After leaving the Hokage's Office, Yamato took Mo Chen to a training ground. He gave a brief introduction, then let Mo Chen go.
It was already late, so he planned to start teaching Mo Chen how to train the next day.
Mo Chen was eager to improve his strength, but he knew that it wouldn't happen overnight.
Now that he had caught the Third Hokage's attention, he'd been assigned to train privately under Yamato.
For the time being, he only needed to focus on training. At least he wouldn't have to run D-rank missions like the Konoha Nine.
[ Ding! Congratulations to group member Ino Yamanaka! Chat Group level increased from LV0 to LV1. All attributes increased by 200%! ]
A crisp system notification suddenly rang out, leaving Mo Chen and the Konoha's Four Flowers who had joined the Chat Group stunned.
The next moment, the Chat Group burst into activity.
[Tenten: Ino, what did you do?!]
[Sakura Haruno: Don't tell me you went and gave yourself to Mo Chen?]
[Hinata Hyuga: A 200% boost? Does that mean your strength doubled outright?]
[Ino Yamanaka: Waka waka, I feel like I've ascended to immortality!]
[Ino Yamanaka: It's an increase to all attributes, not just a doubling of strength. Speed, power, defense, stamina, and the like have all doubled. My physical and mental energy have also doubled, so my Chakra reserves have doubled too.]
[Ino Yamanaka: And there's more! My reaction speed and memory have improved, too. If I train now, I'll be much more efficient than before.]
[Ino Yamanaka: I feel like I've entered a whole new realm. It's as if the world's constraints on me have loosened. This feels amazing!]
[Tenten: !!!!!!]
[Sakura Haruno: You're kidding, right?]
[Hinata Hyuga: That's amazing!]
[Ino Yamanaka: I'm serious! And it's not like those sudden power-ups that are hard to control. There's no risk of losing control at all. It's as if I've always been this strong, and the people around me haven't even noticed the difference!]
[Tenten: So what exactly did you do?!!]
[Ino Yamanaka: Hehe, I just taught Chie Mai and Ryota a little lesson and got Mo Chen some payback.]
[Ino Yamanaka: I slipped something into Chie Mai's IV to make her hallucinate. She went crazy in her hospital room, and she's probably dancing a striptease in there right now.]
[Ino Yamanaka: Come to think of it, Shikamaru and Choji were the ones who dealt with Ryota. If I'd known there'd be perks like this, I would've done it myself. Maybe my boost would've been even bigger.]
It was clear Ino was excited. One message after another popped up, leaving no room for anyone else to get a word in.
Still, she'd explained things clearly. A glimmer of understanding crossed Mo Chen's mind.
That girl had been quietly studying the Group rules and figured out how to trigger the group boost.
Mo Chen had thought Tenten would be the first to trigger the mechanism. After all, of the four, she seemed the most mature and levelheaded.
Of course, Ino being the first to trigger it didn't mean she'd stay ahead forever.
Now that the trigger condition was known, the others would surely rack their brains to earn the boost. Then it would come down to whose methods were more effective.
As for Mo Chen, he just had to sit back and enjoy. They'd do everything they could to please him!
It was a shame there were still so few members in the group: just four little buds in their early teens, not yet in full bloom.
If only there were a few more mature women!
[Tenten: So that's how it works! I should've realized! @Ino Yamanaka, where are you now? Let's spar at the training ground. I want to see how you're doing.]
[Ino Yamanaka: I can't right now. I promised to treat Shikamaru and Choji to dessert.]
[Hinata Hyuga: If I went to teach Chie Mai and Ryota a lesson now... Never mind!]
[Tenten: Don't worry, Hinata. It's just the four of us in this group, and there'll be plenty of chances later. There's no need to rush.]
[Hinata Hyuga: Mm.]
[Sakura Haruno: Hmph, I'm not jealous at all. My heart and soul will always belong to Sasuke-kun!]
[Ino Yamanaka: Then cling to your fantasies while we leave you further and further behind. Let's see if the Sasuke-kun you keep talking about will take pity on you then.]
[Sakura Haruno: !!!!]
[Sakura Haruno: You moved on way too fast, didn't you?]
[Ino Yamanaka: I just came to my senses. Sasuke was only the object of my youthful admiration, but reality is different from a beautiful dream. Besides, Mo Chen is the real dream now.]
[Tenten: I agree with you, Ino. Mo Chen is one of a kind. The more we invest in him before he grows up, the more we'll gain later. It's not just a beautiful dream—it's reality.]
[Hinata Hyuga: That way of putting it feels a little calculating.]
[Sakura Haruno: Exactly! You're all so shameless. You have no principles at all!]
[Sakura Haruno: Ugh, that damn Jonin leader is finally here. I'm not talking to you anymore!]
Mo Chen watched the Chat Group conversation with a pleased grin, feeling thoroughly content.
He could easily imagine the girls doing everything in their power to please him over the next little while.
He didn't have to do anything. He just had to accept it.
As for Sakura, who kept playing the contrarian in the group, she was indeed a little annoying. Mo Chen was tempted to kick her out.
But after thinking it over, he held back.
It wasn't that he couldn't bear to. Sakura wasn't much of a draw for him at this stage, leaving only the appeal of collecting them all.
Keeping Sakura around wasn't entirely useless, though. She could serve as a cautionary example.
Besides, having a dissenting voice in the group would keep life from becoming completely dull.
The ups and downs, the bickering and squabbling—that was what made life feel full.
In any case, the Chat Group's restrictions meant Sakura couldn't cause too much trouble, no matter how much she kicked up a fuss.
Besides, Sakura would grow up, and the grown-up Sakura was pretty good too.
"Mo Chen?!"
A voice suddenly interrupted Mo Chen's thoughts.
He looked up and was surprised to find Tenten standing opposite him.
Had she come specifically to find him, or was this just a chance encounter?
A flicker of excitement was clearly visible in Tenten's eyes, but she quickly suppressed it.
Putting on a calm expression, Tenten said, "I got your name right, didn't I? We met this morning. You're Ino's classmate, right?"
Mo Chen knew she was just making conversation, trying to get closer to him.
He merely gave a shy response, as if he didn't know how to talk to her.
"My name's Tenten. I'm a year ahead of you, so you can call me senior!" Tenten completely ignored Mo Chen's reaction and said warmly, "Since I'm your senior, you can come to me if you ever run into trouble. I'll help you!"
"Okay... Thank you, senior!" Mo Chen said, looking flustered.
"Haha!" Tenten laughed. "You don't have to be so nervous. I'm not going to eat you. Besides, I like looking after junior students like you."
"Since we happened to run into each other on the street, let me treat you to something, okay? We could go get dessert... Actually, there's a bubble tea shop over there. Let's go have some bubble tea!"
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