The Role of the Genius Persona

"Medical Ninjutsu?" Miyoshi paused, then smiled as she refused, "That's still too early for you."

Yumiko laughed from the side. "How rare. Soseki, who's usually as steady as a little adult, is getting impatient. Miyoshi-senpai isn't teaching you ninjutsu for your own good. Only by solidifying your foundation can you go further on the path of a shinobi."

Misa nodded as well. "What's most important for you now is to focus on learning to refine chakra. Then, strive to improve your chakra control to the level where you can learn Medical Ninjutsu before graduation."

"Strengthen chakra control?" Soseki extended his right hand, fine threads of light dancing from his fingertips, weaving the pattern of a Leaf Headband before the four of them. Then, with a "solemn" expression tinged with "anticipation," he asked, "Is this enough?"

The four across from him looked as if they'd seen a ghost. Yumiko muttered to herself in a daze, "I must not be awake yet. Definitely!"

Kotoko, with a look of utter defeat, tilted her head and said, "Heh, I still can't manage this level of control even now."

Miyoshi froze at first, then suddenly turned her head and asked sharply, "Did you three teach little Soseki how to refine chakra?"

Her voice was stern, clearly angry at their recklessness.

They were only mid-to-low-level shinobi in the Shinobi World, without a clear concept of when it was appropriate to start refining chakra. They also feared that their misguided guidance might harm Soseki, so they chose to trust authority and let the Ninja Academy teach him uniformly.

Soseki quickly said, "Aunt Miyoshi, the method for refining chakra was taught to me yesterday by the teacher at the Ninja Academy."

Hearing this, Miyoshi asked in disbelief, "So you're saying you learned to refine chakra in just two days?"

"Actually... it was one day."

"I think I took about sixteen days to refine chakra for the first time." Misa tapped her delicate chin in recollection, then couldn't help but look to the side and ask, "Kotoko, how many days did you take?"

"I was seventeen days. Among us, Yumiko probably had the best talent—she only took fourteen days," Kotoko said.

"Little Soseki is truly amazing! He might become a really big shot in the future!" Yumiko snapped out of her daze and exclaimed excitedly.

At that moment, Soseki added just the right explanation, "Actually, I'm not that impressive. Most of the credit goes to my classmate, Asuma."

"Asuma?"

"Yeah, he's the son of the Third Hokage, Asuma Sarutobi."

"So he's the Third Hokage's son. No wonder!"

"Soseki has made some really good friends!"

Hearing that the other party was the Third Hokage's son, their doubts vanished instantly.

After the Second Hokage died in battle, the Third took over the position of Hokage under urgent circumstances, leading Konoha to victory in the war and ushering in its golden age. He himself was renowned as a master of ninjutsu across seven chakra natures, earning the title "Professor of Ninjutsu."

Thus, the Third's reputation among Konoha's mid-to-lower ranks was at its peak. In the hearts of Miyoshi and the others, he was almost like a Deity.

Even just being the son of the Third Hokage made them think such feats were only natural.

Soseki pressed his advantage. "This was also Asuma's suggestion. He's already learned more than one ninjutsu and believes that people like us are just wasting our talent if we follow the rules completely."

Miyoshi nodded repeatedly. The Third Hokage's son must have been personally taught by the Third himself! In other words, this was an evaluation made by the Third!

"Mm-hmm, geniuses are meant to break the rules!"

"Our little Soseki is a true genius!"

"Oh, then we need to teach Soseki ninjutsu right away! Otherwise, he'll fall too far behind the others!"

This was exactly why Soseki had built himself up as a genius. In the world of shinobi, people were always lenient toward geniuses.

If Soseki had shown mediocrity, no matter how much he begged, Miyoshi wouldn't have taught him ninjutsu, because gradual progression was actually the best protection for a beginner.

But if he was a genius, then anything he did was understandable. They didn't understand the world of geniuses, so they took everything for granted—especially since Soseki's talent far exceeded their own understanding.

Now, they even began to worry that the few ninjutsu they knew might hold back Soseki's talent.

"Let's take stock of the C-rank and below Medical Ninjutsu. See which ones you've learned that I haven't mastered yet," Miyoshi said with a serious expression.

"I'll go first. Besides the basic Healing Technique, I also know Hemostasis Technique, Blood Creation Technique, Silence Technique, and Linked Healing." Misa counted on her fingers.

"I'm about the same as you. I mainly have an extra Purification Technique."

"I have Tranquility Technique here. It can calm down someone under a Genjutsu attack."

In Konoha, aside from ninjutsu developed by the user themselves and clan secret techniques, only B-rank ninjutsu and below could be privately taught.

Don't let the lack of presence of B-rank ninjutsu in the later stages fool you. In fact, B-rank ninjutsu was already a trump card for an average chunin. Even for some Special Jonin, B-rank ninjutsu remained a primary tool in battle.

In a sense, B-rank and above ninjutsu counted as a strategic resource reserve for a ninja village. If leaked, it could mean a weakening of their own military strength and a strengthening of enemy villages.

So, when Miyoshi and the others learned these "advanced" ninjutsu, they had to set up seals to ensure the village's techniques didn't spread.

After tallying, Kotoko grimaced. "Huh? None of us know any offensive Medical Ninjutsu?"

Yumiko looked tense. "We Medical Ninja have never been good at combat, but Soseki is the Class Leader. He'll definitely be challenged by others in the future."

Seeing their worried expressions, Soseki quickly said, "Aunt Miyoshi, just teaching me the most basic Healing Technique is enough."

"Healing Technique?" Miyoshi frowned. "That's only a D-rank ninjutsu. Choosing that would waste your talent."

"It's not like I'm picking it as my Graduation Gift. No need to be so tense." Soseki felt a bit helpless. He seemed to have underestimated the impact this news had on Aunt Miyoshi and the others.

Miyoshi paused, then shook her head with a sigh. "I was just saying you weren't steady enough. Now it seems I'm the most impatient one. Hearing you say that, I immediately jumped to thinking about the Graduation Gift."

Soseki smiled. "Concern breeds chaos. Doesn't that just show that Aunt Miyoshi values my matters more than your own?"

"You..." Miyoshi smiled, half warmly, half helplessly. "Sometimes, you're so mature it's heartbreaking."

Soseki smiled but said nothing.

Miyoshi shook her head and walked toward the medical office. "Come on. I'll give you a demonstration now."

PS: The Graduation Gift is a supplementary setting I've added. I'll mention it here first, and there will be a detailed explanation later. It's mainly to explain why the major clans let their members enter the Ninja Academy and why the Second Hokage developed so many forbidden jutsu.