Cultivation

The morning at the training ground was exceptionally quiet.

The sun had just risen from behind the eastern rock peaks, casting golden light across the flat stone ground and dispelling the lingering chill of the night.

Jingxin stood in the center of the field, closing his eyes to regulate his breathing.

He could feel the chakra within his body flowing steadily through his meridians, like a wide and deep river.

Following the continuous training during his Anbu missions and the accumulation from the Shadow Clone refinement method, his chakra volume had stabilized at around four hundred and twenty.

But this was still far from enough.

Dust Release required a massive amount of chakra as support.

Ōnoki had said that chakra was the root, and Dust Release was the flower.

Without a sufficiently deep foundation, even the most beautiful flower could not bloom.

And what Jingxin had to do now was to drive his roots deeper.

He opened his eyes and formed hand seals.

Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang...

A series of white smoke clouds burst forth, blooming in the morning air like fireworks.

One, ten, twenty, thirty...

Each one was identical to him, wearing the same black training suit and bearing the same calm, determined expression.

The Shadow Clones sat cross-legged in unison, closed their eyes, and began to refine chakra.

Jingxin's original body sat down as well.

He continued to attempt the practice of Dust Release.

With every failure, his body became more familiar with the memory of that chakra flow.

The system's linear growth would slowly increase the progress of his Dust Release training.

Time ticked by, second by second.

Jingxin could feel sweat sliding down his forehead, dripping onto the stone floor.

Ōnoki had experienced nearly one hundred thousand attempts.

Just as Jingxin used Shadow Clones for training, combined with an endless supply of military rations, he would achieve dozens of times the training speed.

But Ōnoki had also said that the village did not need quick successes, but rather strong individuals who rose steadily step by step.

The total amount of chakra was crucial, and currently, Jingxin's chakra volume was still insufficient.

Therefore, he did not accelerate the training of Dust Release, but instead had his Shadow Clones engage in training that created a virtuous cycle.

Days passed one by one.

Jingxin could clearly feel that his total chakra volume was growing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Although the efficiency of each clone's refinement was not as high as the original, the accumulation of dozens of clones resulted in astonishing efficiency.

It was like dozens of small streams flowing into a large river simultaneously; while each was thin and small, the total volume was enough to make the river rise.

Jingxin spent this period of time feeling extremely fulfilled.

Training, sleeping.

Occasionally, he would go to the Ninja Academy to see Karin.

Then, he would pay a visit to Kurotsuchi.

From the day Jingxin arrived in Iwagakure, Kurotsuchi had taken great care of him.

It was much like visiting relatives.

You cannot always let others seek you out while you never go to see them.

One-way output cannot be maintained for very long.

Furthermore, the challenges Deidara initiated against him every month never ceased.

Right now, that kid was grinding his teeth in hatred toward Jingxin, spending his days pondering how to defeat him, gathering intelligence on him, improving his clay bombs to counter Jingxin's traits, and frantically tempering his taijutsu so he wouldn't be instantly defeated in close quarters.

But unfortunately, every time, Deidara was always just a hair's breadth away from defeating Jingxin.

Early this morning, after Jingxin split off his Shadow Clones to refine chakra, he headed straight for the Iwagakure Ninja Academy.

Jingxin had been invited to observe the graduation examination for Deidara's class of students.

The graduation examination field of the Iwagakure Ninja Academy was even livelier than usual.

The spectator stands were filled with academy instructors, parents of the graduating students, and several Iwagakure jonin who had come to observe.

A circular area with a diameter of fifty meters had been cleared in the center of the field; the ground was paved with specially made shock-resistant rock, and a protective barrier had been set up around it.

Yes, a barrier.

A protective barrier, at that.

With the intervention of Karin's mother, the Research Department achieved significant technical breakthroughs in sealing techniques and barrier formations.

Jingxin sat in the front row of the spectator stands, flanked by Ōnoki, Kurotsuchi, Karin, and Chinatsu.

"Deidara has finally waited for this day," Kurotsuchi said, her tone tinged with a hint of sentimentality. "You seem to have become that guy's nightmare."

Among the students participating in the graduation exam, thirteen-year-old Deidara had grown much taller than a year ago; his golden hair was tied into a high ponytail at the back of his head, with bangs obscuring one eye.

He wore the standard Iwagakure ninja uniform, but with personalized modifications: explosion patterns were embroidered on the cuffs and pant legs, and a specialized clay pouch hung at his waist.

At this moment, Deidara stared wide-eyed at Jingxin, his gaze even carrying a trace of resentment.

How many times had it been?

How many times?!

Deidara had applied for early graduation exams, but every single time, he had been defeated by Jingxin.

This kid was truly stubborn; given his strength, had he faced any other examiner, he would have graduated long ago and perhaps even caught the attention of the Akatsuki.

Jingxin had remarked, "Deidara has great talent, but his personality is a bit impulsive. If I don't give him a goal he is forced to strive for, his pranks will only grow more extreme."

Ōnoki felt the same way: "He has indeed been much better behaved these days."

"Graduation exam, third match!" The examiner's voice echoed across the arena through an amplification jutsu. "Student Deidara, instructor Jonin Ishikawa!"

Upon hearing this, Deidara's vision went black, and he nearly fainted, roaring at the examiner: "Hey!! Why does everyone else get a Genin, but I get a Jonin?! Yeah!!!"

The examiner glanced at him and said something that instantly extinguished Deidara's fire: "If you hadn't been so thick-headed about challenging Kintsuchi, you would have graduated by now."

"Your jutsu is too powerful; using an ordinary Genin as your opponent carries too high a risk."

Oh~

Deidara's expression shifted, and he grinned: "Hahahaha! It seems my art has already gained widespread recognition, yeah!"

Everyone else had a Genin for their graduation exam, but he had a Jonin.

Telling people about this...

Although it didn't sound as "artistic" as graduating early.

In terms of showing off, it seemed to be a cut above.

Deidara walked onto the stage with a face full of smiles.

Opposite him stood his opponent, Ishikawa.

Ishikawa was an experienced Special Jonin who specialized in Earth Release defense.

He nodded at Deidara: "Are you ready?"

Deidara opened his eyes, his blue pupils flashing with excitement: "Ready to start anytime, yeah!"

"Then... begin!"

The moment the examiner's words fell, Deidara moved.

His hands reached into the clay pouch at his waist, his ten fingers kneading and shaping at an astonishing speed.

In less than two seconds, ten white C1 Spider Swarm appeared in his palms, each the size of a fist, their abdomens slightly swollen and filled with compressed clay and chakra.

"C1 Spider Swarm!"

Deidara scattered the spiders into the air.

In mid-air, the ten spiders extended their slender legs, crawling and leaping with the agility of real creatures, pouncing toward Ishikawa from different directions.