Chapter 89: Three Minutes of Glowing Transformation
Haruko glanced at his courtyard.
"I can't unleash it here."
If he moved around here, he reckoned this detached house wouldn't be standing much longer.
Whoosh—
"Hey, did something just fly past?"
"Huh? You must have seen it wrong, right?"
A silver wind streaked through the Konoha urban area, arriving at the training grounds on the outskirts.
The trees here were dense, and few people usually came by, making it an excellent place for testing.
As Haruko landed, the soil beneath his feet instantly cracked, collapsing into a large pit as if it had been struck by a heavy hammer.
"Both speed and strength have increased significantly. Is this the enhancement Sage Mode Chakra provides to the body?"
Haruko threw a casual punch, and the air was rapidly compressed to form a shockwave, emitting a crisp sonic boom.
"It made a noise just like that, although it wasn't a true sonic boom... Whatever, let's test some Ninjutsu."
Haruko formed hand seals—
"Fire Release... No, let's stick with Wind Release. Wind Release: Great Breakthrough."
This was only a C-rank Ninjutsu, usually used to disperse poison mist or blow enemies away.
But at this moment, under the influence of fully infused Sage Mode Chakra, what came out of Haruko's mouth wasn't just wind; it was a typhoon.
Boom—
The terrifying wind pressure transformed into a visible white wave of air, roaring as it crushed everything in its path.
The few large trees used as targets didn't even last a second; they were snapped in half directly, flying through the air like leaves.
The air wave continued unabated, plowing a deep trench into the ground and leaving a fan-shaped mark dozens of meters long.
Haruko looked at the devastation before him and was silent for two seconds.
"...Good thing I didn't use Fire Release."
If he had breathed out a fireball, he reckoned he could have burned down half the training ground.
However...
Haruko sensed the Chakra consumption in his body. That "basic attack" just now had drained about one-tenth of his Sage Mode Chakra.
If he didn't use Ninjutsu and relied solely on Taijutsu, he could maintain it for about three minutes. Once he started carpet-bombing with Sage Mode, that time would shrink.
"Three minutes, can glow, have I become Ultraman?"
Haruko curled his lip.
Although the time was short, during these three minutes, he was definitely at a Kage-level combat capability.
"Next is the issue of endurance."
Haruko formed hand seals.
"Shadow Clone Technique!"
...
After some testing, Haruko discovered that splitting into two "power banks" was his limit.
Unlike Naruto, who had an incredibly long Chakra bar, Haruko just had fast recovery, not a large capacity.
For every extra clone he made, the Chakra allocated to each Shadow Clone decreased, and consequently, the final amount of Sage Mode Chakra he could synthesize also diminished.
The good news: Unlike Naruto, who had to remain completely still, Haruko had an absurdly high affinity for Natural Energy. Although his Shadow Clones couldn't engage in intense combat, simple movement was no problem.
"So it takes about 5 minutes to fully charge..."
Two power banks could maintain the main body's high-intensity combat for about five minutes. If used in a cycle, it could just barely allow Sage Mode to be continuous.
But—
"Damn, I really am not suited for using Shadow Clones..."
The bad news: When dispelling the Shadow Clones, the accumulated fatigue and Spiritual stress would return all at once.
If the battle affected the power banks and caused them to be dispelled prematurely, not only would the Sage Mode cycle be broken, but the resulting Spiritual shock could also cause him to expose a weakness.
It wasn't that he couldn't let Shadow Clones in Sage Mode join the fight, but besides Shadow Clones being fragile, they couldn't recover their own Chakra, so it was better to just leave it for the main body to use.
"Regardless, I can at least say I have Kage-level strength now."
Although the duration was short and there were flaws in his endurance.
At least during those three minutes of Sage Mode, Haruko was undeniably a Kage-level combatant.
If one added the defense and regenerative capabilities of Shikotsumyaku, in this Ninja World, as long as he didn't seek death by provoking those few super-Kage level cheaters, he could basically walk sideways.
"Test over, time to head back... Hm?"
Just as Haruko was about to dispel Sage Mode, his brows suddenly twitched slightly.
That feeling came again—the feeling of being watched.
"The Third Hokage's Telescope Technique, huh... Well, fair enough, I did make such a big commotion."
If it were before, Haruko would have definitely started acting by now, pretending to be panting with exhaustion, or deliberately spacing out and acting cute.
After all, before this, if he really had to fight the Third Hokage, Haruko could at most protect himself and run away; he truly had no confidence in winning against the Third Hokage.
But now...
Haruko looked in the direction of the "lens," raised his hand, waved from beside his eye, and greeted the other party.
Then, he pointed to the side and started gesturing.
...
Hokage Office.
The pipe in the Third Hokage's mouth trembled, almost falling onto the desk.
The image in the crystal ball was aimed directly at Haruko's face, and those silver-gray eyes seemed to peer through the crystal ball, staring straight at him.
"This kid... is even smarter than I thought."
The Third Hokage took a deep drag from his pipe, his eyes becoming complex.
That was definitely Sage Mode.
And not the kind from Mount Myōboku; it was something Haruko had figured out on his own.
Although he had long known that this kid was exceptionally talented, seeing the devastated training ground with his own eyes still left this "Professor of Ninjutsu" feeling shocked.
How many days ago was it that he suggested the training plan to him? He had already figured it out on his own so quickly...
More importantly, it was Haruko's attitude. He discovered the surveillance but chose to greet him instead.
That wasn't a provocation; it was a negotiation—exchanging strength for respect, and restraint for space.
"It seems the previous appeasement policy was correct."
The Third Hokage put down his pipe, watching the back that had already turned and left in the crystal ball, muttering to himself.
...
Haruko pushed open the door to his home, and just as he took off his shoes, Kaede came up to greet him.
"You're back." Kaede approached, reaching out to straighten the collar on his shoulder, "Looks like you encountered something good?"
She leaned close to Haruko's ear and whispered:
"Near the Ramen Shop, the Anbu have redeployed surveillance points... but the target doesn't seem to be the Ramen Shop?"
"They had better not be." Haruko's tone was devoid of any ripples.
Kaede blinked, her smile becoming even brighter.
She hugged Haruko's arm to her chest, resting her head on his shoulder:
"It seems my dear finally has the confidence to flip the table."
"Flip what table? I still want to live a peaceful life in Konoha." Haruko led her inside, closing the door behind him, "However... at least now I have the right to say 'no'."
"Then are you still participating in the Chunin Exams?"
"Of course I'm participating. Taking money to solve problems for others—that's both credibility and the rules... Besides, it's not really any trouble."
Kaede let go of his arm and moved in front of him, looking like she was waiting to see a good show: "Isn't this bullying? Making you go compete with a bunch of brats."
"I'm a brat too." Haruko shrugged, "Just tell me, am I a Genin or not?"
"Then..." Kaede took a step forward, pressing her whole body against him, whispering into Haruko's ear, "Do you want me to help you become an 'adult'?"
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