Kisame Hoshigaki saw right through the flattery.
He turned back into that cold, hardened man. His shark-like face grew even more impassive, and an intimidating aura of oppression radiated from him.
"???"
Beside him, Kazama Kaguya looked completely baffled.
"Wait, did I say something wrong? Why did his expression change so suddenly? That doesn't make sense."
He thought it over carefully and realized he hadn't said anything wrong, so he cautiously asked, "Teacher Kisame..."
But the moment he started speaking, Kisame cut him off.
"Cut the chatter."
At 1.95 meters tall, Kisame looked down at the barely 1.5-meter-tall Kazama Kaguya, his tone calm and cold.
"Didn't you want me to teach you 'with all my heart' for three months? Don't waste time with pointless talk."
"I can tell your skill in Water Release is three or four stories higher than mine. From now on, I'll focus my ninjutsu guidance on two areas: chakra shape transformation and Chakra Nature Transformation. That will lay a solid foundation for you to create your own techniques in the future."
"With your talent, you'll master the Water Release techniques of those who came before you in no time. You need to create techniques best suited to your fighting style."
His tone was icy, but every word was packed with useful advice. Kazama Kaguya nodded again and again as he listened.
Kisame continued, "What are your chakra natures?"
"Water, Lightning, Yang, and Yin."
"You have both Yang and Yin?" Kisame froze. These two special natures were extremely rare.
He could understand the Kaguya Clan possessing Yang Release, given their Shikotsumyaku Kekkei Genkai. But Yin? He didn't get it.
Still, Kazama Kaguya had plenty of secrets.
So what if he had both Yin and Yang? Compared to that bizarre way of forming a hand seal with both hands to use ninjutsu, this was nothing worth dwelling on.
After thinking for a moment, Kisame said, "I'm most proficient in Water Release. My Earth Release is decent, and Wind Release is my weakest. I only started training in Fire Release recently."
"Chakra shape transformation is universal. Given your extraordinary control over chakra, it'll be very easy for you to learn. So I suggest you train in nature transformation alongside shape transformation, starting with Wind Release."
"Why?" Kazama Kaguya prompted.
"Are you an idiot? Earth counters Water, and Lightning counters Earth. If you train in Earth Release first, you'll be held back at every turn, and it'll be very difficult. Wind will be much easier."
Kisame stared at Kazama Kaguya, looking thoroughly displeased. "I really don't know how you passed the theory exam and graduated from the Ninja academy."
I'm a transmigrator, thanks, Kazama Kaguya thought to himself. I never went to the Ninja academy, and my predecessor's memories aren't that clear either.
He was like a student being scolded by a teacher. Though he grumbled inwardly, his face still showed that he was taking the lesson to heart.
Seeing how amenable the boy was, Kisame stopped berating him.
He knew Kazama Kaguya had been retired for several years, and wondered if he'd forgotten everything he'd ever learned. So he continued questioning him:
"Tell me, how do you assess a ninja's talent? Besides ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and genjutsu, which represent combat strength, what else is there?"
"Intelligence, strength, speed, stamina, and hand seals." Kazama Kaguya answered seriously. He had at least looked into this.
"Intelligence measures knowledge and IQ. Strength measures your physical strength, stamina, and recovery. Speed measures your speed, movements, and reaction time. Stamina represents the 'energy' that forms the basis of your chakra. Hand seals measure your proficiency in forming seals."
Kazama Kaguya was naturally familiar with the eight measures used to evaluate a ninja.
"Then tell me, what score would you give yourself in each of the eight categories?" Kisame asked.
Normally, the guiding Jonin would test the student personally and assign the scores.
But Kazama Kaguya was too mysterious, and Kisame couldn't see through many of his abilities, so he had him assess himself.
He wanted to know how the boy saw himself. That would determine the next stage of his training plan.
Kazama Kaguya furrowed his brows and thought carefully for a few seconds before answering.
"Ninjutsu 2, Taijutsu 6, genjutsu 2, intelligence 4, strength 6, speed 6, stamina 10, hand seals 2."
The scores of 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 could roughly correspond to the abilities of a Genin, Chunin, Jonin, Kage, and Super Kage.
"Tsk..."
A tsk laden with meaning escaped Kisame's lips.
"Ninjutsu 2, Taijutsu 6, genjutsu 2, intelligence 4, strength 6, speed 6, stamina 10, hand seals 2."
"Three 2s, three 6s, and a 10..."
He murmured the numbers, folded his arms, and knitted his brows. After studying Kazama Kaguya for a long while, he finally gave his assessment.
"Unprecedented."
"Genjutsu 2 and hand seals 2 are fair and realistic. With your abilities, you can just disregard the hand seals score. But Ninjutsu 2? Are you sure you didn't leave off a 1?"
Kisame glared at the pale-eyed boy, displeased. "With your hand-seal-less casting, you can use any ninjutsu you've learned with just a clap. And you only gave yourself a 2?"
Kisame thought he deserved full marks.
Kazama Kaguya explained, "I only know the Three Basic Techniques and two D-rank Water Release techniques. I don't know anything else, so 2 is exactly right according to the scoring rules. Once I've mastered every ninjutsu, I'll definitely give myself a 10."
"Master every ninjutsu? How arrogant. Try again when you've mastered every nature."
Kisame sneered, then changed the subject.
"Still, with so many 2s, you managed to escape Kirigakure, stir up chaos in Konoha, and even trick me so many times..."
He struggled to suppress the frustration welling up inside him and sighed, "You're quite a talent!"
It was hard to tell what he meant by that.
Perhaps he was mocking Kazama Kaguya, or perhaps himself.
Kazama Kaguya stayed silent, not daring to respond.
By then, Kisame had also fallen silent. He stared at Kazama Kaguya for a long while before finally continuing in his icy voice:
"Since you're such a talent, I'll have to train you properly."
"You have the Taijutsu-type Kekkei Genkai Shikotsumyaku, the Byakugan, and All-Killing Ash Bones, not to mention your body's current mutations. There's no doubt about your Taijutsu talent. Your scores of 6 in Taijutsu, strength, and speed are just the starting point."
"Of the eight measures, your only perfect score is stamina 10. That means you have plenty of chakra and excellent endurance. We'll make good use of that."
A cold smile curled Kisame's lips.
As he spoke, he took out a scroll and began writing.
"Based on your self-assessment, from now on you'll have to strictly follow my training schedule for every part of your day."
Scratch, scratch, scratch...
The pen raced across the scroll. Before long, he shoved a detailed schedule in front of Kazama Kaguya.
Kazama Kaguya: Ninjutsu 2, Taijutsu 6, genjutsu 2, intelligence 4, strength 6, speed 6, stamina 10, hand seals 2.
05:00–08:00, weight training;
08:00–08:30, breakfast;
08:30–12:30, Taijutsu sparring;
12:30–13:30, lunch;
13:30–17:30, ninjutsu instruction;
17:30–18:30, dinner;
18:30–21:00, transformation training.
After quickly reading through the schedule, Kazama Kaguya's mind went blank.
He stared at the training plan, which was practically devilish, and sucked in a breath. Then he tactfully said, "Um, Teacher Kisame, isn't this schedule a little too packed?"
"Packed?"
Kisame frowned and thought it over carefully before giving him an apologetic look.
"Sorry, I left out a few things. It really isn't packed enough."
He snatched back the scroll and started writing furiously again.
Before you continue