After the demonstration, Mokgetsu began to move with the aim of defeating, swiftly defeating both the Anbu and Root ninjas.
Their Genjutsu was ineffective against Mokgetsu, their Combined Ninjutsu couldn't match the Ninjutsu released by Mokgetsu, and their Taijutsu was completely overwhelmed by Mokgetsu. Once Mokgetsu got serious, there was soon no ninja left standing on the battlefield.
Since they were all injured, Mokgetsu didn't demand them to stand; the thirty ninjas all sat together.
Some ninjas lowered their heads awkwardly. Both the Anbu and Root are elite ninjas of Konoha, yet as elites, their group of thirty was easily defeated by Mokgetsu alone.
Mokgetsu split off a Shadow Clone to heal the ninjas. Although he controlled his strength, being in combat inevitably leads to injuries, so to avoid affecting the subsequent training, healing was necessary.
"I have a general understanding of your strength. You are indeed more outstanding than ninjas of your age, but as members of the Anbu, you are still lacking," Mokgetsu said while treating them.
"Firstly, the most important thing you should never do is underestimate your opponent. Even though I already allowed you to engage with full strength, you still didn't attack me immediately."
Tobita Kenji's expression turned a bit awkward. He truly felt this wasn't their fault. Who would have thought that Mokgetsu, who seemed in his twenties, possessed such terrifying power?
It's known that Mokgetsu's most dazzling record was only assisting Jiraiya in repelling a Jinchuriki, but that Konoha Newspaper's report couldn't reveal Mokgetsu having this kind of strength.
Although he hasn't seen Namikaze Minato in action, Tobita Kenji thought that Mokgetsu's strength should be comparable to the most famous of Konoha's young generation, Namikaze Minato.
Compared to Mokgetsu, Namikaze Minato had more achievements, with the most striking one being single-handedly fighting on equal ground with the new AB Combination on the battlefield in the Land of Hot Water, which instantly made Namikaze Minato famous in the Ninja World.
Nowadays, Killer Bee isn't much, but the Fourth Raikage is recognized as a strong figure in the Ninja World, with many renowned ninja world powerhouses having been defeated by him, bolstering his name.
Tobita Kenji calculated and compared, feeling that Mokgetsu was even more terrifying. In ten years, if nothing goes wrong, Mokgetsu would reach the level of those in the Sannin.
Mokgetsu then pointed out every issue each ninja had during the battle, going through every single one of them.
"He even had the energy to remember these during the fight." Sarutobi Shinji suddenly felt that Mokgetsu was even more unfathomable.
After this battle, all thirty ninjas were thoroughly convinced by Mokgetsu. With such strong powers and exceptional teaching abilities, finding a teacher like him was incredibly rare.
On the first day, Mokgetsu didn't formally begin teaching but elaborated on the initial battle.
On one hand, the ninjas were injured and needed rest, so vigorous exercise wasn't advisable. On the other hand, the earlier steps took quite some time, and Mokgetsu estimated that he wouldn't receive a teaching reward from it, so he decided to save it for the second day.
With Mokgetsu's healing and the fact that all were Root Anbu members with decent strength, a day of rest was just right.
Since Shimura Danzo didn't know the Telescope Jutsu, he directly ordered the Root members who received instructions to report to him afterward.
When he heard that Mokgetsu used a combined Ninjutsu with just a Shadow Clone to block the attacks of thirty Root Anbu ninjas, Danzo's face flashed with surprise.
Danzo knew that Mokgetsu's Ninjutsu was powerful because he had previously chanced upon it at Sarutobi Hiruzen's home, but demonstrations in an open field ultimately lacked the persuasion of actual combat.
A single ninja killing thirty ninjas and a single ninja using Ninjutsu to surpass thirty other Ninjutsu were not the same concept, not to mention these thirty ninjas were all Root Anbu ninjas.
"Hiruzen, you do value him highly." Shimura Danzo immediately considered this to be the result of Sarutobi Hiruzen's teaching.
When Mokgetsu was with him, he didn't know any Combined Ninjutsu, and the last time he visited Sarutobi Hiruzen's house, Sarutobi Hiruzen was indeed instructing Mokgetsu.
Now Mokgetsu has proficiently mastered five types of Chakra Nature Transformation Ninjutsu and Combined Ninjutsu, which reminded Shimura Danzo of the young Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"Unfortunately, no matter how much effort you put in, Habu Mokgetsu is still a member of my Root." Shimura Danzo couldn't help but smile at this thought.
The thought of Sarutobi Hiruzen suppressing the Root's development on one hand while inadvertently helping to improve the Root's strength filled him with immense joy.
"He even used Kekkeigenkai Ice Release!" Upon discovering Mokgetsu had Ice Release, Shimura Danzo was even more astonished.
As far as he knew, neither Mokgetsu's parents nor his grandparents had Kekkeigenkai. How did the Ice Release suddenly appear in Mokgetsu?
Shimura Danzo was puzzled but didn't become suspicious because Mokgetsu was indeed a bona fide member of Konoha, with his parents falling in the wartime, and Mokgetsu has always behaved normally.
If Mokgetsu were an orphan who had drifted into Konoha from outside, Shimura Danzo might suspect Mokgetsu of being a spy sent by the Hidden Mist. However, as for whether sending such a genius as a spy seemed absurd, Shimura Danzo didn't care—investigation would determine if there were issues.
"Could it be that an ancestor once had Ice Release? Or did he luckily fuse and develop it himself?" Shimura Danzo speculated simply and then disregarded it.
Although Kekkeigenkai is rare, it depends on which one it is. As for Ice Release, its strength isn't extraordinary, certainly nowhere near as potent as the Byakugan.
In Shimura Danzo's eyes, even the Byakugan wasn't considered exceptional. The Byakugan held high strategic value, but its enhancement of individual strength wasn't as significant as the Sharingan. To him, Wood Release was the strongest Kekkeigenkai, and he believed it to be invincible.
With the confidence of having a Wood Release Ninja who had yet to fully mature, Shimura Danzo believed this ninja, once properly nurtured, could eliminate all obstacles for Konoha.
When the Root ninja finished reporting, Shimura Danzo made a simple estimation of Mokgetsu's strength in his mind.
"In terms of single combat, he might not be able to defeat Namikaze Minato, but his methods are more comprehensive compared to him, likely rivaling the young Hiruzen's strength."
Although Mokgetsu had an additional Ice Release and his Taijutsu was formidable, Sarutobi Hiruzen's Combined Ninjutsu was stronger, and he also had an excellent Summoning Beast. Shimura Danzo estimated Mokgetsu's strength to be comparable to Sarutobi Hiruzen's at the same age.
This inevitably led Shimura Danzo to some grand imaginings—one Wood Release Ninja, and one genius akin to Sarutobi Hiruzen, Mokgetsu. Once both of them were completely matured, could he make another bid for that position?
...
The next day, it was the same training ground, but due to the significant destruction from the previous day's battle, Mokgetsu slightly changed the location.
The same training, the same group, yet the atmosphere differed from the first day. All thirty ninjas eagerly anticipated how Mokgetsu would help them improve their strength.
"Speed is crucial in battle. Faster speed allows you to dodge more attacks and gives you the initiative in battle," Mokgetsu explained.
"Today, I'll teach you an Instant Body Jutsu that I developed myself. Although it puts great pressure on the legs, it is also much faster," Mokgetsu started teaching.
While they are the elite ninjas of Konoha, something valuable must be offered. After deep consideration, Mokgetsu decided to teach them a modified, weakened version of Soru.
The core of Soru lay in the Chakra burst technique capable of stacking. After Mokgetsu's modifications, the burst intensity decreased, and the stack limit reduced drastically.
However, even Mokgetsu's weakened version of Soru was much faster than the ordinary Instant Body Jutsu, still a very excellent Instant Body Jutsu, with Mokgetsu primarily controlling the upper limits.
After speaking, Mokgetsu demonstrated the speed of Soru.
The ninjas found it familiar because this was how Mokgetsu had zipped around while giving them a beating the previous day.
It exceeded the ninjas' expectations; they didn't foresee Mokgetsu teaching his self-created Instant Body Jutsu so openly, thinking there would be more of a focus on tactical guidance.
PS: With the temperature dropping these days, everyone should take care of themselves. The author is already feeling unwell, struggling in the bathroom before posting this chapter…