In Sakura Haruno's eyes, Naruto Uzumaki wasn't someone with good popularity.
After Orion's team left, Sakura asked curiously, "Kakashi-sensei, who was that person?"
She had noticed that Kakashi Hatake had been watching Orion the whole time.
Kakashi replied calmly, "An interesting kid. Let's go."
He didn't explain further.
Beside him, Sasuke Uchiha felt something strange.
For the first time—
He felt pressure from someone his age.
At the academy, he had always been number one.
No one had ever made him feel like a potential rival.
But Orion…
Even that brief encounter made Sasuke instinctively feel—
This person might become my opponent in the future.
Meanwhile, Naruto grinned and said to Sakura, "That's Team 11! That guy—just slightly less handsome than me—is Orion. He's my friend!"
Sakura immediately rolled her eyes.
"Idiot Naruto, your confidence is unbelievable."
In her mind, Orion's looks were easily on par with Sasuke's—if not better.
Training Ground – Konoha Back Mountain
On the other side, Orion's team arrived at the training site.
In front of them—
A massive waterfall crashed down into a lake below.
Yamata Jumoku and Motoya Tako immediately frowned.
"Sensei… why did we get a mission like this?"
"And the trash is under the waterfall—how are we supposed to clean that?"
Their mission was simple:
Clean the lake.
But the waterfall was at least 40–50 meters high, with violent currents.
Retrieving anything beneath it looked nearly impossible.
Kimoto Doichi spoke calmly:
"Today, I'll teach you how to stand on water using chakra."
Both Jumoku and Tako lit up instantly.
"You mean… a jutsu?!"
Orion also focused.
Water-walking… basic, but extremely useful.
He had never learned it before due to his previously average talent.
Now—
He was genuinely interested.
Doichi led them to a calmer part of the lake.
Then—
He stepped onto the water.
And stood there.
Perfectly stable.
"As your foot touches the surface," he explained, "channel chakra to the soles of your feet."
"Control the amount precisely—just enough to support your body."
"Too much or too little… and you'll fail."
Jumoku and Tako were stunned.
"Wow… Sensei is standing on water!"
"That's amazing!"
As civilians without ninja backgrounds, they had never seen such a technique.
Even Orion felt a slight shock.
Seeing it in real life was completely different from imagining it.
Jumoku eagerly tried first.
He walked to the edge, carefully gathering chakra under his feet.
Then—
He stepped forward.
Splash!
He fell straight into the water.
"It's too hard! How do you make it look so easy?!"
He climbed out, drenched and embarrassed.
Tako hesitated.
"Is it really that difficult? It looked simple…"
Jumoku shook his head.
"The theory is simple—but controlling the chakra precisely is extremely hard."
Doichi nodded.
"Correct."
"The key is precise chakra control."
"And that… you must learn yourselves."
Jumoku sighed.
"This might take me weeks…"
He hadn't even felt a moment of balance on the surface.
Then he asked, "Sensei, how long did it take you to learn this?"
Doichi replied calmly:
"Two days."
"Two days?!"
Jumoku was shocked.
"If even you needed two days… we might need over ten!"
Tako immediately lost confidence and withdrew her foot.
Her talent was similar to Jumoku's.
She then asked nervously, pointing at the waterfall:
"Sensei… what about the trash down there?"
The sheer force of the falling water made her uneasy.
A drop from that height could seriously injure—or kill.
Doichi shook his head.
"That's for you to figure out."
"That's the purpose of this mission."
"If you can't solve even this…"
"How will you survive against real enemies?"
Orion remained silent.
But his eyes sharpened slightly.
For Jumoku and Tako—
This was a difficult task.
For him—
This was an opportunity.
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