Chapter 243: The Hatake Clan's Kenjutsu, Preparations in Tanzaku Town
Akiyama Makoto kissed Tenten's forehead, his warm hand covering her lower abdomen, and began to infuse life force into her.
She let out a soft murmur and lay on top of him. The close contact made her dizzy, but more than nervousness, she felt a sense of peace.
Before dawn the next day, he sent her back home to prevent her family from discovering that their daughter had been "stolen" in the middle of the night.
He stretched lazily, reviewing yesterday's harvest, still wanting more.
Not only had his strength greatly increased, but the safety of the people around him, which worried him most, was now basically guaranteed.
This allowed him to face the upcoming Chūnin Exams with a more relaxed attitude.
Never mind Rasa and Gaara attacking together, even if Orochimaru went crazy and summoned the First and Second Hokage in the center of Konoha, he was confident he could handle it.
So, when the girls came to his house, he gave each of them a ninjutsu crystal for self-preservation.
Although this reduced his simulation attempts to 26, it allowed him to leave Konoha and act with more peace of mind.
However, before leaving, he still assigned the girls a training task for the next half-month, allowing them to rack up some achievements in the upcoming Chūnin Exams.
After all, this was a rare opportunity to kill hostile ninja. They might not encounter such a chance even after dozens of regular missions.
Just as he was planning to head to the Land of Waves to check on his company's operations, Kakashi showed up at his door.
"A rare guest. Come in, Kakashi."
He greeted Kakashi at the door. But Kakashi, looking at the chirping girls in the small courtyard, felt a bit awkward. "How about we talk outside?"
Makoto smiled and didn't refuse.
Although his home wasn't a forbidden area, since Kakashi respected him so much, he naturally wouldn't pretend to be overly generous.
"Kakashi, what brings you here?"
Kakashi was still recalling the figure of Karin in the courtyard. Interrupted by Makoto, he quickly said, "Do you remember when I wanted to learn the Dual Heart Method from you?"
The fact that he had given the Dual Heart Method to the Yamanaka clan as a betrothal gift might not be known to outsiders, but the Yamanaka clan had already reported it to the Hokage. This was why the Ino-Shika-Chō trio could be called diehard Hokage loyalists.
Of course, Inoichi had publicly announced that he had developed the jutsu himself. But Kakashi had personally witnessed Makoto using it first, so he guessed that Makoto was the one who had developed it, which was why he had come to find him.
However, he hadn't reported this to the Hokage. As one of the Jōnin who had experienced the most darkness in Konoha, he knew very well that many things simply didn't need to be done.
Like trusting Hiruzen Sarutobi 100%, reporting every detail to him, and handing over the power to arrange his own fate to him.
"I'm here to formally ask for your opinion. Are you willing to teach it to me? I also plan to teach it to Naruto and Sasuke."
"Of course, if Naruto can't learn it, there's nothing I can do."
Makoto frowned in thought. Teaching it to those two... actually won't make much difference.
Naruto had the Nine-Tails inside him, so he could already dual-process in combat. As for Sasuke, it might improve his strength right now, but once he unlocked the Mangekyō Sharingan, the Dual Heart Method would be of little significance.
So he nodded. "Sure. But what's the price?"
Facing Kakashi, although he had some goodwill towards him, he still had to maintain his stance.
Kakashi wasn't surprised. "I can exchange it for ninjutsu I know. You know my nickname. I've copied many jutsu. Although I don't use most of them often, teaching them to you and the people around you won't be a problem."
A few months ago, Kakashi's offer would have been very attractive to him.
But now, he wasn't interested anymore.
The jutsu Kakashi could copy were basically all five-elemental ninjutsu, and he had already learned basically all of them. As for the Kekkei Genkai and Kekkei Tōta that he didn't know, Kakashi couldn't copy them either.
However, this didn't mean he was uninterested in all of Kakashi's jutsu. He said, "I heard that your father was the famous White Fang of Konoha, and the Hatake clan is known for their kenjutsu. Can I exchange it for that?"
Kakashi froze, staring at him in shock, a flash of anger even appearing in his eyes.
The Hatake Kenjutsu was his family's secret technique. Although he didn't plan to use it himself, other descendants of the Hatake clan could still learn it. To teach it to an outsider now... was Makoto mocking him?
However, seeing Makoto's calm expression, Kakashi slowly reigned in his emotions.
The Dual Heart Method was now also a top secret of the Yamanaka clan. With this jutsu as the core, the Yamanaka could develop a large number of methods to deal with enemies. If one really compared them, it wasn't necessarily inferior to his Hatake Kenjutsu.
But... really pass on the sword technique?
"Ah, I forgot to mention."
Makoto smiled and added a condition. "I plan to use it myself and teach it to Yūgao. It will not be spread to outsiders or passed down to the next generation. How about that condition?"
Kakashi's eyes lit up. If it's not spread... then I don't have much pressure.
And he didn't object to teaching it to Yūgao, because he used to be her captain. This could be considered an Anbu captain guiding an Anbu member, even though both of them were retired now.
"If that's the case, then I agree to the trade."
"Good."
He took out a scroll and handed it to Kakashi.
Kakashi took the scroll home, and soon returned with a booklet for him.
Makoto opened it and took a look, his expression immediately becoming strange.
Because the core of the Hatake Kenjutsu, besides the forms, was actually a method of tempering the body with Lightning Release—what a coincidence!
Thinking about it carefully, Kakashi's style of fighting with Chidori did have a hint of the Cloud Village about it—it seemed the Hatake clan might have had some connection with the Cloud during the Warring States period.
Forget it. That's not for me to consider.
The value of this booklet was still very high, because the Hatake method of tempering the body with Lightning Release wasn't as extreme as the Cloud's. Ordinary people could withstand it.
Most importantly, it contained the method of concentrating Lightning Release chakra on the blade, turning it into a blade of white lightning for combat. Combined with a body activated by Lightning Release, no wonder Kakashi's father had the title of "White Fang."
If Yūgao could learn this, paired with the genjutsu she already knew, the vast majority of enemies below Kage level would be no match for her.
Also, he could learn some of the details himself.
Currently, his main method of killing enemies was with the Chakra Scalpel and Chakra Enhanced Strength punches. If he could switch to a Lightning Release: Chakra Scalpel, the cutting efficiency would be greatly improved. At that time, never mind the ninja's heads and necks; even if they reacted and blocked with kunai, he could probably still cut right through.
Afterward, he and Kakashi exchanged pleasantries for a while before parting ways. They weren't that familiar with each other, just acquaintances.
After returning home, Makoto gave the Hatake Kenjutsu manual to Yūgao. She stared at the booklet in his hand in shock, asking where he got it.
He naturally told her everything, which moved her to tears. She almost threw herself into his arms to cry.
He just pinched the bridge of her nose. "Take your time practicing. If you can't produce Lightning chakra for now, it doesn't matter. I'll figure something out later."
The solution he had in mind was, of course, to implant a Lightning talent in her. But there was no rush for this.
Her current strength was basically enough. Although he still had over twenty simulation attempts left, being used to having a reserve of forty or fifty attempts made him feel a little uneasy. He wanted to get more.
So what should he do?
The answer, naturally, was to go to the Land of Waves.
His arrival was welcomed by Haku and Zabuza. Although what the two of them wanted to ask most was when he could take them to the Land of Water for revenge, they also admitted that they liked the environment he had provided for them.
Of course, Zabuza didn't speak; Haku spoke for him.
He naturally promised to do it after the Chūnin Exams. This time, he had come to ask about the number of ninja in the Land of Waves, and how many orphans the two of them had collected.
He had previously asked Zabuza and Haku to do this, only ordering them not to force anyone, but to operate normally with benefits and living/working conditions.
As a result, in this short time, the number of ninja had doubled to nearly a hundred, and the number of orphans was also approaching a hundred.
Upon asking, he found out that most of the orphans were victims of Gatō's evil deeds, and the rest were refugees who had fled to the Land of Waves. Although there were no wars between the Five Great Nations right now, conflicts between small countries and various clans were constant. Otherwise, if the ninja world was at peace, where would ninja find work?
Haku had even thoughtfully checked their aptitudes and found about a dozen people with ninja potential.
He contacted them himself and ultimately only found two little girls with Chūnin potential.
Adding the existing female ninja in the Land of Waves, he gained eight simulation attempts at once. Although it wasn't a small amount, this efficiency still left him unsatisfied.
He then gave an order to Haku to carry out a census in the Land of Waves to identify everyone with aptitude, regardless of age or gender.
To avoid causing unrest among the ordinary people of the Land of Waves, he used the excuse of a general census. He didn't mind spending a little more money for this.
He knew very well that after the Chūnin Exams, the Land of Waves would become busy under his connections. At that time, the Land of Waves would definitely not be short of money.
The current expense, compared to future income, was just a drop in the bucket.
After doing all this, he went to Tanzaku Town again.
Tsunade had not yet appeared in Tanzaku Town. She and Shizune had no fixed abode. More accurately, after scamming one place and losing everything, they would move immediately and return in a few years.
He had come here to adapt to the street atmosphere and experience the gambling games.
With his strength, he could naturally easily influence the results, but he wasn't in a hurry to do so. Instead, relying on his current astonishing sensory ability, he maintained a pattern of small wins.
This allowed him to slowly build up some fame in Tanzaku Town. There were also people who looked for trouble with him in the process, but they were all swiftly dealt with by his fists and feet.
During the day, he mingled in Tanzaku Town, and at night, he returned to Konoha to accompany the people around him.
After passing on the Hatake Kenjutsu to Yūgao, their relationship also heated up day by day.
From the initial passionate projection to slowly getting used to each other's existence, he felt that the day the system acknowledged her feelings was not far off.
Especially when he held her hand and let her experience the feeling of Lightning chakra running through her body, he felt that her eyes were shining when she looked at him.
Of course, it could also simply be because the voltage was too high.
Two weeks passed in the blink of an eye. Just as he decided to return to Konoha to deal with the Chūnin Exams, the "Legendary Sucker," Tsunade, appeared.
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