https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-318-New-Special-Training-Sprinting-Towards-Higher-Rewards/12558417/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-320-Rewards-for-an-S-Rank-Evaluation/12558421/
Chapter 319: Exceeding the Expected Number
Chapter 319: Exceeding the Expected Number
Mu Yue had anticipated a larger turnout for this special training session. The graduating batch of genin knew his teaching abilities, and with the recent feature in the Konoha newspaper, his reputation had grown within the village. Although the article was buried towards the back pages, the Konoha newspaper was the village's sole official publication and had a limited circulation, making it quite prestigious.
Nevertheless, when the teacher in charge of recording the registrations found him, Mu Yue was still taken aback.
As expected, all fourth-year students would be participating, and from the other grades, there were still eight students from each grade level. The surprising part was the number of genin who had signed up—a total of 350.
This was unprecedented. Even the total number of participants in Mu Yue's previous special training session hadn't come close to this figure. This time, the number of genin signing up for the training even exceeded the student body of the Ninja Academy.
"Teacher Mu Yue, what should we do? Should we modify the requirements? The number of participants for this special training is just too high," the recording teacher asked Mu Yue, concerned.
Normally, there were no requirements for genin to join these special training sessions—anyone who signed up could join. But this number was simply staggering, and the teacher worried that Mu Yue might not be able to handle so many students, especially since it exceeded the regular student body.
"A total of 694 participants for this special training..." Mu Yue mused, deep in thought.
If this had been the Mu Yue from before, he would have had to find a way to trim down the numbers. Nearly seven hundred people were no small matter, especially since these weren't ordinary individuals—a standard ninja squad would consist of around this number of ninjas.
However, things were different now. Mu Yue's current strength was worlds apart from when he had conducted the previous year's special training. Not only had his chakra reserves increased significantly, but his physical strength, ninjutsu knowledge, and other abilities had also far surpassed his former self.
"Let's give it a try first. Although the number is a bit larger than expected, it shouldn't be too much of a problem," Mu Yue said after some contemplation.
With an unprecedented number of participants, Mu Yue saw this as an opportunity. The last time he had over three hundred students, the class turned into a grand lesson, resulting in a substantial reward. Now, with almost seven hundred students, he wondered if the reward would change as well.
Mu Yue glanced at the list of genin who had registered. The list was filled with familiar names, many of whom were genin who had graduated just this year and had experienced his first special training session. As Mu Yue had expected, both Ebisu and Hibachi Genma had signed up again.
There were also genin from other graduating classes, such as Asuma, who had heard about Mu Yue's nature transformation training and brought his team along.
Mu Yue was a bit surprised to see Inuzuka Kiba and Nara Yukie on the list as well. The members of Nara Yukie's team were all quite capable, and if it weren't for this special training session, they might have already passed the Chunin Exams and become Chunin.
"Alright, Teacher Mu Yue. Then it's settled, and all these people will participate in the special training," the registration teacher said, seeing that Mu Yue didn't seem to have any issues with the numbers.
He couldn't help but admire Mu Yue's confidence. With so many people, managing them would be a challenge, let alone teaching them. Most people wouldn't even be able to handle such a large group, yet Mu Yue believed he could teach them effectively.
However, upon further reflection, the teacher realized that Mu Yue wasn't your average Chunin. Mu Yue's strength had been officially recognized by Konoha, so it wasn't surprising that he exuded such confidence.
Mu Yue nodded, finalizing the arrangements for the special training.
...
On Monday, all the ninjas and Ninja Academy students who had registered arrived punctually at the training ground designated by Mu Yue.
"Yukie, why are we participating in this special training? The Chunin Exams are starting in nine days. We won't be able to increase our strength by much in such a short time," Inuzuka Kiba asked, perplexed.
Ninja strength wasn't something that could be achieved overnight; it required long-term training and improvement. Unless one suddenly awakened a powerful bloodline limit, it was difficult to make significant progress in such a short time.
"The person in charge of this special training, Mu Yue, is one of the examiners for the second stage of the Chunin Exams," Nara Yukie explained. "And according to the situation in the Forest of Death, he's also Haruno Rin's teacher. If Haruno Rin also participated in this special training, I can gather more intelligence on her."
Having fought alongside Haruno Rin in the Forest of Death, Nara Yukie knew two things about her: she could unleash tremendous power, and she had medical ninjutsu skills.
However, if they trained together for a few days, Nara Yukie believed he could figure out many of Haruno Rin's combat habits, which might prove crucial in a critical moment during the exams.
"Also, according to my investigations, Mu Yue is a very strong Jonin, and teaching is his forte. Even if Haruno Rin doesn't show up, we should still be able to learn something valuable," Nara Yukie added.
He had inquired about Mu Yue's strength from his Jonin father, and as for Mu Yue's teaching abilities, he had discovered that there had been a special training session the previous year as well, so he asked some of the recently graduated genin about it.
"There are so many people here. Kiba feels like we've come to the wrong training ground," Inuzuka Kiba said, looking around at the sea of people gathered in the training field.
From her rough estimate, there were at least five to six hundred people present. Surely they wouldn't all be training together?
"I think this is the right place," Nara Yukie frowned slightly.
Indeed, there were a lot of people, and if it weren't for the fact that most of them looked young and quite a few didn't even have forehead protectors, Nara Yukie would have thought this was a gathering of ninja squads preparing for a mission.
"It's been too long since we last met. We missed the days when we created ninjutsu with you, Ebisu-nii," Izumo called out as he jogged over, his enthusiasm evident.
Ebisu's lips twitched at the memory, which he did not share; it had resulted in him becoming someone girls avoided and had left a less than stellar impression on the Third Hokage.
"Well, well, if it isn't Steel and Izumo. Long time no see," Genma greeted them with a smile, a senbon dangling casually from his mouth.
Genma was quite familiar with Ebisu's two adoring fans by now.
With Genma initiating the greeting, Ebisu could hardly feign ignorance, and so he offered a muted response: "Yeah, it's been a while. Good morning."
Steel gazed enviously at the forehead protectors worn by Ebisu and Genma, prompting him to remark, "Hey, Genma-nii, have you guys been taking on missions non-stop since graduating, earning big money, defeating strong shinobi from enemy ninja villages, and rescuing noble daughters to gain their favor...?"
"Hahaha!" Genma burst out laughing at Steel's imaginative description. "Steel, you should really cut down on those novels. Genin don't get to have such exciting experiences. Newly graduated genin can't even take on missions outside the village, so most of the time is spent training."
Their team composition was far inferior to Obito's team, and without anyone well-connected to directly request high-level missions from the Hokage, they had been diligently taking on D-rank missions under the guidance of Chen and Might Guy.
"But we've had some interesting moments, like that time we worked together to develop the Confusion Technique, which even Konoha's strongest taijutsu ninja fell for," Genma reminisced, recalling the incident with the bells.
The memory brought a smile to Genma's face as he remembered their elaborate plans being brutally crushed, only for Ebisu's desperate attempt with the Confusion Technique to succeed in securing the bells.
Izumo and Steel were visibly shocked by this revelation. Although it was just a taijutsu, to have the strongest ninja fall for their Confusion Technique was no small feat.
As one of the developers of the Confusion Technique, Izumo felt a surge of pride, and Steel couldn't help but mirror his expression, their mouths turning up at the corners.
"Ebisu-nii, I think there's still a lot of potential in the Confusion Technique. How about we discuss further improvements?" Izumo suggested eagerly.
"I think it's fine as it is for now. No need to make any changes," Ebisu politely declined. He was here to learn about nature transformation, not indulge in such distractions.
"What a shame. I recently found a wonderful art book that I wanted to share with you, Ebisu-nii," Izumo said, his disappointment evident.
"Sure, we can discuss it sometime if you'd like," Ebisu relented, not wanting to see his young admirers so disheartened.
"Are you thinking of discussing ninjutsu with him?" Genma teased.
As the appointed time drew nearer, the training ground became increasingly crowded and noisy.
"I didn't expect to see everyone here, all gathered together like we used to be in school," one student remarked.
"After all, this is a special training session with Teacher Mu Yue. When I mentioned wanting to attend a month-long special training, my guidance teacher was initially unhappy. But as soon as I said it was with Teacher Mu Yue, he readily agreed," another student shared.
"Long time no see. How's life as a ninja treating you?"
"About the same as during the internship, I guess. They still won't let me take on C-rank missions."
The students and ninja chatted in groups, as many of them were familiar with each other, having been classmates not long ago.
"Everyone, quiet down, please." As the clock struck eight, Mu Yue appeared and signaled for everyone to settle down.
Mu Yue didn't need to raise his voice; his tall, imposing figure, standing at 1.8 meters, was hard to miss among the crowd of students and recent graduates.
Some students who hadn't heard Mu Yue's voice immediately recognized his distinctive golden hair and saw that the students near him were quieting down. This silence quickly spread to the entire group, and soon the entire training ground fell silent as all eyes turned to Mu Yue.
"Many of you here are familiar faces, having attended my classes before. I appreciate your trust in me," Mu Yue began. "However, with such a large number of participants, I ask that you remain quiet while I speak."
Usually, Mu Yue was quite lenient about students talking during his smaller classes, as it could get monotonous with just lectures and answering questions. But with nearly seven hundred students present, even a small fraction of chatty individuals would amount to a hundred people.
"This special training session will focus on chakra control, taijutsu, basic ninjutsu, and chakra nature transformation!"
(End of Chapter)
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