Chapter 169: The Path of Balance
Disclaimer:
Naruto and all of its characters belong to Shueisha and Masashi Kishimoto.
I own nothing but the original characters I create.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 169: The Path of Balance
"This oil next to you is something our ancestors created," Fukasaku began. "It has the capability of attracting and concentrating all the natural energy in the surrounding area, making it an excellent tool for practice."
"Oh." Naruto understood immediately. In his old world, there were devices called runic arrays that accomplished the same purpose of concentrating specific types of chi energy in a designated area. This oil seems to work on the same principle.
Having such tools in a cultivation cave was almost mandatory once you reached the higher stages. Without them, the ambient energy would be far too thin and insufficient for meaningful progress.
"I should give you one warning. There will be one extra inconvenience for you, though, since you're human," Fukasaku added.
Naruto glanced at him and waited patiently for the explanation.
"This oil was originally designed for our Toad Clan," Fukasaku continued. "We discovered later that when humans use it, there are… minor side effects."
"What kind of side effects?" Naruto asked, raising an eyebrow.
"If your balance deviates even slightly, your body will begin to change—you'll develop toad-like features."
"So… I could become a toad if I mess up this exercise?" Naruto's brow arched higher.
Fukasaku chuckled. "It's not permanent, and I can fix it. With a simple tap of this staff"—he gestured to the wooden staff in his hand—"I can disperse all the natural energy stored in your body. The moment I notice any changes, I'll intervene."
Naruto nodded calmly. "I'll leave it to you, then."
"Very well, let's begin. Close your eyes and focus on my voice. I'll guide you through the process."
As Fukasaku began giving instructions, it didn't take him long to notice how unusual Naruto was.
He had expected the boy to be exceptional, but Naruto followed his guidance flawlessly, with a level of precision that astounded the Elder.
What Fukasaku didn't know was that Naruto had centuries of experience practicing various cultivation methods, and this one was relatively straightforward for him.
That said, it wasn't without its challenges.
Balancing three types of energy inside his chakra core was no easy task.
After about ten minutes, Fukasaku noticed a change as Naruto's skin was beginning to morph, small toad-like warts appearing on his hands and neck.
Without hesitation, Fukasaku gave Naruto a light tap on the head with his staff, dispersing the natural energy and returning his body to normal.
Naruto didn't make a sound, open his eyes, or offer any comment in response.
He didn't need to. Inside his Mind Palace, he was carefully observing everything and knew exactly what was happening on the outside. He had made a slight mistake.
'Hmm… I see.'
Naruto stood within his inner world, staring at the chakra pond in the center of his dantian. Three distinct energies swirled within... the fiery red of Yang chakra, the cool blue of Yin chakra, and the vibrant green of Natural Energy.
The colors were just visual representations created by his mind for categorization and they didn't hold any real significance.
As he studied the green energy more closely, something clicked.
'I've encountered this before.'
It was said that all sources of energy shared a common origin before diverging into countless forms. Among them, two were considered the most primordial and mysterious: Life Chi and Death Chi.
This natural energy, Naruto realized, was undoubtedly Life Chi...an ancient and fundamental force encompassing creation and harmony.
Methods to cultivate Life Chi were incredibly rare, even in his previous world.
It wasn't just the difficulty of finding a method...but it was also because it required a mindset of absolute peace and alignment with nature, a path few humans could walk.
Buddhist monks were among the few known to have delved deeply into this discipline.
'No wonder it feels so familiar.' Naruto mused. The benefits of incorporating Life Chi could potentially be immense...enhanced physical capabilities accelerated regeneration, and near-immortality.
If Life Chi cultivators were notorious for something, was for being challenging to kill. And that was quite the understatement.
Determined, Naruto returned his focus to harmonizing the three energies within him.
Just then, a rush of information flooded his mind.
His own cultivation technique, Cosmic Assimilation, had unveiled a new chapter...one that wasn't there before.
"This is…" Naruto's gaze shifted upward, landing on the Golden Scripture floating above his chakra pool.
The artifact had always been there, but now it seemed to shine with renewed brilliance.
"Are you helping me again?" Naruto asked, a small smile on his lips.
The artifact didn't respond...it never did. But no answer was needed.
This Divine Device had proven to him to have a mind of its own, and for some reason, he had been chosen to wield it. So it was natural that I would help him in a moment of need.
As much as he would like to understand more about the Golden Scripture, Naruto was well aware that he was currently too weak and insignificant to obtain any real answers about such matters. That was something he would need to leave for his future self.
Naruto turned his attention back to the chakra pool, his eyes gleaming with determination.
" I can do this." His eyes were filled with determination. With this newly gained knowledge, he knew exactly how to accomplish perfect harmony.
He will absorb the natural energy directly and then refine it and combine it with the other two.
Absorcion, Refinement, Combination. Those were the three main steps of this cultivation method.
This newly revealed chapter of Cosmic Assimilation would allow him to create a new, unified source of energy by blending the three.
While maintaining balance was still critical, this method simplified the process. He only needed perfect harmony during the moment of combination...not throughout the entire process.
This approach also held greater potential, though its true benefits would reveal themselves later.
Opening his eyes in the real world, Naruto's irises shimmered faintly with streaks of red, blue, and green light.
Fukasaku noticed the change, though he wasn't entirely sure what it meant. Naruto's body wasn't morphing, which meant he hadn't made another mistake.
For now, the Elder decided to observe.
Naruto could now sense the natural energy around him with unprecedented clarity.
"The natural energy around this pond will replenish even if I absorb it all, right?" he asked.
"Absorb it all?!" Fukasaku nearly fell over. "Unless you want to become a permanent decoration here, I recommend only taking a small amount at a time!"
Naruto smiled faintly. "Let's see what happens…"
Raising his hand, he opened his palm and softly whispered:
"Cosmic Assimilation: Absorb."
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