Konoha: I Have a Gravity Training Room

Then, the group focused on their missions. Even Might Guy took the initiative to join in and chat, mainly to deepen his relationship with the three students.

"By the way, Tenten, that slashing kick you used just now... was it ninjutsu?" Might Guy asked.

"Probably Nintaijutsu. My boyfriend created it. It's one of the Six Styles, called Tempest Kick." There was nothing to hide, so Tenten answered directly.

"Nintaijutsu? Very impressive!" Might Guy gave her a thumbs-up.

"It is indeed impressive." Even Neji offered rare praise.

"Six Styles? So there are other moves too? Tenten, show us after we finish the mission. I'm really interested." Rock Lee's eyes sparkled.

For Rock Lee, who could use neither ninjutsu nor genjutsu, taijutsu was the most appealing thing. Even if the Six Styles Tenten mentioned were Nintaijutsu, half of it was still taijutsu. Perhaps he wanted to see whether there was anything worth learning from.

Tenten did not refuse. "Sure! It'll be a good chance to show you how powerful the Nintaijutsu my boyfriend created is!"

These days, Tenten always had "my boyfriend" on her lips.

That only made Might Guy and the other two even more curious.

At the Ninja Academy, it was another outdoor sparring match.

Before Naruto could start shouting, Sasuke stepped forward first. "Xia Mu, fight me. Don't use that excuse about not having enough Chakra like before. I know you weren't going all out. This time, you're not allowed to surrender. Either you beat me, or I knock you down!"

Sure enough, Uchiha Sasuke was not stupid.

He had probably suspected something for the past few years, and now he was directly calling Xia Mu out on it.

Xia Mu felt the time was about right. In truth, he was no longer hiding much anyway.

He wanted to keep a low profile, but that had only been because he was weak in the early stages and did not want to be targeted by sinister rats. Now that he had grown stronger, and even his girlfriend's strength was assured, there was no need to keep pretending. Showing some of his strength and proving his worth would make Hiruzen Sarutobi assign him a good jonin instructor.

The instructor assigned after graduation was very important.

A good instructor would teach you many things, especially the knowledge and experience needed to be a ninja. Those were all worth learning.

Therefore, Xia Mu did not mind showing himself off before graduation and letting Hiruzen Sarutobi seriously consider the team assignments.

Even if he accidentally disrupted the original team arrangements, it did not matter. Xia Mu acted primarily for his own growth and did not care about anything else.

Of course, it would be great if he could be on the same team as Shino.

It was not only because he got along well with Shino. More importantly, Shino was dependable. Who would not want a reliable companion?

Xia Mu smiled. "Hehe, you found out. But let me explain. I was actually afraid that if I performed too well, the girls would fall for me. I already have a cute girlfriend, after all. But since you've seen through me, I won't pretend anymore. I'll show you a little of what I can do and fight you!"

Of course, that excuse was meant to brush off Hiruzen Sarutobi.

It was a little forced, but it was still believable enough.

As long as that old man Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that Xia Mu had not hidden his strength for any bad reason, that was enough.

Sasuke was finally satisfied. He did not care what Xia Mu's reasons were. All he knew was that Xia Mu would finally show his true abilities, and now he would see whether he stood a chance against him.

The two formed the Seal of Reconciliation, then faced each other with kunai in hand.

"Begin!"

The moment Iruka spoke, Xia Mu rushed forward first and clashed kunai with Sasuke.

Then, in the next second, Xia Mu's actions shocked everyone. He suddenly raised his left hand and formed several seals before unleashing ninjutsu right in Sasuke's face.

"Water Release: Water Bullet!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three water balls as large as heads shot from Xia Mu's mouth in rapid succession. Fortunately, Sasuke twisted aside to evade them. The water balls smashed into a nearby tree, breaking its trunk on the spot.

As Sasuke dodged sideways, Xia Mu kicked him, sending him rolling several times across the ground before he stopped.

Hiss!!!

So strong!

Everyone's scalps went numb. Who would have thought that Xia Mu, with that honest-looking face, had been hiding himself so deeply!

For the Sake of Protection, I Became Strong

One-Handed Seals! Water Style Ninjutsu!

Especially One-Handed Seals—this was not something ordinary people could learn, yet Xia Mu could actually do it!

It was simply unimaginable!

Iruka was also dumbfounded. He had not expected such talent to be hiding in his class.

He had thought Xia Mu was decent before. After all, Xia Mu could often send Sasuke, the Uchiha genius, flying. But Xia Mu had always acted as though he lacked Chakra, so Iruka had felt it was a pity.

Who would have thought Xia Mu had been pretending—and that he was an even greater genius than Sasuke?

One-Handed Seals in particular made him a genius among geniuses. Even the famed Copy Ninja Kakashi did not seem to know how to form seals with one hand!

"No! I have to report this to Lord Hokage. A genius like Xia Mu cannot be buried!" Iruka made up his mind to head straight to the Hokage's office after class.

Over here, Sasuke slowly rose to his feet.

His side still hurt a little. Xia Mu's kick had clearly been quite heavy.

Yet Sasuke's expression was filled with excitement. He knew Xia Mu had been concealing his ability, but he had not expected him to have such a trick up his sleeve. He had never even heard of One-Handed Seals.

Good. Then he would defeat this genius who could form seals with one hand and bring glory to the Uchiha name!

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"

Sasuke formed seals rapidly, and the fireball he spat out was several meters wide, delivering a powerful shock to the still-young students.

But as everyone knew, Great Fireball Technique often failed to kill anyone.

Xia Mu neither dodged nor avoided it. After swiftly forming several seals, he allowed the fireball to swallow him whole. Quite a few people screamed in fright, but even more remained calm. They did not believe Xia Mu would stand there obediently waiting to die, and Iruka had not intervened either.

Naturally, Sasuke knew this as well. He looked left and right, even looked upward, but could not find Xia Mu anywhere.

"Down here! Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!"

Xia Mu's voice rang out. Two hands suddenly burst from the earth, grabbed Sasuke's ankles, and yanked him downward. In an instant, only Sasuke's head remained above the ground.

Xia Mu had already emerged from the earth, his kunai held beneath Sasuke's throat.

"Damn it... I-I lost!"

Sasuke admitted defeat unwillingly. He had clearly been hit hard by this. He had not expected the gap between his true strength and Xia Mu's to be so vast. Looking at Xia Mu's relaxed expression, it was obvious he still had plenty in reserve. Sasuke was no match for him.

Iruka hurriedly announced, "The match is over! Xia Mu wins!"

The students were all stunned. Only after a long while did they come back to their senses, followed by applause.

Even the girls had no choice but to clap. Xia Mu had won too beautifully and decisively. Sasuke, the Uchiha genius, had been completely unable to fight back.

This was the perfect example of a commoner rising up against a clan genius!

It was impossible not to admire him!

Even Sasuke's fan club could not say anything at this point. They could only silently worry for their beloved Sasuke.

Xia Mu reached out and pulled Sasuke from the ground. After forming the Seal of Reconciliation, he turned to leave the field.

Sasuke suddenly spoke. "Xia Mu, why... why are you so strong?"

Xia Mu paused, then turned back to meet Sasuke's gaze seriously. His tone was incomparably solemn. "I became stronger to protect Tenten, and to protect friends like Shino, Shikamaru, and Choji. I have no inherited ninjutsu, so I studied more and thought more. I worked hard to control my Chakra with greater precision, and I even borrowed ninjutsu from Shino to learn. I became stronger for the sake of protection. What about you?"

Me? I became stronger for revenge!

Sasuke's eyes darkened, but he did not say it aloud.

Instead, he asked, "How did you manage One-Handed Seals?"

Xia Mu did not hide it. "As long as you can control Chakra with absolute precision, One-Handed Seals are no problem. I heard that the First Hokage could just clap his hands together and summon whatever he wanted. He did not need to form seals at all. My little trick is nowhere close to that!"

Everyone was somewhat speechless upon hearing that.

Everyone understood the principle, but comparing yourself to the First Hokage was a bit shameless, was it not?

Sasuke's eyes, however, lit up as he thought of something. "Precise Chakra control... is it trained through Tree Climbing and Water Walking?"

"How did you know?"

Xia Mu was puzzled. He had been waiting to enjoy the show when Team 7 was formed and Sasuke embarrassed himself.

But Sasuke did not answer. He would not admit that he had learned it after secretly seeing Naruto practice Tree Climbing. Now that he had gotten the answer he wanted, he naturally did not ask anything else and turned to leave the field.

Xia Mu did not press the matter. That was simply how things were.

Besides, his earlier answer to Sasuke had come from the heart, but he had also deliberately said it for Iruka to hear.

Iruka would surely pass it on to that old man, the Third Hokage. With Konoha's current shortage of talent, the Third Hokage should not mind putting effort into nurturing a genius who could form seals with one hand.

And things unfolded exactly as Xia Mu expected.

After the outdoor sparring class ended, Iruka immediately went to the Hokage's office and reported Xia Mu's situation.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was also shocked. He quickly took out Xia Mu's file and reviewed it, confirmed that there were no issues, then carefully questioned Iruka about Xia Mu's performance over the years.

Only after a long time did he sigh over his own misjudgment.

"This child is very clever and knows how to hide himself. Perhaps he understands that the tallest tree in the forest is the first to be felled by the wind, or perhaps he really hid himself for the sake of his little girlfriend. Still, his background is clean. He actively promotes the Will of Fire through the cards, and he has become trusted friends with quite a few clan children. Even if he hid his abilities for some purpose, he presumably would not harm the village.

"Becoming stronger for the sake of protection? Hehe, well said!

"The village has not produced such a genius in a long time. Nurture him properly, and he will surely become one of the village's great fighting forces in the future!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered inwardly as he took out the team assignment draft he had already been considering.

Originally, he had planned to casually assign Xia Mu any instructor. Now, however, he needed to find a good one. Otherwise, it would be too great a waste of the child's talent.

In fact, Hiruzen Sarutobi had some reasons he did not even voice in his thoughts.

For example, Xia Mu's relationship with Tenten could be considered one of Xia Mu's ties to Konoha. Tenten's family were wealthy merchants with considerable holdings in the Land of Fire. If Xia Mu truly married Tenten in the future, he would live comfortably for the rest of his life. As long as Xia Mu was not stupid, he would not betray the village.

A genius loyal to the village ought to be nurtured with all their might.

Of course, just in case, Anbu would still need to conduct a thorough investigation to rule out the possibility that Xia Mu was a spy.

"Oh, right. I also need to arrange for someone to keep an eye on Xia Mu, so Danzo doesn't get any ideas."

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew his old comrade-in-arms Danzo better than anyone. If Danzo learned that such a genius had appeared in the village, he would likely be unable to resist trying to snatch him away.

However, this time Hiruzen Sarutobi was wrong.

After receiving intelligence about Xia Mu, Danzo merely cursed under his breath and put the report away.

It was not that Danzo had turned over a new leaf. He simply had his concerns.

Dream Maker (Thanks for the Monthly Ticket)

Danzo's life was not going well these days.

Ever since Root had been disbanded, only a few people remained under his command.

Although the ninjas who had left Root all bore the Tongue Eradication Cursed Seal, Hiruzen Sarutobi was clearly guarding against his old comrade plotting something. Not only had he scattered those Root ninjas, he had also arranged for other Anbu ninjas to watch them. He even frequently sent them on dangerous missions without giving them any chance to pass information to Danzo.

As a result, it became much harder for Danzo to make use of his former subordinates.

Furthermore, Danzo's reputation was notoriously bad. Combined with his involvement in the Uchiha Clan massacre, the major clans loathed him deeply.

If Danzo dared to cause trouble at this time, he would definitely gain nothing from it.

Naturally, Danzo had his eye on a genius like Xia Mu who could form seals with one hand. But Xia Mu's relationship with the clan children was too good. He had even visited their homes for meals and was acquainted with the clan heads of the Nara Clan, Akimichi Clan, and Aburame Clan. How was Danzo supposed to make a move?

There was another point as well. The Ninja Kill cards Xia Mu had invented were far too popular.

Even the daimyo played that game and had specifically asked about the inventor's name.

Therefore, Danzo did not dare act rashly against Xia Mu. He also knew Hiruzen Sarutobi would definitely not allow him to make a move. Rather than make things ugly later, he might as well pretend he knew nothing.

"Damn it! Cunning little brat! I should have investigated you earlier!"

That was right. If Danzo had investigated earlier, things would have been different.

Back when Ninja Kill had not yet become popular, Danzo had still been getting mocked at the card table. If he had vented his anger on Xia Mu, the little brat who invented the card game, no one would have stopped him.

It was useless to regret it now.

"Hmph! Once I become the Fifth Hokage, won't you little brat still be under my command? And those evil Uchiha brats and the Nine-Tails brat will all have to obey the orders of me, the Fifth Hokage! Just wait. I will definitely become Hokage!"

The Ninja Academy let out.