Chapter 66: Chapter 66: S-Rank Confidential Mission!
"This guy..."
Tsunade showed a look of surprise.
In the air, Shūichi Hoshita was overjoyed.
However, it was still in its early stages, and he wasn't very skilled yet. When he tried to control the force during the second mid-air explosion, he ended up crashing straight into a tree trunk.
Fortunately, he reacted quickly and used Yin Healing Wound Destruction in advance, so there was no serious injury.
But as soon as he got up from the ground, Tsunade was already beside him, asking, "How did you do that?"
"By combining nature transformation with shape transformation."
Shūichi explained, "The explosive nature of Fire Release is enhanced by shape transformation, which simulates the blooming of a flower. The blooming process itself is the transformation of Fire Release chakra—essentially, the explosion."
"The explosion creates a shockwave, and the flower's shape constrains the shockwave, which then propels us at high speed."
"It's actually an advanced development of the basic Body Flicker Technique."
Tsunade, after hearing this, asked, "What made you think of using the shape of a flower?"
Shūichi smiled and replied, "It came to me when I was buying flowers with Shizune last time and saw the flowers blooming—morning glories."
Tsunade immediately recalled that day. Shizune had returned with flowers, looking very pleased...
What incredible ninja instincts!
Tsunade secretly marveled, then pondered, "This truly is a remarkable Body Flicker Technique. It allows you to gain momentum mid-air, something no other ninja can do."
"Moreover, as you become more proficient, you might even be able to move at high speeds in mid-air."
Shūichi nodded, "Exactly."
Tsunade added, "The difficulty of this technique is undoubtedly S-rank!"
Not to mention nature transformation—most Fire Release jutsu have explosive characteristics. But shape transformation? Just forming a realistic fire flower, let alone simulating its blooming process, is extremely challenging.
And she noticed that Shūichi did this without any hand seals.
This means that this could be a hand-seal-less Fire Body Flicker Technique!
Shūichi nodded. In terms of difficulty, it indeed reached the S-rank level.
However, the technique wasn't fully completed yet, so it didn't meet the requirements of his Tag Tree.
But the hardest part, the beginning, was already done. Now it was just a matter of refining the details step by step.
And this Fire Body Flicker Technique was only the beginning.
His ultimate goal was to combine it with the Yin Seal, and even add Tsunade's unfinished Strength of a Hundred Technique to form a Fire Release chakra cloak, allowing the fire flowers to bloom from any part of his body.
Of course, this was a far-off goal.
Just mastering the Yin Seal would take two to three years, or even longer.
Adding the Yin Seal on his forehead would take even more time.
But he's only seven years old now, so time is on his side.
...
Under Tsunade's watchful eyes, Shūichi Hoshita continued to refine the Fire Body Flicker Technique.
It seemed he had set a good foundation, and within a few days, he made another breakthrough.
The Wind Release chakra nature transformation was finally completed!
This training was entirely a product of grinding through time with Shadow Clones.
With that, the Wind Release Expert tag was triggered, with conditions and effects similar to those of Fire Release Expert.
Having made this progress, Shūichi decided it was time to end his "retreat" at the Konoha Hospital.
Not only because he needed to obtain Wind Release ninjutsu resources from Minato Namikaze, but also because he needed to apply these techniques to perfect the Fire Body Flicker Technique.
In the evening, after packing his belongings for the mission tomorrow, Shūichi sat down to review his training.
By now, he was a true Fire Release expert.
However, Shūichi hadn't forgotten that his original goal in developing the Fire Body Flicker Technique was to enhance his swordsmanship, particularly to increase his speed.
Thinking about swordsmanship, he couldn't help but recall the Dance of the Crescent Moon technique.
"The Dance of the Crescent Moon... what if I use Fire Release clones for it?"
Shūichi couldn't help but think of the Lightning Release clone, which turns into a flash of lightning that can temporarily paralyze the enemy when struck.
So, what about Fire Release clones?
As he thought about it, Shūichi grew more excited.
He imagined the scene where a Fire Release clone is struck and then explodes, transforming into a blooming flower of flames.
"Fire Release clones... I wonder if Konoha has any."
Shūichi pondered, "Even if not, it doesn't matter. A Fire Release clone is just a Shadow Clone formed with Fire Release chakra, so developing it shouldn't be difficult for me."
"The key is the exploding fire flower... Making the Fire Release clone explode isn't the problem—it's just a matter of chakra nature transformation. But the fire flower..."
"It seems the Fire Release clone will need to self-detonate to achieve that."
Looking at the time, it wasn't practical to go outside and experiment now, so Shūichi decided to calm his thoughts and retrieved the ninjutsu scroll his mother had left behind.
He decided to master Wind Release: Gale Palm first!
...
The night passed without incident, and the next morning, Shūichi Hoshita woke up early.
He started with his morning training, then tested out the Gale Palm technique. He found that releasing it was no problem at all—now it was just a matter of practice.
It's definitely easier to train in Wind Release ninjutsu after mastering the Wind Release chakra nature transformation.
"I also need to find time to work on genjutsu…"
After breakfast and getting ready, Shūichi dressed in his combat gear, slung his scroll over his shoulder, and headed out.
As usual, they met at the old spot. After the entire Minato Squad gathered, they left the village.
On the way, Shūichi mentioned to Minato Namikaze that he wanted to train in Wind Release ninjutsu.
Minato agreed immediately and then smiled, "It looks like you're shifting your focus to Wind Release?"
Shūichi explained, "Since the first stage of my Fire Release development is complete, it now needs a lot of real combat and time to refine and perfect it. I can temporarily shift my energy to Wind Release and genjutsu."
Hearing the mention of genjutsu, Sanyō Kurama chuckled, "It looks like I might get to be a teacher!"
Shūichi immediately played along, "Master Sanyō, I will be in your care!"
Uchiha Shisui, watching the exchange, also smiled, "Shūichi, if you need any help, don't hesitate to ask."
"Of course," Shūichi joked, "I've always had a thick skin, so there's no need for formality."
As the three joked around, Minato's smile grew even wider. He thought to himself, "With Shūichi around, it feels like the atmosphere is even better!"
---
When they stopped to rest, Shūichi Hoshita learned his first Wind Release jutsu from Minato Namikaze.
Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!
A B-rank Wind Release jutsu that allows the user to continuously fire air bullets from their mouth.
This technique is somewhat similar to a smaller version of the Drilling Air Bullet used by Shukaku, the One-Tail.
Shūichi remembered that Uchiha Sasuke, after awakening his Mangekyō Sharingan, was once injured by this very move from Danzo.
"Wind fuels fire, Danzo, I'll get you one day!"
As he practiced the Vacuum Sphere jutsu, Shūichi clenched his teeth in silent determination.
Though things had been relatively peaceful lately, he was definitely someone who held grudges.
---
Time flew by, and before he knew it, it was already September.
Shūichi Hoshita continued his routine of completing missions while honing his skills.
One day, Minato's team received another mission to head to the Land of Rivers.
Sensing something unusual, Shūichi couldn't help but ask, "Minato-sensei, the situation in the Land of Rivers has mostly returned to how it was before. If we go there again, won't that provoke an overreaction from Sunagakure?"
The name "Yellow Flash" was already spreading, and the previous exploits of Minato's team had been so remarkable that their return would certainly agitate Sunagakure.
"It's true the situation there has mostly stabilized, but this time it's just a routine guard mission," Minato replied.
At least for now, he hadn't received any secret orders from the Third Hokage.
In the last battle, the Land of Rivers and the Land of Wind had conceded, giving up not only part of their iron ore profits but also some of the guarding and escorting tasks to Konoha.
Before this, all of that was Sunagakure's territory.
After hearing Minato's explanation, Shūichi pushed his concerns aside.
At noon, on the border of the Land of Fire, the team took a break.
After enjoying some grilled meat, Shūichi held his Totsuka Blade, watching as a faint white light flowed along the blade, infused with Wind Release chakra.
"My proficiency in Wind Release isn't as high as in Fire Release. The Wind Release enhances the blade's sharpness, but it's still not as good as the Blue Flame Sky Blade."
As he withdrew the chakra, Shūichi couldn't help but think of Pakura's Scorch Release.
The fusion of two chakra natures creates a new chakra nature, and the fire from Scorch Release naturally possesses strong control and manipulation capabilities.
It's similar to Storm Release, where the combination of Water and Lightning Release makes the difficult-to-control lightning much easier to manage.
Shūichi didn't expect to master Scorch Release anytime soon, but that didn't stop him from developing Wind and Fire Release combination jutsu, and perhaps even sword techniques.
After all, his original idea was to use Wind Release to enhance his weapons, granting them even greater cutting power.
Danzo had used Wind Release chakra to enhance shuriken and kunai.
Now, Shūichi could do the same, but the effect wasn't as strong as with his more advanced Fire Release techniques.
However, if Wind and Fire were combined, it might lead to greater efficiency and higher temperatures.
"In fact, the combination of Wind and Fire Release might be better suited for the Fire Body Flicker technique," Shūichi thought, his mind racing.
He had many ideas, but they would have to be developed step by step.
After an hour of rest, the team set off again, crossing the border into the Land of Rivers.
Around 4 PM, the four of them reached their destination—a mining mountain.
They were there to replace the team that had been guarding the area.
For the next half month, they would need to stay there, periodically escorting the mined and refined iron to the port.
Of course, guarding the area also meant protecting it from bandits, or even preventing them from taking over the mine.
For rogue ninja, taking over a mine from ordinary people would be all too easy.
But Shūichi couldn't shake the feeling that sending Minato's team to handle such a task seemed like overkill.
Sure enough, the next day, scouts from Sunagakure appeared outside the mine.
The word had clearly gotten out.
When Minato learned of this, he simply said, "Stay alert, but don't engage."
Two days later, Shūichi spotted two familiar faces.
Pakura of the Scorch Release!
Rasa of the Magnet Release!
The sight of his enemies made Shūichi's blood boil.
Seeing that Shūichi was alone, both of them seemed tempted.
Another ninja from Sunagakure noticed this and quickly warned, "It's not the right time for a confrontation."
Pakura was about to respond when Minato suddenly appeared beside Shūichi.
"Minato Namikaze…"
Rasa was visibly cautious.
Soon, Pakura and the others retreated, while Shūichi and Minato quietly followed them until they entered a town, at which point they withdrew.
It was clear that Pakura and her team weren't planning to leave anytime soon. It seemed they had been specifically sent to monitor Minato's team.
That evening, Minato received a confidential message from Konoha.
After reading it, he couldn't help but frown slightly.
Seeing this, Shūichi quickly asked, "Minato-sensei, has the village given us new orders?"
Minato nodded. "Yes, we have new orders, and there are two of them."
"But we've already completed one."
Shūichi pondered this for a moment.
Kurama Sanyō guessed, "Minato-sensei, is it related to the Sunagakure ninja?"
Minato nodded. "We need to draw Sunagakure's attention, and at the right moment, support another team on a mission."
"Another team?" Sanyō asked. "Minato-sensei, which team is it?"
"Is it like the last time in the Land of Rain, with intelligence agents?"
Minato shook his head. "No, the specific information is classified."
Sanyō was left speechless.
Uchiha Shisui remarked, "It sounds like that team is on an S-rank classified mission!"
(End of Chapter)
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