The Half-Step Nen Master After Two and a Half Years of Cultivation

"Too vulgar. Way too vulgar."

Under a tree, a black-haired, white-eyed child who looked no more than five years old raised his brows and curled his lips, staring disdainfully at the faint golden light in his hand.

Yet the pride he could not hide from the corners of his eyes betrayed Shuji's true feelings.

Still...

Aside from the tacky color, Nen Energy was actually pretty decent.

Dispelling the faint golden light in his hand, Shuji leaned against the tree and gazed at the lake in the distance.

He had been in this world for five and a half years. Although he had no system, he had obtained a cultivation method that could take him from a Nen Master to a Guiyuan Nen Master.

Although the latter's rate of progress might not match the former's, it had still given Shuji enough freedom.

He did not have to do things that might put him in a difficult position.

However, the latter was genuinely slow.

He had begun cultivating at the age of three, and only today had he barely crossed the threshold of Nen Energy.

For two and a half whole years, Shuji had done only one thing.

He had calmed his mind so that he could sense something within nature.

It was... pretty difficult... really, really difficult...

Most importantly, after mastering Nen Energy, Shuji could finally confirm one thing.

He was not a lunatic.

The things in his mind really were a cheat.

"Whew..."

With a long, leisurely sigh, Shuji clicked his tongue helplessly. Seriously, how is Black Zetsu supposed to save his mother now?

How is Ōtsutsuki Isshiki supposed to plant a tree in the Shinobi World now?

How is the Eye of the Moon Plan supposed to continue?

Just thinking about it made him feel sorry for Madara.

He had treated Senju Hashirama as his lifelong enemy, only for his final plan to be ruined by a member of the Hyuga Clan.

What was he supposed to do about that?

Although Shuji was nowhere near achieving the Mad Tiger Emperor or Nen Emperor stages now,

he was still a considerable distance from even becoming a Nen Master.

But...

Shuji had already begun fantasizing about pinning the Six Paths of Pain to the ground and grinding them into the dirt.

Although he had no system and might not be able to become a five-year-old Super-Kage or a six-year-old Six Paths,

beating a crippled shinobi at eighteen should not be a problem, right?

"Are you from the Hyuga Clan?"

Just then, a somewhat clear female voice rang out. Shuji instinctively looked toward the sound and saw a little girl wearing a black trench coat bearing the Uchiha clan crest.

Ah... the naturally evil Uchiha?

Still... evil or not, her looks certainly met the Uchiha standard.

In Shuji's eyes, the girl before him had fair skin, delicate features, and long black hair falling over her shoulders. She wore the most common black trench coat of the Uchiha Clan.

Under the coat were a simple white undershirt and black shorts.

A perfect absolute territory lay between the shorts and a pair of black thigh-high stockings.

This...

No, he had to reject childish aesthetics.

Yes! He would start with Hyuga Hiashi!

"Yeah. Are you from the Uchiha family?"

Hearing this, Hyuga Shuji stood up and gave the girl before him a bright, sunny smile.

A pretty girl could always put someone in a good mood.

Especially since Shuji had just achieved the Half-Step Nen Master stage, putting him in an especially good mood.

"Yes, my name is Uchiha Mikoto. Nice to meet you. Please take care of me."

Mikoto bowed to Hyuga Shuji and spoke softly.

"Huh? My name is Hyuga Shuji. Nice to meet you. Please take care of me."

Shuji was stunned. He had not expected the person before him to be the legendary reincarnation of Indra, Uchiha Sasuke, and the Shinobi World's most filial son, Uchiha Itachi's mother.

"Are you taking a break today, Shuji?"

Mikoto raised her head and asked Shuji.

The greatest difference between children from shinobi clans and children from ordinary families was that clan children began training at the age of three or four.

For example, by the time Uchiha children entered the Shinobi Academy, they had basically already learned the Great Fireball Technique.

The Hyuga Clan was much the same. Their minimum standard before entering the Shinobi Academy was to be able to skillfully apply the Gentle Fist in actual combat.

Therefore, for children of shinobi clans, the period from the age of three or four until they entered the Shinobi Academy was spent doing one thing every day.

Training, training their taijutsu, training their Chakra Refinement Technique, training the Twelve Hand Seals, and training their Chakra control.

Holidays? They did not exist.

Rest? That meant getting beaten.

"Does the Uchiha family have time off?"

Thus, Shuji was stunned by her words and looked at Uchiha Mikoto in surprise.

"No."

Mikoto was equally stunned by the question, then answered honestly.

"Oh~ That's good."

Hearing her answer, Shuji relaxed and let out a sigh of relief. Mikoto's response immediately made him feel much more balanced.

"Huh?"

Mikoto was stunned. What did he mean by "that's good"?

Why had he breathed a sigh of relief?

"So what are you doing here today?"

With that, Shuji asked Uchiha Mikoto.

"My parents went out on a mission."

A smile that she could not hide immediately appeared on Mikoto's face.

"What about you?"

With that, Uchiha Mikoto asked Shuji.

"Same here."

Shuji laughed as well. For children from the various shinobi clans, having their parents go out on missions really was something to be happy about.

"Before your parents left on their mission, did they leave you any homework?"

Shuji sat back down beneath the tree and asked Mikoto.

"Whew... They said I had to learn the Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu before they came back."

The smile on Mikoto's face gradually disappeared. She sat beside Shuji as well, propping her chin up with one hand while gazing gloomily at the lake in the distance.

"Really? That must be pretty difficult, right?"

Shuji immediately brightened at this and spoke to Uchiha Mikoto beside him.

Although the Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu was only a C-rank ninjutsu and did not require many hand seals,

the difficult part was not the speed or sequence of forming the seals.

Even if those were difficult, they would not require two or three years of study.

The real difficulty lay in controlling Chakra and transforming it into flames.

"Difficult, very difficult, extremely difficult!"

Mikoto's face twisted with pain as she spoke.

"It's simply impossible."

Spreading both hands, Mikoto said in despair.

"Then why aren't you hurrying to train?"

Shuji immediately said this to Mikoto.

"I'll rest for two days first."

Mikoto shook her head. It was not easy to get such an opportunity. If she did not rest for two days, she felt as though something would be missing.

"Oh~ If your parents come back and find out you haven't learned the Great Fireball Technique, you'll be in deep trouble."

Shuji nodded. He had no intention of forcing Uchiha Mikoto to train.

What does whether she trains or not have to do with me?

I'm not the one getting beaten, anyway.

"It's fine. I've never completed any of the tasks they've left me. I've already rested for two days, so what difference would one beating make?"

Mikoto blinked and asked Hyuga Shuji beside her.

Shuji was stunned. It took him quite a while to react.

This girl... she really understood life!