Zombie Sage in Naruto

Chapter 20 Alternative Space-Time Techniques
War is a systematic and extremely complex undertaking that does not tolerate any wishful thinking. This means that every single detail must be thoroughly understood.

For Kaede Tsukasa, whose physical fitness was not outstanding, being on the battlefield for a long time and suffering huge physical and mental exhaustion was already a heavy burden.

"I can't delay any longer. I need to master the life-saving technique that I've simulated countless times in my mind as soon as possible. A lot of my information has already been leaked. Many Sand Village ninjas have probably heard about my abilities. Next time we fight, it will be difficult for me to have a high position in terms of information."

Kaede sat amidst a multitude of corpses, some of which still had blood flowing from them that had not yet completely congealed, leaving traces of the lingering warmth of life on the ground.

Some of the body transporters looked at Kaedeji with awe.

"Kaede Tsukasa—Sir, are you selecting a suitable body?"

"It must be. After such a dangerous battle, his stored body energy is probably almost depleted and he urgently needs to replenish it."

“I remember that Lord Kaedeji participated in the war against Amegakure before, and he was doing the same work we are doing now... Is this considered returning to his original job? Heh, it's great that the dead can be used as weapons to fight the dead.”

"Idiot, stop overthinking. Aren't we just analyzing and deciphering the information about Kaedeji? That's incredibly rude!"

The personnel transporting the bodies belong to the logistics department of the front-line troops, and the personnel are rotated regularly.

A very small number of people had previously come into contact with Kaede Tsukasa and found it to be utterly unbelievable that Kaede Tsukasa had become a professional person who dealt with corpses.

Hearing the hushed conversation, Kaede Tsukasa turned to look at his lovely colleagues, a kind—but terrifying—smile appearing on his thin face.

This immediately triggered terrified screams, with some even feeling that they were about to become corpses controlled by Kaede Tsukasa.

"It won't be long before I become the protagonist of a widely circulated horror story... but it's no big deal."

Kaede Tsukasa felt that he could never become a radiant little sun like Minato Namikaze.

No, to be more precise, he is inherently incompatible with the sunny and warm nature of Naruto's Ashura lineage, but rather shares similarities with the temperament of Indra's lineage.

"Well then, since there's no mission right now, I'm going to test out my new ninjutsu, the Corpse Substitute, which combines the principles of Summoning Jutsu and Substitution Jutsu."

The Substitution Technique is one of the lowest-ranked D-rank ninjutsu, which even students who are not even genin can learn. The highest-ranking Substitution Technique is naturally Madara's Limbo, but that kind of unreasonable substitution technique where a shadow takes the damage for the main body can actually be considered a kind of space-time technique.

Kaede Tsukasa certainly knows the ordinary Substitute Technique, but to replace the wooden stake used in this Substitute Technique with the zombies he controls, and combine it with the principles of Summoning Technique, it would take some time to develop such a technique.

Ideally, by utilizing the connection between him and the zombie, he could instantly switch places with the zombie, and both he and the zombie would possess combat capabilities. After the switch, they would be fully capable of launching a surprise attack on the enemy.

"To me, zombies are a type of ninja tool, inanimate objects that can move and be sealed into scrolls. So, using my zombie as a stake to perform a replacement summoning is theoretically possible..."

The only difficulty is that the wooden stake, as a substitute, is stationary, while the zombie is mobile. This means that there is a flow of chakra in the zombie, which is constantly changing, greatly increasing the difficulty of Kaede Tsukasa's substitution.

"If it were someone else, they definitely wouldn't be able to do this, but for someone like me who has mastered Corpse Release and has for many years wished I could split one part of chakra in two, accurately sensing the chakra state of a zombie is like controlling my hands and feet. The difference is how much effort it takes."

Kaede Tsukasa attaches great importance to this technique. Once it is realized, it means that he has mastered another space-time technique besides summoning techniques. In a sense, it can be considered a castrated version of Amenotejikara.

Amenotejikara (Heavenly Hand Power) allows direct manipulation of space, essentially meaning the ability to teleport anywhere. Its close-quarters combat effectiveness surpasses even the Flying Thunder God Technique. "If I can continuously refine the Corpse Substitute Technique, and simultaneously obtain a native body with sufficient chakra… perhaps I could become a ninja proficient in space-time techniques, stuffing numerous zombies into coffins and burying them throughout the ninja world, using them as spatial coordinates similar to the Flying Thunder God Technique…"

Kaede Tsukasa kept thinking, with countless inspirations constantly bursting into his mind. He made efficient use of the chakra in his body, wishing he could break down every last bit and use it perfectly to develop ninjutsu.

He was once again certain that the potential of Corpse Escape was immense; it was just currently being restricted too much to be fully utilized.

Five days passed in a flash. During this time, no new major battles broke out between Konoha and Sunagakure. Apart from the daily squabbles between patrol teams, both sides seemed extremely quiet, as if they were waiting for something.

Konoha is waiting for Tsunade, but what is Sunagakure waiting for?
Kaede Tsukasa didn't think the other party was lying in wait for him; they might be brewing some dangerous attack.

On the sixth day, Kaede Tsukasa received a mission to leave the camp.

"Hmm, this top-secret mission was actually issued by Aburame Ryoma, and it even reached rank A... He's come to this battlefield too?"

Kaede walked out of the camp, a thoughtful expression on his face.

After being promoted to Chunin, the only change is that I can carry out some small team missions, which means I have to take on greater risks on this dangerous battlefield.

If it were when I was still a genin, my main job would be to mingle with the main force and treat the wounded who were retreating from the front lines.

“My medical ninjutsu is only half-baked, and Ryoma Aburame couldn’t possibly not know that. But since he assigned me to participate, either he’s taking the opportunity to observe me, or there’s some connection between this mission and me.”

Could it be Yakushi Nonou?

Kaede Tsukasa was very familiar with Root's messed-up ways, and immediately scrutinized his teammates.

The team consists of 5 people, and the team leader is an elite Jonin named Terai.

Upon hearing this name, Kaede Tsukasa knew who this guy was—a Root ninja who assassinated the Third Hokage in the original story.

Aside from him and Morino Isuke, the last two members adopted a "keep away" attitude, which makes it obvious that they are also from Root.

"This task will be very troublesome. If it weren't troublesome, the people from the Root wouldn't get involved."

Kaedeji shook his head, not hiding his thoughts: "The mission is to provide cover for our ninjas, but no description of the target has been given? Is the captain planning to explain it during the mission?"

Terai's face was cold, without any emotional fluctuation: "Your mind is very sharp. No wonder Lord Ryoma specifically asked you to participate. We must ensure that our companions who bring valuable information return safely."

Kaede Tsukasa was certain of one thing: if the battle turned against them and the team was in danger, Terai would not hesitate to sacrifice all his team members, and if necessary, even sacrifice himself, to get the information back.

This is the style of the roots.

(End of this chapter)