That Naruto Kid's Gotten into Studying?!

"How far it can fly depends on its height and initial velocity..."

"Take this problem, for example. You're a ninja standing at a height of five meters, and you throw a shuriken with a horizontal initial velocity of 100 meters per second. How far will it travel before it hits the ground?"

Naruto Uzumaki: "...Aba aba aba..."

"What the heck is this?! I don't understand a thing!"

[Host, please listen attentively and study, or you will be subjected to the system's Baptism of Lightning Release...]

[Warning. Countdown: 5...4...3...2...]

"Ahhh! I get it!"

Naruto Uzumaki rubbed his cheeks vigorously, forcing himself to focus once more.

"A shuriken is thrown forward with a horizontal initial velocity of 100 meters per second. How far will it travel..."

"Mm-hmm..."

"Aha! I know! At 100 meters per second, it'll travel 100 meters for every second it flies!"

"The question is, how many seconds can it fly..."

Iruka's gaze swept across the classroom. He was clearly looking for some lucky student to answer the question.

The classroom instantly became a field of danger, and everyone fell silent.

Iruka sighed and said helplessly, "Sakura, you answer."

"Yes, Iruka-sensei!"

Sakura Haruno replied confidently, "To calculate the total distance, we need to multiply the horizontal initial velocity by the flight time. The flight time depends on the height. Considering that the acceleration due to gravity in the Shinobi World is about 10, it's clear that..."

She spoke at length, leaving most of the class with their heads spinning.

Naruto, of course, understood even less.

But unlike before, this time he forced himself to listen with all his attention. Even though it sounded like gibberish, he strained to open his eyes wide and prick up his ears, listening carefully to every word Sakura Haruno said...

Just then.

[You have focused on a lesson for the first time. Your grasp of [Physics] has improved. Proficiency +3. Current proficiency: 28 points!]

Naruto Uzumaki froze, then burst with joy!

"Th-this works too?!"

Chapter 3: That Naruto Kid's Gotten into Studying?!

Though he'd just been fried to a crisp, Naruto had heard the system's notification.

His proficiency in physics had increased?

He didn't really understand what that meant, but there was no doubt...

He'd leveled up!

Naruto Uzumaki hurriedly rubbed his eyes, then opened them as wide as he could and looked back at the characters on the blackboard, which seemed like gibberish.

This time, the results were immediate and remarkable...

He still couldn't understand them!

But...

He seemed to understand a little, too!

"Could I really be a genius?!"

Naruto Uzumaki gave a foolish chuckle, unable to keep the smugness from rising in his heart.

However...

[Host has stopped studying with full attention. You are about to be subjected to the system's Baptism of Lightning Release...]

[Warning. Countdown: 5...4...3...]

Naruto Uzumaki: "..."

He'd learned his lesson this time. He didn't slack off at all and immediately forced himself to focus on studying.

Iruka-sensei smiled faintly. "Well done, Sakura. You're the top student in the class for a reason."

Sakura was just as pleased with herself.

"Did you see that, Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke remained expressionless.

Sakura could only return to her seat helplessly.

"Sakura..."

Naruto Uzumaki watched this scene and was about to sigh wistfully when, suddenly...

[Warning. Countdown: 5...]

Naruto Uzumaki: "...Height, initial velocity, acceleration due to gravity..."

To Naruto, what had been an ordinary lesson now felt as terrifying as being thrown into an Anbu prison and tortured!

Class was like a funeral!

Those brief forty-five minutes became the longest stretch of Naruto's young life...

No distractions. Total concentration!

It sounded simple, but for someone like Naruto, who was used to lazing around and fooling about, it was harder than reaching the heavens!

Even though he was forcing himself to pay attention with all his might because he was afraid of the "Baptism of Lightning Release," he couldn't help drifting off...

One moment, he wanted to sneak a couple of glances at Sakura Haruno...

The next, he couldn't resist wanting to insult Sasuke...

Then his stomach would start rumbling, and visions of Uncle Ichiraku's ramen would keep circling through his mind like a scene from paradise...

But every time he got distracted, that shrill warning sounded at once, forcing him to snap back to attention.

He was on pins and needles, as if thorns were pricking his back and something were stuck in his throat.

Seconds dragged by like years. He didn't know how long it had been.

At last...

He made it to the moment Iruka-sensei announced the end of class.

Naruto Uzumaki looked as if he'd run three marathons. Like a balloon losing its air, he instantly lost all hope, slumped down with a thump, and collapsed onto his desk.

Seeing him, Iruka-sensei actually smiled a little.

"That Naruto really didn't cause any trouble the whole lesson..."

"And his eyes were wide as bells. It looks like he was actually listening..."

"Seems all my earnest advice paid off!"

He cleared his throat. "Take a ten-minute break. Next period is chemistry with Mizuki-sensei!"

"Ahhh—"

The classroom instantly erupted in groans.

But Naruto didn't even have the strength to groan...

Just then.

[According to the schedule set by this system, break time is the best opportunity to catch up and crush everyone else!]

[Begin practicing the Chakra Refinement Technique immediately!]

[You must practice the Chakra Refinement Technique for at least eight hours every day!]

Naruto: "...W-what kind of joke is this?!"

"Eight hours?!"

"Am I supposed to stop sleeping?!"

[Host has failed to follow this system's schedule and practice plan. You are about to be subjected to the Baptism of Lightning Release...]

[Warning. Countdown: 5...4...3...]

"Ahhhhh!"

"I'll practice, okay?! I'll practice!"

Though Naruto was mentally and physically exhausted, the thought of how terrifying the Baptism of Lightning Release was forced him to sit still. Then, following the basic lessons taught at the Ninja Academy, he began practicing the Chakra Refinement Technique.

As the name suggested, the Chakra Refinement Technique involved drawing physical and mental energy from within oneself, mixing them together, and refining them into chakra that could be controlled.

More precisely, however, the physical and mental energy produced by a ninja's 130 trillion cells wasn't chakra. It was stamina.

Everyone had stamina in their bodies, not just ninjas.

Stamina was also the basis for performing Taijutsu directly. Of course, chakra could also be used to enhance the power of Taijutsu.

To perform ninjutsu and genjutsu, however, stamina had to be converted into chakra.

The Chakra Refinement Technique taught at the Ninja Academy was essentially training to convert stamina into chakra.

By continually converting stamina into chakra, one could increase one's chakra "capacity."

In other words, one's chakra reserves.

As for chakra control and the like, that could come later. It wasn't something Naruto could master yet.

Naruto's chakra reserves were, of course, enormous.

That wasn't just because the Nine-Tailed Fox inside him continually leaked its chakra through the special Eight Trigrams Sealing Style, mixing it with Naruto's own chakra.

It was also because Naruto possessed the bloodline of the Uzumaki Clan.

His chakra reserves and vitality far surpassed those of ordinary ninjas.

At that moment...

It was break time. Everyone else was laughing and playing without restraint. The girls, including Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka, had once again gathered around Sasuke, while the boys horsed around in groups of three or five.

Only Naruto Uzumaki sat alone in a corner, quietly closing his eyes and beginning to practice.

As he performed the Chakra Refinement Technique, his mental and physical energy mixed, then gradually began converting, strand by strand, into the chakra he could use to perform ninjutsu.

To Naruto's surprise...

That lesson had just left him completely exhausted.

But practicing the Chakra Refinement Technique didn't tire him out even more. Instead, he actually regained some strength...

Sure enough, human potential was limitless!

[Host has successfully performed the Chakra Refinement Technique. Chakra reserves +1...]

Listening to the notification in his mind, Naruto suddenly felt that maybe this system wasn't so bad after all...

Often, people didn't work hard enough because they couldn't see their progress.

Once they could clearly see—or even quantify—their progress, even the most tedious studying, training, or work could become powerfully motivating. It could even bring a sense of pleasure.

Naruto was at that stage now.

At that moment, the only two friends Naruto had at the Ninja Academy, Choji Akimichi and Shikamaru Nara, were staring at him in shock...

"Shikamaru, am I seeing things? Is Naruto actually practicing the Chakra Refinement Technique during break? Ah nom nom nom..."

Shikamaru Nara rubbed his sleepy eyes.

"Maybe I haven't woken up yet..."

"I'm going back to sleep..."

Choji Akimichi's eyes widened as he stuffed handful after handful of fries into his mouth. His eyes were bloodshot.

"Uh-oh. Don't tell me Naruto's..."