Tahm's Cheat Ability

"What did you say?!" Hyuga Hiashi was extremely displeased by Tahm's questioning of his methods of education. He glared at Tahm, recklessly unleashing the imposing presence of an elite jonin, making the dojo seem several degrees colder.

"Forcing Hinata to train blindly won't improve her much," Tahm said, enduring the pressure. "Excessive training will only leave Hinata with hidden injuries!"

"Hmph! What would you know?" Hiashi snorted. "If she suffers hidden injuries, there are naturally the finest medicinal baths to make up for them. She is already mediocre in talent—if she does not even have the resolve to endure injury, how can she bear the status of the Hyuga main house?"

"Heh..." Tahm's temper flared as well. "If you, Clan Head, spent less time spouting nonsense about the Hyuga main house, perhaps things would have improved long ago."

"Insolence!" Hiashi was overcome with fury. He was merely a summoned beast, yet he repeatedly challenged his authority in front of his daughter!

"Please stop arguing!" Hinata finally gathered her courage and stepped forward. "Father, it's all my fault. I'll train properly. Please don't blame Tahm."

"Enough!" Seeing his daughter trembling so fearfully, Hiashi did not soften at all. Instead, an inexplicable anger rose within him. "You can't even speak loudly. What right do you have to influence my decision?"

Those words pierced deeply into Hinata's tender heart, and a mist of tears welled up in her large white eyes. Hinata clenched her fists desperately, refusing to let the tears fall. Yet this tendency to cry at the slightest provocation only disappointed Hiashi further. He had completely forgotten that this was the normal reaction of a child.

Tahm stepped forward and took Hinata's little hand in his plump one, using his broad body to block Hyuga Hiashi's hurtful gaze. As though she had found an outlet for her feelings and a source of support she had never known before, tears kept gathering into crystalline drops and falling down her cheeks. Tahm gently stroked Hinata's little head, then said to Hyuga Hiashi, "I want to make a wager with Lord Hiashi. I'll take responsibility for guiding Hinata's training from now on. Within one month, I'll show you results! If she makes no progress, I'll cancel the summoning contract myself and return to Mount Myoboku!"

"No!" Hinata spoke first instead. "Tahm, I don't want you to leave."

"Oh?" Hyuga Hiashi became interested. "Then it's settled! I'd like to see what method you have that could be more effective than the Hyuga Compound's training." The arrogance of an old noble house naturally surfaced.

Ignoring Hinata's anxious gaze and her little hand clutching his finger tightly, Tahm replied calmly, "It's a deal!"

Hiashi gave Tahm a meaningful glance, then turned and left decisively. On his second day of work, Tahm had already driven off his boss's father in anger. He truly was a workplace legend.

"Tahm..." Hinata's worried gaze was entirely undisguised as she softly called his name, seeking a response.

"Don't worry, Hinata." Tahm crouched down, trying to make up for their difference in height as he looked directly into her pure white eyes, still damp with tears. "This agreement isn't just between me and your father. It's also between you and me. Do you have the confidence to become stronger in order to protect our contract?"

"Mm!" Hinata was touched by the word "protect," and her voice carried a firmness she had never possessed before. "Let's start training, Tahm!"

"No... let's sit down and rest first!"

"Huh?"

Tahm pulled Hinata down to sit, then lay down with her on the dojo's solid wooden floor without the slightest concern for appearances, breathing in the fresh air flowing through the hall.

After a while...

"Tahm, is it really okay for us not to train like this?"

"Of course." Tahm shared his exclusive training experience. "How do you feel right now? Not physically, but mentally."

"I feel much more relaxed..." Hinata answered softly. "I've never lain down like this before. Father would scold me for it."

"Haha! Feeling relaxed means it's working. As for the things your father said, forget all of them in one breath!" Tahm said confidently. In truth, lying directly on the ground after intense exercise was not a method that conformed to human physiology; it could even cause harm. But Tahm's body was data-based. Although he still became tired and felt pain while training without entering combat mode, as long as he lay still, his body naturally recovered to its best state along with his health regeneration. As for Hinata, Tahm had his own method.

"All right, get up, Hinata."

"Mm. Are we starting training now?" Hinata stood and moved her body around. She did feel much more relaxed mentally, but her body was still full of soreness from the intense training earlier.

"Has your body recovered?" Tahm asked teasingly.

"Y-Yes!" Hinata gave the expected answer.

"Hinata." Tahm gently stroked her smooth hair again. He had already come to like this feeling of being an older brother. "There's no need to lie to me. Persisting in things that harm you will only bring bad results."

"Mm..." Hinata lowered her head embarrassedly, allowing Tahm to comfort her.

Activate... Tahm silently recited in his heart. Starcall!

The health bar on his combat panel instantly lost a small segment, and a gentle golden light emerged from Tahm's palm, covering Hinata's entire body. Although the system's data-based effects only applied to Tahm himself, and he could not see Hinata's "health bar," he could immediately see the color return to her face. The tiny wounds on her hands from practicing palm strikes healed at a visible speed, leaving behind only smooth skin.

Hinata's experience was even more direct. She only felt her whole body becoming warm, while the soreness in her limbs vanished instantly. It was far more comfortable than soaking in an expensive medicinal bath. It even seemed as if the hidden injuries left behind by her past training had been healed. The warm sensation made Hinata let out an adorable little hum, before she quickly covered her mouth in embarrassment.

"How do you feel now?"

"Very good!" Hinata looked at Tahm with amazement.

"Haha! This is my unique secret technique!" Tahm laughed proudly. "Now, let's start training!"

"Mm!" Hinata responded energetically and was about to run over to the wooden post to continue her basic fist and palm training.

"Wait!" Tahm stopped her. "Don't hit that. Hit me!"

"Hit you?" Hinata could not understand.

Tahm patted his huge belly, sending waves of flesh rippling across it. "That's right! Hit here, just like you hit that wooden post!"

"Won't you get hurt?"

"Don't worry, my skin is very thick! Hit me as hard as you can!" Tahm said proudly, patting his belly.

Hinata could not quite bear to do it, but she still chose to trust Tahm. She gathered her strength and struck him with her palm. Hinata had clearly not used her full strength. Although his large belly swayed from the hit, Tahm did not move even slightly.

Tahm had already activated combat mode, so he could not feel pain. Through the changes in his health, he accurately saw the damage caused by Hinata's strike. After being reduced by his defense, it had dealt only 9 points of damage. Tahm's health automatically regenerated that amount in less than a second.

"Don't hold back. Throw your best palm strike!" Tahm used a stern tone rarely heard from him. A moment later, his expression softened again. "You saw it too. I don't feel any pain at all."

"Mm." Hinata became serious this time. She gathered chakra into her palm and struck with all her strength, dealing Tahm a full 16 points of damage.

That was right. Tahm was using himself as a living testing device. Through his data-based body, he could precisely gauge the effectiveness of Hinata's attacks, then continually adjust the force, angle, and chakra usage of her palm strikes to assist her training. In any case, he truly could not feel pain, and any lost health would refill after a short rest. He was practically a living support cheat.