Chapter 11: Three Years Later
In the blink of an eye, three years had passed.
Mo Zhi straightened his clothing and picked up his ninja gear, putting it behind him. Internally cheering himself on, he opened the door and stepped outside.
His appearance hadn't changed much, but his strength had seen tremendous improvement compared to three years ago. He had successfully learned the advanced ninja technique of Clone Technique, the Shadow Clone Technique. The clones produced by the Shadow Clone Technique were real entities, and coupled with his formidable taijutsu, he could achieve results greater than the sum of its parts.
Just yesterday, he had successfully developed a set of multi-person combat formations. Thanks to the Shadow Clones, he could handle everything on his own, resulting in a substantial enhancement of his strength!
After completing his training, he found Huo Guang to engage in battle. Their situations were quite similar, so they got along well. Huo Guang had only learned the Earth Release: Earth-Style Rampart Technique. He lost to Mo Zhi yesterday, so today, Mo Zhi felt confident about their match.
As Mo Zhi thought about the opponent he was about to face, he still felt a twinge of uncertainty. After all, that person was much stronger than Huo Guang, and he had never managed to defeat him.
Although he had come close to victory several times, he always ended up being reversed by his opponent.
At this moment, Huo Guang was also feeling disgruntled. Despite not slacking off over the three years, he still couldn't beat that guy. Yesterday, when Mo Zhi called him to join in, he almost revealed his trump card, but thankfully, he held back. Otherwise, his secret weapon to deal with that guy would have been exposed.
Though he had lost, he was able to see Mo Zhi's tactics. If he had used his trump card, given Mo Zhi's current level, he would certainly have lost.
If he used his trump card, he would definitely be able to contend with that person.
Daishi was now able to rest properly as he had successfully practiced the family secret ninja technique. Although it only lasted for a short minute, in ninja battles, a moment was often enough.
Today was the scheduled time, so they would definitely be feeling confident as well!
Iban, Shuren, and Akito were rather laid back, as they were currently eating and even had the leisure to bring food for those too busy to eat.
They had no tension because they weren't planning to confront that person. Practice sparring could be done with anyone; there was no need to be so fixated on one individual.
Despite this, their strengths had also grown, although Iban still had some way to go. The others had all reached the level of a genin.
Heitu had grown a lot over these years. The eight-year-old girl developed quickly and had already caught up with most boys, even surpassing some. Her previously undeveloped visage now displayed signs of breathtaking beauty.
Due to her Bloodline Limit, possessing both water and earth attributes, she didn't need to work too hard to improve her skills, but her strength was still on the rise. Coupled with her father's 'guidance' and her grandfather's 'affection,' she had become quite adept at several Earth and Water Release techniques, albeit of low rank.
Since Heitu had her strength somewhat forced out of her, she liked to use her abilities to dominate others. However, she didn't suppress juniors lower than her; instead, she targeted upperclass students who were not as strong as herself.
In her words, "If they're older than me but so weak, isn't that a waste of resources for our Rock Hidden Village? So, I must whip them into shape and make them realize their potential, prompting them to train harder!" In reality, those who had been taught her lessons became more focused and serious in their training as they sought to beat her head-on instead of using underhanded tactics.
Heitu arrived at the agreed training ground, where she already saw several figures, though they weren't familiar to her. However, judging by their attire, they must be students from the ninja academy!
Both boys and girls were present, and more were arriving in succession.
Heitu quickly figured out that these individuals were the most talked-about students in the academy. Today, they were set for a match of great significance, and with the limited entertainment options available, it was natural for people to come to watch.
Then, Heitu spotted a few familiar faces and smirked, striding over. She pointed at one of them and said, "Hey, Mo Zhi, do you even dare to show up? Didn't you learn your lesson last time? Do you need me to help loosen your muscles?"
Heitu's taunts toward Mo Zhi stemmed from his reluctance to accept defeat after his last challenge. She had developed a habit of mocking him a bit, which led to him wanting to vent his frustrations on her. However, she was quite easygoing, and although he lost, it was a hard-fought match. If it weren't for the fact that Mo Zhi had just finished a tough battle, the outcome could have gone either way!
Mo Zhi ignored Heitu, wanting to conserve his strength for the real opponent he was about to face.
Heitu, feeling a bit foolish, decided not to provoke him further.
"Hey, Heitu, you guys are here pretty early!" Akito and the others also arrived, bringing breakfast for everyone. "Hey, is Didera not here yet? He seems to always be the latest."
"Humph!" Heitu didn't want to speak ill of Didera, so she stayed silent. The others, however, muttered grievances, "That guy, he always claims to love being the last one to arrive."
"Yeah, he always says that the last one to show up has the most style!"
"Hey, who's talking bad about me?" Didera's voice suddenly rang out as he approached, wearing a straw hat and a long coat, walking at a leisurely pace.
"Ah, Didera, why are you dressed like the Tsuchikage and wearing his straw hat?!" "Senior, you're going to get in trouble like that! But it looks kind of fun!"
As Didera entered, he lifted the brim of his straw hat and told Heitu, "Since that's the case, why don't you help me wear it for a while!" He then took off the hat and placed it on Heitu's head.
Walking past Heitu, he dramatically swung his long coat and said nonchalantly, "Who wants to step up first?"
Before the three who'd prepared to challenge him could respond, a furious voice came from the direction Didera had just come from, "Didera! You little rascal, how can you be even more mischievous than Heitu! Return my straw hat and coat!"
Didera rolled his eyes, realizing that the traps he had set hadn't worked as effectively as he had hoped! Although he had set some deterrents and barriers, they were still no match for the Tsuchikage. It seemed he could break through his traps with just one jutsu.
Still, he was satisfied with the show, so what did it matter?
A figure suddenly flickered, and Tsuchikage appeared right in front of Didera. At this moment, his appearance looked somewhat ragged, indicating that Didera's traps had indeed caused some trouble for Ōnoki.
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