Are You Willing to Learn?

Once my stamina had recovered enough, I took the bandages from my ninja tool pouch, bit the end open with my teeth, and began to wrap my wounds bit by bit. Orochimaru-sensei sat on a rock in front of me, silently wiping down his Kusanagi Sword.

Not until the blade was polished clean did he finally beckon me over, his face shifting back into a beaming, pleasant smile.

"Akatsuki, I have been a bit too harsh in how I've treated you. You don't hold it against me, do you?"

I hesitated for a moment before speaking: "Not at all. I know Sensei does everything for my own good. It is I who failed to keep up with your pace; I should be working harder."

Sure enough, he nodded with satisfaction and asked: "Akatsuki, do you know what your greatest advantage is?"

Why ask this so suddenly?

Recalling the battle that had just ended, I thought for a moment before saying cautiously: "My... my brain?"

"Beyond your intellect and tactics, your greatest advantage is your chakra, and your ability to control it." Orochimaru's lips curled into a smile as he stated my traits with nonchalant ease.

"Therefore, your strongest point is ninjutsu. Because the activation of all ninjutsu requires the assistance of chakra, and the power of the technique is directly tied to the volume of chakra and the method of manipulation."

I listened to his explanation in a daze, and after a long while, I nodded.

Yes, Fugaku had said the exact same thing back then.

"Then, do you know your weaknesses?"

I lowered my head again to ponder, counting off on my fingers: "I have little physical strength, slow reflexes, poor stamina; taijutsu is my shortcoming."

Although my ninjutsu was superb, a ninja walks the line between life and death at every moment, and it is these shortcomings that matter most.

That is why I placed such importance on taijutsu training, even going for morning runs day after day, year after year.

Yet, despite such effort, I still could not bridge the gap in my physical skills.

I thought of the back of Might Guy-senpai as he walked away, and a sense of helplessness welled up in my heart—

Sometimes, talent is just another word for effort.

"Well said."

Orochimaru nodded, suddenly drawing his Kusanagi Sword. Then, a steady stream of cool wind-attribute chakra flowed continuously into the blade.

"Akatsuki, watch closely."

Once the chakra condensed on the blade to a certain point, producing a green wave of energy, he gave his arm a light flick. A wind blade launched from the Kusanagi Sword, "thwipping" into the thick earth and leaving a deep gouge behind!

"This is the qualitative change of wind-attribute chakra. It is sharp, light, and can be attached to a blade. As long as there is enough chakra, this sword can cut through anything."

I widened my eyes, not understanding what he was driving at.

"Still don't understand?"

He leaned in close, explaining in a gentle whisper right by my ear.

"An ordinary sword becomes a weapon that can pierce through everything once chakra is attached to it. So, what about a person?"

My mind went blank for a moment, as if I had vaguely grasped something.

"Akatsuki, your advantage is your chakra, and your weakness is your taijutsu. If you were to combine taijutsu with chakra, what do you think would happen?"

This sentence was like a sudden enlightenment, snapping me awake and making me stare at Orochimaru in disbelief.

Orochimaru did not continue his explanation; he simply smiled and pulled out a piece of paper, handing it to me: "This is Chakra Paper. It can test your chakra nature."

"I need to know your chakra nature first so that I can better guide you."

I stared blankly at this Chakra Paper, a staple of the original series. I searched my memories for a long time, only to suddenly realize that I didn't seem to have undergone such a test when I was a child.

I had never tested my own chakra nature.

Then why did the people of the Uchiha clan know my nature?

I felt something wrong flash by, too fast to catch, leaving only a faint, lingering shadow.

"Alright, now channel your chakra into it."

Even though I already knew the result, I was still curious. I reached out to take the paper and slowly channeled my energy into it.

As the chakra flowed in, the paper first crumpled tightly, then one half burst into flames while the other half tore into shreds. Orochimaru watched me silently from the side. Only when the paper had completely vanished did he narrow his eyes and say: "The first thing that manifests is your primary nature—the one you are most accustomed to using."

"I never expected that your primary nature wouldn't be Fire, but Lightning, Akatsuki."

"What?"

His words took me completely by surprise.

Born into the Uchiha clan, I had instinctively assumed my Fire Release was superior to Lightning Release. No one in the clan had even let me touch Lightning Release, so I had always treated Fire Release as my primary weapon.

But my primary nature...

"It's actually Lightning Release?"

Beyond the shock, I felt a surge of intense excitement!

Damn, that's Lightning Release! What a cool nature to have!

"Lightning, Fire, Wind—in that order," Orochimaru said. "These are your three major natures. Following that sequence, Fire and Wind are your secondary natures, with equal weight."

"Generally speaking, an ordinary ninja only possesses one nature. Elite chunin and jonin can learn two or more. Those born with multiple natures usually have the benefit of a Kekkei Genkai, which is a result of your Uchiha bloodline."

"So that's how it is..." I asked curiously: "Sensei, how many do you have?"

"I will tell you later."

Tch, if you don't want to say it, just say you don't want to!

"Your primary nature is Lightning, and among all natures, Lightning is the most aggressive and possesses the highest lethality. It belongs to mid-to-close-range ninjutsu. However, Lightning Release is not easy to control, and the amount of chakra required is also immense." He suddenly mocked, "But so far, you haven't even touched upon Lightning Release ninjutsu, have you?"

"Yes, Teacher."

He was indeed correct. Lightning Release ninjutsu was far too dangerous, and in Konoha, located within the Land of Fire, the Lightning nature was an extremely rare attribute. Neither at the academy nor within my clan had anyone ever taught me Lightning Release ninjutsu, let alone self-study.

After all, there were very few ninjas who were proficient in Lightning Release.

But having said all that, what did Lightning Release ninjutsu have to do with taijutsu training?

"Lightning Release ninjutsu shares a common trait. That is, when performing the technique, it can increase physical vitality." Orochimaru clearly guessed what I was thinking. "This is why most Lightning Release users are proficient in taijutsu and swordsmanship."

So... so that was it!

"And this method of using ninjutsu to assist and enhance taijutsu is what we generally call: Nintaijutsu."

"Nin... taijutsu?" I was stunned.

"Nintaijutsu is the act of fully utilizing chakra to vitalize the body on the foundation of taijutsu, achieving the effect of astonishing speed and attack power." Orochimaru said, "This is what I just told you—the effect of combining chakra with taijutsu."

"When you were learning to walk on water with chakra, didn't you find it strange why a thin layer of chakra could support your body?"

Relating it to textbook knowledge, I hurriedly answered, "I've studied this! Because chakra itself is an extremely powerful energy source, and its usage is directly proportional to its power, it can support a ninja in running, jumping, climbing, and so on."

Orochimaru nodded, "That is merely the power of chakra acting on the surface of the human body. If it acts directly upon the body, it can strengthen the flesh, greatly breaking through the body's limits and leaping to a new level."

"This is Nintaijutsu."

"...Breaking through the body's limits, leaping to a new level..." Hearing this point, my eyes gradually widened.

This technique could strengthen my body!

If I could master it, then taijutsu might no longer be my weakness!

I, too, could become a taijutsu expert!

I excitedly raised my head, just in time to see Orochimaru's body blocking the sun, rings of shadow appearing at the edges of his silhouette, glowing hazily.

Then, a hand reached out, carrying an inhuman chill.

"So, are you willing to learn?"