Ninja Pot Shadow

"...Actually, I don't have much money."

Publishing a book about Sasuke? A book about riddles? A photobook of Sasuke? Ino's mind suddenly clicked. She had previously collected a lot of information about Sasuke, planning to take a few parts, mix some truth and fiction, add some riddles, and then pin the blame on Sakura! This seemed like a good idea, and she could even make some money on the side…

The next day, after attending classes all morning, Ino went to a bookstore called "Shueido" on the east side of the village during her lunch break.

Jiraiya's "Icha Icha Paradise" series of novels was published and distributed here.

Ino uses her transformation technique to become Sakura, pretending to be very nervous, and cautiously enters the shop.

"Hello, welcome! What would you like to order?" the waiter greeted her warmly.

After hesitating for a while, "Sakura" seemed to have made a great decision. She handed over a stack of manuscripts and said, "Um... um, I, I am the vice president of the Association for Protecting, Caring for, and Accompanying Uchiha Sasuke... We want to publish a book for Sasuke-kun, a book that can become a worldwide sensation!"

The guy looked at the cover of the manuscript three times before he finally understood what it was.

Realizing the matter was serious, he quickly took out paper and pen to make a note: "Thank you for valuing Jiying Hall. Um... what is your name?"

Ino hesitated for a moment, but ultimately decided not to completely ruin Sakura's life. She gave Sakura a name that seemed both real and unreal: "Kasugano Sakura".

Chapter Forty: Dreams

The manuscript of "Kasugano Sakura" is very diverse. It includes riddles spoken on the day of the event, some interesting anecdotes from memory, and even riddles without answers, such as "What has six legs when it enters an alley and two legs when it leaves an alley," which are used to pad the word count.

Riddles alone are definitely not enough. Sasuke's hobbies, such as liking girls with long hair, liking girls who wear "arm sleeves", liking "girls" with the surname Uzumaki, height, weight, birthday, blood type, all the information that Ino originally collected, whether true or false, were all added to him.

There's a huge amount of dense data, plus seven or eight photos; it's impossible to make a full-fledged book, but a small booklet is perfectly sufficient.

If the opportunity arises in the future, adding some personal photos and releasing a few deluxe or collector's editions wouldn't be out of the question...

Kasugano Sakura said very seriously, "Our association wants to publish a book about Sasuke so that more people can understand Sasuke."

She concluded by bowing earnestly and saying, "Please!"

The guy had lived in Konoha for many years and knew about the Uchiha clan and the name Uchiha Sasuke.

He glanced through the manuscript, but not daring to make a decision on his own, he quickly went to ask the boss for help.

After talking with "Kasugano Sakura," the boss realized that this matter was entirely beneficial to him.

The manuscript is packed with valuable information; even if you don't make a fortune, you certainly won't lose money.

The owner of "Jiyingtang" is an old man from Konoha Village, and he knows the Third Hokage and others.

Although he wasn't a ninja, he had lived in the village for so many years and had connections in all sorts of ways. If those envious Uchiha clan members were still alive, he definitely wouldn't dare to mess with them. But now? They're all dead, what's there for him to be afraid of!

"We can publish this book, but the price needs to be discussed further."

An hour later, Ino left Shueido with 50,000 taels of royalties.

She bought out the entire manuscript, and how it was published or distributed was none of her business, even if Shueido sold the book to the Land of Rain or to Itachi Uchiha.

She just wanted to make a quick buck and, incidentally, frame Sakura.

The process of typesetting, printing, and finally selling books to various countries takes a long time. The energy inside the black pot increases very slowly, but Ino didn't pay too much attention to it. This is a process that accumulates over time, so there's no rush.

……

In a cave outside Konoha Village, Kakashi tried many methods, but he still couldn't get Sasuke to bypass the seal and awaken his Sharingan.

The reason for this is that the Uchiha clan has relatively little chakra, and now that a portion of it has been sealed, there is even less chakra available for awakening their Sharingan. For Sasuke, whose chakra control is only average, it is extremely difficult to perform the series of operations to "bypass" the seal with such limited chakra.

Once chakra is used up, a person dies! Kakashi dared not let him train recklessly. Right now, Sasuke could only push through a few times before having to stop and rest, making his training very slow.

During their time together, Kakashi developed a certain level of appreciation for this Uchiha child. He found him to be strong, intelligent, hardworking, and kind-hearted. Apart from being overly stubborn and inflexible, he was otherwise quite good.

Originally, he was mostly thinking about Obito Uchiha's feelings. He was okay with opening his Sharingan, but it didn't matter if he didn't. He thought that he had done his best and that would be the end of it. However, after seeing Sasuke's persistence, his tormented heart softened a little.

After Sasuke knocked himself unconscious once again, he walked out of the cave.

Outside the cave stood a tall man with white hair, wearing a red coat and wooden clogs.

The man, wearing a headband with the character "oil" written on it, stood at the entrance of the cave, looking down at Konoha Village not far away.

"Lord Jiraiya," Kakashi said as he stepped out of the cave, "thank you for coming all this way."

Jiraiya didn't really want to get involved in this matter. He had no connection with the Uchiha clan, and the life or death of any orphan was none of his concern.

But Kakashi is his disciple's disciple, and since he specifically asked for help, he has to lend a hand out of consideration for their past relationship.

He examined Sasuke's eyes and seals. Jiraiya was over fifty years old, definitely considered an old man in the precarious ninja world, and he had mastered all kinds of ninjutsu.

Many things can be understood at a glance.

His conclusion was very accurate: "The old man's seal isn't very strong. He probably doesn't want this child to give up the path of the ninja. Do you want me to break this seal?"

Kakashi shook his head: "Lord Jiraiya, I tried to use genjutsu to stimulate Sasuke's spiritual energy, then bypass the seal and try to awaken his Sharingan, but the effect was not significant. Sasuke currently has too little controllable chakra. I hope you can help to partially unseal the seal, release Sasuke's chakra, and then try to awaken his Sharingan again."

Jiraiya scratched his head vigorously.

This isn't dangerous, it's just troublesome, extremely troublesome.

The seal cannot be fully opened. If it is opened, there is a high chance that the peculiar eye power will directly destroy Sasuke's eyes, and may even endanger his life. He must first unlock the seal by 10%, and then let Sasuke try to see how much chakra is released and whether he can open his eyes. If he can, that would be best. If not, unlock the seal by 20%, and then try again! If that still doesn't work, unlock it by 30%. If too much is released, then a portion of it must be sealed back.

The Third Hokage could have done this, but Kakashi wouldn't bother the Hokage with such a trivial matter. The Third Hokage wouldn't abandon his official duties to spend a lot of time accompanying him on experiments. Sasuke Uchiha wasn't worth it, and Kakashi didn't have the face to do so.

Now the only option left is to target Jiraiya, who has nothing better to do all day and just wanders around aimlessly...

Jiraiya sighed heavily: "Alright, alright, what can I do? You're Minato's disciple... Wake him up, I'll break the Five Elements Seal. By the way, if the kid asks, don't reveal my identity, I'm worried he'll ask me for an autograph."

Kakashi chuckled twice and didn't pick up on the topic.

……

After Jiraiya joined, Sasuke's progress in awakening his Sharingan accelerated significantly. The sealed portion of his chakra flowed back into his body's chakra channels, and the abundant energy within him made him incredibly excited. All the cells in his body released a large amount of energy under the intense mental stimulation, preparing for the breakthrough to the Sharingan.

The mountain house was very quiet at night. After practicing Yin Release for a while, Ino rested.

In a state between sleep and wakefulness, she felt a strange excitement in her mind, and then her consciousness became hazy. Finally, she arrived at an ancient-style palace surrounded by thick fog, and many incense burners and floors were very blurry and indistinct.

In the blurry vision, a tall man with a high-collared robe embroidered with six magatama symbols stood by the window, gazing into the distance.

Chapter 41 Learning the Shadow Clone Technique

Ino was in a daze, completely losing her ability to think. As if being pulled by something, she took several steps forward and stopped when she was still three meters away from the tall man.

A completely unfamiliar voice came from Ino: "Lord Indra, please forgive my rudeness, I can only meet you by turning my heart around."

The tall man didn't turn around. He snorted coldly, "What has my good brother Ashura been up to lately in the mountains?"

Ino's voice replied respectfully, "Lord Ashura is contacting the three elders within the Ninja Clan, preparing to abandon the propagation of ninjutsu, and..."

The voice hesitated for a moment, then the tall man said contemptuously, "Make what? Make me disappear from everyone's sight, make me acknowledge him as the successor of the Ninja Clan? Don't mince words, you can just say it directly. I know my own brother; he's always been this hypocritical!"

Ino nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, you're right, sir."

"Any other news?"

Ino thought for a moment: "Also...right, Lord Ashura said he has gained the support of Mount Myōboku, and many ninja elders switched sides for this reason..."

The tall man turned his head, his eyes bloodshot: "You're one of the many elders, aren't you? My two-faced friend in the mountains."

Before Ino could explain, he spoke in a very authoritative tone: "I'll tell you a secret. You know about my father, uncle, and grandmother's battle, which ultimately shattered countless continents, right? Do you know who instigated this? I'll tell you, it was that stinky toad from Mount Myōboku! And another thing, my father originally wanted me to inherit the Ninja Clan. Do you know who made him change his mind? It was that stinky toad again!"

It was involved in both of the Otsutsuki's internal conflicts, yet it disguised itself perfectly, appearing to be indifferent to worldly affairs. But what was its reality? The Otsutsuki clan was once the rulers of this world! Holy Land? Ridiculous! When their grandmother was alive, these worthless creatures could only cower in fear in a corner. And now? The descendants of the Otsutsuki have fallen so low as to need the support of that stinking toad! This is a disgrace!

The tall man was furious: "Just wait! After I defeat Ashura and inherit the Ninjutsu sect, I will raze Mount Myōboku to the ground! I will dig out its wicked heart! In the mountains, then..."

Ino's mind went blank, and she didn't hear anything that followed.

……

"Ino? Ino! Get up! Why are you sleeping in today? Get up, Mom made your favorite miso soup." Rino Yamanaka was puzzled. This child had been very diligent lately, what was wrong with her today? It took her a lot of effort to wake Ino up.

Ugh, so dizzy! Ino used immense willpower to free herself from the seal of the blanket.

For some reason, she felt weak and exhausted today. She vaguely remembered having a dream, but couldn't recall the details.

Haiyi said with concern, "You look so pale? Did something go wrong when you were practicing Water Burst Wave? Take a good rest at home for a day."

Ino also felt a bit listless today, and for a moment even thought she had caught a cold. However, she could stop exercising, but she couldn't stop causing trouble. After breakfast, she insisted on going to class. Who knows, Naruto might reappear today? Naruto and Iruka's relationship is getting better and better, and it's like every reappearance is one less chance. This can't stop!

After two days of exhaustion, it wasn't until the third day that her spirits returned to normal.

After resting for two more days, Ino resumed her training and finally mastered Water Release: Exploding Water Wave.

She immediately reported to her biological father, and the two of them went to the back mountain of the village.

"Water Release: Exploding Water Wave!" Ino gathered her chakra in her throat, then harmonized her water-style chakra nature transformation, quickly formed hand seals, changed her form, charged up for a few seconds, and then sprayed out a large amount of water straight ahead.

The father and daughter chose a valley with a low elevation. Because many ninjas used to train their ninjutsu here, the ground was uneven and pitted.

The water spread rapidly, quickly filling the numerous pits. Then the water level continued to rise, covering an area roughly the size of a basketball court. Hai looked at his feet; his ankles and below were completely submerged.

Having participated in the Third Shinobi World War, Inoichi had seen many Water Release ninjas from Kirigakure. Ino's movements weren't particularly skillful, but her chakra reserves were already comparable to those of the Water Release ninjas.

Chakra cannot be directly measured. It's often difficult to discern who has more chakra, Kakashi or Asuma. It can only be estimated through certain techniques. It's hard to pinpoint exactly how much more or less someone has chakra.

Inoichi could only make a rough estimate at the moment. In his opinion, putting aside the Jinchuriki, Ino's chakra reserves were relatively high among normal ninjas, considering that she was only twelve years old and would have a significant improvement in the future.

Learning the Shadow Clone Technique is more than enough.

Before handing the study scroll to Ino, he repeatedly instructed her: "Shadow clones are physical clones created by separating the chakra of the main body. Remember, do not maintain the shadow clone state for a long time, and do not create too many shadow clones at once. Remember my words, before your chakra has greatly improved, the number of shadow clones must never exceed three."

"Understood, no more than three shadow clones are allowed."

The Shadow Clone Technique is a B-rank ninjutsu, and in Ino's opinion, it is much more difficult to learn than Water Release: Exploding Water Wave!

This technique is somewhat similar to the Great Shift of Heaven and Earth. Those with profound internal energy can reach the Great Perfection in one night, while those with average internal energy will need two years to reach the first level, five years to reach the second level, and die before they can even finish the third level.

Ino's current internal energy level is only average. She is stuck on the first step of creating a shadow clone, which is the allocation of chakra.

Those who have the Chaton can distribute it however they like. It doesn't matter if the distribution is uneven or fast or slow. Practice makes perfect. After a few tries, it will become smoother.

Ino, who is still using chakra, can't do it. She must strictly separate the chakra of her main body and the clone according to the requirements on the scroll. The boundary of separation must be found very accurately. Separating chakra once requires a half-hour rest, making the practice very inefficient.

The Shadow Clone Technique does not require chakra control, mastery of chakra nature transformation, or form transformation; it depends solely on the total amount of chakra and is somewhat related to the level of "ninjutsu".

Ino struggled to grasp the basics, and the natural growth rate of her chakra slowed down. Looking at the freshly cooked bits in the black pot, she hesitated, wondering whether to add some directly or wait a little longer.

Chapter 42 Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu

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