Monstrous Strength Technique

With Sasuke's defection and Naruto's departure from the village for training, Team 7 was shattered in just a few days. Since graduating from the Ninja Academy and starting the mission to the Land of Waves, one thing after another has happened: the Chunin Ninja Exams, the Akatsuki invasion, defeating Orochimaru, the mission to the Land of Snow, and Sasuke's defection... I've fought a lot and my combat experience has improved by leaps and bounds, but my Ninjutsu development seems somewhat fragmented.

After that, nothing major happened in Konoha. During this rare free time, I began to organize my own Ninjutsu system and formally began to learn Ninjutsu from Tsunade. Although I did not aspire to become medical-nin, as Tsunade's disciple, Tsunade stated that I had to learn Medical Ninjutsu.

"I've never seen Chakra control at this level before, and your mental strength is also incredibly strong. It would be a waste not to learn Medical Ninjutsu!" Tsunade said. "Moreover, Medical Ninjutsu is an essential foundation for your next stage of training!"

Medical Ninjutsu is the foundation of Tsunade's entire Ninjutsu repertoire. Unless I decide not to learn Tsunade's techniques, this is something I must learn. After studying my combat system, Tsunade believes that my mid-range attack capabilities are already strong enough, but my close-combat abilities still have significant weaknesses. Although Azure Water Release is very strong for defending against close-range attacks, it's a bit too slow for offense, and it consumes significantly more water than regular water. In other words, in close combat, if I encounter a speed-based ninja, I might face a situation where I'm passively attacked and unable to mount an effective counterattack!

So I had no choice but to obediently learn Medical Ninjutsu from Tsunade. Actually, while I was learning Medical Ninjutsu, I spent most of my time learning various kinds of knowledge about the human body. In this ninja world, technology developed in a very bizarre way. Due to the existence of unscientific Chakra, this world has never been able to develop a good theoretical system. Similarly, due to the omnipotent Chakra, this world often invents some top-tier technologies, which seems very incongruous.

This is especially true in biology. Their understanding of the human body is perhaps even deeper than that of Earth. Years of war created a huge demand for anatomy—to kill enemies more effectively, and also to produce a large amount of anatomical material. The existence of the Byakugan and Sharingan allowed ninjas to gain a deep understanding of the human body without dissection—far more effective than light or NR. At the microscopic level, cells and hormones were discovered and mastered by ninjas, and they even gained some understanding of genetic material DNA.

For someone like me who has no background in biology or medicine, I'm quite impressed. When Tsunade threw a medical book that was half my height in front of me, I felt cold sweat dripping down my face uncontrollably.

"Tsunade- sensei, what is this...?" I swallowed hard. This book is so thick, I'd die if I tried to read it all!

"Don't worry, Sakura..." Tsunade said with a smile, "You don't need to read the whole book! But—"

"You absolutely must read the prologue, chapters one through seven, and chapters thirteen, fourteen, and sixteen, the sections about muscles, bones, internal organs, and the major systems of the human body. I'll be checking on you every week..." Tsunade's smile grew increasingly sinister. "If your performance doesn't satisfy me, I'll make you learn the Monstrous Strength Technique from me ahead of schedule, starting with firsthand experience!"

"Yes, yes!" I answered hastily!

After tossing me a book down, Tsunade said she was busy and told me to read it myself, ask the medical-nin at the hospital if I didn't understand, and then ask her if I still didn't understand. So, what kind of teacher is this?! Is there any teacher this irresponsible?!

I feel like I'm back in my university days!

Fortunately, this book is indeed easy to understand. Considering that most ninjas only know how to kill, the book thoughtfully assumes that the reader is a ninja with absolutely no background knowledge, starting from scratch, which is why it seems so long and tedious. Moreover, I studied quite diligently at the Ninja Academy in this life, and with the high school biology knowledge I learned in my previous life as a foundation, much of the content in the book was just a review for me. Many concepts were easy to understand, and I also gained a general understanding of the human body.

Compared to my previous life where studying mostly relied on rote memorization, in the ninja world, ninjas value practical application more. So, after Tsunade checked my homework in the first week, she announced she would teach me my first Medical Ninjutsu —that is, to control a small amount of Chakra water into my body to experience the operation and function of various parts of the human body. Many people have had this experience: things memorized by rote become particularly memorable once they are actually used. Knowledge memorized is still someone else's; only after understanding and integrating it does it become your own.

After mastering this technique, I could immediately apply the knowledge I gained from the medical book to my own body for comparison, and even obtain more detailed information than the medical book itself—this is because I can manipulate Chakra water more precisely than the compiler of the medical book. Although learning this massive book is a very arduous task, learning and applying it simultaneously makes it less tedious and more enjoyable to explore a new world!

About four months later, I reached the level of so-called "internal vision." Of course, this doesn't refer to the kind of internal vision found in martial arts novels, where one can see the flow of Chakra within the body's meridians—after all, I don't have that many eyes inside my body. Rather, it's because my knowledge base has become so profound that when I use Chakra water to flow and sense within my body, I can immediately understand what the parts of my body I perceive are, what they are doing, whether they are functioning normally, and so on. This ability of internal vision stems from my powerful sensory abilities and the vast amount of knowledge I've acquired. Other ninjas don't seem to have such clear perception. For highly skilled medical-nin, the latter isn't a problem, but they are inferior to me in the former—because their mental strength is far weaker than mine.

Based on the so-called "internal vision," I finally began the study and research of a series of new Ninjutsu.

First is Monstrous Strength Technique.

All publicly available information on the Monstrous Strength Technique only offers a brief description. "At the instant of attack, using precise Chakra control, a large amount of Chakra is instantly concentrated into the fist and unleashed." Many ninjas can do this; clearly, the true Monstrous Strength Technique is far more complex than that, otherwise Tsunade wouldn't be the only one in the Shinobi World renowned for her Monstrous Strength.

True Monstrous Strength Technique have three key elements: first, generating immense power; second, maintaining composure to avoid injury from the recoil of this power; and third, releasing Chakra to damage the target upon impact.

Ordinary ninjas can enhance their strength and speed by concentrating Chakra in specific parts of their bodies, but the Monstrous Strength Technique is not simply about enhancing the body through more precise Chakra manipulation to make the muscles generate more power.

A person's punch can only generate a few hundred kilograms of force at most. However, if all the muscles in the body contract and exert force simultaneously in the same direction, it can generate tens of tons of force—a hundredfold increase! Tsunade's Monstrous Strength Technique connects the entire body as a unified whole through the flow of Chakra. Every movement the human body makes is accomplished by the exertion of specific muscles, with other muscles at most making minor adjustments. But Monstrous Strength Technique allows every idle muscle in the body to participate in the exertion, and then transmits the force of the muscles to the fist or foot through a mechanism similar to a hydraulic system, thereby generating tens or even hundreds of times more force than normal exertion in an instant!

This is the biggest secret behind Tsunade's Monstrous Strength Technique!

The maximum amplification of the Monstrous Strength Technique can increase the power of my full-force attack by 400 times!

After generating such immense power, the biggest problem becomes how to unleash it normally without injuring bones and muscles. Tsunade's approach is to use a large amount of Chakra to strengthen bones and muscles, hardening cells and bones to withstand even greater power. But I have an even more effective method: to envelop bones and muscles in Ultra-Pure Water, filling the gaps, and then use Azure Water Release within my body to absorb the enormous reaction force from this powerful force!

The last key point is to inject a large amount of Chakra into the object's interior through the broken surface at the moment of impact, thereby destroying the object's internal structure and generating tremendous destructive power! This is Ninjutsu that Tsunade developed to fight puppeteers. Often, a single punch can shatter a puppet. It consumes a lot of chakra, but the effect is very good.

In terms of difficulty, every aspect of the Monstrous Strength Technique requires the user to have extremely high Chakra control, making it Ninjutsu with a difficulty level of A or even S! The Monstrous Strength Technique allows me to generate the destructive power of a level A or even a level 1 Ninjutsu with only the Chakra equivalent of an E or 1 level Ninjutsu!

However, Tsunade and I have different understandings of the Monstrous Strength Technique. Perhaps because she has fought many puppeteers, Tsunade focuses more on the destructive power of each attack. Every punch and kick of hers has the power to shatter the earth. Once hit, Jiraiya could lose half his life!

What I care more about is the explosive power of each movement. Higher explosive power means faster speed. In the past, my speed has always been a weakness. I can't use Lightning Release to activate my body and increase speed like Sasuke, nor do I have the high Taijutsu talent of Lee, who can improve muscle strength through a lot of weight training. Now, with the Monstrous Strength Technique, I have finally made up for this weakness. When I use Monstrous Strength Technique for acceleration, my speed immediately increases by leaps and bounds. I can now proudly declare that I am also a speed-type ninja!

Monstrous Strength Technique meant a completely new way of generating power—for example, even when performing a side kick, you had to use both hands together; even when throwing a punch, you used the power of your legs as well. It took me more than a month to gradually get used to this method and master the Tsunade Style Monstrous Strength Technique. After that, I began to modify it into my own Sakura Style Monstrous Strength Technique. As for my previous Nintaijutsu, it became an auxiliary Ninjutsu to assist in generating power and maintaining balance. During training, it could also be used as a form of weight-bearing to increase resistance and train muscles.

Two months later.

A huge training ground outside Konoha.

Boom--! Boom--!

A deafening roar echoed from the training ground, the earth cracking open into massive craters, the tremors carrying for kilometers. It seemed as if two gigantic monsters were battling inside! Of course, Ultraman and the monsters hadn't wandered into the wrong set, but the two fighting there certainly possessed monstrous destructive power!

That's right, it was Tsunade and I practicing our Super Monstrous Strength Technique!

"Heavenly Foot of Pain!"

Tsunade had just leaped up, her left leg raised straight up and then fiercely slashed down at me! I exerted a little force and dodged to the side at lightning speed.

Boom! The earth was cleaved open, creating a crack tens of meters long!

Bang! I stomped my feet hard on the ground, creating a crater beneath my feet, and simultaneously launched myself forward! I swiftly reached Tsunade, who had just landed, and delivered a punch to her astonished Tsunade!

Boom! Tsunade and I were both sent flying backward! The instant I hit Tsunade, although Tsunade didn't have time to block, she still managed to kick me away!

"Using Monstrous Strength Technique to increase speed? Sakura, your idea is good, but have you considered this," Tsunade wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, stood up slightly panting, and said, "Your movement speed is too fast, which makes it impossible for you to see the enemy's movements and react... For example, just now, I clearly didn't kick fast, but you still got hit! What if I had used Kunai? You might have been seriously injured! This is a very fatal flaw...! Doing this is like killing a thousand enemies while losing eight hundred of your own!"

Indeed, my reflexes aren't particularly fast.

The pinnacle of speed-based ninjas is the Fourth Hokage, known for his exceptional speed and reflexes. Kakashi, with his Lightning Blade, also holds a place among speed-based ninjas, but even he couldn't fully control the Lightning Blade's high-speed charge before acquiring the Sharingan. My physical attributes aren't outstanding; I'm neither naturally quick to react nor do I Sasuke's Red Eye, making it difficult to control the high speeds provided by my Monstrous Strength Technique. No wonder Tsunade didn't pursue this path! Furthermore, excessive speed makes it drastically harder to inject a large amount of Chakra at the moment of impact, which is also a drawback in terms of destructive power!

From the perspective of high-speed combat, the Uchiha Clan's talents are indeed enviable, no wonder Orochimaru coveted them so much. However, I've already tired of complaining about the Sharingan's cheat-like power boost. It's true that the Sharingan can rapidly increase combat power, I've seen it several times with Sasuke, but the Uchiha Clan relies too much on their eyes. Sometimes I really feel that without the Sharingan, they are nothing!

I used to complain about Sasuke always having his Sharingan activated, coldly watching others and trying to look cool. That's not being cool, that's just showing off! And then there's Uchiha Itachi. Through my two previous encounters, I discovered that guy also likes to glare with those Red Eye and coldly show off. According to the final boss of Hokage, he was also a Red Eye patient with the surname Uchiha. If the entire Uchiha Clan is like this, no wonder they're suspected and distrusted!

I've always had a dream: one day I'll defeat these Red Eye show-offs, step on their heads, and coldly look down at them, saying:

"Your eyes mean nothing to me!"

However, with my Ninjutsu, I can still handle high-speed battles without relying on the Sharingan!

First of all, I have the Azure Water Release, which makes my close-combat defense ridiculously strong. I'm not afraid of a fight where both sides are severely injured! I'd like to see which ninja's hasty counterattack can break through my Azure Water Release defense!

Secondly, after learning and modifying another of Tsunade's Ninjutsu, the problem of my reaction speed that had been bothering me was fundamentally solved!

During these six months, I didn't go on any missions. Besides learning Medical Ninjutsu, I also occasionally worked with Haku to develop some Water Release auxiliary Ninjutsu.

After more than six months of Ninjutsu training, Tsunade suddenly gave me a task.

The Hokage's office.

"You've been training for over half a year, and continuing to work in isolation isn't very efficient anymore, so I've given you a new task..." Tsunade on her hips and her chin resting on the back of her hand on the table, smiling.

Seeing that smile, I had a bad feeling. Was she going to make me take on side jobs to pay off her gambling debts again?! Tsunade always had this expression on her face when she had some strange idea! Last time, to pay off her old gambling debts, she made me secretly treat the creditor to settle the debt. As the Hokage, she couldn't lower herself, so she made me, her disciple, clean up her mess!

I watched Tsunade as she handed me a slip of paper. It was a letter of introduction, bearing Tsunade's Chakra stamp, and containing a short sentence—

"I hereby recommend Konoha Chunin Sakura Haruno (Ninja ID 10601) for entry into the Anbu. Please conduct the assessment. --Fifth Hokage, Tsunade."

What?! I'm going to join the Anbu?!