Thank You, Master Xing!

The next day, Ming Jing, Yuexi, and Qing Yan arrived at the Ninja Academy, where they were to wait for their captain.

Qing Yan asked curiously, "Young Master, who do you think the Third Hokage will send to be our captain?"

Ming Jing tilted his head and thought for a moment before saying listlessly, "Asuma Sarutobi, the Third Hokage's son."

"Why? Does the Third Hokage intend to use his son to influence us?" Tsukishiro Yuexi asked with a frown. If that was really the case, then the Third Hokage was making his intentions far too obvious.

"Asuma Sarutobi was once a member of the Guardians of the Twelve and has close ties with the daimyo," Ming Jing said slowly. "Our mission is probably to manage the Land of Fire. Sigh... How could I be so stupid? What do you think would happen if we gave up the mission?"

"It would be terrible." Before Yuexi or Qing Yan could answer, a slightly rough voice came from nearby. Asuma Sarutobi walked in with half a cigarette hanging from his mouth and both hands in his pockets. He looked over the three of them: polite and gentle Tsukishiro Yuexi, Qing Yan, as ordinary and stubborn as a rock, and... the unfathomable Akira Kurama!

"I'm Asuma Sarutobi, not Asuma Sarutobi, a Konoha jonin. I'm skilled in Wind Release, Fire Release, and taijutsu. My favorite foods are sausages and cold Chinese yam noodles. My hobbies are smoking and playing cards, and I hate people who act recklessly and break the rules. For a long time to come, I'll be your captain." Asuma Sarutobi walked up to the podium and introduced himself without concern for anyone else. Then he took a deep drag from his cigarette and looked at Ming Jing and the others. "Which one of you is first?"

Worried that things would get awkward, Tsukishiro Yuexi raised her hand and said with a smile, "I'll go! My name is Tsukishiro Yuexi, Young Master's assistant. I'm skilled in Wind Release, Water Release, and Ice Release. I'm rather poor at taijutsu. My favorite foods are cold shredded vegetables and spicy sliced beef and offal. My hobby is making delicious ice cream."

"Hmm... What's your dream?" It was Asuma Sarutobi's first time leading a squad. After hearing Tsukishiro Yuexi's introduction, he suddenly remembered that Team Leader's Rules said he had to ask his teammates about their dreams. Ming Jing gave Asuma a strange look, thinking Wang Feng had possessed him.

"This..." Tsukishiro Yuexi thought for a moment, then said with a gentle smile, "I hope I can always stay by Young Master's side."

"Oh... What a youthful dream!" Asuma looked back and forth between Ming Jing and Yuexi with the knowing gaze of a veteran driver. Ming Jing rolled his eyes and could not be bothered to explain.

"My name is Qing Yan, Young Master's shield! I'm skilled in taijutsu and taking a beating. My favorite food is grilled meat, and my hobby is training. My dream is that one day, I can block an attack for Young Master, even if only once!" Qing Yan stepped forward and spoke with great solemnity.

Asuma Sarutobi glanced at Ming Jing. This kid was quite good at training subordinates! Look at these two children—they obeyed Ming Jing without question!

Asuma nodded. "Don't worry. Your wish should come true soon enough."

"I hope it never comes true." Qing Yan shook his head. If Young Master ever needed him to block an attack, it would surely be an extremely dangerous moment. He did not want his Young Master to be in danger, even if it meant the skills he trained day and night were never put to use.

"What a loyal man! All right, only you remain." Asuma nodded. He rather admired Qing Yan. After all, he had once protected the daimyo and understood the feeling of wanting to prove oneself while not wishing for the person under one's protection to be harmed.

"My name is Akira Kurama. I'm skilled in swordsmanship and genjutsu. I like vegetarian dishes, and my hobby is studying genjutsu. My dream is to become the strongest genjutsu user!" Ming Jing stood up and spoke his goal aloud for the first time in the Naruto World—to become the strongest genjutsu user!

"That's quite an impressive dream!" Asuma Sarutobi nodded. Then he took two bells from his clothes and said, "Next, let me see your strength! I have two bells here. Whoever gets one will earn my recognition as my subordinate."

Ming Jing's eyes lit up. "If we don't get them, do we go back to the academy and repeat our studies?"

"In your dreams. If you don't get them, just wait for extra training tonight!" Asuma flicked his wrist, catching the bells in one hand. As he walked outside, he said, "Training Ground Seven. You have five minutes to get there!"

"Young Master?" Tsukishiro Yuexi and Qing Yan did not set off immediately. Instead, they looked at Ming Jing.

"Since we're ninja now, let's do things the ninja way! Asuma is a jonin, so this is a good chance to test your current strength." Ming Jing stood up with a smile.

"Yes!" Yuexi and Qing Yan nodded together, then hurried toward Training Ground Seven.

Asuma Sarutobi naturally arrived quickly with a jonin's speed. Ming Jing and the others were not slow either, all arriving within five minutes. Asuma nodded in satisfaction. At least the situation he had been worried about had not happened. His originally stern expression relaxed somewhat. He hung the bells at his waist, beckoned to Ming Jing and the others, and said, "Come on!"

Qing Yan bent his legs and kicked off fiercely, charging at Asuma like a cannonball. His iron fists shot straight at him. Asuma did not dodge. He raised both arms and blocked Qing Yan's punches head-on.

"Hmm?! What tremendous strength!" Asuma was startled. He had not expected a mere kid who had just graduated to possess such power.

But strength alone was not enough!

Asuma twisted his wrist, grabbed Qing Yan's hand, and flung him away as if throwing a discus.

Water Release: Water Colliding Wave! Tsukishiro Yuexi completed her hand seals in the blink of an eye. She opened her little mouth and spat a wave of water at Asuma.

Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique! Asuma refused to be outdone. After forming hand seals, he expelled a massive fireball. Even from where Ming Jing stood farthest away, he could feel the scorching heat within it.

"Water Release..." Tsukishiro Yuexi wanted to continue using Water Release, but Ming Jing stopped her before she could form hand seals. Facing the massive fireball rushing toward them, Ming Jing calmly drew his treasured sword. Asuma only heard a sharp clang, and the fireball he had spat out split directly in two.

"As expected, slicing fireballs like this feels the best. Yuexi, want to try it?" Ming Jing looked at Asuma's dumbfounded expression and asked Yuexi beside him with a grin.

"N-No, it's fine..." Tsukishiro Yuexi shook her head. She did not think she could remain as calm as Young Master and draw her sword in the face of such a huge fireball.

"Hey, hey, hey, this is a test. You two, take it seriously! Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu!" At some point, Asuma had appeared beside Ming Jing. With an Earth Style Jutsu, he dragged Ming Jing into the ground, leaving only his head exposed.

"Young Master, Ice Release: Ice Fountain!" Tsukishiro Yuexi was startled, and she immediately used the Ice Release she was best at. An ice pillar suddenly burst from the ground, launching Asuma into the air like a fountain.

"Oh dear, I got buried again!..." Ming Jing sighed. It seemed he was really fated to be buried these past two days!

"Don't worry, Young Master, I'll save you!" Qing Yan charged over like a raging bull, plunging both hands into the ground until his entire palms sank into the soil.

"Go get the bells first. This is a good chance for me to calm down too." Ming Jing rolled his eyes and said to Qing Yan.

"But, Young Master, you..."

"It's fine. This is Konoha, and Asuma, a jonin, is right beside us. I'm not in any danger. Besides, if I wanted to get out, do you think I couldn't?" Ming Jing smiled confidently. Qing Yan heard that and felt it made sense. So he left Ming Jing behind and joined forces with Yuexi against Asuma.

Ming Jing looked up at the sky, but his mind was on what the daimyo had said. Managing a country really did sound tempting! But when he thought of his own strength, he became somewhat lost.

The Goose Illusionary Book was very powerful!

But the problem was that Ming Jing himself was not strong!

Profound things from the Land of Flowers all emphasized enlightenment, and The Goose Illusionary Book was no exception. That was why Ming Jing had only reached the level of "learning it," rather than the deeper level of "mastering it."

How many stages did genjutsu have? There was no clear classification in the Naruto World. At most, ninjutsu was divided by power into A-rank, B-rank, and C-rank. But there was no such concept for genjutsu, only a rough distinction between basic proficiency and mastery.

Yet the old man had laid out clear divisions in The Goose Illusionary Book: Belief, Truth, Sincerity!

Believe in oneself, others' belief, belief of all beings.

The true nature of all things, truth is not truth.

Sincerity in one's heart.

It looked rather simple, and Ming Jing could understand it, but the issue lay in "enlightenment."

What did it mean to believe in oneself? Ming Jing had initially understood it as self-confidence. But later, he felt that was wrong. Did using genjutsu require confidence? What kind of logic was that?

Ming Jing sighed. What a pain! Could the old man not have given a few more hints?

He looked at the clouds in the sky and suddenly thought that one cloud looked quite cool! It resembled someone tilting his head back and blowing smoke. Its profile even looked rather like Master Xing!

Huh??

Master Xing!!!

Ming Jing suddenly recalled a line Master Xing had said in The Conman: Even you deceive yourself. You really have the potential to be a con artist!

So that was it, so that was it!

So this was what believing in oneself meant!

Ming Jing wanted to throw back his head and laugh. Believing in oneself meant, if you want others to believe you, you must first make yourself believe it! No wonder so many films and television dramas said that the highest form of deception was deceiving even yourself!