Chapter 74: Squad 7's Special Training

Chapter 74: Squad 7's Special Training

Ishiro previously had only 1,000 contribution points in his account.

This border harassment mission against Konoha's outpost was very successful, eliminating seven patrol squads and considered an A-rank mission for Squad 7. As the team leader, Ishiro effectively completed an additional solo A-rank mission, earning 3,000 contribution points.

In addition, eliminating an entire Anbu squad earned another A-rank rating, bringing Ishiro another 3,000 contribution points.

From the various supplies collected from over thirty enemy ninjas (items Squad 7 didn't need), Ishiro received 500 contribution points. The enemy corpses submitted, including one Anbu Jōnin, netted another 800 points. Ishiro's personal share was about half, roughly 600 points.

Adding the mysterious S-rank mission credit from earlier, Ishiro gained an additional 12,000 contribution points.

In total, Ishiro's contribution points soared to nearly 20,000. Combined with the special reward allowing him to exchange for one B-rank ninjutsu, Ishiro now had ample resources for significant upgrades.

However, he hadn't even mastered his previous B-rank Kenjutsu yet. Furthermore, he'd acquired a new C-rank Water Release ninjutsu (Water Surge Wave) from the recent battle, which required time and practice.

Considering his tight schedule, Ishiro decided to hold off selecting another B-rank ninjutsu for now, saving both his contribution points and the exchange opportunity.

As Ishiro lived alone, aside from training he had no other distractions. During the seven-day vacation he gave his squad, Ishiro spent two half-days at the Barrier Division headquarters. The rest of his time was devoted to rigorous training at the Anbu facility.

After the seven-day leave, Squad 7 began a month-long special training, aimed at increasing individual strength and improving teamwork.

Ishiro himself primarily focused on mastering Kenjutsu basics, while using spare time to learn Water Surge Wave. He also concentrated on improving his proficiency with Body Flicker Technique and Pressurized Water Line Technique, as well as enhancing Water Line Technique—his ultimate goal was to perform multiple simultaneous Water Line attacks.

Jun focused primarily on Earth Release jutsu training, an area in which Ishiro could easily guide her due to his own expertise.

Fu focused on mastering the Body Flicker Technique, recently taught by Ishiro.

Only Seiten required no specific guidance from Ishiro, as he practiced independently. All Ishiro could offer was serving as a training opponent, providing him with experience against ninjutsu users.

Additionally, Ishiro specifically helped his three subordinates practice resistance to genjutsu attacks.

Besides individual training, Squad 7 conducted team coordination exercises, including strategies for marching formations, defensive tactics, and how to coordinate attacks against various enemy types.

Following the recent outpost mission, Ishiro already had a clear understanding of his three subordinates' abilities. Conversely, his subordinates still lacked a complete understanding of Ishiro's true capabilities.

Therefore, Ishiro took time to thoroughly demonstrate each of his techniques and carefully explained the details and characteristics of his jutsu to them.

One month later, Squad 7 engaged in a simulated combat exercise at an outdoor training area managed by the Anbu. The exercise scenario: Ishiro alone hunted down three rogue ninjas (played by his team members).

This particular training ground was located on the outskirts of the village, still within the sensing barrier's range. There was a high wall between this area and the residential district, so ordinary villagers mistakenly believed this wall marked the village's outer boundary.

The village had other peripheral zones like medicinal herb plantations, a small region for ninja beasts, and prisons—all similarly located outside the main residential areas.

Squad 7's current training ground was expansive, with diverse terrains. The village even employed specialized personnel to transplant and maintain trees here. Its strategic value was similar to Konoha's Forest of Death, though Iwa lacked the lush natural environment and diverse ecosystems of Konoha.

Ishiro currently stood at a corner of this training ground. His objective was to locate and eliminate the three "rogue ninjas" within three hours. According to the pre-agreed rules, Ishiro was forbidden from using sensory jutsu, though all other abilities were permitted.

Having grown accustomed to sensory ninjutsu, Ishiro initially struggled without it, slowing down his searching speed considerably.

However, Ishiro remained patient. After carefully searching each area, he left behind some sensory seals. Since Ishiro was alone and forbidden from sensory techniques, his greatest fear was that his subordinates would simply hide indefinitely, engaging him in a prolonged game of hide-and-seek.

Another major challenge was Fu. Fu was faster than Ishiro, and if he decided to escape without fighting, Ishiro would be powerless to catch him.

Thus, alongside placing sensory seals, Ishiro also set several traps specifically designed to slow down swift opponents.

Actually, the combination of Seiten, Jun, and Fu was already quite formidable. Their team had a balanced configuration with ninjutsu, taijutsu, and kenjutsu. Sword specialists were relatively rare in Iwagakure. The presence of skilled Kenjutsu users in Ishiro's teams was largely thanks to Owl's special consideration.

A coordinated effort by two taijutsu specialists and a ninjutsu user would allow them to fight evenly against a Tokubetsu Jōnin. Combined with Fu's kenjutsu skills, they could even escape safely from such opponents if they coordinated properly.

But this didn't particularly concern Ishiro, as his strength had rapidly increased again. Both his chakra quality and reserves now matched those of an ordinary Jōnin.

Before Ishiro's mental breakthrough, his chakra reserves were approximately 2.4 B. Since then, his physical capabilities had rapidly improved, effectively doubling his chakra reserves almost monthly.

Now, after six months, Ishiro's chakra reserves had reached an astonishing 160 B.

160 B of chakra equaled about 1.6 A units. By chakra volume alone, Ishiro had already reached entry-level Jōnin standards.

He felt his rapid growth following his mental breakthrough wouldn't last much longer—likely only one or two more months at best.

Overall, Ishiro was confident facing direct confrontations, now that his chakra quality and quantity had reached normal Jōnin levels.

However, for this type of "hunter mission," the most troublesome person wasn't the strongest-looking member, but rather Seiten—the seemingly least prominent teammate. Seiten's trap-setting skills were exceptional, a fact Ishiro had personally experienced during previous training sessions.

To put it into perspective, in the original Naruto series, Orochimaru once witnessed a young Uchiha Itachi performing a self-devised trap-evasion exercise. Using kunai-based traps to simulate a lethal barrage, Itachi perfectly dodged everything, astonishing even Orochimaru.

Though Seiten's best traps didn't reach that exact level, when combined with explosive tags, their effectiveness was similarly terrifying.

Ishiro had no intention of experiencing that kind of horror firsthand.

Given Seiten's ability and the half-hour advantage they had for preparation, Ishiro proceeded with extreme caution. He spent an entire hour carefully searching before discovering something suspicious.

He eyed a messy pile of rocks in front of him. Instinctively, he sensed a trap here. Since becoming a Tokubetsu Jōnin, he'd developed intuition that ordinary ninja lacked.

Rather than entering rashly, Ishiro located higher ground nearby. Then, performing a modified Earth Flow Wall jutsu, he raised a narrow but tall platform beneath his feet.

Standing atop the Earth Flow Wall, Ishiro closely observed the suspicious area. Though nothing concrete appeared wrong, Ishiro chose caution.

He quickly formed six hand signs and unleashed Water Surge Wave directly onto the rock pile.

Sure enough, numerous hidden projectiles erupted from their hiding spots.

"Just as expected."

With a resigned sigh, Ishiro unleashed two more Water Surge Waves to trigger additional traps. Next, he created Earth Clones to scout further.

Eventually, after intense effort, one of Ishiro's clones finally spotted Jun hiding among the trees.

Without hesitation, Ishiro unleashed several Pressurized Water Lines toward her location.

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