A week later...

Kagami's true body stood calmly, observing the three clones in front of him as they practiced the art of senjutsu. Though his expression was impassive, the fists clenched tightly under his sleeves betrayed the tension he felt.

Seven days ago, he had asked Tsunade to summon ten clones of the Slug Sage to help him sense the existence of natural energy. To this end, Kagami had halted all other research, dedicating the full power of his clones to mastering Sage Mode as quickly as possible. But even with the tenfold talent and comprehension of Sukuna, progress had been frustratingly slow. The primary reason was the sheer volatility of natural energy; it was incredibly difficult to control, and a single misstep would result in petrification. If Kagami hadn't been using his shadow clones, he would have turned into a stone statue thousands of times over.

However, the failures had not been without gain. Through countless trials and his immense talent he had finally learned how to control the influx of natural energy without being overwhelmed. Today was the day he would try again to fuse it with his chakra. If he succeeded, he would finally achieve Sage Mode.

As time ticked by, Kagami's cool demeanor began to fray, his eyes fixed on the clones with a nervous intensity. This was the first major step in realizing his grand vision, and he would not allow it to end in failure.

Fortunately, his clones, armed with the knowledge of a thousand failures, did not disappoint him.

Suddenly, a rich, verdant green light exploded into the air. It was like a beast, long imprisoned, had finally broken its chains, dancing wildly through the training ground. The light didn't just illuminate the surroundings; it seemed to possess a life of its own, wrapping around each of Kagami's clones and covering them in a mysterious, powerful cloak of energy.

The three clones opened their eyes in unison, and an astonishing aura erupted from them, a surging life force so potent it made the very air feel vibrant and invigorating.

Seeing this, Kagami felt an irrepressible excitement surge through him, and he let out a laugh of pure triumph. He knew he had finally succeeded. He had learned Sage Mode.

Moreover, it was a perfect Sage Mode. Aside from a faint, green pattern at the corners of his eyes, his appearance was completely unchanged. This unique senjutsu from Shikkotsu Forest imbued him with an exceptionally powerful life energy, meaning his own regenerative abilities had been greatly enhanced. Though he already possessed his RCT, he welcomed the passive healing of Sage Mode. Unlike his active technique, this was fully automatic, providing him with a greater margin for error in battle. Combined with his reversal technique, his recovery speed would reach a terrifying level, making him all but impossible to kill.

"poof!"

As the three shadow clones dispelled, their experiences and the natural energy they had absorbed flooded into Kagami's true body. He immediately entered Sage Mode, personally experiencing the profound difference between natural energy and chakra.

He had long suspected that if the creatures of the three great sage lands could use natural energy directly, then humans should be able to as well. If simply mixing a small amount of natural energy with chakra could double a ninjutsu's power, what would happen if he used pure natural energy? Now that he had mastered Sage Mode, he could finally begin the experiment. If he could store natural energy in his body just like chakra, it would be a revolutionary breakthrough.

After a moment of careful analysis, Kagami confirmed his suspicions: compared to natural energy, chakra was a vastly inferior, diluted energy source. Ninjutsu released with high-quality natural energy would be far more powerful than anything cast with low-quality chakra. The so-called chakra, which had only appeared in the world with Kaguya Otsutsuki, was most likely a product of the God Tree, which absorbed vast amounts of natural energy and then diluted it to a level that humans could safely handle. This process avoided the risk of petrification but also greatly diminished the energy's true potential.

Kagami was now determined to research a method to cultivate natural energy directly. If he could completely replace the chakra in his body with pure, natural energy, then perhaps he, too, could live for thousands of years like the sages of the three holy lands. Immortality. How could he possibly refuse?

Without hesitation, Kagami created a new batch of clones. Some were tasked with beginning the experiment of replacing chakra with natural energy. The others were to resume the development of the bloodline limits they had previously been working on.

Kagami's clones has reached a level of chakra control and shape manipulation where they can actually mimic bloodline limits with their jutsus and consciously control the ratio of different nature of chakra which bloodline people do unconsciously.

His real body then left the training ground. This kind of research would take time, and he could leave the work to his clones.

It was also worth mentioning that Tsunade and Shizune had both become pregnant with his child the day before. Of all his women, Tsunade had the highest rating, and he was greatly looking forward to what kind of template their child would produce. It shouldn't be weak. Perhaps, it would even be a template that surpassed Sukuna.

The thought that he would have six more children in the coming months filled him with a deep, profound happiness. It wasn't just about the potential improvement in his own strength; it was about having six more blood-related family members. His experience as a father had been truly something special and he had never been happy before like this in his whole life

Having been an orphan in two lifetimes, family was everything to Kagami. It was the entire reason for his endless pursuit of strength—so that he could protect them, even if it meant making an enemy of the entire world. For Kagami, family was above all else.