*Swoosh.*
The leaf in Amane's hand was instantly split in two.
"This is the first stage of training in Wind Release Chakra."
Seeing Naruto's face filled with confusion and frustration, Amane explained calmly.
"Can I only cut leaves? I want to learn more powerful Ninjutsu! Ow—that hurts!"
As soon as his protest left his mouth, Amane struck him on the top of the head with a punch.
The suppressed, displeased snort coming from under the mask made Naruto instantly fall silent as a winter cicada.
Why did it turn out like this?
It started because today, Amane originally wanted to spend an hour or two testing Naruto's level of Hand Seals.
After all, seals are a good thing.
As long as you master the seals for Five Element Ninjutsu, even if they aren't very powerful, you can definitely use them.
Mastering Nature Transformation of Chakra is equivalent to improving your stats and deep understanding of the technique, and simplifying Hand Seals based on that.
The results of testing Naruto almost gave Amane a brain hemorrhage.
To put it mildly.
Naruto had memorized all the seals and could perform them.
"In my opinion, Ninjutsu that requires complex Hand Seals is basically beyond you."
Amane continued in a certain tone: "If you want to get stronger, then in the future, honestly practice Taijutsu, as well as the Shape Transformation and Nature Transformation of Chakra."
Hearing Amane's words, Naruto swallowed hard.
Instinctively, he roughly knew what Amane was going to do next.
"Since you think cutting leaves is boring..." Amane's voice carried a hint of danger, "then let's practice some Taijutsu."
Naruto subconsciously took a step back and quickly changed his tune: "Wait! I... I think cutting leaves is pretty good!"
Amane's Taijutsu training was extremely strict. Since the night of the test, among the three in Team 7, he was the one being worked the hardest!
The results were indeed significant.
Now, when clashing in Taijutsu with Sasuke, he was no longer just one-sidedly beaten; although the gap was still obvious, the distance was indeed shortening visibly.
However, every time he was beaten black and blue by Amane and could barely stand, he would then be instantly healed by that miraculous Medical Ninjutsu.
That strange experience of being exhausted one moment and full of life the next made Naruto finally taste the feeling Amane once had.
Naruto was still a bit wary of this strange pleasure.
Hearing Naruto's refusal, Amane let out a light laugh under her mask and continued:
"You, work hard. The next stage after cutting leaves is to challenge cutting fluids like rivers or waterfalls."
"Can... can those things really be cut?"
Naruto really couldn't imagine the scene of a stream or waterfall being cleanly divided.
"So work hard, young man, I have high hopes for you~"
Seeing Naruto scratching the back of his head and smiling because someone had expectations of him, Amane felt it was about time.
It was time to say goodbye for now.
Her gaze quietly drifted to the side; three peeping shadows were clearly hidden in the small grove.
Amane couldn't help but sigh that they truly were of the same team, but a thought of mischief also welled up in her heart.
"Naruto," her voice returned to being calm, "I should be going soon."
Naruto's smile instantly froze on his face.
"Is... is that so? When?" His voice was a bit dry.
"Now. After all, there's no longer a place for me here." Amane's answer was plain and direct.
A brief silence fell between the two, and disappointment was undisguised on Naruto's face.
Although they hadn't spent much time together, as long as Amane was by his side, Naruto could feel a certain void in his heart being slowly filled. Especially after witnessing Amane's true face in the Sealing Space yesterday, this feeling was magnified countless times.
Hearing that she was leaving now, Naruto almost instinctively resisted in his heart.
But... "Yeah, I understand."
He finally spoke.
This reaction was somewhat beyond Amane's expectations, and her mouth blurted out a sentence faster than her brain:
"How unexpected, I thought you'd be reluctant to let me go."
Two patches of blush immediately flew onto Naruto's cheeks, and he muttered, "I... I'm not."
He truly didn't want Amane to leave, but he didn't want to be unreasonable and force her to stay. Since Amane said she was leaving, it meant she had her own things to do.
Moreover, although Amane was an Anbu, she was also a Konoha Ninja; they should be able to see each other again sooner or later back in the Village.
"Kyu?"
Amane suddenly leaned her masked face close to Naruto's, her voice deliberately carrying a bit of playful laughter:
"You're blushing, you really are reluctant to let me go."
"Urusai!"
Naruto pushed Amane away in embarrassment and annoyance, earning a burst of crisp, bell-like laughter from her.
Older brothers are such fun creatures to play with.
"Don't worry, we'll see each other again soon," Amane said.
"Really?!" Naruto blurted out, urgently asking how much longer.
Seeing this, the corners of Amane's mouth under the mask curled into a mischievous, devilish arc.
In that case, if she didn't play around a bit more, wouldn't she be letting herself down?
Amane leaned into Naruto's ear and continued in her original voice, using a slightly feigned, sweet tone:
"Let's meet in Konoha next time. Remember to pretend you don't know me then, and we'll introduce ourselves again... in our true forms, under the sun."
Looking at Naruto again, his face was now completely red.
How could a young boy handle this kind of stimulation? The dark side of Amane's heart couldn't help but laugh even louder.
[Looking forward to it, what kind of expression will Naruto have when he finds out the truth then? Jie-jie-jie-jie...]
Having finished her teasing, Amane used a Body Flicker and appeared silently among the three peeping people—Kakashi and the others.
"Interested in some Sensing Ninjutsu?"
She used her altered voice again; anyway, except for Kakashi at that distance, those two brats definitely couldn't hear her conversation with Naruto.
Her sudden appearance gave Sasuke and Sakura a big fright.
The three of them couldn't help but cough in embarrassment.
And on Sakura and Sasuke's faces, a burning desire for gossip was clearly written.
Too many things had happened between this mysterious Anbu, Kakashi, and Naruto in these last two days.
Kakashi Speak first,His tone was tinged with helplessness.:
"Don't tease him, he's already a bit slow."
"My teasing is legal."
Amane said righteously. These words left Kakashi speechless for a moment, and he could only silently mourn for his disciple's future life in his heart.
In Kakashi's view, with Naruto's emotional and intellectual intelligence, he would never escape his sister's palm.
He sincerely wished this disciple of his... the best of luck.
But thinking of Naruto's future filled with "surprises," the corners of his mouth under the mask rose uncontrollably.
"You unscrupulous teacher. Alright, alright, I should be going too. See you at the Chunin Exams. Once you're in, I'll use Sensing Ninjutsu to signal you."
Amane used code for this sentence, after all, Sakura and Sasuke were still there.
Kakashi nodded. He had already decided to move up the schedule; anyway, under the treatment of Amane's efficient Medical Ninjutsu, the injuries of the whole team were no longer a major issue.
Then, after Amane chatted a few more words with Sasuke and Sakura, she activated the Body Flicker Technique and quickly arrived over ten kilometers away, then sent a signal to the other side using the connection of the Summoning Contract.
Then... with a *bang*, Amane vanished into thin air from the Land of Waves.
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