Time slipped by, minute by minute.
Before long, Seimei had polished off an entire roasted chicken.
"Ahh, that hit the spot!"
Leaning back, he let out a satisfied sigh.
He patted his slightly bulging stomach, wiped the grease from his lips, and gave a nod of approval.
Sure, this roasted chicken couldn't hold a candle to the spice-dusted barbecue from the village's grill joints, and one bird was nowhere near enough to satisfy his appetite.
But compared to the soldier pills he'd been scarfing down in bulk, this was a downright tasty treat.
Feeling content, Seimei dispelled the Shadow Clone Technique, making the clone beside him vanish.
Then, he leaned against a large tree behind him and took a moment to rest.
About five minutes later, feeling recharged, he headed back to the open clearing at the center of the island for his final training session of the day.
Yup, it was time to nurture his Byakugan again.
Back when his Spirit Transformation Technique reached perfection and boosted his mental attributes, he'd maxed out the chakra he poured into his Byakugan.
That meant 3.5 million points of chakra daily.
As a result, the process now took three and a half hours each day.
So, as soon as the sky started to darken, he had to get to it, or he'd be up way too late.
But the time and chakra cost? They were steep—way out of proportion to the payoff.
That's why Seimei was itching to create a technique like the Mind's Reflection Technique to boost the efficiency of nurturing his Byakugan.
It'd save him both time and chakra.
Sadly, pulling that off wasn't something he could do overnight.
For now, all he could do was keep at it, slowly feeling out the process while nurturing his Byakugan.
What about sending shadow clones to experiment?
Well, nurturing the Byakugan required his real body—clones couldn't handle it. And even if they could, without a clear starting point, they'd just be flailing in the dark, wasting time and energy.
Better to stick with the current pace and keep exploring gradually.
That's why, despite his urgency, Seimei stuck to his usual rhythm.
Oh, and his Byakugan's evolution progress? It had already hit (4350/5000), just 650 points shy of evolving.
With his current daily input of 3.5 million chakra yielding 17–18 evolution points, he'd need about 35 days to get there.
Based on past experience, once it evolved, his Byakugan would process chakra faster per hour.
That'd naturally boost efficiency to some degree.
He'd no longer need to spend three and a half hours a day on it.
The time he saved could then be split off, paired with some extra chakra, to research ways to make the evolution process even more efficient.
Everything would fall into place.
These thoughts flickered through his mind, but Seimei quickly reined them in, focusing instead on channeling chakra through the Myriad Sealing Exhaustion at his brow to start nurturing his Byakugan.
As a massive amount of chakra was compressed twice by the seal and flowed into his Byakugan, that familiar tingly sensation washed over him. Seimei closed his eyes, savoring the comfort.
Unlike the grueling process of using the Mind's Reflection Technique to stimulate his Sharingan's evolution, nurturing the Byakugan was chakra-heavy and less efficient but felt gentle and soothing.
Maybe that's part of why he hadn't rushed to develop a new technique for it.
Time ticked by.
Three and a half hours later, Seimei opened his eyes. It was now deep into the night.
He pulled up his status panel and checked the bloodline section. The Byakugan had gained 17 evolution points. He nodded, satisfied.
Closing the panel, he stood, stretched lazily, and headed toward the wooden cabin in the northern corner of the island.
Inside, he flopped onto the bed. No fuss about unfamiliar surroundings—he was out like a light in moments.
Soft snores filled the cabin.
Outside, the hum of insects buzzed endlessly.
But sensing the terrifying aura radiating from Seimei, not a single bug dared approach the cabin.
So, he slept soundly.
---
The next day.
Early morning.
Seimei was up at the crack of dawn.
He downed a few enhanced soldier pills to replenish his energy, then swiftly performed the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique.
In an instant, over 200 shadow clones appeared.
With a glance, Seimei sent most of them off to train according to plan, keeping just four behind.
He scanned the area, then had each clone pick a direction, activate Wind Release: Wings of Wind and Chakra Mantle, and take to the skies to scout the surroundings.
He'd only just arrived here, and while no unwanted guests had shown up yesterday, you never know what today might bring.
Better to play it safe.
And it wouldn't just be today—every day, he'd send clones to patrol. Not just in the morning, but before every training session. With flight ninjutsu and the Byakugan, it wouldn't take much time.
As for the chakra cost? With his current recovery rate and reserves, it was barely a blip.
No need to stand around waiting—if the clones found anything, they'd contact him.
So, he got to work.
Looking out toward the sea at Moon Bay, Seimei reflected. Yesterday, after arriving, he'd only done one training session, using the Mind's Reflection Technique. He hadn't gone underwater yet and didn't know the seabed's specifics.
Today—right now—he'd dive in to find a good spot for physical training.
Recalling the intel from his shadow clone's scouting yesterday, Seimei flickered to the cliff's edge at Moon Bay.
Peering down, he saw reefs of varying depths scattered below. Some jutted above the water, others lurked beneath, like pieces on a chessboard.
But looking deeper, he noticed the reefs were all connected at the seabed.
No, not just connected—they were part of the same foundation.
And it wasn't just the reefs. If you pulled back, you'd see that Moon Island itself—the very island under his feet—was part of that foundation.
Oh, Moon Island? That's what Seimei called this place, since it was shaped like a crescent moon.
And that foundation?
Most people wouldn't have a clue what it was.
But with his Byakugan, Seimei had figured it out with just a quick flyover yesterday.
It was simple: the island was part of an ancient, long-dead volcano.
Moon Island was a piece of the volcano's crater. The crater had once been a full ring, but part of it had been shattered, leaving the scattered reefs.
The remaining half? That was Moon Island.
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