Mage

"Chakra? The energy you cultivated as a ninja?" Hodrian said, still looking shocked.

Chiba nodded.

Hodrian was utterly stunned.

As the creator of this tempering method, he knew how difficult it was to substitute one energy for another.

Because the method tempered the body according to specific proportions of magic power, the requirements for those proportions were especially strict. Even the slightest deviation could ruin the whole effort.

Magic power and Chakra were two different kinds of energy. The proportions that worked for magic power might not work for Chakra. In other words, the proportions used for magic power were not applicable to Chakra.

Yet this kid... had actually done it!

In other words... in a single afternoon, he had not only marked every spot on his left palm, but also replaced magic power with Chakra.

What an extraordinary genius!

At this rate, he would completely master the tempering method in less than half a month!

And this was a tempering method fifty percent more effective than the original!

That... was already almost as effective as the tempering effects of Dragon Slayer Magic.

If dragonification was left out of consideration.

"Kid, very good." Hodrian praised him from the bottom of his heart.

Only those who had been Hodrian's students knew just how precious those words, "very good," truly were.

"Old man, I'm sleepy. Tell Mira I'm skipping dinner and going to bed first," Chiba said. After all the work that afternoon, he was mentally exhausted.

Hodrian naturally knew what state he was in and nodded.

So Chiba returned to his room, collapsed onto the bed in a daze, and fell asleep.

The next day, at noon.

"Chiba, wake up!"

A familiar girl's voice rang in his ear. Chiba slowly opened his eyes and saw the girl's beautiful face before him.

"Mira, why did you come into my room?" Chiba asked, a little surprised, then slowly sat up.

Mira smoothed her hair and said, "It's already noon, and you still weren't awake. If Grandpa Hodrian hadn't told me you were too tired from training yesterday, I would've woken you up ages ago!"

"Uh..."

Thinking back on yesterday, the tempering method the old man had taught him really was strange. Although the Sharingan's insight had allowed him to memorize the proportions of magic power the old man infused, he had memorized them too quickly. When he tried it himself, the pitifully small amount of magic power in his body simply wasn't enough to distribute. With no other choice, he had used Chakra instead.

But that meant he had to analyze the differences between the two energies, then make adjustments based on the magic power proportions, and then... it was just too mentally taxing.

Chiba had nearly dropped dead.

"Get up and brush your teeth and wash your face. I made you fish soup!" Mira urged him to get up with a smile.

Chiba immediately threw off the covers and jumped out of bed. He had been so tired yesterday that he had even slept in his clothes.

After he brushed his teeth and washed his face, he sat down at the dining table. Mira brought him a large bowl of fish soup, then sat down beside him, cupping her cheeks in her hands as she watched him drink with a smile.

"Mira, aren't you having any? Where are Lisanna and the others?" Chiba asked, sounding puzzled.

"We ate ages ago. Sister Mira made the fish soup especially for Brother Chiba, and she wouldn't even let us touch it," Lisanna said teasingly with a smile. Just then, Lisanna, with her short white hair, and Elfman walked in through the door.

Mira's pretty face turned red, and she glared at Lisanna.

Lisanna stuck out her pink tongue and didn't dare say any more.

After Chiba finished all the fish soup, Mira gathered up the dishes and went to the kitchen.

Chiba wiped his mouth, looked at Lisanna and Elfman, and said, "Why are you both back today?"

"It's all thanks to you, Brother Chiba!" Lisanna said with a grin. "We quit our jobs, and now we're learning magic from Grandpa Hodrian."

"Learning magic?" Chiba raised an eyebrow.

"They're both promising talents for learning magic. I only noticed today myself, so I started teaching them," Hodrian said, coming in from outside at that moment.

"What magic are you teaching them?" Chiba asked.

"I haven't decided on the specifics yet. They cultivate magic power quite quickly. I'm still considering what magic to teach them," Hodrian said.

"Take Over Magic," Chiba said. "They're both quite talented at Take Over Magic. You can try teaching it to them first."

"Take Over Magic... it's somewhat rare, but it's not a bad choice. Speaking of which, how could a ninja like you tell they had a talent for learning Take Over Magic?" Hodrian asked.

"Instinct... yeah, that's right, instinct," Chiba said evasively.

If I didn't know what magic they'd use in the future, would I have recommended that you teach them Take Over Magic?!

After casually bluffing the old man, Chiba said he was going to practice Ninjutsu and ran a good distance away from the house on his own, leaving enough space out front for the old man to teach Lisanna and Elfman magic.

Mira wasn't learning magic with her younger brother and sister, but that was fine. Her magic would awaken in time, and her magical talent was far stronger than theirs. Once her magic awakened, her magic power would increase by leaps and bounds.

Chiba wasn't planning to continue making the tempering method's marks today. As a ninja, his top priority was still Ninjutsu.

He had already mastered the Great Fireball perfectly. Whether he was using it seriously or not, Chiba could unleash it at will, and with his current amount of Chakra, its consumption was no longer much of a burden.

Next came training in the Gale Palm.

First, he had to find a way to master the nature transformation of Chakra into wind-natured Chakra.

This continued until evening.

"Boss! Boss! Something's wrong!"

A familiar voice came from the distance, rousing Chiba, who was pondering how to transform Chakra into its wind nature. He looked in the direction of the voice and saw the tall Alili running over in a panic.

Chiba frowned. "I told you, I'm not your boss. Why are you in such a panic?"

Alili panted. "B-bad news! Miss Mira... Miss Mira was stopped in the village by a group of mages who just arrived."

Chiba's expression darkened, and he looked up at the sky.

The sun had already set. Even if she had gone to buy groceries, she should have been back by now. Could it really be as Alili said?

"Is that true?" A shadow had already fallen over his face.

"Absolutely true, Boss!" Alili said.

Chiba got up and started walking toward the village. "Lead the way," he said calmly.

Alili immediately ran ahead of Chiba to lead the way.

"If Mira's safe and sound, come over at six tomorrow morning after this is over. I'll teach you magic," Chiba added.

He didn't like owing others. Alili had given him such important information, so as compensation, he would teach him a little magic.

Hmm... I'll teach him the Shadow Thirty-Six Forms.

Alili froze for a moment, then was overjoyed.

"Thank you, Boss!"