Training and Experimentation

The Rasengan, that renowned ninjutsu from Naruto,

Had truly shone in Naruto thanks to its lack of hand seals.

It was also the signature ninjutsu of the protagonist, Naruto Uzumaki,

With a complete progression of upgrades:

Big Ball Rasengan, Wind Release: Rasenshuriken, and the Sage Art series that followed.

Even without his cheats,

Naruto could take on the Shinobi World with just a shadow clone and the Rasengan.

Clearly, it had its merits.

At that moment, Yuya held a water-filled balloon in his hand,

And began recalling the Rasengan training techniques from Naruto.

The Rasengan was a ninjutsu without an elemental nature!

Yet it incorporated the shape transformation of Wind Release.

Its core was the rotation of wind-disorder and chaos!

Those were both its key principles and its training steps.

Chakra had to be gathered in the hand,

Then kept rotating and flowing in different directions,

Until it finally intertwined into a sphere that held together without dispersing.

That demanded tremendous control over chakra,

So he had not attempted to learn it immediately,

Choosing to practice tree climbing first instead.

Now, he slowly gathered the chakra within his body into his hand,

Making the Chakra rotate continuously and churn the water inside the balloon.

Before long, the balloon burst with a pop.

A thoughtful gleam crossed Yuya's eyes.

He did not immediately begin the next exercise,

Instead reflecting on the chakra's shape transformation just now,

And further ways of applying chakra to exert force.

"Rotation..."

Thought flickered in his eyes,

And he picked up another balloon.

Soon, beneath the surging chakra,

This balloon burst as well.

"From order to disorder."

After a long while, Yuya murmured to himself.

The next moment, he skipped the balloons altogether,

Picked up a rubber ball, and continued pondering.

According to the original story, a rubber ball was a hundred times tougher than a balloon.

Now, Yuya poured chakra into the rubber ball,

And found that bursting it was indeed several times harder than bursting a balloon.

He could easily increase the amount of chakra and force it to burst,

But doing so would be meaningless.

What he wanted was chakra shape transformation,

And the density of the sphere it formed.

"Chaos..."

He whispered,

Gathering chakra in his hand and experimenting over and over.

After a long while,

The rubber ball burst with a pop.

"Order into disorder. Regularity amid chaos."

He seemed to grasp something.

Rather than try anything else, he closed his eyes,

Carefully contemplating the sensation of chakra gathering in his hand just now.

The next moment, he walked toward a tree.

He raised his hand.

Azure chakra began condensing tightly in his palm.

Every strand of chakra spun and surged from a different direction.

It appeared utterly chaotic, yet there was a faint order to it,

Until it finally condensed into a sphere.

[Due to your extraordinary comprehension, you have automatically grasped A-Rank Ninjutsu: Rasengan]

But Yuya did not stop.

The Rasengan in his hand suddenly expanded severalfold.

It was none other than the Big Ball Rasengan from the original story!

"Does it not recognize the Big Ball Rasengan?"

Seeing that the system had given no notification this time,

Yuya murmured.

Essentially, the Rasengan and the Big Ball Rasengan were the same technique.

The latter merely used more chakra.

Although maintaining the chakra's high density and shape transformation was harder,

It was not a qualitative change.

Yuya waved his hand, dispersing the Big Ball Rasengan.

He had no intention of testing its power.

To him, that held little interest.

If the Fourth Hokage had witnessed this,

He might well have leaped out of his coffin.

Though, of course, he had not even been born yet...

Normally, once a Rasengan had formed,

It was very difficult to disperse. No matter which point was used as an outlet,

The highly condensed chakra would ultimately explode.

To disperse it safely,

Every chaotic strand of chakra had to be

Released simultaneously and restored to order. (This is part of the setting; please do not scrutinize the Rasengan training too closely.)

That was several times harder than forming a Rasengan.

Someone who had never encountered chakra before

Had, in an extremely short time, brought his chakra control

And shape transformation to their utmost limits.

Calling his comprehension extraordinary was an understatement. It was simply staggering!

Yet not a ripple stirred in Yuya's heart.

He did not know just how far

The system's comprehension boost had taken him.

He only felt that these things,

In a sense, had become knowledge he was born with.

"Getting stronger..."

He sighed softly and wasted no more time.

He went to the training grounds,

And began practicing swordsmanship for the first time ever.

Over the past three years, when he was not farming,

He had indeed indulged in song, dance, and unrestrained pleasure, living in a drunken haze.

He had taken decadence as far as it could go.

Living in an ancient era, with his exalted status and countless servants,

His extravagance and decadence, compared with his previous life,

Had only grown worse.

Once, he had thought he could always rely on Princess Kaguya, no matter what.

He only needed to give Hagoromo and Hamura a little guidance when they were born,

And he should easily be able to change her fate.

But now, the woman who had always protected him

Had been driven, because of him, into a predicament that all but guaranteed her death.

And no one could stand beside her.

How could he keep accepting her kindness with a clear conscience?

"What an idiot..."

"This time... I'll protect you..."

Several hours later,

Boom!

A dazzling sword gleam flashed, and the platform shattered outright!

[During training, you have mastered more techniques for using your body. Taijutsu +10]

[Due to your extraordinary comprehension, you have gained a minor insight while practicing the Gale Sword Technique]

[You have innovated upon the Gale Sword Technique. Reassessing its rank]

[Gale Sword Technique: Rank A]

Yuya stood on the ruined platform, already drenched in sweat.

Over these past few hours,

He had not merely been practicing the Gale Sword Technique.

Its upgrade was certainly a welcome surprise,

But his greater aim was to bring his body's strength together.

His body had lain dormant for three years.

His stat panel was powerful, but he could not bring out even a ten-thousandth of that potential.

He did not even know how much strength or speed he currently possessed.

This was his first time familiarizing himself with and mastering his body's power.

Now, his meridians stretched freely, and his blood surged.

He was already a far cry from what he had been before.

"Still not enough..."

He murmured to himself. For him, this rate of improvement was still not enough!

Princess Kaguya was enduring the corrosion. With every second he delayed, he hated himself a little more.

The next moment, he looked at Qingyi, who had been waiting respectfully below the platform,

Her expression already filled with shock,

And beckoned her over.

"Crown Prince, did you need me?"

Qingyi approached. Beyond swallowing nervously and feeling stunned,

After repeatedly witnessing the astonishing sights Yuya produced,

She had actually grown somewhat numb.

But now was not the time to think about those things.

At that moment, looking at Yuya's handsome face up close,

Especially when he had just finished practicing with his sword and was radiating masculine energy,

A single glance left Qingyi blushing, her heart racing.

"Ask me a question."

Yuya said.

"Ah? What?"

For a moment, Qingyi could not process his words.

"Or make a request."

Yuya frowned.

"Uh... Crown Prince... are you an immortal?"

Qingyi swallowed, then spoke anyway.

"No, try another."

"Crown Prince, have you eaten?"

"No, try another."

"Crown Prince, are you tired after all that swordplay?"

"Another."

"Crown Prince, I like you..."

"Stop."

Yuya had been frowning the whole time,

while Qingyi's face had already turned as red as a little apple.

What is this? This is so embarrassing! He keeps making me ask questions,

but he won't answer any of them. Who could possibly handle this?

"Could it be that the impact isn't enough?"

Yuya knitted his brows in thought.

But as Qingyi wallowed in embarrassment, she suddenly found herself flying through the air.

Yuya was carrying her with one hand,

and in a few bounds, he leaped toward the crowded square.

"Now, ask those questions again."

Yuya spoke.

"Ah! Crown Prince, I like you!"

Qingyi was dizzy, feeling as though the whole world were spinning.

She had no idea where she was, and in her disorientation, she actually shouted it out.

Everyone in the square fell silent at that moment, sensing juicy gossip in the air.

[Option one: Give a wicked smile, lift her chin, and say, "Do you like me at night or during the day? Shall we have an in-depth chat in the woods?" Reward: Clone Technique]

[Option two: Smile apologetically. "Sorry, you're a good person, but we aren't right for each other." Reward: Manipulation skills +1]

[Option three: Say expressionlessly, "Sorry, I actually like men." Reward: Observation Haki]

There it is.

"Sorry, I actually like men."

Yuya spoke calmly, with almost no hesitation.

"Gasp! The Crown Prince actually... he..."

"Boohoo... Mom, my heart's broken! The Crown Prince likes men!"

"Hey, Tie Zhu, doesn't that mean we have a chance now?"

The crowd erupted.

But Yuya couldn't have cared less. Princess Kaguya's fate was still unknown-why should he bother with what the world thought?

"Ye'er... you..."

A familiar voice rang out,

and Yuya stiffened, tears streaming from his eyes.