50 49. Trip

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...

Naruto continued his studies for the next few weeks. He wanted to add another thing to his training, but this time from the field of Control Techniques. Everything he had learned in this area still served him well, so he deemed it a good move.

He pondered over many things that could be useful to him in the near future, and his human body would be able to do. He had already mastered most of the basics, and Shizune had nothing more to teach him in this field.

He could learn to draw energy from the surroundings. If he could control the heat in his body, why couldn't he draw heat or energy from the sun? Sun rays are also energy. The same goes for the moon and its cold rays. This idea led Naruto to consider a certain possibility: would it be possible to draw life energy from the surroundings? For example, from plants and trees? Or manipulate some energies in the environment?

Another idea was to learn to see in infrared. Human biology rejects this possibility; the human eye cannot see in infrared. However, Naruto once found mentions of two people who were fascinated by snakes and, by copying their movements and lifestyle, learned to see in infrared, which was quite surprising. They might have used chakra for this, but Naruto isn't sure.

Thoughts on Control Techniques Naruto could learn led him to the words of a strange Monk. From what he said when they talked a few times in the Fire Temple, young Monks learn many Control Techniques before mastering the Hermit Group's Gift.

What exactly is this Hermit Group's Gift? Besides legends and various stories, Naruto hasn't heard much about it, and even from them, nothing sensible can be inferred. Publicly known knowledge only says that achieving the Hermit Group's Gift requires hard, even murderous work and dedication.

The more Naruto thought about all this, the more intrigued he became. The whole Fire Temple was very mysterious, and even the Kage didn't know much about it. Naruto asked his father about it out of curiosity, but he knew as much as Naruto.

If he used to always meet this Monk on his path when he didn't need him, now that he wants to learn more, he can't find him.

Maybe karma caught up with him for his bad behavior. Naruto shouldn't have rejected and ignored him so many times; perhaps now he could learn many great techniques under his guidance, which would elevate him even higher.

"Maybe I should go to this Fire Temple?" Naruto wondered aloud. The idea of becoming a Monk wasn't appealing, but the things he could learn there were enticing.

...

The Parasite, more broadly known to humanity as the Chakra Circulatory System, lives and develops in our bodies without typical side effects typical of a parasite, for some specific purpose.

We call an organism that feeds on another organism a parasite. The Chakra Circulatory System differs from a typical parasite in that if it harms the health and life of a person, it does not develop, and in some cases, it does not occur in the bodies of certain individuals or animals. There are also gaps such as death due to Chakra exhaustion or overload of the Chakra system, a product produced by the Chakra System, but these things disappear or minimize when the Chakra Circulatory System develops to some extent.

Naruto is strongly curious about the developmental possibilities of the Chakra Circulatory System, so ever since they acquired and extracted the Chakra System from the body, they have been conducting many studies and experiments on it.

They recently confirmed that one of the Chakra Systems they had, precisely the first one they managed to acquire from the old man's body, stopped developing. It had been stored in a container all the time, nourished by a special nutrient solution, allowing it to continue developing outside the human body.

It seems that this Chakra System has reached a point where it can no longer develop. Probably, this is due to the lack of a human body, and for now, they won't know the true developmental possibilities of this parasite.

Without an organism, the Chakra Circulatory System also did not produce Chakra cells, as was to be expected.

However, from the research conducted by scientists working in Naruto's laboratory, they divided the development of the Chakra Circulatory System into several levels.

Level 0 - The Chakra Circulatory System has not yet undergone a six-year maturation period in humans. In animals or other life forms, this period may vary in length depending on the adaptive abilities of the organism. Level 0 also means that the Chakra System does not exist in the organism or has not yet begun to develop, for example, in the body of a child still in the mother's womb.

Level 1 - The Chakra Circulatory System has undergone a maturation period and is fully innervated throughout the body at a level similar to the circulatory or lymphatic system. The organism then gains the ability to manipulate Chakra outside its body, for example, to use Shinobi techniques.

Level 2 - The Chakra Circulatory System innervates the body even more and more precisely than the circulatory or lymphatic system. Chakra release points (Tenketsu) expand by half their previous volume. Chakra vessels through which Chakra flows become several times stronger and more durable after several years of their regular use. It is not possible to determine exactly how long it will take for the parasite to reach this level. Level 2 probably prepares the body for the production of Chakra cells.

Level 3 - The Chakra Circulatory System begins to mutate ordinary cells into Chakra cells when the organism is strong and resilient enough. Usually, only small amounts of Chakra cells are produced so that the organism does not die from overload and can slowly adapt to them. Producing Chakra cells probably leads not only to strengthening the organism but also to some specific, as yet unknown purpose. It is possible that this is related to the place in the human body commonly called the Core, as this is where the most Chakra cells in the entire body are located.

The first three levels, plus level 0, have been called basic levels. It is obvious that the development of the Chakra Circulatory System may continue and strive for further, but there are really few people who could achieve the next level.

It is really hard to assess the level of the Chakra Circulatory System in Naruto. He has undergone a six-year maturation period, but due to damage, it cannot be properly assessed at level 1, so he is still at level 0. Until Naruto can use Chakra outside his body for Shinobi techniques, no matter how much the Chakra System innervated his body, he will not reach level 1.

Naruto had wondered many times what would happen if he nourished his damaged Chakra Circulatory System with nutrient fluid. Would it cause any negative effects on his body? Or perhaps the damages would cause strange mutations that might give Naruto a chance to use Chakra?

He decided once to discuss this topic with Tsunade, but she strongly discouraged the idea, although she didn't stop him. Ultimately, Naruto decided not to risk it.

Now that his Chakra System was fully developed, Naruto instructed to conduct several more experiments. He wanted to check if his development could be reversed. Or cut off a part of it and see if it would regrow and if the regrowth would be at a good level. There are many interesting things to explore, and frankly, they don't have to hold back for fear of damaging it. It doesn't really matter anyway; if what Naruto is thinking works out, it will definitely be worthwhile.

...

Naruto was preparing many things for the future. He had to take care of his business and loyal employees and subordinates when he was gone.

For a week, he sorted out his affairs and gave people appropriate instructions on what to do when he was gone. He double-checked to make sure there were no traitors or people associated with the Hokage in the Black Market before he left to bid farewell to Kenzo and the rest of the scientists.

Probably when he returns from his journey, these guests will be able to help him heal his body to some extent. They won't be able to change his brain's work and cure all his ailments, but they will extend Naruto's life by decades.

That day, at the family table in the Namikaze house, Naruto and Himiko set the dinner on the table.

"It smells nice," Minato exclaimed excitedly.

"Right, Himiko-chan has almost reached Ka-chan's level," Menma nodded approvingly.

Himiko giggled softly at these comments.

"Apparently, Uzumaki women have a natural talent for cooking..." Naruto remarked, then everyone sat down at the table and wished each other bon appétit.

After finishing dinner, Naruto collected all the plates and went to wash them in the kitchen.

"Oh, I'll help you, Nii-san" Menma offered to help and quickly approached his brother to finish the job in a shorter time.

"Thanks"

A few minutes later, they both dried their hands, finishing the washing.

"Actually, before going to sleep, I'd like to talk to you, Tou-san" Naruto addressed him.

"Making that face, I'm afraid of what you might say..." Minato sighed awkwardly. Naruto always behaves like this when he has something important to confess.

Naruto chuckled and sat back at the table. Menma and Himiko looked at him with curiosity from behind, and Minato awaited something strange; after all, Naruto didn't deny him.

"I want to go on a journey outside the Village...!" Naruto said straightforwardly.

"W-what...?!" Himiko exclaimed astonished.

„..." Menma fell silent, staring at his brother.

Minato widened his eyes and sighed after a while.

"Why do you want to leave? I don't want you to leave the Village!" Himiko grabbed him tightly by the arm, trying to stop him.

"I'll be back in a year at most; I want to go to the Fire Temple to train," Naruto confessed sincerely.

"The Fire Temple...? Why there?" Minato asked, not rejecting his son's request.

"I met a Monk a few times who wanted to take me there as his student, but I refused; well, I regret it a bit now. I learned some interesting things from him, and maybe... I'll be able to become a Shinobi," Naruto explained.

...

The farewell was emotional and difficult. Himiko was still very young and didn't fully understand Naruto's dreams of strength, so she wanted to keep him at home. Minato found it hard to accept his son's request to leave, but he didn't want to stop him. Naruto won't live as long as others; he can't go on missions outside the Village and do things like normal people. On the one hand, he wanted Naruto to stay with them, and on the other hand, he wanted him to live his own life and experience it. Finally, after Naruto's persuasion, Minato couldn't stop him.

His only request was to take Kakashi as his bodyguard, which Naruto gladly agreed to. He had to take someone strong with him for protection anyway.

Naruto said goodbye to his siblings and all his friends. One of the last people he went to was his Ka-chan. He spent a few long hours with her in silence, not really knowing how to talk to her; when he left, he just said he'd be back soon.

Naruto felt strange saying goodbye to everyone; it seemed to him a bit like he was going to die soon. Eventually, together with Kakashi, they left the Leaf Village and began their journey to the Fire Temple. Naruto's excitement reached its peak, and time passed quickly for him; frankly, he didn't even notice when he crossed the border of Konoha and left his hometown.

A few days later, Naruto had his birthday. He just turned twelve. If he hadn't started using Chakra, he wouldn't have been on this world anymore. Naruto involuntarily smiled, feeling like he was slowly slipping out of Fate's hands.

"My life is just beginning, nothing will stop me from existing on this planet..."

Their travel pace was quite slow due to Naruto, but they reached their destination after a week. Naruto and Kakashi stood before the long stairs to the top of a great mountain in the Land of Fire, where the most famous of all Temples, the Fire Temple, was located, a sacred place for Monks.