I'm not feeling it this morning. I'll draw again when I get home tonight.
The uneventful theory class ended, and the Ninja Academy let out, but rain suddenly started pouring down.
It wasn't a gentle drizzle, either. Raindrops rattled against the windows.
The corridor was packed with students who hadn't brought umbrellas. Some sighed, some cursed the weather, and some held their schoolbags over their heads and charged straight outside.
Kiyoshi stood under the eaves, staring blankly at the curtain of rain for a while.
The rain was heavy. A layer of water had already collected on the ground, and the falling drops splashed across it in a dense patter.
In the distance, trees swayed in the wind, their leaves beaten down by the rain.
Wasn't today supposed to be my lucky day? I still need to go home and draw cards. What's with the rain?
After drawing his cards, he also needed to practice Taijutsu and test the Instinct Soldier Pill's effects.
Yesterday's Taijutsu assessment had only been D-Rank, and Nakajima had come looking for trouble. He'd realized that trash talk alone wouldn't cut it.
Just because Nakajima had been intimidated didn't mean he wouldn't throw a punch next time.
If they actually fought, Kiyoshi might not even be able to beat Nakajima with his current Taijutsu skills.
Nakajima was just an ordinary kid, not someone from a ninja clan, but he was a good deal bigger than Kiyoshi.
He lowered his head and looked at his hands. Soft and pale, without a single callus.
The system panel suddenly popped up.
Special scenario activated: training in the rain.
He froze for a moment, then kept reading.
Acquisition multiplier ×2. Training effects ×2. Recommended use: Instinct Soldier Pill (R-Rank).
He stared at that line for two seconds.
×2.
He'd run around the entire Commercial Street that morning just to earn fifty awkwardness value. With ×2, the same amount of training would yield twice the rewards.
And the training effects would double, too.
He felt the Instinct Soldier Pill in his pocket. He'd drawn it last time and hadn't been willing to use it.
If the system recommended using it, it should help.
He stood under the eaves, watching the curtain of rain.
The rain was heavy. He'd be soaked within three seconds of rushing into it. And school had just let out, so there were people on the streets. If someone saw him throwing punches in the rain, they'd think he was crazy.
He stepped out with one foot, then pulled it back.
No. That's too embarrassing.
He stepped out a second time, planting both feet in the rain. His shoes and trouser cuffs were instantly soaked. He glanced down, then retreated beneath the eaves again.
His shoes were wet. He wiggled his toes inside them, feeling the chill.
Standing under the eaves, he took a deep breath.
Then he remembered Nakajima's face and thought of the massacre that would happen a year and a half from now.
What if Nakajima actually attacks next time? What if Itachi raises his blade?
How am I supposed to protect myself if I don't even try to improve?
D-Rank Taijutsu. He couldn't even do thirty push-ups.
His fists unconsciously clenched and relaxed several times.
"Fuck it!"
He swore, tossed his schoolbag onto the ground, and charged into the rain.
The rain slammed into his face, not in individual drops, but in a solid sheet. He could barely keep his eyes open.
He ran two steps, slipped, and staggered, nearly falling to his knees. He braced a palm against the ground and managed to steady himself.
He'd scraped a little skin off his palm. It stung.
He ignored it.
He bent over, took a couple of breaths, then swallowed an Instinct Soldier Pill.
He started throwing punches.
They weren't moves the system had taught him, nor ones he'd learned. They were pure instinct.
Punch after punch struck the air. The force scattered the rain, which fell again, only to be scattered by the next punch.
On his third punch, his foot slipped again. This time, he couldn't regain his balance and landed butt-first in a puddle.
Water splashed up, drenching his face.
He sat in the puddle, stunned for two seconds, then swore, climbed to his feet, and kept punching.
He didn't know how long he kept at it. Maybe five minutes, maybe ten.
His arms ached, but his body kept moving. The rain was loud enough to drown out everything else. All he could hear was his own breathing and heartbeat.
The air in the rain was cold, but his body burned hot.
He stopped, bent over with his hands on his knees, and panted.
The rain kept falling, striking his back with a cool chill.
His body felt light.
Not light as in relaxed, but light as in it seemed to weigh less.
He looked down at his hands. His palms were a little red, and the rain had soaked the scrape until it turned pale.
The panel popped up.
Jiahao realm breakthrough. Beginner Hao → Cultivation-stage Hao.
He stared at the line, panting, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
Then he heard a voice.
"Bro Hao! That was awesome!"
He turned his head.
Naruto stood a short distance away, soaked to the skin, his face full of excitement and his eyes shining.
Hinata stood beside him, holding an umbrella. But it was tilted, and a large patch of her own shoulder was wet, too.
Kiyoshi fell silent.
"...How long have you been watching?"
"Since the start!" Naruto gave him a thumbs-up. "That fall you took was so loud!"
"..."
Kiyoshi glanced at Naruto, then at Hinata, who was hiding behind Naruto with only half her face showing. An indescribable feeling welled up inside him.
"It was nothing." He wiped the water off his face, his voice flat. "Just throwing random punches."
"Random punches can look like that?" Naruto took a step forward. Rain streamed down his face, but he was grinning happily. "Teach me!"
"...No."
"Why not?"
"Because it's instinct."
Naruto froze for a moment, then burst out laughing. "You say the funniest things!"
Kiyoshi ignored him, walked beneath the eaves, picked up his schoolbag, and wrung the water out of his clothes.
Water poured onto the ground. He wrung them twice, then once more before stopping.
Two passersby walked past, glanced at him, then at Naruto and Hinata, and shook their heads.
"Has this Uchiha kid gone crazy?"
"There's something wrong with every Uchiha's head."
Kiyoshi heard them, but didn't turn around.
The system panel popped up.
Face value ×2 multiplier: Naruto and Hinata, 10×2×2=40. Realm breakthrough reward doubled. Total: 80. Awkwardness value ×2 multiplier: passersby plus self, 10×8×2=160. Realm breakthrough reward doubled. Total: 320.
After reading the results, he silently did the math.
More than yesterday's crowd earned me. A Hao in the rain really is the real deal.
Holding his soaked schoolbag, he stood beneath the eaves. The rain was still falling, with no sign of stopping.
Naruto was still excitedly chattering beside him, while Hinata blushed and occasionally stole a glance at him. Listening to Naruto's voice and watching the rain, Kiyoshi felt that today's training had been embarrassing, but it hadn't been without rewards.
He glanced at his hands and clenched his fists.
Cultivation-stage Hao. Kind of absurd.
"Bro Hao, are you coming again tomorrow?" Naruto asked.
Kiyoshi glanced at him. Rain streamed down Naruto's face, but he was smiling happily, as though he didn't care at all that he was getting drenched.
"...Depends."
"Then I'll come tomorrow, too!"
"Don't you have school?"
"Yeah! I'll come after school!"
Kiyoshi fell silent.
He imagined Naruto squatting beside the training ground every day after school, watching him throw punches, and felt a headache coming on.
But he didn't tell him not to come.
He slung his schoolbag onto his back and stepped into the rain.
Naruto shouted behind him, "Bro Hao, you're going the wrong way! Your house is over there!"
Kiyoshi froze for a moment, turned around, and headed in the other direction.
He heard Naruto laughing behind him, loud and noisy.
He didn't look back.
But after a few steps, he glanced down at his hand. The scrape was still there, but it had been worth it.
That line was still on the panel-"Cultivation-stage Hao." He didn't look at it again, but he didn't forget it, either.
After getting home and taking a shower, he sat on the edge of his bed and reached out to touch the system panel.
The moment his fingertip touched it, the panel popped up with an extra line of small text:
[Continuous high-intensity training detected. Host's Taijutsu growth rate increasing... Current progress: D-Rank → C-Rank, 27%]
He stared at the line for two seconds.
Then he closed the panel and lay down.
27%.
As long as I'm making progress.
Before you continue