Time Spent, Learning Made Solid

"Here are the Gate of Opening, Gate of Healing, Gate of Limit..."

In the hospital room, Hinagiku held a scroll recording the Eight Inner Gates and repeatedly pointed at Shuji's body, letting him know where each of the Eight Gates was located.

"You can't cultivate right now, so why are you in such a hurry to learn this?"

After telling Shuji where the Eight Gates were, Hinagiku asked him in confusion.

"I traded my life for this. Of course I'm in a hurry."

Shuji closed his eyes, concealing the helplessness in them.

His words, however, were casual.

Just as expected...

The Eight Inner Gates conflicted with Steel Muscles and Iron Bones.

I should have thought of that earlier.

The principle of the Eight Inner Gates was to open the meridians within a ninja's body that suppressed Chakra.

Steel Muscles and Iron Bones, on the other hand, worked by opening the meridians that suppressed the circulation of Nen Energy.

It was perfectly normal for some of those meridians to overlap.

What gave Shuji the biggest headache was that the Eight Inner Gates began from the Gate of Opening and Gate of Healing in the head.

Steel Muscles and Iron Bones, meanwhile, began from the Gate of Wonder closest to the dantian.

This meant that if Shuji wanted to cultivate Steel Muscles and Iron Bones, he had to cultivate the Eight Inner Gates all the way to the Seventh Gate first, then see whether his body could continuously withstand the Chakra that erupted after the Seventh Gate opened.

After all, during the cultivation of Steel Muscles and Iron Bones, once those meridians were opened, they could no longer be closed.

If he could withstand it, then he was incredible. Conservatively speaking, he could kill two Kisame Hoshigakis with one kick.

If he couldn't, then he should start preparing his funeral arrangements. Of course, if he wanted to, kicking Shimura Danzō to death before he died was also possible.

There just wasn't much point in it.

"Then you probably got a bad deal when you sold your life for it."

Hinagiku put away the scroll and tucked it into her clothes as she spoke to Shuji.

"This technique and the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist are almost complete opposites. Perhaps only the Gate of Opening and Gate of Healing are worth learning."

"Mm."

Shuji nodded. Hinagiku was right. Although the Eight Inner Gates raised the upper limit of one's physical abilities—

—in theory, it should be suitable for all taijutsu.

But the crucial issue was that the Chakra unleashed by the Eight Inner Gates was nearly impossible to control.

Unless one remained in the Eight Inner Gates state the entire time and spent enough time taming that Chakra.

Steel Muscles and Iron Bones could do that, but...

...Sigh, forget it. If it takes longer, then it takes longer. The longer I spend, the more solid my foundation will be...

"So, are you learning it?"

After saying that, Shuji looked at Hinagiku.

"Of course. Why wouldn't I?"

Hinagiku was briefly stunned, then answered without the slightest hesitation.

Dislike was one thing, but she still had to learn it.

Even if the Eight Inner Gates could not be used alongside Gentle Fist, the Eight Inner Gates themselves were no weaker than Gentle Fist.

The reason she disliked it was more because she disliked Shuji as a person.

"Oh. Don't teach it to outsiders."

Shuji nodded and slowly closed his eyes.

"Got it."

Hinagiku nodded. She did not leave, instead sitting beside Shuji's hospital bed so she would be there if he needed anything.

Shuji closed his eyes and began slowly absorbing the Nen Energy drifting through the air. Following the circulation route of the first layer of Steel Muscles and Iron Bones, he began strengthening his physique.

Even without Chakra, once the meridians suppressing the flow of Nen Energy within his body were opened, tremendous power would erupt.

The initial circulation route of Steel Muscles and Iron Bones had been designed to raise one's physical strength to the point where it could bear that power.

Once all the meridians suppressing the circulation of Nen Energy in the body had been opened, after cultivating for a certain amount of time to master the Nen Energy within, the effect would be similar to the forbidden technique from the Nen Energy inheritance—Nen Tattoo.

And at that point, a Nen Master could be called a Mad Tiger Emperor.

In other words, the first layer of Steel Muscles and Iron Bones could continuously raise one's physical strength. It was a technique that could still be cultivated even after reaching Guiyuan · Nen Master.

So, spending more time cultivating Steel Muscles and Iron Bones really would make his learning more solid...

Time passed slowly like this, until two months later...

"Tsunade, is Shuji doing alright now?"

At Konoha Hospital, Hyuga Qianxue, Shuji's mother, carried some gifts as she walked directly into Tsunade's private office.

"He's recovering very well at the moment. Shuji's body is healing at a visible rate every day, so it basically won't affect his future career as a ninja."

Tsunade set aside her work and looked at Hyuga Chinatsu.

"Chinatsu-sensei, did you just return from a mission?"

With a faint smile on her lips, Tsunade asked Hyuga Chinatsu.

As a member of the Hyuga Clan's Main Family, Hyuga Chinatsu had once temporarily led the Sannin on an outside mission as their Jonin instructor.

"Ah... it was an S-rank mission without much difficulty. I returned to the village at noon today."

Chinatsu chuckled and began chatting with Tsunade.

"With Chinatsu's strength, there definitely wouldn't be any problem. Shuji is doing very well too. Honestly, I never expected him to recover to this extent. It could be called a medical miracle."

Tsunade nodded. Knowing that Chinatsu must be eager to visit Shuji, she turned the conversation back to him.

"That's because Tsunade's medical skills are exceptional. If it had been another medical ninja, we might not even have been able to see Shuji when we returned."

Chinatsu shook her head and patted Tsunade's hand.

"A teacher is still a teacher. Even your compliments sound so pleasant."

Tsunade chuckled.

Chinatsu laughed along with her.

"However, the child's injuries were indeed severe. Some of the damage to his internal organs still needs time to heal. At the very least, he must not cultivate again before entering the Ninja Academy."

The smile gradually disappeared from Tsunade's face as she spoke seriously to Hyuga Chinatsu.

Having also come from a major clan, Tsunade naturally understood the intensity with which the various ninja clans trained their descendants.

That was why she said this to Hyuga Chinatsu.

"Mm, I'll keep that in mind."

Chinatsu nodded and stood up. Now that she had a general understanding of Shuji's condition, she was ready to go see him.

"Mm. Then he can be discharged now if there's nothing else. Just bring him back to the hospital for regular checkups."

Tsunade nodded as she spoke to Chinatsu.

"Alright. Come over for a meal when you have time. I'll properly thank you then."

Chinatsu spoke to Tsunade. The two exchanged smiles, and Chinatsu left Tsunade's office.

The moment Tsunade's office door closed, however, the smile on Chinatsu's face vanished.

Without the slightest hesitation, Hyuga Chinatsu strode toward Shuji's hospital room.

"Hyuga Shuji! You're quite something, aren't you?!"

When Hyuga Chinatsu kicked open the hospital room door and appeared before him, Shuji was terrified.

"I... I activated my Byakugan."