength, he might end up being killed by Madara after he regained both his eyes or be crushed by Kaguya's gravity dimension, followed by her finishing move, the All-Killing Ash Bones.
That was why, even though Yagyu was currently almost invincible, he always felt a deep sense of crisis.
As a result, he had multiple contingency plans in place.
But now, with this second golden orb merging into his body, some of that pressure eased, and his confidence soared.
Yagyu couldn't wait to open his virtual interface and check the golden orb in his inventory.
[Inventory: Indra's Chakra (Golden)]
Even though Yagyu already knew what was in the orb, seeing this confirmation still gave him a surge of satisfaction, like drinking a cold soda on a hot day.
Without hesitation, Yagyu chose to fuse the chakra.
As the golden beam of light emerged from his inventory and merged into his body, Yagyu became the latest in a line of successors, following Uchiha Madara, to achieve the Unity of Yin and Yang.
Within Yagyu's body, the Power of All Things began to form.
This was a power from another dimension, transcending the limits reached by all previous incarnations of Asura and Indra.
To be precise, it wasn't simply a power—it was potential.
Unlike Madara, who had only obtained a small portion of Hashirama's cells and thus only a fraction of Asura's Yang chakra, Yagyu had acquired the complete chakras of both Asura and Indra.
Asura, who had inherited Hagoromo's body and vitality, passed on the true Sage Body to each of his reincarnations.
Indra, who had inherited Hagoromo's eyes, possessed the true Sage Eyes, as represented by the Uchiha's Sharingan, which embodied the ultimate Yin power.
Taken to their extremes, both the Sage Body and Sage Eyes reached super-Kage level strength.
When these two ultimate forces combined, they gave rise to the Power of All Things, creating a new Sage of Six Paths—Hagoromo's second coming.
Yagyu didn't need to become a Jinchuriki of the Ten-Tails. As long as he mastered his Sage Body and fused Yin and Yang chakra to awaken the Rinnegan, his power would naturally surpass that of Madara, making him a true Six Paths-level entity.
Once he reached that realm, Yagyu would be at a new starting point, able to develop abilities like Bloodline Selection or Six Paths techniques, charting a path different from that of the alien Otsutsuki clan.
Of course, all of that was still a long way off.
But Yagyu now possessed that potential.
The realization filled him with renewed motivation for his training.
Just like when he had fused Asura's chakra years ago, Yagyu sat cross-legged on the ground, focusing on sensing any changes within his body.
"Hiss…"
After a while, Yagyu opened his eyes and couldn't help but gasp, his voice trembling with excitement.
"This ratio is… incredible!"
His face lit up with joy as he muttered, "With this balance, does that mean my Sage Body's growth has accelerated too? So it turns out that not only can extreme Yang power speed up the development of the Sage Eyes, but extreme Yin power can also accelerate the growth of the Sage Body!"
The ratio Yagyu referred to was his mental energy.
Unlike chakra nature transformations or Yin-Yang Release, physical and mental energy were tied to the body's cells.
To increase these energies, one needed to train physically from a young age, gain experience in learning and combat, and extract energy from their cells.
Before awakening his game system, Yagyu had higher mental energy compared to physical energy, but because his physical energy was relatively low, his chakra reserves were average, though his ability to generate chakra was quicker than others.
After fusing with Asura's chakra, Yagyu's body underwent a transformation, constantly increasing both his physical and mental energy.
However, the ratio remained skewed, with his physical energy far outpacing his mental energy.
But now, the gap had narrowed significantly.
The sudden surge in his mental energy meant that Yagyu could extract far more chakra at once.
At this rate, it was inevitable that Yagyu would eventually surpass Hashirama in chakra reserves.
In fact, he might even surpass Hashirama as a benchmark for comparison.
"This is the power of the complete Unity of Yin and Yang," Yagyu murmured, a delighted smile spreading across his face.
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