In Training Ground 24, three genin faced each other in a standoff. A stone was falling through the air, carefully watched by all three pairs of eyes. When the stone hit the ground, the signal was sent.
"Begin!" Yumiko shouted as she put her hands together to form a seal.
'Body Flicker Jutsu!'
All three genin flickered and reappeared at different locations within the square battlefield. Suguru instantly flickered when he appeared, catching Isao by the wrist before Isao flickered away himself.
'That's one point for me,' He thought as he rapidly drained his chakra, flickering repeatedly to take advantage of the small window of time that it took for his two teammates to use the same jutsu.
His main target was Isao and he used Yumiko as bait. Every time he flickered near Yumiko, he would always flicker again to tap Isao when he felt relief. He was able to shave off twenty-six points from Isao before the latter realized what he was doing.
This prompted Isao to flicker the moment he noticed Suguru appearing near Yumiko.
However, that was when Suguru switched his strategy and landed two taps on Yumiko consecutively, shaving off twenty points in an instant.
"Ah! You—!"
Yumiko lost another five points as Suguru's hand fell upon her shoulder.
"Focus, Yumiko~" Suguru's giggles could be heard even amid his flickering.
'This is fun,' Suguru smiled.
Eventually, the three used up their chakra and they collapsed onto the grass. Smiles were plastered across their faces. Despite breathing heavily, joy could be seen in their eyes.
"We should do this more often," Isao couldn't help but be the first to say this. "I didn't expect to improve so quickly."
"Right?" Yumiko laughed, "I think I can flicker without hand seals within this week if we keep playing!"
Suguru smiled. "We would need to change the rules by then. Maybe the two of you can try chasing me instead while we widen the playing field."
"That's a good idea!" Yumiko exclaimed, "Let's do that when Isao and I can use Body Flicker without hand signs."
"Yeah... let's..."
Isao couldn't even finish his sentence before he fell asleep.
***
Throughout Hitomi's absence, the three played Flicker Tag often. Sometimes, they played in short bursts, and sometimes in long, marathon-esque challenges. They played whenever regular training grew boring.
When regular Flicker Tag got boring, they would then add Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, or Genjutsu to spice it up.
Sometimes, they would restrict each one to using only one type. For example, Suguru would only use Taijutsu, Isao would only use Ninjutsu, and Yumiko would only be allowed her forte. They would also mix these up, with Isao struggling with Genjutsu or Yumiko having difficulties with Ninjutsu.
Overall, the gamification of their training had yielded surprising results.
When Hitomi returned, tired from her mission, she was surprised to see her students in a high-speed, flickering sparring session. Although Yumiko and Isao had yet to get rid of the hand signs, their speed had drastically risen.
Despite this, however, they still lost to Suguru more than they won.
Suguru's cunning nature always kept them guessing. Furthermore, Suguru's flickering ability was growing at a much faster rate than theirs.
It seemed like Suguru had a similar talent for the Body Flicker Jutsu as Uchiha Shisui.
Unbeknownst to the others, however, this growth was because Suguru had used Dark Release: Inhaling Maw on Shisui before his death. Shisui's chakra allowed for a very seamless use of the Body Flicker Jutsu.
Suguru mimicked this flow and thus achieved the results he could see now. However, making an Afterimage Clone like Shisui would still take a little more time and a significant amount of practice.
'Honestly, I still don't see how you can flicker that fast to create such an effect. It's so precise and should make it difficult to see properly since your view keeps changing.' A realization dawned upon Suguru at that moment.
'Ah, maybe that's where the Sharingan comes in.'
Things started making sense.
***
While Suguru trained hard with his teammates, he never neglected his studies. Suguru successfully figured out a few seals he could use in cultivating a living clone. His theory made use of something he called a Blank Clone, which naturally becomes an adult after thirty days of incubated growth.
By injecting DNA into this Blank Clone, certain characteristics could be induced, although it wouldn't be guaranteed.
'But that's okay...'
The main purpose of Blank Clones was to give Suguru food for his Dark Release and allow him to amass his chakra. By varying the DNA, Suguru could absorb different types of chakra to allow his body to grow more naturally.
Too much of a single chakra type would be detrimental in the long run. For example, if he absorbed too much of the Nine-Tails' chakra, there was a chance that he would die from the nature of Kurama's powers. He wasn't a direct descendant of an Otsutsuki, after all.
Nor was he a jinchuriki.
'I still need to work on the growth seals... And I need to find the right materials to create the Garden.'
Suguru licked his lips in anticipation. Although progress was slow, every centimeter mattered. As long as he kept moving forward, he would be satisfied.
***
Peaceful days continued — at least on the surface.
Danzo was rebuilding his forces, Hiruzen was cultivating the youth, and foreign forces were eyeing Konoha like starving hyenas. Konoha shinobi were being targetted by ambushes more often, giving Shikaku a massive headache.
The massacre of the Uchiha had been a hefty price to pay for peace.
Suguru, as well, continued his research and training. His growth was gradual yet consistent. In some facets, he excelled. In some, he lagged.
Nonetheless, he was growing stronger.
Until the day arrived when Hitomi said the words that Yumiko and Isao were dying to hear.
"We're going to do a C-rank mission."
"Finally!" Yumiko cheered with a small hop while Isao sighed in relief.
Ever since their team's three consecutive missions to catch Tora, they got the same mission four more times throughout their training. Moreover, the chore-filled D-rank missions had grown stale.
Even Suguru could feel himself stagnating.
Seeing the different expressions on her students' faces, Hitomi chuckled. "Come on, you brats. It's time we head out."
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