Inside the Fukimori Family's training ground, Tobirama's direct disciples met for the first time since that incident.
From now on, they were fellow disciples, and naturally, they felt closer than they had been at the Konoha Academy.
As soon as Uchiha Kagami and Fūmori Masaki arrived, Hiruzen Sarutobi first greeted Uchiha Kagami, who had succeeded as clan leader, and then leaned over to Fūmori Masaki to ask in a low voice—
"Masaki-kun, how are things going with your new wife? Now that you're finally married, you must be having a great time, right?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled softly; he knew about Fūmori Masaki having previously postponed his marriage, so naturally, he wanted to tease him a bit.
"Hiruzen-kun, are you really that curious about other people's family matters?"
Fūmori Masaki shook his head with a smile. Back at the Konoha Academy, he had been too busy studying to have any in-depth conversations with Hiruzen Sarutobi. Now, it seemed that Hiruzen Sarutobi had a somewhat frivolous personality; no wonder the disciples he would teach later were all addicted to gambling, drinking, and debauchery.
"Haha, I get it."
Hiruzen Sarutobi knew the other party wasn't interested in discussing men's topics with him, so he didn't press the issue and changed the subject. "Masaki-kun, since we are fellow disciples, let's not be so formal and just call each other by our names."
Fūmori Masaki had no objections. Since he was already calling Uchiha Kagami by his name, it would be better if he did the same with the others, so he nodded and said, "Alright, I'll call you Hiruzen from now on."
"Mm, Masaki."
Hiruzen Sarutobi also changed how he addressed him and smilingly bumped Fūmori Masaki's shoulder.
By this time, all seven direct disciples had arrived. While getting to know each other better, they discussed what kind of skills Tobirama would teach them.
Although Tobirama was also a teacher at the Konoha Academy, he only taught problems that everyone would encounter; he didn't teach his own personal techniques there. Only as direct disciples could they learn Tobirama's personal skills.
Just as everyone was discussing this, they heard Tobirama's voice ring out: "It looks like you're getting along quite well."
Turning around, everyone saw Tobirama walking over. Arriving in front of them, everyone quickly bowed to Tobirama to show their respect for their teacher.
Tobirama looked at the seven people in front of him and nodded slightly. He and his older brother had high expectations for them, and he would now proceed to teach the seven of them with the strictest attitude.
"Although you are all my direct disciples, my older brother is also your teacher, and he will come to instruct you when he has time," Tobirama said.
When Tobirama announced the list, the Ninja Clans were surprised that Hashirama himself didn't have any direct disciples. Hashirama immediately stated that he would not take anyone as his own direct disciple, but Tobirama's disciples were also his disciples, so he would also provide instruction.
Hearing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They were also looking forward to receiving guidance from Hashirama, and they would certainly have been disappointed if he wasn't going to teach them.
Compared to the others, Fūmori Masaki had already received guidance from Hashirama many times, and his mastery of Natural Energy relied entirely on Hashirama's personal experience.
Tobirama didn't say much more and straightforwardly prepared to begin today's training. When Hiruzen Sarutobi asked who would be instructed first, Tobirama said, "No need, I will instruct each of you at the same time."
Everyone was taken aback. A person's energy is limited; even Tobirama couldn't possibly instruct seven people at the same time, after all, there was only one of him.
Fūmori Masaki couldn't help but think of those Ninjutsu that Tobirama had created. Could it be...
Just then, Tobirama performed hand seals, and with a poof, six other "Tobirama"s appeared beside him. The others initially thought it was a Clone Jutsu, but then they remembered some rumors circulating within Konohagakure. Hiruzen Sarutobi said in surprise, "Teacher, is this the Shadow Clone that you created?"
"Exactly," Tobirama nodded. "Each one is a real entity, equivalent to another me. Each of you will receive one-on-one guidance from 'me', so there's no need to worry about who comes first or last. That is all."
"So amazing..." Although Hiruzen Sarutobi knew the rumors that Tobirama had created this Ninjutsu, this was the first time he had officially seen it, and he looked at the six "Tobirama"s in awe.
"What's there to be envious of? You can all learn this Ninjutsu," Tobirama said indifferently. In his heart, he even wanted to pass this Ninjutsu on to others, so how could he be stingy with his own direct disciples?
With seven "Tobirama"s here, everyone could receive individual, focused instruction, so everyone followed a "Tobirama" to a spot in the training ground to prepare for practice.
Fūmori Masaki also followed a "Tobirama" to a spot and looked up at his back. Even though he knew about the Shadow Clone, seeing it was still surprising. This Ninjutsu could be said to have a profound impact; the later protagonist would make his debut relying on this technique.
"Amomori." Tobirama turned around, stared at Fūmori Masaki, and said, "You have the aptitude for Natural Energy. I cannot use Natural Energy, so that can only be taught to you by my older brother. Therefore, I will specifically train your other skills, namely the Wind Release Ninjutsu and swordsmanship of your Fukimori Family."
The Fukimori Family's heritage was swordsmanship paired with Wind Release Ninjutsu, and Tobirama's intention was clear: he wanted Fūmori Masaki to specialize in this path. Family heritage was the foundation and should be prioritized. Fūmori Masaki understood this principle himself and nodded to Tobirama, saying, "Understood, please instruct me."
"Very good. I will first pass on all the swordsmanship experience I have cultivated to you. During this time, you can consider what other Chakra nature you would like to cultivate. At the Konoha Academy, focusing your energy on the Wind Release was undoubtedly correct, but having only one Chakra nature has limitations. You need at least two Chakra natures so that they can complement your Wind Release, and your options in battle will also increase," Tobirama said.
Fūmori Masaki lowered his head in thought. A second Chakra nature? Kakashi Hatake had said that average Jonin would master Chakra transformation for two natures. This was unimaginable during the Sengoku era, but sixty years later, perhaps this was the best method.
Seeing this, Tobirama told Fūmori Masaki not to rush and that he could go back and think about it slowly. Today's swordsmanship training was about to begin.
He handed a specially made sword to Fūmori Masaki. Tobirama himself was a master swordsman who could even duel with samurai. The Fukimori Family also used swords, but their style was different.
The sword passed down in the Fukimori Family was a short blade; compared to a head-on duel, it was more suitable for assassination with a single fatal blow, which was a fighting style typical of a Ninja.
Tobirama understood this. He did not ask Fūmori Masaki to change weapons but instead instructed him on how to use this type of weapon to face a head-on duel. Of course, assassination with a single fatal blow was also a key point that needed to be trained.
When the training began, Fūmori Masaki felt that back at the Konoha Academy, Tobirama had truly treated everyone equally, and the training back then could already be called strict.
But after becoming a direct disciple, Tobirama's training was even stricter, and Fūmori Masaki felt that calling it hell was quite normal.
However, Fūmori Masaki had no dissatisfaction. Although Tobirama's training was bitter and exhausting, the results it brought were also obvious. Fūmori Masaki could clearly feel the growth of his own strength—the swordsmanship taught by Tobirama was gradually integrated into the Fukimori Family's swordsmanship, and there had been a great improvement in every aspect. Although Tobirama himself was not very good at Wind Release, compared to the Wind Release scrolls passed down by the Fukimori Family, he also had some unique insights, which sometimes gave Fūmori Masaki a flash of inspiration, and combined with knowledge from another world, his control over Wind Release was even higher.
Fūmori Masaki relied on the vigorous energy brought by Natural Energy, even though his talent was not as outstanding as others, Fūmori Masaki put in more blood and sweat than anyone else, and he did not fall behind in strength in the slightest.
However, Fūmori Masaki could feel that although his mastery of Natural Energy was higher, he seemed to have fallen into a certain bottleneck, and the strengthening of his own body was not as obvious.
Hashirama often came to instruct Fūmori Masaki on his mastery of Natural Energy. After hearing Fūmori Masaki's explanation, he thought for a moment and said, "Your Natural Energy should be able to improve even more. Although it's just my guess, it should be related to the coverage of the senmon. In the past, your senmon could cover your cheeks, but after you gradually learned to control Natural Energy, the senmon only appeared on the left half of your body because this is your limit. If it continues to cover more, you will not be able to control the Natural Energy and will be devoured by it."
"Lord Hashirama, how do you think I can control more Natural Energy?"
"If you're asking for a method, you can only make the water source larger," Hashirama smiled slightly. "No matter how excellent your control over Natural Energy is, if the water source is only that big, no matter what, you cannot travel any further."