(T/N: There is now a p.atreon for this work, and any new work I add will be dropped there first. check it out for an early release of up to 30 chapters edited smoothly. https://www.p.atreon.com/INeedRest)
(Four chapters today. 4/4)
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The knockout round had finally concluded, allowing everyone to emerge from the Forest of Death after five grueling days.
Hinata departed with Hiashi and her little sister, while Ino left with Team 10.
With the main competition approaching, the remaining participants knew they had to train diligently.
For Colt, seeing the two girls might prove difficult in the coming month.
Team seven made their way back to Konoha, spirits high for all except Sakura.
Even Kakashi was in a good mood, proud that all three of his students had advanced to the final stage. As for Sakura, Kakashi could only conclude that she had yet to fully commit to the path of a ninja.
"Sasuke, starting tomorrow, I'll guide you in your 'Chidori' practice and teach you how to better use thunder-attributed chakra," Kakashi said.
Considering that Sasuke's opponent was Gaara, Kakashi felt uneasy.
His keen eye could discern that Gaara's strength had already surpassed that of a Genin, reaching the level of a Jonin already. Moreover, when looking at the child, even Kakashi felt a sense of dread, as if Gaara concealed some great horror within.
Sasuke remained silent for a moment before agreeing. In truth, he had hoped Colt would guide him, but he knew it was unlikely. Colt was typically lazy and indifferent to such requests.
"What about me, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked eagerly.
Kakashi glanced at Colt, who seemed disinterested. "What do you think, Colt?"
"Really?" Naruto's eyes lit up, excited by the prospect.
"Keep dreaming," Colt said, rolling his eyes. "What you need now is to focus on the basics. Kakashi-sensei will arrange that for you."
Colt knew that Naruto's chakra control was still weak, and Ebisu, as a special Jōnin skilled in teaching, would have more experience in this area. Besides, the Pervy Sage was waiting for Naruto.
Kakashi smiled and agreed with Colt's assessment. Although initially disappointed, Naruto quickly regained his enthusiasm. After all, he had won his match, qualified, and had such a cool technique he could train in.
As the sun set, its dying rays illuminating the sky, Naruto made a bold declaration: "I will definitely defeat Shikamaru, win the competition, and become the Hokage!"
"Haha, Keep working hard Naruto,"
Amidst the laughter that followed, only Sakura wore a stiff expression, her thoughts elsewhere.
Arriving home, Colt fell silent upon seeing that Ichibi had ravaged every room once again.
"Arrf~!"
Observing the dog's eyes blinking with wisdom, Colt finally made up his mind.
"Ichibi, you're a mature dog now. It's not okay to stay this chubby every day."
As he weighed the fat on Ichibi's chin, Colt's tone remained gentle.
"Arrf?"
What was the owner talking about? He was just an ordinary dog.
"Look at Kiba's Akamaru. He can help him in his fight against Naruto. Now, I'm not asking too much of you… but at the very least you should be able to take on Sasuke."
After interpreting Ichibi's gaze, Colt spoke earnestly while simultaneously calling out to the system.
"[System], exchange for the Seed of Nature."
A strange seed shimmering with golden light appeared in his hand. Colt opened Ichibi's mouth and tossed it in.
"Arrf?"
Ichibi's face was full of confusion before his whole body began to twitch violently, his yelps endless.
Seeing Ichibi's pained expression, Colt's face remained calm.
The Seed of Nature was worth 5,000 points, and its effects granted the summoning beasts the ability to use natural energy. The seed's power was now transforming Ichibi's body.
From this point on, Ichibi could practice sage arts just like the summoning beasts of the Three Holy Lands. Perhaps in a thousand years, he might even earn the title of a Great Hound Sage.
A little pain now was Colt's way of teaching Ichibi a lesson. After all, if one ate well and only suffered a little, they remained just a common dog.
Colt also put the practice of [Sage Mode] on his agenda. That was something he needed too.
Over the next period, to avoid disturbing Ino and Hinata's training, the three of them would likely see very little of each other.
Of course, Colt couldn't remain idle either.
His improvement from ninjutsu had been minimal, while his [Mangekyō] and [Sage Body] were growing steadily. After coming into contact with the cursed seal Orochimaru left for Sasuke, he gained some insights into natural energy.
And Colt, possessing a [Sage Body], could sense the energy of nature without relying on the methods of the Three Holy Lands.
**********
Early the next morning, Colt was awakened by a knock at the door.
"Colt, thank you so much for stopping Gaara yesterday and saving Lee!" Might Guy bowed deeply to Colt.
Yesterday, in his rush to tend to his disciple, Guy had only managed to issue a hurried thanks before leaving. So, this morning, he came specially to express his gratitude.
"No need to be so formal, Lee is my friend too," Colt said, rubbing his sleepy eyes. Last night's training had been intense, leaving him drained until the late hours. He hadn't slept long.
"No," Guy insisted seriously. "It might have been a small effort for you, but for Lee, it saved his ninja career!"
"That's why I brought you a special gift!"
"Oh?" Colt's interest was piqued.
'A gift from Guy?'
Guy solemnly produced a set of brilliantly green tights from his backpack.
"This is a special ninja suit for Konoha's elite! In the whole village, only Lee and I have them," Guy explained excitedly.
"Colt, you're about to become the third ninja in Konoha with this outfit!"
Colt's eyelid twitched. Wearing something like that in public seemed like social suicide. It was worse than the embarrassing fashion choices from his previous life!
"Guy-san, this gift is too much. If you really want to thank me, please do me a favor instead," Colt said, eyeing Ichibi trotting in the middle of the house behind him.
"Whatever you ask, if I can do it, I'll definitely agree!" Guy readily accepted. He disappointedly put away the suit.
Colt grabbed Ichibi's tail and pulled him over. "This is my ninja dog, Ichibi. I was hoping you could help me train him a bit."
"Are you sure this is a ninja dog?" Guy asked skeptically, eyeing Ichibi's rotund form. He'd never seen such a plump ninja dog before. Was it meant to be used as a meat shield?
"Haha," Colt laughed awkwardly. "Maybe he just eats well, as such he's more... robust. But trust me, he's very talented. He just needs some extra exercise and who's better at that than you."
Colt patted Ichibi on the head.
"Arrf~?" Ichibi whined, clearly unenthusiastic.
In the end, Guy agreed to Colt's request and began running laps around Konoha with Ichibi. Under his new trainer's pressure, Ichibi could only struggle to keep up.
"Finally, success," Colt sighed, wiping away cold sweat as his desire to sleep vanished. He was now preparing to leave the village to begin his own training for the day.
(T/N: There is now a p.atreon for this work, and any new work I add will be dropped there first. check it out for an early release of up to 30 chapters edited smoothly. https://www.p.atreon.com/INeedRest)
****************
At the Sunagakure station in Konoha Village, Baki leaned against a pillar, eyeing Kabuto Yakushi with displeasure.
"Why is it you? Where's Orochimaru?"
Kabuto pushed up his glasses, the glare obscuring his eyes.
"Orochimaru-sama has more pressing matters. I'm sufficient for this meeting."
Only Kabuto knew the truth: Orochimaru was actually injured.
Despite his formidable escape skills, he couldn't fully evade the [Kirin] unleashed by Colt.
Coupled with the subsequent Kazekage assassination plan, Orochimaru was dedicating all his time to recovery.
Kabuto himself feared Colt, who had managed to wound Orochimaru.
In his eyes, Orochimaru was among the strongest in the ninja world, yet a thirteen-year-old boy had hurt him. It was simply… Unbelievable.
"Tsk"
Baki snorted in annoyance but said nothing.
His village's top priorities came first. He had contacted Orochimaru to arrange a more detailed plan.
Initially, they had thought Konoha's strength had been greatly reduced after the Uchiha massacre. However, recent observations showed that Konoha was still formidable. Without careful planning, their scheme was likely to fail.
Kabuto smiled, watching Baki start his prepared talk. Inwardly, he felt a hint of mockery.
'This level of intelligence… He's only worthy of being a pawn for Orochimaru-sama.'
Meanwhile, with Colt.
After leaving home, he first went to the seventh training ground, often used by Team 7.
There, Sasuke and Kakashi had already begun their practice.
Looking at Sasuke's panting appearance, it was clear he must have arrived early in the morning and had been training hard since.
"Morning, EdgeLord, Kakashi-sensei," Colt greeted, observing Sasuke constantly stimulating his body with thunder-type chakra.
Sasuke, focusing on what he was doing, continued training without responding.
"I finally understand why you wanted me to keep a Shadow Clone here," Colt said, as he looked at the injuries of Sasuke.
Indeed, Kakashi had asked Colt to come so he could leave a Shadow Clone to treat Sasuke's injuries at any time. After all, lightning wasn't easy to tame. Poor control could harm Sasuke's body.
"Well, it is the ninjutsu you taught. You should contribute too," Kakashi gave an eye smile, leaving Colt helpless.
After leaving a Shadow Clone and teaching Kakashi [Chidori]-style techniques, Colt set out to find a place with more natural energy. He eventually chose a spot beneath a waterfall. Though the natural energy here wasn't comparable to the Three Holy Places, it was significantly higher than in Konoha Village.
Colt exchanged points for the most basic [Sage Mode] training method from the [Healer's Benevolence System].
While the techniques of the Three Holy Places had their specialties, all sage arts essentially increased the caster's all-around abilities. The specific abilities developed through this [Sage Mode] would depend on Colt himself.
The first step was to perceive the natural energy in the atmosphere and incorporate it into the body. Colt lacked the aid of toad oil to facilitate this, but his [Sage Body] had developed to a high level already.
Closing his eyes and focusing inward, he sensed the colorful natural energy flowing freely around him. He attempted to use his body's pores to breathe it in, slowly drawing the energy into his body.
Although it seemed gentle, the natural energy was actually quite violent. Without sufficient chakra control and experience, it would be impossible to control it at all.
What Colt lacked the least was chakra and thus control.
His chakra had reached 8 Kakashi's, and as such, he might need to switch to another measurement system soon.
The next step in his training was the hardest.
Generally, chakra was produced by mixing mental and physical energy in a fixed ratio. The same held true for sage chakra, which required a 1:1:1 mixture to produce. But such violent foreign energy was definitely not so easily integrated.
Throughout the day, Colt spent two hours controlling natural energy into his body. But until sunset, he still had no clue how to fuse it properly.
Fortunately, there was no danger in the systematic training of such a technique; at worst, his pathways might be damaged. But for Colt, who possessed rather adept healing skills, was this even a concern?
After finishing his training, Colt didn't go home directly. Instead, he headed to Konoha's business district. It had been a while since he'd eaten at Ichiraku Ramen, and today he wanted to visit Teuchi and Ayame.
As night fell, the commercial street was brightly lit, with people coming and going.
Feeling the bustling environment, Colt suddenly felt content. There was much more life here than being alone at home.
From time to time, he could experience exotic customs from foreign tourists. As he passed through a red-light district, many women waved, trying to entice him inside. Fortunately, Colt wasn't a loner in this life otherwise he might not have been able to resist the temptation.
"Kamiyo Colt!" Just as he was nearing Ichiraku Ramen, Colt suddenly heard a shout behind him.
Looking back, he saw it was none other than Temari.
The current Temari appeared strikingly different from her usual combat attire.
She was adorned in a pure white kimono, intricately decorated with delicate Sakura flower patterns.
Even her ever-present giant fan, a staple of her ninja equipment, was nowhere to be seen. The fierce, heroic spirit that typically emanated from her had vanished, replaced by an unexpected softness that transformed her demeanor entirely.
Since Temari had taken the initiative to greet him, Colt couldn't simply ignore her presence.
"Out for a stroll?" he inquired, attempting to initiate a conversation.
"Mm-hmm," Temari responded with a brief nod.
"Where are your two brothers?" Colt asked.
"They're resting," she replied almost immediately, leading him to raise an eyebrow.
'Why does it feel like I'm interrogating her?'
The exchange between them felt inexplicably awkward. Colt found himself at a loss for words after these brief exchanges. The main issue was that his previous two encounters with Temari had been far from friendly.
Additionally, they were set to be opponents in the next round of the Chūnin exam, leaving Colt uncertain about how to interact with Temari in this unexpected situation.
Eventually, as the silence stretched on, Temari broke it by asking, "Where are you headed?"
"Ichiraku Ramen," Colt replied.
Then, surprising even himself, he added, "Would you like to join me?"
"Okay," Temari answered quickly, her rapid agreement causing Colt to eye her with slight suspicion.
Could this be a tactic employed by the Sand Village, he wondered, an attempt to lure him to the Land of Wind? If so, Colt could only scoff inwardly at such a ploy. It would take far more than that to deceive him.
Temari, following behind Colt, remained oblivious to the strange thoughts running through his mind.
Her face flushed slightly as she walked. She had originally come out to relax, but upon spotting Colt, she had called out to him on impulse.
Now, faced with the prospect of dining together, her mind raced. Was this a date? Would he think that she was being too forward? Did he suspect she had ulterior motives…? What would they name their children? No, no, no!
Temari hurriedly shook her head, banishing that last outlandish thought, and followed Colt into the ramen shop, her heart beating a little faster than usual.
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