Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

Excitement, elation, and triumph filled Xia Zuo with such emotion that his body was trembling slightly.

No matter how much he believed in the magic touch before, or how convinced he was that he could gain great power, it couldn't compare to the thrill of witnessing a miracle directly.

Xia Zuo accomplished a miracle he never dared to imagine before, becoming a ninja capable of rewriting maps.

This signifies that Xia Zuo's strength has increased, making him an undisputed Kage-level ninja.

In just 15 days after his cheat ability was activated, he skipped the three stages of Chunin, Special Jonin, Jonin, and Elite Jonin, and became a Kage-level ninja, standing at the pinnacle of ninjas.

At his current rate of growth, he will soon become a so-called Kage-level ninja, which is roughly equivalent to surpassing the Third Hokage but still falling short of Nagato.

The 99 series cheat codes are awesome!

Once he calmed down, Xia Zuo stared blankly at the dense forest beside the stream.

How long will it take him to clear such a large forest?

When using the Wood Release technique, he can suppress his chakra fluctuations to the point that they cannot be detected from a distance, but such a large forest will definitely be discovered by patrolling people.

After much deliberation, Xia Zuo had no choice but to grit his teeth and roll up his sleeves.

[Wood Release: Withering]

[Wood Release: Corruption]

Xia Zuo repeatedly used the two Wood Release techniques he had developed, turning large trees into nutrient-rich humus that accumulated into a thick layer on the ground.

After several hours of hard work, leaving him exhausted and with aches all over his body, Xia Zuo had cleared about 10,000 square meters of forest.

Seeing the forest transformed into black soil, he clapped his hands and shouted, "Wood Release: Sprouting!"

Tender shoots emerged from the humus, and the fresh, green grass stretched its tender shoots under the moonlight, then suddenly sprang up and in the blink of an eye transformed back into a lush thicket of grass.

This was not a Wood Release secret technique, but a free application of Wood Release chakra, which once again changed the terrain. Xia Zuo felt a strong sense of pride and satisfaction.

However, it wasn't without its shortcomings. He told himself, "I need to go back and continue to improve the withering and decay techniques. Right now, it can only affect the condition of one large tree, which is too troublesome to use."

With the second development of his Wood Release bloodline limit a complete success, Xia Zuo was in an extremely good mood and left, exhausted but satisfied.

Incidentally, on the way back, Xia Zuo did not encounter Uchiha Shisui, proving that he was indeed a ninja who kept his promise.

Nine days have passed in the blink of an eye.

Xia Zuo diligently practices Wood Release techniques every day, constantly familiarizing himself with the characteristics of Wood Release bloodline limit, and increasing the power limit of [Wood Release: Advent of a World of Trees].

During this process, he discovered that his Wood Release technique lacked the ability to absorb chakra, which was a significant flaw, resulting in insufficient suppression when dealing with Obito Uchiha or the Tailed Beasts.

Xia Zuo wasn't particularly concerned about this. Absorbing chakra was just icing on the cake; it was the key to protecting the Jinchuriki, capturing the enemy, and the Tailed Beasts.

But he didn't care about Obito Uchiha's life; if he had the chance to defeat him, he would definitely kill him.

After killing him, Xia Zuo would then arrogantly declare, "This traitor who killed his master must not be allowed to live!"

……

After the Uchiha Izumi family moved back to their old house, it caused some trouble for Xia Zuo's training, but it also greatly improved his diet, allowing him to enjoy delicious food made by Aunt Miko every day.

Miko also knew that Natsume was a big eater, so she would always prepare huge portions, sometimes even making Natsume stuffed.

Helpless, Xia Zuo could only sneak into the civilian area and give the child to Naruto Uzumaki, which made the little golden-haired boy feel extremely fond of Aunt Miko.

This kid even fantasized about what the princess looked like, imagining the feeling of a mother through her.

Besides Naruto Uzumaki, Tenten, who came to visit Natsume, also enjoyed Miko's cooking.

The little girl, dressed in a Chinese style, exclaimed, "It tastes even better than the food made by the chef who works for Naruto!"

Tenten's parents were equally pleasantly surprised by Miko's skill, but they were even more shocked that Uchiha Izumi had awakened the two-tomoe Sharingan at the young age of 13.

As one of the most successful ninja tool merchants in Konoha, the couple possessed extensive knowledge and immediately recognized Uchiha Izumi's unlimited potential. Therefore, they decided to strengthen the exchanges between their two families.

If they could establish a connection with the Uchiha clan, and then unite with the Uchiha clan and the cat castle of Karakura, their business could expand to the entire ninja world.

Tenten's parents began to visit the Uchiha Izumi family frequently. The two families' parents would get together to exchange feelings, and their daughters would play together as well.

With both families aware of the situation, the two girls would sneak over to Natsuzo's house together, enjoy Aunt Miko's cooking with Natsuzo, and listen to Natsuzo tell them secrets or fun stories they didn't know.

The two girls quickly went from being hostile to each other when they first met to becoming best friends.

Uchiha Izumi envied Tenten's good fortune, while Tenten admired Uchiha Izumi's ninja talent, being able to become a Konoha Chunin at the age of 13.

Soon, Izumi Uchiha learned the reason why Tenten's parents had approached her, and she was stunned.

Unable to contain herself any longer, Izumi quietly asked, "Brother, aren't Tenten's parents wealthy merchants? How come they don't see the crisis facing the Uchiha clan?"

Xia Zuo sighed, "This couple were ordinary people who worked their way up from the bottom. They had an extraordinary admiration for ninjas and powerful clans. If they weren't like that, they wouldn't have been fooled by me when I was 12 years old."

Uchiha Izumi: "...Brother, you're such a bad guy."

But Tenten wasn't bothered by it: "Without Natsume's help, I wouldn't be able to become the second-ranked student in the Ninja Academy and compete with Neji Hyuga for first place."

"It's because Mom and Dad had bad judgment that they were fooled, but I'm lucky that my brother fooled me."

Uchiha Izumi rolled her eyes cutely: "Tenten, you're doomed. You've been completely fooled by your brother."

Tian Tian laughed heartily, "Sister Quan, you're closer to and trust my brother more than I am. You even lied to your own parents with him!"

Quan blushed instantly: "That doesn't count! I did this for their own good. I didn't mean to deceive them. I just trusted my brother... Ah!!"

"I don't know how to say it!"

"Whatever you want!"

Uchiha Izumi's blushing and jumping up and down made Xia Zuo and Tian Tian burst into laughter.

At Xia Zuo's house, the girls didn't just play; they also had to undergo Xia Zuo's physical examinations.

Xia Zuo will adjust the girls' cultivation methods according to their physical condition and the theory of "The True Explanation of the Five Elements Battle", so as to improve their progress speed and make up for the hidden dangers caused by previous cultivation.

Because of the continuous awakening of the Sharingan, Uchiha Izumi's foundation has been significantly damaged, and simply adjusting her training methods cannot solve the problem.

Based on the theory of cultivating immortality, Xia Zuo bought herbs and boiled them into a dark, murky liquid, forcing Quan to drink it with a long face.

Uchiha Izumi strongly resisted the medicine, and it took Xia Zuo and Tenten working together to get her to drink it. Every time she drank the medicine, it was like a battle.

The lively sounds from Xia Zuo's house reached the next door, causing the parents of the two girls to exchange bewildered glances, then shake their heads and smile wryly.

But after dark, Xia Zuo would sneak out to practice his Wood Release techniques without fail, no matter how bad the weather was.

Having learned his lesson from the last time, Xia Zuo no longer fixed his Wood Release training in the northeast corner of the village, but instead ran around all over Konoha.

He left his footprints of cultivation in every remote corner of the village.