Chapter 50: The Curse Mark and Sage Transformation

However, given Sasuke's personal refinement speed, using this power in battle would require him to start refining chakra at least thirty minutes before a fight.

Once the refinement was complete, he would need to use it immediately, as natural energy dissipates rapidly within the body.

After spending several hours, Sasuke finally succeeded in the refinement process.

When he opened his eyes, he discovered that his body had unknowingly entered the second stage of the Curse Mark.

It felt as though something was trying to break out from his back.

As Sasuke sat in stunned silence, the natural energy he had refined began dissipating quickly.

In less than ten minutes, all of it was gone.

This left Sasuke speechless.

"Was all that effort for nothing?"

Frustration filled him. Despite the progress he had made in refining techniques, and his growing proficiency thanks to his talent, it felt like wasted time.

"If I had known, I wouldn't have bothered!"

As Sasuke brooded, the chakra within his body had also depleted significantly due to the strain from his experiments.

This reduction in chakra weakened his suppression of the Curse Mark, causing it to stir once more.

The Curse Mark required Sasuke's chakra to remain suppressed; the less chakra he had, the weaker the suppression became.

Feeling its activity intensify, Sasuke decided to let it activate slightly out of curiosity.

As the strange markings of the Curse Mark began spreading, Sasuke initially felt no discomfort.

It seemed as though his body had perfectly adapted to the sensation.

However, when the markings extended past his nose and began spreading to the other side, Sasuke felt a sudden burning sensation in his body.

The power seemed to be damaging him in some way.

He quickly halted the activation, stabilizing it at a threshold.

In this balanced state, Sasuke felt no pain.

Moreover, a small amount of natural energy was being slowly refined within his body.

As Sasuke focused his consciousness on the process, the refinement speed increased considerably.

However, the amount of this chakra remained minimal not even half of his usual chakra reserves.

Even so, the power of jutsu performed with this Curse Mark chakra far exceeded the strength of those using his regular chakra.

There was no doubt about its potency.

Still, Sasuke couldn't quite understand why this was the case.

Why does strengthening the Curse Mark's power cause pain, yet maintaining the current state doesn't?

The thought struck Sasuke suddenly. He recalled that when he regained consciousness earlier, his body had already entered the second stage of the Curse Mark.

Could it be that by refining chakra through the Curse Mark, his body had undergone some kind of active transformation?

If this transformation was beneficial, it might explain why his body could now adapt to the Curse Mark's activation at lower levels without harm.

In other words, at this threshold, there was no damage.

But once he pushed beyond this limit, the Curse Mark would begin to harm his body.

The damage would be minor at first, but if he continued pushing it and fully activated the second stage of the Curse Mark, the damage would become severe.

"What if I keep practicing refining Curse Mark chakra? Would it eventually allow me to fully activate the second stage without harm?"

This idea ignited a new determination in Sasuke.

The essence of the Curse Mark is to modify the body, gradually inducing a state similar to Jūgo's Sage Transformation.

Those marked by the Curse Seal undergo a transformation that enables them to absorb natural energy directly for combat.

In essence, the Curse Mark is a weakened version of Jūgo's Sage Transformation.

Its primary purpose was to prepare a suitable vessel for Orochimaru's reincarnation while simultaneously altering the host's body by slowly transforming it into a Sage Body.

The second stage of the Curse Mark essentially brings the user closer to Jūgo's natural abilities, granting the capacity to absorb natural energy automatically a version of Sage Mode in itself.

However, instead of calling it Sage Mode, it might be more accurate to describe it as progressing toward a Sage Body.

This realization thrilled Sasuke even further.

"If I can fully activate the second stage of the Curse Mark without harm, it would mean my body is nearing complete transformation into a Sage Body."

"At that point, I might be able to instantly enter Sage Mode!"

It wasn't impossible.

Though the Susanoo, granted by the Sharingan, could be considered a form of Sage Chakra, a fully transformed Sage Body might further enhance its power.

Madara, after absorbing Hashirama's Wood Release cells, gained Hashirama's Sage Mode.

This transformation into a Sage Body reduced the strain of using the Sharingan.

Thus, the power of the Sharingan and by extension, techniques like Susanoo would naturally increase as the burden decreased.

If Sasuke could achieve an ability nearing the Sage Body through his current method, it would not only reduce the strain of using his Sharingan but also significantly boost his overall abilities.

"I just need to test this idea to see if it's viable."

Though Sasuke was feeling quite hungry, the thought of unlocking the power of the Sage Body left him utterly uninterested in food.

He was determined to resolve this before the day ended he wouldn't even be able to sleep otherwise.

After a second round of experimentation, Sasuke slowly opened his eyes, a smile spreading across his face.

"I did it…"

After refining it for the second time, Sasuke once again attempted to activate the Cursed Seal. This time, his body adapted even better than before.

Even when the black markings extended past the bridge of his nose, he felt no discomfort whatsoever.

However, as the markings began to spread toward his left arm, Sasuke felt a sharp pain.

This indicated that his Sage Transformation was still incomplete.

He would need to continue practicing diligently.

But Sasuke was confident that, with his talent, he could perfectly activate the first stage of the Cursed Seal within a month.

By then, his combat power would increase several times over.

Perhaps he might even break through to Kage-level strength!

Just as Sasuke grew excited at the thought, the door to the room suddenly swung open.

Kakashi walked in.

"You actually succeeded, Sasuke..."

Hearing this, Sasuke nodded and glanced behind Kakashi, where Naruto's bright orange hair came into view.

Right after him was Sakura...

Kakashi had successfully found Naruto and Sakura as well!

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