Things Were Looking Up

After firmly resolving himself, Hayato decisively embarked on a whole new journey of training.

He moved his hands, focusing intently on practicing faster Hand Seals. Before long, a sudden system notification broke his concentration.

What's going on? Haven't I already accepted the mission? Hayato wondered.

He brought up the system interface again and was surprised to find that it wasn't the mission screen that was flashing, but his character panel.

With a thought, he opened the character interface.

The character interface appeared before his eyes. Hayato looked closely and noticed a tiny increase of (+0.006) beside his Hand Seals stat.

Could this be another change caused by the system's major update? Hayato speculated to himself.

With that thought in mind, Hayato tried training again, moving his hands even faster.

Just as I thought! Hayato was overjoyed.

It felt wonderful to see his progress in training so clearly. From now on, he could tailor his training much more precisely.

Things were looking up.

Hayato's current stats were as follows:

[Host: Uchiha Hayato]

[Basic Stats:

Ninjutsu: 2

Taijutsu: 3

Genjutsu: 3

Intelligence: 6

Strength: 2

Speed: 3

Chakra: 5

Hand Seals: 2(+0.01)

Total: 26]

[Ninjutsu: Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique, Shadow Clone Technique]

[Taijutsu: Baji Quan]

[Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan (Three-Tomoe in both eyes), Wood Release]

Looking over his current stats, Hayato formed a plan for his next steps and gained a clearer understanding of how to train each category.

To earn the system's rewards as soon as possible, he needed to develop himself in every area. So, starting the next day, Hayato decided that whenever he could send a Shadow Clone to class, he would, while his real body focused on training.

Early the next morning, while using the bathroom, Hayato sent a Shadow Clone to school with Misaki. Once his family had left, his real body quietly slipped out of the house.

He headed alone to the forest east of the village.

"I'll start today's training with Tree Climbing." Hayato looked at the towering tree in front of him and spoke under his breath.

He planned to improve his chakra control by practicing Tree Climbing. Finer control would allow him to perform ninjutsu more effectively.

And so, Hayato began a full day of training. Holding a Kunai, he focused chakra on the soles of his feet, pressed them firmly against the tree, and began to climb slowly.

Whenever he felt he was about to lose control, he marked the trunk with his Kunai.

His first attempt was a little awkward. Hayato only made it about six meters up before he could no longer keep his balance.

"This is harder than I thought." Hayato gazed up at the tall tree and muttered, "I wonder what kind of trees grow in this world. They're incredibly thick and tall."

He shook his head, put the distraction out of his mind, and got back to training.

As he climbed the tree again and again, Hayato's Ninjutsu stat slowly increased. At first, it rose fairly quickly—he could gain 0.01 after about half an hour of climbing. But as he became more skilled, the rate of improvement gradually slowed.

That made sense. At the beginning, his chakra control had been weak, so there was plenty of room for improvement. But as his control grew stronger, Tree Climbing practice yielded less and less progress in Ninjutsu.

Hayato wasn't in a hurry, though. He knew that Water Surface Walking and other training exercises still lay ahead.

He could improve his chakra control gradually. Once he had mastered these basic forms of control, he could work on increasing his output by practicing various ninjutsu.

After a full day of training, Hayato was drenched in sweat. He looked at his Ninjutsu stat—2(+0.11)—and smiled with satisfaction.

"It's getting late. I'd better hurry home." Hayato gazed at the sun sinking toward the horizon and muttered.

A little while later, he returned home. He sent his Shadow Clone straight to the bathroom, then dispelled it.

In an instant, a flood of memories came rushing into his mind—the things his Shadow Clone had experienced at the Ninja Academy that day.

After absorbing the memories, Hayato took a shower, then appeared in the sitting room without a hitch to have dinner with his parents.

His Shadow Clone school plan had gone perfectly.

After dinner, Hayato returned to his room and continued practicing his Hand Seals.

The days passed steadily. As always, Hayato sent a Shadow Clone to school in his place while his real body focused on training—Tree Climbing, Water Surface Walking, mountain climbing, and practicing the five nature transformations.

One day, Hayato was practicing Fire Release Ninjutsu by the lake when he suddenly heard footsteps. He immediately stopped what he was doing and turned to look.

"Who's there?" he asked warily.

A closer look revealed someone he knew: Minato.

Minato waved at Hayato with an apologetic smile. "Sorry to bother you, Hayato. Let me explain first—I wasn't deliberately watching you from the side. I just happened to be passing by."

In fact, it wasn't a coincidence. Minato usually trained at a nearby waterfall.

He had seen Hayato training before, but hadn't approached him to say hello. Partly, he hadn't wanted to interrupt his training, and partly, he'd wanted to avoid causing a misunderstanding.

Hayato gave a slight nod to show he understood, then looked at Minato and asked, "So, did you need something?"

If Minato hadn't had a reason to come over, he could have simply left. Since he'd come to speak with him, there must be something he wanted to discuss.

Minato explained, "Well, you helped me find her so quickly before. After I told her about it, she kept saying she wanted to thank you properly."

Hayato just waved his hand and smiled. "I didn't really do much. It was just a coincidence. You don't need to thank me."

When Hayato refused, Minato pressed his palms together and pleaded, "I promised her I'd bring you to meet her. Please."

Seeing how insistent Minato was, Hayato found it hard to refuse again. He might as well take a little break today. So he agreed. "All right."

Minato was overjoyed when Hayato agreed and quickly led the way. After walking for a while, they arrived at a small house in the north of the village.

Though small, the house was charming. The rounded stones in front of it were covered in moss, like a natural green carpet that lent the place an old-fashioned serenity. The breeze stirred the moss gently, inviting the imagination.

Minato stepped forward and knocked softly on the door.

"I'm coming! Who is it?" a pleasant woman's voice called from inside. The door opened halfway, and Kushina's bright red-haired head poked out.

When she saw Minato, Kushina opened the door all the way. "Minato, what brings you here?" Her face beamed with happiness.

Minato stepped aside and said, "I brought someone along. You'll be really happy to see him."

Only then did Kushina notice Hayato standing behind Minato, who was half a head taller than him. She began to suspect who he might be.

Kushina crouched down and asked, "Minato, is he...?"

Minato introduced him. "That's right. This is Hayato, the one I told you about."

At that, Kushina was overjoyed. She stepped forward and clasped Hayato's hand, shaking it up and down. "Thank you, Hayato! Minato told me everything. Thanks to you, I was able to make it back safely."