Hoshiyomi's next goal was obvious: test the Transparent Release ability.
He'd long suspected that the system may have helped him awaken a bloodline limit ahead of time. Now that he finally had the time, it was the perfect opportunity to put that theory to the test.
He began trying to activate invisibility without relying on the skill Secret Technique: Shadowstrike. He stood still in his room, muttering incantations, cycling through hand signs, doing everything he could think of—but nothing happened.
Alright… guess I need to use the skill first to get a sense of how it works.
With that thought, he activated Shadowstrike. Instantly, the same strange sensation returned—his chakra flowed on its own, spreading through every part of his body.
This time, though, he stayed focused. Instead of marveling at the tingling, electric feeling like he had before, he concentrated entirely on memorizing the chakra flow path.
And since he wasn't moving, chakra consumption was noticeably lower. He managed to maintain the state for a full seven or eight minutes before his reserves began to dip dangerously.
When the skill ended, Hoshiyomi rested for a while. Once he'd recovered a decent amount of chakra, he tried to manually recreate the path he had just memorized.
He started from his abdomen—guiding chakra outward from his core.
There! That tingling sensation again!
But it didn't last.
As soon as his chakra left the core and moved outward, the flow lost direction. He couldn't recall the exact route, and the technique broke down.
Frustrated, he started over.
One more time.
He activated Shadowstrike again. But this time, he was smarter. Realizing memory alone wouldn't be enough, he grabbed a chakra circulation diagram from his desk and began tracing the flow step-by-step.
Carefully cross-referencing the sensation in his body with the chart, he noted down the exact path of the chakra as it flowed. By the time he was done, he had successfully mapped out the whole route—just as the last of his chakra was about to run dry.
He collapsed onto his bed, panting. His head was spinning.
No wonder Kakashi would pass out for days when his chakra ran out... this sucks.
This time, he had to rest much longer. It took over two hours for his chakra to regenerate to a usable level. But once it did, he was ready to try again.
Attempt #3.
He moved cautiously now, following the chakra map precisely, bit by bit. Sure enough, that tingling sensation returned. It was working.
But… it still wasn't a full success.
He looked down at his hands—they were shrouded in a faint layer of shadow.
Not true invisibility.
It was uneven, inconsistent—some areas were darker, others barely covered. He shuffled over to the mirror and examined himself.
Sure enough, his reflection looked like a blurry patchwork of camouflage, not true transparency. He looked more like a human mosaic than a ghost.
This might fool someone at long range… but anyone with decent eyesight could still spot me up close.
Clearly, the issue was his lack of chakra control. Whether it was ninjutsu, genjutsu, or a bloodline limit—none of it worked properly without fine chakra manipulation.
The only reason Shadowstrike worked so perfectly before was thanks to the system's automatic control. Until he mastered basics like tree-walking or water-walking, his manual Transparent Release would stay stuck at mosaic level.
Still, it had its uses. The chakra path he was training was good practice, and high-frequency chakra usage was known to increase overall chakra capacity.
Hoshiyomi made a mental note of everything he'd learned.
But soon, the fatigue caught up to him. After a few yawns, he gave in, pulled up the blanket, and drifted off to sleep.
After burning through so much chakra multiple times in one night, it was no surprise his body was completely drained. He needed rest.
The Next Morning
Exhausted from the night before, Hoshiyomi overslept—and was, unsurprisingly, late for class.
Teacher Mitsui didn't look too pleased when he arrived, but since it was only the second day, he simply told Hoshiyomi to be more careful next time and waved him inside.
Still, his eyes lingered on something else: the wooden sword strapped to Hoshiyomi's back, and the dagger tucked into his gear pouch.
As a responsible teacher, Mitsui made it his business to learn about his students. He knew both Hoshiyomi's and Sakumo's fathers had been famed swordsmen in their day.
So instead of scolding him, he simply warned him not to hurt anyone by accident—and encouraged him to keep training hard.
You've got potential, he seemed to say.
Mitsui-sensei, you might be on your way to becoming my favorite teacher, Hoshiyomi thought with a smirk.
He slipped into class through the back door, trying to stay low-key.
But between his striking face and the sword on his back, there was no way he went unnoticed.
The girls were clearly drawn to his looks, while the boys stared curiously at the weapon.
A few bold classmates near him even asked about it directly.
Hoshiyomi casually explained that his mother had asked him to begin training in the family's sword style—nothing dramatic.
But before he could finish, a few sarcastic voices cut in:
"If you just wanted to show off, just say so. Why blame your mom?"
"Exactly. Trying to act like you're not copying Sakumo, huh?"
"Yeah? Then why don't you go spar with Uchiha Iwa or Sakumo and see how that ends?"
The three standouts from yesterday's placement test—Hoshiyomi, Uchiha Iwa, and Hatake Sakumo—had already drawn plenty of attention, especially from the girls.
Naturally, that didn't sit well with the other boys in class—most of whom came from prestigious clans and were used to being the center of attention.
But here at the Academy, those three stood out while the rest were ignored. Bitterness followed.
Iwa had the Uchiha prestige. Sakumo was strong and stoic.
Hoshiyomi? He seemed like the easiest target. He was calm, didn't fight back verbally, and didn't flaunt anything. That made him the easiest outlet for their jealousy.
Their comments drew scowls from a few girls nearby, and even Jiraiya looked ready to launch into a full-on shouting match.
After spending the evening with Hoshiyomi and getting Rie's full hospitality, Jiraiya had already decided: this guy's my best friend now.
Even Sakumo furrowed his brow at the scene. He didn't say anything—Hoshiyomi didn't seem bothered—but he made sure to memorize the faces of the loudest hecklers.
As for Hoshiyomi?
He couldn't care less.
He was mentally in his late twenties. What did he care about some jealous twelve-year-olds throwing a tantrum?
You want to trash talk? I've met real trolls. Compared to the sarcasm of my system and the toxic lobbies I've seen online, this is nothing.
He gently nudged Jiraiya back into his seat, calmly set down his sword, and took his place like nothing happened.
There was a certain aura to him now—composed, distant, untouchable.
A few more girls squealed quietly.
Even Tsunade, sitting behind him, glanced up from her desk and studied him curiously.
He really didn't react…
Even she, just a child, found herself… interested.
The hecklers, meanwhile, were fuming. Their jabs had only made Hoshiyomi look cooler.
Ugh. So annoying.