Konoha's Mission Master

Most importantly, Sakumo Hatake's practice helped him correct several mistakes, making the use of the Hatake Secret Manual smoother and more natural in the future.

"Kakashi, see Yakumo off."

Sakumo Hatake picked up a towel and wiped the sweat from his face. He then instructed Kakashi that the four-hour drill had taken a heavy toll on his mental energy.

As dusk fell, Yakumo walked home, his mind still replaying Hatake Sakumo's drills.

From now on, I will practice ninjutsu with Jiraiya in the morning, go to Konoha Hospital to study medical ninjutsu in the afternoon, and come to Hatake Sakumo's place more often in the evening to learn the Hatake Secret Manual.

After returning home in the evening, he still had to complete his reading notes and diary, as well as his daily summary. In short, every day was fulfilling and busy. He, Jing, became stronger entirely through his own efforts and had nothing to do with any cheat codes.

"Meow~"

Milkball's excited howl disrupted Yakumo's thoughts. Looking at the scar a few centimeters long on his left cheek, he suddenly remembered that he had forgotten to ask Aoyama Reiko for scar removal cream today.

"That milk ball... I accidentally forgot about it..."

"Meow...?" Milk Ball's voice softened slightly, as if to confirm whether Yakumo was joking.

"Definitely tomorrow!"

"Meow…"

Milkball jumped down from the wall, and in the pitch-black night, it gradually lost its soul, leaving only an empty body.

With a loud bang, Yakumo quickly darted into the room, only to find that the brown leather sofa had completely collapsed, cotton was scattered all over the floor, and next to it was a baby with an innocent look on its face.

Yakumo clenched his fists... constantly reminding himself.

"I'll raise them myself... I'll raise them myself..."

"We can't fight...we can't fight."

A few dozen seconds later, Yakumo returned to calm.

"...Tsk, you've got quite a temper. I was planning to take you out for barbecue in a few days, but you didn't appreciate the opportunity..."

Upon hearing this, Milkball remained aloof for the first second.

The next second, Milk Ball appeared at Yakumo's feet like lightning, then rubbed its chubby cheeks against Yakumo's calves, trying its best to please her.

"I thought you'd be much tougher," Yakumo said, picking up Milkball and petting the cat for a while.

"Meow... Meow~"

Who could imagine that the adorable, clumsy little ball that can now act cute and roll around was once the overlord of the Death Forest? Yakumo couldn't help but recall a sentence he had heard in his previous life.

"The Bear Clan will never be enslaved, unless they are provided with food and shelter!"

After finishing his tasks that night, it was already close to midnight, so he had to change his plans, quickly wash up, and go to bed.

In a corner of the bedroom, ten shadow clones practiced ninjutsu methodically. Fortunately, his physique and mental strength were high enough to withstand the pressure brought by the operation of ten shadow clones 24 hours a day.

Make a little progress every day, and you can eventually create miracles!

September 15th, Friday.

In the morning, Yakumo gets up for a morning run, practices the Ninja Art: Needle Jizo in the morning, and in the afternoon he studies bloodline diseases and medical ninjutsu at Konoha Hospital, while also getting a scar-removing ointment. In the evening, he visits Sakumo Hatake to learn the Hatake Secret Manual.

September 16th, Saturday.

Palm Immortal Technique, Beginner's Guide!

The scar on Naiqiu's left eye has disappeared.

Before we knew it, it was October 1st.

A brand new monthly limited-edition update.

'Swordsmanship honing'

Mission objective: Defeat Kakashi head-on using swordsmanship.

Task Rewards: 3 Free Attribute Points, 1000 Gold Coins.

Bonus Reward: Master Breakthrough Scroll

This task isn't difficult; the key point is probably defeating Kakashi using swordsmanship, meaning that only swordsmanship is allowed during the sparring session.

That afternoon, Yakumo arrived at Konoha Hospital.

Reiko Aoyama was wearing a white lab coat and frameless glasses, but her expression seemed somewhat somber.

"Yakumo, the Daimyo's government has invited us to the Fire Capital to attend the inauguration ceremony of the new Daimyo, as friends."

"No way, Shinichi has already become the daimyo in less than a month? Didn't Lady Tsunade say that the previous daimyo had at least eight years left to live?" Yakumo asked in surprise, his mind involuntarily recalling that always warm and smiling face.

“The previous daimyo died a few days ago after accidentally falling down the stairs…” Aoyama Reiko adjusted her glasses.

Yakumo froze instantly, his eyes filled with disbelief!

Chapter 58 Sparring

Under the influence of chakra, the vitality of ordinary people in the ninja world is far stronger than in their previous lives. It's too absurd that an old man would fall to his death while going down the stairs.

"Could it be... that Zhen Yi made a move?"

“Very likely.” Reiko Aoyama nodded in agreement. There were only the two of them in the laboratory at the moment, so there was no need to be too discreet in their conversation.

"It's only been a little over ten days... He truly lives up to his reputation as the son of a daimyo, with the same coldness and cruelty flowing in his blood. He even understands the art of forbearance and decisive killing." Yakumo put down the book in his hand with a hint of helplessness.

“Before, when no one paid attention to him, it was easier to hide. Now that the entire Daimyo Prefecture is watching him, the difficulty of hiding has increased dramatically. He probably acted first because he was afraid that the Daimyo would find out,” Aoyama Reiko analyzed seriously.

“I’m more inclined to believe that he was just too lazy to wait another eight years after he had all the power in his hands. In terms of ruthlessness, the eldest son is slightly inferior to him,” Yakumo said.

Reiko Aoyama nodded in deep agreement. If the eldest son had chosen a more direct approach back then, he might already be the daimyo of the Land of Fire.

After all, he was his own father. When discussing the plan, he chose to let him die peacefully, but he did not expect Tsunade to break the poison in an unreasonable way.

"Actually, what we should be considering more is..."

Reiko Aoyama sat up straight, a hint of worry flashing in her eyes, and continued speaking.

What was his purpose in inviting us?

"We can't just kill them to silence them, can we?" Yakumo waved his hand and said casually. Judging from his current strength, he was not afraid of those few guard ninjas from the Daimyo's mansion.

“Maybe it really is possible?” Aoyama Reiko nodded, her tone suddenly becoming stern and low.

"If it really comes to that... I'll hold off the enemy, Aoyama-neechan, you just turn around and run," Yakumo comforted her with a smile.

"Then it's settled."

Yakumo left Konoha Hospital that evening, intending to finalize the "Monthly Limited Edition" tonight. After all, he was setting off for the Land of Fire the next day, and he couldn't refuse the Daimyo's personal invitation.

But he really couldn't figure out why Shinichi would invite them back to the City of Fire. In the blink of an eye, Yakumo had arrived at the Hatake mansion, and Yakumo smiled.

Kakashi was so friendly to him, and Sakumo Hatake was such a powerful figure; now, going to the Hatake mansion felt as welcoming as coming home.

Most importantly... he is the only person among all the people that Hatake Sakumo Yakumo has come into contact with who has pushed a certain ability to the master level.

In Yakumo's view, becoming a master is actually very simple; all you need is a tiny bit of talent and decades of unwavering passion.

Ninjas are known for their unpredictable and varied fighting style, which relies on the tacit cooperation between dozens of ninjutsu to create the strongest destructive effect. Few people would spend decades mastering the same technique.

In the training ground, Sakumo Hatake was instructing Kakashi Hatake in his training. When he saw Yakumo enter, he waved for him to sit next to Kakashi.

"It's just in time that Yakumo has arrived. What I'm about to say is very important," Hatake Sakumo said with a light cough and a serious expression.

"After practicing the katana countless times, you will reach a state of perfection where there is no further progress. At that point, no matter how many more times you practice, you will not improve. I was stuck at this level for three whole years..."

"Later, I began to think that when a problem arises, the first thing to do is to think about how to solve it. Later, I reduced the number of times and the time I spent practicing swordsmanship, and devoted more energy to thinking. Finally, I realized my way."

Sakumo Hatake extended his index finger and pressed it against the chest of the Tetsuya dummy in front of him. With an invisible wind swirling around his finger, he subtly manipulated his chakra, and a hole was pierced through the Tetsuya dummy.

"Hiss, the Mighty Vajra Finger..."

Yakumo thought to himself, at that moment he only sensed a slight surge of chakra and an invisible, free wind swirling around Sakumo Hatake's fingertips.

"This is the path I've walked... Sharp and unyielding."

He can turn the surrounding wind into an unparalleled weapon for me. If I use White Fang, I can easily cut through the steel golems created by the Sand Ninja. This is the key to my ability to single-handedly wipe out the puppet special forces and secure victory.

At this moment, Yakumo was incredibly envious. This was... the S-rank Hatake Secret Manual, a master-level transformation, almost like mastering the power of nature, yet completely different from Sage Mode.

Kakashi and Yakumo tried their best to sense the power in Sakumo Hatake's fingertips, but unfortunately, their levels were too low, and even with Sakumo's help, they still couldn't gain anything.

Kakashi was the first to give up. He had tried to comprehend and learn this power before, but the result was obvious... Yakumo, who was advancing, also opened his eyes.

"Want to have a spar, Kakashi?"

"it is good."

Kakashi didn't hesitate at all. Through these days of training together, he had always hoped to spar with Yakumo. Especially after training together these days, he could clearly confirm that Yakumo was very strong.

"The condition is that only swordsmanship must be used..."

"Okay," Kakashi replied.

The two stood on opposite sides of the training field. Sakumo Hatake was naturally the referee and safety officer for this sparring match, and he was responsible for rescuing someone when they were about to get injured.

Sakumo Hatake knew that Yakumo was very strong. Although his fighting skills were still immature, considering his age, he could be called a prodigy.

"Begin by forming the seal of opposition."

With a whoosh, the two locked eyes and launched their attacks at the same moment, filling the training ground with the whistling sound of blades slicing through the air.

The two practiced the same swordsmanship and understood each other well. Their attack methods were basically the same. The only difference might be their mastery of the Hatake swordsmanship and their fighting styles.

Kakashi trained under Sakumo Hatake from a young age, naturally inheriting his light and effective fighting style. Yakumo, however, was different. Although he also used a short blade, his attacks were more open and straightforward, emphasizing overwhelming force.

Where their weapons clashed, a dense shower of sparks flew. Kakashi felt an immense force surge into his body from the hilt of his sword, his hands went numb, and he was forced back several steps.

Kakashi, who was temporarily at a disadvantage, was not discouraged. On the contrary, he felt his blood boiling and his desire to win was fully ignited.

When his pure strength was inferior to his enemy's, Kakashi began to change his attack patterns, becoming like a nimble assassin who would stick to Yakumo and then leave immediately, never giving him a chance to overwhelm him with force.

The two moved back and forth on the training field, their steps quick and agile. As time went by, Kakashi's face began to turn pale, revealing a significant gap between him and Yakumo in terms of pure physical strength.

Clang... Another metallic clang rang out. Kakashi immediately retreated, trying to regulate his disordered breathing. The Hatake sword technique is very particular about breathing, and disordered breathing is a sign of defeat!

Ignoring everything else, Yakumo launched another attack, slashing at Kakashi's right hand that was holding the sword.

In the rush, Kakashi had no time to dodge and could only raise his right arm to block. However, he underestimated Yakumo's long-planned and fierce attack, and overestimated his own strength. His arm went numb in an instant, and his ninja sword slipped from his hand.

Kakashi was defeated.