Rin Nohara's Lesson

"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that, Rin Nohara?"

Kiyoshi asked in return, packing everything into his cloth bag, slinging it across his body, and walking to the door.

Looking outside, he could see Kakashi, who had already gone far away.

Obito stood not far from the academy gates, seemingly waiting for someone.

"Didn't we agree to teach Kiyoshi some ninjutsu?"

Rin Nohara spoke up.

"I see."

Kiyoshi nodded slightly.

Whether Rin Nohara had stayed because of her promise, or because Kakashi had left early due to something else and she had no choice but to remain, he felt no particular ripple of emotion.

The love triangle between Rin Nohara, Obito, and Kakashi could only be called incredibly melodramatic.

The fact that Rin Nohara had given Kakashi a unique Medical Kit, complete with a protective charm she had sewn herself, showed that she liked Kakashi.

But Obito liked Rin Nohara, while Kakashi and Obito were close friends.

"Then let's go."

"Okay."

Rin Nohara nodded and followed Kiyoshi outside.

Kakashi, who had already gone far away, was completely out of sight, swallowed by the bustling crowd.

"Rin, are you really going to teach this guy ninjutsu?"

Obito asked.

He had no desire to let Rin Nohara be alone with Kiyoshi. An opportunity like this should have been reserved for him.

"Kiyoshi came to Konoha alone. We should help each other."

"Fine."

Seeing Rin insist, Obito could not say anything more.

He shamelessly followed behind the two of them until they reached a training ground.

Konoha had more than fifty training grounds for ninja to train and accumulate experience in, each varying in shape and scale.

They were sometimes used as examination sites as well. For example, suitable locations for every Chunin Exams were selected from these training grounds.

They were not ninja yet, only students, but they still had the right to use these facilities.

The moment their names were registered at the Ninja Academy, they were already reserve ninja.

Even with a system for repeating grades, as long as they took the test a few more times and could use the most basic Three-Body Technique, they could pass and become genin.

Training Ground Three.

"Perfect, there's hardly anyone here."

Rin Nohara looked around for a while and found that almost no one came here.

She gave a light cough, then said:

"Obito, you need to listen carefully too. At this rate, you won't pass the graduation exam."

"Hehe, got it, Rin."

Obito scratched his head and laughed.

As for his Three-Body Technique proficiency, it could only be said that it was truly poor.

That was why he had the reputation of being a dead last.

"But I'm definitely better than this guy, right?"

Obito pointed at Kiyoshi.

His heart brimmed with confidence. No matter how much of a dead last he was, he had still received a systematic education.

Could Kiyoshi, a self-taught half-illiterate who only knew how to crudely refine Chakra, possibly compare to him?!

He was from the Uchiha Clan and had heard quite a few things about Kiyoshi Uchiha from his grandmother.

Countless eyes throughout the clan were now fixed on Kiyoshi.

No one had a good impression of the Land of Lightning.

The Second Hokage had died at the hands of Cloud Ninja, and the war with the Land of Lightning had only ended a few years ago, far from enough to soothe the hatred. Moreover, Obito's parents had also died on the battlefield.

Besides his family, many clansmen had experienced similar circumstances.

Ninja had never been a noble profession. They were "mercenaries" dancing on the edge of a blade, never knowing whether they would live to see tomorrow.

"Obito."

Rin Nohara frowned slightly. It was not good to speak of a classmate like that.

"It's fine. Please begin your explanation, Rin Nohara."

Kiyoshi spoke, ignoring Obito.

Whether Obito had already caught Madara Uchiha's secret attention was still unknown.

Kiyoshi did not want to gamble. He only wanted to keep his distance and buy himself time to grow stronger.

As long as one bore the Uchiha name in Konoha, they carried original sin.

Itachi's night of clan extermination, Danzo's coveting of the Sharingan—these were all problems Kiyoshi would have to face.

And he did not have much time left. Not long after graduating from the Ninja Academy, the Third Shinobi World War would erupt.

This would be the most brutal war in history, so brutal that even children only a few years old would have to take up kunai and fight.

"Alright. If you want to learn ninjutsu, the first thing you need to do is tree-climbing training."

Rin Nohara began explaining the tricks involved to Kiyoshi.

In the original manga's Land of Waves arc, Kakashi had also explained this to Team Seven, but nowhere near as meticulously as Rin Nohara did.

Kiyoshi listened, occasionally asking Rin Nohara about points he did not understand.

"Gather an appropriate amount... of refined Chakra at the soles of your feet, and it will create an adhesive force there."

To demonstrate, Rin Nohara took off her shoes, revealing her fair little feet. Her toes were neatly arranged like crescent moons, while her soles held a rosy flush.

She told Kiyoshi where to gather the Chakra so that he could adhere to the surface using the least amount of Chakra possible.

Then she put her shoes back on, overlapped her extended thumbs with the left thumb on top, and formed the Ram hand seal.

Wearing ordinary little shoes, she stepped onto the thick trunk of a tree and walked up it as if on level ground.

Kiyoshi looked up. Rin Nohara walked to a point near the crown of the tree, waved downward, and signaled for the two below to give it a try.

"This is easy!"

Obito immediately copied Rin Nohara's movements and formed the hand seal. He had learned this at the academy long ago.

After refining a stream of Chakra, Obito felt it was about right and guided it to the soles of his feet before cautiously stepping onto the tree.

When he found that he had not fallen, his confidence rose. He placed his other foot on the trunk and began walking upward.

Good thing I learned this before.

Obito thought.

Then he turned his head, wanting to see Kiyoshi's troubled expression as he embarrassed himself in front of Rin Nohara.

The next second, he fell straight down.

"Don't get distracted while controlling Chakra."

Rin Nohara shook her head.

Obito rubbed the back that had hit the ground in pain.

He endured the pain and stood up, saying:

"Next should be Kiyoshi, right?"

"Alright."

Kiyoshi nodded.

He began practicing.

The first time, he fell just like Obito had.

He had only walked one meter, still far from the treetop.

Then Kiyoshi began his second attempt.

Seeing this, Obito immediately began practicing as well.

Now he understood what it meant to regret not studying until the moment knowledge was needed. If he had known, he would have paid more attention to Chakra control techniques in class.

Very soon, two hours passed.

The glow of dusk spilled through the forest. Filtering through the leaves, it formed countless mottled pillars of golden light.

Rin Nohara's expression gradually turned to surprise.

Because she discovered that Kiyoshi learned very quickly.

It might not have been obvious with Kiyoshi alone, but with Obito as a comparison, the gap between them became immediately apparent.

At first, Obito could walk two meters, but now, at most, he could only reach three and a half meters.

But what about Kiyoshi?

He had already reached the five-meter mark, only a few steps away from the treetop!

Kiyoshi quietly listened to the sound of a trait being completed coming from the panel.

"You have comprehended the trait: Muscle Memory (White)."