I'd transmigrated, ended up sharing my body with two souls, and now there was a system... There were too many things going on. My CPU was about to fry.
What was this, a game of mahjong?
"System?" Tobirama caught the word immediately.
"Is it a manifestation of something like a contract technique or a mental link? Interesting. Let me analyze its structure."
"Forget that for now!" Izuna cut him off, then looked at Qingyu. "Kid, you said the Chunin Ninja Exams were coming up? When?"
"T-tomorrow..."
"How strong are you?"
"Theory classes... I barely passed. Taijutsu... I'm okay. Ninjutsu... I only know the Three Body Technique and a little Fire Release."
"How much is 'a little'?"
"Like... enough to light a tiny flame..."
Izuna and Tobirama fell silent at the same time.
The look in their eyes was like Michelin-starred chefs watching someone turn top-quality wagyu into an eraser.
There was disdain mixed with pity, and beneath the pity, the bewilderment of How have you survived this long?
What was with that look? Weren't Uchiha supposed to be able to make little flames?
After a long moment, Izuna took a deep breath, though spirits obviously didn't need to breathe.
"Listen, kid." His voice held the weary resignation of someone thinking, I must have done something awful to deserve this.
"Starting tonight, we train! First, that pathetic Fire Release of yours—"
"Foolish," Tobirama said coldly.
"With his current chakra control, forcing him to practice Fire Release will only damage his chakra pathways. He should start with basic physical conditioning and chakra control, then progress gradually."
"Chakra control?" Izuna scoffed.
"What does the Uchiha fighting style need precise control for? Explosive power! Strength! One strike to take out the enemy!"
"That's why you died so early during the Warring States Period," Tobirama retorted.
"You had no tactical sense. You just charged in recklessly, relying on your Kekkei Genkai."
"Who are you saying died early, you treacherous, white-haired experiment freak?"
"Whoever takes offense."
Seeing the two of them—two souls—about to start arguing again, Qingyu quickly raised his hand. "Um... can I say something?"
They both turned to look at him.
"The exam's tomorrow," Qingyu said timidly.
"If we train all night, I'll probably drop dead from exhaustion..."
In that case, maybe I should just go to sleep first~
"Then we start now!" Izuna and Tobirama said in unison.
When Qingyu's consciousness returned to reality, it was still dark outside.
But he couldn't sleep anymore.
Not only couldn't he sleep, but the two Warring States-era big shots were urging him on as he sneaked out of the house and made his way to the Uchiha Training Ground.
It was really just an abandoned training ground on the edge of the clan compound. Hardly anyone ever came here.
"First, we'll work on sensing chakra." Tobirama's translucent figure appeared in Qingyu's mind.
"Sit cross-legged, close your eyes, and feel the flow of energy inside you."
"What a waste of time," Izuna scoffed.
"Just practice with shuriken! The Uchiha's foundation is Shurikenjutsu and Fire Release!"
"The foundation is staying alive," Tobirama said coldly.
"In his current state, he wouldn't last a day in the Forest of Death."
"That's all the more reason to practice real combat!"
"That's all the more reason to build a foundation!"
"You two..." Qingyu sat on a rock at the edge of the training ground, utterly drained. "Can you at least agree on something first? Which one of you am I supposed to listen to?"
The air fell silent for a moment.
Then they both spoke at once:
"Listen to me!"
"Listen to me!"
Right. That was helpful.
In the end, Qingyu decided to split the training between them.
For the first half of the night, he listened to Tobirama and worked on chakra control and basic physical conditioning.
For the second half, he listened to Izuna and practiced throwing shuriken and Fire Release nature transformation.
"Gather chakra in the soles of your feet! Don't stomp! Imagine you're a leaf, landing lightly on the surface of the water..."
That was Izuna teaching the Uchiha Style footwork.
"Incorrect. You should first establish a chakra cycle, starting from your abdomen, flowing through your limbs, then returning to form a steady circulation..."
That was Tobirama teaching chakra control in the Senju Style.
"Stop interrupting!"
"Your method is wrong!"
"Focus! Imagine flames flowing through your chakra pathways!" Izuna taught him Fire Release.
"First, sense the moisture in the air! The foundation of Water Release is affinity, not brute force!" Tobirama taught him Water Release.
"His body isn't suited to Water Release at all!"
"Your teaching method is the problem!"
All night long, Qingyu suffered through their completely contradictory lessons...
"Step on the tree! Put your weight into it! Uchiha don't need any leaves!"
"Wrong. Start over! Chakra output needs to follow a smooth sine curve..."
"Shut up, you damn White-Haired Senju!"
"You shut up, you wicked Uchiha!"
In the second half of the night, Qingyu tried to compromise: he circulated Fire Release chakra and Water Release chakra at the same time.
The result...
He spat out a puff of steaming hot vapor, tinged with the faint scent of red bean paste.
Izuna: "...What the hell is that?"
Tobirama adjusted a pair of nonexistent glasses. "A hot, humid convection current caused by the failure of chakra nature transformation... In theory, it's quite worth studying."
Qingyu: "I nearly boiled myself alive!!"
Qingyu: I'm hungry...
Tobirama & Izuna: Then eat!
At three in the morning, Qingyu ran out of chakra and collapsed on the ground, aching all over, while the two of them kept arguing in his head.
At last, he tried a compromise, circulating Fire Release chakra and Water Release chakra at the same time.
Qingyu puffed out a little black smoke and a few drops of water... simultaneously.
At three in the morning, Qingyu collapsed on the ground, out of chakra and aching all over.
The two souls in his head were still arguing.
"Enough!" Qingyu suddenly shouted.
The two of them—two souls—stared at him in surprise.
Qingyu pushed himself to his feet, brushed off the dust, and looked like he was about to cry.
The two big shots had completely different teaching styles:
Izuna was a typical Uchiha: demanding and exacting, always grumbling, but occasionally offering a pearl of wisdom—experience he'd paid for with his life during the Warring States Period.
Tobirama was a standard Senju: rational, rigorous, and methodical. He had to explain the principles behind every step and would have loved to draw a chakra flowchart and teach Qingyu calculus.
And Qingyu, a modern transmigrant and the dead-last at the Ninja Academy, was stuck between them...
Like a sports dud being put through training by two Olympic champion coaches at once.
"I don't care what grudges you had when you were alive!" Qingyu sat up and panted.
"But now you're living in my head, and I have just one request: don't get me killed."
He pointed at Izuna. "You teach me Uchiha Style shuriken techniques and footwork, but don't demand three-tomoe-level precision right off the bat."
Then he pointed at Tobirama. "You teach me chakra control and tactical analysis, but don't expect me to learn Water Dragon Bullet overnight."
Finally, he looked at them both. "As for how you divide the work and how much you argue... I don't care. But when I need guidance, you have to give it to me together. Otherwise!"
He pulled up the system interface and pointed at the [Forced Silence] button. "I'll make both of you shut up."
Silence.
After a long moment, Izuna snorted. "...What an interesting kid."
Tobirama adjusted his nonexistent glasses. "By rational analysis, this proposal is indeed the most efficient."
[System prompt: Temporary consensus reached. Consciousness coordination increased slightly.] [Function unlocked: Skill Tree Preview (partial)] [Izuna Uchiha can provide: Fire Release mastery, Shurikenjutsu (Uchiha Style), Sharingan application theory (including three-tomoe combat techniques), genjutsu basics, Izanagi principles (unlocked at high synchronization)...] [Tobirama Senju can provide: Water Release mastery, advanced chakra control, Sealing Jutsu basics, tactical analysis, Flying Thunder God Technique (locked), principles of the forbidden Impure World Reincarnation (high-synchronization warning)...]
Looking at that long list, Qingyu suddenly thought... Maybe this wasn't such a bad thing after all?
If he could survive the "lessons" (and arguments) of two Warring States-era big shots.
"Now then," Tobirama said first.
"Since the exam is tomorrow, we should draw up a strategy. What's the first stage?"
Qingyu recalled the briefing. "The Forest of Death. We have to steal a scroll and reach the Central Tower within five days."
"What's the terrain like? What are the rules? What ninja tools are allowed?" Izuna pressed.
Qingyu answered each question in turn.
The two souls fell into thought.
For once, neither mocked the other.
"In other words, the priorities are survival and intelligence," Tobirama analyzed. "Combat isn't required, but it's unavoidable."
"Squad-based, but betrayal is allowed," Izuna said with a sneer. "Rules that truly reflect the nature of ninja."
"So we need—" they said at the same time, then looked at each other, snorted in unison, and turned away:
"A reliable plan."
"An effective strategy."
Watching their bizarre moment of unspoken understanding, Qingyu suddenly laughed.
We've got the advantage!
[System: I must say, Chief, that's a brilliant idea!]
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