Improved Version of the Activation Technique

Kyoichi glanced at Shisui and Obito.

The two were truly worlds apart.

Obito was carefree at the moment, never overthinking anything. As long as he had food to eat and things to play with, he was happy. He was carefree and quite kind by nature.

He was just brainless.

Shisui, on the other hand...

He was also missing a few screws, but after meeting Kyoichi, it seemed one of those screws had finally clicked into place. He was no longer quite so foolish.

Now, it seemed he had thought of something.

There was a simple reason Kyoichi thought so.

[You guided Uchiha Shisui's thoughts and changed the course of his life.]

[Evaluation: Good]

[Reward: Illusory—Steam Attic]

This was the first time an evaluation had appeared for no apparent reason. Shisui must have gained some insight of his own, and Kyoichi was curious about what he had been thinking just now.

Still, the reward was quite good.

The Steam Attic.

Wasn't this a technique used by the Second Mizukage's Summoning Beast?

Could he really learn this?

Kyoichi was slightly surprised. The principles and knowledge behind the technique appeared in his mind, leaving his expression somewhat strange.

This technique...

How should he put it?

It was a semifinished product.

It used dense fog to create a mirage, thereby achieving the effect of a genjutsu.

The problem was...

Kyoichi currently didn't know any fog-based genjutsu.

"Looks like I need to find a way to obtain the Hiding in Mist Technique."

Kyoichi pondered in secret.

If he could obtain the Hiding in Mist Technique, this technique would take his concealment abilities to another level, especially when facing Kirigakure shinobi.

It was free, anyway. There was no reason to complain.

Besides...

Maybe he could combine it with his Sword Technique?

The Phantom Sword Style...

Kyoichi kept turning the idea over in his mind.

Minato Namikaze noticed something and couldn't help admiring him inwardly.

No wonder Kanda Kyoichi had become a Chunin at thirteen and been promoted to Jonin after only a little over a year. His habit of constantly thinking was enough to let him accumulate a great deal over time.

Everything he had now was the result of long accumulation finally paying off.

Minato had Jiraiya to guide him, while Kyoichi had no good teacher.

"Kakashi, just you wait! Once I awaken my Sharingan, I'll definitely defeat you!"

"Hah. Dead last."

"Obito, there are no absolute geniuses in this world. As long as you work hard enough, think more, ponder more, and practice more, you may surpass Kakashi even without relying on the Sharingan."

Minato Namikaze spoke from the heart.

A hardworking genius—Kanda Kyoichi was the best example.

Kyoichi naturally had no idea that Minato Namikaze already held him in such high regard. His mind was still occupied with figuring out how to combine Sword Technique with the Steam Attic genjutsu.

After thinking it over...

He might not actually need the Hiding in Mist Technique. Perhaps the evaporation of water vapor from a Water Release technique could also form a kind of mirage, though it wouldn't be as stable.

However...

His main strength was Sword Technique.

Once his speed reached a certain level, even a momentary misjudgment from his opponent would be enough to prove fatal.

Unless they had a cheat like Kamui.

Besides...

This was visual misdirection, not conventional genjutsu. Perhaps even the Sharingan might not necessarily see through it.

It was worth researching!

After the meal, Kyoichi failed to pay despite Minato Namikaze's insistence.

He didn't mind.

It was only one meal. He hadn't charged Minato for teaching his disciples, so taking this meal was perfectly justified.

The various teams passed their assessments one after another.

As a result, more teams came to claim missions. After arguing back and forth, Kyoichi finally managed to take three missions.

The old rules applied.

The difference was that Asuma had replaced the person chopping firewood, while Shisui went to fetch water.

There was a reason Asuma had taken over.

"You should have already mastered the nature transformation of Wind Release, right?"

"Yes, Teacher."

"Good. Use Wind Release chakra to assist you, and chop the firewood with a Kunai. Once you can use it proficiently, I'll teach you a ninjutsu."

Kyoichi intended to teach him the Vacuum Blade.

The technique was B-rank and quite powerful. Asuma's chakra weapons had yet to be made, and his combat style was still a complete mystery to him.

This technique could complement the Flying Swallow style he would use in the future.

There was no need to pay too much attention to Kurenai Yuhi today. The cat she had caught was nearby, so Kyoichi continued training by himself, honing his Taijutsu. His Shadow Clone stayed near Shisui, observing him while practicing Sword Technique.

During this time, he ran into several familiar faces.

For example, Might Guy's team, Team 7, and even Might Duy.

Unlike Might Guy and the others...

Might Duy was a veteran Genin of many years. He had long since passed the age for forming teams with others, and had spent all these years training and taking missions alone. Today was no different.

However...

There was one difference. Might Duy seemed somewhat melancholy today.

"Senior Duy, why the sigh?"

Kyoichi sat on a tree branch.

Normally speaking, Might Duy was close to getting promoted. He shouldn't have been sighing all day long.

Could it be...

Was he troubled because of his promotion?

"Lord Kyoichi, sigh! It's a long story."

Might Duy sighed.

Kyoichi used Body Flicker to appear beside him. After talking with him, Kyoichi learned that the Third Hokage had spoken with him yesterday about the Eight Gates.

Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't asked him to hand over the forbidden technique. Instead, he had said that he intended to promote him to Special Jonin in the field of Taijutsu.

This should have been a good thing.

But Might Duy had been a Genin for twenty years and had long grown accustomed to Genin life. Being suddenly promoted to Special Jonin left him unsure what to do, and he was utterly lost for a time.

Therefore...

Although he had become a Special Jonin, he had still accepted a D-rank mission—to fetch water.

"Special Jonin aren't the same as Jonin. Special Jonin means you have exceptional talent in one particular area. Unless you're required to lead a team or take on special missions, you can just live normally."

Kyoichi explained.

Jonin needed well-rounded abilities. Take Naruto, for example. Without a certain level of knowledge, he couldn't become a Jonin even if he possessed Kage Level strength.

The requirements for Special Jonin were lower.

Might Duy was stunned for a moment after hearing this and said, "But I'm a Special Jonin, yet I'm doing a D-rank mission..."

"What of it? Does it bother you?"

Kyoichi was taken aback.

He had remained completely indifferent as a Genin for more than twenty years, yet he cared about continuing to do D-rank missions after becoming a Special Jonin?

That did seem reasonable.

Might Duy found himself quite convinced, yet he also felt that something wasn't quite right.

He scratched his head and said, "I don't know how to put it. Oh, right. I modified your Seven Heavenly Breathing Methods according to my own ideas. I don't know if it's correct. I originally wanted to ask you to take a look, but I've been so busy lately that I forgot."

"Oh? Let's try it."

Kyoichi's eyes lit up, and he quickly gestured for Might Duy to try hitting him.

"I won't hold back at first."

With that, Might Duy kicked at him.

The force was tremendous!

Kyoichi blocked with his hand. Although he used chakra to cancel out part of the force, it still left his arm faintly aching.

"Next..."

After saying that, Might Duy swiftly kicked again.

Both the speed and force had increased greatly!

Before the kick even reached him, Kyoichi knew things were bad. He quickly used the Earth Spear to reinforce his arm.

Bang!

A muffled impact rang out.

Under the tremendous force, Kyoichi retreated several steps.

"This?"

Kyoichi was astonished.

After pondering carefully for several seconds, he said, "Try it one more time."

"Okay."

Might Duy took a deep breath and flew forward with a kick.

Kyoichi blocked it. The force was still immense, but this time he was prepared and grabbed Might Duy's ankle.

At that moment...

Might Duy twisted around and kicked toward his head with his other leg!

"It really works. But have you entered a state close to opening the First Gate?"

"After using my improved Activation Technique, I discovered that my First Gate would open partially on its own, allowing me to control my body even better."

Might Duy nodded.

He didn't understand much theory and had relied entirely on his own experimentation. He had come up with this version without knowing whether it was good or bad.