Chapter 23: Shadow Clone Jutsu Power of Youth Edition
Years ago, after Natsuhiko successfully created the chakra SmartBrain prototype, he began developing the rune Ninjutsu. In simple terms, using the computing power of the prototype, he translated the hand seal language used in Ninjutsu into rune language through various algorithms.
Unlike most ninjas who only knew the practical aspects of various Ninjutsu without understanding the underlying principles. Completely transforming hand seals into rune Ninjutsu meant that the jutsus held no secrets in front of Natsuhiko anymore. Non-seal techniques were just basic operations for him. TMore importantly, Natsuhiko could freely modify and customise these rune Ninjutsu to better suit his preferences.
For example, if Natsuhiko wished, he could not only carve a dog's head on a Mud Wall but also recreate the painting "Along the River During the Qingming Festival." The projection jutsu he used in class was also inspired by the analysis of the Three-Style Jutsu.
After completing the analysis of the Three-Style Jutsu, Natsuhiko's next target for analysis was the Shadow Clone Jutsu. Unfortunately, as a B-Rank Ninjutsu, it wasn't as easy to fully analyze as the E-Rank Three-Style Jutsu. Until a few days ago, Natsuhiko's progress in analyzing the Shadow Clone Jutsu was stuck at 66.6%, making further advancement difficult.
The main reason for this bottleneck was the lack of sufficient runes in Natsuhiko's possession. Thus, he remained determined to return to the Academy as a sensei to collect more Original Runes and break through the bottleneck in analyzing Ninjutsu.
Although the Shadow Clone Jutsu hadn't been completely analyzed, Natsuhiko gained a deeper understanding during the analysis, allowing him to find loopholes in the technique. He could use this to make adjustments and no longer create Shadow Clones identical to himself. The three creatures before him were the result of him tweaking the jutsu.
As everyone knows, Shadow Clones continuously consume chakra while maintaining their existence. Considering Natsuhiko's meager Chakra Reserves, he needed a solution to create more clones and make them last longer. His adjustment strategy for the Shadow Clone Jutsu resembled his approach to Sealing Jutsu – cutting corners whenever possible.
Due to the nature of his research work, Natsuhiko realized that the impressive physique he possessed had no practical use and was not worth consuming precious chakra to maintain. Therefore, he customized a true "Power of Youth Edition" Shadow Clone Jutsu, allowing him to maintain three clones simultaneously.
However, this modified version of the jutsu had its drawbacks. Although the clones consumed less chakra, their personalities seemed to regress due to the changes in their bodies, resembling mischievous children. Also, the slight differences in the materials and rune technique formula for the three small chakra balls he created for his clones resulted in variations in the characters of the clones.
Despite researching for a long time, Natsuhiko couldn't find a solution to this problem and had to let it be. As long as they could complete the missions assigned by Natsuhiko, he wouldn't pay too much attention to their quirks.
Since these clones were based on his childhood, Natsuhiko named this Ninjutsu the "Baby Clone Technique."
Finally freeing himself from the three baby clones in the entrance hall, Natsuhiko walked towards the study. Although these three small beings had little fighting strength and could probably cry for a long time after getting hit by a single punch, Natsuhiko couldn't exert too much force on them. If he accidentally dispelled the clones, their memories would return to his main body instantly, potentially overwhelming him with a massive influx of knowledge.
These mischievous kids seemed to have taken advantage of this, behaving boldly. Naughty kids were really annoying, even if they were versions of his past self. Natsuhiko sighed in resignation and headed to the study.
Seeing Natsuhiko's movement, the three small beings quickly lined up behind him, imitating a train and making train sounds. Natsuhiko entered the study with a black lines shadowingd his face.
The room was surrounded by bookshelves on all sides, densely packed with various books and scrolls. These were collected by Natsuhiko over the years from various sources, focusing on Sealing Jutsu and rune literature. Most of the 233 Original Runes he currently mastered were excavated from these books.
Speaking of which, the reason he could collect so many books was attributed to the destruction of the Land of Whirlpools years ago.
Land-of-Whirlpools was renowned for the Uzumaki Clan's exceptional Sealing Jutsu, and the clan naturally possessed a vast collection of Sealing Jutsu scrolls. However, this brought about the seeds of their destruction. The importance of Sealing Jutsu significantly increased after Senju Hashirama distributed the Tailed Beasts to other villages. In an effort to better control the Tailed Beasts in their possession and prevent others from using Sealing Jutsu against their Jinchuriki, the Hidden Cloud, Hidden Mist, and Hidden Stone, along with several smaller ninja villages, joined forces in a sneak attack that ultimately led to the downfall of the Land-of-Whirlpools. The miraculous operation of distributing the Tailed Beasts had dire consequences for Hashirama's wife's family.
As for the Sealing Jutsu scrolls, while most valuable ones were divided among the attacking ninja villages, some books found their way into the black market. This, in turn, elevated the average proficiency of Sealing Jutsu in the Ninja World. It seemed that when the Uzumaki fell, the Ninja World prospered.
However, when Natsuhiko began collecting these scrolls, it had been quite some time since the destruction of the Land-of-Whirlpools. Even in the black market, only a few remnants remained, unable to fully satisfy Natsuhiko's needs. Whenever Natsuhiko heard about someone finding precious Sealing Jutsu scrolls in the black market, he couldn't help but feel envy and regret that he hadn't been born a few years earlier.
In addition to the regular furnishings, the study also featured three small desks in the corner, filled with various books, notes, and sealing tags – intentionally set up for the three short-handed clones.
Sitting at the main desk in the study, Natsuhiko looked at the three small beings residing in their own individual desks. He slowly opened his mouth, saying:
"All right, you can now report on your progress for today's tasks."
(End of this chapter)
T/N: Btw I am working on another project right now that's why I have not been able to upload frequently.
The book goes by the name "The King's World" and it's quite awesome and all of you will love it for sure!
Here's the link for it
https://m.webnovel.com/book/the-king's-world_29098456900085605
I am also stacking up chapters in bulk because my Patron will be live soon. So, I hope all my readers will help me with that as well. Thank you everyone for following the series till now. It helps me in doing this work more diligently.
Regards: Translator(Reid Astrea).