"It looks really tough… this training method is… unusual."
Rin watched the sweat-soaked bangs stuck to Kiyohara's forehead and couldn't help thinking this looked a bit like that weirdo from their class—Might Guy.
"It's fine. You get used to it," Kiyohara said, trying to sound casual.
He subtly shifted his stance so the shadow of the stone bar no longer fell directly across Rin's face.
"This is… uh, a way to train core strength and power mechanics. Helps unify waist and legs," he added offhandedly.
In truth, he felt like it was mainly building endurance and raw strength first.
The finer points of swordsmanship would come from Swordsman Kiyohara later.
"I see…"
Rin nodded, half understanding. Seeing the sheen of sweat on his handsome face, she pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to him.
"By the way, it's our turn to move out. We need to transport supplies to another outpost ten kilometers from here.
"I heard Mist-nin have been very active over there," she said.
"Got it," Kiyohara nodded.
He and Rin hadn't originally been on the same squad, but for efficiency and broader coverage, teams were often broken up and recombined for different missions.
He stowed the precious stone bar back in his tent and prepared to head out with Rin and the others.
By the time he arrived, most of the squad was already assembled.
"Kiyohara, how's your Lightning training coming along?" Kakashi asked as they waited for final supply checks.
"Pretty good. I've more or less got it," Kiyohara said.
He'd already learned Lightning Release: Lightning Stream.
On top of that, he'd also mastered Wind Release: Gale Palm from Minato's scroll.
"Good. We'll definitely run into Mist ambushes. Don't let your guard down," Kakashi said.
Before Kiyohara could respond, Kakashi added:
"Anyone who doesn't know how to protect his comrades is worse than trash. I accept that now."
Seeing Kakashi's "enlightened" expression, Kiyohara's replacement-literature alarm went off even harder.
Great. He's really projecting his guilt about Obito onto me, isn't he.
"Ahem. My nindō is protecting my comrades too," Kiyohara said.
"We should get going," Rin cut in, walking over.
For this mission, Kakashi was actually the squad leader.
He was the only jōnin among them now.
He gave Kiyohara one more lingering look, then turned and ordered everyone to move out.
Soon, the transport team was weaving through the forest.
"By the way—how long would it take me to learn Leaf-Style: Willow?" Kiyohara asked Swordsman Kiyohara as they traveled.
Don't be fooled by its humble origin—just something old man Kosuke developed. It was actually S-rank, a composite art of genjutsu and kenjutsu.
If he mastered it, it'd be a serious trump card.
"With your strong spiritual power, your Yin Release aptitude is high. Learning it will take half the usual effort," Swordsman Kiyohara said, appearing beside him.
"Yeah?"
Kiyohara knew that was thanks to fusing with Rogue Kiyohara. Without that, every assessment of him would've pegged his mental power as average.
"I also received a Willbook once, so my mental energy is higher than normal. If you inherit my talent on top of that, you should be able to go even further," Swordsman Kiyohara continued.
"So how long before that?" Kiyohara pressed.
He just wanted a timeline.
"With my guidance? Two months," Swordsman Kiyohara said.
If needed, he could possess Kiyohara and let him "feel" the technique directly, making training much faster.
"Two months, huh…"
Kiyohara frowned slightly.
Not that he was unrealistic; this was a war zone. A two-month window could easily be cut short by an unlucky death.
Gotta earn more money first, he thought.
He'd already saved up some. If he looted a bit more on this mission, he could afford a smith to forge the blade, complete one wish, and grab a power spike before worrying about advanced kenjutsu.
...
Half a day of hard marching passed quickly.
The squad moved deeper into the forest; the canopy filtered out much of the light, turning the woods dim and the air heavy with moisture.
On the way, Kiyohara kept chatting with Swordsman Kiyohara about sword technique, asking for tips.
"There's something ahead. Three o'clock direction," Swordsman Kiyohara said suddenly, dropping the topic.
As a kenjutsu-based jōnin, his danger sense was far keener than Kiyohara's.
"Someone's there," Kiyohara said aloud.
The others stopped immediately, eyes scanning their surroundings.
The entire squad halted, every gaze sharp, watching the trees.
"Which direction?" Kakashi asked.
His sensory abilities were only so-so—better than most chūnin like Genma, Rin, and Kurenai, but worse than veteran jōnin.
"Over there," Kiyohara said, pointing where Swordsman Kiyohara indicated.
Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, the air began to thicken.
White mist seeped in from nowhere, rapidly growing denser. It wrapped around branches, trunk, and ground, swallowing their vision.
Visibility plummeted in seconds—from tens of meters down to under ten, and still dropping.
"It's Hidden Mist Technique," Kiyohara frowned.
Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique was a Mist ninja signature.
It also impaired a person's senses—no wonder Zabuza earned the name "Demon of the Hidden Mist" using it.
"Damn, I can't see anything," Genma muttered as the senbon in his mouth stopped bobbing. His face had turned grim.
If the enemy could see and they couldn't, they were at a huge disadvantage.
"I'll try Wind Release," Kiyohara said.
He quickly formed seals.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A powerful gale roared from his mouth, tearing forward into the thick fog.
Where it passed, the white mist was ripped open, creating a brief pocket of clear space.
But before they could even relax, denser fog surged in from all sides, filling the gap.
In just two or three seconds, the cleared space was swallowed again—visibility now even worse.
"No good…"
Kiyohara frowned deeper.
But inside, he wasn't panicking.
He still had a third eye—his future selves.
"Pointless."
A cold voice echoed from everywhere at once, bouncing off the fog so that no one could pinpoint its source.
"Stupid Konoha rats. This is a carefully prepared Mist killing ground. You think a little C-rank Wind Release can blow it away?
"Even the Sharingan turns blind in this mist," the Mist ninja sneered.
In the Hidden Mist Technique, even Uchiha with Sharingan would have to try their best.
~~~
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