“Failed, huh.”
Twenty minutes after announcing the results and not seeing any system messages, Mokutsuki realized his initial testing plan needed to be more effective.
His self-devised exams didn’t work, at least not with such short intervals between them.
Regrettably, Mokutsuki had to abandon his plan for frequent tests, realizing they wouldn’t yield any rewards from the system and might just make the students think he was crazy.
During evening training, Shisui suddenly appeared in front of Mokutsuki, excitedly saying, “Mokutsuki-sensei, I think I’ve finally got the hang of Soru.”
He then demonstrated Soru twice in front of Mokutsuki.
After watching, Mokutsuki confirmed it and used his identification technique to check Shisui. Indeed, Soru was now marked as a ‘Beginner’.
“Yes, you’ve mastered the technique. Now you can practice more to get familiar with it, and then we can move on to other techniques,” Mokutsuki nodded, closing the status screen.
He planned to teach Shisui more Fire Release jutsu to increase his offensive capabilities. Shisui learned jutsu quickly, so Mokutsuki felt confident in giving him more techniques.
For Obito, Mokutsuki decided not to teach him the new Fire Release jutsu just yet. Obito already had Great Fireball and Dragon Fire, which were sufficient for now. More techniques might overwhelm him during battles.
Mokutsuki looked at Might Guy and used the identification technique on him, finding that Guy’s Soru proficiency was still thirty points away from ‘Beginner.’
“At this rate, it’ll take about another week for him to master it,” Mokutsuki thought, closing the screen.
Then, Mokutsuki had an idea. Previously, training together had significantly improved both Obito’s and Guy’s body techniques.
Now, they were essentially training the same thing, Soru, though Obito still needed to learn the complete technique. It was all about enhancing their speed.
Mokutsuki called Obito and Guy over, smiling as he asked, “Do you feel like your current learning efficiency is a bit slow?”
Guy shook his head, thinking it was fine.
Obito’s eyes lit up. Since Mokutsuki was asking, he probably had a method to improve their efficiency. Obito quickly replied, “Yes, Mokutsuki-sensei. The speed-boosting technique you taught is really hard. Do you have a quicker way to learn it?”
“Yes, I do. But it’s up to you if you want to try it,” Mokutsuki nodded.
“Of course, we want it,” Obito eagerly said, looking at Mokutsuki with hopeful eyes. He wanted to master the speed technique quickly to complete the challenge and start learning Soru.
“If it helps me master Soru faster, then I want it too,” Guy couldn’t resist the allure of mastering the technique more quickly.
“Great. First, run a lap and show me your top speed,” Mokutsuki said with a gentle smile.
Although they were confused, they did as Mokutsuki asked, running at their maximum speed.
Mokutsuki silently timed them, getting a sense of their speeds.
“Here’s the plan,” Mokutsuki explained. “You’ll compete to see who can surpass their top speed first. For every half-second you’re slower than your best time, you’ll do five more problems. For every half-second you’re faster, you’ll do five less. Whoever reaches the finish line first will have thirty problems deducted. You’ll each start with forty problems.”
Since their speeds were different, Mokutsuki adjusted the distance for Guy, who was closer to mastering Soru, while Obito hadn’t started learning the full technique yet.
“What?” Obito was stunned. He hadn’t expected Mokutsuki’s quick learning method to be this nightmare-inducing training.
The rules brought back memories of the combat training before finals, with familiar penalties and starting with a burden of problems. He could foresee the installment phase approaching.
“Mokutsuki-sensei, I think our current efficiency is quite high already,” Obito said, wiping cold sweat from his forehead, trying to backtrack.
Guy, showing agreement, added, “I think so too.”
It had only been a month since they got rid of combat-related problem-solving. Guy didn’t want to return to daily problem-solving.
“Alright, I thought you’d like a training method that combines theory and practice,” Mokutsuki said with a disappointed expression, seemingly hurt.
“I even prepared next semester’s theory lessons for you. I guess we’ll save them for next term.”
Obito felt bad. He had experienced similar feelings before, working hard to come up with ideas for friends, only to have them dismissed easily.
“Actually, Mokutsuki-sensei, your idea is great. It enhances our speed and improves our theoretical knowledge,” Obito said, forcing a smile despite his inner turmoil. Even if it meant more problems, he couldn’t let Mokutsuki-sensei down.
“Training and doing problems are part of youth!” Guy also couldn’t bear to see Mokutsuki sad and quickly changed his tune, though he inwardly wept at the thought of future days.
“Then get ready to start the race,” Mokutsuki said, returning to his usual warm smile.
Seeing Mokutsuki’s smile again, Obito felt relieved but also wanted to slap himself for speaking up.
“Why do I always have to respond? If I hadn’t said anything when Mokutsuki-sensei first mentioned improving efficiency, none of this would have happened,” Obito thought to himself.
But there was no turning back. The only option was to minimize the damage by doing as well as possible in the race.
Reducing problems by half a second wasn’t easy, but reaching the finish line first, regardless of breaking their limits, was the best strategy.
They both understood this and were filled with determination, motivated by both the desire to win and the fear of problems.
Mokutsuki set the race routes for both and positioned himself where they could both hear him.
“Ready, start!” Mokutsuki shouted.
As soon as he heard the signal, Obito sprinted with all his might, not looking back. He used every ounce of strength he had.
(End of Chapter)
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