S-Rank

"Are you planning to admit defeat?"

"Admit defeat? No way!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Qingshui charged at Kagemane Kosuke again.

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

In just one second, the two exchanged several more blows.

Qingshui was no match for Kagemane Kosuke in either strength or speed, so he was pushed back and put at a disadvantage.

Before long, Kagemane Kosuke struck Qingshui again, knocking him to the ground.

If this had been a fight to the death, Qingshui would already be dead.

"Still not giving up?"

Kagemane Kosuke stopped in time and spoke unhurriedly.

"If I gave up just like that, I'm sure you'd find it boring too, Uncle Kosuke."

But Qingshui still refused to surrender. Instead, he began forming Hand Seals.

Seeing this, Kagemane Kosuke made no move to stop him. On the contrary, he looked expectant, eager to see what kind of surprise Qingshui would give him.

Poof!

Qingshui finished forming the Hand Seals, and a cloud of smoke billowed up. Then three Qingshuis burst out of it and charged at Kagemane Kosuke.

It was different from the Shadow Clone Technique Kosuke had used earlier.

The Clone Technique was only the lowest-level E-Rank Ninjutsu. The clones it created were actually insubstantial illusions, meant only to confuse the opponent.

"The Clone Technique? That won't work."

There was a hint of disappointment in Kagemane Kosuke's voice.

Without moving from his spot, he swiftly swung his Ninja Sword and dispelled all three Qingshuis charging at him.

All three were clones.

As he continued searching for Qingshui's Main Body, he suddenly noticed a huge tree sprouting from the ground behind him. The tree had also bound him, preventing him from moving.

Right after that, Qingshui emerged from the tree and swung his Ninja Sword, striking Kagemane Kosuke, who had no way to dodge.

"So it was Genjutsu?"

Before he vanished, Kagemane Kosuke looked utterly bewildered, his voice full of surprise.

Having interacted with Qingshui before, he naturally knew that Qingshui's talent as a Ninja wasn't particularly outstanding.

That was why he had taught Qingshui Konoha Style Swordsmanship.

Swordsmanship was a form of Taijutsu, and Taijutsu was the combat method Genin used most often.

Aside from the Three Basic Techniques taught at the Ninja Academy, many Genin never learned another Ninjutsu in their entire lives.

Because of that, Kagemane Kosuke had never expected Qingshui to use Genjutsu against him.

He'd been completely caught off guard, which was why he'd fallen for it so easily.

Clap, clap, clap.

A round of applause rang out.

Maruboshi Kosuke had walked over, and he looked just as surprised as he gazed at Qingshui.

"I didn't expect you to be this strong now, Qingshui. You actually defeated my Shadow Clone. You'd definitely pass if you went straight to the Chunin Ninja Exams."

Qingshui had truly given him a wonderful surprise.

As the original, Maruboshi Kosuke had watched everything clearly from the sidelines.

Qingshui had taken advantage of the smoke from the Clone Technique to block their view, then used the opportunity to form Hand Seals and perform Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death.

His timing had been excellent, and his skill was impressive too.

For Qingshui to accomplish this with his current abilities was already remarkable, even by Maruboshi Kosuke's standards.

What Maruboshi Kosuke didn't know was that Qingshui had only managed it thanks to the system's two rewards, which had raised the technique to the proficient level.

Otherwise, given Qingshui's own talent, he wouldn't have been able to use Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death proficiently.

He would have needed ages just to learn the technique.

"When did you learn Genjutsu?"

"Uncle Kosuke, you know my teammate is an Uchiha. I learned from her."

Since Qingshui had used Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death in front of Maruboshi Kosuke, he had naturally prepared an excuse in advance.

Given Mikoto's identity, it was perfectly normal for her to know Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death.

And since they were teammates, it was just as natural for Qingshui to ask her to teach him Genjutsu.

It was a reasonable explanation.

More importantly, Mikoto was an Uchiha.

Even if this came to the attention of the Konoha High Command, they couldn't possibly confront Mikoto about it.

Besides, he had first obtained this Genjutsu, Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death, when he treated Mikoto.

As expected, Maruboshi Kosuke didn't dwell on the matter. He simply nodded and said,

"Since you've become proficient in Konoha Style Swordsmanship and have a talent for Genjutsu, I can teach you my self-created technique, Konoha Ryūyanagi."

Konoha Ryūyanagi was a technique that combined swordsmanship and Genjutsu. It could be used without forming Hand Seals.

When activated, it made the enemy think the user had vanished among the leaves swaying in the breeze, while binding them in place.

Then the user launched an attack from a blind spot, killing the enemy with a single slash.

In short, Konoha Ryūyanagi was a technique that could kill with one strike.

Qingshui naturally wouldn't refuse the unexpected chance to obtain an S-Rank Jutsu.

"Thank you, Uncle Kosuke."

Next, Maruboshi Kosuke handed Qingshui the scroll for Konoha Ryūyanagi. He demonstrated the technique himself, then explained its key points to Qingshui one by one.

"This technique is very difficult. You'll have to practice diligently if you want to learn it. If there's anything you don't understand, you can come ask me anytime."

"I understand."

After receiving Konoha Ryūyanagi, Qingshui returned to the place where he usually trained.

Next, he planned to master the Chakra Scalpel first.

Tomorrow was the last day of his bet with Tsunade, and Qingshui didn't want to lose to her.

After forming Hand Seals, Qingshui gathered Chakra in his right hand, shaping it into a thin blade of energy. Then he took out a fish he'd prepared earlier and pressed the blade against it.

Unlike last night, when the fish had been cut in half, today there was no visible damage to its exterior. Instead, it had died because its insides had been sliced apart.

"Not bad. Keep at it."

Only when he could precisely cut the target's nervous system without killing it would he have truly mastered this technique.

Once, twice...

It wasn't until the sixth fish that Qingshui finally managed to cut only the fish's nervous system without killing it outright.

"Great! I finally did it!"

Qingshui hurriedly used the Healing Technique, repairing the fish's severed nervous system.

Soon, the fish regained its vitality.

The silver moon rose and fell.

When morning came, Qingshui, as usual, got up early and arrived at Konoha Hospital on time for work.

With the experience he'd gained the day before, he didn't go looking for Tsunade right away. Instead, he got straight to work.

This time, he treated another "acquaintance": Might Duy.

Of course, Qingshui knew Might Duy, but Might Duy didn't know him.

The two had never interacted before.

Like Maruboshi Kosuke, Might Duy was a perennial Genin, though his true strength had long surpassed that of a Genin.

But unlike Maruboshi Kosuke, who had chosen not to advance, Might Duy couldn't find anyone willing to team up with him for missions. As a result, he could only take D-Rank missions like finding cats for clients, and had no way to advance.

He also had little talent for Ninjutsu and could only train in Taijutsu, so his strength grew slowly.

That was also why the other Ninjas mocked him.

Might Duy himself simply didn't care.

Instead, he treated their mockery as encouragement and passed that mindset on to Might Guy.

This behavior undoubtedly made the two of them seem even stranger.