Chapter 158 (Patreon)

In the central region of Giant Turtle Island, Yujiro stood quietly and listened as a succession of system notifications rang through his mind.

“Ding! Congratulations, Host. You have unlocked the intermediate stage of the Fourth-Level Limiter!”

“Ding! [Gene Enhancement] has begun to evolve. Congratulations, Host. You have obtained [Gene Recombination]!”

“Ding! [Gene Recombination]: Host may freely control and restructure his own genes, acquiring the corresponding altered traits and abilities!”

Yujiro smiled to himself. He had been looking forward to an ability like this for a long time.

With it, any special constitution that existed in the shinobi world could be reproduced through the reorganization of his own genes.

“Ding! [Micro-Control] has begun to evolve. Congratulations, Host. You have obtained [Ultimate Control]!”

“Ding! [Ultimate Control]: Upon reaching the ultimate state, Host’s attacks can penetrate the physical body and strike the soul directly. By pushing microscopic control to its absolute limit, Host may also manipulate matter at the molecular level.”

“Host can effortlessly crush stone into powder, then reassemble that same powder into stone. This is the ultimate form of microscopic manipulation!”

“Ding! Congratulations, Host. You have obtained [Metabolic Control]!”

“Ding! [Metabolic Control]: Grants complete command over the body’s metabolism, an immortal lifespan, and extraordinarily powerful vitality!”

Yujiro nodded. Immortality was certainly useful.

“Ding! The Light of the Soul ability [Four Fundamental Forces of the Universe: Gravity] has begun to evolve!”

“Ding! Evolution complete! Congratulations, Host. Your gravitational control has reached the satellite class. You can now destroy the moon with ease!”

Yujiro was mildly surprised. His command over gravity had already risen that far? It was now comparable to the Tenseigan’s gravitational power—perhaps even greater.

“Ding! [Entropy Reversal] acquired! You have obtained the source of immortality!”

“Ding! [Telekinesis] unlocked! This ability allows Host to control every element in the world, with its potency determined by Host’s own strength!”

Yujiro’s grin widened.

A superpower?

“Ding! [Special Ability Control] unlocked! You have obtained the power to rewrite [Matter, Energy, Space, and Time]!”

“Ding! Host will automatically acquire abilities suited to the current world!”

“Ding! Preliminary control over [Matter] acquired: [Matter Disintegration]. Within a certain distance, Host may disintegrate an object into its molecular state.”

“Ding! Preliminary control over [Energy] acquired: [Energy Infusion]. Within a certain distance, Host may replenish the internal energy of any living being, including chakra.”

“Ding! Preliminary control over [Space] acquired: [Space Confinement]. Within a certain distance, Host may seal the surrounding space. No one other than Host can move inside the affected area.”

“Ding! Preliminary control over [Time] acquired: [Time Stop]. Within a certain distance, Host may halt the flow of time. The duration depends upon the energy within Host’s body.”

As Yujiro examined his newly acquired abilities, he could no longer suppress his grin.

These powers were absurd.

With this, he had truly become invincible in a single leap.

[Space Confinement] was practically designed to counter Obito’s Kamui. From now on, Kamui would no longer pose any threat to him.

As for [Time Stop]...

That ability was rather interesting.

And this was only his preliminary control over those powers. Once they evolved further, he might even become capable of reversing time.

“Now this is satisfying.”

An indescribable sense of liberation flowed through Yujiro’s entire body. His physique had undergone another tremendous enhancement as well.

At this point, even if he stood still and allowed every shinobi in the world to unleash their strongest attacks upon him, none of them would be able to kill him.

The intermediate stage of the Fourth-Level Limiter had made him invincible in the shinobi world.

Right now, Yujiro could hardly wait to test his new abilities.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Two sharp bursts of wind approached from the distance.

Konan and Tsunade were racing toward him at full speed.

“Time Stop.”

Yujiro activated the ability at once.

In the next instant, Konan and Tsunade froze in midair.

It was not only the two of them. Every movement within a radius of five hundred meters ceased completely.

After briefly sensing the ability’s limits, Yujiro discovered that its maximum range was currently around one thousand meters. He could freely adjust the affected area within that distance, but extending it any farther would require him to strengthen [Time Stop].

Yujiro leisurely walked over to Konan and Tsunade. Grinning, he reached out and adjusted the trajectory of their leaps before positioning himself between them.

Snap!

He snapped his fingers, and time began to flow once more.

With two soft thuds, Konan and Tsunade fell straight into his arms, one on either side.

“Huh?!”

Their vision seemed to blur for an instant. By the time their senses caught up, both women found themselves being held in Yujiro’s arms.

“What just happened?” Tsunade asked, completely bewildered.

“What do you mean?” Yujiro replied with an innocent smile.

He released them both, then asked, “How long have I been on Giant Turtle Island?”

“One month,” Tsunade answered. Her eyes carefully swept over him from head to toe. “Yujiro, is your inner demon gone?”

“It’s gone.” Yujiro nodded.

“Then how strong are you now?” Tsunade asked curiously.

“What kind of strength are you asking about?” Yujiro replied with a grin.

“Your combat strength, obviously. What else would I mean?” Tsunade rolled her eyes at him.

“How should I put it...?” Yujiro considered the question for a moment. “I should be invincible in the shinobi world now.”

“You never stop boasting,” Tsunade said, clearly unconvinced.

Konan, on the other hand, believed him without hesitation.

“What are we going to do next?” Tsunade asked. Once she had confirmed that Yujiro was truly all right, a smile finally returned to her face.

“We’ve accomplished what we came to Kumogakure for. It’s time to go home,” Yujiro replied.

The entire reason he had come to Kumogakure was to overcome his inner demon with the help of the Falls of Truth.

In the end, the Falls of Truth had been completely useless.

Still, the result was all that mattered.

Yujiro left the central region with Tsunade and Konan and headed toward the outer edge of Giant Turtle Island.

Kurama, meanwhile, returned to Yujiro’s mindscape.

“Yujiro, you really did overcome your inner demon! Heh... Now I only want to know what kind of gift you’ve prepared for me.”

Kurama lay comfortably on the ground within the mindscape, speaking with an unmistakably smug expression.

“You’ll find out when the time comes,” Yujiro replied with a smile.

There was, however, a faintly scheming quality hidden within that smile.

Yujiro had attained the highest degree of microscopic control at the genetic level. Because of that, an exceedingly bold idea had taken shape in his mind—one that he intended to test on the Nine-Tails.

Of course, he could not tell Kurama about it yet.

If he revealed the idea now, the fox would probably choose death before agreeing to it.

Yujiro glanced at Kurama, who was sprawled across the ground inside his mindscape, and an exceptionally benevolent smile appeared on his face.

Kurama suddenly sneezed. He rubbed his nose with one paw, then closed his eyes and continued sleeping soundly.