Chapter 590: Energy in the Time Machine
[First Study of the Time Machine's Energy]
[Preliminary Assessment: This energy has a tendency to dissipate in its natural state. A one-milliliter sample placed in open air at room temperature completely vanished within one hour. Energy-detection instruments confirmed that it did not transform into a gas. Instead, it broke down into particles and dispersed into the surrounding air.]
[At the same time, a slight increase in the concentration of natural energy within the surrounding air was detected. When attempting to enter Sage Mode afterward, the rate at which natural energy could be gathered increased slightly. The difference was negligible, but it suggests that this energy has some connection to natural energy.]
[Hypothesis: Could this substance be compressed and purified natural energy?]
[Second Experiment]
[Three milliliters of the energy were extracted for further observation. This time, complete dissipation required three hours.]
[The concentration of natural energy in the surrounding environment also increased. When refining senjutsu chakra, the increased availability of natural energy could be clearly perceived, although the difference remained extremely small.]
[However, compared with the first experiment, the increase in natural energy did not reach three times the previous amount.]
[Preliminary Conclusion: This special energy is not composed entirely of natural energy. Other unknown components are mixed into it.]
Kenichi lowered the experimental log and looked toward the special test tube in front of him.
A trace of pain appeared in his eyes.
He still had no idea how to replenish the strange energy used by the time machine.
Every bit he extracted meant there was a little less remaining inside the machine.
Each experiment felt like cutting off a piece of his own flesh.
Still, the research had not been completely fruitless.
At the very least, Kenichi now knew part of the time machine's energy composition.
Natural energy was definitely one of its components.
The problem was...
What were the others?
"This looks more like some kind of synthetic substance."
Information from his previous analyses appeared in Kenichi's mind.
He had already discovered something extremely interesting.
To his Rinnegan, the time machine's energy initially appeared to be a single uniform substance.
But because Kenichi had never seen anything like it before, he could not identify what it was actually made of.
Once the energy began dissipating, however, the structure changed.
Kenichi had observed the strange atomic structure splitting apart and decomposing into three separate types of particles before dispersing into the air.
One type appeared green and corresponded to natural energy.
The second type was almost transparent.
The third appeared blue.
That immediately raised another question.
What exactly were those other two substances?
"So this unique energy is actually a composite material made from natural energy and two other unknown energies."
Kenichi rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"And the proportion of natural energy isn't particularly high."
The real problem was identifying the nearly transparent particles and the blue particles.
If he could solve that mystery, he would overcome one of the biggest obstacles in the research.
But what were they?
Kenichi had initially suspected that the nearly transparent substance might be primordial chakra.
That theory was quickly disproven.
Primordial chakra was also close to colorless, but under Kenichi's observation, its structure had a faint white appearance.
The unknown particles from the time machine were more grayish.
That distinction left Kenichi puzzled.
"The properties of this substance are also extremely inactive."
Amado rubbed his brow as he stared at the energy sample.
"I tried heating it."
"Even when the temperature of the flame reached one thousand degrees, nothing changed."
"It didn't ignite."
"Its properties remained the same."
"Even its dissipation rate didn't increase."
Amado gestured toward another set of records.
"I also cooled it as much as our equipment allowed."
"Again, there was no meaningful change."
"The substance didn't alter its form, and the rate at which it disappeared remained exactly the same."
Kenichi also found that troublesome.
Most substances, even those with extremely high melting points or unusual thermal properties, would display some kind of change when subjected to intense heating or cooling.
A change in color.
A change in state.
A change in molecular behavior.
Something.
But the time machine's energy reacted to almost nothing.
It simply continued dissipating at a fixed rate.
Almost as though ordinary environmental conditions had absolutely no effect on it.
That made Kenichi even more suspicious.
Were the three types of particles he had observed truly the most basic components?
Or were those particles themselves still composite structures?
Previously, one apparent particle had decomposed into three.
Could those three break apart even further?
Thinking about it, Kenichi decided to try.
Amado also asked for another sample.
He had developed a few new ideas of his own and wanted to perform independent tests.
Kenichi glanced at him.
Then he extracted another one milliliter of energy from the time machine and handed it over.
Immediately afterward, Kenichi focused on the remaining sample in his own hand and activated his analytical ability.
Once the analysis was complete, he attempted to decompose one of the particles even further.
The result made his expression strange.
"The decomposition succeeded..."
Kenichi stared at what had appeared.
"But this looks ridiculous."
A single particle had split into a total of six hundred and forty-eight smaller particles.
More bizarrely, every one of those particles appeared almost as large as the original.
Kenichi frowned.
How could one particle become six hundred and forty-eight particles without an obvious reduction in their apparent size?
It made almost no sense.
Logically, if objects with identical properties were compressed together, there should still be some measurable structural change.
Unless...
The particles somehow fitted together in a special way and formed a unified whole that behaved as a single structure.
"These particles seem to be..."
Kenichi scratched his head.
He had no clue.
Identifying a single particle by observation alone was extremely difficult.
Proper research required specialized instruments capable of precise measurement.
And Kenichi simply did not possess sufficiently advanced equipment in this timeline.
Faced with that limitation, there was not much he could do.
For now, he could only reconstruct the particles back into the form he had originally observed.
After restoring the structure, Kenichi watched the sample slowly begin to dissipate again.
He poured it back into its container.
At this point, his thoughts regarding the energy research had become somewhat tangled.
He still could not determine what the substance was actually made of.
To fully understand it would require a great deal of time and repeated experimentation.
But repeated experiments created another problem.
Supply.
So far, Kenichi had found no evidence that the energy within the time machine regenerated on its own.
Every experiment permanently reduced the remaining amount.
That placed considerable pressure on him.
Still, Kenichi had already thought of one possible solution.
If he could not decipher the energy before the current supply ran too low, he could simply travel to another timeline.
Find another time machine there.
Bring it back.
Then use the additional machine as a source for further experiments.
In theory, he could repeat the process and obtain multiple machines for research.
However...
There was one concern Kenichi could not ignore.
He still did not know whether a temporal jump would work exactly as he expected.
Kenichi had already theorized that the timeline he currently occupied was unusually isolated.
His existence did not seem to affect the development or history of other timelines before he entered them.
So if he traveled to another timeline...
Could he later return to this exact one?
Or would this timeline somehow collapse or become unreachable the moment he left?
Kenichi had no way to know.
That uncertainty bothered him.
Unfortunately, he also had little choice.
Unless he deciphered the method for replenishing the machine's energy before exhausting too much of it, repeated experimentation would eventually force him to search elsewhere for additional supplies.
More importantly, Kenichi needed to perform at least one temporal jump sooner or later.
He had to determine exactly how much energy the machine consumed during a single crossing.
Only then could he estimate how many times the machine could still be used.
Otherwise, things could become extremely awkward.
Imagine traveling into another timeline...
Only for the machine to run out of power before he could return.
Kenichi did not even want to think about it.
"Crossing timelines for the first time..."
He rubbed his face.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous."
Kenichi had decided.
He would perform one controlled temporal jump.
First, he would learn exactly how the machine operated in practice.
Second, he would test several of his theories regarding timelines.
If everything worked as expected, then the path ahead would become much clearer.
If the crossing failed...
Kenichi's mouth twitched.
Surely he could not be that unlucky.
Right?
He pursed his lips.
Then he sealed the second time machine inside a scroll as insurance.
Afterward, Kenichi stepped onto the machine he intended to use.
Thanks to his previous examinations, he already understood the basic method of activation.
"You're actually going to travel through time?"
Amado looked at him.
Kenichi nodded.
"Yes."
He intended to test the machine now in preparation for eventually returning home.
At the same time, the experiment would allow him to verify several of his theories.
Whatever happened, gathering real data was better than endlessly speculating.
"Wait."
Amado suddenly stopped him.
Then he immediately began moving equipment around the laboratory.
One instrument after another was positioned around the time machine.
Amado intended to monitor the process from every possible angle.
Energy changes.
Spatial fluctuations.
Chakra reactions.
Environmental disturbances.
Anything they could measure.
He wanted to determine whether Kenichi's temporal crossing was truly feasible and what exactly happened during the moment of transition.
Kenichi understood what Amado was trying to do, so he waited patiently.
However, just as Amado was still arranging the equipment, Hagoromo suddenly appeared at the laboratory entrance.
He brought Kenichi a piece of news.
The moment Kenichi heard it, his expression changed.
His plan to conduct the time-travel experiment vanished immediately.
Without hesitation, Kenichi grabbed Hagoromo and hurriedly pulled him out of the laboratory.
Amado stood there surrounded by half-arranged instruments, staring after them in complete confusion.
...
Hiruzen sat at home in a rocking chair, quietly smoking his pipe.
Asuma stood nearby and watched him.
For a moment, Asuma's expression became distant.
How long had it been since he had last seen his father simply sitting peacefully at home like this?
A long time.
So long that the memory had almost become blurry.
"It didn't feel very good getting scolded by the Second Hokage, did it?"
Despite the complicated emotions in his heart, the moment Asuma opened his mouth, he could not resist mocking his father.
Their relationship still had not completely improved.
So when Asuma learned that Tobirama had personally reprimanded Hiruzen after being resurrected, he had rushed over at the first opportunity to enjoy the spectacle.
Hiruzen calmly took another puff from his pipe.
But the moment he heard his son's words, his eyelid twitched.
He coughed.
Then he glared at Asuma unhappily.
What kind of son took pleasure in hearing that his own father had been scolded?
Still...
When Hiruzen remembered what Tobirama had said to him, along with the Second Hokage's expression at the time, he found himself unable to argue.
Regarding Naruto, the son of the Fourth Hokage...
Hiruzen truly did owe him.
"...But after you stepped down as Hokage, you actually feel more like my father."
The words escaped Asuma before he could stop himself.
Hiruzen immediately began coughing.
He turned and stared at Asuma strangely.
Asuma had already looked away, deliberately refusing to meet his father's eyes.
Surprise appeared in Hiruzen's expression.
He genuinely had not expected his son to say something like that.
Hiruzen had stepped down as Hokage only a little more than a week ago.
The reason was simple.
Kenichi had resurrected Minato.
And since the Fourth Hokage was alive again, there was no reason for the Third Hokage to continue occupying the position.
Hiruzen had therefore stepped aside and returned the office to Minato.
The decision had also caused Tsunade, who had been summoned back to the village, to breathe an enormous sigh of relief.
She had absolutely no desire to become Hokage.
Nor did she want her grandfather constantly nagging her about responsibility.
Unfortunately for Tsunade, avoiding the Hokage position had not saved her from Hashirama's nagging.
He still lectured her frequently.
The endless lectures left Tsunade somewhat dizzy.
Yet strangely...
They also made her nostalgic.
How long had it been since she had last heard her grandfather nag her like that?
"Yes."
Hiruzen took another drag from his pipe.
"After stepping down, I really do feel much more relaxed."
At first, retirement had been uncomfortable.
He had grown accustomed to holding power.
To constantly making decisions.
To having responsibilities waiting every moment of every day.
Then suddenly...
Nothing.
The authority was gone.
His schedule became empty.
For a while, Hiruzen had not known what to do with himself.
He would wake up and wonder how he was supposed to spend the day.
But hearing Asuma's words now...
Hiruzen suddenly felt that perhaps stepping down had not been such a bad thing after all.
The future of Konoha should always belong to the next generation.
Where the leaves of Konoha dance, the fire burns.
And he...
An old leaf already beginning to wither...
Perhaps it was finally time to fall back to the earth.
To return to the roots.
To become nourishment for the new leaves that would grow after him.
And in that way, make one final contribution to Konoha's future.
....
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