Spiritual mentor

Mito and I had finally graduated from the academy and today, the results of the genin assignment would be announced to our class.

In the morning, as usual, I got up first, took a shower, then woke up Mito and sent her to wash up while I started making breakfast. Mito ate everything in a jiffy as she was itching to go to the placement, so after a quick breakfast we went to the academy for the announcement of the results.

On the way to the academy we met Ino, Sakura and Hinata, and while the first two were actually on their way, Hinata made a little detour to meet me... she had done that before when we went to the academy to study.

- Greetings, beautiful kunoichi. - I said politely, - Gorgeous Ino, beautiful Sakura and endlessly cute Hinata-chan, nice to see you all on this happy morning. - I looked around at the three young girls who had already put on their Konoha Protectors, Sakura had it tied around her head, Ino around her belt and Hinata around her neck.

- Hello, Nar-ruto-kun. - Hinata said shyly in response to the greeting.

- Ah, Naruto, yeah, hi. - Ino replied, interrupted from her conversation with Sakura... or rather an argument with Sakura, and the argument was about Sasuke as usual.

- Yeah, hi. - Sakura gave me a quick look and the four of us continued on our way to the academy.

Ino had realised the futility of trying to get Sasuke to like her a long time ago, but just out of spite and competition, she and Sakura continued to cling to Sasuke. Sakura, on the other hand, is still hoping to subdue Uchiha and keeps up the pressure, while her rivalry with Ino keeps her in check.

- Hey, aren't you supposed to say hello to me, Dantebayo? - Mito asks indignantly.

- Oh, wait, Mito, why are you going to the academy if you can't pass the test? - Ino asks.

- Are you blind and can't see the tread on me dattebayo? - Mito lifted her red fringe to better see the metal plate with the Leaf Village insignia.

- Um, Mito, but you didn't pass the practical exam and you had to repeat it for a second year. How could you be retaken? Don't get me wrong, I'm happy for you and for becoming a genin, I'm just curious. - Sakura asked.

- It was Naruto, he made a deal with the Hokage, dattebayo. - Mito pointed at me.

- Naruto, how could you make a deal with the Hokage? I mean, he's the ruler of our village, he can't just let the academy graduates come in and make arrangements for the failing students to graduate as well. - Sakura asked.

- Why wouldn't he? Grandpa Hiruzen used to invite me and Mito to eat ramen in Ichiraku, so I know him well. So when I went to my grandfather's office the day before yesterday, I told him that Mito hadn't passed the exam, that she was a very capable kunoichi, that she was just bad at illusions, and that they were just at the exam. As they say, everyone has their weaknesses, but Mito has illusions... and laziness too. - I looked at Mito and she looked away, - "I also told Grandfather that Mito really wants to be Hokage, and Grandfather replied that he is an old man and has been ruling Konoha for about forty years and should have retired long ago, but there is no one to leave the position of Hokage to. So he took Mito and told him to get stronger and be able to succeed him, because he's already tired of the... um... position, tired of the position.

- Really? - asked all three girls, although Mito still used their "dattebayo".

- Of course it's true. Grandfather told me yesterday that Mito would be good for the position of Hokage, she just needs to grow up. He didn't tell you yesterday so that you wouldn't get too proud, but I'm telling you and I'm also telling you for myself. I'm also telling you this because if you still want to be a Hokage, you have to stop being lazy and train hard, not only physically but also mentally, because no Hokage is stupid and no Hokage has ever graduated from the Academy on his own. Now that we've become Genii, it's time to get smart. And remember, Mito, Grandpa gave you a protector, which means that he trusts that you won't let him down, that you'll work hard, and that you'll soon be able to make his life easier and take over his position.

- Since you, Naruto, call our Hokage 'Grandpa', has Grandpa told you about the line-up of the teams and their mentors? - Ino asked me.

- Of course, Grandpa has no secrets from me. You, Ino, will team up with Chouji Akimichi and Shikamaru Nara, and you'll have Grandpa's son Sarutobi Asuma as your sensei.

- And in which team will I be? - Sakura asked.

- And you, Sakura, will be on the team... with... those... whom the Hokage and the Clan Council have chosen as your partners. Let it be a surprise for you. - At first, I stall for intrigue, but then I disappoint the girl.

- You don't know, so you don't say. You don't know, so you don't say. And Yamanak, Nara and Akimichi are members of the same clan, so it's hard to say who Ino will be her mate. - Sakura said to a slightly insulted Sakura.

- Well, Sakura, don't worry, I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

- Is it really..." she started, but I interrupted her.

- Okay, here we go. Let's hurry up or the distribution will start without us and all the best sensei will be taken away.

- Do you know which ones are the best? - Ino asked.

- Of course I do. The best sensei is a breathtakingly beautiful kunoichi. I saw one there, in the rank of jounin, if I wasn't so young and she wasn't so busy with Asuma, I would definitely hit on her. Ouch! Mito, why are you pinching me?! - I glared at the red-haired girl.

- You were the one who told us to hurry up and you started talking about chickens and Dattebayo. - the girl replied jealously, whispering to herself:

- I hope our sensei is a one-eyed, shaggy-haired man, or else he wants a pretty sensei, dattebayo.

When we arrived at the classroom, we all sat down and Iruka-sensei began his speech:

- All of you have successfully passed your exams and become genins, next you will begin your duties. Today we will divide you into teams and each team will be assigned an instructor-jonin. This instructor will be your team leader during the missions. We've tried to make the teams balanced, with basically three people per group. So, first team..." Iruka started to read out the team lists:

- Now the seventh team: Tatsumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura and by order of the Hokage, this group becomes an attack team and a fourth team member, Uzumaki Mito, is added to the team as a reinforcement.

- Yes!" Sakura and Mito shouted together, the former happy to be in the team with Sasuke and the latter happy to be in the team with me... she somehow already knew that we would be together, but until it was officially announced, Mito was still a little worried.

- Now for the eighth team: Hyuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba and Aburame Shino. - Iruka continued to announce the list. This eighth team consisted entirely of clan heirs and specialised in searching. Hinata could use Byakugan for visual search, Inuzuka Kiba and his dog Akamaru were good scent hunters, and Aburame Shino could control bugs and use them to find the target.

I researched these heirs with analysis, but in terms of genes, only Hinata was interesting, but the Inuzuka and Aburame clans maintain their clan status mainly because of their animals and their ability to use them in combat and search operations. Kiba was spiritually bonded to his dog Akamaru, which helped them understand each other better and exchange chakra, the dog itself becoming stronger and smarter, while Inuzuka gained enhanced vision, smell, claws and fangs. Kiba, on the other hand, now has a more brutal appearance.

The Aburame are also closely related to bugs, and these bugs literally live in the bodies of members of the Aburame clan. I once saw a big black bug crawling out from under Shino's skin... it was back in my first year at the academy and I was not yet an Irihin student, which made me cringe... though even now I don't think a bunch of bugs crawling around in your body is the norm.... The only thing I can think of that would allow the Aburama Clan to survive, and so as not to disgust others, Shino and the other members of his clan wear clothes that cover up as much as possible so that they can't see the bugs crawling out from under their skin.

- Hey Naruto, did you know that I was going to team up with you along with Sasuke and Mito? - Sakura asked in a whisper, her face glowing with the joy of being with Sasuke-kun.

- Sakura, I had originally asked the Hokage to put me with Mito, well, you and Sasuke were given to us as a set. Although I wouldn't have minded if they had given us a prettier girl instead of Sasuke. Hey Mito, stop pinching. - I looked at the redheaded girl who was pretending that she wasn't the one who had pinched me.

- The tenth team: Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Choji. - Iruka announced another team made up entirely of clan heirs. I also analysed these heirs and found nothing interesting in their genes. The strength of these clans lies in the Hiden - Secret Clan Techniques, the Yamanaka have Mind Control Techniques, the Nara have Shadow Imitation Techniques and the Akimichi have Body Enlargement Techniques.

The clan techniques do not alter the genome, but they do adjust the chakra system for effective use of these techniques, as Yamanaka and Nara have more developed brain chakra channels; Nara has an even more developed chakra system next to the nervous system, and their chakra output is heavily skewed towards the Yin side, the main reason for their chakra is that they are well suited to mental techniques, illusion techniques and enemy control techniques, but physically their clansmen are not as strong, unlike Akimichi, whose chakra is skewed towards Yin, which is why this clan is not as smart but very strong. This technique also allows the Akimichi clan to store chakra in the form of fat, which makes the members of this clan always eat and generally look very fat, but in critical situations they use the chakra stored in the fat and gain immense strength and lose weight almost instantly. The chakra channels in Akimichi's muscles are quite branched and large due to this technique, it is a useful technique in general, but chakra can be stored in fuin seals on the body so that the extra mass of fat does not interfere with daily life, but fuin seals are the prerogative of the extinct Uzumaki Clan, other clans are not particularly versed in fuin and therefore use what they can.

In general, hiden can be used by any chakra user, but the clans that originally possessed these secret techniques will be better at it.

The fact that these three clans always work together helps them against any opponent, as Yamanaki provides mental protection and telepathic communication, Nara can paralyse an opponent with his shadow, and Akimichi can use brute force against an opponent or protect his clansmen.

Thanks to Hoshingan, I was able to copy the techniques of the three clans, and perhaps the most useful was Nara's Shadow Binding Technique, which my Shadow Clone could also use to stop my opponent in his tracks so that I could strike at him.

- That was it. - Iruka finished announcing the commands, "In a few hours, you'll all have to gather here again to meet your jounin mentor. In the meantime, you may be excused. - said the teacher, and the students quickly dispersed to discuss the composition of their own and the others' teams.

- So, Mito, shall we go to the roof? We'll eat there and wait for the appointed time. - I said and of course Mito nodded yes, - Sakura, if you want to come with us, I'll treat you to lunch as well. - I offered.

- I'll eat with Sasuke. Yes Sasuke-kun? - The girl turned to her idol.

- Pfft. - Sasuke said and left without looking back.

- Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find us. By the way, for lunch, we have homemade steamed dumplings with various toppings such as: pork, beef, chicken, duck, rabbit, potatoes with mushrooms, with tuna, with salmon, with beans, well, and cabbage. All cooked by my shadow clones. And for dessert we will have plum pudding with sweet bean paste. - I announced the menu.

- Wait! I changed my mind! Let's go to the roof, because I'm hungry for dumplings... oh, I mean, it's too hot and stuffy in here. - The girl went to the roof of the Academy, - Come on, hurry up. - Sakura pushed us... that's what eating her favourite food for free will do to a person, she didn't even think about Sasuke.

We arrived at the rooftop and waited for my clones to bring us lunch sealed in a large Fuin scroll, I'm not really good at Fuinjutsu right now, but I can make the simplest Fuin, which are Storage Scrolls and Blast Seals. I have a Dimensional Pocket, but the Shadow Clones don't, and they use it to carry things around, like food for me.

- Naruto, when did you learn Shadow Cloning, dattebayo? - Mito, who had also recently learned Shadow Cloning from a stolen Forbidden Seal scroll, suddenly asked.

- About eight years ago, but I only knew a Cruciform Seal that I'd seen on a Jonin, so I couldn't teach you... especially since getting you to learn is an almost impossible task. - I replied and Mito looked away.

I spread the Storage Scroll on the ground and activated it, then out of a puff of smoke, a low, wide table appeared beside us, filled with plates of dumplings with different fillings, as well as bottles of different sauces. On the edge of the table was a large plate of dessert and a kettle of tea.

I threw three cherry bones onto the floor and, with the help of Mokuton, three small stools grew out of them... Sakura was surprised, but not by my Mokuton:

- Naruto, we can't even eat that much in two hours. - Sakura said, "There's enough food on this table for eight people, or maybe two Akimichi, which is also an indicator.

- First of all, you underestimate me and Mito, and secondly, you don't have to rush to meet your mentor. - I replied and sat down on the stool, while Mito was already sitting and had started to eat her lunch.

- Why is that? - Sakura sat down as well.

- I have a jonin friend who knows our future mentor. - I said and started to put dumplings on my plate while Sakura did the same, "Well, our commander's name is Kakashi Hatake, he's an S-rank Jonin, also known as the Copy Ninja. During the Third Shinobi World War, he lost two of his comrades, one of them an Uchiha, and before he died, he gave him his Sharingan. Kakashi wears a shield to cover his left eye, which is where he hides the Uchiha dojutsu, and it's because of the Sharingan that he's nicknamed the Copying Ninja. Also, a friend of mine told me that Kakashi is never on time, and is at least an hour late, and usually three. So if we don't finish our meal on time, I suggest we send him to clone class. I'll bet you a hundred percent that our mentor will be at least an hour late. - I said, occasionally popping a dumpling into my mouth.

- But I only know how to make illusion clones. - Sakura said after chewing her food.

- If you want, I or Mito will send a clone of our own under transformation. - I suggested and Sakura nodded uncertainly.

- By the way, Naruto, the other day you said something about choosing mentors and now you say that you know what kind of mentor we will have. There's something wrong with your speech, Dantebayo. - Mito said suspiciously.

- Eh, but knowing doesn't stop me from hoping for the best. For example, that our mentor will categorically reject our team, or that he will break a leg, or that he will become a Nukenin by running away from the village. And with all these surely happy events, we might get another mentor. - I replied.

- What is your problem with that? Because the juniors are very strong and he is S-rank. - Sakura pointed out.

- The first and most important reason is that he is not a handsome kunoichi. The second reason is that he's a man, which means he definitely can't be a handsome kunoichi. And the third reason is that he's not a handsome kunoichi. Mito, what are you pinching for? - I turned to the redheaded girl.

- Because you've had enough of your Kunoichi hotties, Dattebayo. - Mito replied with jealousy in his voice.

- Foxy, you just don't understand, women are usually more sensitive to children, especially poor orphans, if we had a mentor, she would definitely teach our team well, because me, you and Sasuke are poor orphans... well, Sasuke is the heir of the clan, so he is a rich orphan... and maybe his mentor would be much better for him... and besides, Sakura, our mentor would also stick to Sasuke... damn Sasuke. - I muttered thoughtfully.

- I can't think of any other way to get a kunoichi mentor, I'm fine with Kakasha. - Sakura replied with a slightly startled look, as she didn't want another rival for Sasuke's heart.

- Yes, this Kakasha is the perfect team leader for us. - Mito nodded.

- Well, never mind, we can't change our team leader anyway... unless he dies accidentally... yeah, totally accidentally... ahem. - I said and we continued to eat.

Sakura ate the dumplings with the same enthusiasm as Mito. The girls and I ate leisurely, and while we were talking and eating, we didn't notice that it was time to meet our mentor. We stood up and sent our clones to class: my clone, Mito's clone, and Sakura's clone, who was Mito's clone under Transfiguration.

It had been an hour since the meeting started, we had finished our dessert twenty minutes ago, and in the classroom, all the juniors had already met their teams and picked them up for introductions, leaving only our clones and Sasuke in the classroom. Sakura, our future teammate, was a little surprised by Sakura's behaviour as she and Mito decided to make a nasty joke to the jounin mentor who was late for the meeting. Mito and her clone, pretending to be Sakura, took a sponge to wipe a blackboard and sprinkled it liberally with chalk, then placed it in a doorway so that when the door was opened, the sponge would fall on the person. Having created a rather primitive trap, Mito and 'Sakura' sat down to wait for it to be triggered on our mentor... and they will have to wait a long time.

I myself informed the girls that our tutor hadn't arrived yet, so I suggested that we continue to wait here, lying in the sun on the roof of the academy. And to make it more comfortable for us to rest here, I made three comfortable couches with Mokuton's help. Mito lay down immediately, but Sakura hesitated at first, but I advised her to at least try, so she sat down, then lay down, and soon fell asleep completely.

I, on the other hand, was lying on the roof of the Shinobi Academy, looking at Konoha and thinking... Hidden Leaf Village wasn't a bad place to live, a safe place to raise your children... that's what Hashirama Senju created Konoha for... and now, the Senju Clan had almost ceased to exist. This is the part of the village that I don't like, all the intrigues and political games that even I have become a part of. The Senju Clan didn't just disappear for no reason, its members were sent to the most dangerous battles of the Third Shinobi World War, where they died... of course, there are always many deaths in war, but for some reason, Uchi and Hyugi didn't suffer as much as Senju... although Uchi was later destroyed, and perhaps the same fate awaits the Hyugi.

When I think about the whole situation, I understand that I don't like politics, but it is necessary when you rule the people... but when you are an oppressive tyrant who rules the world alone, politics is not so important because your word is law... maybe if I am lucky enough not to die, I won't become a Hokage, I will become a tyrant...

- Heh..." A laugh broke out of my thoughts.

- Naruto, why are you laughing, Dattebayo? - Mito asked.

- I'm not laughing, Foxy, I'm just having some stupid thoughts in my head and laughing at their stupidity.

- Are you thinking about a Kunoichi woman, Dattebayo? - The girl looked at me suspiciously.

- Damn, now I'll definitely think about her, thanks, Foxy. - I replied with a smile.

- Hey, don't think about her, dattebayo! - Mito stood up and stood in front of my bench - You better think of me then, dattebayo. Sexy no Jutsu. - Mito used Transfiguration and looked like a naked, sexy redhead with a voluminous figure.

- Hmm... I wonder if you'll really look like that when you grow up? That would be nice. OK, Foxy, I'll think about your adult version now, you got me. - I said.

- That's right, Dattebayo! - Mito said rather happily and lay down on the chaise longue again, although her transformation didn't last long and she reverted back to her real self.

- I can't help but wonder if her mind is starting to drift towards other women again..." I muttered, and once again Mito had to use Sekshi no Jutsu... let her learn how to hold the transformation longer, at least with her jealousy I can motivate the girl to practice. It's not enough that Mito is a lazy student, we've also been given a mentor jounin who's just as lazy.

I mostly wanted another commander because I knew that Kakashi was unlikely to teach us anything, I would try to change his mind somehow but I doubt it would work. I would really like to have a beautiful kunoichi as our mentor... well, or Tenso, I know he is a good teacher... though not a beautiful kunoichi... I guess my hormones make me involuntarily think of women, which is natural no matter how I look at it, especially since I had the adult version of Mito in front of me... but not for long, while waiting for the tutor, Mito got tired of constantly doing the transformation at my request, so we just continued to rest.

After a few minutes, I heard someone coming up the stairs and when I opened my eyes, I saw Kakashi reading a book, his head a little chalky, which meant he was still trapped in Mito's childhood trap. Kakashi looked at me, Mito and Sakura who were lying on the chaise longue, then he turned and looked at Sasuke and the clones of our trio who smiled and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

- Mito, wake up and wake up Sakura. - I said to the redheaded girl and she complied, although it took her half a minute to wake up.

Kakashi looked at me and the girls and said:

- Once again. I don't like you. - He said and sat down on the railing that surrounded the roof of the academy, "Okay, let's introduce ourselves. - he said, without taking much interest in us.

- And what should we say? - Sakura clarified, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

- You know, likes and dislikes, future plans, dreams, hobbies. Something like that. - Kakashi replied, stepping away from the book for a moment.

- Why don't you introduce yourself first? - Mito suggested.

- I am Hatake Kakashi. I will not tell you what I like or dislike. The same goes for my dreams. Well, I have a few hobbies. - As if 'answered' by a johnin.

- Anyway, nothing was said except the name. - I commented.

- Well, yes. Now it's your turn, let's start with the pink-haired one. - Kakashi nodded at Sakura.

- You mean me? Okay, I'm Haruno Sakura, I love... well, I love someone. - She looked at Sasuke, - And my dream is... I won't say in general. I don't like spicy food.

- Come on, you're the only one here with normal hair, you black-haired one. - Kakashi looked at Sasuke.

- I'm Uchiha Sasuke. There are many things I hate and some things I love. I have some desires that I won't talk about. Now to the dreams. I will try to revive the clan and put an end to one man. - Uchiha replied calmly.

- With stripes on his cheeks, your way out. - Kakashi nodded to Mito.

- I am Uzumaki Mito, dattebayo! I like ramen, Ichiraku ramen and everything Naruto makes. My dream is to become the first female Hokage and something else with... here, dattebayo. I don't like it when someone pays too much attention to other girls. - Mito started loudly, and from the middle on, she spoke more and more quietly.

- Um, I couldn't hear half of it, but never mind. White-haired, you're the last one. - She looked at me.

- I'm not telling you anything, you're too suspicious, you're over an hour late, maybe you're the enemy shinobi who killed our real tutor in the nearby forest and now you're pretending to be one to gather information about the village. Until I'm sure that you are our real mentor-sensei, I will keep my identity secret. - I replied and looked suspiciously around Kakashi.

- The Hokage told me about you, that you like to be mysterious. Actually, I could learn something about you from the documents of the academy. - Junin replied.

- Then why haven't you read them yet... perhaps because you can't, since you are an enemy saboteur who has recently infiltrated Konoha and hasn't gathered enough information to improve your legend as our tutor, you are trying to learn something about your team right now. - I spoke and now Sasuke, Mito and Sakura began to look at Kakashi with suspicion.

- I like you less and less... oh, how problematic you are, and there's one more of you than in the other teams. - He looked directly at me, clearly indicating who in the team was superfluous, - Okay, tomorrow we have a task to do... What, you're not even going to ask me what this task is? - Kakashi asked.

- To search for an enemy saboteur who has secretly entered the village and is pretending to be the mentor of the genin? - I clarified and looked at Kakashi with a hint: "If anything, I already have some suspicions.

- How annoying you are. No, first we'll do what the five of us can do and that's survival training. - Kakashi paused dramatically for a moment, "But this is no ordinary training... hee hee... your opponent will be me... hee hee. - He chuckled maliciously.

- What's so funny? - Sakura asked.

- The point is that this training is actually a very hard test, only one third of all graduates of the academy become genins, and whether you become a genin or not is up to me. - Kakashi tried to intimidate us, but he didn't see much of a reaction from us, except for Sakura's excitement, - Meet me tomorrow at five in the morning at the third polygon and take everything you need as a ninja. See you later. Oh, and don't eat breakfast, or you'll throw up. - The first thing Kakashi does in Shunshin is... it's when a shinobi uses his chakra to move in a straight line at high speed, creating a teleportation effect, but it's not teleportation because the body is in the real world during Shunshin, just moving fast, so you have to be careful not to bump into a wall or anything during Shunshin.

- I don't like this Kakashi, he's suspicious. - I said and my whole team nodded.

I have the feeling that he won't teach us, and I could use a good teacher to help me learn taijutsu, ninjutsu, kenjutsu and especially genjutsu, and Kakashi could help me with all that... but he won't.

If you analyse my abilities like that, my taizyutsu is nothing, although I'm certainly a puffer, because I'm always under six times my weight, and when I get rid of the ballast, I'm much faster and stronger. I've got the standard Leaf fighting style from the academy, but there's a catch - my fighting reflexes are almost non-existent, and if someone matches me in speed, they can make me look like a pancake in an instant because of their experience.

I'm a little better at ninjutsu, I've got Rasengan and its variations, which is still an A-range technique, plus there are shadow clones and elemental wood, water and earth techniques. I've never been taught Ice and Wind, but I've learned them myself. In addition, I have mastered Hoshingan, Irienjutsu and various spells from the system, so now I am not really afraid for my life and can safely go out into the world to do shinobi missions, at least I always have a way to escape.

For the elemental techniques of fire and lightning, I can walk around the ranges and Hoshingan to sniff out the right seals from the trainees, but why when Sensei can explain it faster, clearer and even show me how it was with Tenzo... and probably not with Kakashi.

I can't really say that I have any skills in Genjutsu, the only thing I can do is to remove my Genjutsu by strongly altering my chakra flow, which usually breaks illusions in the mind, but it doesn't help against Sharingan, only another Sharingan user can counteract Genjutsu imposed by this dojutsu, and my dojutsu is exactly the same as Sharingan, which is to put people into illusion just by looking at them.

In addition to being able to defend myself against Kakashi, I am also trying to be seen as a good teacher by Maito Gai at first glance, and then by Hinata and her Sensei Yuhi Kurenai.

I also have to deal with Mito, except for my own improvement, she has just learned the shadow clones, so I will teach her... although I am not much of a teacher, except for sheer strength and the little I know about real fighting. I can teleport quite quickly and have a good amount of physical strength, as well as a lot of chakra and a lot of skills. I can't complain, but for every Goliath there's a David, and I can be beaten by a good Djonin, which is not uncommon in this world at the moment.

Of course, I am talking about the jonins of the Five Great Nations, each Hidden Village has between ten and fifteen percent of its shinobi, and if I think about the total number of troops that participated in the Fourth World War, it was equal to eighty thousand shinobi, which means that there are at least eight thousand jonins, so I am far from being the main frog in this pond... but soon, I will be... hopefully.

Now, in principle, the rate of growth of my strength should increase, even though I wasn't negatively affected by overexertion when I was growing up, but still, being a child and just growing up slowed my development considerably.

If you compare, for example, a three-year-old child and a thirteen-year-old teenager, if you give them the same training opportunities for, say, three years, then at the end of those three years it is clear that the strongest of them will be the one who was a teenager and had high physical indicators to begin with.

But if these subjects continue to train at the same rate, in time the first child on his sixteenth birthday will be stronger than his rival on his sixteenth birthday, and perhaps stronger than his twenty-three-year-old version, all because of better initial training. It's the same for me, training as a child, I've been building the foundation of my power for a long time, and now the building itself will be under construction, and although the process won't be fast, it will bring more visible results.

After our 'sensei' had flown away, Sasuke also left quickly for his home. Sakura was satiated and relaxed, so she didn't rush anywhere and lay back on the chaise longue while she asked:

- What shall we do now? I have to take the test tomorrow to stay in the same team as Sasuke. - The girl said with some excitement.

- Now, we can go and find the third area to scout the battlefield before the battle itself and maybe prepare for it somehow. And tomorrow you can come by around eight o'clock and make sure you have a good breakfast first. - I replied.

- But Kakashi sensei said to come at five o'clock and not to eat anything. - The pink-haired girl protested.

- He just wants you to be sleep deprived and hungry for the test, so you will definitely fail the test. I wouldn't trust that suspicious shinobi who is our mentor if I were you. - I muttered.

- But he's our mentor-jounin, we all have to listen to him. - Sakura argued lazily.

- He's not our mentor-jounin yet, he said himself that we don't count as genin until we pass the test... Anyway, as you wish Sakura, I gave you advice and it's up to you to follow it or not. Alright, let's find the test site and then go home.

- Let's go, Dantebayo. - She took my hand and led me somewhere... she didn't know where to go herself, but during the training with Tenzo, I had learnt the location of some training grounds, although I had never trained on the third one, so I knew the way there and led my team mates there. From the slight trembling of Mito's hand, it was obvious that the girl was beginning to worry again, this time about this Kakashi test.

When we arrived at training ground number three, we had a look around and it wasn't bad at all, there were trees and bushes to hide in, there were makiwars for hitting, and there was a small pond dug out for practicing walking on water or practicing suiton techniques. By the way, near the entrance to the training ground, there was a stone stele monument with the names of some of the deceased shinobi carved on it, such monuments can sometimes be found around the village.

Anyway, I explored the area and thought about how I could prepare for tomorrow's battle. I had no idea where exactly the test would begin, why it would be useless to set traps, I would have to lure Kakashi to the prepared area and he would simply send a clone there and clear the traps, or he would simply not go there without realising that he's being lured into a trap.

The thing that would benefit me personally is if our team fails the test and Kakashi refuses to be our mentor, then the Hokage will assign us another jounin, although there aren't many of them in the village, although truly strong S-Class Shinobi like Kakashi are few and far between. Tomorrow, I'll have the chance to fight an S-Class Jounin without risking my life, and I want to use this chance to test my strength against a strong opponent.

The two of them are also the most likely to be able to do anything to Kakashi in direct combat, so I decided to give them the role of shooters, and gave them Sealing Scrolls with a bunch of shuriken and kunai, all of them quite inferior, but there are a lot of them, and if the girls are going to throw kunai at the jounin from a distance, then at least they'll get in his way with these flying projectiles, especially now that Mito has Shadow Clones that can create a shower of iron. I have also added a wooden handle to these kunai, created by Mokuton, and applied Fuinjutsu to the handle, as with the Explosive Scrolls, so that these projectiles can still be used as fragmentation grenades. A similar trick is used by ordinary shinobi, but they simply wrap the handle with an Explosive Scroll, otherwise the effect is the same.

The girls' role in my plan ends there, once they run out of kunai they have to hide and protect each other, except Mito can send his clones into melee with Kakashi, but try to protect Sakura, because if the jounin takes us all down one by one, we'll definitely fail the test.

Eventually, the plan is to fight Kakashi in hand-to-hand combat with Sasuke, but even if we attack the jounin as a team, we have no chance... although I know that Kakashi uses a lot of energy with the Sharingan, and if I can force him to remove the blindfold and use his dojutsu, then we could try to drain his opponent's chakra... I'm a little biased towards Hatake Kakashi as a teacher, but I have no doubts about his fighting ability and I realise that he is much stronger than I am at the moment.

I have some plans for the team battle, but there are also some additions to the plan that affect me personally. I have a few more things to add to the team battle plan, but I also have a few more things to do with myself. The clone will be sitting in a hollow tree, meditating and trying not to waste his energy. I can either replace the clone with my own during a fight with Kakashi, or I can simply dispel the clone and absorb its energy, replenishing my chakra instantly, plus I can replenish my chakra by channeling my prana, reatsu and psi into the chakra hearth, allowing me to replenish my chakra three times in one fight.

I can also scatter some acorns I've gathered from the woods near the Valley of Completion, which contain some Wood Elemental chakra as well as a lot of natural chakra, which I can't control at the moment, but it boosts my Mokuton techniques. The acorns can also be used to make my tree clones, which I can hide in the third polygon; I can't absorb their chakra, but they will be stronger in battle than a flesh chakra clone.

Well, after seeing the firing range, I made up a battle plan, told the girls part of it and agreed with them on their actions, then we said goodbye to Sakura and went home.

I left the clone with Mito and teleported to the forest of the Valley of Completion, where I found the seeds I needed, some of which I used to make the tree clones Tenzo taught me. It takes the Coon about twenty-two seconds to make a Tree Clone, it takes me about three minutes, but the more time you waste, the better and more detailed technique you copy from the tree, well, the seeds help save my chakra, so I was able to make five excellent Tree Clones, comparable to me in strength, and not even Hyugi can tell them apart from the original.

In the evening, I returned home and had a very, very hearty dinner, and as Mito fell asleep and my chakra recovered, I first moved all the tree clones to the training ground, then created a clone from chakra meat and scattered seeds around the area, then returned to my apartment and had another hearty meal before going back to bed to rest and regain my strength in the arms of cute little redhead Mito.