He closed his eyes and reopened them, returning them to their natural black.
To Fugaku, Raizen only felt contempt: a weak, hypocritical man.
Misato was a pity, destined to die at Itachi's hands.
Fugaku had granted Raizen jutsu only to secure his acknowledgment of the Uchiha clan, much like Kumogakure attempting to co-opt him.
It was a transactional relationship. Raizen understood that.
Yet… Fugaku never considered Uchiha outside his immediate family as true clan members.
He allowed the clan to die. And when Itachi betrayed the Uchiha, massacring countless innocents, Fugaku seemed to notice nothing.
In the original story, he even possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan but never addressed the killings, instead praising Itachi for his resolve.
He willingly let Misato and others die under Itachi's hand, leaving only his other son, Sasuke.
Outside the gates lay the cold, lifeless bodies of the clan members.
Most Uchiha were ordinary people, unfit for shinobi duty, just as few could awaken the Sharingan.
And yet the chosen clan leader betrayed them.
Raizen would never accompany such a twisted ideology into death.
The sky was just beginning to brighten, painted in pale shades of dawn.
Raizen rose quickly from bed, went to wash up, and ate some bread.
If possible, he would have preferred to eat a ration pill (Hyōrōgan) directly—less hassle, more efficiency.
Actually, Hyōrōgan were quite tasty.
The reputation for bad taste came from Sakura's special homemade versions, which were incomparable to the standard rations sold in stores.
Using Hyōrōgan saved time spent cooking and washing dishes.
The downside: they weren't cheap and weren't meant for daily consumption by Raizen.
He arrived at his usual training area and began his daily regimen.
About an hour later, a familiar sound echoed in his mind.
> "You have mastered the entry: 'Water Walker (White)'."
[Water Walker (White)]
Requirement: Walk across the surface of water as if on solid ground.
Progress: Completed.
Effect: On special terrain, your chakra control is more refined, and chakra endurance is 5% higher than normal.
Note: Can be further upgraded.
Upgrade Path 1: Combine with "Tree Climber (White)" → "Foundation Training (White)"
Upgrade Path 2: Combine with "Tree Climber (White)" + "Three Body Technique (White)" → "Solid Foundation (Green)"
"Two possible paths…" Raizen murmured, studying the panel.
Whenever he had spare time, he trained at the river near the third training field.
His natural talent, reinforced by muscle memory, allowed him to learn extremely quickly.
Of course, this was on calm water. Fighting while walking on water would require even more training.
Many Chunin, caught mid-battle on water, had to hastily form hand seals to mold chakra and stabilize themselves.
This tested a ninja's understanding of hand seals, which were essential for almost all jutsu.
To perform jutsu, a ninja must first mold chakra, then control it into a technique, and finally release it.
Hand seals accelerate the synchronization of spiritual and physical energy into chakra, rather than merely increasing speed.
From the earliest "Book of Strategies" to the final "Book of Formations" in Shippuden, official guides had undergone edits.
Earlier editions included evaluations of a ninja's potential and luck, but these were later removed.
Yet the eight abilities of a ninja remained, demonstrating the enduring importance of hand seals.
This is why even low-rank jutsu without hand seals are not trivial.
"I'll choose the second path," Raizen decided, postponing further upgrades.
Advancing now would only yield another white entry.
Once he acquired the Three Body Technique, he could combine them into a green entry.
Learning the Three Body Technique wouldn't take long. By practicing climbing and water walking, plus the bonus from entries, Raizen's hand seal proficiency had already increased considerably.
He resumed training.
Having mastered Water Walker, the next step was to learn Three Body Technique.
Earlier, Raizen had learned Rope Escape and Concealment Technique from Rin Noihara, both basic E-rank jutsu taught early at the academy.
Rin had also shared the key points of the Three Body Technique's Bunshin (Clone) jutsu, ready for practice.
After some practice, the panel notified him:
"You have acquired the entry: 'Three Body Technique (White)'."
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