Chapter 88

Chapter 88 - 88 [+300 Power Stone Bonus Chapter!!] After an exhilarating battle, Natsuki faintly felt like he had grasped something. Whether in speed or kenjutsu, Kakashi was still superior to Natsuki. Especially in terms of speed — it felt just like Raiton Shunshin (Lightning Instantaneous Body Technique). It seemed he needed to properly reflect on it after returning home. After expressing his gratitude, Natsuki left with Tenten. Team 7 remained silent for a long time until Kakashi took out his Icha Icha Paradise novel to read. Only then did Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura snap out of it. Naruto was the first to ask, "Kakashi-sensei, you actually taught your family's kenjutsu to Natsuki?" Kakashi blinked innocently. "Is there a problem?" Uh... thinking about it, there didn't seem to be. The kenjutsu belonged to Kakashi; it was his to teach to whomever he wanted — nobody else could complain. Sakura, however, asked another question: "Kakashi-sensei, Natsuki's girlfriend Tenten — is she strong too?" Kakashi answered as if it were obvious, "Of course. Tenten is very strong. And her fighting style is quite unique. She even has hidden trump cards that not even I know about. In any case, she's very impressive. Right now, none of you three are her match." Sasuke's pupils shrank. So not only could he not defeat Natsuki, he couldn't even defeat Natsuki's girlfriend? How could it be like this! After a long silence, Sasuke suddenly said, "Kakashi, teach me your ultimate technique!" Kakashi looked up from his book. "My ultimate technique?" Sasuke nodded seriously. "The kenjutsu you taught Natsuki!" If he also learned that amazing kenjutsu, maybe he could become as strong as Natsuki? Maybe he could even defeat Itachi? But Kakashi shook his head. "That's not my ultimate technique — that's my father's kenjutsu. Besides, I didn't really teach Natsuki — he learned it himself from a scroll." "I don't care! I want to learn that kenjutsu — and your ultimate technique too!" "You're pretty greedy, huh?" Kakashi chuckled rather than being annoyed. "Learning my ultimate technique is no easy task. And my father's kenjutsu? Natsuki spent a year training just to reach his current level. Are you sure you have the determination and perseverance for it?" Sasuke said with certainty, "Bring it on! I'm not afraid! There's nothing I can't learn!" Naruto quickly chimed in, "Kakashi-sensei! Teach me something too! I want to get stronger!" Sakura timidly raised her hand, then silently lowered it again. She decided she would talk to Kakashi privately later. She clearly understood her own weakness. After being scolded fiercely by Natsuki before, she was still feeling miserable. She really, really wanted to become stronger too. "Very well!" Kakashi smiled happily, like he was starting to enjoy teaching students. "If you're all prepared, then I won't go easy on you!" Meanwhile, after dropping Tenten off at her ninja tool shop, Natsuki returned home by himself. Tenten didn't insist on staying with him. She understood that Natsuki had gained some insights and urgently needed to focus on them. Originally, she hadn't even wanted him to walk her home, but since Natsuki insisted, she accepted. She hoped her boyfriend would become stronger and stronger, so she could rest easy. Back at home, Natsuki immediately entered the Gravity Training Room. He was gradually adapting to the tenfold gravity. However, his physical strength wasn't increasing quickly — not because he lacked talent, but because of the nature of this world itself. It wasn't like in Dragon Ball, where training under high gravity for a certain amount of time would make you exponentially stronger. Nor was it like in the One Piece world, where working two hundred times harder than others could turn you into an Admiral in two years. Not at all. This was a world focused on ninjutsu. If you had high comprehension, you could develop powerful techniques within a month. But if you focused purely on taijutsu, even after ten or twenty years of brutal training, you might still see no significant results. The most typical example was Might Guy — even after honing his body for many years, opening all Eight Gates only allowed him to cripple Madara. If it had been One Piece, he would've been a Yonko by now. "Tch!" Fortunately, Natsuki wasn't anxious. There were still many years left until the ultimate battles. He still had plenty of time to grow stronger. Right now, he needed to focus on mastering the Hatake-style kenjutsu. He recalled the previous battle with Kakashi, replaying Kakashi's movements in his mind. It felt like the lightning wasn't just surging on the surface — it was alive, propelling the body at insane speeds. He tried to imitate it, and he actually found a faint sense of it. Encouraged, he threw himself even more seriously into the practice. If once wasn't enough, he'd do it twice. If twice wasn't enough, he'd try ten or a hundred times. No way he couldn't master it! Fortunately, Natsuki truly had outstanding talent. He had simply never thought of this path before. But after Kakashi's guidance, he very quickly mastered Raiton Shunshin (Lightning Instantaneous Body Technique). Inside the Gravity Training Room, he was now like a bolt of lightning flashing madly around. And that was under tenfold gravity. If gravity returned to normal, he would be even faster. "Raiton Shunshin is finally fully mastered! Next step: combining it with kenjutsu — I must reach the speed of the White Fang, or even surpass it. At that point, even Kage-level powerhouses will be no threat!" Unknowingly, a month passed. Natsuki's training progressed smoothly, putting him in a good mood. Recently, Team 9 hadn't taken on any missions — they were focused on training. Rinya was being subjected to extra training from his cousin, Aoba. Megumi went to the hospital to help out. As for Natsuki, he trained alone most of the time, and occasionally sparred with Guy's team. Guy's team welcomed him warmly — not just because he was Tenten's boyfriend, but also because they were friends. Moreover, Neji, perhaps influenced by Lee, challenged Natsuki every time they met — and even after losing repeatedly, he never got discouraged. As for Lee, he was even crazier. After challenging Natsuki, he'd immediately turn around and challenge Neji, then Tenten — though he was constantly being defeated miserably. Yet Lee remained relentlessly positive. Even Neji had to admit a certain admiration, and he learned a thing or two from Lee's attitude. Because of this, the atmosphere within Guy's team became extremely positive. One day, while buying groceries, Natsuki noticed an influx of foreign shinobi in the village. He even spotted the Sound trio — Sakon, Tayuya, and Kidōmaru. It seemed the Chūnin Exams were just around the corner. That said, even though Hiruzen already knew that Otogakure and Orochimaru were connected, he still allowed the Sound ninja to participate? Wasn't that way too reckless? Well, it wasn't Natsuki's concern anyway. Hiruzen had his own considerations. Besides, he would eventually die, paving the way for Tsunade to take over. That would actually be better for Natsuki. Under Tsunade's leadership, he could openly unleash his real strength. And he could finally request more secret techniques — things like Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique) and Kuchiyose: Kakezaki Fuda (Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags). Things he wouldn't dare ask for under Hiruzen, he could definitely ask Tsunade for. Funny how fate worked, wasn't it? Natsuki didn't trust that old man Hiruzen at all. All he could do was wait for the old fogey to die and Tsunade to ascend! Sure enough, the very next day, Aoba handed out the Chūnin Exam application forms. Aoba said, "With your strength, you're more than capable of handling this exam. Give it your all — don't waste your efforts!" The three of them exchanged looks, then simultaneously put on green sunglasses and shouted: "We're Team Aoba! The Chūnin Exams are no problem for us!" (End of Chapter) [Check Out My Patreon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][/zaelum] [+500 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter] [Thank You For Your Support!]