"Ino has plenty of potential. Sakura's learning ability is even better than Ino's—if she could just fix that one bad habit, wouldn't she take off completely?"
As Yagyū Souma entered the room, he pondered quietly.
Ino's performance had genuinely surprised him.
From a decorative "vase" to someone with flexible thinking—able to actively refine a technique Souma had given her, and not by blindly messing around, but through a successful optimization.
That was a rare talent.
If there were a few more people like that, his own pressure would drop dramatically.
As for Sasuke…
Forget it. That brat was hard to deal with—arrogant, obsessed with revenge before getting beaten down, yet completely unwilling to acknowledge the vast gulf between himself and Itachi.
That kind of person was better off ignored.
Much better to cultivate Naruto.
At least Naruto wouldn't betray him.
Souma mentally listed the Konoha Twelve.
The Inuzuka clan—easy. He could hand them a semi-finished product and let Kiba research it himself. Inuzuka Tsume would probably thank him for it.
Calorie-based secret techniques.
Chōji…
That might be pushing it a bit, but since the Akimichi clan had shoved Chōji in here, he couldn't just let the kid sit around doing nothing.
Same approach—another semi-finished product.
If it didn't work, Chōji could always ask Chōza.
Perfect.
"Thanks to Ino for giving me inspiration!"
Ino's case could be replicated wholesale.
He could create several semi-finished techniques and hand them out as research assignments—to others, including Captain Yamato.
Give them a framework, let them puzzle over it, refine it, improve it. In the end, they'd still thank him.
A win-win.
Souma thought it over.
Between the Inuzuka clan and the Akimichi clan, the Inuzuka problem was clearly easier. He didn't even need to think deeply—just outline a general idea and be done.
But sensory enhancement…
Thinking of Kiba's utterly ridiculous elimination in the Chūnin Exams, Souma's expression turned a little strange.
Sensory enhancement had to be situational, didn't it?
How could you just amplify everything without filtering?
He gave it some thought.
Filtering was indeed difficult. What the Inuzuka clan needed wasn't a jutsu per se, but olfactory separation while in the Four-Legs Technique state—
They needed more flexible control over turning enhanced smell on and off.
That, at least, was simple.
Even though he didn't understand the Four-Legs Technique in detail, logically it had to be a type of enhancement-based chakra mode.
As long as he could sever chakra supply to the nasal nerves while reinforcing other parts—
Partial enhancement.
"I'm good at this."
He picked up his pen and immediately wrote down the idea. Inspiration flowed like a spring, one thought after another surging forth.
Before long, a concise conceptual outline appeared on the page.
"That should be enough. I'll leave the rest to them—I can't do everything myself."
What was a semi-finished product, anyway?
If he completed everything, it wouldn't be "semi" anymore.
Besides,
The Four-Legs Technique wasn't something all ninja could use anyway. As for sensory enhancement, he also wrote down a brief explanation of the principles.
Kiba should be able to understand it.
If not, he could go ask his sister.
Souma set that page aside and turned to the second topic—
Calorie-based techniques.
This one was the real headache.
In the short term, he probably couldn't even come up with a semi-finished product. After thinking for a long while, he still had no clear direction.
…
Hokage Tower.
Ino clutched the scroll to her chest, cautiously making her way toward the building.
Along the way, she was inexplicably nervous, worried someone might snatch the jutsu she'd helped refine—
Even though she knew perfectly well how absurd that was.
Only after reaching the Hokage Tower did she finally let out a long breath.
Safe at last.
She cleared her throat, went upstairs with the scroll in hand, and just as she reached the upper floor, she saw Yamanaka Inoichi stepping out of the office, his face still flushed with excitement.
"Father."
"Ahem, Ino… you—oh, you helped Souma refine a jutsu?"
Inoichi was caught off guard, embarrassed that his daughter had seen his barely restrained excitement.
But—
Thinking of that sealing techniques textbook Souma had written, he simply couldn't suppress it.
Too incredible.
How could that child be such a genius?
Was it really possible for someone to start learning from birth?
His thoughts were in chaos.
"Yes. Souma said that since you agreed to share it, once it was complete, it could be submitted to the village. Then I'd study and analyze it as my next learning assignment."
Inoichi nodded absentmindedly, smiling. "That's good. Very good. Go in and talk to the Third Hokage. I have something urgent to take care of."
"Yes."
Ino stepped aside to let him pass.
Once her father disappeared down the stairs, she tilted her head, frowning slightly.
Something felt off…
Her father's mood seemed unusually high. What could he have seen to be that happy?
After thinking for a while, she shook her head.
Forget it.
If it was something she needed to know, Father would tell her eventually.
Right now, the important thing was understanding the jutsu in her hands—she couldn't let Souma down.
"Ino, you can do this!"
She pumped herself up, walked down the corridor to the Hokage's office, and gently knocked.
A moment later, an aged voice sounded from inside.
"The door's not locked. Come in."
"Yes."
Ino bowed and entered respectfully, placing the scroll on the desk.
"Hokage-sama, this is a jutsu created by Souma-senpai. He asked me to deliver it."
"I'll take a look."
The Third Hokage straightened, taking the scroll with solemn care.
That seriousness startled Ino.
The Hokage seemed extremely attentive.
Was the jutsu really that valuable?
As she wondered, she saw his expression collapse almost instantly—and immediately understood.
She'd said it was "Souma's jutsu," so the Hokage's expectations had skyrocketed.
And now…
"I'm very sorry!" Ino blurted out. "This was originally my idea, but my knowledge wasn't sufficient, so I consulted Souma. He took a few minutes to help me create this technique."
"..."
A few minutes?
The Third Hokage's expression became even more colorful.
Damn it.
He knew Souma was impressive, but minutes were outrageous. And yet the technique was already quite mature, even incorporating specialized Yamanaka methods.
"Ino, you must've contributed quite a bit too. Otherwise, Souma wouldn't have asked you to deliver it personally."
The Third Hokage was sharp as ever—once he found a thread, he pulled it and unraveled everything.
Sure enough.
Ino nodded honestly. "I only played a small role. Souma's technique was too difficult for me, so I added some Yamanaka clan techniques."
"And this scroll was approved by Inoichi, correct? Right—he just left. You must've run into him."
The Third Hokage answered his own question and fell into thought, scroll in hand.
The value of this technique wasn't overwhelming—but it certainly wasn't small either.
It allowed sensory information to be displayed directly. The most ingenious part was that as long as chakra was injected into the medium, chakra and mental energy could synchronize perception.
The Yamanaka clan already had sensory synchronization.
But—
Their method required one-by-one transmission, unless multiple Yamanaka ninja worked together with specialized tools. Large-scale sharing was impossible.
This technique achieved exactly that.
Its true value wasn't in squad combat, but in warfare.
The larger the scale, the greater its impact.
The Third Hokage exhaled softly.
"Ino, sit down."
"Yes!"
Ino was thrilled, quickly finding a chair, though she still sat stiffly.
The Third Hokage smiled kindly. "Relax. I just want to chat. Asuma is your teacher—and he's my son."
"Thank you, Hokage-sama."
"Haha, no need to thank me. That was Asuma's own choice. Honestly, your progress surprised even me. I didn't expect you to be the first of your generation to truly think things through."
He grew serious. "But remember—turning ideas into reality is the hardest part. It requires massive accumulation of knowledge. Don't stop learning just because of one success."
"This technique actually has little to do with me…"
Ino lowered her head, embarrassed.
Her contribution had been minimal. Even without her, Souma would've achieved the refinement eventually—he'd only found it troublesome.
"There's no need to belittle yourself. Based on my preliminary assessment, this jutsu should be C- to B-rank. Chūnin and above can learn it, and its significance is considerable."
The Third Hokage smiled. "As a reward, what would you like?"
"I—I don't need anything. I didn't do much."
"Don't refuse. This is what you've earned. Think carefully."
He closed the scroll, smiling.
Ino hesitated.
What should she ask for?
She hadn't thought about it at all.
But then, an idea struck her—
"Hokage-sama, I've heard there are many books stored in the Hokage Tower. I'd like to read them to complete my assignment."
"Oh? What assignment?"
The Third Hokage was intrigued.
Ino explained Souma's requirements.
As he listened, the Hokage's eyes grew brighter and brighter, until he clapped his hands with delight.
"Excellent. That's an excellent assignment. I'll grant you one week. After that, write a summary. If I'm satisfied, I'll allow you another week."
"…Ah?"
Ino froze.
She suddenly felt like she'd been sent back to the Academy.
The difference was that now, Souma set the homework—
And the Third Hokage graded it.
Was this a joke?
That lineup was absurdly luxurious!
"What's wrong?" the Hokage asked. "Did you only want access privileges so you could idle away time?"
"Of course not! But we still have missions. If we get sent out, wouldn't that waste the week?"
Ino scrambled for an excuse—
Even having Souma check her work would've been fine!
The Hokage personally supervising was just too much.
"Don't worry. You won't be assigned missions this week. Study in peace."
The Third Hokage narrowed his eyes.
Souma's idea was brilliant.
Creation, research, learning, analysis—it fully mobilized a young ninja's initiative and fundamentally changed rigid thinking patterns.
Since Souma had gone this far, how could he be stingy?
He could even consider opening his own collection under similar rules, letting knowledge truly be used instead of gathering dust—
Knowledge was most useless when locked away.
Ino forced a bitter smile, completely unaware she'd become the Third Hokage's test subject. Left with no choice, she nodded.
"Yes. I'll submit a summary every week."
"Today doesn't count—it's a bonus."
"Thank you, Hokage-sama…"
Ino thanked him with tears in her eyes.
Every "bonus" came with a clearly marked price the moment the words to write a summary were spoken.
But—
Considering she'd asked for this herself…
Well, it was just one more report.
She comforted herself that way.
The Third Hokage summoned an ANBU operative to escort Ino to the archive.
Then he lightly tapped the desk and quietly issued another order.
Before long, a figure appeared.
"Hokage-sama."
"Yūgao. After careful discussion, we've decided to appoint you as the new ANBU captain."
"What? Me?"
Uzuki Yūgao looked up. Even behind her mask, her shock was unmistakable.
She'd never imagined—
That she would be nominated as ANBU captain.
"Hokage-sama, I'm afraid I'm not qualified. Perhaps you should choose someone else."
"Yūgao, your ability is more than sufficient. And at present, there aren't many suitable candidates. You're the best choice."
"This…"
She hesitated, about to protest again, when the Third Hokage took out a notebook.
"Read this first."
"..."
Yūgao accepted it.
It was a notebook—analyzing the application and coordination of numerous sealing techniques.
Practically a textbook written specifically for the sealing unit.
Author—
Yagyū Souma.
She froze, eyes widening slightly.
So this was his meaning?
"Ahem. Just understand what's implied. In short, you can discuss things with him often. Hayate is also part of ANBU—you can consult him as well."
"Yes. I understand now."
Yūgao got it.
On paper, she was the captain.
In reality, she was only half.
The other half belonged to Souma—and to Hayate through his connections.
Advance Chapters available on Patreon
patreon.com/pikachu614