“Reverse… Sage Mode?”
Naruto stared at Minato in surprise.
He had never heard of anything like that before.
Minato smiled.
“Of course, it isn’t a special transformation or combat state like ordinary Sage Mode.”
He paused, searching for the right words.
“It’s more like… a reversal in the way you think.”
“…”
Naruto still looked completely lost.
“Let me put it another way.
Naruto, when you first began training in Sage Mode, what did Fukasaku-sama tell you to do?”
Naruto answered without hesitation.
“Remain perfectly still.
But what does that have to do with—?”
“Exactly.
You must not move.”
Minato nodded approvingly.
“The purpose of Sage Mode is to draw natural energy from the environment into your body.
The method passed down by those who came before us is to remain motionless and allow yourself to become part of nature.”
He raised one finger.
“I call that becoming a stone.”
“A stone…?”
“When I was learning the Flying Thunder God Technique, however, I discovered that I couldn’t remain a stone.”
Minato’s expression became thoughtful.
“Space-time has no reason to notice an ordinary stone lying beside the road.”
“So instead of becoming a stone…”
His blue eyes sharpened.
“…I had to become a blazing sphere of fire.”
Naruto’s eyes slowly widened.
“The secret is to release your chakra outward into nature.”
Minato spread both hands.
“You must allow it to permeate every inch of the space surrounding you.”
“Through that chakra, you sense the movements of nature—the currents, distortions, and traces left behind by space-time itself.”
“And once you truly perceive those traces…”
A warm smile appeared on his face.
“…space-time will guide your hand and allow you to inscribe a Flying Thunder God formula that belongs to you alone.”
“Your own formula?” Naruto repeated.
“That’s right.”
Minato nodded.
“Because space-time is different for every person who experiences it.”
Minato held nothing back.
He passed every realization he had gained through years of struggle directly to his son.
Naruto stood frozen in shock.
Then—
Everything became clear.
The clouds and mist that had obscured his path for so long scattered in a single instant.
At last, Naruto understood the barrier standing before him.
It had been—
Himself.
He had locked himself away.
Sage Mode had helped him.
And Sage Mode had hindered him.
Because of the future memories inside him, Naruto had mastered the sensation of entering Sage Mode far too early.
Without realizing it, he had developed the habit of suppressing his presence, calming his chakra, and withdrawing into himself.
Whenever he interacted with nature, he had always remained passive.
But if he could not sense the space-time surrounding him, how could he possibly create a formula that belonged to him?
That was why Minato had never been comfortable using Sage Mode in battle.
His sharpest blade on the battlefield was the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Ordinary Sage Mode required him to become a stone.
The Flying Thunder God demanded that he become fire.
Reverse Sage Mode…
So that’s what he meant.
Kurama lay nearby, silently studying the blond man who had once sealed him.
You truly are a frightening genius…
“I understand!”
Naruto’s eyes regained their confidence.
His expression became firm and determined.
Minato raised a hand in warning.
“This isn’t necessarily the only way to learn the Flying Thunder God.
It’s simply the method I discovered for myself.”
“I don’t know how Lord Tobirama originally developed the technique.”
He smiled somewhat apologetically.
“And spreading your chakra through the surrounding space and learning to perceive space-time is normally a very slow process.”
“Even with talent, it should take at least a month before you begin seeing results.”
Naruto clenched his fist.
He had promised Tsunade that he would master the Flying Thunder God in one week.
…
In the outside world, Naruto opened his clear blue eyes.
He raised both hands and formed a cross-shaped seal.
“Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!”
Poof!
Poof!
Poof!
Poof!
Poof!
Countless clouds of white smoke erupted across the grasslands.
A moment later, spheres of chakra seemed to ignite throughout the outskirts of town.
Like scattered flames, hundreds of Narutos released their chakra into the space around them.
Yet those flames did not sway with the wind.
They pursued only the footsteps of space and time.
…
Three days passed.
Tsunade and Jiraiya sat upon branches of separate trees, watching the large group of Narutos seated cross-legged in the clearing.
“Wasn’t he supposed to be learning the Flying Thunder God?”
Tsunade stared at the motionless clones with a puzzled expression.
“What has that brat been doing for the past three days?”
He had forced her into a bet she had never agreed to—
And this was his idea of training?
Jiraiya shook his head.
There was uncertainty in his voice as well.
“I never knew the exact process Minato used when he learned the technique.”
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
“Maybe this is the secret Naruto learned after asking his father.”
Neither Tsunade nor Jiraiya was a dedicated sensory-type shinobi.
As long as Naruto did not unleash Kurama’s overwhelming chakra, it was difficult for them to detect the thin currents of chakra constantly spreading from Naruto and his shadow clones.
The Narutos remained completely focused.
Each of them released chakra from every part of his body, allowing it to seep as deeply as possible into the surrounding space.
They devoted every fragment of concentration to interpreting the sensations transmitted back through that chakra.
Texture.
Movement.
Resistance.
Distortion.
Anything that might reveal the presence of space-time.
Unfortunately—
They sensed nothing.
Nothing except false impressions created by their own expectations.
Even so, Naruto refused to become discouraged.
Whenever he reached his limit, he dismissed every shadow clone at once.
Poof!
Poof!
Poof!
Poof!
The accumulated exhaustion of hundreds of clones crashed into the original body like a mountain falling from the sky.
Naruto clenched his teeth and endured it.
While resting, he rapidly processed every fragment of experience returned by the clones.
How could he spread his chakra more efficiently?
How could he send it farther and deeper?
How could he make his senses more delicate?
He examined every failure and extracted whatever little progress he could find.
Never give up.
Keep moving forward.
Naruto formed the seal once again.
“Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!”
…
The Fourth Day
“Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!”
Hundreds of Narutos sat scattered across the grass.
Just as they had done for the past three days, they patiently released their chakra outward.
Each one transformed himself into a blazing sphere of chakra.
They attempted to burn into the space-time around them—
To leave behind a mark that belonged to Naruto alone.
But once again—
They failed.
“I think the brat’s reached his limit.”
Tsunade sat upon a branch and casually took a sip of sake.
“He isn’t going to succeed.”
Jiraiya leaned against the tree opposite her.
With his head lowered and his eye closed, he smiled.
“Don’t underestimate him, Tsunade.”
“I still believe Naruto is the Child of Prophecy.” Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
He looked toward the hundreds of motionless clones.
“So you’d better prepare yourself to return to Konoha with us.”
Tsunade glared at him.
“Why are you acting as though I actually accepted that bet?”
She lifted her bottle.
“You know I lose every gamble I make.
What if I bet that he’ll succeed?”
“Don’t!”
Jiraiya’s eye shot open.
He looked genuinely alarmed.
He understood Tsunade’s gambling luck far too well.
Her ability to lose could turn the impossible into reality.
It was a phenomenon even more miraculous than a miracle itself.
“Hmph.”
Tsunade turned away and took another drink.
…
The Seventh Day
The final day.
Evening had arrived.
Naruto dismissed every shadow clone and rested until the crushing exhaustion began to fade.
Once he had recovered enough strength, he refined a fresh amount of chakra and gathered it within his right palm.
Then he pressed his hand against the ground.
Remember that sensation.
That’s it…
That’s the feeling.
Although his palm concealed the earth beneath it, Naruto could sense something slowly taking shape there.
A formula.
A mark that belonged only to him.
Naruto carefully raised his hand.
A black formula had appeared upon the ground.
It was incomplete.
Only half a step remained before success.
However—
The final stroke had blurred.
“Argh!”
Naruto collapsed onto his back and pulled at his hair in frustration.
“I was so close!”
His consciousness sank into his inner world.
…
“Naruto, don’t give up.”
Minato smiled gently at his son.
“I believe you can do it.”
Compared to seven days earlier, his form had become extremely faint.
“Dad…”
Naruto fought to suppress the pain in his heart.
He understood.
Their time together was almost over.
Kurama lay nearby, looking thoroughly bored.
Then—
Naruto suddenly spun around.
His expression changed completely.
“Who’s there?!”
Minato and Kurama both looked in the direction of his gaze.
There, within the depths of Naruto’s inner world—
A vague human silhouette was slowly beginning to take shape.
Naruto’s eyes widened.
“You are…?!”
…
Crimson light from the setting sun spilled across the tatami mats of the small inn.
Tsunade and Jiraiya sat opposite each other with a low table between them, quietly drinking tea.
Shizune knelt beside them and refilled their cups, while Tonton happily ran around the room.
Crash!
The window suddenly shattered.
A kunai flew into the room.
Without even turning her head, Tsunade caught it in one hand.
Her face remained expressionless as she brought the weapon before her eyes.
Then her gaze froze.
Inscribed upon the kunai was a black formula—
A strange mark resembling flickering foxfire.
Don’t tell me…
A voice suddenly sounded from directly behind her.
“We’ve been away for quite a while.”
Naruto stood there with a triumphant grin.
“Isn’t it about time we returned to the village…”
His blue eyes gleamed.
“…Granny Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage?”