[Connection Successful. Current Trust Level: 2] [Connection Successful. Current Trust Level: 2]
Watching the Trust Levels hit Rank 2, Luke nodded in silent approval. It had been worth the elaborate theater of playing the "reluctant hunter" to bait these two into his fold.
Trust Level, Luke realized, was a slow burn. It required time and consistency to grind. If it had started at Rank 1, his early returns would have been significantly lower, making his survival in Root much harder.
[Requirement Met: Two or more disciples with S-Rank potential or higher.] [Skill Unlocked: Pedagogy] [Pedagogy: Knowledge transmitted by the user is absorbed more easily by students.]
It was a simple, brute-force skill, but incredibly potent. It essentially added a passive buff to every word he spoke in a professional capacity. Luke tested the interface; it was a toggle-able passive.
I'll keep this on permanently, he thought. Unless Danzo ever asks me to teach a class in the Root base. Then I'm switching it off immediately. No sense in making his assassins smarter.
The only slight disappointment was the Legacy Rebate limit. Despite having three disciples now, he still only had one "rebate" opportunity per day. He had entertained the idea of making breakfast, lunch, and dinner for three different students to bank 150 Chakra daily, but the system had anticipated his greed.
Still, having three targets was better than one. Human emotions have a saturation point; if he only pampered Shisui, the boy would eventually get used to the kindness, making it harder to trigger a "Critical Reward." With three disciples, he could rotate his focus, keeping their gratitude fresh and the rewards high.
"And my growth rate isn't bad as it is," Luke mused, checking his stats.
Name: Luke Mugetsu
Age: 18
Chakra: 4,405
Skills: Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire, Water Release: Water Formation Wall, Wind Release: Pressure Damage, Pedagogy...
Since transmigrating, Luke had gained 105 points of Chakra. 90 of those came from lecture bonuses and rebates, while the remaining 15 were the result of his own grueling meditation and the Zenith Synchronization from Shisui's training.
It had only been five days.
Most of his rewards so far had been Ninjutsu. The system didn't just give him the "knowledge" of the moves; it gave him the "mastery." He could use them in live combat immediately. If he had to learn these techniques the traditional way, he'd spend months on Nature Transformation and Shape drills before even attempting the first hand sign.
Once I have a versatile enough toolkit, I'll pivot to pure Chakra farming, Luke decided. In the end, Chakra is the battery that runs the machine.
"Teacher! I'm finished!" Obito announced, slamming his pen down. He had been working with 120% focus, driven by the promise of the fire dragon.
"Me too!" Might Guy reported, not wanting to be left behind.
"Two at once, huh..." Luke was glad that in this world, Shadow Clones were a common utility.
Luke popped a clone into existence. "Go and explain the mechanics of the Leaf Whirlwind to Guy. Give him a few live demonstrations."
Since one was a Taijutsu specialist and the other an elementalist, Luke couldn't teach them as a group. He stayed with Obito to personally guide the Great Dragon Fire while the clone took Guy to the other side of the clearing. He planned to swap every thirty minutes, ensuring every disciple felt the warmth of his personal attention.
[You have instructed your disciple in the Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique.] [Legacy Rebate: Critical Success! Reward: Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet (Proficiency: Skilled)]
Luke paused, a thought striking him. I taught Shisui this same move, but it didn't trigger a rebate then. Why now?
He quickly deduced a hidden rule: Rewards derived from a specific student (like the Dragon Fire he got from Shisui) cannot be "re-gifted" to that same student to trigger a loop. But teaching it to a new student like Obito? That was fair game.
"Please tell me it isn't the version with forty-four hand signs," Luke muttered, remembering the famously long sequence Kakashi and Zabuza used.
Performing a forty-four-sign jutsu in a real fight was a death wish unless you had a teammate holding the enemy back. Fortunately, the system's "Skilled" proficiency was efficient. Luke only needed six signs. With more practice, he could likely compress it even further.
By noon, the forest was filled with the sounds of heavy breathing and hissing steam. Luke went down to the river, caught four large fish, and started a campfire.
"This is amazing! Teacher, if you ever quit the Academy, you should open a barbecue stand," Obito said, tearing into the charred fish.
Shisui and Guy nodded in fervent agreement.
"Eat slowly," Luke laughed. "Watch out for the bones."
He knew the fish was actually quite plain—he wasn't exactly a gourmet chef. But the atmosphere was the secret ingredient. Shisui was used to eating alone; Obito lived with his aging grandmother; Guy was with his intense father. For them, eating together by a river after a hard day's work was a rare, warm memory.
After an hour of rest, they went back to work.
"This isn't as hard as I thought!" Obito cheered. He managed to exhale a small, somewhat round dragon of fire. He was beaming with pride; it was the first time a new jutsu had clicked so quickly.
Just then, Shisui—who was practicing nearby—unleashed his own version. A massive, snarling beast of fire tore across the sky, its teeth of flame clearly visible as it roared toward the water.
Obito looked at his own "cute" fire dragon, then at Shisui's monstrosity. He quietly nudged his little dragon behind his back.
Might Guy, dripping with sweat after a thousand kicks, walked over and saw Obito's dejected face.
"Don't feel bad, Obito!" Guy said sincerely. "Your dragon is small, but it's very cute! I'm sure it'll grow up to be as strong as Teacher's one day!"
Obito felt a sudden, sharp pang of frustration. Cute? Small!? He was a member of the elite Uchiha! He wasn't supposed to be "cute"!
The sheer embarrassment fueled a second wind. Obito didn't even take his scheduled break; he dove back into the training, his hands moving with desperate speed. Guy, seeing his "comrade" so fired up, refused to be outdone and resumed his kicking drills.
"These two really do have a strange synergy," Luke mused from the sidelines.
By the time the sun set, the boys were exhausted. Luke sent them home with a reminder that Sunday would be more of the same.
On Sunday, another full day of training netted Luke another 50 points of Chakra through the rebate system.
And then, a new week began. The peaceful Academy life beckoned once more, but the shadow of the war was growing ever longer.