The Nature of Speed

"Oh, Shibi." This was only the second time Yuun had met the Third Hokage. In the span of a year, the Third Hokage seemed to have aged considerably. "You three are the ones graduating early this time, then? You look quite promising."

"Lord Hokage, I have brought Team 1 to receive a mission," Shibi Aburame said. "Please assign one."

"A mission?" The Third Hokage did not say much. He pulled a file from his desk and handed it to Shibi Aburame. "Madam Shijimi's cat has gone missing. Your team happens to be skilled at tracking, so I'll leave this mission to you."

"A cat?" Shibi Aburame accepted the file and glanced through it. "Team 1 accepts this mission. We'll be going."

"Mm, go on." The Third Hokage waved a hand, granting Yuun and the others leave to withdraw.

"Yes." Shibi Aburame nodded and led Yuun's group away.

"Hyuga and Uchiha..." The Third Hokage took a deep puff from his pipe. "We'll see."

"Your fundamentals are all solid, so there's no need to waste too much time on meaningless missions. Today, we'll try to complete three missions, then increase that number every day. Within half a month, I'll begin taking you on C-rank Missions." Shibi Aburame handed the file to Yuun and the others. "Take a look yourselves as well. A ninja must understand a mission as thoroughly as possible. Completing the mission is most important, but preserving yourselves when you know it cannot be done is the wiser course."

"Yes." Yuun took the file and opened it. The three of them huddled together and discussed it in low voices.

"Cats do not like traveling long distances. Since this one went missing in the woods on the east side, it could not have gone too far. This mission happens to play to your strengths. Use your sense of smell and vision to find it. Itachi, you are skilled with thrown ninja tools, so I'll leave the final capture to you." Shibi Aburame handed Itachi a small net rolled into a ball. "This is a net specifically for catching wild animals. Don't waste too much time on a low-level mission like this."

After carefully reviewing the mission details several times, the three set off for the woods on the east side of the village to catch the cat. Shibi Aburame did not accompany them. This sort of D-rank Mission paid little and was not difficult; even ordinary people could complete it without much trouble. To interact with the villagers, the village had set the threshold for filing D-rank Missions extremely low. Over time, people grew accustomed to seeking out ninjas whenever they had trouble, while the ninja village gained enough funding to sustain itself, and ninjas had enough missions to support their families.

The cat-catching process was simple. Hana used the scent on the cat's collar to locate its general position, Yuun activated the Byakugan from a distance to pinpoint its exact location, and finally, Itachi threw the net from afar and trapped the fleeing cat. Including the time spent traveling back and forth, the mission took less than two hours.

"There are still about two hours until noon." Shibi Aburame checked the time. "We can finish another mission now and still leave some time for training in the afternoon. I need to assess your coordination and your full abilities. This is your second mission: weeding."

"..." The three accepted the mission and could only set off again, heading for the courtyard where the client lived on the north side of the village. More than a hundred square meters of weeds would have been grueling work for ordinary people, but ninjas were far stronger physically. Although Hana's suggestion that Itachi clear the area with Fire Release was rejected, the three of them still finished everything by hand within two hours.

After obtaining the client's signature on the mission completion form, the three hurried back as quickly as they could. At noon, Team 1 used the payment from their two morning missions to enjoy a fairly hearty lunch, spending every last bit of it.

After resting for a while, Yuun and the others received their third mission: helping look after children. The moment the three saw the huge group of children beside the client, their expressions collapsed. It was actually a request from an orphanage. Fortunately, Shibi Aburame stepped in at once and quickly coaxed the dozen or so children, big and small, to sleep. The sight instantly stunned Hana, her eyes sparkling. Yuun even suspected that if Shibi Aburame had not been covered in bugs, she would have thrown herself at him and begged him to take her as a disciple.

More than an hour later, the orphanage's supervisor returned to take over. Seeing every child sleeping obediently, she was overjoyed and gave Yuun and the others an excellent evaluation on the mission completion form.

Having completed three missions, the group followed Shibi Aburame to a training ground he had reserved in advance. According to him, only a completely unfamiliar environment could truly test Yuun and the others' abilities.

"You three all graduated early. In terms of strength, you are among the very best Genin of this generation, and you all excel at taijutsu." Shibi Aburame glanced at Itachi. "So do you know what is most important in taijutsu?"

"Speed and strength." Hana, no longer quite so afraid of Shibi Aburame, spoke up.

"Sufficient calmness, along with sufficient speed and strength." Itachi thought for a moment. "But if we are talking about the most important things, then it is indeed speed and strength."

"Precision." Yuun thought for a moment before answering seriously. For the Gentle Fist, the most important thing had always been consistent performance and precise attacks. Speed and strength were not the most important.

"We'll discuss your point later." Shibi Aburame looked at Yuun. "That's right. Speed and strength are both extremely important components of taijutsu, but speed has always been the most important thing in taijutsu."

Hana and Itachi both looked thoughtful, while Yuun was unconcerned. He knew how absurdly powerful Might Guy became after Eight Gates Unleashed, but that kind of power could not be replicated. No matter how beautiful a meteor was, it lasted only an instant. The strongest taijutsu should not be something so fleeting. Still, he had no intention of arguing. In his previous life, he had heard countless contradictory theories. If he had to refute every theory he disagreed with, several lifetimes would not have been enough.

"What is the nature of speed? Motor function, situational judgment, and conditioned reflexes. Together, these three form speed itself." Shibi Aburame raised one finger. "Motor function refers to speed in the conventional sense. The Body Flicker Technique, which bursts chakra through the soles of the feet to increase one's speed, falls into this category. Some people also possess bloodlines or various secret techniques, such as the Inuzuka Clan's beast mimicry ninjutsu, or how Cloud Shinobi use chakra to stimulate their bodies. All of those fall within the scope of motor function."

"Situational judgment, as the name implies, is one's judgment of a situation: perception, insight, and analysis through experience." Shibi Aburame raised a second finger. "Yuun, you possess the strongest observing eye—the Byakugan. Have you ever encountered someone so fast that your eyes could see their movements, yet you still could not evade them?"

"Well..." Yuun thought for a while, but he could not recall anyone among the opponents he had encountered so far who possessed such speed. Hana was quite fast after using the Four-Legged Technique, but not so fast that Yuun could not keep up. As for those truly powerful people who moved too quickly to follow, he had never had the chance to face them.

"Forget it. As for situational judgment, in a few days I'll take you to meet a senior. He should be able to show you what it feels like when your eyes can see, but your body cannot keep up." Shibi Aburame shook his head helplessly. As an insect controller, explaining taijutsu was indeed somewhat troublesome. "The final factor is conditioned reflexes. This is something that can only be grasped through a great deal of actual combat. Experts who have fought countless battles can often evade an attack at the very first moment. That is their conditioned reflex."

"Sensei, if that is the case, where should we begin when training taijutsu?" Hana felt Shibi Aburame's explanation most deeply. Compared to Yuun and Itachi, she was the true taijutsu specialist. "Motor function can be countered by conditioned reflexes, while situational judgment cannot keep up with motor function, and conditioned reflexes require a great deal of real combat."

"That is what I am about to explain." Shibi Aburame spoke patiently. "Motor function > conditioned reflexes > situational judgment. When a ninja uses taijutsu, motor function will always be the most important. Once motor function reaches a certain level, the effects of reflexes and situational judgment will be compressed to a minimum."

"But what meaning does this have for us, Sensei? At the end of the day, motor function is still the most important thing in training. Conditioned reflexes and situational judgment do not have much practical use for us right now, do they?" Yuun said somewhat dismissively. According to Shibi Aburame's explanation, his Gentle Fist specialization focused on conditioned reflexes and situational judgment. Did that mean he would eventually be suppressed by Hana, who specialized in motor function?

"These are relatively advanced taijutsu theories. The traditional taijutsu theories you learned at the Ninja Academy are already outdated. Even if I did not explain this, you would naturally come to understand it within a couple of years. I am only telling you now so that when the crucial moment comes, you will have something to compare against." Shibi Aburame remained patient. Having only recently become a father, he was always patient with children, and without realizing it, he had begun to place himself in the role of a parent.

"..." Yuun had no response this time. As someone who had crossed over, he knew exactly how strong Might Guy would become after opening the Eight Gates Formation. That was a genuine example.

"That concludes the theoretical part. Next, we enter the practical stage." Shibi Aburame spread his arms, and countless black Kikaichū crawled out from every corner of his body. "Use all your strength, or you might die..."