Climbing Trees and Stepping on Water

Tianqi finally woke up on the rock.

"Yo, done already? That was fast," Tianqi said, looking at the three exhausted figures sitting on the ground.

The three ignored Tianqi, continuing to rest. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't be this tired, they thought.

Seeing they weren't responding, he continued, "Since you're done, let's go turn in the mission. We can relax after that."

Upon hearing the word "relax," they immediately stood up and rushed to the mission hall to submit their quest.

At the entrance of the mission hall, Tianqi counted some bills. "Getting paid just for sleeping? This mission is pretty good, even if the money's a bit low."

Jiraiya and the others shot Tianqi looks of disdain. We did all the work, and you slept the whole time, so of course you think it's good.

"Let's go, I'll take you to Back Mountain to relax," Tianqi said, leading them to a stream in Back Mountain.

The three looked around curiously. "Big Brother Tianqi, how do we relax here?" Tsunade asked, uncharacteristically.

"Oh, you don't know? Today, I'll teach you how to climb trees," Tianqi said. Before he could finish, Orochimaru had already scaled a tree using his feet.

"Is this how?" Orochimaru said from the tree.

"Uh... yes, that's how," Tianqi said, feeling awkward as Orochimaru had completed it so easily.

"Big Brother Tianqi, this is too easy!" While Tianqi was still embarrassed, Tsunade also finished with ease.

Sweat beaded on Tianqi's forehead. They completed it before I even explained the rules! Are they here just to embarrass me? he thought.

He only felt relief when he saw Jiraiya.

Jiraiya, mimicking Orochimaru and Tsunade, tried to climb the tree with his feet. He fell as soon as he got on.

"Ouch! What happened? Why did I fall as soon as I got up? Tsunade, Orochimaru, how did you do it?" Jiraiya asked, confused, after falling.

"Idiot Jiraiya, don't you even know the basics of climbing trees using Chakra?" Tsunade said, looking at him with disdain.

"Using Chakra? How do I do that?" Jiraiya asked loudly.

"Alright, Jiraiya, you practice here by yourself for a bit. I'll take the other two to the river," Tianqi said, leading Orochimaru and Tsunade to the riverside.

"Do you know why I brought you two to the river?" Tianqi asked.

"To practice walking on water, I presume," Orochimaru replied.

"That's right, we're going to practice walking on water."

As soon as Tianqi finished speaking, Orochimaru stood still on the water's surface. Damn it! Is he here to make me look bad too?

"Orochimaru, you did great. You have a real talent for this," Tianqi said, forcing himself to praise Orochimaru despite the urge to curse. Some people just need encouragement and recognition to do better, Tianqi thought, and that's how I'll treat them.

"Tsunade, it's your turn. Go ahead and try," Tianqi said, looking at Tsunade. She's going to be a famous Medical Ninja someday, her Chakra control must be very high.

As expected, Tsunade wobbled slightly as she stepped onto the water but quickly stabilized herself and began walking on the surface.

"This is amazing! It's my first time standing on water, it's so fun!" Tsunade said, running around on the water like a child.

"Alright, since you both got it, wait for me on the open ground over there. I'll go teach Jiraiya," Tianqi said, heading over to Jiraiya.

At that moment, Jiraiya was still trying, climbing, falling, climbing again, falling again...

Seeing Jiraiya still struggling, Tianqi called out to him.

"Jiraiya, stop for a moment and come here."

"Big Brother Tianqi, am I really not as good as Orochimaru and Tsunade? I can't even climb a tree properly," Jiraiya said dejectedly.

"Jiraiya, why would you think that? Everyone has their own strengths. You can't compare your weaknesses to others' strengths. And climbing trees is simple; you just don't know the principle. Once I explain it, I'm sure you can do it easily too," Tianqi said, encouraging Jiraiya as he began to explain the principle.

"Climbing trees is actually very simple. You just need to concentrate Chakra in your feet and use it to firmly adhere to the surface. Understand, Jiraiya?" Tianqi demonstrated in front of Jiraiya.

"Let me try," Jiraiya said. Using Tianqi's method, he slowly approached the tree and climbed upwards step by step using his Chakra.

"Hahaha! Big Brother Tianqi, I did it! I did it!" Jiraiya shouted happily from the treetop to Tianqi.

Watching Jiraiya reach the top on his first try, Tianqi couldn't help but praise him. As expected of the future Hero, Jiraiya. He learned it just from me explaining the principle once. Even Er Zhuzi took a long time to learn it. Jiraiya's talent isn't low at all.

"Very good, Jiraiya. You did wonderfully. I knew you could do it," Tianqi said generously.

"It's all thanks to you teaching me well, Big Brother Tianqi," Jiraiya said shyly, hearing Tianqi's praise.

"Don't be modest. You accomplished this all by yourself. I didn't help you at all. Come on, let's go to the next place," Tianqi said, leading Jiraiya to the riverside.

"Jiraiya, next, we'll practice walking on water. It's the same as before: I'll explain the principle, then you try, and then you follow my method."

"Mhm," Jiraiya said, curious about how one could walk on water.

"Stepping on water is different from climbing trees. For climbing trees, you just need to concentrate Chakra in the relevant area and maintain a certain amount, because the tree doesn't move, so as long as you can adhere to it, it's fine."

"Stepping on water is different. To stay on the surface, you need to continuously release a suitable amount of Chakra from your feet, and that amount must be just enough to support your body."

"The difficulty lies in maintaining a consistent amount of Chakra. This is a training exercise in releasing and controlling a specific amount of Chakra based on real-time needs."

"Let me demonstrate," Tianqi said, stepping onto the water.

"Now, concentrate Chakra in your feet, and then release an amount of Chakra based on your body weight."

"Jiraiya, you try it. I believe you'll be able to do it easily now that I've explained it so clearly," Tianqi said to Jiraiya.

Jiraiya followed Tianqi's method and began his first attempt. His first foot landed on the water's surface and stayed there, not sinking. But the moment his second foot touched down, Jiraiya plunged into the water.

Tianqi wasn't guiding Jiraiya now. He had said all he needed to say; comprehension was up to Jiraiya himself.

After falling into the water more than ten more times, Jiraiya finally mastered treading water. Tianqi then took him to the clearing where Orochimaru and the others were.

"Jiraiya, why do you look like a drowned rat? Hahaha!" Tsunade mocked, seeing Jiraiya completely soaked.

"You flat-chested woman, so what if I'm soaked? I like swimming, and I'm happy to do it. What about it?" Jiraiya retorted directly upon seeing Tsunade mock him.

"Jiraiya! I think it's been a while since I beat you up. Are you itching for a fight again?" Tsunade clapped her hands together, issuing a direct threat.

"Big Brother Tianqi, save me!" Seeing Tsunade about to beat him, Jiraiya knew he couldn't win against her. Even if he could, he wouldn't hit a woman. He immediately hid behind Tianqi.