"Common-use type, emergency-use type… a reasonable classification. Are you sure all of this was really Souma's own idea?"
The Third Hokage finished reading the report, looking genuinely stunned.
"Yes," Kitayama Oki answered. "We only assisted on the side.
The common-use type is for daily missions, while the emergency-use type rapidly restores stamina after intense combat, with lower satiety and lighter strain on the body."
"Implement it as soon as possible."
The Third exhaled, smiling faintly.
Oki bowed and left.
"Kakashi… what do you think?"
A moment later, a figure emerged in the corner of the office.
"You mean the boy, or the report?" Kakashi asked, raising his eyes.
"Both."
The Third puffed his pipe, expression obscured behind drifting smoke.
Kakashi thought for a couple of seconds.
"Failing to learn nature transformation doesn't mean much. As for the Soldier Pills—splitting them into categories is indeed more practical.
With the new system, the cost of mission supplies should drop by at least one-third."
"Three days."
The Third Hokage let out a long sigh.
Three days—
In three days, the boy had gone from learning Soldier Pills to proposing improvements, mastering production, and submitting a full research report.
Utterly unbelievable.
And the Hokage clearly remembered—
The boy had gone to the Medical Division to learn ninjutsu theory and anatomy.
Meaning:
To him, the Soldier Pills were merely something he happened to fix along the way.
"You interested in mentoring him?" the Third asked.
Kakashi froze for a moment.
"A-Ah… Hokage-sama, I'm sorry. I'd like to wait a bit longer."
He declined politely.
And he meant it—he wasn't suitable for this kid.
"I believe the best teachers for him would be Lady Tsunade or Lord Jiraiya," Kakashi added.
Of course the Third knew that.
But neither of them was in Konoha.
Silence briefly filled the air.
"No matter what, I'll keep an eye on him for you," Kakashi said finally.
"Before he's assigned a proper team, I'll watch over him. But as an official squad leader… that's not happening."
He bowed and left with his book.
The Third didn't stop him.
Kakashi was an elite jōnin—even the Hokage had to respect his decisions.
More importantly, Kakashi avoided leading teams because of the Fourth Hokage's son.
The Third relit his pipe quietly.
"Hmm? What's this…?"
During his lunch break at the hospital, Yagyu Souma lay down to meditate, reviewing the knowledge he'd learned.
That was when it appeared—
The familiar light orb surfaced in his consciousness.
But this time—
It was smaller.
No—
It had condensed.
Its glow contracted inward, the surface uneven, patterned with strange shifting lines—
like some kind of arcane engraving.
Wait—
He had seen this before.
Souma froze, digging through memories.
He scoured even the remnants of his previous life until, at last, he recalled it.
Before transmigrating, he had obtained a Bodhi seed.
And the orb's new texture was identical.
It was the Bodhi seed.
His eyes widened—but he quickly forced himself to calm down.
Now was not the time to question its origins.
Whether it was a Bodhi seed or an orb, one thing was certain:
This was the foundation of his survival in the shinobi world.
A change like this had to mean something.
He immediately sat up, grabbed paper and pen, and began scribbling while thinking.
Minutes later—
Tap!
Souma stabbed the pen through the paper.
The Soldier Pills.
He had improved the Soldier Pills a few days ago, then submitted his report today.
By now, the improvements had likely been approved and announced.
"I learn, I comprehend, then I pass the knowledge on…
That seems to trigger changes in the Bodhi seed, which then gives me feedback."
"So… what did I gain this time?"
Souma began testing himself.
Soon, he was nearly certain:
This feedback was sensory enhancement—
not normal sensory perception, but something beyond.
In addition to sensing chakra, he could feel something like… attention.
Observation.
A gaze.
A presence.
For example—
Someone was watching him right now.
Souma didn't look up directly.
Instead, he shifted his body as if he were just getting up to change books.
He caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye—
Glasses.
Silver hair.
Yakushi Kabuto?
Souma considered it briefly.
It matched perfectly.
No one else fits.
Not surprising, either.
His teacher at the Academy had been Mizuki—someone Kabuto naturally kept tabs on.
No need to alert him.
Might even be useful later.
He quietly walked toward Kitayama Oki's office.
The door was open—but Oki was asleep inside.
Souma slipped in, grabbed a new book, and was about to leave when he glanced sideways—
Oh.
Kitayama-sensei…
It was perfectly normal for adults to read… colorful material.
But maybe, just maybe—she should've closed the door.
Souma silently turned to leave.
Just before he stepped out—
"Ah—!"
There was a startled gasp behind him, followed by frantic rustling.
Before he could turn around, Oki blurted out:
"Ahem. S-Souma, borrowing another book? You finished the last one?"
"Yes. I wanted to study the nervous system next."
Souma nodded naturally.
Oki's cheeks flushed as she nodded rapidly.
"G-Good. That's good. If the hallway's too noisy, you can read in here."
"No need. Ah—Sensei, may I start learning the Chakra Scalpel?"
"That technique is… well—fine, take it."
Originally, she wanted to say it was an A-rank medical ninjutsu and extremely difficult to learn.
But then she remembered—
This boy had independently recreated the Fourth Hokage's Rasengan.
Comparing oneself to him was an easy way to die of envy.
"Thank you, Sensei."
As expected:
When someone was experiencing severe social death, the chances of getting permission increased dramatically.
Souma skimmed the scroll once and returned it immediately.
Once he left, Kitayama Oki buried her head in her arms and silently screamed into the desk.
He definitely saw!
Please let him know what that book was…
Otherwise…
Her dignity as a teacher would be gone forever.
Souma walked out reading his new book while forming hand seals to attempt the Chakra Scalpel.
His first try failed.
Hyakusa—who had been secretly observing him—quietly let out a breath of relief.
So he wasn't that monstrous—
Second try:
Successful.
Oh no.
Hyakusa stood up, expression collapsing, and decided to relocate somewhere else.
Out of sight. Out of mind.
Souma remained blissfully unaware.
He played with the Chakra Scalpel's blade of pure chakra.
As expected of a B-rank technique, mastering it in one go wasn't possible.
No wonder so few used it in actual combat.
For most people, maintaining it in the chaos of a fight was far too difficult.
The chakra control required was immense.
Those who could maintain it often had better attack methods anyway—
like Tsunade's monstrous strength or Chiyo's puppet weapons.
Kabuto was more of an anomaly.
But for Souma—
It was a promising technique.
He began compressing the chakra further, shaping the blade until it was as wide as a kunai.
"In direct combat, this form isn't very practical," he muttered.
"But in terms of chakra manipulation… It gives me ideas for forming chakra needles."
Advance Chapters available on Patreon
patreon.com/pikachu614