"Phew... It's freaking cold..."
Lin Chuan kept breathing out warm air. The Ninja Academy's first semester had ended, and winter break meant he could only jog around his backyard with weights, beginning another day of training.
After finishing his five-kilometer run, he returned beneath the eaves to hydrate. Today's run had been somewhat strenuous because he had increased the weights on his feet, from two kilograms on each leg to four kilograms on each leg.
Don't underestimate those extra two kilograms. Even after wearing them for two days, he still had not adjusted. He could only adapt as quickly as possible. In another half year, he would increase the weight again—two kilograms every six months. That was the training plan he had set for himself.
He had already met Rock Lee. He had even saved the unconscious Rock Lee in the forest. It had to be said, that guy was a training freak. He had already reached the point of forgetting food and sleep in his taijutsu training. Sometimes, when he was too exhausted, he would fall asleep directly in the forest. If Lin Chuan had not dragged him back, he would probably have been carried off by wild beasts.
After waking Rock Lee, Lin Chuan found that the beef-eating mission showed no reaction. There was no mission completion prompt. That was when he realized there was a peeping freak secretly protecting Rock Lee. Who else could it be besides Might Guy? With Might Guy watching over him, Rock Lee would not be in danger, so it could not count as a rescue. Naturally, the mission had no reaction.
He could only put the mission aside for now. He found that his talent was only slightly better than Rock Lee's, and he knew where his limits lay. Besides, if his talent was poor, he could add points. There was no need to grind himself to death like Rock Lee. He was afraid of dying from overwork too.
Every time he revived and crossed over, as long as he solved the issues of chakra quantity and chakra control, he could immediately pick up ninjutsu, rather than having to wait until his body matured before his taijutsu could truly erupt.
After five months of grinding, the various stats on his Grind Panel had risen considerably.
[Life: 3 points] [Bloodline: Civilian] [Talent: Mediocre] [Strength: Genin] [Chakra Nature: (Water (Beginner: 6%))] [Throwing: (Kunai Throwing)] [Ninjutsu: (Non-Elemental Ninjutsu) (Water Release Ninjutsu)] [Taijutsu] [Genjutsu] [Other Functions]
His Life Points were still the same. Ever since he had dealt with those troublesome commoners, he had not made another move. His bloodline was still that of an ordinary civilian.
However, his talent had changed somewhat. He was finally no longer a complete nobody. At least he looked a little like a ninja now...
[Talent: [Ninjutsu: 4+] [Body: 4+] [Genjutsu: 3+] [Wisdom: 3+] [Strength: 3+] [Speed: 4+] [Spirit: 3+] [Seals: 3+] Total: 27]
His ninjutsu had increased by one point, his taijutsu had increased by one point, and his speed had increased by one point, bringing his total talent to twenty-seven points. Because his talent had reached twenty-seven points, his strength had also changed, becoming Genin.
In truth, the requirements for becoming a Genin were not high. As long as one learned the Three Body Technique and graduated from the Ninja Academy, one counted as a Genin. Aside from his age, he already met the Genin standard. If this were wartime, he would probably have been forcibly graduated early and sent to the battlefield.
After learning two Water Release ninjutsu, his water chakra nature had also reached the beginner level. He was finally no longer a weakling with nothing at all.
He had also pushed Kunai Moving-Target Throwing past its limit. His fixed-target throwing had reached over forty thousand proficiency, getting closer and closer to one hundred thousand.
He could hit the mark every time with both types of kunai throwing. Their special effects were still photographic memory for targets and a sense of direction. Breaking the limit on moving targets had strengthened both effects, but aside from continuing to grind for progress, no other special effects had appeared. He could only tie steel wire to them and perform some fancy tricks, like Uchiha shuriken wire manipulation.
[Throwing] [Kunai Fixed-Target Throwing (Limit Break: 42200/100000)] [Kunai Moving-Target Throwing (Limit Break: 32240/100000)]
His ninjutsu had also undergone earth-shaking changes...
[Ninjutsu] [Non-Elemental Ninjutsu] [E-rank Ninjutsu: Transformation Technique (Genin: 1001/2000)] [E-rank Ninjutsu: Clone Technique (Genin: 1000/2000)] [E-rank Ninjutsu: Substitution Technique (Genin: 1010/2000)] [D-rank Ninjutsu: Body Flicker Technique (Genin: 1102/2000)]
The Three Body Technique and the Body Flicker Technique had both broken through to Genin level. The next step was Chunin, and he needed to grind another thousand uses before breaking through to Chunin.
After grinding the basic Three Body Technique to Genin level, he did not continue raising its proficiency. He planned to set it aside for now. He did not have much time to grind such low-level ninjutsu.
What he mainly grinded was the Body Flicker Technique. As for the Three Body Technique, he would let it progress naturally from now on. After all, it was a godly technique for crushing weak opponents, but in high-level battles, it was easily seen through.
No matter how realistic the transformation was, no matter how convincing the Clone Technique looked, one sweep from a Byakugan would expose it. If your clone had no chakra, then it had no chakra. The ones with chakra were Shadow Clones.
[Ninjutsu] [Water Release Ninjutsu] [C-rank Ninjutsu: Water Release: Water Clone (Genin: 104/1000)] [C-rank Ninjutsu: Water Release: Water Shock Wave (Genin: 102/1000)] [B-rank Ninjutsu: Water Release: Water Formation Wall (Not Initiated: 0.1%)] [B-rank Ninjutsu: Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet (Not Initiated: 0.01%)]
He had also grinded Water Clone and Water Shock Wave to Genin level. Otherwise, it would not have been so easy to defeat those two Uchiha. The Grind Panel would not deceive any hardworking transmigrator. The Grind Panel was the best.
Next, if he wanted to grind those two Water Release ninjutsu to Chunin level, he needed another nine hundred uses. Unfortunately, he did not have time to keep grinding them. He needed to learn two ninjutsu for finding a master—Water Formation Wall and Water Dragon Bullet. Those were his top priority now. He was almost too busy to handle it all, suffering and enjoying it at the same time.
He still could not use taijutsu or genjutsu. His cheap dad could not use either of those techniques, so if Lin Chuan wanted to learn them, he had to find another way. Unfortunately, he had no chance to learn Shadow Clone. It was only when he was bored that he remembered that Konohamaru had also been unable to use Shadow Clone when he graduated. Clearly, Shadow Clone was difficult to learn. After all, it was a B-rank ninjutsu.
It was time to find himself a teacher. Ever since that old bastard Sarutobi had visited his house last month, he had wanted to find a teacher who could protect him. As a Water Release ninja, he definitely needed a teacher skilled in Water Release. The teacher also had to be able to protect him, be relatively approachable, and not fear that old schemer Danzo. His choices could only narrow further and further.
Even now, he had not thought of a suitable Water Release teacher. The best Water Release user in Konoha had naturally been the forbidden technique master, Tobirama Senju, but Tobirama Senju had long since been dead in this era.
Kakashi knew Water Release too. Though he had only copied Water Release ninjutsu, Kakashi was currently an ANBU ninja. Clearly, he would not take Lin Chuan as a disciple.
Kotetsu Hagane, one of Konoha's gate guardians, also knew Water Release. But that guy was only at Chunin level and merely guarded the gates. He would not dare resist Danzo. Asking him to be his teacher would only drag him into trouble.
After thinking it over, there were already few ninjas capable of protecting him. It had to be someone from old bastard Sarutobi's generation. Even the clan heads of the major ninja clans had nearly failed to protect their own sons.
Looking for a teacher among old bastard Sarutobi's generation, he found that Sarutobi could not possibly accept him as a disciple. Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu would not work either. The Three Sannin had already left the village years ago, so they were impossible as well.
But there was one other person whom he thought could work. He was also from old bastard Sarutobi's generation and had also served under Tobirama Senju. He and Sarutobi were fellow disciples. This person was Maruboshi Kosuke, known as the Eternal Genin.
He had seen this Genin collecting a mission when he went to the Mission Department in the Hokage Building to find his cheap dad. His eyes had immediately lit up, and that was how he found a candidate for his Water Release teacher.
Maruboshi Kosuke might not be able to protect him directly, but the old man's connections were useful. The old bastard Sarutobi whom ordinary ninjas found difficult to meet was a life-and-death comrade to Maruboshi Kosuke.
As long as he could become Maruboshi Kosuke's disciple, it would not matter even if Danzo set his sights on him. Maruboshi Kosuke might not be able to defeat Danzo, but old bastard Sarutobi could keep Danzo firmly under control.
Since he had decided to become Maruboshi Kosuke's disciple, he had to prepare before meeting him. If he wanted to study under this Water Release master, a subordinate of the Second Hokage, he needed some presentable ninjutsu to display his value as a genius. Otherwise, why would the other party accept him as a disciple?
For this reason, after becoming proficient in Water Clone and Water Shock Wave, he demonstrated them for his cheap dad and claimed he had learned them. Then he asked to learn new Water Release ninjutsu. His cheap dad gave him two B-rank Water Release ninjutsu, one of which his cheap dad could not even use himself.
They happened to be the Water Release ninjutsu he desperately needed to help him find a master: Water Release: Water Formation Wall and Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet.
Water Formation Wall, this B-rank ninjutsu, was manageable. It only had five hand seals. He had memorized them long ago and made some preliminary attempts. Though he failed, it showed up on the Grind Panel, meaning he was learning it the right way.
Water Dragon Bullet, on the other hand, left him completely dumbfounded. A ninjutsu with forty-four hand seals truly lived up to its reputation. He had immediately cursed, Not even dogs would learn this, but after cursing, he picked up the scroll again and slowly memorized the seal sequence. For the sake of becoming Maruboshi Kosuke's disciple, he endured the forty-four seals of Water Dragon Bullet. He was a ninja, after all.
Just memorizing those forty-four hand seals took him over a month. The order of each seal was the easiest part to get wrong, and the Grind Panel could not help him with that. He spent nearly a month on it, memorizing the hand seal sequence even during class. At last, he had chewed through that tough bone.
All that remained was to master Water Dragon Bullet, become Maruboshi Kosuke's disciple, and learn the simplified hand seal method. That was the most important thing. He truly did not want someone to stab him in the back while he stood there forming the forty-four hand seals for Water Dragon Bullet.
Before you continue