Mizuki was stunned. Rejected so decisively?
"Why not? Is it because of Guy-sensei? That shouldn't be a problem. There's no rule that a ninja can only have one teacher!"
Rock Lee shook his head, "No, Mizuki-senpai, that's not the reason. I refuse because I don't want to give up the conviction in my heart."
His eyes were shining — a light of conviction that charged forward without hesitation, without regret.
"In my eyes, there is only Taijutsu! If I had more chakra like other ninjas, I would be unable to resist the temptation to learn Ninjutsu and Genjutsu. It's not easy even for a genius to master one thing, let alone someone of ordinary talent like me. If I divide my attention to learn other things, my future will have no prospects whatsoever."
Rock Lee's words made Mizuki give him a thumbs up.
How many people could understand this kind of awareness?
As the saying goes, having many skills doesn't weigh you down, so some people want to learn everything, want to know everything. Those parents send their children to all kinds of classes — piano, violin, painting, singing, dance…
The result is broad interests, but not one skill that reaches mastery. On the contrary, even an ordinary person who focuses on one discipline can still become a master through accumulation over time, even without high talent.
{T/N: This is true, and scientifically you need 10,000 hours to become a master at something. This means that if you dedicate at least 3 hours every day to something or a specific subject, you'll need approximately 9 years to become a master. A master, not someone half-baked. The kind where only you or very few people in the world can do the same. You'll become a 0.0000000125% of the world in something.}
"Well said!" Mizuki praised.
Rock Lee said, "Mizuki-senpai, you're too kind. These are all things Guy-sensei taught me."
Mizuki looked at him with growing appreciation.
"Rock Lee, you're not mediocre. When looking at a person, you must distinguish between external and internal. The external body is innate — determined by family and bloodline. This cannot be changed. But the internal is determined by oneself. In my view, what determines a person's future heights is not their external talent, but whether their internal spirit is resilient."
Rock Lee's eyes grew brighter.
Mizuki continued, "Externally, your talent is indeed not good, even quite poor. But in terms of internal spirit, you are a true strong person. In the future, you will definitely become strong."
He was not stingy with his praise!
But Rock Lee did not become proud. With a calm expression, he said, "Thank you for the encouragement, Mizuki-senpai. I will continue to work hard. Well then, I need to continue my training. My apologies, I must excuse myself!"
Mizuki cursed internally.
Damn it, I said all that and all you say is "excuse myself"? Becoming my disciple won't cost you anything — why won't you agree?
Damn it, you're forcing me to play my trump card!
Mizuki steeled himself, "Wait a moment, Rock Lee. I heard you like Sakura Haruno?"
Upon hearing this, Rock Lee's face immediately turned red as he stammered, "Sen… senpai, how… how do you know?"
Mizuki chuckled inwardly. From the looks of it, there's a chance!
"Never mind how I know. I'm telling you — I know Sakura's personality well. If you want to pursue her, it won't be easy."
But Rock Lee dropped his shy demeanor and said with wide eyes, "It doesn't matter. I will work hard. I believe that through my efforts, Sakura will be moved and accept my most sincere love."
Mizuki was speechless.
"Actually, if you want to pursue her, I can help you."
Rock Lee immediately refused, "Mizuki-senpai, matters of the heart cannot have outsiders interfering. I want to win Sakura's love through my own efforts."
Mizuki was even more speechless. As expected of a little brat — knows nothing, yet talks about how outsiders can't interfere in matters of the heart.
Ridiculous!
"Sakura is my disciple, and I know the one she likes is Sasuke Uchiha."
Rock Lee, "I will defeat Sasuke-kun and win Sakura's heart."
Mizuki felt like he was talking to a brick wall.
"Ahem! Let me be honest — with your current strength, you have no chance of defeating Sasuke."
This was, of course, Mizuki exaggerating.
Although Sasuke had learned the Rasengan and might have already awakened his two-tomoe Sharingan, once Rock Lee opened the sixth Gate of View of the Eight Gates, that emo boy would be powerless to resist.
Rock Lee, "I will train even harder and defeat him sooner or later."
This conversation was going nowhere. He had to approach it from a different angle.
He asked, "Do you know why Sakura likes Sasuke?"
Rock Lee, "I heard Sasuke-kun is very handsome and many girls like him."
Mizuki shook his head, "That's only one aspect. The main reason is spending time together day and night. Sasuke and Sakura were assigned to the same team and are together all day long. Over time, she naturally came to like him. As for you, Sakura doesn't even know you exist — so she won't like you.
Also, strength doesn't mean everything. When two people love each other, it has nothing to do with who's stronger. No matter how hard you train, even if you defeat Sasuke, it's useless. Sakura still doesn't know you!"
Hearing that no matter what he did, Sakura wouldn't like him, Rock Lee finally broke.
"Then what should I do!"
Mizuki smiled. Good heavens, that was tough!
"It's simple — you need contact with Sakura. Spend time together day and night. Let her get to know you, see your excellence. Over time, she'll naturally accept you."
Rock Lee frowned, "But I'm in Team 5 and Sakura is in Team 7. We don't have contact. How can I get her to know me? Should I go to her house? No, that won't work. That's too forward. She wouldn't just dislike me — she'd hate me."
You actually know what "too forward" means, kid?
But finally, he'd grasped the key point. This was difficult!
Mizuki breathed a sigh of relief, "It's simple!"
Rock Lee looked up at him, then said respectfully, "Please teach me, senpai."
Mizuki said, "Sakura is my disciple and trains with me from time to time. So, as long as you also become my disciple, I'll bring you along to train together. That way, you'll have opportunities to interact. After spending time together, Sakura will see your good qualities and accept your love."
He was painting a rosy picture.
The more Rock Lee listened, the brighter his eyes became.
Then, he stood before Mizuki, gave a deep bow, and respectfully called out, "Sensei!"
[ Ding! ]
[ You successfully took Rock Lee as your disciple! ]
[ You successfully recruited 5 disciples with C-Rank talent or above. Reward: Status Panel! ]
[ Note: Disciple Slots are full! To increase slots, at least one disciple must obtain the rank of Chūnin ]
Slots are full? What the hell — he couldn't continue taking disciples?
What's this about? Isn't this limiting his development? Is it really necessary to limit the slots?
[ Limiting slots is to prevent the host from being lazy — only taking disciples without teaching them ]
Mizuki sighed. Could it be that he'd milked the system too hard and now the system was hurting?
After cursing the damn system in his mind, he shifted his attention to Rock Lee. Finally, he had another disciple. He had to make good use of him.
"Rock Lee, today I'll teach you a martial art."
Rock Lee said excitedly, "Sensei, you also know Taijutsu?"
"Ahem!" Mizuki cleared his throat, "I don't specialize in Taijutsu. Comparatively speaking, I'm better at Ninjutsu."
Rock Lee asked, "Sensei, what martial art are you talking about?"
Mizuki, "This martial art is called Tai Chi!"
"What is Tai Chi?"
Mizuki explained, "Tai Chi is a profound ancient martial art that contains the ultimate principles of heaven and earth — yin and yang, movement and stillness, positive and negative, form and spirit. Its essence lies in overcoming movement with stillness, hardness with softness, and speed with slowness.
Let him be strong, and the breeze brushes the hills. Let him be fierce, and the bright moon shines on the great river. When mastered, it can defend against all attacks — offense and defense, advance and retreat with ease."
Rock Lee's eyes widened as he listened carefully.
"Alright, I'll demonstrate once. Watch carefully."
Mizuki began practicing Tai Chi — something he'd learned in his previous life by watching old men at the park while fishing.
Each move, each stance, each advance and retreat — all very slow. It appeared powerless. But Rock Lee watched seriously, trying to memorize every movement.
Soon, one round was complete. Mizuki let out a breath.
"How much did you remember?"
Rock Lee answered, "Eighty percent."
After a while, Mizuki asked again, "And now?"
Rock Lee said awkwardly, "Only thirty percent."
After another while, Mizuki asked again, "What about now?"
Rock Lee said with a distressed face, "I've forgotten it all!"
Mizuki patted his shoulder and smiled, "Excellent! Excellent!"
Rock Lee was dumbfounded. He'd forgotten everything, and you're saying "excellent"?
"Sensei, what do you mean?" Rock Lee asked.
Mizuki had no idea what he meant. He simply said, "Don't rush. Go back and contemplate. When you understand, you'll naturally learn Tai Chi."
With that, he turned and walked away.
[ Ding! ]
[ You have taught your disciple Rock Lee the Incomplete Version of Tai Chi, triggering a 3,000× Return! ]
[ Congratulations, you have obtained the Complete Version of Tai Chi (Mien Chuen)! ]
〖 Complete Version of Tai Chi (Mien Chuen): Created by martial arts grandmaster Zhang Sanfeng. Overcomes hardness with softness and movement with stillness. When powered by chakra, power is amplified one hundredfold. Can defend against Ninjutsu and Taijutsu and reflect attacks back at enemies. 〗
"Hahaha! All that talking wasn't in vain. Worth it, so worth it!"
❊❊❊❊❊
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
If you want 20 chapters ahead of this novel for just $2 or enjoy a large catalog of good novels with excellent translations: MrBlackWing (you know where to search)
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)