For a fresh graduate with no clan backing, the best way to grow stronger was to seek guidance from their mentor. For civilian ninjas, this was often the only route.
Of course, whether the mentor was willing to teach or share experience or even offer support—was entirely up to them. No one would judge Xin if he decided not to teach anything at all.
Just look at the original series, for example.
Take Kakashi's team: Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura.
Aside from some basic training, Kakashi spent most of his time focusing on Sasuke, barely teaching Naruto and Sakura anything. Yet in the end, Sasuke didn't even appreciate it and ended up trying to kill him.
Ridiculous!
This was one of the reasons Xin despised the student-teacher dynamic in the world of ninjas.
He could train you, teach you, and give you the best tools, but the student might still turn against him. Xin wasn't about to fall into that trap.
To avoid these kinds of nasty situations, the best solution was simple: don't take on students. "I can help you with some basic training,"
Xin said, laying it out clearly. "But if you want to learn advanced jutsu, sword techniques, or taijutsu, you'll have to earn it yourself. You'll need to trade for that knowledge with your own contributions later."
He didn't want Aida to get his hopes up, so it was best to be straightforward.
"I understand, Captain. I'll work hard on my training."
"Good. Have a seat."
Xin motioned for Aida to sit back down. He picked up another slice of watermelon and chewed thoughtfully as he considered what to do next.
Aida sat cross-legged, waiting anxiously in silence. He kept his eyes on Xin, too nervous to speak.
Once Xin finished his watermelon, he wiped his face at the river and let the cool water wake him up a bit. Finally, he turned to Aida with a more serious expression.
"Before we start, I want to know: how do you see yourself as a ninja?"
"Huh?" Aida was caught off guard by the question. "What do you mean?"
"I'm talking about your role. Every team member has a specific role-offense, support, recon. In our team, we already have offense and recon covered. What we're missing is support."
With the Sharingan and Byakugan in play, recon was more than covered, especially with the Byakugan. Offense and recon were also in good hands with Ryoji Uchiha and Hyuga Suzune. That left only the support role vacant.
But Aida wasn't exactly suited for support right now. At best, he was like a weaker version of Sakura.
"Are you willing to put your own growth aside to support your teammates?" Xin's question hit right to the core.
"I... I don't know."