Chapter 30: Chapter 29
Chapter 29
Kaen looked at his three genin. They were full of anticipation for the start of their careers. Even though he knew he shouldn't enjoy it, he loved destroying their wills and taking the dirtiest D-rank missions there were. Kaen knew that physical training wasn't enough to be a great shinobi. They needed endurance more than anything.
It wasn't easy on the body and mind to do some missions. So firstly, Kaen needed to break their will to rebuild it back. It was quite a hot day, a perfect day to clean the village. So, for the first mission, I took my genin to pick up trash from the village. Cleaning trash from draining sewage wasn't something they liked. The heat didn't help at all.
For the whole day, Kaen didn't let his team rest, not even allowing them to have lunch. But he wasn't cruel and let them drink water when thirsty. There were plenty of missions for them to finish for a day, so after they finished collecting trash, he led them to a gardener to help him with his garden.
The missions took a lot from genin. They were wet and dirty, hungry and tired. Kaen could see they were on their last straws when night fell, hoping it was the end. Kaen promised they would be done with one last mission, exterminating rats and rodents from the grain warehouse. At first, they were hopeful, but when they understood that they needed to set up traps and observe the warehouse for the whole night, the light seemed to disappear from their eyes.
"I can't take this anymore!" Kiba was the first to express his feelings.
"What are you yelling at?" Kaen asked, acting like he didn't know what he meant.
"Collecting trash, pulling out weeds, tending to plants, and now exterminating rats," Kiba said, and Kaen looked at him like he didn't understand what he meant.
"You all did a lot, but look at how much you have earned in one day," Kaen said, dismissing the idea that they were children from clans and never needed money. "You should be glad you get so much work. Now, stop acting like a kid and finish the work. I am already tired of babysitting you."
"Agh," Kiba didn't even have the energy to growl.
Hinata and Shino were quiet people, but Kaen could see they would soon question their work ethics. Ultimately, they finished killing all the rats, using Hinata's byakugan and Shino's bugs. It was midnight when Kaen told them to go home. By the time they are finished cleaning themselves up and satisfying their starving bodies, they won't have much time to sleep. When his students left, Kaen dispelled himself.
As his shadow clone dispelled, Kaen, lying on the sofa and studying seals and medicine, got his memories back from the day. Ash, sleeping on Kaen's chest, didn't flinch as Kaen put his books down. Getting Ash off his chest was challenging, as the furball would bite his fingers when he tried to move him. Kaen gave up and let Ash stay where he wanted.
…
"You are late," Kaen commented as his students entered the training field with yawns and bags under their eyes. "Don't worry. Today you won't have any missions. Today I will teach you things you need in your career."
Seeing his students happy to hear that, Kaen felt terrible. They soon will realize that the jobs they had to do were paradise compared to the training he would subject them to. Before they could know it, Kaen moved with his two shadow clones just behind. He grabbed them and touched their foreheads.
"What are you doing?" Kiba tried to wrestle away, but it was too late.
"You all did great yesterday and finished the last mission fast using your skills," Kaen said. "But from now on, you won't be able to use them. The seal on your foreheads will restrict you from using what you always had used, something you always had and depended on."
"Wait, why can't I smell anything," Kiba first realized what was happening.
"My Insects!" Shino yelled in horror as his bugs left his coat and scattered.
"I can't activate my byakugan," Hinata exclaimed.
"It is as you realized. I took the things you all relied upon the most," Kaen said. "From now on, you will learn not to depend on them. You shall feel despair and suffering, so let's have fun."
Kaen saw the light disappear from their eyes. Kaen was someone who did his best no matter what. So, he will make his students the best they can be. Firstly, he had to make them helpless. While their clans taught them how to use their techniques, it only made them weaker without them. To a shinobi, to rely on one thing was a death sentence.
To Kaen, the clan techniques were something to make a strong shinobi even stronger, but the genin were too weak, and they still needed to realize how those techniques had held them down all this time. He will have to teach them from the ground up. Even a bit of suffering will lead to better results later.
"First, I will test your skills in taijutsu," Kaen said. "Come at me with all you got."
Kiba went first. Without hesitation, he threw a punch and then a kick when Kaen blocked it. There was some weight behind his attacks, but they were simple standard taijutsu style that most shinobi learned in Konoha. Kaen already saw what Kiba was lacking, and after a few more attacks, he subdued Kiba.
Next, Hinata jumped to attack. Her palm attacks were straightforward but powerful. At least they would if Hinata didn't have so much hesitation. Her attacks were fast and precise, aiming for vitals, as the Hyuga clan teaches. Yet, when Hinata used the techniques, it did not have the intention to kill or hurt. It seemed to Kaen that Hinata needed the most work.
When Kaen deflected Hinata's palm attack and knocked her back with his punch, Shino tried to interfere with a kick. Kaen quickly blocked it, but he found it didn't have much weight on the attack. After receiving a few more blows, Kaen concluded that Shino lacked physical strength the most out of the three.
"All of you are lacking," Kaen commented. "Firstly, Kiba, why are you using standard taijutsu techniques? It doesn't suit you or your clan. Has your mother or sister taught you nothing?"
"Why should I learn from them?" Kiba asked. "I will surpass them on my own."
"I see. You are an idiot," Kaen replied and then turned to Hinata. "Secondly, Hinata, your form is good, but you didn't do your best. You held back. I don't know why you did so, but holding back against your opponent is dangerous to you and insulting to your opponent."
"I am sorry, sensei," Hinata looked at the ground.
"We will have to work on it," Kaen said. "Lastly, Shino. Your form was good, and your aiming for vitals is commendable on your senses, but the lack of physical strength makes your moves too slow and easy to block."
"I will do better," Shino replied.
"I make sure you do your best, so don't worry," Kaen said. "Overall, none of you are anything special in taijutsu, with much to be desired and much room to improve. Next, we continue with ninjutsu and chakra control. Show your best."
It took most of the day for Kaen to process the capabilities of his students. While Shino lacked physical strength, he compensated for it with his almost excellent chakra control. Kiba was the worst of the three, and Hinata was quite good but still lacking. All of them knew only of a couple of jutsu.
Kaen started to regret telling Kakashi that Kaen's students would beat his students. Compared to them, Sasuke was way above them, would it be taijutsu, ninjutsu, or chakra control. Kaen would need to devise a suitable and brutal regime for them to catch up. He could not accept defeat. His students will be best, or they are not his students.
"Can we rest?" Kiba asked as Kaen started to think.
"Rest? With your pathetic skills?" Kaen asked. "I took three genin, not three failures, if I remember correctly. So, don't even think about relaxing; outside the village, a group of average bandits would kill all of you."
"What? But it is already lunch, and I am hungry," Kiba complained.
Kaen knew it well, but hunger, anger, and hatred would motivate them to improve fast. As he thought, Kaen would need to destroy them before they could be rebuilt to his desired form. So, without saying anything, he created three shadow clones and took his lunch before sitting before them.
"Defeat my clones, and I will let you eat," Kaen said. "And remember that I won't let you rest until they are defeated, no matter how long it will take you."
Kaen could see that Hinata was the most distressed, it felt terrible to bully such a kind girl, but Kaen had to make them be their best, so he quickly dismissed his feelings. Kaen also felt that Shino held a grudge over the seal that would not let any regular bug get near him. Kaen used the seal on himself, so he knew how effective it was.
As hours passed in the fight, Kaen finally saw some potential in them. Hunger and anger let Kiba fight in an unorthodox style, like a beast, as he couldn't land a hit on Kaen's shadow clone with his usual style. Hinata started to give her all, too, when she was pushed into a corner and suffered from painful jabs of his shadow clone fingers.
Shino, too, started to think and use different tactics to defeat Kaen's clone. The more they are pushed to their limits, the more potential they show. Soon they will be forced to think and feel differently than they used to. Kaen wanted to force them to use all they knew and find new ways to defeat their opponent.
…
To say that Kiba was furious would be an understatement. He was beaten up, hurting all over his body. He was starving, having not eaten anything since his breakfast, and most importantly, his pride was shattered as his sensei, in the end, got bored of them fighting and let him go. And, of course, that stupid seal was restricting his sense of smell. He could barely smell anything, even when he put food close to his nose.
"You should wash first before eating, Kiba," Hana said.
"I am hungry," Kiba replied as he stuffed meat in his mouth.
"You are a bad influence on Akamaru," Hana sighted as she petted his companion.
"It is all Kaen-sensei's fault. He starved me all day while he enjoyed great lunch," Kiba complained.
"That sounds like him," Hana commented.
"Do you know him well?" Kiba asked. "Can you help me beat him up?"
"Ha, my silly little brother, you will never be able to fight him on equal terms," Hana laughed at his face. "At least not until I kick his ass to oblivion first."
"At least give me some tips," Kiba pleaded.
"Well, if it is for my little brother," Hana agreed before getting a massive book from her room. "In this book are my learnings and methods of how to beat him."
Kiba gulped his food before taking the book and looking through the pages. He saw all kinds of skills and techniques, Kaen-sensei could use and how to counter them. Then there was information about his life, from the food he liked and disliked to how much time he spent training and skills that he probably knew but hadn't shown.
"It is all about him?" Kaen asked, feeling concerned for his sister.
"No, it is the first book of my findings," Hana replied.
"Isn't it too much?" Kiba asked.
"It seems you are not serious about defeating him," Hana commented. "After years of stalk… I mean, gathering information about him, I know very well how strong he is and what it will take to take him down."
Kiba was now curious about what Kaen-sensei had done to his sister for her to be so obsessed, but he understood it. Kaen-sensei only used his shadow clones and taijutsu, yet he made him feel helpless and desperate. He hated that feeling. He utterly despised Kaen for making him feel like that, so he decided to use everything he could to win next time.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone