Chapter 14: Clones and Nature Training

[Shinji's Perspective]

I sat cross-legged in my room, absently scratching behind Shiro's ears as Kuro dozed at my feet. Ever since they'd grown so large, their time outside my shadow had become limited. Aside from training sessions and the rare moments in my room, they remained hidden.

A direct result of my actions, of course.

After the 'Rabbit Incident' in the canteen, a new Academy rule had been introduced—no summons allowed on school grounds.

'A whole rule dedicated to me. I should feel honored.'

Despite that setback, my training had been progressing at a ridiculous pace. So much so that 24 hours in a day were no longer enough. Between Academy classes, Fūinjutsu practice, ninjutsu training, and now chakra nature manipulation, I had to start cutting time from my morning training sessions just to fit everything in.

For chakra nature training, I first tested my affinity levels. While I already knew Lightning was my strongest element, I wanted to see how I ranked in the others.

After a week of structured elemental exercises testing each affinity, I ranked them in the following order:

Lightning (strongest)>Water>Fire>Earth>Wind (weakest)

'So Rasenshuriken is going to be a nightmare to learn. Maybe I should develop my own Lightning-based equivalent instead.'

Each element had its own training method:

Wind: Cutting progressively tougher objects, from leaves to solid materials.

Earth: Manipulating clay with chakra, starting with simple shapes and progressing to detailed sculptures.

Fire: Igniting and controlling flames, starting from flammable materials to more resistant objects.

Water: Extracting moisture from objects and learning to control nearby water sources.

Lightning: Generating sparks, gradually increasing voltage tolerance—which meant shocking myself repeatedly. The final step on the scroll was to redirect a natural lightning strike.

'Yeah, let's put a pin in that one until I have actual self-preservation skills.'

After another week of refining my elemental training methods, I finally worked them into my daily routine and resumed Shadow Clone Jutsu training.

At first, my clones had been as unstable as Naruto's early attempts. But after countless practice sessions, I could now create respectable clones. The only remaining issue was efficiency—I still wasted too much chakra when dividing it between them.

'A few more days and I should be able to execute the jutsu perfectly.'

As time passed, I juggled Academy life with my ever-expanding training schedule. But I still made time to hang out with my friends.

Which was how I ended up enjoying a free meal, courtesy of Akira's birthday.

'Food tastes infinitely better when you don't have to pay for it.'

I leaned back, savoring the last bite of my meal, when Fumiko groaned from across the table. "Hey, Shinji, the exams are coming up. Got any notes you're willing to share?"

I smirked. "I know for a fact that only Akane and I actually study here. Don't worry, I've got notes for all of you. Just come by my house after this."

Their eyes lit up.

The perks of transmigrating—Academy subjects were basically elementary school topics to me.

Which meant all that time saved went straight into Fūinjutsu.

'It's basically university-level mathematics, except worse.'

Once the meal was over, my friends followed me home. Most of them had never visited before, so naturally, they were curious about how I lived. As a first-time host, I offered them something I could actually make well—sandwiches.

Aoi took one bite and immediately grabbed another. "You made this? It's amazing!"

I shrugged. "I live alone. Gotta eat something."

Fumiko tilted her head. "What do you do alone? Doesn't it get boring?"

I took a sip of water. "Train, study, eat, train some more, and sleep."

Her expression darkened. "Wait… that's it? That's all you do? No hobbies?"

I blinked. "Training is my hobby. Nothing beats the feeling of getting stronger."

She didn't look convinced and even concerned, but before she could say anything, Akane cut in. "We should visit him more often."

Aoi nodded. "Yeah, we can study together."

Akira grinned. "And train, of course."

He got up, heading toward the training room. "Hey, what's in here—?"

"Wait—don't—"

Too late.

Akira swung the door open, revealing two versions of me sitting across from each other.

One clone was carefully inscribing seals onto blank tags.

The other was generating electricity between two metal conductors, powering a small, glowing light bulb.

The room went silent.

Akira turned back toward me, looking bewildered. "You know Shadow clone jutsu and you're training right now?! Even while we're talking?!"

Shigeo sighed. "Shinji… this method of training is absurd, just how much do you train?"

I smirked, stepping inside. "Every second I'm awake."

"Freak," they said in unison before leaving, likely motivated to train harder after witnessing my absurd schedule.

I turned back to my clones. "Progress report?"

The clone working on seals sighed. "The explosive tag is perfected, but storage seals are completely different. Space-time theory is involved. I'd suggest learning another seal first."

I nodded. "Then scrap it. Switch to chakra draining seal we got from Jiraya-Sensei. They'll be useful in battle."

"Already on it."

I turned to the other me, who was adjusting the bulb's resistance before generating more electricity.

With my clones handling their tasks, I focused on another experiment.

Raising my hand, I summoned a figure from my shadow—an exact replica of myself.

Unlike Shadow Clones, this one was made purely from cursed energy.

After mastering the Shadow Clone Jutsu, I had managed to develop a new technique—Curse Clones.

The two were vastly different:

Shadow Clones were made of chakra and could perform ninjutsu, while also being absurdly helpful during learning and training.

Curse Clones were formed from cursed energy and couldn't use chakra, but could fully utilize my shadow abilities.

This meant Curse Clones were undetectable by chakra sensors and could hide within shadows, making them perfect for infiltration and sneak attacks.

I grinned.

'With this… I could rob a Kage's office blind.'

'Or steal every secret jutsu scroll in existence.'

I chuckled darkly before dismissing the thought.

For now, I had to learn Fūinjutsu enough to actually do it.

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More stones equals more chapters.