Today was a very lucky day for Natsuki.
Out of the blue, Yamashiro Aoba—who had been rather hands-off with Natsuki—sought him out, saying he'd take him to meet Iwashi and Genma, the two former bodyguards of the Fourth Hokage.
Natsuki was instantly thrilled, following Aoba closely while wondering how to win them over.
But clearly, Natsuki underestimated his own fame.
Before long, Aoba found the two at the edge of the Forest of Death.
"Iwashi, Genma—I brought the kid. Are you guys done?" Aoba greeted them.
"Perfect timing," Iwashi nodded. "We just wrapped up. The Forest of Death is big, but not hard to comb through. The problem is there are too many places to hide—especially if it's someone like Orochimaru. If he insists on hiding, we may never find him."
Genma, chewing on his long senbon needle, locked eyes on Natsuki.
"So you're the one everyone's been buzzing about lately—Konoha's Demon Blade Natsuki, huh?"
Demon Blade? Me?
Natsuki was a bit confused but quickly greeted them, "Good evening, seniors. You're scouting for Orochimaru, right? I hope I'm not disturbing your work?"
These days, most of the chunin and higher-ranked shinobi were busy investigating Orochimaru's movements. The Forest of Death, the upcoming exam venue, was a particular point of concern—they feared Orochimaru might ambush examinees.
What puzzled Natsuki was that people like Kakashi, Gai, and even Aoba weren't involved in the search. Instead, they were all focused on training their students.
Was it because Hiruzen already knew the search wouldn't succeed, and so instead assigned the instructors to protect their "young sprouts"?
No point dwelling on it.
Genma shook his head.
"You're not interrupting—we just finished. Aoba's already told us about you, and we were planning to meet you anyway."
Natsuki stood straight and gave a deep bow.
"Genma-senpai, Iwashi-senpai, forgive my directness—please teach me the Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)!"
"No need for all that."
Iwashi waved his hand. "We've heard plenty about you. Gai even taught you the Hachimon Tonkō (Eight Gates Release Technique), and Kakashi passed down his father's kenjutsu to you. Clearly, they trust you a lot. And judging by how you fought Orochimaru, their judgment is spot-on."
Genma, still biting his senbon, added,
"Plus, with Aoba vouching for you, we won't waste time 'testing' you. The Flying Thunder God is an extremely advanced space-time jutsu. When used by the Fourth Hokage, it was so refined that all nations feared him. The sad part is that we, his guards, barely learned the basics. We've always felt ashamed for not living up to his trust. You seem sharp. We hope the Flying Thunder God can shine again in your hands."
Natsuki was overjoyed and bowed again.
"Thank you, seniors! I won't let you down!"
He hadn't expected them to pass down the technique so easily.
But thinking about it, it made sense.
After all, he'd already earned Gai and Kakashi's recognition. He'd fought Orochimaru head-on. And now, with Aoba backing him up, he had credibility from all directions. That they'd entrust him with the technique wasn't all that surprising.
And since they trusted him—he'd give it his all.
It's the Flying Thunder God. No way he'd fail to learn it!
Iwashi and Genma had more work to do, so they didn't chat long. They simply handed him a scroll and waved him off.
Natsuki bowed once more, sincerely grateful.
He never took others' trust for granted—gratitude must always be shown.
Aoba laughed, "Alright, now that you've got what you wanted, go train. I know you're dying to get started. Judging by the village's current status, the second exam round should begin soon. I'll notify you when it's time."
"Thank you, Aoba-sensei!"
That was all Natsuki could say before hurrying home.
Once inside, he shut every door and window, then went straight into the gravity training room and unrolled the scroll.
The Hiraishin no Jutsu was a space-time instant movement jutsu. The user first inscribes a chakra formula—a Flying Thunder God seal—on a target. After that, the user or any object in contact with the user's chakra could instantly teleport to the marked location. The formula, once marked, was nearly impossible to erase.
Of course, Natsuki knew that Rikudō-level power could erase the seals. But since no one in the current era had that power, it didn't matter.
His first task: learn how to make the Flying Thunder God seal. This was a complex pattern of unique symbols, seemingly linked to space-time itself.
Once he mastered that, he'd need to sense the location of the seal from afar—and attempt to teleport directly to it by traversing space.
It sounded simple. But in reality, it was incredibly difficult.
Even the Fourth Hokage's bodyguards—now elite jōnin—had only grasped the surface of it. They could barely use it in a formation-based setup.
Natsuki was confident, but even he didn't expect to master it quickly.
Still, there was no need to rush. He now had the scroll. Mastery was only a matter of time.
Besides, he could use the gravity room's special features during training. After all, space-time techniques were dangerous. A wrong move while teleporting could get him ripped apart by dimensional turbulence.
But in the training room, he had protection. At worst, he'd just pass out from the pain—like last time.
"Right… when's the first of the month again? Oh, still ten days away. Probably after the second exam ends."
That thought calmed him even more.
For now, he focused on reading the scroll and attempting to draw the formula.
After several hours, Natsuki felt a little frustrated.
Crafting the seal required extremely precise chakra control—something he hadn't yet mastered. He'd have to improve his control before making progress.
Still, it wasn't a total loss.
Repeated attempts helped sharpen his chakra control, and he was gradually memorizing the seal's structure. He'd be able to practice it from memory going forward.
As expected of a forbidden jutsu—it was hard just to learn it.
At that moment, he heard the front door open.
Tenten was back.
He immediately exited the gravity room.
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My Patreon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/zaelum]
[+500 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]
[Thank You For Your Support!]