The Grind results

"Finally, I did it!!!" Yami's voice echoed across the training ground.

Seven days, seven fucking days! An entire week of nothing but training from morning till night.

He loved training and getting stronger, but holy shit, it started to get mind-numbing after a while. Every morning he began with energy, but by night, he was battered, depleted of chakra, and suffering from a massive headache that refused to go away no matter how many pills he took. It was insane; he was going stir-crazy from this routine.

"Fuck, I need a break from this crap," Yami groaned, plopping down on the ground and leaning against a tree. Despite his complaints, a smile crept onto his face. "I have finally succeeded."

Lifting the leaf in his hand, he channeled his remaining spiritual energy into it. This time, the process was smoother and more controlled. The leaf glowed faintly and began to change. Eyes and a mouth formed on its surface, and it seemed to animate, taking on a life of its own. It opened its eyes and mouth but didn't speak due to its low intelligence. However, it still reacted to his commands.

"Float," Yami instructed.

The leaf-homie floated up from his hand, hovering in the air before him. It wobbled slightly but remained airborne, responding to his will.

"Move left," he said, and the leaf drifted to the left.

"Now right."

The leaf shifted to the right, following his commands with a basic understanding. Yami couldn't help but grin at the sight. He had infused it with just enough of his spiritual energy to bring it to life and follow his instructions.

As time passed, Yami noticed the leaf beginning to wobble more, its glow dimming. The spiritual energy in it was depleting, and it couldn't sustain its animation much longer. With a gentle descent, the leaf floated back down to the ground, its eyes and mouth fading away as the glow disappeared.

Yami sighed. After several days of failed attempts, he had more or less figured out how his Kekkei Genkai worked. The good news was that he didn't need to split his soul to animate objects—just his spiritual energy was enough. The bad news was that the animation wasn't permanent. Once the object ran out of spiritual energy, it would return to being ordinary.

"But I'm sure I'll achieve permanent animation just like Big Mom."

He had only managed to grasp the abilities of his Kekkei Genkai today, and there was still much to learn. Now that he could animate objects, the next step would be trying to animate a jutsu. But first, he needed a well-deserved break. He was not in the mood to keep training any longer.

He knew he needed to be strong enough to ensure his safety in the upcoming war. But training day and night wouldn't get him anywhere; it might even be fatal in the long run. It was better to rest from time to time.

One of the things keeping him training so hard was checking his status every so often and watching as his numbers rose. It was odd how watching numbers go up relaxed him and made him feel good.

'Being a background ninja with no backing really sucks,' Yami groaned internally.

"Status," he called, trying to see any major changes.

Name: Yami Asano

Age: 13

Chakra Capacity: 2300/4010 (Genin - mid)

Spiritual Energy: 3600/5300 (Genin - High)

Strength: 35.7/500

Endurance: 34.2/500

Durability: 31.5/500

Agility: 40.4/500

Taijutsu: 21/500

Ninjutsu: 25/500

Genjutsu: 8/500

Bukijutsu: 22/500

Chakra Control: 70%

Spiritual Energy Control: 39%

Chakra Affinities:

Wind (nature transformation): 72%

Fire (nature transformation): 47%

Yin Release: (N/A) - You have no training with this element.

Kekkei Genkai: Soru-Soru no Mi

Special Abilities: [Invisibility - lvl3]

"That's what I'm talking about," Yami smiled in relief as he looked over the status screen. All his hard work had paid off. His chakra capacity had doubled to over four thousand! That was impressive. He had struggled for a year with his pitiful chakra capacity, but now, in just ten days, he had doubled it.

He also restored his lost chakra control, which helped him greatly increase his Ninjutsu stats. But the biggest gains were in his spiritual energy stats. Since he trained with it day and night, it broke through five thousand, reaching a high Genin level.

All these rapid changes confirmed that the orb indeed raised his talent, though he didn't know by how much.

However, his progress would likely slow down from here. He didn't know any other chakra or spiritual energy control exercises beyond Naruto learning Sage Mode and how to balance the Kyuubi's chakra.

"Hmmm, I should definitely look up some spiritual energy control exercises. Meditation won't cut it anymore." His rapid growth would be halted if he couldn't increase his spiritual control. Each attempt to animate objects wasted massive amounts of spiritual energy.

"I guess training alone can only get me so far. It's time to ask someone with more experience."

Lifting himself off the ground, Yami moved with a destination in mind.

****

He arrived at the Hokage building quickly, ignored the guards stationed at the front doors, and made his way inside. He turned right, heading towards the mission admission room.

As he entered, he saw the Hokage himself sitting at the main desk, with many shinobi spread out over other desks.

"Ah, Yami-kun," the Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, greeted him with a warm smile as he approached. "It's been a few days since I last saw you. How are you?"

"Things have been good," Yami bowed slightly. "I decided to spend the last week honing myself for the Chunin exam."

"Don't work yourself too hard. Those dark circles under your eyes tell me how you've been spending your days. Don't feel rushed, my boy. I know you're skilled enough to be successfully promoted," Hiruzen chuckled lightly. "Though I must admit, it seems you've been training incredibly hard. Your chakra has grown tremendously since I last saw you."

'He noticed right away, huh? As expected of the Hokage,' Yami thought. Since he wasn't using his stealth, it was no surprise that the Hokage, who had mastered numerous ninjutsu, could feel his chakra capacity.

"And what brings you here today?" Sarutobi asked. "Are you looking for a mission?"

"No, not today," Yami said. "Actually, I have a request I was hoping you could grant."

"Oh?" Sarutobi raised an eyebrow. "I'm all ears, my boy. If I can do it, I shall."

"Thank you," Yami replied. "It's about the Chunin exam. As you know, I have no teammates or teacher to practice with for the exam, so…"

Even though he had already decided not to participate in the exam, it didn't mean he couldn't reap a few benefits before it started.

"Hmm, I see. You're right about that." Sarutobi nodded. "It would be hard for you to properly prepare without help. So, is your request to assign you a temporary instructor until the exam?"

Despite the Hokage's generous offer, Yami had no intention of being under anyone for now. He liked his current freedom.

"No, no. I know it's difficult to assign me an instructor just for me, especially during these times."

Rumors about a potential approaching war had already spread in Konoha, making the atmosphere quite tense. Everyone knew how terrifying war could be; after all, there had been two before.

"Hmm, how thoughtful of you." Sarutobi smiled, then asked curiously, "Then what exactly is your request?"

"I want access to the Konoha library archive to learn a few techniques."

Konoha's library archive was reserved only for ninjas working under Konoha, and to learn the common techniques and jutsu from it, your rank had to be at least Chunin. Since he was only a Genin, Yami wasn't qualified to take scrolls from it.

"Ah, the library archive," Sarutobi mused thoughtfully, tapping his chin. "That's quite an unusual request, Yami-kun. Access to the library archive is typically restricted to Chunin and above due to the sensitive nature of the jutsu scrolls housed there."

Sarutobi studied Yami for a moment, considering his request. "But you do have a point. Given your circumstances, it might indeed help you prepare properly without needing an instructor." He reached for a scroll and a brush, readying himself to write. "Very well, I'll write you a recommendation letter."

Yami nodded. "Thank you."

With a few strokes of the brush, Sarutobi penned a letter granting Yami access to the library archive. He sealed it with the Hokage's emblem, signifying its authenticity.

"Take this to the library administrator," Sarutobi said, handing the letter to Yami. "This letter is only valid for this month. After the exam, you can access the library without a letter."

It seemed the Hokage had great faith he would pass, but Yami didn't care about these pleasantries. After taking the letter and thanking him, Yami left the Hokage's building and headed straight toward the library archive.

****

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