Chapter 144: Leaf concentration practice

The classroom buzzed with energy as students chatted and laughed amongst themselves. Naruto, seated in the row above Homura's in the left corner of the classroom, turned to his friend with an eager grin.

Naruto: Come on, Homura! Show me that wind style jutsu you demonstrated yesterday!

Homura, sitting back in his chair, glanced at Naruto with a calm expression.

Homura: Naruto, I already showed you everything. It's not that complicated. (I am never going to that training ground ever again.)

Naruto's excitement was palpable as he insisted that he remembered every detail of the jutsu.

Naruto: I haven't forgotten a thing! I can do all the hand seals perfectly!

Homura raised an eyebrow, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Homura: Hm, you're quite confident, huh? I explained everything to you for 4 hours, and you still had questions throughout it all.

Naruto: And I-I understood it pretty well…probably.

Naruto looked away at the last moment.

Homura: *Sigh* Fine! If you can tell me how many hand seals are needed to perform that jutsu I will help you today as well.

Naruto: R-really?! You're not lying, right?!

Naruto got out of his seat and landed next to Homura, he then grabbed Homura's shoulders and proceeded to shake the latter.

Homura: Tch! Get away from me!

Homura tried to detach himself from Naruto, pushing the nosy cadet away while the latter kept holding on tight.

It was truly a strange friendship.

Homura: Stop wasting my time and tell me how many hand seals are needed already!

Naruto: That's easy! 7!

Homura: It's 6. Now get lost! 

Naruto: N-no! Your lying!

Homura: I am not.

Naruto: Come on, just one more time.

Naruto almost pleaded to his friend, unfortunately it was to the latter's uneasiness. 

Homura: I...I-I don't know if I hav-! (Asking for help is the tool of the weak...That's what I used to think, but can't say that I've made much progress by myself lately, perhaps there's merit to help someone else train. I could learn something from watching him, that I've missed.) two hours.

Naruto: two hours, may not be enough. How about 3 days?

Homura:...This was a mistake.

Naruto: D-don't say that! I will learn in no time.

Homura: 3 days, is 72 hours.

Naruto: Wha-You know what I mean!

Just as the banter between the two friends continued, the classroom door swung open, and Iruka Umino, their teacher, entered the room. The rowdy atmosphere quickly hushed, and students settled into their seats, anticipating Iruka's instructions.

Iruka scanned the room, taking in the rowdy scene before addressing the class.

Iruka: Alright, settle down, everyone! We have a lot to cover today.

The students gradually quieted down, their attention shifting to their teacher.

Iruka: Today, we will be starting our first lesson in concentration practice.

The mention of a new training method intrigued the students, and they leaned forward, eager to learn.

Iruka: As you all know to perform a ninjutsu a certain degree of concentration is needed alongside using chakra. There are many ways one can achieve greater concentration. We will be studying a series of diverse different ways to achieve greater levels of concentration. If you can manage to hard enough concentrate, you will be able to tap into unimaginable power. After all, he who can hone his concentration, is truly a great ninja.

Naruto/ Toshio/ Shikamaru/ Kiba/ Gekkou/ Hinata/ Choji/ Ino/ Shino: (A great ninja, huh?)

It was abnormal for the young cadets present here to be swayed by the prospect of becoming a great ninja, after all, no one wanted to simply be a random ninja but one that was admired by others one way or another. However, others only cared about one thing that Iruka had said.

Homura/Sasuke: (Unimaginable power…)

Iruka: *Nodding* (Good it seems they understood the importance and value of concentration. It should now be easier to have them pay attention in class now.)

Regardless of Iruka's thoughts, it was undeniable that his words managed to touch his students in a myriad of ways. Though they were still skeptical of Iruka's words it didn't stop them from hearing what they wanted from them.

The students exchanged curious glances, their previous chatter replaced with a newfound interest.

As Iruka explained the purpose and significance of concentration practice, the students began to understand its value but ultimately most didn't get at all what Iruka was saying. How could one concentrate better? To them it was the same as how could one breathe better, was there something more to breathing that they didn't know? Nonetheless, they knew that if their sensei knew of it, then it had to be true.

So no one truly questioned it at first glance.

Especially Naruto whose interests coincided with Iruka's words about Naruto's excitement grew, knowing that this technique could enhance his chakra control.

Naruto: Homura, this is perfect! It'll help us refine our chakra control, just like your wind style jutsu.

Homura, recalling the jutsu he had shown Naruto the day before, was slightly confused.

Homura: (Our chakra control? Since when does he put me on the same level as him?)Yeah, no. I don't think that's going to help much. (That jutsu is about C-rank in the level of difficulty, that's why even I was able to learn how to do it relatively quickly because I have the aptitude for it… chakra control would allow me to make it better but it has almost nothing to do with performing it in general if one has enough chakra to do it and is inclined towards wind release…that's why I didn't bother with this nonsense…but if a higher level of concentration could make me stronger, than perhaps…)

But regardless of Homura's thoughts, they had to still proceed with the lesson that was planned ahead.

Random girl: Sensei, how long do we have to do this?

Iruka: Since today is our first class on the topic, we have pretty much all day. smiles

Most students: Eh~~~~~~~

Random boy: Concentrating all day?

Random boy next to the other boy: My older brother told me it's quite boring.

Another random boy: Yeah! I heard we have to be quiet all the time...

Random girl: I'd rather go outside and learn about flowers again!

Toshio: Eh?! Flowers?

Naruto who heard that it would take all day of having to concentrate, immediately his previous mindset was shattered and buried.

Naruto: No! Let's have a sparring class again! Sasuke, I challenge you! I'll pay you back for what happened two days ago!

Sasuke: Shut up.

Naruto: What did you say?! You…You long-haired freak! Sissy!

'Long haired freak?' Hearing Naruto's odd claims, both Sasuke and Homura felt insulted since they both had longer hair than most boys in class.

Though none of the 2 boys proceeded to say anything to Naruto, choosing to ignore him instead, though other people would not be so nice.

Sakura: Naruto! How dare you bother Sasuke-kun!

Random groupie: That's right, stay in your lane!

Other girls: Yeah! That's right!

Bam!

The sudden impact silenced the room. All eyes turned towards Iruka-sensei, who stood with an expression of frustration mixed with determination.

Iruka-sensei: Enough!!! Everyone be quiet!…*sigh* why is this class always so rowdy in the morning? (Just when I thought they understood the importance of concentrating…)

Iruka pressed his left hand on his forehead, having no idea as to how he always seemed to lose control over his students.

Though yelling seemed to more or less work as the students froze, their attention now solely on their teacher.

Homura (muttering to himself): Jeez! That face... So many nerves... I now understand why Kakashi looks younger than you despite you being the younger of the two... that and probably chakra... also marketability?

Iruka-sensei took a deep breath, regaining his composure and focusing on the task at hand. He addressed the class once again, his voice firm yet gentle.

Iruka-sensei: Alright, class, let's settle down and start again.

Iruka took out a small opened bag full of random leaves that one would find anywhere in Konohagakure and dropped his notepad on his desk.

Though one person had a rather vile thought.

Homura: (Why is a grown man carrying a bag of leaves from normal trees?…Wait… Right, there was something like that…)

Suddenly several images of people putting a single leaf on their forehead came into Homura's mind.

Homura: (Those are… surely for the leaf concentration test thing… Are we doing that? If so, I hope he didn't just grab any random leaf on the ground….right?)

Nonetheless, even Homura did not have the courage to ask that question out loud. Umino Iruka was soft-spoken and calm but got angry really easily. It had been close to half a month but the students had already felt that he had been their main teacher longer than that.

Iruka: It's time to start our lesson on the leaf concentration practice.

The students, now silent and attentive, shifted in their seats. Homura and Naruto glanced at each other, their previous conversation momentarily forgotten.

Iruka-sensei: Leaf concentration practice is an important training method used by Konoha shinobi to enhance their mental focus and chakra control. It requires discipline, patience, and the ability to quiet your mind.

Some students rolled their eyes, expressing their disinterest. But Iruka-sensei continued undeterred, determined to instill the importance of the practice.

Iruka-sensei: You see, by concentrating one's mental power can vastly increase. As you all know, chakra is created through physical and mental energy. However, unlike physical energy which can easily be increased throughout training, your mental energy can only increase through a few different methods. That's why it is important to know how to focus one's mental energy better. It is easy for a person to lose focus do factors around them, however by concentrating properly one can achieve spiritual stability. This skill will prove invaluable in your ninja training.

Naruto dropped his head on the table along with other students now losing their focus after Iruka's long-winded explanation about mental energy and spiritual stability.

Even for shinobi cadets, the talk about spirituality and whatnot was a hard pill hard to swallow, as much as mental energy is mentioned in class; most barely understood the concept behind mental energy.

The deeper they went in-depth, the harder it was to form a solid or concrete understanding of the thing in general.

Iruka: Now, that we have mostly gone over the principles of the theory of the benefits of having better concentration how about we put it to practice with a few exercises?

Iruka asked the class of students who remained silent, except for one rowdy student.

Naruto: Really sensei? Can we try it right now? I bet I can do it better than anyone!

Iruka-sensei chuckled, recognizing Naruto's enthusiasm.

Iruka-sensei: Naruto, we will start the practice as a class. We need everyone's attention and cooperation. You'll have your chance soon enough.

Naruto pouted but nodded, eagerly awaiting his turn. The classroom fell into a focused silence as Iruka-sensei distributed several papers to each student.

Iruka-sensei: Read the paper and then close your eyes and visualize the contents of the paper. Visualization is one of the many things that require concentration. The greater your visualization for general purpose, the easier it will be when it comes to you to visualize your chakra flowing inside your body.

The students followed Iruka-sensei's instructions, their brows furrowed in concentration. Homura, ever determined, closed his eyes and focused his thoughts on the contents of the paper.

With C acting as more or less an extension of Homura's mind, remembering the paper he saw was easy, but it clearly was not what Iruka had in mind.

The entire challenge was proving to be harder than Homura had thought, visualizing and remembering were entirely different things. At least in this regard. One can remember who their close relatives are, but it doesn't mean that just because they remember who they are every day that they have to visualize their appearance too. It is just something that their subconscious attaches to the person or people in question.

As the minutes ticked by, and became several hours, the classroom transformed into a haven of tranquility. The students were lost in their individual journeys of self-discovery, discovering the depths of their own concentration and mental fortitude.

Iruka-sensei observed the class, impressed by their dedication and the transformation in their demeanor. He knew that this exercise would teach them the value of patience and the rewards of unwavering focus.

Though one of them did catch his eye.

As he saw Homura several times press a single leaf, which he probably found nearby on top of his forehead as he tried to concentrate his chakra towards it, Iruka could only be impressed by the latter who seemed fully dedicated to studying this time in class instead of trying to sleep.

Iruka: (I wasn't planning to teach them that today, but to think he's already practicing the leaf concentration method…He must have studied hard or heard it from someone.)

Homura, feeling the gentle touch of the leaf against his forehead, embraced the moment. He channeled his chakra with precision, feeling a profound connection between his energy and the leaf. The world around him faded away as he delved deeper into his concentration.

And so, under Iruka-sensei's guidance, the students continued their leaf concentration practice, each on their own path towards mastering the art of mental focus. Each student was in a corner of the classroom practicing what they had just been taught.

The same was true for Homura but his practice was cut short after less than 20 seconds, the leaf on his forehead fell once again.

Homura: Ah! (…this is harder than I thought…I must have more things going on inside my mind than I am willing to admit.)

Homura thought as he picked up the leaf again and tried to start again the exercise, but it was not unnoticed by Umino Iruka who silently watched the young student having difficulties with the current exercise more than he thought would be possible for his student.

Iruka:…(If I remembered well Naruto did say…)

Chapter end