"Teacher, I want to challenge the River Surface Sprint!" Obito found Mugetsu and voiced his determination to try again.
It had been four full days since his last failed attempt.
In that time, he had learned Mugetsu's special speed-enhancing training method and even broken his own speed limit during a race with Guy. Obito now felt confident he could clear the challenge.
Of course, the real push came from his belief that all his recent losses in speed competitions were because he hadn't learned Shave yet.
With next week's special training involving a combat test, Obito wanted to master Shave this week so he wouldn't be on the defensive.
He also had another reasonâhe wanted to beat Guy at least once.
So far, in every formal duel with Guy, Obito had never won. He always came frustratingly close, and that "just barely" gap irritated him more than a total defeat.
If Guy mastered Shave and he didn't, his chances of victory would shrink even further.
"Alright, follow me," Mugetsu said, nodding before leading him to the riverbank.
The second stage differed from the firstâno traps needed, and they could begin immediately.
Mugetsu created a large number of Shadow Clones, then unleashed a barrage of Water Dragon Bullets across the river's surface.
"Teacher, I'm ready," Obito said, taking a deep breath and gathering chakra for the sprint.
"Start!"
Obito fixed his gaze on the Water Dragon Bullets, trying to catch the pattern hidden within their movements.
After his last attempt, Mugetsu had hinted that they weren't moving randomlyâtheir positions followed a rhythm.
If this had been a normal fifteen-meter water run, he could have dashed across instantly. But with those dragons churning the surface, charging straight through would send him flying.
After two seconds of sharp observation, Obito spotted itâthe key.
There were twelve water dragons in total, three forming a group. The ones in each group advanced and retreated in sync, meaning the twelve could be treated as four larger dragons.
And those four had their own rhythmâroughly every one and a half seconds, a tiny safe zone appeared between two of them. The opening was fleeting, barely half a second.
Realizing this, Obito moved. There was no more time to think.
Though the crossing looked like a ten-second sprint, his actual window for action was under five seconds in total. This challenge was all about observation and instant reaction.
Once he grasped the pattern, the rest became manageable. After each set of four dragons, Obito paused, waiting for that split-second opening.
Balanced on the water, he kept his eyes on the raging waves ahead, every muscle alert. The second stage left no room for mistakes.
Watching him, Mugetsu thought, If Obito could always keep this calm and focused in battle, his combat ability would improve as much as learning any high-level ninjutsu.
"I did it!" Obito shouted as he passed the final wave and reached the far shore.
"Teacher, my time didn't go over, right?" he asked, a bit nervous.
Mugetsu smiled. "No, you cleared the taijutsu challenge."
"That's great! Then I can learn Shave now?" Obito's face lit up. He'd been jealous long enough of Guy and Shisui flashing around.
"This is the training method and notes for Shave. Study it carefully." Mugetsu handed him a scroll.
"I'll memorize every word!" Obito eagerly unrolled itâonly to realize that some of the techniques inside were already familiar.
Thinking back, he realized they were from the speed drills Mugetsu had taught him earlier.
It dawned on himâit wasn't that Mugetsu had withheld Shave from him. From the moment he first challenged the taijutsu trial, Mugetsu had been preparing him for it.
The first stageâthe forest sprintâtested his physical strength. The second stage had been teaching him part of Shave all along.
"Teacher, you're the best in the world!" Obito said, deeply moved.
[You gifted your disciple the Shave training scroll. The disciple's gratitude triggered a big crit reward: You have obtained Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation (Mastery).]
This time, the system's reward surpassed Mugetsu's expectationsâstraight to mastery-level, and with a technique as powerful as Great Fire Annihilation.
"Almost forgotâthis is your admission fee. I didn't give it to you earlier." Mugetsu smiled and pulled out three test papers, handing them to Obito.
Obito's grin froze. He knew something had been missingâtest papers. The one thing he wished Mugetsu would forget.
"Since you forgot, can't we just leave it in the past?" Obito asked hopefully, already dreading the sight of them.
"You wish," Mugetsu said, tapping him lightly on the forehead with two fingers. "I can't exempt you, but I'll give you one interest-free installment."
At the words "interest-free," Obito brightened again. At least it meant fewer problems at a time.
Next, Mugetsu led him to begin Shave training.
Finally learning the Shave âand after such effort to earn itâObito trained with genuine focus.
âŠ
Anko had noticed her two "brothers" acting strange lately, whispering together and giggling about something.
"You're hiding something fun from me, aren't you?" she asked Kotetsu and Izumo directly.
"There's nothing fun. We're just preparing for next week's combat test," Kotetsu replied.
"Really?" Anko narrowed her eyes.
"Don't doubt our honest character like that," Izumo protested, insisting they were just getting ready for the test.
"Then how are you preparing?" she pressed.
Kotetsu and Izumo exchanged a glance before finally saying, "It's not the kind of preparation suitable for you."
They were good brothers, but they knew better than to forget Anko was a girl.
"Hmph, fine. I'll find out on Monday," Anko said, puffing her cheeks. She decided that if she faced them in the test, she'd hit them hardâjust for keeping secrets.
As the combat test drew near, everyone was making their own preparations. Some aimed to move up to a higher-level group, others just wanted to impress someone.
On Saturday afternoon, Asuma approached Mugetsu with a requestâhe wanted his training volume increased.
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