Chapter Thirty: My Days in Konoha Polishing Skill Proficiency

“Naruto, do you have any good ideas?” Unsure of what to write about, Yu Higashino turned to Naruto for suggestions.

“How about you write a story about ninjas, Yu?” Naruto replied.

“Ninjas?” Yu echoed, pondering the thought.

“Yeah, yeah! Write about an amazing ninja who punishes evil and champions the good, defeating bad guys. That would be really fun!”

“Ninjas have missions every day. Where would they find so much time to punish evil and uphold justice?” Yu mercilessly shattered Naruto’s fantasy.

“Huh? Really?”

“Of course. But… your suggestion isn’t bad. I don’t have to write about a village ninja—I could write about a wandering ninja instead.”

“What’s a wandering ninja?” Naruto asked, unfamiliar with the term.

“It’s a ninja who doesn’t belong to any village, takes on jobs outside, accepts commissions when he feels like working, ignores them when he doesn’t, roaming freely wherever he wants.”

Though Yu described it this way, he knew well that in reality, wandering ninjas weren’t free at all—they often lived on the edge, their lives far less ideal than imagined. But since he was writing a novel, a little artistic license wasn’t too much to ask.

While Naruto was still pondering, Yu had already made up his mind. “Alright, I’ve decided. I’ll write a story about a wandering ninja.”

“Okay, as long as you’ve decided, Yu! Make sure you let me read it when you’re done.”

“Mm,” Yu nodded, but then fell silent with uncertainty.

How should he write the story of a wandering ninja? He could mimic the knight-errant tales he’d read in his previous life and write about a wandering ninja in that style. But that would just be imitation, not the story he truly wanted to tell. What kind of story did he really want to write?

After a long while—

“Yu, you’ve been holding your pen for nearly half an hour and haven’t written a single word?”

“I’m not writing anymore.” Yu decisively set his pen down.

“Huh? You’re giving up?”

“No inspiration. I’ll leave it for now.” Yu truly had no idea what to write, but the past half hour had given him another idea. He decided to gather some material—by pretending to be a wandering ninja and venturing outside for a while.

To do this properly, he needed to improve his skills. He would have to raise his Transformation skill to level four, making it easier to create a duplicate of himself. His Illusion skill also needed to reach level four, so he could use it in tandem with Transformation to create a remotely controlled clone.

The purpose was to keep his identities inside and outside the village strictly separate, ensuring his peaceful life wouldn’t be disturbed. Additionally, his Body Flicker Technique had to reach level four, so he could return at any time.

There were three skills to raise to level four in total—over thirty thousand proficiency points—a daunting task for Yu. Yet, as he’d often found, inspiration sometimes sparked enough perseverance to see him through.

And so, with this determination, Yu began grinding his skill proficiency.

He repeatedly transformed scraps of paper he’d just torn off to practice Transformation, and cast subtle illusions on Naruto to practice his Illusion skill.

It was worth noting that using these skills consumed energy. For instance, Illusion depleted Yu’s mental stamina. However, as his proficiency increased, his stamina grew as well, and since the illusions he used on Naruto were minor, the two balanced out. Yu hardly felt any exhaustion.

Dividing his attention, both his Transformation and Illusion skills improved rapidly. With his current pace, ten thousand proficiency points would take twenty to thirty hours.

So Yu pulled an all-nighter, grinding until both skills reached level four.

At level three, Transformation already allowed for physical change; level four merely increased the degree and duration. To achieve permanent transformation, he would likely need level five.

At level four, Illusion not only enabled Yu to influence another’s five senses—creating hallucinations and false sounds—but also allowed him to affect a person’s mind, like a weakened version of Tsukuyomi, even briefly distorting another’s will, somewhat akin to a diluted Kotoamatsukami.

With those two skills at level four, Body Flicker was next. Only rapid movement was needed to increase proficiency, so Yu simply closed his door and practiced inside his room.

At level three, Body Flicker allowed for short-range teleportation. Yu began teleporting in place—seemingly still, but actually in constant motion.

By the time he’d reached over two thousand proficiency points, Naruto returned home for lunch after school.

“How was your first day?” Yu asked, still quietly practicing his skill as Naruto walked in.

“It was okay. When the teacher had us introduce ourselves, I said I’d be Hokage one day. Everyone laughed at me, but I’m used to it.” Naruto tried to sound indifferent.

Yu paused his practice and patted Naruto’s head. “Prove yourself with actions, one day.”

“Yeah!” Naruto nodded vigorously. Though he pretended to be nonchalant, it was clear he cared.

“Did you make any new friends?” Yu asked.

“No.” At this, Naruto’s spirits drooped.

“Don’t worry. You’ll make friends in time. I’ve seen it in the future,” Yu reassured him.

“Hmph, you’re lying again, Yu.” Though he said this, Naruto’s mood had visibly lifted.

“Let’s eat,” Yu said.

“Okay.”

They went upstairs for lunch. Afterward, Naruto left for afternoon classes, and Yu returned to grinding his skill proficiency.

Body Flicker proved even easier to practice than the other two. By the time Naruto returned from school in the afternoon, Yu had over six thousand points. By eight or nine that evening, the skill had reached level four.

At level four, Body Flicker finally gained the effect Yu wanted—long-range teleportation. There were still limitations, though: he could only teleport to locations within his sensory range, or to places where he had previously left a mark.

The latter was somewhat similar to Flying Thunder God.

It wasn’t perfect, but it was more than enough for Yu.

With his goal achieved and preparations complete, Yu finally relaxed, reverting to his idle self. Not willing to grind a single point more, he lay down on his bed and fell straight to sleep.