The morning passed in a flash. After lunch, Hoshita Shūichi perched upside-down on a tree branch, hands clasped in meditation as he refined his chakra—another exercise to hone his control.
Thirty minutes later, he dropped to the ground, took a sip of salted water, and headed to the riverside.
Shizune and Gai were still practicing water-walking, but Shūichi had already mastered it that morning. Now, standing by the river, he took a breath and formed hand signs.
"Fire Release—Flame Bullet!"
A thin line of fire shot from his mouth, stretching over three meters across the water before condensing into a swirling orb. The half-meter-wide fireball erupted with a boom, sending up a geyser of steam and spray.
"Amazing!" Shizune gasped from the river's surface.
Guy grinned up at him, teeth gleaming. "As expected of Shūichi! Mastering a Fire Release jutsu so quickly—"
"Eh? Wait—!"
Mid-praise, Guy flailed wildly before plunging into the water with a splash.
On the bank, Shūichi analyzed his performance: "Chakra output wasn't fast or stable enough. And the flames lacked density—greater compression would've increased velocity and explosive force."
His thoughts then shifted to the Memory Palace, where a new entry had appeared.
"Just as I thought."
Entry: [Fire Release Expert]
Requirement: Master at least five Fire Release jutsu (C-rank or higher).
Effect: Fire Release affinity +100%, ability to cast Fire Release jutsu without hand signs.
A fantastic reward—but the path to earning it was steep.
Aside from the challenge of mastering five techniques, simply acquiring them was a hurdle. With Flame Bullet down, he was confident he could self-learn the Fireball Jutsu (having memorized Uchiha Obito's hand signs). Adding his father's Dragon Flame Jutsu (also C-rank) brought the tally to three.
"Where to find the last two?"
Konoha had no jutsu market. "Maybe Ten'shō shop has leads?" He shelved the idea for now.
Ten days slipped by.
On a rare day off, Shūichi visited the orphanage—only to find Yakushi Nonō still away on a month-long mission. After spending the day there, he returned home and finally met the conditions for his next achievement.
"[Transformation Expert]—activate!"
The entry on his Memory Palace's tree glowed green. Instantly, the Transformation Jutsu became as natural as breathing. No hand signs, no smoke—just seamless, instant shifts.
"Incredible!" Shūichi grinned, morphing into Kakashi in under 0.1 seconds. "Perfect."
The advantages were obvious: stealth, unpredictability, and lethal speed. In battle, enemies would have no warning—especially since no one announced jutsu mid-fight.
"The Memory Palace is my roadmap now."
Trigger entries → Fulfill conditions (train) → Reap rewards.
With water-walking, tree-climbing, and cliff-scaling mastered, plus Flame Bullet polished, Shūichi revised his plans. "Basic taijutsu and stamina training continue, but focus shifts to specialization."
Yet one question nagged him: Why hadn't taijutsu or tool proficiency triggered entries?
"No systemization?"
His current taijutsu lacked a formal style—unlike Guy's Konoha Whirlwind series. So, with shameless flair, Shūichi dubbed his methods:
Konoha-ryū Taijutsu
Konoha-ryū Tool Proficiency
The Memory Palace responded instantly, unveiling two grayed-out entries:
Entry: [Taijutsu Expert]
Requirement: Defeat Kakashi 50 times in taijutsu sparring.
Effect: Taijutsu affinity +100%, physique +100%, reflexes +100%.
Entry: [Tool Mastery Expert]
Requirement: Proficient with at least 10 types of ninja tools.
Effect: Tool affinity +100%, physique +100%, reflexes +100%.
"Whoa."
The physical boosts were irresistible. A superior body meant higher chakra reserves—the ceiling of a shinobi's potential.
"Patience. One step at a time."
September arrived, leaving four days until school resumed. The group ended their "Summer Training Blitz," treating the remaining time as vacation. Shūichi, however, dedicated all four to Ten'shō shop, churning out Explosive Tags.
He'd mastered their creation—though his chakra reserves limited him to three per session before exhaustion.
Root Headquarters.
Danzō reviewed the updated dossier on Shūichi:
Mastered the Three Basic Jutsu.
Proficient in Flame Bullet and Fireball Jutsu (likely learned by observing Obito).
Transformation Jutsu possibly hand-sign-free.
Preliminary grasp of Basic Healing Jutsu.
Capable of solo Explosive Tag production.
The observing Root agent spoke: "Lord Danzō, with school starting soon, Shūichi's skills will draw the Third Hokage's attention."
(Sarutobi Hiruzen, as academy head, had already noted Shūichi's perfect written scores.)
But Danzō understood the subtext: Hiruzen's awareness was superficial. If Shūichi shone brighter, Root's window to recruit him would close.
"Then we meet him tonight," Danzō decreed.
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