Naruto: Talent Entry Perks

"Why does that kid have such power?"

In a room of the mobile fortress, Hyde stared out the window at Uchiha Sasuke, who had just performed the Sage Art: Storm Release - White Dragon. His eyes were filled with both shock and joy. He muttered to himself, "Could he be a descendant of that lineage? Could he also be carrying a Grayl Stone?"

Just as Hyde was about to continue observing for a chance to capture Sasuke, a voice suddenly came from behind.

"Wood Release: Silent Killing Binding Technique!"

Wooden vines burst from the ground, wrapping tightly around Hyde like ropes, binding him completely.

"Who is it?!"

Hyde's expression shifted, and he turned his head. But by the time he saw clearly that it was a red-haired boy, he was already immobilized.

Without hesitation, Hyde activated the Grayl Stone implanted in his right hand. Power surged through him. His hair turned white, his eyes became red with black vertical pupils, and his skin turned a steely hue.

Crack…

The vines snapped apart, and Hyde easily broke free. Four flesh-like pillars sprouted from his back, swelling like Akimichi Clan's technique, and charged toward Nagato.

"What a strange power… is it because of that stone?" Nagato's gaze landed on the glowing green stone embedded in Hyde's hand. He raised one hand and murmured, "Shinra Tensei!"

Boom—

A massive shockwave exploded out. The repulsive force destroyed the room. The flesh pillars were flung back, and Hyde crashed through the wall, flying out of the mobile fortress.

"Lord Hyde!"

The explosion drew attention from below. Seeing Hyde in the air, Timothy shouted in alarm.

Just then, a figure flew out from the haze surrounding the fortress.

Upon seeing that person, Hatake Kakashi's face paled.

"Naruto, run!" Kakashi shouted, forming seals and creating two shadow clones.

"Fire Style: Dust Hiding Technique!"

A thick cloud of dust spewed forth, blocking Hoshigaki Kisame's vision.

From the haze, several figures dashed out—Kakashi and his clones, grabbing Uzumaki Naruto and Timothy. Another clone went to protect Sakura, who had already returned to the caravan with Parker.

"Let me go! I want to help Lord Hyde!"

Timothy drew his knight's sword and activated his Grayl Stone's power, destroying one of Kakashi's clones and charging off.

"Timothy!" Naruto shouted, trying to break free and help.

"Idiot! You'll get everyone killed!"

Kakashi rarely raised his voice, but now he was angry. "The one up there is Akatsuki's leader. Their goal is the Nine-Tails—the monster inside you! That kid isn't your friend; he used to be your enemy! If you go, you'll die. And you'll drag the rest of us and the village down with you!"

Naruto froze. It was the first time he'd seen Kakashi like this.

Kakashi activated the First Gate of the Eight Gates Technique, dramatically increasing his speed. He rushed over to Sasuke, who was still recovering from being struck by Susanoo, and whispered, "Sasuke, do you have enough chakra? Use your widest-range Wood Release and get us out of here."

"...Got it."

Sasuke looked at Itachi with frustration, then formed a seal and shouted:

"Wood Release: Sea of Trees!"

Rumble—

The swampy ground shook as countless branches erupted, rapidly growing and spreading into a massive forest.

Uchiha Itachi, now surrounded by trees, released his Susanoo's second form. His Mangekyō Sharingan regressed into a three-tomoe Sharingan.

Standing atop a massive tree, he looked at Nagato in the sky, then at the fleeing Team 7, and finally sighed in relief.

Even he had been startled by Nagato's sudden appearance. He'd thought Nagato had come for the Nine-Tails and nearly lost his composure.

Thankfully, Nagato's target was the leader of the mobile fortress.

Hoshigaki Kisame appeared beside him, smirking, "Mr. Itachi, they're running. Should we chase them?"

"The Nine-Tails isn't the target this time. Await orders." Itachi answered blankly.

Kisame chuckled, then looked toward Team 7's fading chakra trail. "To think your little brother has grown strong enough in just six months to force you to use your trump card. If he gets the same eyes as you… will you still be able to control him, Mr. Itachi?"

"It doesn't matter. Everything's going according to plan." Itachi's voice remained calm, but his eyelids trembled slightly.

Using both Tsukuyomi and Susanoo had cost him dearly.

But he had refrained from fighting over the years, letting Kisame handle things, minimizing Mangekyō use.

Still, his health was declining. Chakra reserves were dwindling each year.

At most, he could survive another three to five years.

He had worried Sasuke wouldn't be strong enough in time.

But now, those fears had vanished.

At this pace, Sasuke might be able to kill him within a year or two.

Even with only the three-tomoe Sharingan, killing Itachi would still awaken Sasuke's Mangekyō.

But to ensure the truth didn't break Sasuke's mind and to make sure Sasuke obtained the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, Itachi realized he needed a backup plan.

It was time to meet with the future Sixth Hokage.

Meanwhile, in the sky, Nagato had finished his battle.

"Banshō Ten'in!"

Nagato stretched out one hand and used an invisible force to pull Hyde back toward him. At the same time, wooden vines bound Hyde once more.

Before Hyde could break free again, Nagato poured in more chakra and whispered:

"Sealing Technique: Heavy Limb Seal!"

Blue chakra flames surged along the vines. Black, tadpole-shaped seals emerged and spread rapidly across Hyde's body.

Hyde instantly lost control—even his voice was sealed.

Nagato didn't bring him down. Instead, he created a wooden clone midair.

The clone extended its hand toward Hyde and activated the Hungry Ghost Path to absorb his energy.

As the Grayl Stone's power drained, Hyde reverted to normal.

"This energy…"

The wooden clone's eyes widened as its body briefly began to mutate, transforming into a beast-like shape. But the transformation subsided, and red Sage eye shadow appeared.

"So it's natural energy!"

Nagato absorbed the clone's knowledge and muttered, "No… not just natural energy. There's also Yang Release—life force. Is it from that stone?"

Staring at the Grayl Stone embedded in Hyde's hand, Nagato mused, "Let's see what this really is."

He placed a hand on Hyde's head and, ignoring the pleading in his eyes, activated the Human Path—ripping out Hyde's soul.

A flood of information surged into Nagato's mind.

After filtering it, Nagato locked onto data about the Grayl Stone.

"Grayl Stone… creates eternal wells, fast-growing livestock, endlessly fruiting crops… anti-aging research… ecology... There was once an empire in the ninja world built on this stone? Why is there no record of it?"

"No… it's not that the records don't exist. It's that fewer and fewer people know about it—and the empire moved overseas."

Nagato found a photo on Hyde—a man with a ferret.

He whispered, "So the answer might lie with him."

"Release Lord Hyde!"

A shout rang out from below.

Nagato looked down to see a green slash flying toward him.

Before he could react, his Sage-mode wooden clone flew downward and threw a punch.

The punch smashed the slash, releasing a wave of green wind.

"Senjutsu Chakra?"

The clone looked at its unharmed fist and marveled, "Natural energy is a perfect match for Wood Release. The life force enhances Yang Release. If I get more of these stones… I might not even need Hashirama's cells to improve my Wood Release."

The clone's gaze turned to Timothy, his expression heating up.

This youth was a descendant of that empire—and the old man with the ferret might know the location of the Grayl Stone vein.

Capturing both meant securing the stone's source.

The clone descended and quickly sealed Timothy using Wood Release.

Meanwhile, Nagato's true body formed a hand seal, closed his eyes, and released his perception to track Team 7.

His expression changed.

"The Rinnegan… what a disgusting eye," Nagato muttered.

He had sensed a familiar chakra—Otsutsuki Toneri's.

But the moment he did, Toneri and several nearby chakra signatures vanished.

Among them were the old man and the ferret from the photo.

Clearly, Toneri had also acted—targeting the old man.

Nagato felt lucky he had come in person—otherwise, he would've returned empty-handed.

"The Grayl Stone vein is probably in River or Wind Country," Nagato thought. "Toneri's Rinnegan has enhanced Byakugan abilities, but like mine, it cannot see through Zetsu's camouflage. It also can't perceive natural energy directly."

"Zetsu clones can search underground for similar veins. My wood clones can also sense them. Even if Toneri finds it, his chakra will give him away."

"Besides, without Wood Release, his compatibility with the stone is low. He can't use Hungry Ghost Path or Wood Release to absorb and convert its energy. At most, he'll gain Sage Mode."

"As long as the Grayl Stone vein isn't in another country… he won't win this."

Nagato turned back to the fortress to claim Hyde's last stash.

If the worst happened and he couldn't find the vein, he'd still need to unlock the ability to sense natural energy on his own—freeing him from dependency on the Grayl Stone.

In the Land of Water, Izayoi's wooden clone had just finished extracting intel from the old man near the Six-Tails Jinchuriki.

"A vast empire, the Grayl Stone vein… power that can destroy half the continent…" Izayoi's face twitched. "Why does this feel familiar?"

He instantly realized.

This was movie-level nonsense.

Of course—Grayl Stone was from a movie.

So was the Dragon Vein that could blow up the planet, the sealed demon in Demon Country, and even the Chakra Cannon.

And as the wielder of the Rinnegan, Izayoi understood this too well.

No wonder he had no memory of it—he never watched the obscure films.

"Instant Sage Mode… as expected, these stones contain natural energy," he thought. "With Wood Release, I don't need to rely on the Three Great Holy Lands. I can train Sage Mode on my own, just like Hashirama."