Immortality begins with the ninjas of Konoha

-

On September 9th, his birthday night, after returning home, Furukawa Osamu routinely activated Sage Mode. In his perception, the familiar chakra reappeared in the Uchiha clan's territory.

Unlike usual, this time the White Zetsu seemed to be demonstrating its presence, no longer using the Root Network to remain deeply hidden.

"Is White Zetsu hoping to be discovered by the Uchiha clan?"

"It seems that old guy is very confident in his own abilities!"

Furukawa Osamu felt that Uchiha Madara was not only confident, but also had some misunderstandings. After careful consideration, he felt that Madara's idea was correct, as ordinary ninjas could not control the energy of the Divine Tree.

The slug on his shoulder gradually merged into Furukawa Shu's body. Within the Hundred Healings Seal, the spirits communicated silently:

"Lord Xiu, should we continue to devour him?"

"No, we still need to prepare for a while longer. After all, the quality of the opponent's chakra is above mine; it is the power of the Sage of Six Paths."

Sitting cross-legged on the ground, Furukawa Osamu raised his right hand and extended his index finger. With a somewhat piercing hiss, the spinning miniature chakra ball suddenly took the shape of a shuriken.

Sage Art: Mini Rasenshuriken!

Chapter 80 Longing is the closest distance to understanding...

In mid-September of Konoha Year 48, young people who had recently become Chunin began to take on frontline missions.

Due to their age, most of their missions are still mainly patrol and escort, and there is no need for newbies to fill the gaps on the front lines.

Compared to the front lines in the Land of Grass and the Land of Hot Springs, the battlefield in the Land of Rain is safer. Currently, the main concern is preventing the Sand Village from sabotaging supply lines, and direct confrontation has completely disappeared.

Minato Namikaze recently returned to the village not only to treat his right-hand injury but also to take on the responsibility of leading a team of Jonin.

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was very considerate of the village's talented ninjas. Knowing that Minato and Kushina's relationship was blossoming, he took advantage of Minato's recovery time to give the young man a "vacation."

Minato was very grateful for this, and when leading Team 7 on missions, he always chose safe missions. Even after three members of the team were promoted to Chunin, he did not intend to increase the difficulty of the missions.

-

In the evening, after completing another C-rank escort mission, Minato Namikaze noticed Obito Uchiha's dejected expression and immediately comforted him with a smile:

"You all did a fantastic job! Ichiraku Ramen, it's on me!"

“Obito, you are still young. Even if you are promoted to Chunin, there is still a lot you need to learn.”

Minato Namikaze's smile was incredibly infectious; Rin Nohara nodded repeatedly, and Raido Namiashi echoed his admiration.

"Minato-sensei is right! First, accumulate experience through C-rank missions and learn how to become a captain. Later, as your strength improves, you will naturally be able to take on higher-level missions."

"This is thanks to the Hokage for taking care of us. Even the front lines of the Land of Rain are not a place for rookies like us."

Despite the two men's words of advice, Obito Uchiha remained unwilling to give up. Under the watchful eyes of the three, he could only lower his head and mutter to himself:

"Teacher, I'm just a little unwilling to accept it."

"Many people in the clan have awakened the Sharingan, the youngest being only 8 years old. It is said that they are all training on the front lines."

"Kakashi has always been active in the Land of Grass. I'm already a Chunin, not a coward."

The Uchiha clan's insane actions were difficult for Minato Namikaze to comment on. Nohara Rin, noticing her teacher's troubled expression, took over the conversation, gently pulling Obito aside to soothe him:

"Genius ninjas have their own path, but we will grow as well."

"Obito, a C-rank mission is already very good. Let's keep up the good work!"

Obito, who had just looked dejected, instantly perked up after the girl grabbed his hand and gave a cheerful "Mmm".

Minato Namikaze's lips twitched at the sight; Obito was completely different from the Uchiha clan members he had ever met.

Ichiraku Ramen's business has been getting better and better in recent years, and Minato Namikaze often delivers "takeout" to Kushina, making him a regular customer of the store.

"Hey buddy, do you need any more takeout today? Some ingredients are almost sold out. If you need some, I can reserve some for you."

With a smile, Minato asked, and Minato smiled happily in gratitude. Although they hadn't officially lived together, he and Kushina had already secretly gotten engaged.

"Minato-kun, it's rare to see you in the store. Did you just finish a mission?"

Furukawa Osamu turned his head to greet them, and Tsunade, who was standing next to him, also looked at the group.

Minato gestured for the three people beside him to bow, before responding with a smile:

"This is the team's last mission. I'll be leaving the village soon. Please take care of me then!"

Tsunade ate several bowls of food, and only after seeing her juniors present did she torment herself somewhat. When Minato mentioned the mission, she pursed her lips and muttered a disapproving remark.

"Jiraiya always causes trouble for you, his disciple, and throws you into his lap whenever he encounters difficulties."

The Hidden Cloud Village boldly split its forces into two groups: one to plunder in the Land of Earth, and the other to sabotage Konoha's excessively long supply lines in the Land of Hot Springs.

During the recent Jonin meeting, Jiraiya suggested from the front lines that Minato be sent to the Land of Hot Springs to suppress the Kumogakure AB combination, making his disciple almost a "panacea" on the battlefield.

"The teachers are also having a lot of trouble, but thankfully the temperature is about to drop!"

"Lady Tsunade's Three-Colored Pill was a great help; our casualties this year are far lower than those of other major powers."

Minato Namikaze spoke up for Jiraiya, and at the end, he didn't forget to praise this year's batch of new medicine, saying that even ordinary ninjas could make a final stand, which would be of great help to the front lines.

Tsunade nodded slightly, then secretly rolled her eyes at Furukawa Osamu. Because of the medication, she had been so busy that she had even reduced the number of times she drank alcohol.

Seeing that the other three were a little uncomfortable, Furukawa Osamu immediately took out two portions of the Three-Colored Pills:

"Like Obito, a belated Chunin gift, a secret medicine that has been improved once again. You can ask Rin how to use it."

"Don't overexert yourself during the mission; it's safer to stay in the village for now."

Knowing that these secret medicines required an application, Namiashi Raido immediately expressed his sincere gratitude. Obito, upon seeing the Three-Colored Pill, recalled the medicines his clan supplied to geniuses and awkwardly uttered a few words:

"I can awaken the Sharingan even without these secret medicines!"

"With the Sharingan, I'm sure I can catch up with you all..."

"Obito!"

"Xiu, thank you so much!"

Rin Nohara pulled Obito aside to express her gratitude, knowing that these drugs were still laboratory versions with fewer side effects.

When Furukawa Osamu and Tsunade left, Minato looked at the silent, head bowed Obito and sighed softly, only able to offer another word of comfort:

"Obito, trust your comrades. There's no need to keep pursuing personal strength."

"A ninja is someone who can endure. For a ninja, the most important talent is not how many bloodline limits or ninjutsu they have, but their unwavering perseverance!"

Obito responded with his head down, subconsciously tightening his grip on the Three-Colored Pill.

The teacher might be right, but he genuinely admired a genius like Kakashi.

-

When Tsunade returned to the apartment, she saw Shizune eating ramen in small bites and behaving like a lady, which gave her a headache. She realized that Osamu Furukawa didn't have any particular fondness for girls.

The two were so different that they had very few things in common.

"That brat Uchiha Shisui is indeed extraordinary; he's completely different from the rest of the clan."

"In comparison, Obito Uchiha, who likes to stick by Rin's side, seems more like a normal child."

Tsunade rested her chin on her hand and changed the subject. The Uchiha genius seemed to admire Furukawa Osamu very much and had been visiting him frequently lately. The two had even trained together.

Furukawa Osamu had prepared char siu rice for Shizune. Hearing Tsunade's words, his expression turned strange. In his opinion, both of these Uchiha were a bit problematic, but it wasn't a good time to explain.

"Shisui just witnessed the killing too early. I remember on the battlefield in the Land of Rain, his beloved senior sacrificed himself to protect him."

“Obito is not popular within the clan; he should care more about external recognition.”

Speaking of her classmates, Shizune, as before, secretly glanced at Furukawa Osamu. Tsunade sighed inwardly, looked at her disciple's profile, and suddenly a strange thought popped into her head:

"I think I've become dependent on him too..."

"Teacher, what's wrong?"

Tsunade snapped out of her daze upon hearing Furukawa Osamu's voice, realizing she had been staring for too long, and crossed her arms to hide her embarrassment.

"Prepare a char siu rice for me too! It looks delicious."

Chapter 81: Breaking Through Limits Even Without Being Human... (Please Read On)

The wet bone forest was exceptionally quiet under the cover of night, and even the slightest sound would be amplified.

After Furukawa Osamu activated Sage Mode and threw out the giant spiral shuriken in his hand, the sharp screech almost echoed throughout the forest.

"Sage Art: Wind Release: Super Giant Rasenshuriken!"

A "spiral storm" appeared in the clearing in the distance. The wind-attribute chakra expanded and exploded wildly, and the swirling air even disturbed the bioluminescent insects in the forest.

"Lord Xiu, the attack range exceeds 100 meters!"

"Your control over Sage Chakra is becoming more and more precise!"

The soft, sweet voice of a live slug echoed in his mind. Furukawa Osamu simply nodded slightly, let out a long breath, and then began to summarize the drawbacks of immortal techniques once more:

"The greater the power, the heavier the Rasenshuriken!"

"Even when you activate Sage Mode, you will feel a slight strain on your body when using this technique."

Osamu Furukawa could understand Orochimaru's point of view: the human body has its limits.

Even if he gains power beyond that of an ordinary ninja through his own efforts, he still cannot break through some of the limitations of his body.

Furukawa Osamu clasped his hands together again, and the spirit within the Hundred Healings Seal responded swiftly, with surging Sage Chakra flowing through his meridians, ignoring the limitations of his body's chakra points.

Black arcs of electricity erupted from Furukawa Osamu's body. The live slug, sensing this within the Hundred Healings Seal, quickly reached a conclusion:

"The speed of nerve signal transmission accelerates again, and the secondary activation of the body is still effective."

"Master Xiu's physical skills are greatly enhanced in this state, so the preparation time will be longer if he wants to use other immortal techniques."

"The best solution for using different Sage Techniques at the same time is the Shadow Clone Technique, but this will disperse the Sage Chakra."

Furukawa Osamu frowned slightly as he looked at the Thousand Birds that had formed in his right hand. The limitations of his body reappeared; the conversion process would take some time if he wanted to use different attribute immortal techniques in succession.

His body doesn't have the tailed beast chakra to seamlessly switch between them; for a human body without a bloodline limit, achieving this level of performance is almost the pinnacle.

"Fortunately, there's no need to worry about the battery life of Sage Mode, so a war of attrition can be included in the plan."

"Live Slug, thanks to your strength!"

"I'm sorry, Lord Xiu, this is all I can do to help. After all, I'm not good at fighting."

The live slug, having broken free of resonance, appeared on Furukawa Osamu's shoulder. Seemingly sensing the emotions of its kind, it spoke up again to offer comfort:

"Master Xiu can try compressing natural energy; I have extensive experience in this area."

"The Sage Chakra in the Hundred Healings Seal has not yet reached its limit. It can now absorb natural energy on its own, and sooner or later it will be able to transform this Sage Chakra into a liquid state."

"At that time, the body will undergo another transformation, and the meridian system will be able to carry more energy."

Furukawa Osamu looked thoughtful. He deactivated Sage Mode, but he could still sense and absorb natural energy, although the range of his perception was very small.

Under normal circumstances, he can also easily use techniques enhanced by Sage Chakra.

His cells had been assimilated by Sage Chakra long ago, which is the source of his confidence that far surpasses that of ordinary ninjas.

"Live Slug, your body shouldn't be limited by acupoints and meridians, right?"

"Yes, Master Xiu, if we use immortal techniques together, the energy in our bodies can be converted into acid without limit."

The live slug gave an affirmative answer, and Furukawa Osamu sighed again. Although he was very strong now, he still found it troublesome to face an elderly Uchiha who could activate Susanoo.

"To become stronger, one must indeed break free from human limitations."

-

At the end of September, Konoha began a second mobilization to the front lines of the Land of Grass and the Land of Hot Springs. Minato Namikaze, as the main force, took action ahead of schedule, and the major ninja clans also responded actively.

The Uchiha clan redeployed some of their guards to demonstrate the Will of Fire, and their reputation improved significantly!

The Root ninjas were also taking action. Danzo insisted that the Uchiha had an evil plan and became increasingly eager for the Wood Release power that could suppress the Sharingan.

The roots beneath the Shadow Rock remained pitch black. Wood Release was too important, so Danzo moved the experiments to headquarters and personally greeted Orochimaru every day.

Human experiments are always dangerous, and with the addition of uncontrollable interstitial cells, more than half of the "volunteers" died within two months.

Danzo was already used to these sacrifices, and the Root ninjas didn't think anything was wrong. Everyone was willing to give everything to protect the village, including their lives.

The laboratory lighting dispelled the darkness. Orochimaru intently examined the data recorded on the computer, noticing Danzo's arrival, and explained in a deep voice: