"Four hundred and ninety-seven... Four hundred and ninety-eight..."
Chiba punched the stakes with each strike, knocking down layers of sawdust.
The day before, Kakashi had brought him back to the village but didn't take him to his home on the outskirts. Instead, he had him stay in the village medical clinic for a day.
During that time, Yukina Hyuga's father, Shinsuke Hyuga, visited him briefly and expressed his gratitude. He also left a message: "Come to my house when you have time."
This made Chiba quite happy. Being invited to the Hyuga house as a guest signified recognition of his existence, and even the doors of the Hyuga's home were open to him.
He hadn't expected that saving Yukina would lead to such a grand gesture from the Hyuga family. At that moment, Chiba thought he had misheard.
'What is Yukina's status?' Chiba wondered after completing five hundred punches, then began to squat.
Regarding school, after Kakashi reported the incident to the Third Hokage, the Third Hokage granted Chiba a five-day break and requested that he not discuss the incident.
If people knew that an enemy ninja had taken a member of the noble Hyuga family right under Konoha's nose, it could cause quite a stir. This matter, as per the Third Hokage's wishes, was kept under wraps.
On the day Chiba was hospitalized, the Third Hokage came to explain a few things.
Chiba nodded in agreement, but the Third Hokage's parting words, "Unknowingly, you have grown up like this," left Chiba somewhat puzzled.
Listening to the Third Hokage, it seemed there were no doubts about Chiba because of his father's traitorous identity, and even a hint of sorrow, which made Chiba feel a bit uneasy.
However, with just a word, even if Chiba was a little concerned, he wouldn't delve into it. He now had more important things to focus on.
Through this battle, Chiba also recognized his weaknesses, and the joy of developing the *Controlled Eight Gates Mode* was no longer there.
A severely injured Jonin still had room to kill him. If Yukina hadn't been there to cooperate with him, he might have been the one to die, not the Jonin.
His strength was far from sufficient!
At the medical clinic, Chiba hadn't been idle either and began to slowly adjust his daily training schedule in his mind.
The first was basic physical training.
The second was training in brute strength.
The third was training in Ninjutsu.
Ninjutsu turned out to be an unexpected joy. Bored in the medical clinic, he kept thinking about the battle, learning from his only real combat experience. He discovered that he had memorized the sequence of the final Ninjutsu used by the enemy ninja.
He had only glanced at it briefly, but the sequence of hand seals for the Ninjutsu had been completely memorized.
Upon leaving the infirmary, Chiba returned home and immediately activated the *Controlled Eight Gates* and tried the Ninjutsu. It was a success.
Chiba suddenly realized he had a talent for Ninjutsu and quite a significant one at that.
The *Eight Gates* and a talent for Ninjutsu, Chiba couldn't believe it.
Now, Chiba finally understood something. It wasn't that fate hadn't given him the means to become strong; he just hadn't developed his own potential.
Realizing this, Chiba set even stricter requirements for himself. Although he had a talent for Ninjutsu, the most fundamental aspect was Chakra. Without sufficient Chakra, any Ninjutsu would be useless.
In the final analysis, the *Controlled Eight Gates* needed further development.
When opening the Gates Mode for the second time, Chiba also encountered a problem: he had to open the Gates first and then switch to the *Controlled Gates Mode*. Although it wasn't as difficult as the first time, and he could basically control the Chakra 100% of the time, this change still dissipated a considerable amount of Chakra and also consumed a significant amount of time.
This was a source of distress for Chiba.
After all, not all battles allow him to start in Gates Mode and then intervene.
Sometimes, it's crucial to activate the *Controlled Eight Gates* immediately in battle, or even at the moment of a surprise attack, to quickly counterattack.
He must directly enter the *Controlled Eight Gates Mode* as soon as he opens one gate; otherwise, the technique would feel somewhat lackluster.
However, Chiba devised a strategy.
That is while opening the gate and transforming into *Controlled Eight Gates Mode*, he would perform hand seals to execute Ninjutsu. The goal was to enter the mode and successfully perform Ninjutsu once a set of hand seals was completed.
Moreover, Chiba's speed in forming hand seals was now quite fast. Before mastering the *Eight Gates*, he practiced various hand-sealing techniques. It took almost two to three seconds to complete a set of hand seals, meaning he must transform into the *Eight Gates* Mode within two seconds; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to use Ninjutsu.
After all, Chiba's original Chakra was not abundant, making it impossible for him to use high-level Ninjutsu. The Chakra under the influence of the *Eight Gates* was too volatile to control.
Only when the hand seals were completed or before, could the volatile Chakra be transformed into Eight Gates Mode to successfully execute the technique.
In this way, practicing the *Eight Gates* Mode, hand seal speed, and Ninjutsu simultaneously greatly improved the efficiency of Chiba's limited training time.
During these five days, Chiba practiced this method intensely. At first, he would forget one aspect while focusing on another. Sometimes he would remember the hand seals but forget about managing the Chakra transformation, and sometimes the opposite. It was quite chaotic.
However, after five days of diligent practice, Chiba finally made significant progress.
"Five hundred side kicks, five hundred punches, five hundred squats, and a 10,000-meter run. Done! Now, let's start something fun!" Chiba shed his weights and simultaneously opened the gate. Then, he began forming hand seals.
At the same time, the gate within him opened, and green Chakra appeared on his body surface.
Just as the green Chakra emerged, a set of hand seals was completed, and at that moment, the green Chakra also vanished without a trace, as the Chakra of a nearly Jonin level flowed rapidly through his body.
Chiba pressed his hands together.
"*Earth Style: Earth Spike*!"
A spike of earth protruded from the ground in less than two seconds.
Chiba smiled.
Now, the *Eight Gates* Mode could be used in actual combat!
But...
Chiba sighed as he looked at the earth spike.
Compared to that Jonin, it was still far behind.
Indeed, in terms of size and length, it was much smaller and shorter than the Jonin's earth spike.
But, that didn't matter.
Chiba would eventually have the Chakra of a high-level ninja, allowing him to create an earth spike of the same magnitude. And the current size is sufficiently lethal for now.
Chiba nodded in satisfaction, yet he was not content.
Now, Chiba had begun to figure out how to open the fourth gate.
"Gu Gu..."
Just as Chiba was pondering this, his stomach groaned desperately.
"Before that, let's eat first!" Chiba looked up at the sky. It was already dark, and the last day of his break was over; he would return to school tomorrow.
Chiba walked into the wooden house, grabbed the Konoha extra-large steamed buns left over from lunch, and started eating.
While munching, he continued to ponder how to open the fourth gate.