Chapter 232: Nature
On the deck of the ship.
"By the way, Captain, does she know you? How come the moment she saw you, it was like meeting an old acquaintance?" Mondo asked Tonbo Tobitake.
He was genuinely curious. It was one thing if the Captain knew Miss Yukie Fujikaze, but it felt more like the other way around.
"The Captain is the most famous Genjutsu master in Konoha. I presume he placed Miss Yukie Fujikaze under a Genjutsu. Though it's a bit of a breach of professional ethics, right, Captain?" A glint of wisdom flashed beneath Yuuto Kido's goggles.
Shuuya Goenji added, "I thought so too. But the Captain is incredible; his hand signs must have been so fast that we didn't even notice."
Recalling the day they arrived at the film crew, they indeed hadn't seen the Captain weave any signs when they first met Miss Yukie Fujikaze.
"Mhm, one-handed seals. I hid one hand," Tonbo admitted to his lack of ethics in using Genjutsu on an employer.
He remembered from watching the series in his past life that this princess had a rather difficult personality, so he temporarily implanted a memory in her. He made her believe she had experienced a "hero saving the beauty" scenario, then used Genjutsu to lower her guard.
He took her down easily. As everyone knows, ninjas have no professional ethics.
"That's amazing! Catching someone off guard without them even knowing!" Mondo was full of admiration. As expected of Captain Tonbo.
"Then this makes things much easier for us. Next is the matter of intelligence. I wonder what the strength of the ninjas in the Land of Snow is like?" Kido asked.
For these ninjas who had just been promoted to Chunin, their understanding of the various parts of the world was still far too limited.
"The majority are Snow Ninjas. In terms of ninjutsu, most use Ice Style. Compared to the diversification of secret techniques used by foreign ninjas, the Land of Snow is quite monotonous in this regard. However, don't think they aren't strong just because they are monotonous; they still possess some real skill," Tonbo said.
How strong is Ice Style? Even Hashirama could only run.
"Ice Style? The entire force uses Ice Style?" Mondo asked in shock.
Shuuya Goenji followed up, "Sensei, your 'monotonous' is a bit too monotonous. Ice Style is a Kekkei Genkai, right? If the entire force has a Kekkei Genkai, is it enough to rely solely on those people from the Land of Fire?"
The fame of Kekkei Genkai wasn't limited to things like the Sharingan; other Kekkei Genkai were also ridiculously powerful. If the entire force used Ice Style, how could they fight? It felt like there was no chance of victory.
"How could there be a country where everyone has a Kekkei Genkai? I've never heard of such a thing!" Kido considered himself well-read, yet he had never heard of a country where every ninja possessed a Kekkei Genkai.
No wonder the Land of Fire wanted to send people to assist the Princess of the Land of Snow in ascending the throne. If they succeeded, they would have a powerful ally.
"Haha, you're overthinking it. Don't be intimidated. Actually, their Ice Style is caused by the geographical environment of the Land of Snow. Once they leave the Land of Snow, their Ice Style loses its form," Tonbo explained.
If the ninjas of an entire nation had Kekkei Genkai, they would have to be the size of the Uzumaki clan! If that were the case, the Land of Snow would be the Sixth Great Nation, not huddled in a mountain corner where they have to import most of their food from the outside.
Phew!
"That's good. Facing so many enemies with Kekkei Genkai would have been terrifying," Mondo sighed in relief.
"However... they only become weaker when they leave. That doesn't mean their strength within their own country is any worse than a normal Kekkei Genkai user."
Before the three could finish exhaling, Tonbo's words tensed them up again. It was true; their objective was the Land of Snow, right on the enemy's home turf. This meant the enemy's strength would be at full capacity.
Ugh!
"If there are masters among them, they might even be stronger than foreign Ice Style Kekkei Genkai users. Because of their geographical environment, ice-related Natural Energy manifests outwardly. In other words, their ninjutsu utilizes Natural Energy to undergo various amplified changes, creating a 'Pseudo-Ice Style'."
Tonbo felt the cold air gradually reaching his skin; they must have entered the Land of Snow's territory.
Already researching Cursed Seals, he could clearly perceive the special energy spreading through the air at this moment. It was very distinct.
Having mastered all basic elemental nature transformations, he could immediately sense the differences in these Natural Energies. It leaned more towards low-temperature properties.
That was why he said if a genius appeared in the Land of Snow, they could be truly powerful within its borders. This was likely the hidden foundation of the Land of Snow.
He recalled watching videos in his previous life where many Naruto fans argued over whether the Ice Style in the Land of Snow was an environmental issue or if they all had Kekkei Genkai. Now that he had entered the Land of Snow's region, he sensed that it was a territorial issue.
And it wasn't a simple matter of low temperature, but a matter of Natural Energy.
It was another group of people who could utilize Natural Energy. However, it was likely an indirect usage—they knew the laws and could develop Ice Style ninjutsu, but they couldn't develop a Sage Mode. Or perhaps the Natural Energy of the Land of Snow, like that of the Three Great Sage Regions, possessed specific side effects that forced the people of the Land of Snow to use Ice Style as a substitute.
Previously, he felt that very few people knew about Natural Energy, but he realized he had been misled by the original series. After researching the power of Cursed Seals recently, he specifically looked up data.
Quite a lot of people actually know about Natural Energy. It's just that very few people can develop a Sage Mode or Sage Art.
For instance, the Tsuchigumo clan's Sage Art, Fury, which was used to destroy villages during the Third War, and those stone toads at Mount Myoboku when Naruto was training—you don't even need other evidence; those stone toads alone prove that many people know about Natural Energy.
But he could also feel that the Natural Energy of the Land of Snow could not be absorbed; it would be very dangerous. Although he didn't know the exact nature of the danger, his intuition as a sensory ninja told him not to attempt to absorb this Natural Energy. The maximum limit would be to follow the Land of Snow's method and apply it to ninjutsu.
"Natural Energy?" The three were confused, hearing a new term again.
"Mhm, Natural Energy. It exists in the sky, in the earth, and in every corner of the world. Those who can utilize this power are not to be underestimated."
"Understood."
The three felt the pressure mounting again. This sounded terrifying, and it wasn't something taught at the Ninja Academy!
"Don't try to use this yourselves. It's very dangerous. Also, regarding the Land of Snow, besides Ice Style, they have other advantages. You must be careful," Tonbo advised.
If one of them actually had such a thought and happened to have a bit of talent, getting tainted by the side effects would be "GG."
"Ah, there's more!"
"Indeed. The Land of Snow is most famous for its technological strength. According to intelligence, they developed chakra amplifiers over ten years ago. They can perform powerful ninjutsu using half or even less chakra. In other words, with the same amount of chakra, they can use stronger ninjutsu more frequently."
Tonbo continued to feed them intelligence bit by bit. At the same time, he was interested in the Land of Snow's Chakra Armor. His own chakra was already growing rapidly; if he could get a few sets to wear, wouldn't his margin for error be even larger?
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