As usual, Hikaru returned to the Third Training Ground to resume his normal training. He no longer needed to keep anything secret, as he had already completed the weight training seal he wanted.
Hikaru, walking towards the river, removed his clothes and put them aside before starting his training, thinking, Hopefully no one is watching me naked right now.
Seeing his reflection in the clear water, Hikaru tilted his head and smiled. "I actually look pretty good." He then laughed at his own childish expression, his cheeks turning slightly red from embarrassment.
After calming himself from the awkward moment, Hikaru took a deep breath and started channeling chakra to his feet, his eyes showing renewed determination.
"Let's do this!"
The training took the entire morning as he practiced water walking with intense focus. By lunchtime, Hikaru had made significant progress, managing to stand on the river surface for several minutes at a time, although not as long as he wanted. Nonetheless, it was an improvement that made him pump his fist with satisfaction.
His stomach rumbled loudly from the morning's efforts, so Hikaru decided to try catching some fish to grill nearby. He had already prepared cooking utensils, seasoning, and ingredients, following methods he had watched on social media in his previous life.
After successfully catching three fish using a basic trapping technique, he built a small fire and began the cooking process with careful attention to the flames.
It's edible, Hikaru thought as he took a cautious bite of his effort, chewing thoughtfully.
A mix of sour and spicy flavors seasoned the fish, but the ratio wasn't quite right, creating an odd taste that made him wrinkle his nose. Hikaru scratched his temple while briefly considering the solution, then snapped his fingers as inspiration struck.
"Salt! That's what it needs," he said, adding some salt to the dish before roasting it further over the coals.
"Okay, this tastes so much better," Hikaru said, his face brightening as he savored the improved flavor.
He ate three to four fish until his stomach felt comfortably full, then carefully cleaned up everything afterward, making sure to extinguish the fire completely and dispose of the bones properly.
His eyelids grew heavy from the meal, so Hikaru found a comfortable spot under a large oak tree near the riverbank. He leaned back against the rough bark, enjoying the gentle breeze and warm afternoon sun.
"This is nice," Hikaru murmured contentedly, closing his eyes for a moment. After resting for about twenty minutes and feeling his energy restored, he pushed himself back to his feet and walked back to the river to splash cool water on his face.
As Hikaru dried his face with his sleeve, the hair on the back of his neck stood up slightly. His body went rigid as he sensed someone observing him using sensing techniques to scan his location.
Why at this time? Hikaru wondered, pressing his lips together as he considered the other party's rude behavior.
He stood motionless for only a brief moment, his hand moving to scratch his temple while thinking about the situation he was in. Has someone found out about the circus event? Hikaru thought, his relaxed posture becoming tense. ANBU? Or worse... the Root Organization? A visible shiver ran down his spine at the possibility.
Then he shook his head and reverted back to act normally, as if nothing had happened, and moved on to his training activities.
Hikaru decided to switch to strength training for the afternoon session. He would alternate between physical exercise and chakra control to avoid boredom and excessive strain on his body, a lesson learned from previous overtraining incidents.
After finding a suitable tree nearby, he made sure to hide all of the weight training beads inside his clothing before activating the seal. The familiar warmth spread through his limbs as the weight gradually increased, and the beads shifted from white to green, then to yellow under his shirt and pants.
To test his training method properly, Hikaru limited the weight to five kilograms total. His arms dropped slightly as he felt the heaviness immediately after activation. Though standing on solid ground was manageable, attempting to step onto the tree trunk proved much more challenging due to the increased weight working against his chakra control.
When he couldn't bear the pressure any longer, sweat beading on his forehead, Hikaru reduced the weight setting to two kilograms with visible relief.
"Whew," Hikaru said, taking a deep breath while focusing on channeling chakra to his feet. "This is a lot harder than I thought it would be."
Despite numerous attempts throughout the afternoon, he continued to struggle with maintaining chakra control under the additional weight pressure. However, to any casual observers, he would appear to be having normal difficulty with a typical tree climbing exercise.
Hikaru took another slow, deliberate step up the tree trunk and muttered under his breath, "I'm only focused on doing one thing, and it's already so difficult to manage."
"Without maintaining a high state of focus, multitasking would be really difficult." Hikaru shook his head while contemplating the complexity of his training challenge. "Until I figure out how to do two or three things at once effectively..."
Wiping sweat from his brow, Hikaru thought of his previous idea and said quietly to himself, "I should try combining strength training with Tai Chi exercises to see if I can retain focus under physical pressure." Looking around at the surrounding trees, he whispered, "Maybe after a week or so, when no one is watching me train."
This approach was fundamentally different from combining Tai Chi with Leaf Concentration Practice. His meditation exercises allowed him to multitask more easily with a high state of focus since there was no external pressure on his body during those sessions.
Hikaru's brow furrowed as he considered this problem, recognizing its similarity to the challenge he would face in the future during shape transformation training to recreate the Fourth Hokage's technique—the Rasengan. While maintaining the rotating sphere, one needed to focus on quickly spinning chakra in multiple directions while simultaneously increasing chakra density and output.
The main character in the original story solved this limitation with the Shadow Clone Technique, but Hikaru couldn't afford to use the same approach. He simply didn't have that much chakra to spare for such an inefficient method.
Besides, he didn't like that approach anyway—it didn't look nearly as impressive or skilled.
Multitasking under pressure required tremendous mental focus and concentration. Some people could manage it easily due to natural talent, while someone like him couldn't achieve the same results without extensive training.
However, he couldn't resolve this issue by relying on meditation techniques every time he wanted to multitask effectively. He needed to develop another solution or wait until he could sustain that level of concentration naturally through practice.
This was currently just a two-way problem—physical training combined with chakra control. Adding natural energy manipulation would make it a three-way challenge that seemed almost impossible to master.
If Hikaru couldn't resolve the fundamental multitasking problem, he might have an extremely long road ahead before reaching his ultimate goal.
However, if he managed to solve these concentration issues, the difficulty of mastering the Rasengan technique, or developing his own variation, would decrease significantly.
The road ahead is still long, Hikaru thought while attempting to reach one of the higher tree branches, his movements careful and deliberate. I should focus on what's directly ahead and test each idea's feasibility one step at a time.
Hikaru continued training until the sun started to set, then finally allowed himself to rest. He had struggled at first but eventually made progress through determination, even managing to raise the weight back to five kilograms for short periods.
Lying flat on the grass beneath the tree, his chest rising and falling heavily, Hikaru looked completely exhausted. He had overdone things again despite his best intentions.
While resting for a moment, Hikaru senses a chakra signature suddenly vanish abruptly. Glancing toward the trees, he spots a cloaked figure with a blank mask retreating swiftly. His heart races—Root?
During the intense training session, Hikaru had completely forgotten that he was under observation from unknown watchers.
"Hikaru!"
Hikaru opened his tired eyes and slowly turned his head toward the source of the familiar voice. It was indeed Kajiwara Ryōta, the chubby boy he hadn't seen in several days. He had come together with Taketa Kenta from their usual study group.
It appeared they had decided to train together on the same training ground. Hikaru remembered mentioning the advanced chakra control training methods to Ryōta when he had visited him at the hospital.
"You're looking completely beat!" Ryōta said, his eyebrows raising as he observed Hikaru's exhausted condition.
Hikaru chuckled weakly at his friend's blunt assessment and replied, "Yeah, I overdid it again this time." He turned his head toward Kenta and offered a tired greeting, to which the shy boy nodded nervously in response.
"You're training to this extreme extent—aren't you scared of what your sister will do?" Ryōta asked, his voice rising slightly with concern as he looked down at his friend while stepping forward to help carry him. "Ayako-chan is going to be furious if she finds out."
"It's best if she doesn't know about today's session," Hikaru smiled weakly, not resisting his friend's helping hands. "How have you two been training together recently?"
Kenta straightened up as he took the opportunity to answer the question, his voice gaining confidence. "Ryōta-kun has been a big help. I feel like I'm improving much faster than before."
Ryōta's chest puffed out with pride upon hearing the sincere compliment. "Of course! I've been putting in serious effort to push him through the difficult foundational work."
"That's excellent progress," Hikaru replied, nodding his head approvingly while giving Kenta additional encouragement. "The key to improvement is maintaining discipline—if you stick to consistent practice, you'll definitely see results."
Hikaru had undergone significant changes in his daily habits since arriving in this world. Without the strict discipline he had developed and maintained, he never would have made it this far in his training.
All three boys engaged in conversations about their training methods, with Hikaru sharing his thoughts about their practice plans. When Hikaru began to feel his strength returning as they walked together, he climbed down from Ryōta's back and walked alongside his friends.
"How about eating dinner at my home tonight?" Hikaru suggested as they prepared to part ways at the usual intersection.
Ryōta and Kenta exchanged glances for a moment before Ryōta asked, "Will it be okay with Ayako-chan?"
"Of course it'll be fine! Ayako-chan would be delighted if friends came to visit our home," Hikaru replied, his voice gaining enthusiasm. "She's been asking when I'd bring you guys over."
Kenta nodded eagerly. "I'd love to try Ayako-chan's cooking. Ryōta-kun has been bragging about it since the last time he visited."
As anticipated, upon their arrival at Hikaru's house, Ayako's face lit up when she saw the study group together. She immediately began preparing a meal, humming softly as she worked.
Hikaru brought out cold milk for his friends while Ayako prepared dinner. "Thanks for helping me train today, you guys. Having you there made it less boring."
"That's what friends are for," Ryōta said with a wide grin, already making himself comfortable at the table. "Besides, we learned some new techniques just by watching you struggle."
"Very helpful," Kenta added with a shy smile, though his posture was much more relaxed than during their first study group meetings months ago.
The three boys chatted easily about their training progress and upcoming academy lessons, their friendship comfortable and natural. When Ayako brought the food to the table, she also poured her favorite tea and settled in to join their conversation.
After enjoying dinner together, Hikaru walked his friends to the front door and bid them goodnight before returning to his room to update his training plans. He settled at his desk, and began carefully updating his detailed training plan.
He drew a small "hold" symbol next to Fūinjutsu (sealing techniques), as he had made tremendous progress in that area during recent weeks and thought he should redirect his efforts toward other important skills.
Hikaru's training approach had evolved significantly from attempting everything simultaneously to concentrating on two or three specific areas and completing them thoroughly before moving on to new challenges. This method was less immediately enjoyable but proved much more efficient for preparing himself in the limited time available.
Now that my advanced chakra control has reached approximately ninety percent proficiency, Hikaru thought while biting his pencil in contemplation, I can finally move forward to Ninjutsu development. The Genjutsu I used during the circus incident worked well—maybe I have talent in that area too. I should explore both fields if I want to reach Jōnin level eventually.
Just as he was settling into his planning session, a familiar voice called from outside.
"Hikaru-kun!"
He looked up with surprise and walked to his window, spotting Koji-sensei standing near their front gate with an apologetic expression.
"Koji-sensei?" Hikaru called out, quickly moving to meet his former instructor. "Is everything alright?"
"Sorry to bother you so late," Koji-sensei said, scratching the back of his head with obvious embarrassment. "I wanted to let you know that you need to report to the Academy two days from now in the morning to meet your new sensei."
Hikaru's eyebrows rose as tension released from his shoulders. "Finally! What happened with the delay?"
"I'm not really sure about the details," Koji-sensei admitted with a slight shrug. "I was just told that the issue has been resolved and to inform you to report to the Academy. You don't need to worry about it anymore—just be there by eight o'clock."
"Thank you for letting me know, Koji-sensei," Hikaru said, bowing respectfully. "I was starting to wonder if something had gone wrong."
"Not at all. These things happen sometimes with scheduling," his former teacher replied, waving dismissively. "Get some good rest over the next two days. You'll want to be at your best."
After Koji-sensei departed, Hikaru returned to his room with quick, energetic steps. Finally, the mysterious delay had been explained, and he would soon meet his new team.
Gazing at the bright moon through his window, Hikaru leaned back in his chair and yawned as he reflected on the recent sensation of someone observing his training activities.
How troublesome, he thought, his jaw tightening slightly with mild annoyance, though part of him was curious about who might be watching him and why. At least I'll have answers about my team assignment soon.