The only thing not going smoothly was his Star Sucking Great Art (Hoshi-Sui no Daijutsu).
To completely appropriate someone else's life force for yourself, the design of the sealing formula had to be precise down to the cellular level. Gisei had worked hard for two years, yet he had only designed one-sixth of the formula.
Hmm... which is to say, just one leg.
Gisei revealed a melancholy expression.
The leg part was relatively simple; the real nightmare was the sealing formula for the main body. He estimated it would take at least ten years to design that part alone.
In other words, it would take at least twenty years of effort to fully develop the Star Sucking Great Art.
Thinking of a long, twenty-year stretch, Gisei felt a bit hopeless.
Fortunately, the number of ninjas in the Butterfly User Clan had increased; there were now over fifty of them.
The people who started raising butterfly seeds two years ago were finally showing results, and the number of Jonin in the clan had risen to ten.
A ratio of one in five. It had to be said—setting aside the drawbacks of the butterfly seeds, their benefits were truly a bit broken.
Now, he had started training medical ninjas within the clan. Rie was the leader, and almost all the Jonin had become members of this research institute.
Gisei told them he wanted to solve the problem of the butterfly seeds' aftereffects. The clan members were well aware of these deadly side effects. Since it concerned their own lives, they all poured their utmost effort into the research.
After Rie reported to him about the destruction of the Land of Whirlpools, she returned to her laboratory. Gisei wasn't in the mood for research either, so he headed home.
Pushing open the door, Anna Takemoto came out to welcome him.
"Welcome home (Okaeri)."
Gisei was still not quite used to suddenly having someone at home saying "welcome home" to him.
He was an adult now, so naturally, he had no reason to stop Anna from moving in. The two had been living together for half a year.
After he changed his shoes and took off his coat, Anna helped him tidy up and asked, "Why are you back so early today?"
"I felt a bit irritable, so I wanted to come back early and rest."
"Is the experiment not going smoothly?"
Gisei didn't hide his experiments from Anna, though he naturally wouldn't let her get involved with them, either.
Anna was responsible for the affairs within both the Butterfly User and Takemoto clans. Truth be told, she could be considered a virtuous wife and helpful partner. The trivial matters of the two clans never bothered him, and the house was managed in perfect order.
Precisely because of this, Gisei could focus on his research with peace of mind.
He nodded and sat down.
The extremely slow progress of the Star Sucking Great Art really made him anxious. He felt he needed to find other avenues.
After thinking for a long time without a clue, Anna finished cooking, and the two sat down to eat together.
"There isn't much going on in the clan right now, is there?"
"It's okay. With others helping out, there isn't too much."
"That's good. How is the clan school doing?"
"There are over twenty children enrolling this year. Their talents are... barely satisfactory."
Gisei nodded in silence.
Both the Butterfly Users and the Takemoto clan were ordinary people in terms of bloodline, so the probability of a genius appearing was naturally low.
Fortunately, they didn't rely on talent to make a living; the butterfly seeds were enough to push them to Jonin level.
It was just that Jonin was the ceiling. If they wanted to improve further, they would have to raise more than two butterfly seeds, which would drastically shorten their lifespan. It would likely make it impossible to live past forty.
Gisei wouldn't let his clansmen do something where the loss outweighed the gain—unless his research on the Star Sucking Great Art succeeded.
"It doesn't matter if their talent is a bit lacking, as long as they learn the theoretical knowledge well. I don't expect them to participate in combat; doing research will be fine."
Anna smiled bitterly. "Are you planning to hand over all combat matters to other ninja clans?"
"Can't I?"
"I don't think that's very good. Relations between ninja clans aren't that simple. If a talented ninja appears in another clan, the positions might be reversed."
"With me here, any genius will have to stand aside."
"You can't say that. You can't manage them forever; you have to let them grow on their own."
Gisei fell silent.
He hadn't paid much attention to the internal affairs of the two clans and didn't know exactly what the situation was now.
"What do you think should be done?"
Anna put down her bowl and chopsticks. "For the past two years, you've used the clan's mission share to pay off debts. You can't do this in the future; you have to give them opportunities to gain experience."
Gisei smiled bitterly. The Butterfly User Clan's funds had always been in the negative. In the past two years, Anna had helped him alleviate many debt crises, causing deficits in the Takemoto clan as well.
Going on like this indeed wouldn't work.
"Also, your research institute can't just serve you alone. You have to produce some achievements to convince others."
Black lines appeared on Gisei's forehead. The already slow research progress would have to be prolonged even further. It was difficult.
"I know. I'll have them conduct research on other projects to try and turn the negative into a positive."
Seeing his unhappy expression, Anna could only comfort him. "Don't be impatient when doing things. You have to walk the road step by step. Right now, we can't afford too much turmoil. If the clan's funds break, your reputation as the clan leader will be affected."
What else could Gisei say? He could only nod. "You're acting more and more like a strict housekeeper."
"Isn't it all because of you? You insist on doing research your own way and leave everything else to me. We aren't even married yet, and now there are other voices within the Takemoto clan."
Anna suddenly got angry.
Gisei said awkwardly, "I said something wrong."
After dinner, watching Anna clear the table, Gisei felt a bit guilty.
Ever since they got engaged, Anna had been trying hard to be a good wife, while he had always been busy with his experiments. Up until now, the two hadn't even had a proper date. It was really a bit unreasonable.
When Anna finished cleaning up, Gisei hugged her from behind. "Do you want to go out for a walk together?"
Anna looked back at him in surprise. "Now?"
"Yeah."
"Okay."
After tidying up simply, Anna took Gisei's arm, and they went out the door.
It was the first time Anna had gone out shopping with Gisei, and she seemed very excited. Gisei could only smile wryly at this.
Walking on the street, there were quite a few members of the Butterfly User and Takemoto clans among the passersby. Seeing the two clan leaders walking arm in arm, they all smiled and bowed to them.
Before they had walked far, Anna's face was as red as an apple. Although this feeling of being in the spotlight was quite nice, there was always the illusion of a public execution.
"Why don't we go for a walk in a more secluded place?"
Gisei smiled and nodded.
Choosing a street with relatively fewer people, Anna finally calmed down.
"Why did you suddenly get enlightened today?"
"Isn't it because you suddenly got angry at me? I thought our relationship had broken down."
Anna's face turned red again. "What relationship breakdown? What are you thinking?"
Gisei stopped talking, simply enjoying the rare moment of warmth.