Chapter 27: Swordsmanship Trait
The fallen leaf was finally lifted by the breeze, floating mid-air.
At that exact moment, a jolt of electricity surged through Seiji's right arm, and his cells became noticeably more active.
With a sharp motion, he drew his short blade and swung it at the leaf.
In the air, the leaf slowly split—first showing a faint tear, then cleanly dividing in two as the pieces fluttered down to the ground.
Seiji smoothly transitioned from a drawing stance to sheathing the blade, the faint gleam of steel flashing momentarily in the light.
"As I thought—it's all about speed."
Seiji murmured inwardly.
His vision was fast enough to follow the leaf's motion, to track its unpredictable flight.
The problem was his body.
His reaction time and precision weren't there yet. His swordsmanship training had only just begun—he couldn't reliably hit a moving leaf in a single stroke.
But his sheer speed was enough to compensate for a lack of accuracy.
If one slash missed—then strike again.
If two failed—make it three.
Just now, Seiji had missed with the first cut. He'd quickly adjusted and followed up with a second slash, splitting the leaf cleanly.
To the average ninja, his movement was a blur—they might have seen only the sword being drawn, a flicker of motion, and the leaf silently tearing apart.
---
A translucent panel appeared before Seiji's eyes:
[Trait Unlocked: Apprentice Sword Ninja (White)]
Trait: Apprentice Sword Ninja (White)
Condition Fulfilled: Used a sword technique.
Progress: 100%
Effect: Increases swordsmanship training efficiency by 10%.
Note: Can be upgraded.
---
Before buying this second-hand short sword, Seiji had actually shaved a wooden branch with a kitchen knife to mimic a blade—training with it for five days.
Today, he'd barely managed to execute Cloud-Style Kenjutsu: Soaring Bird, and in doing so, unlocked this new trait.
With this trait, Seiji's growth in swordsmanship would now outpace others by 10%.
"This is about the average level of a regular genin."
Seiji set the blade down and went inside to pour himself a glass of water.
But "average" was misleading—genin-level strength ranged wildly.
Some were monsters. Others were cannon fodder.
Take someone like Maruboshi Kosuke—a genin for life.
But in truth, he was a powerhouse, stronger than many jonin. He'd once made a critical mistake on a mission, resulting in the deaths of two teammates, and swore to the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju that he'd remain a genin forever.
In the original series, he'd shown considerable strength.
On the other hand, many genin were just civilian children with barely any training.
They knew the basic Three Body Techniques, and even that was sometimes considered their strongest move.
If you knew those basics and had common sense, you could be shoved onto the battlefield as a genin.
"I need to graduate as soon as possible."
Seiji set the cup down.
He expected to unlock the trait- Robust Physique later this week. With that, he could synthesize it into his Lightning Release Ninja (white) trait, forming Lightning Realease Genin (Green), finally pushing his growth further.
Staying in the academy was a waste of time.
For most ninja, early graduation just meant an early death.
But Seiji was different.
He had access to far more opportunities.
Each mission, each encounter was a chance to trigger new traits—to complete new conditions.
Through that, he could grow faster than anyone else.
---
At the Ninja Academy—
In addition to physical training, the students were now learning shuriken throwing techniques.
Most ninja carried shuriken at all times.
There were even numerous techniques built around them—like the Shadow Shuriken Jutsu, or Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu.
"Listen up!"
The instructor, Chūnin Fujimoto Kyohei, spoke as he demonstrated from the front of the class.
"Shuriken are a ninja's last line of defense. When you're out of chakra and can't cast jutsu, a well-aimed throw might save your life."
He pulled out several different types of shuriken for the students to examine—
From the oversized Fūma Shuriken, to more specialized straight-edged and curved varieties.
Seiji silently watched the demonstration, studying the weapons with his usual calm and calculating gaze.
When it came to shuriken throwing techniques, the Uchiha clan stood out as one of the best.
"Seiji, how's your shuriken throwing?"
Yūhi Kurenai asked gently, her lips parting slightly.
Seiji was a transfer student.
Shuriken training had already been covered last semester, so this term's curriculum put that class much later.
But Kurenai was especially curious—Seiji was from the Land of Lightning, and more importantly, he carried the Uchiha name.
"No idea. I haven't really practiced."
Seiji shook his head.
There was only so much time and energy in a day. He had to make the most efficient choices.
Step one: build a stronger body.
With a stronger body came more chakra.
With more chakra came access to more jutsu.
As the two chatted, Sarutobi Asuma watched them from behind, expression tight.
Wait a minute—who's the real childhood friend here?
He was starting to lose it.
He had wanted to apologize to Kurenai for what happened earlier, but now… he couldn't even find a way to start the conversation.
"Asuma, you okay?"
Inuzuka Shi approached, concerned.
"I'm fine."
Asuma waved it off casually.
But deep down—he couldn't say it aloud—
seeing his childhood friend chatting so naturally with another guy was eating him alive.
As the Hokage's son, he'd grown up with expectations constantly weighing on his shoulders.
So the last thing Asuma wanted was for anyone to see him looking weak or jealous.
"Alright, everyone start practicing on your own,"
Chūnin instructor Fujimoto Kyohei clapped his hands and handed out school-issued shuriken.
The practice field had about twenty training dummies set up for the students to aim at.
"Where's Kakashi?"
Obito asked, scanning the area.
He hadn't seen Kakashi all day.
"The teacher said this morning Kakashi took the day off. Did you even listen in class, Obito?"
Nohara Rin returned from collecting her set of shuriken.
The school's shuriken were dull and clearly well-worn from years of use.
"Hehe… oops, forgot."
Obito scratched his head and laughed awkwardly.
"But Seiji's really popular, huh? It hasn't even been that long, and he already knows so many people."
Rin said softly, her voice pleasant.
Until recently, Seiji had mostly trained with their little group.
But now—somehow—he seemed to be getting along quite well with someone like Yūhi Kurenai, one of the top students.
"Hmph, it's just because he's a foreigner. Everyone's just curious, that's all."
Obito scoffed.
Once that novelty wore off, Uchiha Seiji would be just another guy.
He glanced toward Seiji, only to see him walking over with shuriken in hand—and Kurenai following close behind.
"Kakashi hasn't been around all day?"
Seiji asked calmly.
He'd been so focused on training—today was all physical exercises, and he was expecting to unlock the 'Robust Physique' trait—so he hadn't even noticed Kakashi's absence until now.
"Yeah, maybe something came up."
Rin replied.
"Nah, he's probably training in secret at home."
Obito interjected, skeptical.
"No way he's that talented without putting in extra effort. He's definitely practicing behind our backs—that's why he's always ahead."
"Obito, Kakashi's not like that,"
Rin frowned slightly at his comment.
Seiji, meanwhile, didn't bother with their back-and-forth.
Only one thought consumed his mind:
There's an eighty to ninety percent chance… the White Fang of Konoha is back.
And worse—he came back in failure.
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