"It's Master!"
Chuigen Tianxing was the first to react and shouted loudly.
Chuigen Tianlang immediately turned to Tianxing and Tianjian and said,
"You two help Naruto get dressed. I'll go outside and receive Master."
After speaking, Tianlang walked out quickly.
Tianxing and Tianjian rushed over and helped Naruto up.
"Hey, hey, don't struggle, don't struggle!"
Naruto groaned weakly.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"
Tianxing pulled him up and complained,
"We're all men here, what's there to be embarrassed about? Hurry up, dry yourself and get dressed!"
Tianjian handed Naruto a dry cloth.
Naruto wiped himself quickly. As he wiped, he suddenly froze.
"Wait… something's wrong."
"Where are all my injuries?"
Tianxing waved his hand carelessly.
"The medicine worked. Hurry up!"
Tianjian brought over a clean student uniform.
The two of them worked together and helped Naruto change clothes.
Then they quickly led him outside.
Chuigen Tianzang was already waiting.
When he saw Naruto come out, he glanced at him and nodded.
"Hm."
Then he turned to Tianlang.
"You did well."
Before Naruto could even open his mouth to complain or ask for food, Tianzang waved his sleeve.
Whoosh!
Naruto was lifted straight into the air.
Top of the Mountain – Law Field
Tianzang put Naruto down, pulled out his whip, and shouted,
"Continue!"
Naruto looked at him helplessly.
"Again?!"
Snap!
The whip cracked through the air.
Naruto groaned and immediately resumed practicing.
He didn't dare to slack off even a little.
Another afternoon passed.
By nightfall—
Bang!
Naruto was thrown down again.
Tianxing walked out, clicked his tongue, and said,
"Naruto, you're really miserable. Master really 'loves' you."
Naruto had completely lost his strength.
His face was blank.
He couldn't even respond.
"Senior Brother! Third Brother! Come out quickly!"
Thus, the same routine repeated.
Medicinal bath.
Inner flame tempering.
Medicine forced down his throat.
This time, Naruto endured longer.
It took more than ten minutes before he fainted.
After waking up, the first thing he shouted was—
"I'm hungry!"
"I want to eat!"
"I want to eat a lot!"
Tianlang understood immediately.
He asked Tianxing to catch some hares, and he personally roasted them.
When the food was ready, Naruto devoured it like a starving wolf.
He ate as if someone might snatch it away.
Afterward, Tianlang told him to rest well.
"Tomorrow, it will probably continue."
Naruto let out a miserable scream.
But in his heart, he understood.
Growth was always accompanied by pain.
And he could clearly feel it.
His body was changing.
Becoming stronger.
Days Later
Naruto fell into a terrifying routine.
Morning: whipped.
Noon: thrown down.
Afternoon: healing.
Evening: whipped again.
Repeat.
Day after day.
The scars on his body gradually decreased.
His endurance increased.
His control over dark matter became more precise.
Finally—
One day, Naruto completed the entire mental technique flawlessly.
Every movement.
Every formula.
Perfect.
Chuigen Tianzang laughed heartily.
"That's it!"
Naruto cupped his hands respectfully.
Tianzang looked at him and said,
"Naruto, I have nothing more to teach you."
"You can go down the mountain now."
Naruto froze.
"Master… that's it?"
"I haven't learned more advanced Fire Release techniques yet."
Tianzang laughed.
"You've already learned the highest secret of our sect."
"The rest, you'll understand naturally in the future."
"Go."
With a wave of his sleeve—
Whoosh!
Naruto was sent flying.
"Ahhh—!"
He began falling freely.
"One last lesson!"
Tianzang's voice echoed from afar.
"Learn to fly!"
Naruto looked down in horror.
This time, he wasn't falling toward the Fire Mountain Gate.
He was falling toward the foot of the mountain.
"Oh my God!!!"
Was he supposed to learn like this?!
For a moment, Naruto was speechless.
Then he laughed bitterly.
Back then, when he learned Sage Mode at Mount Myōboku, Jiraiya had pushed him off a cliff too.
Extreme conditions stimulated potential.
This again?
Classic.
Naruto took a deep breath.
He calmed himself.
He had already grasped the principle.
Dark matter was everywhere.
Just like chakra.
To fly—
He needed to treat himself as part of dark matter.
Use force on surrounding energy.
Generate reaction force.
Just like tree-walking or water-walking with chakra.
Understanding this, Naruto gathered dark matter at his feet.
Energy surged.
"I've got it!"
Boom!
His body stabilized.
Then—
Whoosh!
He flew upward.
"Hahaha!"
"I can fly again!"
Naruto laughed loudly.
Tears welled in his eyes.
After so long—
He had regained his strength.
"Junior Brother Naruto, your sword!"
A voice rang out.
It was Tianlang.
A streak of light flew over.
Naruto caught his sword.
"Thank you, Senior Brother!"
He bowed.
Then he turned and flew down the mountain.
After bidding farewell to Fire Mountain Gate, Naruto began thinking.
Where should he go next?
But just as he stepped outside—
Someone was waiting.
"Hey."
"You must be Naruto."
A woman stood there, holding a long pipe.
She smiled gently.
It was the Master of Water Mountain Gate—Natsuki.
Naruto looked at her.
She was beautiful, elegant, and gentle.
Her voice was pleasant.
"Ma'am… I feel like I've seen you somewhere."
Natsuki covered her mouth and laughed.
"Young man, you really forget easily."
"It doesn't matter."
"Come with me first."
Naruto frowned.
"Why should I go with you?"
Natsuki turned around and began walking.
But—
Each step landed in midair.
She walked on air itself.
Naruto's eyes widened.
Such precise dark matter control!
"If you want to keep getting stronger…"
"Follow me."
With each step, she crossed hundreds of meters.
Almost teleporting.
"Oh my God…"
Naruto was stunned.
What kind of movement technique was this?
Driven by his desire to grow stronger, Naruto activated dark matter and followed.
Natsuki smiled faintly.
She knew he would follow.
This boy…
Interesting.
Quite handsome too.
She decided.
She would train him well.
As for Tianlang's instructions—
They could wait.
She hadn't met someone this interesting in years.
She wanted to have some fun first.
Naruto, flying behind her, had no idea what she was thinking.
He only knew—
If he followed her, he would grow stronger.
Soon, Natsuki led him into another mountain gate.
Water Mountain Gate.
The moment Naruto stepped inside—
He felt uncomfortable all over.
His body resisted instinctively.
There was no doubt.
The cultivation methods of Water Mountain Gate clashed with those of Fire Mountain Gate.
A new trial had begun.