Chapter 26: The Serpent's Regimen
Kagenori settled into Orochimaru's underground base, unaware that the meticulously crafted training regimen would become his personal nightmare.
Before dawn the next morning, a snake slithered onto his bed, jolting him awake. The serpent spoke human language—clearly Orochimaru's summon. "Lord Kagenori, Lord Orochimaru awaits you."
Being addressed as "lord" by a snake felt distinctly unnatural.
Arriving at Orochimaru's office, he found the Sannin already studying a ninjutsu scroll. "Now that you're awake, we begin. Follow me."
He led Kagenori to the underground training ground, where he immediately summoned numerous snakes. "Morning physical training. No lightning chakra enhancement—pure physical strength only. Strike as many snakes as possible within one-minute intervals. Continue until I say stop. Prepared?"
Still groggy and unfed, Kagenori took a deep breath. "Ready, Orochimaru-sensei."
"Begin countdown."
Kagenori burst forward, punching snake bodies that dissipated into smoke upon impact. Orochimaru sat at the training ground's edge, resuming his scroll study.
The first minute passed easily enough. But when Kagenori moved to report completion, Orochimaru didn't glance up. "Continue."
Minute after minute accumulated. Kagenori lost count of elapsed time and snake waves replaced. Orochimaru's only response remained: "Continue."
Initially effortless, the continuous exertion gradually wore him down. From 5 AM start to nearly 10 AM, the one-minute cycles persisted. His movements slowed, steps heavy, suffering multiple snake bites—fortunately nonvenomous.
After his first bite, Orochimaru permitted Sharingan activation. The enhanced dynamic vision helped briefly, but couldn't compensate for depleting stamina. Worse, Orochimaru seemed absorbed in his scroll, perhaps having forgotten him entirely.
Distracted, Kagenori took another bite to the arm. As he shook the snake off, Orochimaru finally spoke: "Conclude taijutsu training."
Collapsing breathlessly, Kagenori never found Orochimaru's rasp so musical. The seemingly simple exercise tested accuracy, concentration, endurance, and speed brutally—his eyes ached from tracking serpent movements, vision doubling.
Approaching, Orochimaru analyzed his performance. "Major flaws. Your speed and endurance rely entirely on lightning-chakra enhancement. Without it, you average 120 strikes/minute initially—two per second. Respectable among peers, but inadequate for speed specialization."
"Endurance plummets after one hour—in combat, your effectiveness would drastically decline. Concentration barely acceptable—you lasted two hours before bites. But your Sharingan usage is terrible."
"Enhanced dynamic vision means you shouldn't focus narrowly on immediate threats. Utilize peripheral awareness to predict movements and react preemptively."
"You over-rely on lightning-chakra augmentation. Improve physical foundations first, then enhance with chakra for greater gains. Tomorrow's physical training adds strength exercises."
Kagenori accepted the critique humbly, though disappointed—what he'd considered diligent effort appeared mediocre by Orochimaru's standards. He needed redoubled effort.
"Thank you, Orochimaru-sensei! I'll work harder!"
Nodding, Orochimaru said, "Eat first. Ninjutsu training this afternoon."
Kagenori never expected Orochimaru to personally cook lunch—omelette rice with sauce that proved surprisingly delicious. The Sannin even studied scrolls while eating.
Afternoon ninjutsu training proved equally grueling. Since Kagenori only knew Thunder Breathing, Orochimaru taught four C-rank techniques—lightning, fire, water, earth—for practice.
Kagenori repeatedly exhausted his chakra practicing them, meditating to replenish reserves before continuing. These brief meditation periods became his only rest.
Training finally ended around 6 PM. After forcing down dinner, Kagenori collapsed onto his bed, completely drained—physically exhausted from morning, chakra depleted from afternoon. The thought of continuing days like this made him shudder.