Konoha, Just Like Kizaru

Simu leaned back in his chair and asked lazily, "So, my punishment this time is just to cancel the Jōnin appointment and suspend me for a year?"

The Third Hokage looked at him with a sigh. "That's correct."

Simu straightened up and asked seriously, "Well, the Jōnin appointment doesn't really matter." 

"The suspension is fine, but do I still get my base salary for this year?"

The Third Hokage couldn't take it anymore. "No!"

"Alright, get this guy out of here!" he exclaimed, frustrated. 

To keep Simu, he'd even gone as far as to let go of an entire tea farming business.

Simu was discussing with the Hokage whether there was any subsidy for his six-month suspension.

"Oh, don't be too angry, old man," 

"You're scary, Hokage."

With that, he vanished in a flash of light.

In the next instant, Simu appeared in the training field near the Death Forest.

"Moses, Moses, everyone's here," Simu said as he arrived.

Kushina, Lindy, and Minato were waiting, eager for news from Simu.

"Mr. Simu, how did it go?" Lindy asked, concerned.

Simu waved dismissively. "It's fine, it's fine. The Jōnin appointment is canceled, and it's just a one-year suspension."

Simu shrugged. "That means I won't be able to do missions with you for the next six months." 

He didn't mind. For him, the Jōnin title didn't matter much. 

A one-year suspension was even better—it was like taking a year off, exactly what he wanted.

Kushina frowned slightly. "If you're gone, what happens to our team?" 

At that moment, Jiraiya arrived, already in training.

"Yo, everyone's here," he said, getting straight to the point. 

"Since Simu is suspended and Minato's been promoted to Jōnin, our team can graduate early."

Usually, a Jōnin led the team for almost two years, but it was nearly time for them to move on.

Minato and Simu had both passed the Jōnin exam, and it would be a waste of resources for Jiraiya to continue leading the team. 

With their current strength, both Minato and Simu were capable of leading the team on their own. The only problem was their age.

Jiraiya looked at the three in front of him, feeling a sense of nostalgia. It reminded him of when he had been with the Sarutobi team. 

He then said, "Starting today, Minato will join Anbu and handle his own missions."

"Simu will remain suspended. My suggestion is that you use this time to train in the Shikkoku Forest's sage mode."

The last time Simu tried to learn the Sage Mode, his body didn't have enough chakra to properly balance the absorbed natural energy.

But now, things are different.

Simu had mastered the Life Return, which had rapidly improved his physique. 

Combined with his strong mental power, his chakra reserves had almost doubled compared to before he mastered the technique—and they were still increasing quickly. It was the perfect time to try out magic techniques.

Jiraiya turned to Kushina. "As for you, Kushina, since you're a Jinchūriki, you'll also be suspended from missions until Simu resumes his position."

He paused, then added, "Use this time to focus on mastering the Adamantine Sealing Technique and gradually learn to control the power within you."

Kushina felt a bit disappointed at not being able to take on missions, but she understood.

Not being able to take on missions meant not being able to advance to Jōnin. And without advancing to Jōnin, she couldn't become Hokage. 

However, during the Jōnin exam, Kushina had witnessed the terrifying power other Jinchūriki could unleash with the help of their tailed beasts. 

If she could master that power, she might be able to help Simu.

She glanced at the word "Justice" on Simu's back.

Jiraiya then turned to Lindy. "As for you, Lindy, your situation is a bit special, and there are no specific orders from above. For now, you can train with Simu."

He added, "No matter what, improving your strength is always a good thing."

Hyuga Lingyi nodded firmly. "Yes, Jiraiya-sama."

Jiraiya clapped his hands. 

"In that case, I'll treat you all to a big meal tonight!" 

By the time he said this, he was ready for anything. 

However, the food intake of Simu and Lindy far exceeded his expectations.

The barbecue restaurant ran out of stock!

In the end, Jiraiya managed to leave by using his Konoha Sannin name to ask the owner for credit.

After the meal, Simu escorted Lindy and Kushina home.

"From now on, Lindy will live with me. Don't try to get her attention!" Kushina said fiercely, holding Lindy's hand.

Lindy hid behind Kushina, too nervous to say a word.

Simu scratched his head and asked cautiously, "Kushina, do you think... is it possible for the three of us to live together?"

"Don't even think about it! It's impossible, you pervert!" Kushina immediately slammed the door, leaving no room for discussion.

Simu groaned outside the door. He had been hoping for a fun holiday this year—Lindy on one side, Kushina on the other, all happy and carefree. 

But now, Kushina had ruined those plans with her response.

Behind the door, Lindy whispered:

"Kushina, do you think Simu-kun will be upset if we treat him like this?" 

Kushina scoffed. "That guy's dreaming if he thinks he can live with us."

"Let me tell you, Lindy, we can't make it too easy for him. Otherwise, he won't learn to appreciate it."

"At least make him wait for a month first."

Hyuga Lingyi nodded thoughtfully. "I'll listen to you."

Meanwhile, the disappointed Simu, rejected once again, went to Shikotsu Forrest to practice sage mode and relieve his worries.

"Kizaru-san, are you ready?" Katsuyu Sage asked, looking at Simu.

"Of course, let's go, Katsuyu!" 

Simu said, confidently removing his shirt to reveal his well-defined muscles.

In just a few days, his height had grown to 1.8 meters. In the ninja world, he could now be considered a tall man. 

What's more, his chakra reserves had doubled, and his control over chakra was now perfect.

With this improvement, he was confident that he could manage the balance of chakra and natural energy in his body, with Katsuyu's help to absorb the natural energy.

Seeing Simu's growing confidence, Katsuyu didn't ask any more questions. 

A clone split off and landed on Simu.

Simu's absorption of natural energy was happening too quickly. For now, only one clone was needed. 

If he could control it smoothly, he could increase the number of clones later.

As Katsuyu landed on him, Simu activated his Observation Haki. 

With the help of Katsuyu's slime, his senses soon detected the same special scene he had observed last time.

Around him, everything—trees, insects, even the rocks and mountains—was emitting a faint green energy. 

These energies turned into tiny, invisible particles floating in the air, undetectable by the human eye.

Even the special ability of the Byakugan couldn't detect the natural energy directly. It could only be felt with the help of something special, like toad oil or Katsuyu's slime.

With the aid of Katsuyu's slime, Simu had mastered Observation Haki. This was why his approach to learning the Sage arts was different from others.

The abundant natural energy floating in the air around him was quickly captured by Simu. 

Using Katsuyu's help, the energy gathered and flowed through his meridians, heading to his dantian, where his chakra was stored.

Just like a river flowing into the sea, the natural energy blended instantly with his chakra.

Simu immediately began to control his chakra, separating it with fine precision. 

He experimented with various ratios, starting from 5:5, then 4:6, and 3:7, until he finally reached a state where the natural energy and chakra were perfectly balanced.

During this process, Simu's body underwent constant changes. 

As he absorbed natural energy through Katsuyu, some of Katsuyu's traits inevitably began to appear in his own body.

Suddenly, two tentacles sprouted from Simu's forehead. His skin turned pale, and a large amount of acidic mucus began secreting from his surface. 

The sound of sizzling filled the air as the acidic goo started to eat away at his skin.

In less than two minutes, large areas of Simu's body were corroded, as if sulfuric acid had splashed on him. 

The two tentacles on his forehead gave him an otherworldly, alien-like appearance.

Despite the excruciating pain, Simu refused to give up. Without saying a word, he increased his absorption of natural energy.

After seven hours of continuous adjustments, he finally found the right ratio for his body: Natural Energy 3.14 : Chakra 6.86.

As the energy in his body stabilized, Simu's condition began to improve. 

The strange symptoms slowly faded away.

First, the two tentacles on his forehead retracted. 

The mucus secretion on his skin stopped, and its color returned to normal. With his strong physique, the corrosion marks on his skin quickly faded as well.

Two hours later, as the first rays of sunlight touched Simu, two shades of red eye shadow spread from his eyes. 

The shadow split at the corners of his eyes, one flowing down to his cheeks and the other to the bottom of his ears. It resembled the Sage Mode of the First Hokage.

A red sun mark appeared on his forehead. When Simu opened his eyes, his golden pupils now carried the majesty of a true sage.

"Is this... natural energy?" 

Simu didn't use any other abilities; he simply gathered natural energy in his hands and threw a punch.

This wasn't just a pure power explosion like before. Now, it felt as if the entire nature itself was cooperating with him. 

The surrounding air condensed into a cyclone, which struck a nearby rock. Instantly, a depression appeared on the rock's surface, perfectly matching the shape of Simu's fist.

This feeling reminded Simu of a phrase: "The world and the earth are the same force."

It made him realize that whenever he wished to strike someone, everything around him would work in harmony to make it happen.

"So this is Sage Mode," 

Simu thought, feeling at one with nature and tapping into its power. As he sensed the energy within him, a deep calm washed over his body.

"It's so scary, Sage Mode," 

Another Katsuyu emerged from the woods and spoke to Simu: "Congratulations, Kizaru-san, you've mastered Sage Mode. Even Hashirama-sama was only a little faster than you when he practiced it."

Hearing this, Simu grew intrigued. He realized that only he and Hashirama had successfully mastered the Sage Mode of the Shikotsu Forest in all of history.

As for Tsunade's [Ninja Art: Mitotic Regeneration Baihao Technique], despite the strange patterns on her face, it isn't Sage Art.

It's simply the release of Yin Chakra stored in her body, allowing her to recover almost infinitely in a short period. 

It can be considered a substitute for Hashirama's Sage Mode.

Simu casually asked, "How long did Senior Hashirama take to master Sage Mode?"

Katsuyu paused, then answered, "....."

"20 minutes."

"Twenty minutes?" Simu asked, stunned.

Katsuyu Sage nodded. "Once Hashirama-sama understood the principles of Sage Mode, he clapped his hands together, and he was almost ready."

Simu's sense of superiority was instantly shattered.

He could already imagine what Senju Hashirama looked like at that time.

clapping his hands and instantly achieving what he wanted. Truly the reincarnation of Ashura. It made him realize how much the ninja world relies on bloodlines.

"As expected of the legendary Ninja God, so scary," Simu thought, shaking off those thoughts.

At that moment, Simu felt a steady flow of energy within him. 

He used the light blade to make a small cut on his finger, but within just three seconds, the wound healed and returned to its original state.

This is the advantage of Shikkotsu Forest Sage Mode compared to other Sage Modes. Katsuyu Sage spoke with admiration: 

"I didn't expect Kizaru-san, your control of Sage Mode to be so smooth, without any of the typical Katsuyu features."

When Simu enters Sage Mode, the only noticeable change is the appearance of lines similar to Hashirama's on his face. His body remains unchanged. 

Unlike Jiraiya, who gains toad-like features in Sage Mode, Simu's perfect control of natural energy prevents any such transformations.

The key difference lies in how well one controls the natural energy. With proper control, there are no abnormalities. 

However, without it, strange changes like snake scales on the back or a white snake emerging from the stomach can occur.

Simu looked at Katsuyu Sage with satisfaction. "I'm counting on you for a while, Katsuyu."

"Glad to help you"

.

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TO BE CONTINUED

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