Chidori's Many Variations, and Haku's Fate.

It was the first time he had felt pressure from someone his own age.

And the person putting that pressure on him was none other than that hopeless dead last!

"Damn dead last!" Sasuke Uchiha slammed his fist into the ground. His emotions surged, and the crimson Two-Tomoe Sharingan appeared in his eyes.

A mere dead last!

That idiot Naruto, of all people!

What kind of joke was this?

If anyone was going to qualify for Chunin first, it would be him, Sasuke Uchiha!

Keep training!

"How do I draw out more Lightning Nature?" Sasuke Uchiha raised a hand. Pale blue Chakra rose from his palm, with tiny currents running through it. For now, he could only release the slightest bit of Lightning Release Chakra.

Chidori's Many Forms and Haku's Fate

"Fire Release feels... Tch." Sasuke Uchiha frowned. He had been trying to follow the feeling of using Fire Release and infuse the Chakra he released with Lightning Nature Transformation.

But...

It was hard.

When he used Fire Release, he could easily channel Chakra into his throat. Releasing Chakra outside his body and then adding Lightning Nature Transformation was far harder.

Most importantly, he had never worked with Lightning Release before. Everything he had learned was Fire Release.

What was he supposed to do?

At this rate, that colossal idiot Naruto would leave him completely behind.

And then there was...

Sasuke Uchiha glanced coolly at Sakura Haruno, who was pounding a tree trunk in the distance. Ridiculous as it looked, her training seemed to be going smoothly.

That meant he was the only one on Team 7 facing a bottleneck.

At this rate, he would become the weakest member of Team 7!

Should I ask Cangyue? Sasuke Uchiha furrowed his brow and looked toward Aogetsu Hyuga, who was lounging on a sofa with Icha Icha Paradise.

As if I'd ask Cangyue for advice!

Sasuke Uchiha could already picture it: he would go to Cangyue about his bottleneck, and Cangyue would greet him with that mocking smirk.

"Hmph." Sasuke Uchiha stood, then stopped. After a moment's hesitation, he sat back down.

Even if I can't finish this training in five days, even if I'm no match for the Demon of the Mist, even if I become the weakest member of Team 7...

I will never ask Cangyue for advice!

I've had enough of his arrogant attitude and that mocking smirk!

Sasuke Uchiha was too proud to endure Cangyue's ridicule. He would rather figure out his training alone than humbly ask Cangyue for help.

Even if Teacher Cangyue is an exceptionally skilled fighter!

I still don't need his advice!

By the time that thought crossed his mind, Sasuke Uchiha had already walked up to Cangyue.

"No need to be shy. Plenty of women are like that. Their mouths say no, but their bodies tell a different story."

Aogetsu Hyuga kept reading Icha Icha Paradise without looking up. He had noticed a while ago that Sasuke had something to ask him, and the brat had been struggling to bring himself to do it.

"Ahem." Sasuke Uchiha cleared his throat, looked away, and asked with a faint blush, "How do you infuse Nature Transformation?"

Aogetsu Hyuga yawned and turned a page. "I told you before, didn't I? Playing hard to get is out of fashion. Besides, what's appealing about a man doing it? If you were a pretty girl, I might let you keep it up."

Sasuke Uchiha shoved his hands into his pockets. Embarrassment filled his eyes, though his voice stayed cool. "You know a shortcut, don't you?"

"How strange." Aogetsu Hyuga sat up, propped his chin on his hand, and studied Sasuke with a mocking smile. "A genius of the Uchiha Clan needs a shortcut? And here I was, naively thinking you'd improve faster than anyone else on Team 7."

Putting on an air of superiority, Aogetsu Hyuga said, "Is Chidori really that hard to learn? It took me only three minutes. Of course, you don't have to learn it in three minutes. You're not as talented as I am."

He had learned Rasengan in three minutes, and Chidori had been no different.

He had already mastered Shape Transformation and Nature Transformation before learning those techniques, so picking them up had been easy.

"..." Sasuke Uchiha's expression darkened. He gritted his teeth without a word. He had known Teacher Cangyue would mock him mercilessly if he asked.

Three minutes?

Who would believe that?

How could anyone learn such a difficult technique in just three minutes?

Aogetsu Hyuga said, "If shortcuts were that convenient, why would anyone work hard? The moment you start looking for one, that naive, thoughtless idea becomes an obstacle to getting stronger."

Sasuke Uchiha froze for a moment and considered Cangyue's words.

Aogetsu Hyuga went back to Icha Icha Paradise. "Don't think too hard about it. That only applies to ordinary Ninja. I just thought it would sound impressive and wanted to try saying it."

A shortcut?

Of course there are shortcuts!

His Tenseigan was a shortcut to power. So was the Mentor-Disciple System. Both let him grow stronger with hardly any effort.

To be a Ninja, you needed an unfair advantage!

He felt bad for ordinary people who trained tirelessly to get stronger.

But fairness did not exist in the Ninja World.

Without a special bloodline or an unfair advantage, all the effort in the world was futile. At best, you could become strong by the standards of ordinary Ninja.

Take the Legendary Sannin, or that old dog, the Third Hokage.

To become a truly top-tier fighter in the Ninja World, you needed both a bloodline and an unfair advantage!

And the advantage had to be enormous!

No Tailed Beast? No Dojutsu Power? Then you might as well go to bed.

You wanted to reach the very top without Six Paths Power?

Dream on!

"Ordinary Ninja... I understand." After thinking it over, Sasuke Uchiha believed he had grasped Cangyue's meaning.

Because he understood.

Teacher Cangyue meant that anyone who wanted to become truly strong had to stop dreaming of shortcuts. Only by weathering hardship could one become strong!

The corners of Sasuke Uchiha's mouth lifted.

Who knew the arrogant, willful Teacher Cangyue could say something so inspiring?

Only ordinary Ninja take shortcuts?

Teacher Cangyue must mean that Ninja who think only of shortcuts will eventually hit a wall. When they do, they'll lose all confidence in themselves as Ninja.

You gain strength by enduring countless trials and building your skills step by step!

I get it!

Teacher Cangyue may act frivolous, but he really is a good teacher.

"Do you? Well, good." Aogetsu Hyuga was speechless. He had a feeling the brat's thoughts had wandered wildly off course.

"Cangyue, you..." Sasuke Uchiha stopped when he saw Aogetsu Hyuga close his book and quickly changed his wording. "Teacher Cangyue, please demonstrate Chidori one more time."

That was close.

I almost got beaten up.

It's enough for that idiot Naruto to be the one who gets beaten up!

"What a pain," Aogetsu Hyuga said with a look of distaste. "You haven't even paid tuition, and you want me to show you this and that."

"Once the Uchiha Clan district is reopened and I sell a house, I'll pay what I owe." Sasuke Uchiha's voice was cold, but grief flashed in his eyes.

The once-glorious Uchiha Clan district had become a restricted area of the village!

Aogetsu Hyuga paused.

He had almost forgotten that this Uchiha brat was still a rich young master.

The brat might be broke now, but once that old dog, the Third Hokage, died, the Uchiha Clan district could be reopened. Then every property there would belong to Sasuke.

After all, Sasuke Uchiha was the only Uchiha Clan member left in the village!

The kid was secretly rich.

The entire district might be full of houses where people had died, but they could tear them down and rebuild.

A teacher for a day, a father for life!

You call me your teacher, and I'll call you my godson!

Then all that property will be mine!

"I'll show you one last time. Keep your eyes open." Aogetsu Hyuga raised a hand. Pale blue Chakra rose from his palm and turned into azure Lightning.

He could make money from the property and advance his Master-Disciple Mission at the same time. Two birds with one stone!

What a haul.

"Chakra's Nature Transformation..." Sasuke Uchiha stared intently at the azure current in Cangyue's palm with his Two-Tomoe Sharingan.

I think... I understand.

"That's right. And then..." Aogetsu Hyuga paused as the Lightning in his palm changed shape, forming a Tachi. "This is Chidori's Shape Transformation."

"With enough Chakra and precise control, you can give Chidori any shape you want." The lightning Tachi in Aogetsu Hyuga's hand melted toward the ground, where the azure Lightning became two tigers.

"You could even turn it into a busty beauty." Aogetsu Hyuga moved a finger. The two lightning tigers merged, then took the rough outline of a woman.

Kakashi, this is how you're supposed to use Chidori!

"Handy technique, isn't it?" Aogetsu Hyuga withdrew his Chakra. The Lightning dimmed and vanished. "You don't need to worry about Shape Transformation yet. I just wanted to put on a show and look cool."

"I know what I was doing wrong." Sasuke Uchiha deactivated his Sharingan, put his hands in his pockets, and turned away. After a few steps, he stopped and said with an awkward blush, "Thank you."

With that, Sasuke Uchiha headed back to his training spot.

He had watched Cangyue perform Chidori through his Sharingan the entire time. Now he knew what he had been doing wrong.

"Stubborn brat," Aogetsu Hyuga said disdainfully. He sank back into the soft sofa, covered his face with his book, and prepared to catch up on sleep.

To be honest...

The Uchiha brat was clever. He had real potential.

By the time the showdown came three days later, Team 7 might even beat the Demon of the Mist without drawing on the Tailed Beast's power.

Zabuza was a Jonin, but his strength was nothing extraordinary. Without the Kubikiribōchō, he had been weakened considerably.

Either way, Team 7 would win. If they could not match Zabuza on their own, Naruto Uzumaki could always sprout a few tails!

One way or another, Aogetsu Hyuga would get that Lottery Pack.

Good thing the Side Mission called for Team 7 to defeat Zabuza Momochi. If they had to beat Yuki Haku, things would be much harder.

That pretty boy was stronger than Zabuza, after all.

"Time to sleep." Aogetsu Hyuga closed his eyes.

A few minutes later...

"So this is the place?" A slender, graceful figure approached Aogetsu Hyuga. He wore a white robe, and his face was delicate and lovely. His skin was as fair as snow, and glossy black hair fell down his back.

He was beautiful.

But he was a man!

He was Yuki Haku.

"Aogetsu Hyuga..." Yuki Haku crouched beside the sofa, resting his fair cheek on one hand as he studied Cangyue's handsome face with a faint smile.

He had heard the stories about Aogetsu Hyuga. According to rumor, Cangyue was a cold, merciless monster who used his strength to crush the weak.

Wherever he went, disaster followed.

That was why people called him the Disaster Ninja.