Ninja Academy, at the bulletin board.
Everyone had gathered at the bulletin board early in the morning, eager to see the results of yesterday's matches.
Taiichi walked over as well, but before he could even look for himself, an excited Might Gai shouted out his ranking.
"Taiichi! Congratulations! You're in fourth place!"
"Oh? What about you, Gai? And who's first?"
"Hehe!" Gai scratched his head and laughed sheepishly. "I'm third. First is Kakashi, and second is Asuma."
"Just as I thought. Kakashi really is the top dog of our generation at this stage. But Gai, I'm surprised you're not second if it's based purely on Taijutsu!"
"Ah, Asuma must be stronger. He is the Hokage's son, after all."
Chatting away, they headed into the classroom to await Teacher Yamada's arrival.
They didn't have to wait long. Teacher Yamada walked in, and the room fell silent.
"I assume everyone has checked their scores. Overall, everyone performed well and demonstrated their true abilities."
"This competition allowed you all to understand your standing in the class. Those ranked high must maintain their position, and those ranked low need to double their efforts."
...
Just as Teacher Yamada was about to launch into a long lecture, a loud "Report!" interrupted him.
The entire class turned toward the sound and saw Obito standing awkwardly at the door.
"Sorry, Sensei! On my way to school, I saw an old lady who had fallen down. I helped her get home before coming to school, so I ended up late."
"O-bi-to U-chi-ha!" A roar erupted from the classroom, loud enough for the entire school to hear.
"Last time it was catching a cat! The time before that, helping a lost kid find his mom! And before that, helping an old man find his cane! I won't even mention the excuses before those!" Teacher Yamada continued to roar.
"Since school started, is there a single day you haven't been late?!"
"I'm sorry, Sensei." Obito knew he was ridiculous, but whenever he saw someone in trouble, he couldn't help but want to assist. He found it hard to control himself!
Perhaps this is why Obito was fine before awakening his eyes, but once he did, he shot straight up to Mangekyo. The deepest love brews the strongest power.
"Go sit down." Teacher Yamada calmed himself. He knew Obito was telling the truth. He had actually tailed Obito once because of this and found the boy really was helping people.
But this bad habit of being late every day was truly infuriating.
"Next, we will practice the Three Basic Jutsu." Yamada, having lost the mood for his speech, hastily assigned tasks and let everyone practice on their own.
The Three Basic Jutsu had been taught before, but at this stage, everyone's level was limited. First, their ninjutsu proficiency was low. Second, their Chakra reserves were insufficient. Even though the Three Basic Jutsu consumed very little Chakra, for first-years, they could barely use them a few times, let alone practice repeatedly. So, the school allocated time for the kids to practice as much as possible on campus.
Of course, this didn't apply to people like Taiichi and Kakashi. Some had clan inheritances and had learned long ago. As for Taiichi, his Chakra reserves had already reached the level of a Genin even in his normal state. Moreover, he had taught himself the jutsu before the school even covered them.
...
The day passed uneventfully. Today, Taiichi didn't train with his friends. Instead, he went alone to the riverside. He planned to try learning the other jutsu from his parents' scrolls.
First, he felt the flow of Chakra in his body. Then, he slowly formed the hand seals, recalling the instructions from his father's notes in the scroll, imagining a ball of fire burning in his chest.
Snake - Ram - Monkey - Boar - Horse - Tiger.
As he completed the final Tiger seal, he expelled the fire from his chest through his mouth. This was Fire Style: Flame Bullet.
The result? On his first attempt, he spat out a tiny little flame.
Taiichi had black lines over his head. That was demoralizing. He was wallowing in self-pity, unaware that being able to spit out even a small flame on the first try would have stunned most people. Of course, the panel didn't lie.
> [Congratulations, learned Fire Style: Flame Bullet Lv1 (0/100)]
> [Congratulations, learned Fire Nature Transformation Lv1 (0/100)]
> [You practiced Fire Style: Flame Bullet. Experience +1. Fire Nature Transformation +1]
> [You focused on Fire Style: Flame Bullet practice. Apprentice Ninja Class Experience +1]
Looking at the panel, he realized he had learned it; the power was just too weak. What came next was constant practice.
For a while, small flames appeared by the riverbank. Slowly, the flames grew larger and flew further. By the time his Chakra was nearly exhausted, Taiichi's Flame Bullet could finally be considered a real fireball. He had technically learned this jutsu, but there was still a massive gap between "learning" it and using it effectively in combat.
Sensing that his remaining Chakra wasn't enough to do anything else, Taiichi sat by the river to rest. He ate the rice balls he had prepared earlier and thought about his next steps. Today, Flame Bullet. Tomorrow, Phoenix Flower Jutsu. The day after, Great Breakthrough. He aimed to learn all three jutsu left by his parents within these few days so he wouldn't be a "blank slate" ninja anymore.
As for medical ninjutsu, it was too profound and had to be learned slowly. Fortunately, he had Nono to consult.
After resting, Taiichi began his Basic Taijutsu practice.
> [You practiced Basic Taijutsu. Your comprehension has improved.]
> [Your skill Basic Taijutsu has leveled up. Experience +1]
> [You focused on Basic Taijutsu practice. Apprentice Ninja Class Experience +1]
...
> [Congratulations, Constitution +1, Strength +1, Agility +1]
> [Congratulations, your Apprentice Ninja Class level has increased.]
> [Attribute Points +1, Skill Points +1]
Today was a lucky day. Not only did his physical attributes increase, but his Class Level also went up. Looking at the updated panel, Taiichi fell into deep thought.
> Name: Taiichi Matsushita
> Class: Apprentice Ninja Lv4 (1/600)
> Talents: Diligence, Academic Genius
> Age: 6
> Constitution: 12
> Strength: 13
> Agility: 12
> Spirit: 19
> Chakra: 365 (4800)
> Attribute Points: 7
> Skill Points: 7
> Nature Transformation: Fire Nature Transformation Lv1 (5/100)
> Skills: Basic Taijutsu Lv7 (753/1200), Basic Meditation Lv7 (965/1200), Chakra Refining Technique Lv7 (142/1200), Ninja Tool Throwing Lv5 (697/800), Transformation Jutsu Lv4 (435/600), Clone Jutsu Lv5 (364/800), Substitution Jutsu Lv5 (425/800), Fire Style: Flame Bullet Lv1 (21/100)
> Evaluation: A slowly growing cannon fodder, but cannon fodder nonetheless.
Comparing the experience gained for Nature Transformation versus Flame Bullet, it wasn't hard to guess how difficult Nature Transformation was to train. Those 5 points were likely just insights gained from practicing the Fire Style jutsu itself. It seemed that to improve quickly, he needed a reliable teacher; self-study was just too hard.
Luckily, Taiichi knew he was only in the starting phase, and there was plenty of room for growth. Plus, he had the panel. As long as he practiced, he would improve without hitting bottlenecks, though progress might slow down later. He would figure that out after learning everything he currently could.
With Taiichi training done, next was Basic Meditation. The spot Taiichi chose was quiet and secluded—a perfect place for meditation. Since practicing ninjutsu at home was becoming inconvenient, he had found this spot. Far from people, right next to a small river... it was absolutely perfect for private training.
> [You practiced Basic Meditation. Your comprehension has improved.]
> [Your skill Basic Meditation has leveled up. Experience +1]
> [Your skill Chakra Refining Technique has leveled up. Experience +1]
> [You focused on Basic Meditation practice. Apprentice Ninja Class Experience +1]
Looking at the notifications, practicing Basic Meditation also improved the Chakra Refining Technique. Thinking about it, it made sense. Chakra refinement did share similarities with meditation. No wonder both skills had improved relatively quickly recently; they promoted each other.
Seen this way, many skills were linked. The simplest example was that practicing Fire Style jutsu inevitably improved Fire Nature Transformation. Similarly, Basic Taijutsu practice would boost Ninja Tool Throwing and even future Taijutsu skills he might learn.
This felt more realistic. After all, the human body and learned skills form a complete system; improvement in one area would drive improvement in related areas. It wasn't like a machine where upgrading one part only strengthened that specific part.
With these thoughts, Taiichi completed his daily training and went to bed.