Chapter 365: Energization
"The sun... so close... never imagined I'd one day personally witness such a scene with my own eyes."
Naruto hovered in void, gazing at that brilliant white massive object occupying all vision, emanating light and heat—heart filled with shock and emotion.
Before this, he'd just "visited" an extremely harsh-environment planet—seemingly composed of violent cyclones and liquid substances.
That environment was hell for humans. Terrifying gravity, lethal radiation, magnetic field storms tearing everything apart... any ordinary life would probably pulverize instantly upon arrival.
But Naruto felt almost no substantial discomfort or harm. Not completely without sensation—those violent energy impacts hitting his "body" still let him sense slight abnormal pressure and energy flow.
But they were greatly weakened, ultimately failing to cause effective damage to Naruto's body. Gravity, radiation, magnetic fields... for Otsutsuki, seemingly just "environmental background" requiring slight attention.
His original first destination was Earth's nearest moon, but memories vaguely emerging about "Sage of Six Paths' brother descendants residing there" made him abandon the idea.
Recklessly intruding might be viewed as invasion, triggering unnecessary conflict. Thus he chose other "not-so-friendly-to-humans" planets as test locations.
"Naruto, this environment is too unstable, too unknown! Hurry back!" In inner world, Minato Namikaze through Naruto's senses "saw" outside universe scenery far exceeding his understanding scope, worriedly urging.
"Yes, I know, Dad. I'll return immediately." Naruto agreed, yet gaze still firmly attracted by that star.
In his limited astronomical knowledge, the sun was a "red giant fireball." But currently witnessing personally—that was pure to extreme, almost boundless, filled with destructive light energy brilliant white realm. Central region brightness intensity—without his special eyes, probably couldn't even directly gaze.
If humans lacked special protection, directly viewing sun at such close distance—its brightness sufficient to instantly burn even thoroughly melt retinas. But he had no such stabbing pain or burning sensation. Conversely, right eye's black-base golden pupil bizarre eye was currently uncontrollably slightly trembling, heating.
Though Naruto never dreamed of becoming astronaut, currently personally witnessing, personally standing in this vast universe humanity for centuries continuously attempted exploring, understanding yet always unreachable—a mixing sense of insignificance, awe and infinite possibility still surged in his chest.
"Naruto! Quickly leave here! Something dangerous is coming!"
Suddenly, Kurama's rare terror-carrying roar thunderously rang in Naruto's inner world!
Naruto's heart tightened!
Almost the same instant—no sound, but soul-trembling destructive energy fluctuation violently attacked from sun direction!
In vision, that brilliant white radiance edge seemed having more dazzling, more violent white "ripples" suddenly erupting than surrounding regions. That was sun's seemingly insignificant energy splash, scattering ultra-high-intensity light radiation and high-energy particle flow—a perhaps "small" solar storm for vast universe, possibly not even causing obvious Earth impact.
But currently, for Naruto located not far from "storm" path, this "small" eruption meant extinction disaster!
Death threat sensation like cold steel needle instantly pierced every nerve!
Too fast! Fast until thinking nearly couldn't keep up!
Instinct-driven, Naruto's first thought—use Flying Thunder God! Immediately teleport back Earth! Opening Yomotsu Hirasaka required concentrated intention and brief formation time—probably too late!
His intention shifted rapidly, body interior chakra madly surging, attempting to lock onto an already-familiar Flying Thunder God coordinate on Earth...
...No response!
Failed! This was Naruto's first activation failure since mastering Flying Thunder God technique!
After instant shock, cold realization struck Naruto.
Distance!
Sun and Earth average distance approximately 150 million kilometers.
Earth diameter approximately 12,742 kilometers.
This meant his current position to Earth distance approximately... 11,740 Earth diameters away!
Flying Thunder God technique's transmission distance wasn't infinite. It greatly depended on caster's chakra amount, space-time understanding, and coordinate clarity.
Such astronomical distance... probably even Kaguya Otsutsuki's complete chakra—whether achieving one crossing was unknown!
Too late for regret or fear. That destructive radiance and particle torrents already close at hand! Vision nearly swallowed by pure brilliant white!
Naruto poured all hope and will madly into right eye's violently trembling golden pupil!
Too slow! Could feel annihilation-level heat and radiation already touching body surface!
Anticipated severe pain, burning, decomposition... didn't arrive.
Even no sensation.
Body... already thoroughly annihilated? Couldn't even feel pain? Naruto's mind flashed this thought but immediately realized something wrong—thinking remained, consciousness still clear!
He even worried whether Yomotsu Hirasaka might accidentally bring solar storm back to Earth, instinctively halting pupil technique.
Then... what state currently?
Naruto "lowered head," looking toward his own "body."
Entering "view"—not familiar blood-and-flesh body but flowing faint radiance azure blue.
Moreover, this blue wasn't solid whole but composed of countless minute blue energy light points, tightly gathering... this form somehow looked familiar.
Next moment, he understood.
In his "vision," that destructive solar storm like passing through phantom, without obstruction swept past, rushing toward universe depths, causing no harm.
And his right eye—that golden pupil—continuously flickered with intense, stable radiance.
Simultaneously, he clearly "felt" his entire existence currently existed in unprecedented manner—transformed into countless pure-blue-light-emitting "paper cranes."
...Should still return Earth first.
Naruto knew his body seemed truly became Otsutsuki, thinking with complex feelings. Looks like this was this eye's another ability—existence "energization." After solar storm ended, Naruto opened Earth-coordinate Yomotsu Hirasaka, stepping into black portal.