Chapter 8: Changing Talent
Leaving the academy, Yoru didn't head home. Instead, he used Body Flicker to reach the Nanga River.
The Uchiha clan hadn't yet been forced to relocate near the Nanga River, so this area remained sparsely populated.
Above the river stretched cliffs and forest.
A black blur shot through the forest canopy, leaping from treetop to treetop before vanishing in the blink of an eye.
Unlike other shinobi's Body Flicker Technique, which sometimes produced harsh sounds and—with poor chakra control—sent leaves scattering and left permanent footprints on branches, this blur moved in complete silence without leaving the slightest trace.
Though the speed wasn't particularly exceptional, this level of chakra control exceeded even well-rounded jonin who'd mastered at least two nature transformations.
Undoubtedly, this was a Body Flicker expert.
THUD—
After leaping through the forest for some time, the blur suddenly collided with a massive tree requiring several people to encircle, producing a heavy impact. Like a painting hung on a wall, the figure stuck to the trunk before slowly sliding down.
"Ow ow ow... that hurts!"
Yoru landed on the ground, both hands covering his now-red face as he hissed in pain.
If his classmates witnessed this scene, his carefully crafted image would shatter instantly.
After confirming his nose hadn't been smashed out of shape, Yoru stared at the tree and thought: 'Phasing through objects while moving is still too difficult.'
That's right—Yoru had just attempted to use his Space-Time ability to pass through the tree. He'd failed.
This was also his first attempt at such a feat.
His remarkable growth during this period had inevitably made him somewhat overconfident.
Yoru had originally assumed that evolution had merely enabled some of his cells to extract Space-Time energy.
Now it seemed that transformation had been a comprehensive upgrade.
Seven months had passed since awakening his Space-Time abilities.
During those seven months, Yoru's body had undergone tremendous changes.
First was height. At only seven years old, he'd already reached 143 centimeters.
In the Land of Lightning and Kumogakure, where many citizens had dark or light skin tones and taller builds, this height was fairly ordinary.
But in Konoha and other ninja villages, he towered above his peers like a crane among chickens.
After all, when Naruto Uzumaki graduated at age twelve, he'd only been 147 centimeters tall.
As his classmates noted, anyone who didn't know better would assume Yoru was a fifth or sixth-year student.
His body's early maturation had also caused his chakra reserves to surge dramatically. Already exceeding ordinary genin, his capacity now likely surpassed average chunin as well.
Though he couldn't compare to Kakashi Hatake—who could perform Multiple Shadow Clone Technique as a first-year student—Yoru now fully qualified to train both Shadow Clone Technique and the Rasengan.
However, as his total chakra reserves exploded, his Space-Time chakra proportion had dropped from one-third to just one-fifth.
Second, whether due to his Space-Time talent or because this evolution had also affected his brain and nervous system, over the past half-year Yoru had clearly noticed his natural abilities had improved tremendously. His progress was honestly frightening.
The academy students and teachers all considered Gojo Yoru a genius.
But only Yoru knew he didn't truly qualify as one.
More precisely, compared to those once-in-a-decade or even once-in-several-decades prodigies, he had no basis for comparison.
Early to bed, early to rise, proper nutrition—these habits gave him chakra reserves far exceeding his peers.
Yet before five-year-old Kakashi Hatake, he didn't even qualify to tie the boy's shoes.
After refining chakra, Yoru had begun practicing tree-walking and water-walking to improve chakra control. He'd already mastered the Three Basic Techniques, could crush his peers in combat, and even defeat sixth-year upperclassmen.
But Minato Namikaze, after just one term, had nearly turned the tables on him through sheer reaction speed alone.
Orochimaru needed no further explanation. Even Tsunade—the Hokage's granddaughter possessing Senju bloodline—couldn't overshadow his brilliance.
Unable to match these monsters without bloodline limits, competing with bloodline geniuses was even more laughable.
Without awakening his Space-Time bloodline, once his knowledge advantage disappeared, Minato leaving Yoru far behind would have been inevitable.
This was the gap in natural talent—something effort alone couldn't bridge. Only cheats could contend with or surpass it!
But now, Yoru fully qualified to carry the title "genius."
Because he'd discovered his thinking had become more agile, his reaction speed significantly enhanced.
Observing Minato's fights or matching against him again, Yoru no longer felt overwhelmed. He'd finally experienced the advantage rapid reactions provided.
That sensation where opponents moved in slow motion while you operated at fast-forward speed felt absolutely wonderful.
No wonder the Uchiha clan's Sharingan drove Orochimaru and Danzo Shimura to such obsession.
Under these changes, even training ninjutsu and chakra control became twice as effective with half the effort.
This was the source of his overconfidence!
In just half a year, Yoru's Body Flicker had improved at a terrifying rate.
Like the incomplete Rasenshuriken that could suddenly be thrown after adding Sage Mode chakra, while Yoru still couldn't merge ordinary chakra with Space-Time chakra to perform elemental techniques, he could now fuse them for Body Flicker.
Body Flicker combined with Space-Time chakra didn't just dramatically increase speed—it made him move like a silent ghost.
Once Yoru could coat his entire body with Space-Time chakra even during combat, merging with space itself, his Body Flicker would have no resistance and could pass through any obstacle, becoming truly phantasmal.
Extended further, perhaps it wouldn't be Body Flicker anymore, but true teleportation.
This was Yoru's current training goal!
After the pain subsided, Yoru continued practicing Body Flicker leaps through the forest.
Only when the setting sun's rays could no longer penetrate the canopy did he return home via Body Flicker.
After dinner, Yoru entered the basement covered in script formations—likely designed to block sensing and scrying abilities. But rather than modifying or supplementing his strategy guides, he formed hand seals and channeled his internal Space-Time chakra.
The next moment, Yoru's figure slowly sank into the ground, quietly leaving Konoha.
Yoru didn't know whether Hiruzen Sarutobi had mastered the Telescope Technique yet, or if he might coincidentally scan over this location.
Nor did he know whether, as a civilian prodigy and orphan with both parents killed in action, he'd already attracted Danzo Shimura's attention.
As a precaution, Yoru never practiced advanced techniques beyond Body Flicker and C-rank elemental ninjutsu inside his home or the village.
Not because he feared their scrutiny, but because he worried they might take a liking to his talent and force him to graduate early.
After all, Itachi Uchiha had used Shadow Clone Technique as a first-year student, leading the academy teachers to conclude they had nothing left to teach him and applying for early graduation on his behalf.
Perhaps this very situation had contributed to the Uchiha clan's downfall.
A six-year-old child, having learned none of the cultural knowledge required, graduated early simply because his combat strength was too powerful—wasn't that just creating a powerful illiterate?
No wonder he lacked common sense!