In an interdimensional space, Seimei watched as Minato Namikaze suddenly appeared, scanning the area for traces of Uchiha Obito. Seimei couldn't help but marvel inwardly, "This barrier's reaction speed is insane!"
After all, Obito had been there and gone in less than two minutes.
Yet, in that short time, the village's barrier had not only detected him but also pinpointed his location.
This showed just how powerful the barrier was!
Plus, Minato's ability to arrive so quickly suggested he had likely integrated his Flying Thunder God seal into the barrier.
That way, once an issue was detected, he could instantly teleport to the nearest node and rush to the target location at top speed.
This realization only strengthened Seimei's resolve to keep a low profile.
At the very least, he couldn't use Flying Thunder God within the village.
As for Ama no Miu? Well, judging by Minato's current state, neither he nor the barrier could detect the dimensional space created by this dojutsu.
So, Seimei could use that technique without worry.
With this thought flashing through his mind, Seimei quickly averted his gaze from Minato to avoid arousing suspicion.
Letting Minato investigate the area, Seimei quietly left the scene and returned home.
It was just past noon, still early. With nothing else to do and no desire to train, Seimei simply flopped onto his bed and went to sleep.
For him now, forcing himself into a restful state was a piece of cake.
This was also a chance to recharge and prepare for the next round of intense training starting tomorrow.
Of course, he didn't skip dinner.
He also squeezed in two hours of Extreme Body practice, boosting his Byakugan's evolution by about 20 points.
Logically, he should be slowing down any training that could increase his Mental attribute, just like he'd reduced the casting time of Reflection Technique.
Yet, he didn't stop practicing Extreme Body or nurturing his Byakugan's evolution, sticking to the same routine he'd followed before.
The reason was simple: his Byakugan was still far from its next evolution stage, so there was no immediate risk of it boosting his Mental attribute and throwing his mind-body balance out of whack.
That's why he kept up his daily habit of advancing his Byakugan's evolution.
But that was it.
After the two hours of Extreme Body practice, he returned to his bedroom and rested.
The night passed quietly.
---
The next day, at the crack of dawn, Seimei got out of bed.
He cast Shadow Clone Technique, creating a single shadow clone to stay in the village.
He'd considered leaving a Wood Clone instead.
After all, compared to a shadow clone, a wood clone had far more advantages.
Plus, his Wood Clone Technique had reached Level 7, making the wood clones he created even more refined than they were 20 days ago.
But in the village, where combat wasn't needed, a wood clone's destruction would leave obvious traces of Wood Release.
And since his training cycles only lasted ten days, there was no need to risk exposing his Wood Release by leaving such a clone behind.
A shadow clone, on the other hand, would dissipate instantly upon being destroyed, leaving no trace.
So, all things considered, a shadow clone was the better choice.
With these thoughts in mind, Seimei focused, looking at the shadow clone before him. With practiced ease, he cast All-Encompassing Seal on it.
After channeling chakra and infusing the clone with a million points of chakra as a reserve, Seimei left the house.
As he moved through the village, he avoided others when possible. If he couldn't, he simply activated Ama no Miu.
In no time, he left Konoha Village behind.
After traveling a bit farther, out of range of the watchtowers along the village walls, he stopped.
Standing in the forest, Seimei activated his Byakugan.
Confirming no one was around, he cast Wind Release: Wings of Wind and Chakra Cloak, soaring into the sky.
Then, he used Earth Release: Ultra-Lightweight Rock Technique to reduce his weight, flying toward Moon Island at a blazing speed of 1.5 kilometers per second.
The journey was uneventful, and he arrived at Moon Island without issue.
There, he didn't waste a moment. He swallowed a few enhanced soldier pills his shadow clone had gathered over the past few days, filled his stomach, and began training.
The training process was the same as before: he cast Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, creating 300 shadow clones.
Of them, 250 continued developing Storm Release, while the remaining 50 worked on overcoming the theoretical hurdles of integrating physical enhancement into Extreme Body.
Then, Seimei himself began his training.
It was divided into four parts. About two hours—two training cycles—were spent casting Reflection Technique to stimulate his Sharingan's evolution.
Four hours went to practicing Wood Clone Technique, both to improve its proficiency and to advance his Wood Release.
The remaining time, aside from two evening hours dedicated to Extreme Body to boost his Byakugan's evolution, was all spent on physical enhancement.
Because of this, he dove deeper and deeper into the ocean.
Days passed like this.
In the blink of an eye, a week had gone by.
That afternoon, as Seimei dove into the water for training, he noticed the water pressure no longer had a significant effect on his progress.
Without hesitation, he dove deeper.
But this time, after descending just a few meters, he couldn't go any farther.
It wasn't a matter of endurance—the ocean floor itself was right there.
Stepping onto the hardened ground formed by solidified lava, Seimei activated his Byakugan, scanning the surroundings.
With the Byakugan's special vision, he confirmed there were no deeper areas nearby.
In other words, he'd reached the 1,200-meter-deep ocean floor he'd observed initially.
According to his plan, to keep seeking harsher environments, he'd need to venture inside the volcano next.
With this thought, Seimei turned to look at the dormant volcano behind him.
Though he'd mentally prepared for this, actually doing it made him a bit nervous.
Fortunately, his life-preserving skills were solid, and with the Byakugan's X-ray vision, he wasn't likely to face serious trouble right away.
Reassuring himself, Seimei increased the output of his Lightning Release chakra, thickening the Lightning Aura around him.
Then, he cast Chakra Cloak for close-range protection.
Still not fully at ease, he activated his Mangekyo Sharingan, keeping Ama no Miu on the verge of activation.
Only then did he feel truly secure.
Now, it was time to find an entry point.
With this in mind, Seimei began circling the volcano, using his Byakugan's X-ray vision to carefully search for a suitable spot.
This choice wasn't just about the short term—it also had to account for future progression, so it took a bit longer.
Over an hour later, after resurfacing once to catch his breath, he finally found a suitable entry point.
(End of Chapter)