Cultivating by Treading Water

The Third Hokage listened in silence, a thin wisp of smoke rising slowly from the pipe in his hand.

His gaze was profound, as if he were deep in thought. A moment later, he nodded:

"Hmm, I understand. You have worked hard; you may withdraw."

After the Anbu ninja vanished with a Body Flicker, the office returned to silence, save for the faint crackle of tobacco burning in the pipe.

The Third Hokage slowly exhaled a ring of smoke, his mind filled with a thousand thoughts.

"Uchiha Amada... another genius, is he?"

He murmured to himself, his tone laced with a mix of sentiment and complex emotions.

As Hokage, he had witnessed the rise and fall of far too many geniuses.

The Uchiha clan, in particular, produced them in endless succession.

Yutian's performance clearly exceeded the scope of an ordinary genin.

The Third Hokage assessed the situation internally, "It seems that keeping him in Kushina's squad might be a waste of his talents."

"However, there is no need to rush into any adjustments just yet."

He muttered to himself, "Letting him hone his skills in Kushina's team for a while longer might be for the best. A true genius requires not only strength but also the tempering of their character."

In the days that followed, Yutian's life returned to a state of tranquility.

Together with Asuma and Kurenai, he continued to carry out those trivial D-rank missions—

weeding, picking up trash, finding lost pets, and even helping villagers look after their children.

Although these missions lacked any real challenge, Yutian did not show much dissatisfaction.

On the contrary, he enjoyed the leisure, as it gave him more time to focus on his own training.

Kushina had repeatedly submitted requests to the Third Hokage, hoping to take on more challenging C-rank missions

so that her team members could gain more practical combat experience.

However, each time her request was politely declined by the Third Hokage on the grounds that "there are no suitable missions available."

Yutian, for his part, did not care in the slightest.

He used his spare time to begin his own training regimen.

One morning, he went alone to a small pond on the outskirts of the village.

The water was crystal clear, the surface as calm as a mirror, reflecting the surrounding trees and the sky.

Yutian stood by the edge of the pond, took a deep breath, and then slowly lifted his foot to step onto the water.

"The key to chakra control lies in balance and stability..."

He murmured, recalling the scene from the original story where Ebisu taught Naruto how to walk on water.

At first, his steps were shaky, and the water surface rippled with every movement.

But soon, he found his rhythm; the chakra distributed evenly beneath his feet, and his body gradually stabilized.

After a few days of adaptation, he was already able to stand on the water with ease, and could even walk across it.

Yutian felt a sense of internal satisfaction.

Ever since awakening the Sharingan, he had discovered that his perception and control of chakra had improved significantly.

Whether it was the release of ninjutsu or the application of taijutsu, everything felt more intuitive than before.

After finishing today's training, Yutian leaped from the pond back to the bank, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

He looked up at the sky and realized it was almost time for the mission assembly, so he hurried toward the village.

When Yutian arrived at the mission meeting point, Asuma and Kurenai had just reached it as well.

The three of them stood at the village mission center, waiting and waiting, but Kushina was nowhere to be seen.

Asuma crossed his arms over his chest and couldn't help but complain:

"Kushina-sensei is the last one to arrive every single time. Seriously, she's a jonin; how can she be more sluggish than us?"

Kurenai smiled slightly, her tone gentle as she defended Kushina:

"Perhaps Sensei was delayed by something important. After all, she is a jonin with a busy schedule; it's understandable if she's late occasionally."

Hearing this, Yutian couldn't help but tease:

"Kurenai has a point. It's not like Sensei could have overslept, right?"

No sooner had his words faded than a familiar voice drifted in from behind them:

"What kind of bad things are you saying about me again?"

The three of them stiffened, the expressions on their faces freezing instantly.

They turned their heads slowly to see Kushina standing there with her hands on her hips, looking at them with a half-smile.

Asuma waved his hands hurriedly, his face plastered with an awkward grin:

"N-nothing! We just saw you hadn't arrived yet and thought you... uh, overslept."

Kushina's face flushed slightly, but she quickly regained her composure.

She gave a light cough and said with feigned seriousness:

"How could I possibly oversleep? I am a Jonin, I have a very strong sense of time!"

However, she carried a hint of guilt.

In truth, she had indeed overslept today.

Her alarm had gone off several times this morning, but it hadn't been able to wake her.

It was only at the very last moment that she had rushed over in a panic.

Amada observed Kushina's odd behavior but did not point it out.

He said with a smile:

"The teacher is right; we were just overthinking it."

Kushina stood before the counter at the mission assignment office, flipping through a pile of mission scrolls, her brows knitting tighter and tighter.

The missions on the scrolls were all D-rank without exception.

She sighed, her heart filled with helplessness and irritation.

For days now, she and her students had been doing too many of these unchallenging tasks, and it was becoming downright tedious.

"Is there really not a single decent mission?"

Kushina couldn't help but complain, her tone laced with dissatisfaction.

She looked up at the Third Hokage sitting behind his desk, her eyes flashing with anticipation.

"Old Man Third, can't you assign us another C-rank mission? If this keeps up, my students are going to turn into professional weed-pullers!"

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sat in his chair and couldn't help but look up upon hearing Kushina's complaint.

He rubbed his temples, a wry smile forming in his heart.

If he didn't agree to Kushina's request today, she would absolutely pester him all day long until he finally nodded.

Thinking of this, he sighed helplessly, took a mission scroll from his drawer, and handed it over:

"Very well, since you insist, there is indeed a C-rank mission here. However, I must warn you that this mission is quite a distance away; you will need to escort a merchant's daughter to a neighboring country. Although the mission itself isn't complex, the journey is long, and I am slightly concerned."

Upon hearing this, Kushina's eyes lit up instantly.

She practically snatched the mission scroll from the Third Hokage's hand.

She scanned the contents quickly, a satisfied smile appearing on her face:

"An escort mission? This is perfect for us! Lord Third, Kushina Squad accepts this mission!"

The Third Hokage watched Kushina's impatient demeanor, feeling both helpless and somewhat worried.

He pondered for a moment before finally nodding:

"Very well, since you insist, I will leave it to you."

Kushina waved her hand, her tone full of confidence:

"Don't worry, Lord Third! With me around, there won't be any problems at all!"

With that, she turned and strode out of the Hokage's office, a look of excitement on her face.

The Third Hokage watched her retreating figure and muttered to himself:

"With the Anbu following, there shouldn't be any major issues."