Chakra Enhanced Strength

Danzo looked at the intelligence before him and said, "Failed again? Uzumaki Hane really is a threat."

Uzumaki Hane left the hospital room, wanting to visit Hyuga Tanaka and Yamano Koromo. He wondered how the two of them were doing. After asking for directions to their rooms, he discovered that they had already been discharged. It seemed their injuries were no longer serious. Somewhat relieved, he left the hospital.

At the hospital entrance, he happened to run into Naruto. When Naruto saw Uzumaki Hane, he forced a smile and said, "Hane, you're okay now, right?"

It was rare to see Naruto like this. Concerned, Uzumaki Hane asked, "Naruto, what's wrong?"

Naruto told him what had happened. Although the three of them hadn't gone on the mission to the Land of Tea, the Hokage had assigned them another mission. The outcome had been the same, though: Sasuke had been injured, and Naruto had turned the situation around. That had given Sasuke a sense of crisis, and the two of them had just fought a major battle on the rooftop.

Uzumaki Hane hadn't expected the story to return to its original course. A rift had still formed between Sasuke and Naruto. Sasuke's defection would be next, wouldn't it?

"Don't worry," Uzumaki Hane comforted him. "I'll treat you to ramen." He then took Naruto to Ichiraku Ramen, where they ate and chatted about the interesting things that had happened lately.

After the two of them had eaten their fill, Uzumaki Hane said goodbye to Naruto. He then went to the Yamano household, where only Koromo's mother was home. She was delighted to see that he had been discharged and kept asking about his injuries. She also told him that Yamano Koromo wasn't home; she had gone out to train. It took Uzumaki Hane a great deal of effort to get away.

Uzumaki Hane left the Yamano household and went to Tanaka's home. Tanaka's parents also said that he had gone out to train.

Since he hadn't been able to see either of them, Uzumaki Hane decided to train. He still wasn't strong enough and had to work harder. But what should he train in? After thinking for a while, Uzumaki decided to find Mitarashi Anko and continue strengthening his magma abilities.

Uzumaki Hane soon arrived at Mitarashi Anko's training ground, only to find Yamano Koromo training there as well.

Yamano Koromo and Mitarashi Anko were fighting with Kunai in hand, but Mitarashi Anko was clearly stronger. Yamano Koromo was driven back every time, only to charge in again.

Mitarashi Anko drove Yamano Koromo back once more and said, "Koromo, take a break. You've already been practicing all morning."

Yamano Koromo shook her head. "If I hadn't been too weak and become a burden this time, Hane wouldn't have been hurt so badly. I need to get stronger so I can help him." Then she charged again.

Mitarashi Anko blocked Yamano Koromo's Kunai and said tenderly, "Silly girl!" Her gaze, however, turned toward where Uzumaki Hane stood.

Uzumaki Hane had intended to show himself, but when he heard Yamano Koromo's words, an indescribable emotion seemed to well up in his heart. He remained silent, quietly watching the two fight. Then a fighting spirit rose within him, and he murmured, "I have another reason to get stronger."

Then he saw Mitarashi Anko looking his way. Has she spotted me? he thought, before silently leaving.

Uzumaki Hane walked briskly down the street, preparing to return to his own training ground.

Just then, a masked figure appeared in front of him and said, "Uzumaki Hane, Lord Hokage summons you."

What does Teacher Tsunade want with me? Could it be another mission? Uzumaki Hane thought. He followed the Anbu to the Hokage's office, where Tsunade was sitting at her desk handling official business. "Teacher Tsunade," he said.

Tsunade looked up and said, "Hane, you're here."

"Teacher Tsunade, is there a mission?" Uzumaki Hane asked.

"There are plenty of missions, of course. All the Jonin have been sent out on assignments. But I didn't call you here today for a mission. It's been quite a few days since you became my disciple, so I've decided to teach you a Ninjutsu technique. Come with me."

The two arrived at a training ground. Tsunade raised her right hand and said, "People always think this technique of mine is just superhuman strength, but it's actually an application of Medical Ninjutsu. You need extremely precise Chakra control to learn it."

Uzumaki Hane hadn't expected Tsunade to teach him Chakra Enhanced Strength. He imagined using it with the power of the Magma-Magma Fruit, and the image was simply too beautiful. He looked at Tsunade expectantly, though he didn't know whether he could learn it.

Tsunade continued, "Extract as much Chakra from your body as possible, then concentrate it in your fist in an instant. Strike with your fist, carrying the Chakra with it. With its terrifying force and destructive power, anything will be destroyed. Like this." As she spoke, she slammed her right hand into the ground, opening a crack a meter wide that extended forward.

"Give it a try," Tsunade said.

"Yes." Uzumaki Hane raised his right hand, quickly extracted his Chakra and concentrated it in his fist, then punched the ground. Bang! A fist print appeared in the ground, with scorch marks on it.

"This power is too weak," Uzumaki Hane murmured. "Did I fail?"

"You didn't extract the maximum amount of Chakra, and you gathered it too slowly. It lost its explosive force."

Uzumaki Hane nodded and decided to try again. Raising his right hand, he felt the flow of Chakra and thought to himself, Precise Chakra control... Ever since I transmigrated, I've relied on unleashing it directly every time. With the Magma-Magma Fruit's power on top of that, nothing could stand in my way. Now I need precise control, but I've never tried it before. Then Uzumaki Hane shouted, Chakra burst from his right hand, and he slammed it into a tree. The trunk shook violently, and a scorched fist print appeared on it.

Uzumaki Hane shook his head. "Still no good? I'm not skilled at precise Chakra control. Again." He slammed his right hand down once more. Bang! Another scorched pit appeared in the ground.

"You didn't extract the maximum amount of Chakra in an instant. Again," Tsunade said. Uzumaki Hane nodded, quickly gathered Chakra in his right hand, and struck again. Bang! Once again, only a scorched pit appeared in the ground.

"This time, you didn't concentrate the Chakra in your fist in an instant. In the end, your fist carried too little Chakra. Again."

Uzumaki Hane raised his right hand and murmured, "Extract as much Chakra from my body as possible, then concentrate it in my right hand in an instant." His hand was covered in Chakra as he brought his fist down with it. Bang! A hole appeared in the ground, fully twice the size of the last one.

"Not bad," Tsunade said. "You've started to get the hang of it, but you're still a long way from succeeding."

Just then, Shizune came over and said, "Lady Tsunade, you need to go back."

"Hane, train on your own," Tsunade said.

"Yes, Teacher Tsunade," Uzumaki Hane replied.

Tsunade then hurried away with Shizune.

Uzumaki Hane trained until nightfall, but he still didn't succeed, leaving countless holes in the training ground.