Training Ground Five.
The evening breeze gently brushed away the lingering scent of barbecue from their clothes. The clamor of the restaurant slowly faded from their ears, replaced by the chirping of cicadas and the gentle murmur of a flowing river. Under the bright, clear moonlight, Naruto and his two teammates watched Uzuki Yugao's hands with rapt attention.
They saw her lightly pinch a single strand of hair. Without any discernible movement from her, the hair split into two pieces and drifted to the ground.
"This is Wind Nature Transformation," Uzuki Yugao said, her tone tinged with a hint of helplessness. Using such a fine strand of hair for a demonstration wasn't actually a good choice, but her mastery of Wind Nature Transformation wasn't yet sufficient to support her using a more perfect teaching aid.
Noticing his girlfriend's mock-reproachful gaze, Gekko Hayate subtly turned his head aside. What did it have to do with him? He couldn't just magically grant someone a Wind affinity.
"Is that nature transformation? Sister Yugao, then what's shape transformation?" Etsureki asked curiously.
"If you think of chakra as a piece of steel, then shape transformation is the form you achieve by forging it." As Uzuki Yugao spoke, she condensed an azure kunai from chakra in her palm. "When you can one day condense a similar kunai in your hand, the gates to the jonin rank will have already partially opened for you."
"So pretty," Izuno Akigiku praised. Indeed, the azure chakra kunai, under the moonlight, appeared exceptionally captivating.
Uzuki Yugao closed her fair hand, and the beautiful sight vanished instantly. "You two shouldn't even think about it for now. With insufficient chakra reserves, unless you're exceptionally gifted, training in both transformations will just be like drawing water with a bamboo basket—a futile effort."
The two immediately looked crestfallen.
Seeing their dejected expressions, Naruto shrugged helplessly. It wasn't as if he could control his large chakra reserves; what could he do? Speaking of which, he still didn't have a very clear understanding of his own chakra capacity. He only knew that ever since he started cultivating chakra, he had never run out. Of course, this might also be because he rarely used ninjutsu. Firstly, he lacked suitable ninjutsu to practice; secondly, due to his past life, he already possessed a relatively complete offensive and defensive system, so his need for ninjutsu wasn't that great.
"Naruto, if you've decided to focus your future combat style around swordsmanship, then it wouldn't hurt to spend more effort on these two transformations," Uzuki Yugao advised. This was because ninjas who used swords were always a fraction slower at performing hand seals compared to other ninjas. At a certain high level of combat, where battles could change in an instant, no one dared to overlook even such a momentary disadvantage. Therefore, rather than relying on ninjutsu in battle, it was better to maximize the power of one's swordsmanship.
And this was precisely why she said that Wind and Lightning affinities were the chakra attributes most suited for sword-wielding ninjas. The nature transformations of Wind and Lightning attributes were more suitable for imbuing weapons than other attributes.
Naruto nodded slightly. Compared to other ninjutsu, training in chakra transformation was more suitable for him and could enhance his strength more effectively.
"Oh, right, the White Fang is the benchmark for training in ninja swordsmanship. You might want to study his fighting style for reference," Uzuki Yugao said with a gentle smile.
"Who is the White Fang?" Naruto asked.
"It's not really convenient for me to elaborate. If you really want to know, you'd be better off looking up records from the Second Great Ninja War," Uzuki Yugao said, shaking her head slightly. "Alright, it's getting late. You should all head back and rest."
"Could you tell me how to train chakra nature and shape transformation?" Naruto asked. The young couple rarely had a vacation; he wouldn't feel right disturbing them tomorrow.
"That's simple. Do as I did, practice slowly with a strand of hair. After practicing for a long time, you'll get a feel for it," Uzuki Yugao said with a smile. "Of course, if you feel that hair no longer presents a challenge, you can switch to some larger items—paper, leaves, those are all fine."
"As for shape transformation, just try to make your chakra take on the shape you imagine."
"…" Naruto felt a series of metaphorical black lines appear on his forehead. It seemed she had taught him, yet it also seemed she hadn't taught him anything at all.
"Actually, many things are hard for us to explain clearly; it's really a kind of feeling…" Gekko Hayate chimed in. "For Wind Nature Transformation, I can give you a little hint: it's a feeling of cutting."
"A feeling of… cutting?!" Naruto's brow furrowed slightly, but he didn't ask any more questions. Many things were indeed hard to put into words, just like sword intent; once you grasped it, you naturally understood. If you didn't grasp it, no matter how others described it, it would still seem somewhat abstract.
"Train hard. You're my last hope for saving face, you know," Gekko Hayate chuckled lightly. "We're off!"
Watching the couple leave hand-in-hand, Naruto also headed towards his own residence. He plucked a strand of hair and placed it in his palm. "A feeling of cutting…"
Thump!
Seeing the bait slowly sink, Naruto once again focused his concentration on the strand of hair in his palm. A week had now passed since the end of the second exam. For this entire week, he had devoted the vast majority of his energy to practicing Wind Chakra Nature Transformation. One strand of hair, one fishing rod, sitting with it in his palm for an entire day—this had become the truest depiction of his life.
"Hahaha…" "Aiya…" Splash! Splash!
Hearing the commotion from nearby, Naruto sighed helplessly. In the sweltering summer heat, playing in a cool river was definitely one of the best ways to escape the heat. There were only a few rivers around Konoha village, and with a large population, there were currently no rivers left where he could fish in peace. The fishing spot he was at now, due to its relatively remote location, was already the quietest one available.
"Hehehe…"
The sudden lewd chuckle nearly made Naruto throw out his back. His gaze swept around. After a moment, he slowly fixed his sights on a clump of bushes, or more precisely, on most of a perky butt sticking out from it.
[My eyes! It burns!] Naruto sighed inwardly in resignation. He slowly packed up his things, intending to find another spot. This was a public place; it was normal for people to come here. He could fish here, and others could play in the water here. The sounds of girls playing were tolerable, but this guy's lewd laughter… he had to admit, his self-control wasn't strong enough for that.
After Naruto's figure disappeared, the perverted-looking man slowly extracted himself from the bushes. He looked thoughtfully in the direction Naruto had left, but only for a moment.
"Hehehe…"
"The 'feeling of cutting' is honestly a bit too abstract," Naruto sighed in frustration. He plucked another strand of hair. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he felt his temples were getting a bit bald. "Looks like I'll have to switch to something else next time."
Staring at the waterfall ahead, Naruto murmured, "Cutting, cutting…"
Chss…
A cutting sound, so faint it was almost beyond the limits of human hearing, struck Naruto like a thunderclap. Looking at the hair in his palm, now split in two, Naruto felt the accumulated fatigue of the past few days instantly vanish. He quickly plucked a few more strands of hair to try again.
One, two, three… He became more and more proficient, the speed of cutting increasing.
A few minutes later.
"Huh??" Touching his now-empty temple, Naruto finally realized the gravity of the situation.