Uchiha Yoru wore a thick training vest, packed full with lead weights, as he struggled along the edge of the village.
Calling it running was generous.
He was moving slower than a walk—each step dragged forward inch by inch. Every footfall left a deep imprint in the ground, and sweat poured down like rain, dripping steadily to the earth.
Most shinobi specialized in speed and agility.
Even a freshly graduated genin could run at over 100 kilometers per hour.
Yoru himself could reach 200 kilometers per hour—
Under normal load.
But now—
He was carrying a full 650 kilograms.
Every step demanded his entire strength.
When he first left home, he could still run.
But after circling half the village wall, his body completely gave out.
As his stamina dropped, the most overwhelming sensation wasn't the weight itself—
It was the shift in his center of gravity.
The load distorted his movements, making balance incredibly difficult.
Right now, Yoru felt like a hammer—
With the head on top.
At any moment, he could tip over and fall flat.
Maintaining balance under a weight ten times his body mass was far harder than simply lifting his legs to walk.
Very quickly, most of his physical strength was drained.
After that—
The chakra that had been pushed out of his pathways and scattered throughout his body surged back to the forefront.
Strangely—
Even though it wasn't circulating through his pathways, it could still connect through the flow of natural energy, producing even greater output.
With that support, Yoru managed to push himself forward—
Reaching nearly 60 kilometers per hour.
He could even reinforce tree branches with chakra and leap between them like an ape.
But—
The burden was simply too great.
Before long, even his chakra was completely exhausted.
The greatest advantage of his cultivation after foundation building was this:
It would never draw chakra from his body's cells.
Never.
Above a safe threshold, he could use as much as he wanted.
But once he reached that threshold—
Not even a single drop more.
And so—
Only his exhausted muscles remained to support him.
That was why he was suffering so intensely.
But this—
This was also the most crucial part of his training.
Without chakra's protection, under the crushing weight of 650 kilograms, every step inflicted severe damage on his muscles, fascia, and bones.
Before the pain signals could even reach his brain—
Fire-aspected natural energy surged out from his pathways, instantly repairing the damage.
And each repair—
Brought a faint but noticeable strengthening.
Pain.
Followed by itching from healing.
Followed by an overwhelming wave of pleasure from enhancement.
The three sensations arrived one after another.
Pain, itch, pleasure—
An indescribable cycle.
Yoru found himself unable to stop.
Step by step, he dragged himself forward, immersed in wave after wave of that strange sensation.
Cultivation… really is addictive.
Suddenly—
A thunderous rumble came from behind him.
Yoru's expression changed instantly.
He tried to cover his ears—
But his arms wouldn't even lift.
"…Damn it. I'm dead."
The rumbling grew louder.
Heavy footsteps.
Closer.
Closer.
The ground itself began to tremble rhythmically.
"Yo—! Incredible! Gai, do you see this? This chunin is still going! Too—amazing!"
I'm not even a chunin yet! And this vest isn't standard chunin gear!
…Forget it. I can't argue with these two. And I've already completed the promotion mission anyway… close enough.
"I see it, Father!"
"Even though he's slow, that's just because his training method is different! We couldn't carry that much weight, so we must not underestimate him!"
"Father, he's a chunin, and you're only a genin. How can you judge—"
Thud!
A fist smashed into a head.
"Ahh!!"
"You lost focus, Gai!!"
"Focus! Only focus leads to progress!"
"Look at this chunin! See how focused he is! This is laziness! You're wasting your youth!"
Thud!
Another punch.
"Ahhh!!"
"Youth is the most precious thing! You must work twice as hard to let it shine!!"
"Yes!"
"Push on!!"
"Push on!!"
Two shinobi in bright green bodysuits, with strange orange leg warmers and explosive voices, staggered past Yoru—
Each carrying a stone larger than themselves.
They weren't strangers.
This wasn't even the first time they'd crossed paths today.
Greetings had long since been exchanged, so the two simply flashed wide grins—
Their gleaming teeth nearly blinding him—
Before continuing forward.
"Just two more laps! Ten laps around Konoha today—almost done!"
"Yes, Father!"
"YOUTH!!"
Yoru kept moving.
But his body trembled even more violently.
Only when those explosive voices finally faded into the distance did he let out a long breath.
A gray blur flashed forward—
Landing directly on his head.
It was Miwa Masayo.
The tabby scratched her ear, still shaken.
"The Maito clan's… mental assault… is too strong, meow. I'll never get used to it."
"They do this ten times every morning… Yoru, how do you endure it?"
Yoru pointed at his ears.
"I sealed my hearing. And I closed my eyes just now."
"Closing your eyes and blocking your hearing… that does solve it. But how did you know they'd left?"
"When they get far enough away, you come back."
"…Good method."
"Thank you."
Miwa Masayo glanced behind them.
"They'll catch up again in about twenty minutes. Finally… some peace, meow."
"…Why does Konoha have such strange shinobi?"
Yoru chuckled.
"The Maito clan… yeah, they're definitely unusual."
"You know them, meow?"
"…Not exactly. I know them, but they don't know me."
"Meow?"
Yoru didn't explain further.
Might Guy and his father Might Duy were among the people who left the deepest impression on him in this world.
Far more than the so-called protagonists of the future.
After all—
People who reached the peak of the shinobi world by relying on lineage…
Could never compare—
To those who, with nothing but a mortal body—
Dared to challenge gods.
And yet—
After three days of watching them—
Yoru couldn't help but doubt.
Were they really "ordinary"?
He himself had the strongest chakra among his peers.
He had powerful, refined natural energy.
He had perfect physical recovery.
And the complete training methods of the Uchiha clan.
Even with all of that—
He could only endure three hours of extreme training.
Beyond that, his body's recovery couldn't keep up.
Not only would he fail to grow stronger—
He would even damage his previous progress.
But what did they have?
Only the most basic taijutsu taught at the Academy.
The forbidden technique of the Eight Gates.
And a training method that Might Duy had spent twenty years developing.
They didn't even have enough money to eat meat every day.
And yet—
Under such crude conditions—
They trained at extreme intensity for more than eight hours daily.
And still had to work afterward just to survive.
At one point, Yoru even used genjutsu to examine them closely.
Carefully.
Thoroughly.
There was nothing special.
No unique bloodline.
No hidden advantage.
Perhaps—
The only thing supporting them…
Was sheer will.
A miracle.
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