Naruto: Systematic Shinobi Chapter 2: The Grind Begins 1

The following morning, Daiki roused himself from the couch, where he had apparently dozed off unnoticed as dawn broke.

He donned a fresh set of clothes, attended to his personal necessities, consumed a light breakfast, and then set out with purpose.

Making a direct route to the training grounds, the distinct sounds of clashing metal and subtle tremors vibrating through the earth reached his ears even before he arrived.

Finding an unoccupied training area, he mused, "This will suffice." It was a rather compact space, characteristic of the higher-numbered training grounds, but the presence of a small stream running through it offered potential for further activities should his training proceed favorably.

For the immediate future, however?

He approached one of the large trees bordering the training field. It was time to master tree walking.

Daiki lifted one foot, channeling his Qi into the sole, and pressed it against the tree's trunk.

The connection held firm, and initially, it did not seem significantly different from the leaf sticking exercise learned at the Academy.

However, it presented a greater challenge due to the larger size of his feet and the considerable weight of his body, a contrast to a mere leaf attachable to a single point on his head.

He mirrored the action with his other foot, also adhering to the bark, and found himself supporting his entire vertical body.

"Awesome," Daiki grinned, already envisioning the myriad combat applications this skill would provide.

With that thought, he attempted to lift his foot to ascend, but the bark beneath him suddenly gave way, launching him backward with considerable force.

He tumbled through the air, landing approximately ten feet away. Puckering his lips, he reflected, "Alright… so, not quite as simple as I initially believed."

________________________________________

Tree walking, it turned out, was substantially more intricate than Daiki had anticipated without direct guidance.

It ultimately required four full days to achieve proficiency. While he couldn't recall the exact timeframe it took Naruto and Sasuke, he distinctly remembered Sakura accomplishing it on her very first attempt.

This was a source of vexation. Was her Qi control simply that refined, or was it merely a consequence of her minuscule Qi capacity?

'Surely it can't be anywhere near my own,' Daiki reassured himself. Even during their Academy days, Sakura had only utilized jutsu when explicitly required, and he had never observed her frequenting the training grounds provided by the institution.

Putting Sakura aside for the moment, Daiki wiped the perspiration from his brow. "At least I've finally gotten it done," he beamed at himself, suspended upside down from a tree well over two hundred feet tall.

Furthermore, he had crossed paths with Naruto that very morning en route to the training grounds, confirming that the latter had not yet departed for the Wave mission.

That constituted an achievement, did it not? At the very least, he had mastered tree walking prior to any member of Team Seven.

Shaking his head, Daiki ceased the flow of Qi to his feet and plummeted the two hundred feet to the ground, his legs absorbing the impact with effortless grace.

"I suppose it's been a while," he mused, stroking his chin. He had refrained from checking until he had completed his tree walking practice. "Status."

[Name: Daiki Yurei]

[Age: 13]

[Chakra Capacity: 962/1322 (Genin)]

[Strength: 14/500]

[Endurance: 15.3/500]

[Durability: 14/500]

[Agility: 14/500]

[Taijutsu: 25/500]

[Ninjutsu: 20/500]

[Genjutsu: 10/500]

[Bukijutsu: 15/500]

[Chakra Control: 66.6/500]

[Chakra Affinities:[

[Lightning - (N/A): You have no training with this element.]

His eyes widened as the status screen materialized, and a broad grin spread across his face. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" he exclaimed, pumping a fist into the air.

Throughout his training period, he had perceived a marked improvement in his ability to summon and precisely utilize his Qi, and how second nature it became to employ it for sustained adhesion to the trees while practicing chakra control.

His efforts had undeniably yielded results! His Qi capacity had increased by almost half in a mere four days, his endurance had grown by nearly ten percent, and his Qi control score had effectively doubled!

"Hell yeah!" he cheered, a fierce delight coursing through him. He remained uncertain whether this had accelerated his overall growth rate, given his constant movement and Qi expenditure, and his mastery of a control exercise far surpassing the initial leaf sticking technique he had grasped on the first try-

However, with his progress now quantified in tangible numbers, he felt an unshakeable conviction that he could achieve his goals!

"What should I do now?" Daiki wondered aloud, stretching his arms languidly.

He still possessed a significant reserve of Qi, yet he had just concluded four days of strenuous training.

A respite was in order.

"…Then again, I don't have any friends," his shoulders slumped. A different life, yet the same old story, wasn't it?

For him, there wasn't really another aspiration or even a pastime to speak of. Growing up, he had lacked the means for any worthwhile hobby.

The sole objective that could be vaguely identified in his life prior was the pursuit of strength, ascending through the ranks to command the admiration of all onlookers.

It seemed rather pathetic now that he reflected upon it. Honestly, it wasn't even that dissimilar to Naruto's own aspirations.

"I can't exactly afford to slack off either," he added, and with that, he felt himself sinking further into his dejection.

Leaving the village would inevitably brand him as a rogue ninja, leading to him being hunted down and eliminated. Moreover, in under four months, the Chunin Exams were scheduled, and a joint invasion by Orochimaru and Suna was imminent.

He was in a bind, no matter which way he looked at it.

"Stop being a coward, you utter wimp!" he berated himself. He was no longer a child living off an allowance; he could simply undertake a mission, earn the needed funds, and pursue a new interest.

Perhaps he could start reading a book or go watch a film.

"Orah!" Hyping himself up, Daiki pulled his shirt over his head and shed his pants, leaving him clad only in his boxers before dashing towards the stream bordering his training area.

"Cowabunga, baby!" he bellowed, channeling chakra to the soles of his feet in preparation to land on the water's surface.

Or at least, that was the intention, as he yelped and plunged straight through, succumbing to the water with a resounding splash.