A-rank Ninjutsu Training Difficulty

Having found his direction, Yichen didn't delay, but instead went out early in the morning to practice the Light-Weight Rock Technique.

One important reason why Yichen chose the Light-Weight Rock Technique yesterday was that this A-rank Ninjutsu consumes little Chakra. And given Yichen's superb control over Chakra, the only factor limiting his ability to quickly learn Ninjutsu is the amount of Chakra he has.

Other offensive Ninjutsu are too difficult for Yichen, a Jonin with only 13A Chakra.

For example, in the original work that Yichen saw in the catalog, Kakashi and Zabuza's Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Technique consumed a whopping 18A of Chakra. That's terrifying! I didn't dare look at it for long.

The Light-Weight Rock Technique consumes very little Chakra, only 12B. Maintaining it only requires 3C Chakra per second. In other words, if Yichen learns this Ninjutsu Chakra, he can float in the air for an entire day.

It only consumes 12B, but the level is A. Yichen didn't understand at first, but he understood after actually practicing it. It turns out that this Light-Weight Rock Technique is extremely difficult to master.

Following the descriptions of Ninjutsu, Yichen struggled even to get the basics down; to say Yichen got the basics down was an understatement. "Completely clueless" would be a more accurate description.

After careful analysis, Yichen discovered the reason. Although ordinary Ninjutsu is amazing, it is basically about the use of Chakra. But the Light-Weight Rock Technique involves a trace of the power of rules.

The difficulty of mastering this kind of Ninjutsu, which is related to rules, can be understood by looking at Space-Time Ninjutsu. Of course, Yichen believed that the difficulty of mastering Space-Time Ninjutsu must be even higher.

Having wasted the entire morning, Yichen hadn't even scratched the surface of the Ninjutsu. Feeling almost depressed from years of practice without progress, Yichen gritted his teeth and headed towards the Tsuchikage's Office Building.

The purpose of going to the Tsuchikage's Office Building was naturally to seek advice from Ōnoki. Yichen didn't know if there were any other people in Iwagakure who knew the Light-Weight Rock Technique, but he knew that Ōnoki did. Who else could he turn to if not him?

Ōnoki never intended to take on any apprentices. In the original story, because Iwagakure had no successors, Ōnoki later took Deidara as his apprentice. However, although Deidara was taught well in terms of strength, his temperament was far too lacking; he was simply a spoiled brat who couldn't control his power.

However, the current situation in Iwagakure is actually quite good. Among the orphans of the Uzumaki Clan, there are quite a few with Uzumaki Yumi, in particular, is growing very rapidly. Although it is difficult for her to become Kage Level, she still has a good chance of Elite Jonin if given some opportunities.

Ōnoki was also satisfied with the rate at which Ikura and Yichen were developing. Now, Ōnoki was deliberately nurturing the two of them.

However, the higher-ups currently view Yichen an advisor, so his training is geared towards strategy. Handling matters in the Land of Rain is one aspect, while establishing a new department is another, as part of the assessment criteria for promotion to higher levels.

Ōnoki most hoped that Ikura would grow into the Tsuchikage, so he focused more on improving Ikura's combat power in his training. Yichen had actually guessed this to some extent.

Yichen's ultimate goal is to become stronger, and becoming the Tsuchikage is not a necessary step for Yichen. Therefore, Yichen doesn't care about these things. In any case, focusing on cultivating Yichen towards becoming an advisor can also be used to improve his own strength.

However, because of this reason, Yichen was not sure if Ōnoki would give him any guidance. If it weren't for the fact that the Light-Weight Rock Technique was so difficult to master, Yichen would not have come to ask Ōnoki for advice.

After meeting Ōnoki in the Tsuchikage's Office, Yichen directly explained his purpose.

Ōnoki didn't think much of it, but he was a little curious. He hadn't expected Yichen to choose the Light-Weight Rock Technique as his first A-rank Ninjutsu. Although the Light-Weight Rock Technique was amazing, it had no offensive power.

Generally, the first high-level Ninjutsu a ninja learns is an offensive Ninjutsu. For example, Purple Lightning's A-rank Ninjutsu is an area-of-effect attack Ninjutsu. And Yichen's first B-rank Ninjutsu was also the Water Style: Raging Waves.

However, Ōnoki did not ask why. He knew Yichen well; although young, he was mature and made his own independent judgments. He did not need to interfere too much with Yichen 'Ōnoki major decisions.

Ōnoki, who chose to trust Yichen, thought for a moment and said, "How about this, starting tomorrow, for seven consecutive days, I will spend half an hour after dinner each day to teach you the Light-Weight Rock Technique."

Yichen was overjoyed; this result was much better than he had imagined. Originally, Yichen's best expectation was that Ōnoki could spare some time to instruct him for an hour or two, and ideally, even teach him for a while. Even with this expectation, Yichen's judgment was based on Ōnoki's high regard for him. After all, the Tsuchikage to everyone, and unless he formally accepts a disciple, he won't instruct a single person individually, otherwise, what would the others think?

"I didn't expect Ōnoki to value me so much," Yichen thought to himself, before bidding farewell to Ōnoki and leaving the Tsuchikage's Office Building.

The next evening, Yichen ate dinner early and arrived at the Training Ground designated by Ōnoki. He had made no progress in his training during the day.

Yichen carefully reviewed the contents of the scroll again, but still had no clue. So he patiently waited for Ōnoki to arrive.

Ōnoki arrived right on time. The work of the Tsuchikage made Ōnoki's schedule very regular, and his meal times were usually fixed as well. After arriving at the Training Ground, the Shadow Guard who came with Ōnoki consciously spread out to keep watch.

Ōnoki wasted no time and came to Yichen's side. Without saying a word, he used the Light-Weight Rock Technique on Yichen. Then Yichen felt as if he had no weight and lost his balance, but although he lost his balance, Yichen did not fall.

Yichen felt like an astronaut walking in space, completely in a state of weightlessness.

However, before Yichen could fully adapt to this state, Ōnoki's voice came. "Carefully sense the characteristics of the Chakra I'm channeling into your body."

Yichen cursed himself inwardly. What was he thinking about now? He should be focusing on gaining enlightenment.

As usual, Yichen used his Sensory Ninjutsu, but after carefully observing the Chakra within his body, his expression became somewhat strange. After hesitating for a moment, Yichen said, "Lord Tsuchikage, this Chakra feels somewhat different from normal Earth Release."

Ōnoki nodded and said, "Your perception is indeed excellent. This is definitely not ordinary Earth Release Chakra. It is a mutation resulting from the infusion of special insights into Earth Release Chakra."

Yichen was somewhat confused. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Could it be a change similar to Kekkei Genkai?"

Ōnoki nodded, then shook his head, and said, "In terms of level, it's definitely lower than Kekkei Genkai. Actually, although it's a mutation, it's not necessarily higher than a regular Earth Release; it's just that the characteristics are different. However, the difficulty of cultivating this kind of Earth Release is no less than that of Kekkei Genkai."

Yichen panicked upon hearing this. If he couldn't learn it, wouldn't all those tens of thousands of Contribution Points be wasted? And then even the A-rank Secret Scroll would be useless. Had he gone back to square one? Had he worked for nothing for two years?

Ōnoki seemed to have read Yichen's mind and said, "Your mental strength is very strong, and you can directly perceive this difference, which shows that you have a certain talent in the Light-Weight Rock Technique."

"This Chakra was undeveloped by the Second Lord, my teacher. He sensed it from the earth using his powerful perception."

Then, Ōnoki began to explain in detail the origins and secrets of the Light-Weight Rock Technique, some of which were recorded on the scroll, and some of which were not.

Even though everything was written on the scroll, Yichen still couldn't learn it, because just looking at it left him feeling confused. But Ōnoki demonstrated while Yichen perceived it, and then explained it to him, which made it possible for Yichen to understand.

After explaining the theory, Ōnoki faced a rock and performed the Light-Weight Rock Technique, constantly adjusting the subtle changes within it.

Yichen carefully sensed this magical scene, never expecting that the first A-rank Ninjutsu he encountered would be so rule-based.

As Ōnoki said, because Yichen has a strong Perception Talent, his learning process under Ōnoki's guidance was quite pleasant. Although he didn't learn it immediately, he did get the basics down.

Ōnoki cautioned Yichen not to rush into using the Light-Weight Rock Technique on himself, but to test it on an inanimate object first. He warned that recklessly experimenting on himself before fully mastering the Ninjutsu would cause serious problems. Yichen nodded in understanding.

After Ōnoki left, Yichen continued practicing for a long time. It wasn't entirely because Yichen worked so hard, but also because the feeling of defying the rules was incredible and exhilarating.

Under Ōnoki's guidance, Yichen has touched the threshold of altering gravity, but there are still many problems. First, he cannot control the degree of change as he wishes, and second, he cannot control it evenly.

As for reaching the level of skillful control like Ōnoki, and being able to fight against enemies while using the Light-Weight Rock Technique, that's still a long way off.

For the next seven days, Yichen practiced precise control under Ōnoki's guidance. Ōnoki also took Yichen to experience the feeling of flying every day.

In addition, Ōnoki would also point out Yichen's shortcomings in other cultivation methods during their conversations.

If Ōnoki were to become a teacher, he would definitely be a qualified one. The insightful guidance from Kage-level experts would be of great help to Yichen.

Putting everything else aside, in just these few days, Yichen felt that his understanding of the Earth Release had undergone a qualitative change.

If he could continue to profit for another ten days or so, Yichen felt that he could begin practicing Chakra Fusion.

Although it was just a fantasy, Yichen did gain a lot. After his understanding of Earth Release deepened, Yichen clearly felt that he was learning the Light-Weight Rock Technique faster.

By the end of the seventh day, Yichen was able to make a rock almost the same size as himself float.

However, Yichen still has many shortcomings in the process of casting the spell, such as the inability to simultaneously and evenly change the gravity of different parts of the rock. Therefore, Yichen is not yet able to make himself fly.

Ōnoki was fairly satisfied with Yichen's progress. Many of the Ninjutsu developed by the Second Tsuchikage had no successors, and not many people in Iwagakure had learned the Light-Weight Rock Technique. It was a good thing that Yichen was able to pass on this Ninjutsu.