75. The Successful Fusion of Chakra and Nature

75. The Successful Fusion of Chakra and Nature

After Hinome and Hikari went their separate ways, Hikari delved into some of his assigned responsibilities regarding the upcoming conflict.

Tasked with a certain role in the intra-clan resource stockpiling for the upcoming war—a directive from the Elder Council meeting earlier, he began his work like all the other elders.

Hikari moved through various areas of the compound, inspecting the stockpile locations, assessing the inventory of supplies, and conferring with those directly under his command.

This task was not just about gathering material resources; it was a strategic endeavor to optimize the clan's logistics and support systems. With the onset of war, the entire Hyuga compound also shifted into a heightened state of security.

Their specialized border surveillance division, adept at monitoring and patrolling the boundaries of Konoha, was now also operating at its full capacity.

Their responsibilities were more critical than ever, extending their patrols deep into the Land of Fire, farther than they had in a long time on a war-time protocol.

By the time Hikari concluded his inspection and management tasks, the evening had settled over the village. Returning to his living quarters within the Third Estate, he didn't pause for long. Hikari standardly made his way to the highest point of the Third Estate once again.

Over the past two years, Hikari's dedication to his training regimen never waned, although the focus of his training evolved with his progressing skill set.

Having achieved mastery over all of the Wind Release-type jutsu he sought to learn, Hikari reached significant milestones in his development as a shinobi.

His mastery culminated in perfecting his self-developed "Armor of the Heavenly Spin" and the "Celestial Rotation Sphere," advanced techniques that marked his expertise in both defense and offense. His Wind Release: Rotation strength also grew naturally with age too.

Then after mastering them a few months ago he also soon faced the Patriarch in a pretty serious one-on-one fight and won. Following this milestone, Hikari shifted his training focus more toward natural energy in general.

Hikari was aware that, by his own estimates, he was already at the level of an Early Kage. This meant he was pretty powerful, especially for his age.

He also knew that if he kept improving at this rate, as his body and chakra naturally got stronger with age, he'd be around the Middle Kage level by the time he was 16.

That's a big deal because no one in the Hyuga clan had ever reached that level of strength, at least according to the clan's written records.

But there was a catch. By the time he got to that point, his physical growth and chakra development would be about 80% done.

In other words, he'd be close to his ceiling and that would be his highest level in general, with not much room to get stronger.

For most, reaching such a level would be an incredible achievement. Yet, for Hikari, it was far from enough.

Therefore, Hikari's new approach to integrating natural energy more into his daily practice and life involved a significant shift in how he utilized his Byakugan during those combined evening sessions.

Previously, he had pushed his eyes to their limits, believing that the intense strain would reveal more of the elusive natural energy patterns and thus enhance his unique abilities. Essentially, to 'wake up' that specific Byakugan's ability further, and it worked for years.

However, he came to understand that he had gradually reached a natural ceiling in terms of what his Byakugan could achieve in this specific domain.

No amount of exertion, meaning exercise seemed to push his capabilities further since a while ago, leading him to the realization that further evolution of his eyes, in terms of capability, might require a change at the genetic level, a step he was not yet ready to take.

Recognizing this limitation, and understanding that over time the present vision level improved so much that it actually finally allowed for more comfortable interaction with the natural energy, than before, Hikari adjusted his strategy.

Instead of focusing on short, intense periods of training that heavily strained his Byakugan, he extended the duration of his sessions, opting for a more moderate use of his eyes.

Hikari often pondered the sources of his recent advancements in harnessing natural energy during the last two years.

He speculated whether the recent stability and openness found in his relationship with Hinome, combined with his elevated status within the clan, and its status within the village, had contributed to a more relaxed and positive mindset, which in turn might have facilitated his success with natural energy.

However, he came to the conclusion that all these developments, he considered, might have simply normalized his mental state, to a baseline, providing a foundation conducive to focus and growth as opposed to the constant tense and close to a negative state of mind he was mostly in before after transmigration.

Furthermore, Hikari understood from his extensive research that true mastery in this domain often required solitude and an unwavering, even extreme dedication to the natural world.

His studies of ancient legends that were written as some folk stories—tales of samurai and monks who wielded unexplained, mythical extraordinary powers, something he attributed to the use of the natural energy in one way or another, mostly in the outward form like he attempted to do as well, suggested that these abilities were closely tied to their deep immersion in nature, for long periods of time, and constant meditative practices for the majority of their days.

These stories highlighted a path to power that was steeped in isolation and singular focus. However, Hikari also recognized a distinct advantage he held over them: his Byakugan and its unique 'mode'.

Unlike the legendary figures in his studies, who presumably lacked such a kekkei genkai, Hikari's Byakugan provided him with the unique ability to see and interact with natural energy more directly than them.

This ability allowed for a level of precision and efficiency in his training that was unparalleled, to everyone who attempted to interact with the natural energy in the same way as him now, cutting the need for prolonged isolation or constant meditation in different natural settings.

That was another reason why Hikari was, in his impression, able to achieve something it would take them decades to accomplish on their journeys, only far later in life, in only a few short years, and that was just the beginning.

Hikari didn't know much about Sage Mode or the use of senjutsu through 'internal' methods shinobi typically employed nowadays, taught at those 3 places, but for the 'external' natural energy use kind of methods that those strongest and renowned ancient, pre-shinobi monks and samurai also used like Hikari was wanting to use nowadays, his Byakugan's special ability mode made him more qualified than all of them combined, in his opinion, and the most qualified 'external method' natural energy user probably of the past, present and future too.

After all, they were all just essentially 'sensing' the natural energy, through decades of madman-like fusion with nature, whereas, he was the one who actually 'saw' it directly.

However, in the last two years, Hikari also used his status to reach out to people in the black market, of various roles and geographies, looking for old texts from ninja monks or samurai.

He hoped to find useful info on how to use natural energy in different ways, in terms of molding and 'techniques', once the connection with it gets established first as he did, hoping to learn faster from those who had decades figuring it out and save himself some time.

Nonetheless, he also wanted to make sure he wasn't chasing after stories that weren't true or just old tales tampered due to time. But at first, his search didn't lead to anything helpful.

However, the turning point in Hikari's quest arrived when he decided to shift strategies, moving away from the unreliable black market.

With the Patriarch's secret approval, he arranged for a Hyuga team to investigate ancient monk temple ruins scattered throughout the Land of Fire, as that was the biggest center of gravity for the monks then, just like it was today for shinobi, seeking any clues or artifacts that could be relevant to his studies on natural energy.

This direct approach aimed to uncover genuine, tangible sources of ancient wisdom that the black market had failed to provide.

Over the last two years, this new strategy began to bear fruit. Several intriguing items and manuscripts gradually made their way to Hikari, each holding the potential to unlock the secrets he sought.

Through meticulous analysis and deciphering, Hikari was later able to extract valuable insights from these findings.

Among the scattered pieces of ancient lore, he discovered practical techniques and methods that promised to refine his ability to gather and shape natural energy in a useful kind of way.

Armed with this newfound knowledge, Hikari integrated these ancient methods into his training regimen.

This blend of old wisdom with his own innovative practices marked a significant advancement in his journey.

Not only did these techniques offer a deeper understanding of natural energy and the past in general, but they also promised to accelerate his learning process, saving him valuable time.