Having discovered a chakra seed, Natsuhiko naturally had no intention of letting such an opportunity slip by.
Even if he didn't plan to plant it immediately, he could store the seed for later use.
When his chakra reserves grew larger—
Or when he temporarily decided not to cultivate a certain type of seed—
He could plant it then.
The method Natsuhiko used to extract seeds was actually quite simple.
He relied on the "Senju Secret Technique" that came with the development of his bloodline.
To be honest, he still hadn't figured out why his so-called Senju Secret Technique was essentially a method for extracting the life force of trees.
"Captain, what's wrong?" Kakashi's voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts. "Got any good ideas?"
"Not yet." Natsuhiko snapped back to reality and shook his head.
"But I think we should tie him up first—especially his hands. If you want, you can even break his fingers.
Next, find something to gag him. Don't let him speak—or bite off his own tongue."
Binding his hands would prevent him from forming hand seals.
Breaking his fingers would completely eliminate that possibility.
Stuffing something into his mouth wasn't just to stop him from biting off his tongue—
It was also to prevent techniques that could be activated without hand seals, directly through the mouth.
Some sealing techniques were engraved onto teeth or tongues.
Even though this man was the Fourth Kazekage's brother-in-law—
At the end of the day, he was still a ninja.
An ANBU operative.
It was always better to be cautious and take proper precautions.
Even if the scene wouldn't look very pleasant.
Kakashi didn't object to Natsuhiko's arrangements.
He himself had no better idea.
It was the first time he had truly realized just how important sealing techniques were.
No wonder his captain—despite being so powerful—was still interested in studying them.
And his own teacher was the same.
Kakashi began to wonder if he should also start learning some sealing techniques.
Even if he couldn't master them,
At least he could use them to seal simple or specialized targets.
There was nothing more Natsuhiko needed to do afterward.
Once Kakashi received the instructions, he quickly carried Yashamaru away.
If nothing unexpected happened, he would likely place him together with the two Suna ninja they had previously captured.
After Kakashi left, Natsuhiko immediately stood up.
His gaze turned toward the large tree he had just leaned against.
It looked perfectly ordinary.
Nothing special.
It appeared no different from the trees that had produced seeds for him before.
This made Natsuhiko sigh helplessly.
Even now, he still hadn't figured out what criteria his "cheat" system used to determine what kind of attribute seed could be extracted from a plant.
He had even experimented—
Trying to find natural tree seeds from trees he had already extracted from and cultivate them himself.
Unfortunately, the result had been disappointing.
Even when he deliberately absorbed their life force again—
He gained nothing.
"But it doesn't matter. As long as I get what I want."
Thinking this, Natsuhiko began forming hand seals.
A strange chakra quickly surged within his body.
As more of that peculiar chakra gathered,
A faint blue chakra membrane gradually appeared around him.
It resembled the scene he had once seen in the anime—
When Hashirama and Tobirama of the Senju clan were revived,
And Tobirama released his pressure against Sasuke.
Natsuhiko extended his right hand and pressed it against the trunk.
In that instant,
He felt as though he could clearly see the life force within it.
It was a pale green energy—
Brimming with vitality.
A power so full of life—
It stirred longing in the heart.
Under the guidance of Natsuhiko's faint blue chakra, that life force suddenly became violently turbulent—
Then, as if it had found its true master, it surged frantically toward his body!
Visible to the naked eye, the large tree before him began to wither.
The green leaves on its branches slowly turned yellow,
Then fell one by one.
Before long, all the life force within the tree had been completely drained by Natsuhiko.
From a distance, it still stood upright—
But it was obvious that it no longer held any vitality.
The green life energy gathered rapidly inside Natsuhiko's body.
Soon, under constant compression,
It condensed into a tiny point of light.
Natsuhiko raised his hand.
A faint glow began to swirl in his palm.
When the light fully condensed,
A pale green seed appeared in his hand.
"So this is a Wind Release chakra seed?"
Natsuhiko examined it carefully.
From it emanated a sensation like a gentle breeze—
Soft, subtle, yet unmistakable.
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
He then took out a scroll from his ninja pouch.
This was a sealing scroll used to store important items.
Only the chakra of its owner could open it.
With one hand forming a seal,
His chakra flowed into the scroll.
A puff of white smoke appeared—
And a notebook materialized in his hand.
This notebook recorded everything Natsuhiko remembered about the Naruto world—
Along with his analyses and essential notes.
It was one of the most important possessions he had.
Likewise, this seed was equally important to him.
It concerned his future.
So Natsuhiko decided to store them together.
Only then could he ensure they would never be lost.
Opening the slightly worn notebook,
He placed the seed inside,
Then closed it and sealed it again.
Only after finishing all this did he let out a small sigh of relief.
He put the scroll back into his ninja pouch,
Then walked toward Kakashi.
However—
What he saw when he arrived startled him.
"You… this is…" Natsuhiko stared blankly at Kakashi—
Or rather, at the Suna ninja.
Kakashi shouldn't have read Make-Out Paradise yet, right?
Or perhaps Jiraiya hadn't even written that kind of book yet.
At this point, Jiraiya was probably still focused on writing uplifting biographies—
Trying to promote his idealistic philosophy.
His ideals, to be honest, originated from the Sage of Six Paths, Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki.
They were naive.
Pure.
Yet in a world consumed by the pursuit of profit and steeped in despair,
Such ideals were like a glimmer of light.
Shaking his head, Natsuhiko still held deep respect for idealists—
Especially someone like Jiraiya, who not only had ideals but acted upon them.
"Though, as great as he is… he's also a total pervert. Otherwise, he wouldn't have written those kinds of books."
Natsuhiko thought to himself.
Then his gaze shifted fully to Kakashi.
"And this guy too… I.I guess he's just a closet pervert in the making?
At this moment, the Suna ninja were all tightly bound—
But the method of binding was… somewhat questionable.
And stuffed into each of their mouths—
Was a small iron ball.
Kakashi had even tied strips of cloth around them,
Securing the balls behind their heads.