Kūga had been traveling for several days, moving at a steady pace. As he got further from his original campsite, the landscape changed. The thick forests he knew were replaced by open fields and rolling hills.
The new scenery energized him. Even though the path was uncertain, he appreciated the solitude. It helped him focus on his training and the connection he was building with Aether.
Every day, he took short breaks to practice. Whether sensing the energies around him or testing his own growing abilities, he kept training. He remembered how, in the Naruto series, ninjas used chakra for amazing feats, like running up trees and walking on water.
Those scenes had fascinated him, and now he wondered how much of that he could do with Aether.
One afternoon, as he walked through a thicket, he spotted a tall tree with a wide trunk and long branches. He thought of the episodes where Naruto and his friends focused chakra into their feet to climb.
"It's worth a try," he decided. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on the flow of Aether inside him.
He learned to feel its pulse, the constant energy that was always there. Slowly, he directed it toward his feet and focused until he felt it pool beneath them.
With a frown of concentration, he stepped forward and pressed his foot against the trunk. To his surprise, his foot held steady. He stepped again, this time with more confidence, and soon he was climbing the tree.
"Alright, just like in the anime," he whispered, a grin forming on his face. With each step, supported by Aether, it felt like he was weightless for a moment as he went higher.
When he reached the upper branches, he looked down. The ground seemed far away, but he felt secure, supported by his control of Aether.
But Kūga wasn't finished experimenting. Walking on trees was just the start. If Aether could help him balance on vertical surfaces, what else could it do? He jumped down from the branch and guided the Aether to his feet to soften the landing.
As he fell, he pushed the energy outward and felt a faint lift beneath him. His fall slowed, and for a moment, he hovered just above the ground before landing softly.
His eyes widened as his heart raced. "Did I just…?"
He looked at his feet, then back at the tree. "Was that… floating?" Taking a deep breath, he shook off the surprise.
There was no denying it.
The Aether had cushioned his fall, and for a brief moment, it had let him hover in the air.
"That's new," he said, excitement creeping into his voice. He started to think about the possibilities. If he could hover, maybe he could fly.
He chuckled to himself. "Okay, let's not get ahead of ourselves. One step at a time."
.
Over the next few days, Kūga continued to experiment with this new ability. Whenever he found a suitable spot, he focused on the Aether and tried to lift off the ground.
At first, he could barely rise a few inches before the energy faded and he landed. But with each attempt, he got better. Eventually, he managed to hover three meters above the ground. Though it was tiring, the achievement felt huge.
"Three meters," he said to himself one day after landing. "Not bad for a guy who used to binge anime." He laughed, feeling proud.
These abilities and his connection to Aether were his own. He had earned them through hard work.
On a cloudy morning, Kūga discovered a wide valley between two tall cliffs.
The land was green and lush, with a clear river running through it. Large boulders dotted the landscape, and the sound of the rushing water created a peaceful atmosphere.
"This is a good spot," Kūga said aloud, his voice echoing slightly in the quiet valley. He set down his pack and looked for a good place to camp.
A gentle breeze blew, and the shining river gave him a sense of calm.
He decided this would be his home for a while.
Setting up camp by the riverbank, he felt that the mix of seclusion and openness was perfect for his training. He had come far in understanding Aether, but there was still much to learn.
Every evening, after a long day of traveling and practicing, he sat by the water, watching the current.
His thoughts drifted back to his past life and how he ended up here. He often talked to himself as he processed everything.
"This isn't how I thought things would go," he said, staring at his reflection in the water.
"But I guess if you're gonna get hit by a truck, this isn't the worst outcome." He smirked before shaking his head.
"Focus, Kūga. Aether is the key."
.
In the following days, he worked on controlling Aether even more. He practiced walking on water, just like the ninjas did in Naruto.
He realized the trick was balancing energy to create a stable platform beneath him. It wasn't easy, and at first, he fell into the river more times than he liked. But each failure brought him closer to success.
Then came the breakthrough. One morning, after what felt like hundreds of tries, Kūga stood firmly on the rushing river, barely making a ripple. It felt surreal, like walking on a solid surface that shifted beneath him.
"I… I did it," he breathed, his heart racing with excitement. A smile spread across his face as he stood there, the water flowing under him.
This valley became his new training ground. Every day, he pushed himself, honing his skills with Aether and discovering his abilities.
Though he didn't know what the future held, he felt this was just the beginning of something bigger. Or maybe he was overthinking it.
.
A week passed in the valley, and Kūga immersed himself in training. The open space allowed him to experiment with Aether at his own pace. He'd wake up at dawn, stretch, and dive into practice.
Floating became his main focus, and he could now stay mid-air for almost half a day, though it took all his energy.
"Half a day… maybe more if I stop wasting energy on dumb tricks," he muttered one afternoon while floating cross-legged, focused on the balance of Aether keeping him up. His feet hovered just above the ground, swaying slightly with each breath.
Floating this long was tough, but he was getting used to it. A smile crossed his lips as he pushed himself further.
In between training, he hunted small game... rabbits, chickens, boars, birds, anything to eat.
His senses sharpened, and he could feel the heartbeats of animals nearby. It wasn't perfect, but it was a start.
"Nothing like fresh rabbit," he said with a grin while preparing a meal, seasoning the meat with herbs he'd gathered. He used Aether to pull the smoke from his fire away, directing it far from his camp.
"Wherever that smoke goes, not my problem," he chuckled, watching it disappear.
But Kūga's training wasn't just about Aether. He realized he needed to work on his physical strength. "Why didn't I start this sooner?" he groaned after his first intense workout. Push-ups, sprints, squats. Every muscle ached, and he cursed himself for neglecting this part of training.
"You can float, walk on water, manipulate Aether… but you still get sore from a few push-ups," he muttered, shaking his head. He massaged his sore muscles, but the Aether helped him recover faster than normal, easing his pain.
Despite the discomfort, he pushed through, knowing his body had to keep up with the power he wanted to wield. It wasn't enough to master Aether; he had to be strong in every way.
With that in mind, he started working on a new defensive technique, inspired by a memory from his past life.
"Limitless… yeah, that Gojo guy had it all figured out," Kūga thought while practicing manipulating space.
The idea was simple. He needed to compress space to create a barrier against anything that got too close.
He had aether to compensate the energy used in Jujutsu Kaisen story. But it was tricky to execute.
He wasn't close to Gojo's level in terms of power, and he hasn't been wielding Aether that long now... but he was determined.
Focusing on Aether, he guided it to interact with space, shrinking the air and energy around him until it formed a thin layer just millimeters from his skin. He felt the compression, the tension between his Aether and the world around him. It wasn't perfect, but it was a start.
"Gojo would laugh if he saw this," Kūga said with a half-smile. "But I'll surpass him soon enough."
The mix of physical training, Aether manipulation, and growing mastery over space began to blend into his routine. He was improving, slowly but surely, and with each day, he felt more in control of his abilities.
One evening, as the sun set behind the cliffs, Kūga sat by his campfire, roasting a rabbit he had caught. He seasoned it with spices and used Aether to keep the smoke from filling the valley. He created a small vortex to carry it away.
"Well, at least I won't smell like a smoked rabbit," he joked to himself, enjoying the aroma. His mind was still on training, but cooking over the fire felt normal in a world full of chaos.
Suddenly, he sensed something. Two distinct energy signatures were approaching the valley. They weren't the usual animals; these were stronger and more refined. His senses sharpened as he focused on the source, realizing their energy felt similar to the traces of chakra his father had once had.
He furrowed his brow, curious about the new presence.
"Chakra users… and young ones at that," he murmured, watching from a hidden spot as two boys, no older than him, appeared at the riverbank.
They were skipping stones across the water and chatting as they competed. Kūga narrowed his eyes, studying them. He recognized their energy, and the realization struck him hard.
"No way… Hashirama and Madara?" he whispered, staring at the boys in disbelief.
These were the future leaders of the Senju and Uchiha clans, destined to change history. Yet here they were, just kids, unaware of their futures.
As he finished his meal, he leaned back and continued to observe, trying to process the moment. He hadn't expected to meet anyone, let alone such iconic figures from the Naruto world.
Before he could think more, something else caught his eye. A body floating down the river, drifting toward Hashirama and Madara.