Two years after graduation, genin teams were formally assigned missions by the village.
Each squad consisted of three genin under one chūnin captain. If a team lost a member, replacements were assigned by the Celestial Village to maintain balance, following the structure used in Konohagakure.
Promotion was merit-based. After completing a required number of D-rank and C-rank missions and earning sufficient contribution points, a shinobi could apply to take the Chūnin Exams. Advancement depended on both strength and leadership ability, just as in the Five Great Nations.
Personal techniques developed by the shinobi belonged to the individual, but village-registered ninjutsu remained protected assets. This prevented powerful clans from monopolizing authority while ensuring loyalty to the Celestial administration.
Chen Xing's system created balance: individual growth without allowing clan dominance to destabilize the village.
---
The Ninja Academy
After the migration to the new Celestial Village, the academy operated on a six-year structure modeled after Konoha's Academy.
Graduates were assigned into three-man cells led by a jōnin instructor for two years of field training.
White requested to become an academy instructor.
Though only a few years younger than Chen Xing, White possessed elite combat ability and refined chakra control from years of harsh training. Considering White's mastery of precise chakra manipulation—essential for both ninjutsu and medical techniques—Chen Xing approved the request.
With no better candidate available, Chen Xing himself temporarily served as principal.
---
Medical Development
The Third Generation Celestial Shadow and Summer Celestial had long suffered internal damage from forcibly cultivating the meteorite-derived chakra once used in the old Celestial Village.
Unlike the balanced chakra refined through proper training, that power strained the body.
To solve this, Chen Xing focused on medical ninjutsu, studying the principles pioneered by Tsunade. While far from her level, his chakra control—approaching the precision required for techniques like the Mystical Palm Technique—allowed him to stabilize their conditions.
He organized the village's medical staff and compiled a formal medical textbook. A specialized medical-nin class was established within the academy to cultivate future healers, following the structure used in Konoha after the Third Shinobi World War.
---Life Extraction
Deep within the Celestial Forest, Chen Xing secluded himself in a valley hidden behind a waterfall.
Over the past year, he had researched fūinjutsu and chakra-based vitality manipulation.
More than a dozen potted plants sat outside his wooden cabin—test subjects for his experiments.
Standing before them, Chen Xing formed hand seals.
"Mystic Art: Life Extraction."
Violet chakra enveloped a plant. Its leaves withered instantly, turning yellow before crumbling into dust. As it decayed, a faint green energy—pure vitality—separated from it.
The energy flickered briefly before dispersing into the air.
Chen Xing frowned.
He could extract life force, but he could not yet seal or preserve it. Without containment—similar to how sealing techniques store chakra—it dissipated within seconds.
Still, progress had been made.
If perfected, the technique could supplement his own vitality in battle—though extracting life from humans would require overwhelming control and carried grave ethical consequences.
For now, he limited experiments to plants.
---
White arrived unexpectedly during the village's founding anniversary holiday.
"How could you forget?" White teased.
Chen Xing smiled helplessly. Administrative matters bored him; he preferred cultivation.
White noticed the withered plants.
"You did this?"
"I'm researching vitality manipulation," Chen Xing replied. "It's incomplete."
White understood little of fūinjutsu theory but trusted him completely.
After spending the short holiday together, Chen Xing escorted White back to the Celestial Village.
---Toward Sage Mode
Standing before the roaring waterfall, Chen Xing's gaze hardened.
The Celestial Village was stable.
Diplomacy was secure.
The academy and medical system were operational.
It was time to pursue greater power.
He would travel to Ryūchi Cave, one of the three great sage regions, to learn Sage Mode from the White Snake Sage—if he survived the training.
Unlike ordinary chakra, senjutsu required balancing physical energy, spiritual energy, and natural energy. Failure meant petrification.
But if successful, Sage Mode would amplify all of his abilities—ninjutsu, taijutsu, and perception—far beyond ordinary limits.
After informing the Third Generation Celestial Shadow of his temporary departure, Chen Xing sealed his supplies into scrolls.
Without hesitation, he set off toward Ryūchi Cave.
The next stage of his path had begun.