Chapter 8: Developing a Training Plan
In a quiet corner of the Library, a young boy sat staring at an open scroll before him.
However, anyone observing him wouldn't know that his mind was actually completely preoccupied with other matters.
Kaito thought, Alright, let's start with what I can realistically accomplish right now.
With daily Leaf Concentration practice, his chakra control had already reached a fairly good level.
He felt it was time to attempt training similar to tree-walking exercises.
By combining physical exercise with meditation, and constantly pushing his chakra to its limits, his chakra reserves were also steadily increasing.
Kaito's chakra shape manipulation was progressing smoothly as well.
As long as his chakra capacity improved further, he'd be able to attempt more complex ninjutsu.
Currently, Kaito's training regimen included chakra control, chakra shape manipulation, and increasing his chakra reserves.
These foundations were already solid, but it would be even better if he could find additional methods to expand his chakra capacity.
The most important element in Kaito's current arsenal was his Wind Release nature transformation training.
He'd already completed the leaf-cutting exercise several months ago.
Although he hadn't attempted cutting a waterfall yet, he'd made significant progress and could now easily slice through small branches.
This level of control should be sufficient for many Wind Release jutsu.
And since Wind was his natural affinity, mastering it was even more critical.
Next, he could try cutting harder materials—stone, and eventually metal.
One thing Kaito would definitely prioritize was learning more Wind Release ninjutsu.
He planned to study every E-rank and D-rank Wind Release technique available in the Library.
He wanted to master several useful jutsu over the next year or two.
Ideally, Wind Release techniques that would allow him to build a complete combat system covering defense, offense, and evasion.
Besides that, he also needed to learn jutsu from other elements.
Fire, Lightning, Earth, Water... which one should I focus on first?
After several minutes of analysis, he reached a conclusion.
Lightning and Wind weren't the best combination, so Lightning Release would be set aside for now.
Both Fire and Water could combine well with Wind—especially Fire.
But using combined elemental jutsu effectively would require Shadow Clones for proper execution.
And since this was the Land of Fire, his future teammates would most likely have Fire Release anyway.
Finally, there was Earth Release. Although Wind and Earth didn't synergize particularly well, he could use Wind for offense and Earth for defense.
He really hoped this Library contained defensive techniques like the Earth Spear jutsu that Kakuzu had used to harden his body.
With that kind of defensive ninjutsu combined with Wind Release attacks, it would create a very effective and difficult-to-counter combination.
Kaito decided to choose Earth as his second elemental focus.
He would strive to master both Wind and Earth over the coming years.
Other elemental affinities could wait until he could successfully create multiple Shadow Clones for accelerated training.
Beyond elemental jutsu, he also needed to master the Academy Three—the basic techniques.
The Clone Jutsu wasn't much help in actual combat, but it was the foundation for Shadow Clones and elemental clones later.
The Transformation Jutsu had numerous applications—from disguises to transforming into weapons or tools.
The Substitution Jutsu was the most valuable of the three. Even Kage-level shinobi continued using this technique throughout their careers.
Special attention must be paid to perfecting the Substitution Jutsu.
Additionally, Kaito felt he absolutely must learn and master the Body Flicker Jutsu.
These two techniques were crucial for evasion and escape.
Perhaps mastering these mobility techniques was even more urgent than learning offensive Wind Release jutsu.
Yes, this should form a very solid combat system.
Wind Release for offense, Earth Release for defense, and Substitution and Body Flicker for evasion and escape.
The next thing to consider was taijutsu.
His daily morning exercises had placed his physical fitness among the top of current Academy students.
Unfortunately, he couldn't dedicate any additional time to morning workouts.
So Kaito realized he must modify his exercise routine—increasing the difficulty somehow.
Perhaps by adding training weights or incorporating some form of resistance seals.
As for taijutsu styles, the Academy courses should teach their own foundational forms. He'd make further plans after understanding what was offered.
Regarding genjutsu, he couldn't practice it effectively yet. That would have to wait.
What remained were kenjutsu, Medical Ninjutsu, Sensory abilities, and Fuinjutsu.
Medical Ninjutsu could definitely wait until later.
Kenjutsu was quite important to Kaito's plans.
He needed to learn how to channel chakra through weapons and infuse them with Wind Release nature.
This would make his attacks extraordinarily lethal.
However, this could also be postponed since he wouldn't need to engage in real combat for several years.
Fuinjutsu was something he could begin studying now.
With the introductory scrolls available, Kaito wanted to see if he had any aptitude for this specialized field.
Sensory abilities were also extremely important.
Kaito might need guidance from Academy teachers to understand how to develop as a Sensor-type ninja.
Although he hadn't experimented yet for safety reasons, he believed that concentrating chakra in his eyes, nose, or ears should greatly enhance those senses.
However, Kaito was more interested in chakra sensing—detecting the presence and nature of others' chakra.
This ability would be invaluable when leaving the village on missions.
He reviewed his daily schedule again.
Academy classes were Monday through Friday, with Saturday and Sunday off.
School hours were 8 AM to 3 PM.
Physical exercise was scheduled for the mornings, giving him two and a half hours.
Future taijutsu kata practice would also need to fit into this timeframe.
During school hours, most intensive training would be impossible to conduct openly.
But he wanted to see if he could practice nature transformation discreetly during lectures.
Exercises like leaf-cutting could easily be hidden under his desk.
Kaito also wanted to research what the preliminary training methods for Earth Release were, to determine if they could also be done covertly in class.
However, he hoped Genki wasn't a Sensor-type ninja, otherwise he'd discover what Kaito was doing and forbid it.
From 3 PM to 10 PM was his free time.
He could allocate about an hour for shopping, meals, and daily chores.
That left Kaito with approximately six hours for training in the Academy Three, Wind Release jutsu, weapon throwing, Fuinjutsu fundamentals, chakra sensing, and meditation.
However, to accomplish all this training, there clearly wasn't enough time available.
What should he prioritize?
Kaito fell into deep contemplation once again.
After careful calculations, he reached several conclusions.
Among all these disciplines, meditation was something that absolutely had to be done daily—it was non-negotiable.
For the other areas, there were basically two approaches.
One option was rotating through different training on different days. The other was focusing intensively on just a few areas.
The first option looked tempting at first, but there was a significant problem.
Spreading himself too thin across too many disciplines would dilute his focus and could actually be detrimental to his growth.
For example, if he practiced too many different things, it would be impossible to learn something like the Eight Gates from someone like Might Guy, because that technique had extremely strict requirements for taijutsu specialization.
Fuinjutsu was also problematic in this regard.
It was an incredibly broad and complex field with extensive theory to master, requiring tremendous amounts of time to learn properly.
It would be far more efficient to study it after he could create Shadow Clones for accelerated learning.
The downside was that this meant he couldn't earn money by crafting and selling explosive tags or storage scrolls, but for now, that was an acceptable sacrifice.
Between the Academy Three and Wind Release jutsu, he would temporarily prioritize the basic techniques.
Once he'd thoroughly mastered those fundamentals, he would shift focus to Wind Release ninjutsu.
So over the coming months, his after-school time should be spent mastering the Academy Three, shuriken and kunai throwing, chakra sensing development, and meditation.
Kaito currently didn't know the proper method for chakra sensing.
He'd need to research the theory in the Library and consult with Genki-sensei.
This would also reveal whether he had any natural aptitude as a Sensor-type.
As for weapon throwing, he'd wait until those classes officially started to learn properly.
This way, he wouldn't develop any bad habits and would learn the correct form for throwing weapons faster and more accurately from the beginning.
For the Academy Three, he could easily find instructional scrolls in this Library.
He only needed to understand the theory behind the hand seals and how to perform them correctly.
The Academy should cover these techniques soon in class anyway, so hopefully this wouldn't remain a problem for long.
After thinking everything through, he paused and mentally reviewed his entire plan.
Then he said quietly to himself, "Alright, this plan seems solid enough for now. I should acquire the necessary foundational knowledge from the Academy as quickly as possible, and if I have any questions, I can always consult the instructors. Let's see how strong I can become after several years of dedicated training like this."
He smiled with determination and finally began actually reading the scroll he'd been holding.
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