Overdrafting the Future, Starting in Naruto

Chapter 20: Instruction!

The mission was over. The four members of the squad sealed the Sky Ninja corpses into a scroll and set off back to Konoha. It was the third day when they finally returned. The mission had taken six days in total.

Back in Konoha, Hatake Sakumo went to submit the mission report, while Genichi and the others disbanded and went their separate ways.

Strolling through the streets, Genichi thought about the intelligence he had gathered on the Village Hidden in the Sky during the journey back. The village was already gone. The remnants of the Sky Ninja were scattered, popping up from time to time to oppose Konoha. It was, however, a suicidal endeavor for them.

The original location of their village was to the east of the Land of Fire and south of the Land of Hot Water, right by the sea. He was currently unsure if the flying fortress from the movie existed beneath the ruins of their village. He also had no information on the Zero-Tails, nor was he certain when it came into existence. He only knew that the fūinjutsu to seal it, as well as a secret regeneration jutsu, had been stolen from Konoha.

Genichi hadn't been able to find out the details of the Sky Ninja village's destruction; Sakumo had been very brief on the subject.

"Perhaps it was because their secret techniques were stolen?" Genichi guessed.

Fortunately, it wasn't as if he had to personally go to the ruins to investigate. As a genin, it would be very difficult for him to leave the village alone.

"Thank goodness for cheats... I'll prepare myself first and master the Four Symbols Seal."

"Then I'll see if the next overdrafted future can get me the Zero-Tails."

Genichi was very self-aware. With his current level of strength, going to look for the Zero-Tails would likely get him killed horribly. He shouldn't be fooled by how easily they had dealt with a dozen Sky Ninja this time. That was only because they had Hatake Sakumo with them.

At the same time, Uchiha Namiichi and Yamanaka En were both chunin-level. Namiichi, in particular, with his two-tomoe Sharingan, was very strong. His taijutsu and close-combat skills alone were enough to soundly defeat Genichi.

After resting at home for half a day, Genichi went to visit Sakumo the next day with a gift. Sakumo had said he could ask him about swordsmanship, and Genichi was not one to let such an opportunity pass. Even if it was just a polite offer, he would be thick-skinned enough to take it seriously.

And Sakumo was clearly not that kind of person. After spending a few days with him, Genichi could sense that he was a senior who was very enthusiastic about helping and promoting the next generation. So, of course, he had to seize the chance. Regardless of whether Sakumo would take him as a disciple or not, he would learn the skills first and worry about the rest later.

...

When Genichi arrived, Kakashi happened to be home and not out on a mission. So, after putting down the gift, the three of them went to a clearing surrounded by trees. There were many wooden dummies nailed to the trees, bearing the marks of countless shuriken. This was likely where Kakashi used to train.

"Kakashi, Genichi, you two spar first," Sakumo said with a smile, adding a special reminder, "Kakashi, Genichi's swordsmanship has improved a lot!"

Kakashi looked at Genichi and asked, "Your iaijutsu?"

Genichi nodded. "I've made some small progress."

Kakashi drew his own tantō from his back. "Then let me see it."

As his voice fell, Kakashi charged toward Genichi.

Genichi crouched low, his right hand resting on the hilt of his sword. However, Kakashi, who was charging head-on, suddenly leaped up, passed over Genichi, and attacked from behind.

Genichi was unfazed. His body drew a half-circle clockwise, turning and drawing his sword in one smooth motion.

Clang!

The blade, drawn upwards from the lower left to the upper right, perfectly intercepted Kakashi's descending slash. Immediately after, Genichi switched to a two-handed grip and brought his blade down in a powerful chop.

Clang!

Kakashi blocked the blow, but his expression changed, and his feet couldn't help but stagger. "Such a heavy blade!"

Genichi seized the opportunity to press the attack. For a moment, the sound of clashing metal was incessant. Kakashi was forced into a continuous retreat, but after just seven or eight exchanges, he stabilized his footing and began to counter-attack.

Genichi had been practicing the Konoha-Style Swordmanship for less than a year. After his two initial iaijutsu strikes failed to secure a decisive victory, his swordsmanship became ordinary. Once Kakashi began his counter-attack, Genichi quickly found himself in a flurry.

He was being beaten up again!

However, Genichi gritted his teeth and held on, concentrating on blocking every one of Kakashi's strikes and trying to absorb his techniques to use in his own counter-attacks. Although he was beaten back every time, he was at least making some small progress.

Sakumo, watching from the side, nodded slightly. It didn't matter if you couldn't win. What mattered was having the will and the ability to learn.

After more than fifty exchanges, Kakashi's tantō rested on Genichi's neck.

Although he had still lost, he had held out for over fifty exchanges, a huge improvement from before.

"Genichi, you've improved a lot," Kakashi commented.

"Especially your iaijutsu. If you time it precisely, it's very easy to kill an enemy in a single strike."

Sakumo smiled. "Genichi already used that move to kill two Sky Ninja remnants on our last mission."

Kakashi was surprised to hear this and looked at Genichi with astonishment.

Genichi smiled. "Those two were nowhere near as skilled with a sword as you, Kakashi. And they underestimated me."

Next up was Sakumo's teaching time.

Genichi was already familiar with the Konoha-Style Swordmanship, so Sakumo didn't teach him basic forms. Instead, he started by teaching him how to apply force. How to apply force to make the blade faster and fiercer. This application of force wasn't just about physical strength, but also the technique of exploding chakra. Just as one could explode chakra from their feet to perform the Body Flicker Technique, one could naturally explode it from their hands to drastically increase the power of a punch, like Tsunade's monstrous strength. The same applied to swordsmanship.

Without considering the addition of nature transformation, a sword fight essentially came down to a contest of three things: neural response speed, power, and speed.

After these techniques were taught, all that was left was practice. And how did one practice? Through live combat, of course.

Genichi was repeatedly beaten up by the Hatake father and son. For three straight days, his mind was filled with nothing but the glint and shadow of blades.

On the fourth day, Kakashi went out on a mission. Genichi was also given a day off. But he couldn't stop to rest. He spent the day studying fūinjutsu and genjutsu.

Before he knew it, seven days had passed.

At nine in the morning, at the Konoha village gate, Team White Fang gathered once again. Genichi's second mission was about to begin.

Mission - leave for training - mission - leave for training. The life of a ninja was just that monotonous.

And before he knew it, Konoha Year 42 had passed.

Hoo~ Genichi exhaled a breath of hot air. "If nothing unexpected happens, the incident will be this year."

"A mission that caused great losses to the nation... what could it be?"

"He abandoned the mission to save his comrades... Can I change that?"

"I hope it's after March..."

In March, Genichi would be able to overdraft the future for ten years again. At that time, his strength should see another increase. At the very least, his swordsmanship should improve dramatically. After several months of guidance from Sakumo, his sword skills had improved very quickly. With another ten years of polishing, he was sure it wouldn't be too bad.

"Genichi!"

A familiar voice entered his ears, startling Genichi from his thoughts. He looked up and couldn't help but smile. "Jiraiya-sensei!"

Leaping down from a rooftop, Genichi landed in front of Jiraiya and gave him a respectful bow.

Jiraiya smiled and beckoned. "Follow me!"

Curious, Genichi followed.

(End of Chapter)