Chapter 80: The Perfect Ninja

Aoba participated in some preparations for the Chunin Exams, including clearing the grounds for the second test and capturing a few Iwagakure spies.

Among the Five Great Nations, Konoha and Kumogakure are the strongest on paper, with Sunagakure being the weakest. Kirigakure is isolationist, while Iwagakure acts more like a disruptor.

The bounties on top shinobi from various villages are primarily instigated by Iwagakure.

Iwagakure rarely initiates all-out wars, but whenever there's an opportunity, they're there to stir things up.

Kumo has been emboldened in recent years, but they still hesitate to start a war, knowing that if they engage with Konoha, Iwa will inevitably stab them in the back. Onoki, that crafty old fox, knows how to seize opportunities and doesn't care about appearances.

Iwa didn't officially participate in the Chunin Exams this year, but they sent more spies than the number of candidates from all other villages combined.

Not only were they gathering intelligence, but they even tried poisoning candidates from other villages, aiming to kill a few and damage Konoha's reputation while sowing discord among the villages.

This level of disruption showcased Iwa's "troublemaker" role to the fullest.

Fortunately, Konoha's preparation thwarted their schemes before any serious consequences occurred.

In preparation for the Chunin Exams, Aoba also put his three students through targeted combat training.

The three kids, all exceptionally talented, were pushed to recognize their weaknesses after their brief skirmish with Zabuza and had been practicing coordinated battle tactics ever since.

However, merely working as a team wouldn't be enough to pass the Chunin Exams.

In the third round, the one-on-one battles would require each of them to have an ace up their sleeve to earn high marks.

Of the three, Naruto was the most straightforward. His trump card was his seemingly endless chakra and remarkable stamina.

Since returning from the Land of Waves mission, Aoba had begun teaching him the Rasengan. Although the technique's complexity made it challenging, Naruto showed great progress in taijutsu under his guidance, even developing his own style.

Naruto, however, grows best through real combat rather than pure training, which is why Aoba previously described him as "boosted."

During Naruto's match against Neji in the Chunin Exams, Neji struck him numerous times. In reality, if Neji had used kunai, Naruto wouldn't have stood a chance.

While such things were excusable in manga, real-life training was different, and Aoba took no such risks. He trained Naruto through relentless sparring.

In the original story, Naruto trained by having his clones fight each other, which was the perfect way to hone his abilities. After daily beatdowns, Naruto's combat skills were now far stronger than in the original story.

Aoba didn't like relying on last-minute comebacks. If possible, he wanted every battle to be a landslide victory, minimizing any uncertainty.

Sasuke's approach differed; his style was more aggressive and relentless. Aoba had him supplement his training with swordsmanship.

Although Sasuke couldn't master Aoba's wind-style blade techniques, he was skilled in lightning-based chakra manipulation, giving his sword strikes a "lightning blade" effect similar to the Raikiri or Lariat.

While Sasuke could execute high-intensity lightning attacks, he was still working on mastering them in real combat.

Karin, on the other hand, needed little explanation. Given Yumi's relationship with Aoba, Karin received a level of attention akin to his own child.

Her chakra natures were earth and water, and like Naruto, she had an astounding amount of chakra.

With this in mind, he aimed to make her a ninjutsu-type powerhouse, training her to rapidly deploy earth and water-style techniques in combination.

Additionally, Karin had achieved initial control over the Uzumaki's Adamantine Sealing Chains, which served as her ultimate trump card.

Sakura, without a team, wasn't participating in the Chunin Exams. She had just finished her foundational theoretical studies, and her combat skills still needed improvement. For her, the exams would be both dangerous and a waste of time.

Ninja promotion isn't limited to exams. Once she's skilled enough, he has ways to ensure her advancement.

In fact, Sakura had long harbored a question.

Both Aoba and herself were civilian ninjas, yet he had access to research materials and state-of-the-art equipment far beyond what civilians could typically afford. It was clear her teacher held significant secrets.

Aoba was aware of Sakura's curiosity but didn't offer any explanations; he'd rather let her discover things on her own.

Meanwhile, a new project in his lab had finally reached completion. With Sakura now around, he had set up a small separate lab to house Hidan.

Now, Hidan had completed the integration of Hashirama cells.

Being immortal to begin with, Hidan's physical prowess had now reached an almost indescribable level.

With an increased chakra reserve, he successfully awakened wood-style abilities, filling the gap in his ninjutsu skills.

Unlike Yumi, who lacked formal training, Hidan was well-versed in combat, allowing him to adapt quickly to his new body and wood-style techniques.

Under Aoba's orders, Hidan poured himself into learning wood-style jutsu. Kotoamatsukami's influence was incredibly powerful, instilling Hidan with a relentless work ethic.

Aoba sometimes thought that perhaps this was the true potential of Kotoamatsukami: turning anyone into a hardworking prodigy.

If he'd had Hidan's level of dedication in his previous life, he'd have been far more successful.

However, he wasn't finished with Hidan's development. Having covered his taijutsu and ninjutsu, he now intended to address Hidan's final weakness: genjutsu.

For that, he had long planned a solution. The perfect set of sharingan eyes he had in his possession was specifically meant for Hidan.

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Currently on Chapter 120 - Ambitions Revealed