Early in the morning on the fifth day, Kaede Kitahara got up before dawn and called the three members of Team Kakashi together.
"For the time being, while Kakashi-senpai is still unconscious, I'll be taking over as the acting leader of Team Kakashi," Kaede Kitahara said.
As a bona fide chunin, he naturally had the authority to temporarily assume command. The three of them didn't raise any objections.
"From now on, the three of you will take turns. One person per day will go to the bridge to protect Mr. Tazuna. The other two will stay behind, and I'll teach you some practical techniques," Kaede Kitahara said. After realizing that the butterfly effect was only going to get worse, he had decided to stop worrying about it. Instead, he might as well focus on strengthening Team Kakashi as much as possible to prepare them for the inhuman enemies of the future.
If they didn't step up, was he supposed to handle everything himself?
"Really?" Uzumaki Naruto blurted out.
"Yes. From what I can tell, Kakashi-senpai hasn't had much time to properly teach you. I might as well do it. I happen to have the time," Kaede Kitahara replied.
Sakura looked even more excited. As a civilian-born ninja, she knew better than anyone how difficult it was for someone without a clan or backing to learn even a single ninjutsu.
Especially after the fight against the Demon Brothers. Both Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke had techniques they could rely on, while she had nothing. All she could do was stay behind and protect the mission client with a kunai.
Of course she felt the gap.
And when even Naruto, the so-called dead last, had improved so much in such a short time, the shock to her was enormous.
Uchiha Sasuke was just as excited. More than anything, he wanted to discuss the Sharingan with Kaede Kitahara.
From the brief glimpse of Kaede Kitahara's Sharingan usage before, it was obvious that Kaede Kitahara was far more proficient with it than Sasuke. He had even reached a level Sasuke wouldn't normally achieve until three years later, the fully developed three-tomoe state.
"Today, Naruto goes with Mr. Tazuna first. You'll come back after the workers finish for the day," Kaede Kitahara arranged.
"Alright," Uzumaki Naruto nodded, then went inside to pack his things before leaving with Tazuna.
After that, Kaede Kitahara led Uchiha Sasuke and Sakura aside and asked, "Has Kakashi-senpai taught you tree climbing and water walking yet?"
He wanted to confirm the progress of the two kids.
"Kakashi-sensei already taught us before," Sakura answered quickly.
Another butterfly effect?
Kaede Kitahara froze for a moment. He had taught Naruto tree climbing and water walking himself. According to the original course of events, the others shouldn't have learned it until Hatake Kakashi woke up.
Yet Kakashi had taught them ahead of time?
What Kaede Kitahara didn't know was that precisely because he had taught Naruto those techniques early, Hatake Kakashi had taken notice. Combined with some things Kaede Kitahara mentioned in his diary, Kakashi decided to teach tree climbing and water walking to all three of them in advance.
This was just another small butterfly effect caused by Kaede Kitahara.
"That's good. Since you've already learned those, I'll teach you something else according to the normal progression," Kaede Kitahara said. "Sakura, I heard you had perfect scores in theory classes at the academy. Your chakra control should be excellent. I'll teach you a genjutsu called Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique."
"So it's that jutsu…" Sakura shuddered the moment she heard the name.
The reason was simple. During their very first bell test against Kakashi, she had been terrified by this very genjutsu. It forced her to see the most frightening image in her heart, Uchiha Sasuke dying right in front of her.
The impression it left on her was unforgettable.
"I'll teach you this one first. Once you've mastered it, I'll pass on another genjutsu. It should give you a significant boost in combat ability," Kaede Kitahara said.
"Thank you, Kitahara-senpai." Sakura bowed deeply.
She had heard plenty of stories about how many ninja, after being assigned to teams, never learned any reliable ninjutsu at all.
After all, ninjutsu was the foundation of a ninja's strength. People didn't just teach it to others casually. Unless you became someone's trusted subordinate or disciple, the chances were slim.
Just look at Hatake Kakashi. He was known as the Copy Ninja, said to have copied over a thousand techniques, yet he hadn't taught them much at all during this time.
It all depended on the mood of the jonin leading the team.
Those with clan inheritances didn't have to worry. Even Uchiha Sasuke had a few Fire Release techniques. But for ordinary ninja, even if they managed to reach chunin level, the total number of jutsu they mastered in their entire lifetime might not exceed what Sasuke already knew now.
"As for Sasuke, I have a jutsu that suits you very well. It's called the Crow Clone Technique. It's similar to the Shadow Clone Technique. It forms physical bodies and can perform both physical and genjutsu attacks," Kaede Kitahara said.
He immediately decided to teach Sasuke the Crow Clone Technique he had just learned himself.
"Thank you, Kitahara-senpai," Uchiha Sasuke said sincerely.
Even though he still had a few jutsu he learned as a child, he understood how precious any ninjutsu was. Even something that looked unimpressive could be extremely difficult for a civilian ninja to obtain.
And his own clan background now wasn't much better than that of a civilian ninja.
"However, I want to ask something," Uchiha Sasuke said. "Do you know any taijutsu?"
For him, ordinary ninjutsu didn't offer as much immediate improvement as taijutsu did.
He had already identified his problem.
The insight granted by the Sharingan was obvious. His eyes could keep up.
But his body couldn't.
During his fight with Haku, his eyes could barely track some of Haku's movements, but his body simply couldn't respond in time. Over a prolonged fight, that gap would be fatal.
Now that he understood this weakness, of course he wanted to make up for it.
"I'm not particularly good at taijutsu either. I only know a basic technique, Leaf Gale," Kaede Kitahara said. "But at your current level, Leaf Gale is more than enough."
It was a taijutsu he had copied earlier at the training grounds. Although it was just the basic entry-level technique of the Eight Gates system, for a civilian ninja without connections, learning even this basic form would usually require reaching at least chunin level.
"Thank you, Kitahara-senpai," Uchiha Sasuke said earnestly, silently forgiving Kaede Kitahara a little for always calling him Sunny Sasuke.
Seeing his sincere expression, Kaede Kitahara nodded in satisfaction. Based on his understanding of Sasuke, the boy was basically a textbook troublemaker. Talking reason with him didn't always work. But if you showed strength far beyond his, then he would listen, even if he didn't say it out loud.
The strength Kaede Kitahara displayed in yesterday's battle had completely shocked Sasuke. That was why Sasuke was being so obedient today. Otherwise, to Sasuke, a mere chunin wouldn't have been worth acknowledging.
Come to think of it, the Uchiha Clan all seemed to share this trait. If your strength wasn't enough, they wouldn't listen to a word you said.
Even someone like Uchiha Itachi, whom the Third Hokage praised for having a so-called Hokage mindset, didn't listen to anyone before deciding to wipe out his entire clan. Why did he eventually come to terms with it? Because Uchiha Sasuke later showed strength comparable to his own, becoming someone he could speak to as an equal.
The same went for Uchiha Madara. It was practically a hereditary flaw. Beat them into submission first, and only then would they be willing to hear you out.
If you couldn't overpower an Uchiha, they would act arrogantly.
Kaede Kitahara immediately taught the jutsu to both of them, then told them to find places to practice on their own.
That night, after Uzumaki Naruto returned, Kaede Kitahara called him over.
"Naruto, next I'm going to teach you a powerful jutsu called the Rasengan."
Yes. Kaede Kitahara planned to teach Naruto his signature technique, the Rasengan, without waiting for Jiraiya to do it later.
Since the butterfly effect was already this severe, he might as well stop worrying about it.
"The Rasengan? Is it a strong jutsu?" Uzumaki Naruto's exhaustion from a full day of missions vanished instantly. His face lit up with excitement.
"It's pretty strong. It's an A-rank jutsu," Kaede Kitahara said. "But I didn't create it myself. This jutsu was developed by the Fourth Hokage. It's one of his signature techniques. I only figured it out based on descriptions left behind by others."
Kaede Kitahara quietly patched the explanation for how he knew the Rasengan. After all, the training logic behind it was simple enough that self-discovery was believable.
"The Fourth Hokage? That means it's amazing. Hurry up and teach me, hurry!" Uzumaki Naruto urged.
"Watch closely. Rasengan!"
Kaede Kitahara shouted as chakra light rapidly gathered in his palm, forming a massive sphere.
He slammed it straight into a large boulder nearby.
"Boom!"
The entire boulder shattered instantly, exploding into countless fragments.
"Whoa, that's incredible," Uzumaki Naruto said, eyes wide. "Big brother Kaede, teach me. Right now."
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