Combination Ninjutsu: Void Step

Time flew by, and two months passed just like that.

After explaining the situation to his grandmother, she was delighted to learn the mentor was Tsunade, though Shangguan Yue was still reluctant to leave her side.

Tsunade had been ready to have Shangguan Yue move directly into the Senju Mansion, so for these two months, Shangguan Yue had been commuting between his home and the Senju Compound.

Aburame Torune had gained nothing in these two months, but Danzo still demanded surveillance, so he recorded Shangguan Yue's trivial daily affairs, eventually knowing more about Shangguan Yue than the boy knew about himself.

"Hmm? Still being watched?"

Shangguan Yue sensed a familiar chakra around him; although he couldn't pinpoint the exact location, it was definitely there.

"Time to walk the dog."

Shangguan Yue stepped on his chakra, his body launching like a cannonball as he leaped onto a tree branch. With a few steps, his figure blurred, and he sped away.

In no time, he had vanished from sight. "Damn it, again."

After losing him several times, Aburame Torune had grown smarter; he stopped forcing himself to follow Shangguan Yue and instead turned to head straight for the Senju Mansion.

Shangguan Yue looked back. "Tch, boring. My Void Step was just developed, and now my sparring partner is gone."

Shangguan Yue focused and stepped forward, his body relaying through the air as he moved rapidly, dancing like a bird in flight.

However, he stopped shortly after. "Sigh, showing off is too hard. My chakra is too low, and my mental energy is too scarce."

"Still, the growth rate of my mental energy from the God-Slaying Art is starting to slow down. I can only sustain flight for half an hour when I project it outside my body."

"If I had enough mental energy, I'd want to try sword-flying."

Shangguan Yue walked into the Senju Compound and made his way to Tsunade's training ground.

"You're here. Let's begin."

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. Shangguan Yue flicked several kunai, his body utilizing the Void Step to explode forward, holding a kunai as he lunged at Tsunade.

Tsunade stood her ground, dodging with a few side-steps as the kunai brushed past her. Facing his flying strike, she merely extended two fingers to catch it.

Refusing to accept defeat, Shangguan Yue abandoned the kunai and extended his hand, manifesting the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow. He swung the blade in a horizontal slash, but Tsunade ducked and swayed. Shangguan Yue followed with a side kick to her abdomen, which she dodged by shifting her body.

Shangguan Yue leaped up, swinging his blade in continuous downward slashes, but Tsunade moved with leisurely grace, passing through a field of flowers without a single petal touching her.

When Shangguan Yue suddenly used his mental energy to propel himself forward in a burst of speed, Tsunade's hands glowed with chakra blades, blocking the strike with the back of her blades.

She followed through by sinking her arms and pressing her knees, delivering a flat hook to his abdomen. Shangguan Yue was sent flying several meters into the air, using his mental energy to cushion his landing.

"I'm done, you're cheating! You promised to only use Genin-level strength."

"Oh, don't be angry. I just changed into these clothes and have things to do later; I can't get them dirty." Tsunade clamped her hand over Shangguan Yue's head, lifting him into the air.

"It's just that your Void Step is too monstrous. Truth be told, your strength has reached the Genin level, but your chakra control is... lacking. I'll count this stage of the assessment as a pass. Tell me what reward you want, and later I'll teach you how to train your chakra control."

Only then did Shangguan Yue remember the chakra control training.

"Calculated wrong. It seems my Void Step still has room for improvement. Since my mental energy grows too slowly, I'll have to make one portion do the work of two."

Shangguan Yue rested his chin on his hand, thinking for a long while; he didn't know what reward he wanted.

"Hmm... how about you forge a scabbard for me? My Dragon Sparrow doesn't have one."

"Why do you need that? Can't you just manifest it with mental energy and put it away?"

"I'm planning to 'nurture' the blade recently. I want to materialize it and keep it with me at all times."

"Fine, let's do that. I'll give you some high-quality raw materials. Since that's the case, follow me."

Tsunade brought Shangguan Yue to her personal medical room, and Shangguan Yue shivered at the sight before him.

"Wait, why do you have so many animal and plant specimens here?"

"For experiments."

Tsunade didn't offer much explanation. She went to the lab bench, took out a scroll, and tossed it to Shangguan Yue.

"This is the cultivation method for a chakra blade. There's also some medical ninja knowledge inside; learn that as well."

"Medical ninja? I don't want to be a healer. Can I skip that?"

"It can improve your chakra control. Whether you learn it or not is up to you. I have things to attend to recently, so take this Three Body Technique and study it until I return."

Poof~

"So it was a Shadow Clone."

Watching the vanished Tsunade, Shangguan Yue looked left and right. "Gulp, this is creepy. Better get out of here."

Arriving at the training ground, Shangguan Yue finally breathed a sigh of relief, not looking at the scroll.

Shangguan Yue tapped his feet lightly, his body floating upward, light as a feather—it was clearly extraordinary.

He landed on a tree branch, leaned against the trunk, and lay down.

"This Void Step is still too crude. Projecting mental energy directly out of the body to step on it consumes too much. What should I do?"

"Still, this chakra is truly magical. Using it can strengthen various physical indicators; such supernatural power is truly intoxicating."

"If it weren't for chakra, even if I projected my mental energy to step on, I wouldn't be able to lift off or achieve something akin to flight."

"However, who exactly is watching me? With my sensory abilities, I should be able to find them."

"Why does it always feel like their chakra is everywhere, so scattered?"

"They're here!"