Training 1

Aburame Shio looked at the three young people, some sitting, some kneeling, all panting for breath, and slowly withdrew his swarm. He walked to Amamiya Ren's side and pressed lightly on a certain point on her neck, releasing the restraint on her. Amamiya Ren coughed a few times and regained her ability to move, her face filled with shame and a trace of lingering fear.

"I am Aburame Shio. Starting today, I will be your jonin instructor. Team Six is established." Aburame Shio's voice came through his high collar, flat and utterly without emotional fluctuation, as if the fierce battle just now had never happened.

He swept his gaze over the three of them and began his assessment, his tone still flat, yet every sentence struck at the heart of the matter:

"Might Guy. Solid taijutsu foundation, strong fighting spirit, intense desire to attack. Your flaw is that you rely too much on straight-line assaults, lack flexibility, and are easy to read. When facing an opponent you cannot overpower with strength, blindly charging in will only speed up your defeat. You need to learn more flexible footwork and tactical thinking."

Guy raised his head. Though he had lost, the fire in his eyes had not gone out. Instead, because of Shio's precise assessment, it burned even brighter. "Yes! Teacher Shio! I'll train twice as hard!"

Aburame Shio's gaze turned to Uchiha Narong. "Uchiha Narong. Skilled in ninjutsu, especially in the combined use of Fire Release and Wind Release, showing decent tactical sense and chakra control. Your observation is acceptable, and you can warn your teammates in time. Your flaw is that you rely too much on ninjutsu. Taijutsu and close-range defense are your weak points. With limited chakra, you need to judge the timing of your ninjutsu more precisely, rather than responding passively."

Narong nodded in silence. Shio's evaluation was fair. He had indeed subconsciously held back during the battle, responding only at a genin's standard, but even so, the other man's strength had far exceeded his expectations. Especially that absolute control over the rhythm of battle—it left a deep impression on him.

Finally, he looked at Amamiya Ren. "Amamiya Ren. As a medical ninja, you did not panic in a crisis, prioritized defense and self-preservation, and made the correct judgment. Your use of chakra threads also showed a solid foundation. However—" He paused. "Your awareness of teamwork is weak. You focus too much on yourself and failed to form effective coordination with your teammates in time. A medical ninja's core value in a team is support. You need to observe your teammates' condition more actively and look for chances to provide treatment or assistance, rather than waiting until they fall into a desperate situation before acting. Your presence should not be this low."

Amamiya Ren's face flushed at once. She lowered her head and answered softly, "Y-yes, Teacher Shio. I'll work hard to improve."

Aburame Shio looked at the three young people who had lost, yet whose eyes all held an unwillingness to admit defeat and the light of reflection. Behind his sunglasses, his gaze seemed to soften a little.

"Overall, your individual foundations are acceptable, and you have the potential to be cultivated. Most importantly, when facing an opponent far beyond yourselves, none of you chose to give up or retreat. That persistence is one of the most important qualities of a ninja."

He raised a hand and pointed at the Forest of Death behind him. "Today's test counts as passed. Starting tomorrow, you will carry out team missions and training according to my plan. Remember, you are now a team, codename 'Team Six.' There will always be limits to individual strength. Only trust and coordination can let you go farther in the cruel world of ninja."

"Now, dismissed. Tomorrow morning at seven, gather at the Third Training Ground. Do not be late."

With that, Aburame Shio's figure once again seemed to melt into the surroundings, quietly disappearing from the three's sight, leaving the three exhausted yet surging with emotion young genin standing at the edge of the Forest of Death, officially beginning their ninja careers as members of "Team Six."

The next day, seven in the morning, Third Training Ground.

Aburame Shio appeared on time in the center of the training ground, as if he had been there all along. Morning light filtered through the gaps in the trees, reflecting cold, hard points of light off his sunglasses. Uchiha Narong, Might Guy, and Amamiya Ren had already lined up. After yesterday's show of force, the three were clearly more disciplined, and even Guy had temporarily reined in his overly exuberant passion.

"First, basic chakra control training." Aburame Shio got straight to the point without a single wasted word. He pointed toward a small river nearby and several tall trees. "Content: water-walking, tree-climbing. Objective: all members must move freely on the water's surface and on vertical tree trunks, maintaining it for at least one hour."

As soon as he finished speaking, a hint of barely noticeable confusion appeared on Guy's face, but it was immediately replaced by determination. Narong's eyes were calm, as if he had expected this. Amamiya Ren clenched her fists slightly, looking somewhat nervous.

"Begin," Aburame Shio ordered.

The three immediately moved.

Uchiha Narong was the first to walk to the riverbank. His steps were light as he set foot on the water's surface, as if walking on flat ground. He did not even seem to be deliberately controlling it; chakra flowed freely through the soles of his feet, leaving ripples on the water so faint they were almost negligible. Then he walked up to a tree, stepped vertically onto the trunk, and climbed it with steady steps all the way to the crown. After that, he easily walked back down to the ground upside down, his breathing not the slightest bit disordered. When he completed all of this, his expression was calm, as though he had merely done something utterly ordinary. He deliberately kept his performance at an excellent genin level, both completing the task and avoiding excessive display.

Aburame Shio's gaze lingered on Narong for an instant. His sunglasses hid his eyes, but that brief pause seemed to suggest he had noticed something. He gave no comment, only said flatly, "Maintain it."

Might Guy let out a low roar, full of drive. "Oh! Is this youth's warm-up exercise?!" He charged fiercely toward the water. On his first step, the surface churned violently and nearly broke apart, but he quickly adjusted, gathering more chakra under his feet. Though he was not as stable as Narong, and the water constantly rippled beneath him, he did stand firm and began trying to walk. His method was full of strength; every step looked as if it would shatter the water's surface, yet he barely maintained it through delicate chakra control. Tree-climbing seemed somewhat easier for him. Relying on his powerful leg strength and an instant burst of chakra, he practically kicked off the trunk and rushed upward, leaving shallow footprints behind on the bark, barely holding an inverted posture.

Clearly, this sort of fine control was not Guy's strong suit, but with his tenacious willpower and abundant chakra, he was forcibly adapting.

Amamiya Ren's situation was much more difficult. She carefully stretched out a foot and stepped onto the water. Her chakra output fluctuated wildly, and the surface sometimes held her, sometimes softened beneath her foot, splashing up water. She tried again and again, sweat gradually beading on her forehead. Tree-climbing was even harder. When she reached three or four meters, her chakra stalled and she fell. Fortunately, it was not very high, and she nimbly flipped and landed on the ground, but the frustration on her face was obvious. As a medical ninja, she should have had decent chakra control, but clearly, in this kind of task that combined dynamic maintenance with stamina, she had hit a bottleneck.

Aburame Shio observed silently, offering no guidance and no urging. He simply watched, like the strictest examiner.

One hour of training time passed in silence and amid the three's differing performances.

When time was up, Aburame Shio signaled for the three to gather.

"The first phase is over. Now, the second phase of training: chakra control under actual combat conditions." He paused, then continued in his utterly even tone, "Narong, Guy, the two of you will engage in taijutsu combat. Field: the water's surface."

Guy's eyes lit up instantly. "Ohhh! A hot-blooded duel?! Narong! Let us burn our youth on the water!"

Narong frowned slightly. Fighting on the water would indeed split his attention, but it would not cause him much trouble. He nodded.

"Rules: no ninjutsu. Falling into the water or losing the ability to fight counts as defeat. Begin."

The two immediately leaped to the middle of the small river. Guy roared and launched a fierce assault, starting with the opening form of Leaf Whirlwind, but on the water, his movements were clearly constrained. He could not unleash his full power as he could on land and had to divide his focus to maintain the balance beneath his feet. Narong adopted a defensive stance. His movements looked much "lighter" than Guy's, and his dodges and blocks seemed effortless. Every time he moved, the ripples under his feet were far smaller than Guy's. He deliberately controlled his taijutsu level, showing the slightly above-average but by no means exceptional taijutsu ability that a genin skilled in ninjutsu should possess, fighting Guy back and forth.

Aburame Shio's sharp gaze captured every detail. Narong's overly economical movement, as well as the subtle adjustments he occasionally showed at critical moments that far surpassed an ordinary genin's reaction speed, all fell into his eyes.

At the same time, Aburame Shio said to Amamiya Ren, "Your training content. While they are fighting, maintain a tree-climbing state and try to use chakra threads to connect to both moving targets at the same time, simulating a battlefield treatment environment."

This task was extremely difficult. Amamiya Ren needed to maintain her own balance up high while also dividing her attention to control fine chakra threads and connect them to two teammates who were moving at high speed and had completely different fighting styles.

Amamiya Ren took a deep breath, climbed onto the tree trunk, stabilized herself at a height of five or six meters, then extended both hands. Pale blue chakra threads slowly stretched out. But the threads swayed in the air, making it difficult to accurately lock onto the targets. Guy's movements were broad and forceful, hard to predict; Narong's movements seemed regular, but always changed in subtle ways, causing the threads she had just brought close to miss again. After several attempts, she was already drenched in fragrant sweat, her chakra consumption enormous.

On the water, Guy had attacked for a long time without success and grew somewhat impatient. During a fierce charge, his chakra control underfoot made a mistake, and with a splash, he fell into the river.

"Guy, fell into the water. Narong wins," Aburame Shio announced.

Guy popped his head out of the water and slapped the surface hard. "Damn it! I can't use my strength at all on the water!"

Narong calmly returned to the bank, his breathing steady, only a fine bead of sweat at his temple.

Aburame Shio did not comment on their victory or defeat. Instead, he raised his head and looked at Amamiya Ren in the tree. "Come down."

Amamiya Ren jumped down from the tree, her face low with the gloom of failure.