Nagato kicked toward Yahiko, gathering chakra into his foot using Gyo.
Yahiko didn't take any defensive stance at all.
Instead, he planted his feet firmly and prepared to take the blow with his chest.
"Ken!"
Bang!
Yahiko slid backward a short distance before stopping firmly in place.
Just then, a paper crane flew over from afar and landed on Yahiko's head.
Konan's voice came from inside it.
"Dinner's ready!!"
"Got it."
Yahiko took the crane off his head, and it suddenly disappeared in his hand.
"Konan's Hatsu feels pretty fragile," he muttered quietly.
Nagato laughed.
"Don't say that in front of her, or you'll regret it."
"I'm not afraid of her," Yahiko said stiffly, puffing out his chest—though his voice carried a hint of guilt.
Nagato simply smiled and said nothing.
The two of them walked from the training field toward Arin's house.
The village hadn't changed much.
Groups of teenagers were busy training.
At the same time, they had begun farming, repairing houses, and raising animals—all skills they had learned from Arin.
Thanks to these abilities, the village no longer needed to send people outside to search for food.
They had become self-sufficient.
However, Arin had never taught them any ninjutsu, nor had he allowed the Chakra-Nen system to spread.
And without Arin's permission, Nagato and the others didn't dare pass the power on to others.
When they entered Arin's house, Konan had already prepared dinner.
It wasn't luxurious, but there was plenty of food.
After all, Chakra Users had quite large appetites.
"Let's eat," Arin said, already seated.
Yahiko and Nagato both instinctively shrank their necks.
This was the trauma left behind by Arin's training.
Thinking back to that period of hellish torture—
Yahiko and Nagato shivered.
Even Konan wasn't exempt.
The good news:
Their combat fundamentals had already surpassed those of ninja academy students and reached the level of an ordinary genin.
For their age, that foundation was already impressive.
Combined with their Nen abilities, their combat strength was far from weak.
The bad news:
The period of training under Arin had become an unforgettable nightmare.
They had hovered on the edge of death countless times.
All three of them had repeatedly reflected on one realization:
Being alive was not easy.
The three quietly sat at the table and ate.
Until Arin spoke, none of them dared say anything.
When Arin finished eating and put down his chopsticks, the three hurriedly stopped eating as well.
Arin scratched his head.
Had he gone a bit too far during their training?
This was starting to look like Hyuga Arin Syndrome.
Well, whatever.
There would be plenty more of that in the future.
"Ahem."
Arin cleared his throat.
"You've now completely mastered Nen."
"As long as you don't run into a jōnin, you won't be in danger."
They had progressed from the fundamentals—
TenZetsuRen
—to advanced techniques like:
ShuInGyo
They had also completed training for En and Ken.
The remaining techniques were Ko and Ryu.
Ko wasn't particularly useful in actual combat, so Arin hadn't taught it to them.
As for Ryu—
Even he didn't know it yet.
His Nen ability was only Level 5.
Level 6 should unlock Ryu.
Those techniques would only be taught once their strength approached jōnin level.
For now, the three of them had already developed their own Hatsu.
They could be considered graduates.
"So," Arin continued,
"I've decided to let you go out and gain experience."
Nen wasn't something you could improve simply through isolated training.
Unless you were someone like Netero, whose training was a form of spiritual pursuit rather than simple cultivation.
But these three clearly couldn't reach that level.
"Your next goals are simple."
"Collect ninjutsu."
"Gain combat experience."
"And keep increasing your chakra."
If they followed this path step by step, they could easily become jōnin.
But to reach elite jōnin or Kage-level strength…
Arin glanced at Nagato.
In truth, Nagato was already practically a jōnin.
With the Rinnegan's abilities and his enormous chakra reserves, ordinary jōnin might not even be his match.
Yahiko and Konan, meanwhile, were developing normally.
Once Nagato gained more combat experience as he grew older, he would undoubtedly become a true elite jōnin.
Having a lot of chakra didn't necessarily make someone strong.
But having a lot of Nen absolutely did.
Because more Nen meant stronger defense and offense.
If your opponent couldn't even break your defense—
What was there left to fight?
Nen users could only truly battle opponents with similar aura levels.
Otherwise, a large gap in aura could scare the opponent to death with pure killing intent.
"Collect ninjutsu?" Yahiko's face suddenly turned pale.
He asked cautiously,
"Teacher… do we really have to collect them that way?"
Meaning:
Rob rogue ninjaRob Rain ninjaIf you can't rob them, steal from themIf you can't steal, sabotage themIf that fails, poison themIf that fails, gather intel and threaten their loved ones
Wasn't that… a bit too dark?
"Strength doesn't require morality," Arin said matter-of-factly.
"If you want to grow stronger, improving your Nen is one path."
"But ninjutsu is another."
For the new profession Arin had created—Chakra Users—
There were countless ways to grow stronger.
In a sense, their potential had no upper limit.
As long as they didn't abandon Nen training entirely, even aging wouldn't significantly reduce their combat ability.
Yahiko's expression turned bitter, like he had swallowed medicine.
He wanted to become a hero, not some shady figure.
"Still," Arin said, stroking his chin thoughtfully,
"I should give you a mission."
The moment Arin started thinking—
All three of them suddenly felt a chill run down their spines.
They didn't want this.
"Let's make it hunting Rain ninja," Arin said with a smile.
Of course.
Nothing good ever came from this man's ideas.
"Teacher," Nagato said carefully,
"isn't targeting Rain ninja a bit too early for us?"
Killing one Rain ninja could easily attract a whole squad.
"Don't worry," Arin said seriously.
"Even if you attract Hanzo himself, I'll handle it."
That wasn't the issue!!
"Teacher," Yahiko said firmly,
"I won't attack Rain ninja."
Arin had already told them the full truth about the Rain Country's situation.
What the Hidden Rain Village had done.
And what would happen if they hadn't done it.
From Yahiko's perspective—
Amegakure were heroes of the Rain Country, even if they ultimately failed to protect it.
"If you complete this mission successfully," Arin said calmly,
"I'll allow you to spread the power of Chakra Users."
He offered the reward as if he hadn't heard Yahiko at all.
"Let's discuss what to name our organization," Yahiko immediately said to Nagato and Konan.
You could at least resist a little longer!!
Nagato and Konan screamed internally.
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