The next day.
Afternoon.
The sun begins its descent in the west.
After more than six hours of training, Seimei's "Sage Mode" progresses as expected, smoothly advancing from Level 2 (280/500) to Level 3 (1/1000)!
In that moment, his understanding of "Sage Mode" deepens significantly.
This allows him to enter "Sage Mode" faster and maintain it for longer.
At the same time, the proficiency points he gains per hour of training increase once again.
Through testing, Seimei confirms that by maintaining ten shadow clones, he can now earn fifty proficiency points per hour.
The cost in chakra and natural energy rises by another thirty thousand points, reaching a total of one hundred fifty thousand.
But for Seimei, this is still no big deal.
In fact, his average consumption per proficiency point has dropped to three thousand.
As he had initially predicted, as his "Sage Mode" levels up, his mastery over the technique continues to improve.
Consequently, the amount of chakra and natural energy required per proficiency point keeps decreasing.
Seimei is quite pleased with this.
Clearing his mind, he doesn't dwell on it further. After a brief rest, he dives back into training.
---
Time skips forward to the next day.
Afternoon.
After more than ten hours of training, Seimei successfully accumulates one thousand proficiency points, pushing "Sage Mode" from Level 3 to Level 4.
Just like the jump from Level 2 to Level 3 the previous day, the moment his level increases, his understanding of the technique deepens further.
As a result, the proficiency points he can earn per hour rise from fifty at the start of Level 2 to eighty now.
At this rate, he'll need only twenty-five hours to gather the two thousand proficiency points required to advance from Level 4 to Level 5.
And considering that his hourly proficiency gains will likely increase further as he continues training, that time could shrink even more.
Perhaps it won't even take twenty-five hours—maybe just twenty-two or twenty-three—to reach the next level.
Seimei glances at the time. There are still a few hours until nightfall.
If he trains for a few more hours tonight, he might not even have to wait until tomorrow's session to push "Sage Mode" to Level 5, triggering its first qualitative transformation.
Coincidentally, tomorrow marks the tenth day of his training.
Once he gets "Sage Mode" to Level 5, he can head back to the village for a day of rest while planning his next training steps.
With that in mind, Seimei wastes no more time. He immediately casts the "Multiple Shadow Clone Technique," splitting into five hundred sixty shadow clones in two batches to begin a new round of training.
And just as he calculated…
The next day.
Evening.
After completing a round of physical enhancement and returning to Moon Island, Seimei dispels the "Multiple Shadow Clone Technique," recalling all his shadow clones. As he absorbs and processes their hour's worth of training experience and memories, a sudden clarity dawns in his mind.
In that moment, he feels his understanding of "Sage Mode" skyrocket.
Even without checking his proficiency panel, he knows his "Sage Mode" has likely reached Level 5.
The insight flooding his mind is the result of this qualitative transformation.
Seimei reins in his thoughts, focusing intently to absorb the knowledge in his mind and deepen his mastery of "Sage Mode."
Time passes, minute by minute.
After more than half an hour, he finally opens his eyes.
A sharp glint flashes in his gaze.
With a thought, Seimei channels the natural energy stored in the sealed space in his abdomen, letting it flow into his body.
Then, focusing his mind, he blends this natural energy with the chakra in his meridians.
After about ten minutes, he converts all four million-plus points of his chakra into sage chakra.
And with that, he naturally slips into "Sage Mode."
But unlike his first time entering "Sage Mode," things are different now.
Aside from a slightly stronger aura, the only visible changes are the special silver markings around his eyes and the Byakugan on his forehead.
Otherwise, he looks no different from his normal state.
Even the faint white glow that once radiated from his body is gone.
No, not gone—restrained.
He still retains impressive physical defenses.
If someone were to attack him now, a single thought would summon that familiar white glow to protect him.
This might seem unnecessary, perhaps even a liability that could delay his reaction in a fight.
But that's not the case.
As he noted before, the white glow was a result of sage chakra leaking out.
Its absence now means his control over sage chakra has reached a new level.
Compared to the sage chakra he's now saving, this minor drawback is negligible.
Besides, with his current reaction speed, no one could possibly harm him without him noticing.
So, there's no real risk of missing a beat in combat.
Plus, conserving sage chakra extends the time he can maintain "Sage Mode."
The benefits far outweigh any downsides.
Seimei is thrilled with these changes.
Of course, it'd be even better if the distinctive aura from activating "Sage Mode" could vanish entirely.
Rather than intimidating foes with his presence, he prefers catching them off guard.
If activating "Sage Mode" left no visible changes, that'd be ideal.
True mastery lies in simplicity, after all.
Unfortunately, at Level 5, his "Sage Mode" isn't there yet.
Perhaps when he reaches Level 7 and triggers another qualitative transformation, he'll achieve that level of subtlety.
At that point, anyone with limited experience would only notice slight changes to his face, never suspecting what he's done—let alone staying on guard.
That would give him a significant edge in battle.
Various thoughts flash through his mind, but Seimei quickly refocuses, turning his attention back to "Sage Mode."
Right now, entering "Sage Mode" still takes too long, and the process is too easily disrupted.
These are flaws he needs to address.
Only when he can enter "Sage Mode" instantly, like Hashirama Senju, and maintain it for an extended period, will he consider it truly perfected.
But that's no easy feat.
It requires not only vast amounts of chakra and natural energy but also a tremendous amount of time.
Advancing from Level 5 to Level 6 requires five thousand proficiency points, and reaching Level 7 demands ten thousand.
And as for the proficiency points he can earn now…