[Trait: Muscle Memory (White)]
Requirement:
Repeat a complex training process until it becomes an instinctive habit.
Progress: Completed
Effect:
After repeating a large number of movements, your muscles gradually adapt to them, allowing you to perform these actions subconsciously through reflex.
Your muscle memory is 10% stronger than that of an average person.
Currently unable to erase incorrect muscle memory.
Note: Can be upgraded in the future.
Feeling the chakra gradually draining from his body, Kiyoshi continued climbing upward and took three more steps before finally reaching the treetop.
The forest was lush and vibrant, and the chirping of birds echoed from time to time among the branches.
So as long as I repeatedly train something tedious, no matter what it is, it can trigger a trait… Kiyoshi thought to himself.
And it seems my talent isn't bad either.
Most Uchiha ninjas were elites, and he carried the same bloodline within him. His natural aptitude couldn't be that poor.
Compared to the tree used in Team 7's training in the original story, this one was noticeably shorter. Reaching the top didn't require much effort.
"Kiyoshi, did you do this kind of training back in the Land of Lightning?" Rin Nohara asked curiously.
"No."
Kiyoshi stepped down from the treetop and exhaled.
Although his body was that of a child, his soul was that of an adult. His concentration was naturally better than Obito's.
But greater focus also meant greater consumption.
His muscles felt sore all over.
"You have obtained the trait: Tree Climber (White)."
[Trait: Tree Climber (White)]
Requirement:
Walk up a tree trunk using only your feet.
Progress: Completed
Effect:
In special terrain environments, your chakra control becomes more refined.
Chakra consumption while climbing trees is reduced by 10%.
Note: Can be upgraded in the future.
Kiyoshi was slightly stunned.
He hadn't expected that something like this could also count as completing a trait.
It seems the trait system doesn't only react to my body itself, he realized.
It also responds to certain abstract achievements.
Previously, the traits Muscle Memory, Reading Absorption, and Basic Memory were all triggered through internal training without much connection to external events.
If I graduate early… or become the top student of my grade… could that trigger new traits or even upgrades?
Kiyoshi began to speculate.
Of course, his current identity was already attracting too much attention. Even if he could do that, he had no intention of showing off.
Displaying talent was something he would only do after gaining enough strength to protect himself.
"That's impossible! You must be hiding something!" Obito shouted, eyes wide in disbelief.
He simply couldn't accept that Kiyoshi's talent could be this good.
If this continued, wouldn't he remain the dead last forever?
"Whether you believe it or not is up to you, Obito," Kiyoshi replied calmly.
Obito, at this age, appeared warm-hearted and kind. But deep down, he was the type of person who could become obsessively devoted to love.
The kind who, once pushed far enough, could take extreme actions without hesitation.
Obito's turning point in life had been Rin's death.
After that, he would attempt to drag the entire world into the Infinite Tsukuyomi, believing that only within that illusion could true happiness exist.
For the sake of that goal, he would even be willing to harm his own teacher's child.
On the day Naruto was born, Obito's actions turned him into an orphan.
And that was despite the fact that Minato and Kushina had always treated Obito well.
Someone who could take revenge on the entire world simply because his own wishes weren't fulfilled…
Kiyoshi had no intention of building a close relationship with such a person.
"Alright, Obito," Rin said gently.
She had also noticed that Obito seemed somewhat hostile toward Kiyoshi. Considering Kiyoshi's background, she couldn't say much and could only smooth things over.
"It's getting late. We should head back."
"Alright. See you tomorrow, Rin," Kiyoshi said politely.
He then walked toward the exit.
Watching his departing back, Rin muttered softly:
"He's completely different from the rumors about people from the Land of Lightning."
Her impression of Kiyoshi was actually quite good.
He wasn't loud and impulsive like Obito, nor was he sharp-tongued and cold like Kakashi.
"Hey, Rin," Obito said.
"Don't you think that guy's chakra feels kind of cold?"
"Chakra doesn't completely define a person," Rin replied.
On the way home, Kiyoshi observed the bustling streets around him.
The Land of Fire possessed exceptionally favorable geography, and Konoha was located near its central region.
Aside from the mountainous terrain surrounding the outer areas, the climate inside was extremely comfortable.
Living here felt far better than living in the Land of Lightning.
But that same comfort could also corrode a ninja's spirit.
Kiyoshi shook his head and withdrew his gaze.
The Third Great Ninja War, which would erupt in just a few years, loomed over him like a massive mountain.
Once he became a ninja, he would inevitably be sent to the battlefield.
If he wanted to increase his chances of survival, he had to become strong enough to protect himself before that day arrived.
Suddenly—
Bump.
Someone collided with him.
"Sorry," the passerby said hurriedly before quickly leaving.
"It's fine," Kiyoshi replied calmly.
He continued walking toward home as if nothing had happened.
But his hand, hanging at his side, tightened slightly around the unfamiliar object that had just been slipped into it.
He quickened his pace.
This is already the second time.
A spy from Kumogakure.
For ninjas, intelligence was everything.
Every major village constantly infiltrated the others with spies. From time to time, new agents would sneak in, eventually be discovered, and then replaced by others.
It was an endless cycle of espionage and counter-espionage.
Meanwhile…
At the Naka Shrine.
Fugaku rubbed his temples as the clan members gradually left the hall, leaving only Mikoto behind.
"The people sent by the Root have already arrived," Fugaku said.
"If Kiyoshi turns out not to be a problem, I'll need you to take more responsibility for him."
His gaze settled on Mikoto.
Her appearance carried the gentle grace of a traditional Yamato-nadeshiko woman, but the green ninja flak jacket she wore gave her a capable and composed aura.
"Don't worry, Fugaku," Mikoto replied with a nod.
She understood the meaning behind his words.
If Kiyoshi truly turned out to be a spy, his fate would be obvious.
But if he wasn't…
Then they would need to strengthen his sense of belonging to the Uchiha clan.
A child raised outside the village would inevitably carry influences from the outside world.
They needed to make him develop bonds with the Uchiha.
Back at his house, Kiyoshi didn't immediately take out the object he had received earlier.
Instead, he placed it into the left pocket of his trousers.
Maintaining a calm expression, he opened the books he had brought back from the Ninja Academy and continued reading.
The traits Reading Absorption and Basic Memory were still close to completion.
Not long after, Kiyoshi realized the fatigue in his body was gradually fading. The soreness he had felt earlier was disappearing.
"The talent of the Yotsuki Clan," he murmured.
Now he understood.
The Uchiha clan was already known for possessing large chakra reserves.
Combined with the physical strength inherited from the Yotsuki clan, it was only natural that his recovery speed would be this fast.
The Land of Lightning was filled with towering mountains shrouded in mist.
According to the records in the Jin no Sho, that region had originally been the territory of the Yotsuki Clan.