Kaguya stared at Osamu as he continued his exercise routine.
He seemed...
Odd.
He clearly knew she was hiding something, and yet he seemed content with simply prodding her occasionally.
But no, she had seen how quickly he moved, with speed like that, he posed a serious threat to her now weakened self.
And yet, he treated her casually, his words and actions were annoying, but he had fed her, taught her how to prepare meat, and provided her with information.
Once she recovered, she would repay him by letting him rest within the God Tree, he, among all of humanity, would not be turned into a tool for her army.
Still, that was for the future, she needed to recover first, and while her senses were dulled, she could still examine her own body with some proficiency.
So she focused on herself, grasping the now slippery Chakra in her coils and attempting to push it out of her palms.
It barely flickered over her skin, only visible to her eyes due to their nature.
She narrowed her eyes, this... this was unacceptable.
***
THAT EVENING
Kaguya suddenly stood up, frustration etched on her face and fists clenched tightly.
It had taken hours, far too many to count, and yet she still had made little progress.
This new body did not obey her will as easily as her old one, Chakra fought against her efforts to control it instead of bending to her whim.
She hated feeling this weak.
"You ok?" Osamu asked, looking up from where he was crouching on the ground.
He was building another fire for the night, preparing it so that when the sun finally went down, they could start cooking again.
"Of course I am." Kaguya replied coldly. "Why would you think otherwise?"
He raised an eyebrow, but shrugged.
"Well, you look frustrated." He told her. "Training not going well?"
Her eyes narrowed.
This man was infuriatingly perceptive.
"It is of no concern to you." She said dismissively, sitting back down and glaring at the ground.
Osamu hummed in contemplation, before he picked snapped his fingers, the pile of wood burst into flame, slowly dying down into a tame campfire.
"Can't control Chakra very well?" He guessed.
Kaguya glared at him, but her silence was more than enough confirmation.
He tapped his chin in thought.
"Well... I can't see Chakra." He admitted. "But I am familiar with training it, from what I could see, you are trying to force it."
She blinked slowly.
"Yes." She agreed. "That is how it has always worked, I direct my Chakra where I want it to go."
He shook his head.
"That might be the most suspicious thing you have said so far, I only know of one person who has enough natural talent to make that work, and one other that rigorously trained until she could do it as well."
That, out of all her missteps, was the most suspicious?
"What should I do then?" She asked through gritted teeth.
"Hmm... the goal of training your Chakra Control is to make it instinctual, natural." Osamu explained. "Naturally, Chakra is biased, it likes flowing in certain ways and paths, this is true both for people and for Nature itself."
He held out his hand, and Kaguya watched as a stream of Chakra condensed into a perfect rotating sphere.
"That means you are not just training your mind, but also your body, the coils and network need to adapt to this 'unnatural' change in their flows." He let it dissipate back into his system. "You can force it, like you did, but it's a long and inefficient process, which is why people generally start with exercises that take advantage of that natural bias instead of fighting against it."
Kaguya stared at him silently.
He walked over to a tree and placed his foot on its trunk.
"The first advanced exercise most learn is called Tree Walking." He said. "Or Rock walking, or Wall walking, depending on the terrain."
The Chakra flowed through his body and into his foot, getting pushed into the bark until it stuck.
Then he began walking up the tree, dropping down once he made it 10 meters upwards.
"The point is to get someone used to using Chakra instinctually, and to teach them to regulate the output necessary to stay attached without falling off or breaking their foothold."
Kaguya stood up, approaching one of the trees and placing her own foot on its bark.
She focused on her Chakra, pushing it outwards.
The tree exploded in a shower of splinters and chunks.
She stumbled backwards in surprise, losing her balance and falling onto her behind.
Osamu, thankfully, didn't laugh.
"See? Forcing Chakra to obey you like that is not very efficient." He told her. "I'm not going to question what method you used before, but it clearly doesn't work anymore."
Kaguya scowled at him as she stood up and dusted herself off.
But again, he had offered advice without asking for anything in return.
What was this man's goal?
"Well?" He asked her. "Are you giving up?"
"Of course not." She replied.
If this is what it took, she would learn.
"Good, this step shouldn't be hard for you, it's not like you lack talent." Osamu turned away from her and headed back towards the campfire. "But remember, Kaguya, strength is always within reach for people like us, we were blessed with great potential, all it takes is determination and we can reach heights reserved for gods."
Kaguya didn't respond to that, it was pure arrogance to lump himself in with someone like her.
But he did have a point, no matter how weak she was, she could still grow stronger, she was still an Ōtsutsuki after all.
She would simply have to work for it.
***
3 DAYS LATER
Kaguya walked along the river, the rushing waters of the stream no longer an obstacle to her balance.
Osamu's advice had been invaluable, her ability to control Chakra was growing at a rapid pace, and while she hated this weakness...
It felt... satisfying to overcome it.
The last time she had trained was...
An age ago, before she left for this planet, back when she had yet to be assigned as Isshiki's partner.
The veins around her eyes bulged, her Byakugan activating and scanning the surrounding area.
Soon enough, she found what she was looking for.
A large fish, over 1 meter long, lazily letting the river carry it along.
She held out her palm, waiting until it passed underneath her.
Then, bone burst from her skin, spearing the fish through its skull and killing it instantly.
The bone retreated back into her skin, the fish being dragged up by the movement, and Kaguya grabbed it with her free hand.
Perfect.
She had wanted something different today, she had been getting sick of berries and meat.
Even if Osamu was a good cook, eating the same thing every day became tiring quickly.
***
1 HOUR LATER
"I'm going to be gone for most of today." Osamu told Kaguya as they ate.
"Why?" She asked him.
"Every once in a while, I have to go restock supplies." He explained. "Spices, medicine, soap, stuff like that."
She didn't say anything in return.
"You can come with me if you want." He offered. "It's a short trip if we run at full speed."
Kaguya frowned, she did not want to be seen, the less people who knew about her current location, the better.
"No." She answered bluntly. "I will remain here."
Osamu stared at her for a few moments.
"Alright, I thought you would jump at the chance, considering that you don't have any personal belongings other than your robes." He finally said. "There's this nice tailor that could make you something more comfortable and practical."
"..." Kaguya tapped her fingers against her knee for a moment. "Will the people not shun me? I am... odd looking."
She was not, it was humans that were odd looking, but still...
He chuckled, his tone amused.
"I guess it's time for your first Jutsu then." He said.
"Jutsu?" She asked.
Like Shinjutsu?
"Allow me to demonstrate." Osamu suddenly began rapidly making strange hand gestures, before bursting into smoke.
And in his place...
Was a clone of her.
"Transformation Jutsu." The copy introduced itself. "One of the most basic and useful Jutsu."
Kaguya frowned.
"Do you think that I can master such a technique so quickly?" She asked him.
"Normally, you learn it when you are about 6 years old." He revealed. "So I really hope so, or I'm going to make fun of you forever."
The woman's eyes narrowed.
***
6 HOURS LATER
Osamu did not make fun of her forever, she learned the Transformation Jutsu in less than 5 minutes, simply by observing Osamu doing it a couple of times.
The Sharingan was quite useful for that.
She had disguised herself with a simple appearance, darker skin, a bit lighter than the shade Osamu had, and without the horns or third eye.
Osamu's advice was that for a beginner, a form closer to their natural one was best, it took training to change someone's natural gait, or their habits like brushing back long hair, things like that could give away an impostor.
So they walked into a small coastal town, after giving Kaguya some money, Osamu simply pointed out the places she might want to visit before disappearing towards his own destination.
First on her list was the tailor he had mentioned, everything else came second, once she had new clothes.
She was going to burn this ill-fitted robe as soon as she got the chance.
The sight of the human settlement, while simple, made her feel... uncomfortable.
She could see the Chakra wafting off them, all these humans using her energy like they owned it.
But she shoved it down, lingering on those feelings would not be helpful.
She was not powerful enough yet.
And she lacked any ability that would allow her to recover her Chakra.
That thought made her stop in the middle of the street, without the Rinnegan, she could not drain others of their Chakra, no Rinnegan meant no God Tree.
In fact, the God Tree was now sealed...
Kaguya felt panic rising inside her, she had been so focused on getting used to her weakened body and avoiding The Watcher that she had forgotten about this important detail.
No amount of power would help her if she didn't have access to the tool necessary for her plans.
And without the Infinite Tsukuyomi...
How was she supposed to protect this world from her brethren?
"Excuse me, lady?" A voice spoke out from behind her. "Are you ok?"
She turned around, coming face to face with a small human child.
He looked worried about her.
Why did he care?
Kaguya squashed down the confusion and panic at her realization, this was not the time or place to deal with it.
"Yes." She answered bluntly. "Leave me be."
The boy's expression turned from concerned to happy in an instant, smiling up at her.
"Oh, great!" He chirped happily. "Bye, Bye then!"
Then he ran off.
What strange creatures.
Kaguya walked onwards, returning to her goal as soon as the child was out of sight.
It took a few minutes to reach the shop Osamu had directed her too, and she walked into it without hesitation.
"Hello?" A woman's voice called out from inside. "I'll be there in a minute."
Kaguya said nothing, simply looking around the store, shelves full of different types of fabrics, the colors and patterns varied greatly.
But what caught her eye were two large displays on each side of the entrance.
There stood a row of mannequins dressed in an assortment of clothing, all unique, some of them were simple, made from plain fabric without much decoration, others looked almost extravagant in their complexity.
A door behind the counter opened up, revealing a dark-skinned woman, dressed in plain working clothes.
"Hello, Welcome to Naomi's Clothing, how may I help you?" The woman asked, smiling at her.
"I require new attire." Kaguya told her bluntly.
"Ah, what exactly do you need?" She questioned. "I have most things here already prepared, but if you want something custom made, then we will need to talk about that."
Kaguya's eyes narrowed, she had no idea what was needed to answer that question.
So she told the truth.
"I do not know." She admitted. "I require clothing that will assist me in surviving in the wilds, practical, light and durable."
The woman nodded sagely.
"Yes, I believe we can work with that." She smiled. "Come with me to the back, we need to take your measurements."
Kaguya hesitated for a moment, before nodding and following after her.