บท 5: A friend?

**The Next Day**

After waking up, Yato washed up, changed into his worn-out black yukata, stretched, and walked out the door. His training plan spanned from morning to night, with breaks only for meals and chakra refinement.

To become an excellent ninja, there were many paths. Ninjas like Yuhi Kurenai, Hyuga Neji, and Gekkou Hayate were all exceptional in their own right—smart, experienced, and uniquely skilled, they were the elite of the village. However, they couldn't compare to the sheer power of individuals like Sasuke and Naruto, partly due to their extraordinary bloodlines and immense chakra reserves.

Chakra, the vital energy for casting jutsu, was like the blue energy bar in a game. The amount of chakra infused into a technique directly influenced its power and range. For instance, the First Hokage's Wood Release techniques could devastate battlefields, whereas Yamato's attempts barely managed to rebuild Konoha without exhausting himself.

***

It was clear that to become a powerful ninja, chakra was the foundation. The more powerful the technique, the more chakra it consumed, and the more chakra was needed to support it. Unless brought back from the dead by Impure World Reincarnation, a ninja had to constantly manage their chakra levels.

To be strong, Yato had to work hard to ensure his chakra was sufficient. He didn't need to focus too much on developing his Devil Fruit abilities for now, as Fujitora's techniques had already paved the way. As long as his chakra kept up, he could use many powerful moves such as [Gravity Suppression], [Gravity Command], [Gravity Knife Tiger], [Gravity Chaos].

Therefore, aside from physical training, chakra refinement was Yato's top priority. His body's transformation by the Devil Fruit allowed him to perform moves that would otherwise deplete his chakra completely.

Thinking of this, Yato started his jog toward his usual training spot. Along the way, people occasionally pointed at him, but he ignored them, his mind preoccupied.

While running, he communicated with Riku. "Go and collect some valuable stuff using the Storage space."

"Huh?! Don't order me around. At least, say please before requesting my help, you ungrateful brat," the Dokkaebi protested, still holding a grudge from yesterday when Yato hadn't given him enough food.

"Do you want me to cut your rations short?" Yato said without changing his expression.

Riku grumbled but then smirked, a plan forming in its mind. "Sure thing, I'll bring you as many valuables as I can." It floated away, leaving Yato to continue his jog.

The Dokkaebi, not entirely honest, floated to some breakfast shops and took food while the owners and passersby were distracted. It stuffed some into its mouth and threw others into its pockets, which became Yato's breakfast.

Arriving at his training site, Yato rested and stretched out his hand to the mongoose. "You shameless thing, you eat my food and drink my drinks, but you don't give me meat to eat at mealtimes. I don't want to eat offal tonight; I want meat!"

Riku bargained while pulling out food much larger than its pocket, like a magical treasure bag. Yato ignored it, ate, and then sat cross-legged to refine chakra. Once the food was digested, he resumed his physical training.

Riku, realizing it had no place to go, tried to reason with Yato. Despite its efforts, Yato remained silent, focused on his training.

With a silent recitation, double gravity suddenly swept through Yato's body. Moving around, he found that the double pressure had little effect on him now. Increasing the chakra output, the pressure doubled again.

"The double gravity has little effect on me now. It seems that even triple gravity will not affect my normal walking," he thought, impressed by his progress after only a week of training.

On the other side of Konoha, Hanabi was having a tough day. Distracted and unfocused, she struggled through meals and practice, even losing to her sister in sparring, which had never happened before. Her father, Hiashi, concerned, asked her what was wrong. She only mentioned feeling unwell, but her mind was consumed with thoughts of the previous day.

After practice, Hanabi made some rice balls in the kitchen, shaping them into rabbits—her favorite animal. She carried them out of the Hyuga compound, determined to find Yato.

Navigating through Konoha, she asked around and eventually found Yato's house, but no one was there. An old lady, unlike other villagers who were wary of her, showed her kindness but displayed disgust when asked about Yato. Confused, Hanabi followed the old lady's directions, trotting through increasingly hostile Uchiha neighborhoods.

Despite the growing hostility, Hanabi pressed on, determined to find Yato. She noticed the same ethnic emblem on the villagers' clothes but continued forward, her courage unwavering.

****

The Back Mountain of Konohagakure

In the back mountain of Konohagakure, Yato was sweating profusely as he carried out his intense daily training.

"One hundred and twelve, one hundred and thirteen, one hundred and fourteen... two hundred and fifty-one, two hundred and seventy-seven, two hundred and ninety..." he counted silently in his mind. The ground was already wet with his sweat.

His arms were getting stiffer and his body heavier, giving him the feeling that he could collapse at any moment. His arms were numb, devoid of any sensation, and he could only continue through sheer willpower.

Not wanting to die and determined to live became his motivation to persist and constantly challenge his physical limits.

Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to complete 300 push-ups. When he stood up, he suddenly felt dizzy and, with a snap, fell on his back with his arms spread out.

Panting like a drowning person rescued and brought back to land, he greedily breathed in the air. But not long after, he propped himself up with both hands and stood again.

"The goal of 300 push-ups has been achieved. The next goal is 350. Now, start squatting 300 times!"

After setting the goal, Yato clasped his hands behind his head and began to squat, moving under the pressure of gravity.

Halfway through, he felt the pressure wasn't as great as he had imagined. He suddenly increased his chakra output, doubling the gravity, and then resumed squatting.

Although he did not focus much on developing his Devil Fruit powers, he spent almost all his time each day pushing his limits. This allowed him to use the Devil Fruit's power more flexibly and improved his control over chakra—a two-birds-with-one-stone approach.

After doing 300 squats, Yato rested for a while, then concentrated all his strength to strike a wooden stake.

Bang!

With a muffled sound, the stake didn't break, but Yato's fist left a mark on it.

Retracting his fist, Yato asked, "How much Doriki does my full-strength punch have in pirate terms?"

"A total of 90 Doriki power, to be precise," answered Riku, which had jumped onto the stake and swept its tail across the mark.

"90 Doriki power?" Yato was quite satisfied with this result. Although he was still far from mastering the Navy Six Styles, he had obtained this fruit less than a month ago. Improving all aspects of his body to nearly double the level in such a short time was already impressive.

"If I use the power of the gravity fruit, the Doriki power of my punch should hit a value of 200. But there's no need for that. What I need now is for my body to be strong enough on its own."

With the gravity fruit, his attack power could reach incredible levels. For an example of this kind of power, look at the cooperation between the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, and the Fourth Raikage, Ai. Onoki's Earth Release technique not only made the Raikage as fast as lightning, but also enabled his fists to penetrate Uchiha Madara's Susanoo.

Yato's current ability to control gravity wasn't strong enough yet—the limit was about twice normal gravity—and he wasn't as strong as the Tsuchikage and Raikage. But one day, he would surpass them both.

Even reaching the gravity realm of Kaguya Otsutsuki's "Amenominaka" was not impossible, as long as he had enough chakra and his body could withstand it.

"Finally found you..."

A petite figure emerged from the forest. Yato looked in the direction of the voice. It was Hanabi, whom he had met yesterday.

She wore a chamomile kimono, or maybe a dojo uniform, and held an exquisite lunch box as she walked directly towards Yato.

Yato frowned and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I... I came to thank you for saving me yesterday and taking me home. I made this for you. It's not particularly valuable, but I hope you can accept it."

Hanabi opened the bento with a smile, revealing several exquisitely shaped rice balls. It was clear she was pleased with her handiwork.

"You don't need to thank me. Even if I hadn't shown up yesterday, you wouldn't have died. At most, you'd have been bitten by wild dogs. As for taking you home, it was just a side trip."

Yato glanced around, then turned with an indifferent face and walked into the forest. At that moment, he felt his body relax as he had removed the gravity from his body when he noticed movement.

Hanabi's smile froze. Looking at Yato's back, she gritted her teeth and chased after him. Unlike her sister Hinata, she was more opinionated and brave, and not easily swayed.

Riku, sensing three hidden auras around them, refrained from its usual calls for Yato to kill her and take her eyes. "Yato, there are three people, all Hyuga clan ninjas. One is a chunin, the other two are genin. You must hold back and not act!"

Yato didn't need Riku's reminder; he had no intention of killing Hanabi. She was the Byakugan princess and future heir of the Hyuga clan, and she naturally had bodyguards. The Hyuga clan was the only giant in Konoha that could compete with the Uchiha clan, even sending an elite team to protect her within the village.

After walking for a while, Yato squatted down, pushed aside some yellowed weeds, and a rabbit appeared in front of him. The rabbit quickly huddled up, its ears trembling, caught in a trap with no escape. Yato picked it up.

"What a cute little white rabbit. Can I touch it?" Hanabi asked, reaching out.

But in the next second, with a click, Yato broke the rabbit's neck, ending its life.

"Leave. This is not the place for you."

Looking at Hanabi's stunned face, Yato reset the trap and picked up the dead rabbit before disappearing into the forest, just like the previous night.

Hanabi stood there, holding the lunch box, not coming back to her senses for a long time. As the sun set and a breeze blew through the forest, the dead leaves fell, adding to the desolation.

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