Treading Water

More than half an hour later, all the losers had completed their resurrection challenges.

Some succeeded, some failed, and some succeeded only to fail again before succeeding once more.

All in all, this double-elimination format left almost no room for trickery; if your raw strength wasn't up to par, it was truly difficult to hold onto your spot.

"Alright, that's it for you lot, follow me!"

The Chunin instructor scribbled a few notes on his roster before leading everyone down to the seashore.

"The technique I'm going to teach you today is called [Water Surface Walking]. As the name implies, it's a skill that allows you to walk freely upon the surface of the water."

As he spoke, he took a step forward, standing firmly on the ocean surface, even rising and falling slightly with the swell of the waves.

"Whoa!"

As expected, the instructor's display drew gasps of admiration from many of the students.

Araki tilted his head. While water walking wasn't exactly a high-level technique, he remembered quite clearly that in the original series, this was a skill taught to Naruto and his team by the Jonin Kakashi only after they had graduated from the Ninja Academy!

Was Kirigakure really this advanced?

This curriculum was years ahead of Konoha's!

So this is Kirigakure?

I love it!

Will they start teaching ninjutsu directly next?

Filled with a touch of anticipation, Araki listened as the Chunin instructor continued his explanation:

"Because of our geographical location, we in Kirigakure often need to head out to sea for missions or engage in combat on the water. If you can't walk on water, you probably won't survive more than a few missions even after graduating, so everyone had better learn this properly!"

So that's it. It's not that Kirigakure's curriculum is actually ahead of Konoha's, but rather a necessity born of our unique national circumstances.

Araki had an epiphany.

That made sense. While he didn't have much of a soft spot for Konoha, it was still the number one ninja village, so it deserved at least a modicum of respect.

"When stepping onto the water, you need to release chakra from the soles of your feet to create a thrusting force equal to your body weight. It cannot be too much or too little. Alright, start practicing."

After explaining the key points, the Chunin instructor walked away.

Once the teacher left, the students scattered like a flock of sheep, pairing off or forming small groups with their friends to find a spot to practice.

Araki was left all alone, though he was happy for the peace and quiet. He glanced from afar at Zabuza, who was in the same boat as him, and muttered to himself:

So, is this a case of removing the highest score (for looks) and the lowest score?

As he spoke, he cautiously extended one leg, channeled his refined chakra to the sole of his foot, and gently placed it onto the surface of the water.

Splash!

The sound of a massive splash drew everyone's attention.

Facing those pairs of youthful eyes staring his way, Araki remained unruffled. Pretending he hadn't noticed, he adjusted the chakra gathered at his sole and tried again.

As long as I don't feel embarrassed, no one can embarrass me!

Splash!

The second time, the splash was slightly smaller, and scattered whispers began to emerge from the crowd.

"Wow, is this the [Smiling Devil]? Is he trying to bomb for fish?"

"With a splash like that, the power is almost on par with a Water Style jutsu, right?"

"Shh, don't say that, you'll embarrass Araki-kun!"

Listening to these comments, the veins on Araki's forehead began to throb.

Good grief, these little brats have even learned how to be snide!

He forcibly blocked out their voices and continued to adjust the amount of chakra in his soles.

Thump!

Clunk!

Pfft!

Tap!

After repeated adjustments, finally, when Araki's right foot landed on the water, there was no longer a splash.

"Very good!"

Araki nodded with satisfaction, gathered the same amount of chakra in his left sole, and stepped up as well.

Pat!

A crisp sound rang out, as if he were stepping on a stone path, and Araki stood firmly upon the surface of the sea.

The children who had been mocking Araki for "bombing fish" instantly changed their expressions. Touching their soaked clothes, they lowered their heads and fell silent.

Araki stood cautiously on the water, scanning his surroundings. Finding that no one dared to meet his gaze, he nodded in satisfaction and stepped back onto the shore.

Phew~ I've memorized the amount of chakra needed to balance my body weight. Now, all that's left is constant practice so that maintaining this level of output becomes instinct, without needing to consciously divide my focus.

The reason Araki was able to grasp the basics of water-walking so quickly had a great deal to do with his level of swordsmanship.

Swordsmanship is, at its core, a technique that demands precise control over every single fiber of one's body; how to exert force for a slash, a lunge, or an upward strike, and exactly how much force to apply—these are the fundamentals. If one cannot achieve this, the combat is nothing more than flailing about, not swordsmanship.

It is the same principle as taijutsu in the world of shinobi.

Simply knowing how to throw a punch or a kick does not make one a taijutsu specialist; it requires technique. How much power is behind this kick, and can one's own body withstand the recoil of this punch?

If one does not understand these things before launching an attack, they might end up suffering a cramp before they even touch the enemy.

To use ninjutsu as an analogy, controlling the details of one's body is equivalent to practicing hand seals. If one stumbles through the seals, how could they possibly manifest a jutsu?

Exceptions for gods, of course!

At this moment, bolstered by his level of swordsmanship, Araki possessed a high degree of control over the chakra within his body, allowing him to freely regulate the amount of chakra gathered beneath his feet.

If there was too much last time, he would use a little less the next; by testing it over and over, finding the right amount was not particularly difficult.

So, where was the difficulty for those who couldn't learn it?

It wasn't that they didn't know they needed to adjust the amount; the crux of the problem was that they simply could not control the amount of chakra gathering at the soles of their feet.

They would intend to gather more than the previous attempt, only to end up with less. Such occurrences were constant, and that was the fundamental reason for their slow progress.

However, Araki did not care about such things. They weren't his acquaintances, and due to the brutal graduation exam at the Kirigakure Ninja Academy, everyone was wary of one another—even within those small groups that appeared harmonious, who knew how many backstabbers were hiding?

Rather than joining a group and engaging in petty schemes, Araki chose to go his own way and remain close to no one.

[As long as I trust no one, no one can betray me!]

Yet today, someone unexpected quietly approached Araki.

Glancing at Zabuza, who had already walked to a spot not far behind him, Araki was slightly surprised.

Because he knew what Zabuza would do in the future, he had always remained somewhat vigilant toward this person.

If this man was not a naturally bloodthirsty madman, then the fact that he could conceive of such a cruel method to force the higher-ups of Kirigakure to reform their education system at the very age he graduated from the academy was telling.

Such intellect, courage, and strategic vision were likely not a whit inferior to that certain red-eyed fellow who slaughtered his entire clan.