On the other side.
Ino eliminated the shadowy, malicious Ino, completing the entire inner trial.
It is said that Killer Bee finished the trial in just a few minutes, while Naruto took two full days for this step.
Ino estimated that she took less than half a day; her negative emotions were far more numerous than Killer Bee's, but less than Naruto's.
This trial not only purified her spiritual energy but also awakened Indra's Chakra, and she overheard most of the conversation between the two brothers afterward.
There was nothing more to say about that; the first round of the mission was successfully completed. Indra is tsundere, and the triggered mechanism is different every time. Ashura is very easygoing, so she will just go into Naruto's body in a few days to turn in the mission and start the second round?
Ino's consciousness returned to her body from the spiritual world.
Following the hand seals for the Spirit Transformation Technique—'Ram, Tiger, Ram'—she finally clasped her hands together, made a fist, and formed the 'Rabbit' seal. Like breaking free from some shackles, her consciousness burst outward, instantly detaching from the body's constraints and transforming into a pure, colorless spirit body, floating in mid-air.
Amazing! With a single thought, she flew out of Turtle Island's range in a tenth of a second. There was no air resistance, no scorching heat from the sun; at that moment, she felt one with the entire world.
The sensation of flying was extremely exhilarating, but the farther she was from her body, the slower her flight speed became, and the more Chakra she consumed.
When she had crossed the vast ocean and was almost back to the Land of Fire, the sense of constraint and unease became extremely strong.
It was fine over the ocean, but the Natural Energy on land was incredibly wild. Her spirit body had to carefully avoid these areas, which looked like clumps of black fibrous material, absolutely daring not to touch them.
She speculated that the reason the Sages of the Three Great Sage Regions hid in remote, desolate places was precisely to avoid these violent Natural Energy.
Being her first Spirit Transformation, she dared not delay for too long. A prolonged separation of the soul from the body would cause immense damage to the body. It was best to know when to stop and return quickly.
Returning to Turtle Island, her spirit body's sensory abilities had greatly improved this time. Seeing the giant turtle floating on the sea, she was much calmer; this colossal creature seemed to be in a state of deep slumber, with only some basic instincts remaining now.
This giant turtle was actually not very useful. If this were the world of One Piece, she might be able to try 'hearing the voice of all things,' but now, what could she hear?
Following the Yamanaka Clan's Mind Body Switch method, she successfully returned to her own body.
Shaking her shoulders and stretching her legs, she felt awkward all over. The previous joy and comfort were no longer felt in the slightest, as if she were wearing three or four rubber tires, and her movements to get up and walk were extremely sluggish.
"Poo-yoo, poo-yoo!" Tonton climbed to her side, tilted her head to look at her, then called out to Tsunade and Shizune, meaning 'our follower is back.'
Tsunade rushed to her in three strides, patting her up, down, left, and right. Seeing that no parts were missing, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. The Spirit Transformation Technique was simply too dangerous; if something went wrong, she wouldn't know how to treat it.
"Don't talk too much, keep your body stiff. We'll talk in detail once we leave here." Tsunade was extremely shrewd. She whispered a warning. Ino, even after mastering the Spirit Transformation Technique, had no intention of showing off. With a bitter expression, a trickle of crimson blood flowed from the corner of her mouth, as if the Secret Technique had failed and she had suffered a huge backlash.
The Fourth Raikage was somewhat puzzled, but they had consistently used the Yamanaka Clan's Secret Technique as a cover, making it impossible to inquire further.
Behind the Waterfall of Truth, there was also a training ground specifically built by Kumogakure's predecessors, but that had nothing to do with them.
Training at the Waterfall of Truth had already offset the favor Tsunade owed for saving Kumogakure Ninja last time. It was best to know when to stop.
"Wait!"
The Fourth Raikage called out to them.
"I don't care what Secret Technique you're practicing, Yugito asked me to convey a message." He looked at Ino: "Yugito acknowledges you. She believes you are a worthy opponent. As the Raikage of the Village, consider this her gift to you."
He took out a scroll and threw it to Ino: "The original was destroyed long ago; this is a copy. It was originally from your Konoha Village, and it supposedly contains the secrets of Wood Release? What a pretentious piece of junk."
Tsunade snorted. 'Nice words, junk? If it's junk, why did you steal it?'
Tsunade was not in a hurry at this moment. She told Ino to open the scroll and see if it contained the two characters she remembered.
Ino no longer held much hope for the First Hokage's calligraphy, but upon opening the scroll and seeing the two powerful characters, she still felt a thousand points of critical damage to her heart.
Shizune and Tonton also craned their necks to look.
The Fourth Raikage had clearly seen it many times. At this moment, he stood with his arms crossed, head tilted, looking disdainful.
"Pfft!—" Upon seeing the characters on the scroll, Shizune almost choked on her own saliva.
There, written in a flamboyant style, were the two large characters: "Muscles"!
Is this the secret to Wood Release? Did the First Hokage just scribble two characters to fool you all?
Tsunade had some recollection of these two characters, but she was still young at the time. Now, she carefully examined them, then inquired Ino with her eyes, 'Do you think this is reliable?'
I think the hot pot is the most reliable!
If you could learn Wood Release with just these two broken characters, I'd eat Turtle Island whole.
She didn't speak, but her pouting facial expression already conveyed her thoughts.
Tsunade sighed. Ino had awakened Flower Release, and the Kazamatsuri family had some Grass Release-like inheritance. She also wanted to carry on her grandfather's legacy, but unfortunately, she truly lacked the talent.
She shoved the copy to Ino: "Take it and study it yourself. Let's go!"
Like a big sister, she walked at the forefront. The Fourth Raikage didn't stop them, letting them board the ship and sail away from Turtle Island.
Once on the ship, Tsunade's expression changed, and she told Ino to quickly demonstrate the Spirit Transformation Technique.
She quickly performed the hand seals, holding the final 'Rabbit' seal, accumulating Yin Style Chakra for about three seconds.
"Spirit Transformation Technique!"
Ino's body lay limply to the side, and her spirit body swayed twice in front of Tsunade.
A spirit body is normally colorless. Ino slightly transformed some Water Release Chakra, and she became a light blue humanoid phantom. This was so that the two people and one pig could see her.
"Poo-yoo, poo-yoo?" Tonton passed through the blue phantom, looked up, her face filled with disbelief.
"Hurry up, let me see the extent of your Spirit Transformation!" Tsunade shouted.
Ino quickly rushed into her body.
Tsunade looked left and right: "Are you still there? I don't feel anything? It's different from last time."
Ino's voice echoed in her mind: "Last time was the Mind Body Switch Technique, which primarily involves occupying the recipient's body. The effects are definitely different from the Spirit Transformation Technique."
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