Chapter 258: Something's Not Quite Right with the Disciples
Chapter 258: Something's Not Quite Right with the Disciples
After the dismissal, Itachi made his way to a ninja tool store called "Spin and Spin."
"Is the custom-made katana I ordered ready?" Itachi inquired of the young owner.
Even before the appreciation party, Itachi had planned to give Mu Yue a gift since she had previously given him a short blade. He wanted to reciprocate with a weapon.
While he wished to forge a weapon for Mu Yue himself, he felt it might be inconvenient due to his young age. Thus, Itachi settled for commissioning a fine weapon for her instead.
With the appreciation party approaching, he intended to present the gift there.
"It's ready. Let me show it to you," the young owner nodded with a smile and called for his wife to mind the store while he led Itachi out the back door to his warehouse courtyard.
The young owner walked over to the weapon rack and handed the freshly forged katana to Itachi.
Itachi took the katana and examined it carefully. The overall design was in shades of red—the hilt was a deep crimson like blood, and the sheath was a fiery orange-red adorned with a pattern of burning flames.
Itachi nodded in satisfaction. He had specifically requested this color scheme because Mu Yue had taught him the "Breath of Fire."
The one-meter-long katana was almost as tall as Itachi, who stood at one meter and twenty-three centimeters, even though he had not yet turned seven years old.
However, being a ninja, Itachi effortlessly drew the katana from its sheath. Under the illumination of the warehouse lights, the silver-white blade glistened with a cold, white light, and the body of the sword was etched with flame-like patterns.
Itachi was highly pleased. Although he knew little about swords, this one appeared exceptional.
The young owner brought over a wooden dummy and a stone, smiling at Itachi as he said, "Try out the sword."
Itachi nodded and approached the dummy. Without infusing chakra, he swung the katana at the dummy's arm.
Dong!
The katana effortlessly sliced through the wooden arm, which fell to the ground with a thud.
Shush! !
Itachi didn't stop there. With lightning-fast movements, he continued to swing the katana, instantly reducing the dummy to pieces. The cuts where the blade had landed were remarkably smooth.
Next, Itachi concentrated chakra into his hand to enhance the blade, and with two swift strikes, he cleaved the stone into four pieces.
Witnessing this display, the young owner was secretly astonished. "Ninjas are truly extraordinary," he thought to himself, marveling at how even a child could possess strength far surpassing that of adults.
"It's excellent. Here's the agreed-upon amount," Itachi sheathed the sword and took out 640,000 ryo, which he handed to the young owner.
Previously, he had also given a deposit of 160,000 ryo, bringing the total cost of the katana to 800,000 ryo.
Although it was a substantial sum, Itachi felt it was worth every penny. Mu Yue had also spent a lot on him, from the short blade she crafted herself to the costly materials and cultivation elixirs she provided.
Money was not something Itachi concerned himself with. He knew that as a ninja, he wouldn't have to worry about finances in the future.
Itachi then took the katana home and began crafting a gift box for it.
While he couldn't forge the sword himself, he was confident in his ability to create a suitable gift box.
Itachi breathed a sigh of relief. Previously, he had been worried about completing the gift in time for the appreciation party, but now he had finished ahead of schedule.
Meanwhile, at home, Kakashi also heaved a sigh of relief.
"Finally, it's almost done," Kakashi said, gazing at the gradually shaping calligraphy brush, a smile spreading across his unmasked face.
Although he hadn't been Mu Yue's disciple for very long, she held a significant place in his heart. He could sense her care and concern for him.
Since Mu Yue enjoyed calligraphy, Kakashi wanted to make a calligraphy brush for her as a gift.
After some time spent learning the craft, he successfully mastered the art of brush-making.
Now, Kakashi had a basic understanding of calligraphy brushes. He knew that different types of brushes had their unique strengths, and after carefully examining the calligraphy Mu Yue had given him, he concluded that she probably used a goat-hair brush. So, he made a goat-hair brush for her.
"Giving a calligraphy brush as a gift might be a bit predictable," Kakashi thought.
Since all the disciples knew about Mu Yue's interest in calligraphy, they might end up gifting similar presents. Kakashi suspected that most people would opt for brushes.
Kakashi continued to refine the brush, thinking, "If we end up giving similar gifts, so be it. It just shows that we've all put thought into it."
...
The next day, on his way to the Southern Border Forest, Kakashi spotted a golden figure in the distance.
At first, he thought it was Mu Yue, but as he drew closer, he realized it was the person who resembled her—Minato Namikaze.
Kakashi had intended to greet him and then hurry off to the forest for training, but he recalled their conversation from the previous day. He had mentioned being unable to ask Minato about the battlefield, so he seized this opportunity to satisfy his curiosity.
"Good morning, Minato," Kakashi greeted him.
"Good morning, Kakashi," Minato replied with a gentle smile as he purchased his breakfast.
With the knowledge that Kakashi would soon become his student, Minato regarded him with a kindly expression.
Kakashi sensed a shift in Minato's attitude but didn't dwell on it. Instead, he asked directly, "Minato, what do you think Sensei Mu Yue would like as a gift? The team is about to disband, and I want to give her something."
Kakashi's question prompted Minato to ponder. If he were to give Mu Yue a gift, it would either be his own experience in sealing techniques or perhaps a sealing technique itself.
"I think it's enough to convey your heart and give what you want to give." Minato finally replied.
Based on his understanding of Mu Yue, that should be sufficient.
"Sorry for disturbing you, Senior Minato. Thank you," Kakashi said, not showing any disappointment at not getting useful information from Minato, and then headed towards the Southern Border Forest to train.
He felt that what Minato said made sense. Since he really couldn't think of anything, there was no need to beat himself up over it.
Minato watched Kakashi's departing figure, a smile appearing on his face.
He wondered if Kakashi would ever put in this much effort to prepare a gift for him in the future, and he looked forward to his life as a guiding teacher even more.
Although Kakashi had wasted some time on the road, he had set off early enough, and by rushing later on, he managed to arrive just in time. He was the last one to arrive.
"Kakashi, you don't value your training time either. You should get up earlier and come here sooner," Obito seized the opportunity to get back at Kakashi for disturbing him the day before.
Kakashi glanced at Obito indifferently and said, "I always get up early. I just ran into Minato on the way here, so I wasted some time."
Obito was about to think of how to continue taunting Kakashi when he suddenly realized that Kakashi had mentioned meeting Minato, so he hurriedly asked, "Isn't Minato on the battlefield? How did you meet him?"
"The war at the front line has come to a temporary pause, so Minato returned to rest," Mu Yue answered Obito's question on Kakashi's behalf.
Only then did Obito remember that Mu Yue was right beside him, and he couldn't discuss the matter of the appreciation party, so he gave Kakashi a look and didn't continue the conversation.
"Let's talk after the training," Obito said.
Kakashi understood Obito's meaning and remained silent.
Mu Yue watched this exchange, a little puzzled. They had only spoken a couple of sentences before stopping, which was unlike Kakashi and Obito's usual style.
Mu Yue casually walked over to Obito's side and smiled as she asked, "Obito, you've been training quite a lot at the academy recently. Have you felt any improvement in your ability to maintain total concentration for longer periods?"
"I don't feel anything special. Maybe I've been training less at home lately. I've had some things to take care of recently," Obito honestly replied.
He thought that he might not have reached the progress Mu Yue had planned for him.
"But don't worry, Teacher Mu Yue. I always focus intently during training. I'll definitely train more when I have the time," Obito added.
Mu Yue patted Obito's head and said with a smile, "I know you train very diligently. As for your free time outside of class, it's yours to do with as you please."
Then, Mu Yue walked over to Might Guy's side and watched his training for a while before speaking up, "Guy, how's your training of the Eight Inner Gates going? Have you felt any signs of being able to open the third gate yet?"
Might Guy shook his head, "Not at all."
"Could it be because I've been slacking off lately, preparing a gift?" Might Guy couldn't help but wonder.
When Mu Yue asked like this, it usually meant that he hadn't reached the expected level of progress.
"Maybe I've been training a little less recently. I'll double my training efforts today!" Might Guy exclaimed passionately.
"There's no need to go that far. I was just asking. Just follow the normal training schedule I've set for you," Mu Yue said with a gentle smile as she patted Might Guy's shoulder.
"There's a problem." After asking a simple question to Might Guy and Obito, Mu Yue guessed that her disciples might be busy with something she didn't know about after their training sessions, and they were deliberately keeping it from her.
"Are you guys planning a celebration for me because we're about to graduate and want to give me gifts?" Mu Yue guessed.
After all, all three of her disciples had a trust level of four, and according to her observations, at this level of trust, they practically regarded her as family.
Although Kakashi hadn't reached level four yet, he also had a relatively high level of trust.
With this kind of relationship and the upcoming graduation, Mu Yue naturally guessed that they were planning some sort of celebration.
While the world of Konoha had its fair share of lunatics, it wasn't crazy enough for graduating students to murder their teacher as a stimulating send-off. Moreover, her disciples were all quite normal at the moment.
Mu Yue didn't think too much beyond that. She couldn't afford to be as cautious with her disciples as she was with Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo. That would be too exhausting.
In the afternoon, when the training was about to begin, Mu Yue stopped Yamato and Obito, who were about to start, and informed them of a new special training session.
"Previously, I was the one chasing you, but now it's your turn to fight back. I'll limit my speed to be similar to yours, and you can use any means necessary to attack my shadow clones, but the shadow clones won't attack you," Mu Yue explained the rules of the new special training.
This training was essentially similar to the previous one, but with a different focus. The previous training focused more on movement, while this one emphasized offensive capabilities.
"Isn't there a topic?" Obito asked tentatively.
He felt that this training was very similar to the previous one and was worried that it would generate a lot of questions, which would affect his time preparing gifts.
"Not for now," Mu Yue replied with a smile.
Originally, in Mu Yue's plan, there was supposed to be a penalty in the form of questions. For every minute that they failed to hit the shadow clone, they would have to answer five questions, and the moment they did hit it, the questions would stop, with a maximum of ten minutes.
"Hurray!" Obito cheered.
He completely ignored the word "temporarily," and any training without a topic was good training.
Kakashi also heaved a sigh of relief. Although his gift could be said to be ready, Kakashi still wanted to refine it further and put more effort into the gift box. If there were too many questions, his energy would undoubtedly be divided.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Mu Yue performed the necessary hand seals and created two shadow clones, which walked apart from each other.
Kakashi and Obito changed their breathing patterns, entering a state of full concentration, inhaling large amounts of oxygen to strengthen themselves.
"Begin!" Mu Yue shouted when she saw that they were both ready.
Obito threw a direct punch at Mu Yue's shadow clone.
Instead of evading, the shadow clone stood its ground, waiting for Obito's attack. It then sidestepped, dodging Obito's straight punch.
Obito swiftly swung his arm towards the clone's head, while his left leg kicked out with force. However, the clone saw through these attacks and took a step back, easily dodging Obito's punches and kicks.
Obito stubbornly activated his two-tomoe Sharingan, his eyes turning crimson. He continued his relentless assault.
But then, he found the Sharingan even more frustrating, as he could clearly sense that he was just a hairbreadth away from landing a hit on Mu Yue.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"
Obito performed the necessary hand seals and unleashed a ninjutsu. As Mu Yue had said, they could use any means necessary.
With the completion of the hand seals, a large amount of chakra gathered in Obito's throat, and he spat out numerous small fireballs that rained down on the shadow clone.
At the same time, Obito began to sprint, intending to seize the moment when Mu Yue dodged the fire jutsu to land a hit.
However, Mu Yue remained more composed than he expected, skillfully using the tall trees of the Southern Border Forest to dissipate the Phoenix Flowers, rendering Obito's fire jutsu ineffective.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
Kakashi concentrated his chakra and spat out a massive fireball. The blazing orange-yellow flames quickly formed a two-meter-tall ball of fire that hurtled towards Mu Yue.
But it didn't end there; Kakashi, without performing any hand seals, spat out another fireball of similar size. The two fireballs crashed towards different directions.
This technique could be called the 'Double Fireball Jutsu', allowing the user to spit out two fireballs in quick succession. While the individual fireballs were less powerful, the technique boasted a wider area of effect.
"Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!" Mu Yue's shadow clone performed the necessary hand seals and used an earth jutsu, summoning a thick earthen wall that rose to block the two fireballs.
Kakashi paused for a moment, but he soon recalled that the shadow clones were not supposed to attack them; Mu Yue hadn't said that the clones couldn't use ninjutsu.
Kakashi activated his Sharingan and initiated the next round of attacks. After five minutes of engaging with the shadow clone, Kakashi uncovered a hidden piece of information.
Only when he used ninjutsu in his offense would the shadow clone have a probability of using ninjutsu to defend. If he refrained from using ninjutsu, no matter how dire the situation became, the shadow clone would not resort to ninjutsu. There was one instance where he almost touched the clone, but it still didn't use any ninjutsu.
"Is this training meant to hone our grasp of battle timing?" Kakashi had a conjecture.
If his guess was correct, then the timing of using ninjutsu became crucial, requiring a delicate balance.
One had to avoid making the shadow clone realize that it couldn't dodge without using ninjutsu, while also possessing the ability to disrupt the clone's positioning.
Although Kakashi had this idea, putting it into practice was extremely challenging. Even after ten minutes of training, Kakashi had not succeeded in landing a single hit on the shadow clone.
"Both of you failed to land a hit within ten minutes," Mu Yue announced the results.
"This is so difficult," Obito thought for a moment before speaking. "Isn't this equivalent to fighting a weakened version of you, Teacher?"
"My shadow clones aren't attacking you. If this were a real fight, you would have been defeated long ago," Mu Yue said as she tapped Obito's head with her two fingers held together.
At that moment, Obito's Sharingan was still active, and he helplessly watched himself get tapped on the head, unable to dodge.
"The difficulty isn't much higher than the previous training. If you achieve a breakthrough, you'll be able to complete it. Remember to think more during battles," Mu Yue advised, looking at Obito.
Among her disciples, Kakashi possessed the strongest combat capabilities, followed by Kakashi and Might Guy. She didn't have enough data on Rin Nohara to make a proper analysis, and Obito was basically at the bottom.
If the two of them had the same abilities across the board, Mu Yue felt that Obito's chances of defeating Kakashi were slim.
Kakashi had strong battle analysis skills and ample combat experience. Although his current raw power might be inferior to Obito and Might Guy, once his abilities caught up, his strength would be formidable.
"I understand. I'll strive to enhance my combat abilities during this training," Obito replied with a cheeky smile, scratching his head. He had grasped Mu Yue's intention.
In this aspect, he indeed fell short compared to Might Guy and Genma. In his previous battle with Might Guy, he had repeatedly lost his advantage.
4.8k, managed to crank out about 7.8k today. I'll try to write more tomorrow. I was in a rush to submit the chapter and even forgot to come up with a title. Now, I'll have to bother the editor to change it...
(End of Chapter)
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