Naruto: Starting with Creating a Genius Persona

The courtyard was quiet, without the sound of swords whistling through the air, only the soft rustling of wood chips falling.

Yamagami Genya sat in the shadows under the eaves, his head bowed.

He held the sword he usually used for sword practice in his hand.

At this moment, the tip of the sword was pressed against a piece of rough wood, and it was being slowly cut and outlined with breathtaking caution.

His movements were slow, and he was extremely careful with each stroke of his sword, as if the blade was not made of wood, but of fragile glass.

As the sawdust fell away with a barely audible cutting sound, it gradually revealed a blurry outline of a seated figure, rounded and gentle, with a hint of quietude in its lowered gaze.

His expression was unusually calm, completely different from his usual fierce and hate-filled demeanor when he wielded his sword.

Sweat still trickled down his forehead, but it was just the warmth from his focus. His hand holding the sword was incredibly steady, yet tense from complete concentration.

The habit of carving Buddha statues started about six months ago.

Hatred! Resentment! Anger! Injustice!

Since he began learning from his master, Yunyun has made rapid progress.

But his swordplay contained no hint of defense; it was all about offense and killing. It was as if his sword was always aimed at the behemoth called the Holy Church, and at the sanctimonious face of Abe no Taisei.

Overwhelming negative emotions, like a tangible miasma, swirled around his sword and enveloped his entire being.

It was a potent poison called "revenge" that was brewed from the despair and pain that settled, fermented, and finally brewed after homes were shattered, loved ones were killed, and faith collapsed.

The poison burned through his lungs and internal organs, and also transformed into the most violent fuel that drove every muscle and every strand of chakra in him.

Transformed into a heart-wrenching, bone-corroding flame of lamentation, it endowed him with an obsession and explosive power far beyond that of ordinary people, allowing him to squeeze out every bit of potential from his body and absorb swordsmanship at an astonishing speed, turning pain into brute force for advancement.

This may be the root of his rapid progress; his swordsmanship, from the very beginning, was paved with hatred and blood.

But six months ago, on that day, his teacher said this to him:

"Hatred is a powerful medicine that can give you a burst of strength in a short time, allowing you to break through ordinary bottlenecks, just like you are now."

"But Yuan Ye, the flame of resentment burning in your heart, while propelling you forward, is also slowly burning away your humanity. You see power, you see the hope of revenge, but do you see where it is leading you?"

The teacher stared into his eyes and spoke slowly and deliberately:

"You are falling into the path of Asura."

"Shura?" Yamagami Genya's body trembled.

"Fighting for the sake of fighting, killing for the sake of killing, with nothing left in their hearts but destruction, they eventually lose themselves in bloodshed and power, becoming demons who only know destruction and slaughter."

The teacher's words were like a dull knife, slowly scraping into his heart:

"Your sword is full of killing intent, that's true, but if one day, that killing intent turns around and devours you, making you unable to distinguish why you wield the sword, leaving only emptiness and a greater desire for destruction after revenge, then you will no longer be yourself! You might even turn into another kind of monster, an Asura no different from the thing you hate."

"Your anger and resentment are your current driving force, but if you don't want to be completely burned to ashes by them, you must learn to find an unburnt pillar in your heart, even in the midst of flames. As for what that pillar is..."

You'll have to find it yourself.

A pillar of support for the soul?

Upon hearing this, Yamagami Genya instinctively reached into his robes and tightly gripped a hard object close to his body.

It was a small wooden Buddha amulet, its edges worn smooth and warm from being worn down. The carving was simple, even somewhat rough.

This is a Buddhist amulet that his sister specially went to the only temple in town to get when she learned that he was going to join the security team.

"Brother, here, please come back safe and sound."

The image of my younger sister's upturned face in my memory, her smile so pure and without a trace of gloom, gradually overlaps with the simple wooden sign in front of me.

"Looks like you've found it." The teacher nodded. "Then hold it tight and carve it with your sword!"

"yes!"

From that day on, Yamagami Genya developed the habit of carving in his spare time from practicing swordsmanship.

The Buddha image he carved was the one on the amulet his sister gave him.

When the teacher saw this, he jokingly teased, "You're a sculptor, right? I might as well give you the nickname 'Flying Ape' or 'Just an Ape' from now on."

Yamagami Gen didn't quite understand what his teacher meant, nor did he know what the nicknames "Flying Monkey" and "Only Monkey" were.

But he could feel that when he held the sword and immersed himself completely in the intricate carving, the burning resentment in his chest would indeed subside temporarily.

Focusing his sword and mind on a single point, he traced the grain of the wood, and the surging hatred, anxiety, and pain seemed to be peeled away little by little along with the falling wood chips.

"Snap."

The last bit of excess sawdust was gently picked away by the tip of the sword.

Yamagami Genya stopped what he was doing and slowly exhaled a long breath at the wooden Buddha statue in his palm, which was no more than half a foot tall, carved from the edge of a sword, and had a calm expression.

He extended his thumb and gently brushed away the fine dust clinging to the Buddha statue's eyebrows and eyes, his movements so light as if afraid of disturbing a fragile dream.

At the other end of the corridor, Isshin stood with his arms crossed, silently watching this scene.

His gaze first lingered on Yamagami Motoya, who was focused on carving, then glanced at Yagyu Tadayoshi, or rather, Owl, who was scratching his head with a curious expression, and he couldn't help but mutter to himself.

The Sculptor, and the Owl... Well, now we have half of the four generals of the Ashina clan. Oh, right, there are also the Seven Spears of Ashina.

So I really have become "one heart"?

Yi Xin secretly rolled her eyes.

Am I going to launch a war to steal the country in the future, and then shout "Sever the ties of immortality"?

but....

Which country will be stolen? The Land of Iron? Or the Land of Hot Springs?

Whose "immortality" is being shattered? Which cult's "immortal saint" is being touted as the source?

The thought flashed through my mind, and even I found it a bit absurd.

At this moment, Yamagami Genya finally noticed Isshin standing under the corridor. He quickly put down the wooden Buddha and sword in his hands, stood up and bowed respectfully.

"teacher."

Isshin nodded, his gaze sweeping over him and Yagyu Tadayoshi beside him, and said succinctly, "I'm going out for a while. You two will be cultivating on your own while I'm gone."

"Yes!" the two replied in unison.

Without saying another word, Yixin turned and strode out, the hem of her clothes drawing a clean arc in the air.

"Teacher!" Yagyu Tadayoshi, or rather, Owl, couldn't help but raise his voice at the retreating figure, asking, "Where are you going?"

Yixin's steps never faltered, but only two words drifted back clearly with his departing footsteps:

"Konoha!"

Konoha!?

Upon hearing this, Xiao's eyes widened instantly, his face filled with envy and longing.

Konoha! That was the sacred ninja land he had always longed for!