A new week began, and the missions refreshed.
The weekly missions remained largely unchanged.
The only difference was that the task requiring Yakumo to train with Mori Yasuko for three days had been replaced with a new one: train in swordsmanship with Kakashi for seven days.
The reward was 0.5 Agility and 150 gold coins.
Over the course of the week, Yakumo’s attributes had improved considerably once again.
[Personal Status]
Name: Iori YakumoAge: 7Constitution: 6.5 (Endurance, resistance, recovery)Strength: 4.4 (Carrying capacity, attack power, etc.)Agility: 5.6 (Nerve response, running speed, etc.)Intelligence: 5.9 (Learning ability, mental resistance)Chakra: 10.8 (30 units required for promotion to chūnin)Gold Coins: 50
His physical attributes had now reached the middle of his class.
Yakumo was confident that within three months, he could surpass Kakashi Hatake in overall strength!
Of course, he still had to complete his missions and go running every morning.
He couldn’t afford to slack off even a little.
For several consecutive evenings, Yakumo pestered Kakashi into training swordsmanship with him.
Under Kakashi’s guidance, his proficiency in the Hatake Secret Art began increasing rapidly, gaining five or six points each night.
Then, just like that, another week passed.
The concealment technique still hadn’t reached the Beginner level…
Yakumo had to admit that he’d overestimated his own learning ability.
His gold reserves had climbed to 2,100 coins.
His attributes had also received another round of improvements.
Monday, June 28.
The weekly missions refreshed as usual.
The reading reflection and diary tasks hadn’t changed much.
However, the second mission was entirely new.
[2.
Heroes Dare to Conquer the Forest]
Objective: Go on a wilderness picnic in the Forest of Death with Kakashi, Mori Yasuko, Obito Uchiha, and Rin Nohara, and complete one hunt.
Rewards: 0.5 Intelligence and 150 gold coins.
The Forest of Death…
It was a regular venue for the Chūnin Exams held in Konoha.
According to rumors, the First Hokage had created it using Wood Release, though there was no way to verify the claim.
More importantly, the forest was home to countless wild beasts.
Some were even comparable in strength to chūnin.
There was no doubt that this was a dangerous place, especially for a group of children who hadn’t even qualified as genin.
Fortunately, the mission didn’t specify exactly where they had to go.
If they ventured only two kilometers into the forest, they should be able to avoid encountering any excessively powerful beasts.
That left the next problem…
How was Yakumo supposed to persuade the others to join the expedition?
A wilderness picnic…
Yakumo’s first thought was barbecue.
All he needed to prepare were the seasonings and other supplies.
As for the meat, they could obtain it locally.
The Forest of Death was full of wild animals that could provide all the ingredients they needed.
Then Yakumo’s gaze fell on the 2.93 million ryō sitting in his drawer, and he sank into thought.
His monthly expenses were approximately 80,000 ryō.
Over a year, that came to 960,000 ryō—nearly a million.
That meant the compensation his parents had left behind would last, at most, another three and a half years.
After that, he’d have to survive on the monthly orphan allowance provided by Konoha.
A financial crisis!
Thinking about how Naruto had lived on his allowance back in the day, Yakumo hurriedly shook his head.
Even after transmigrating into another world, he still had to worry about money.
In his previous life, he could have taken paid account-grinding jobs or sold rare game items to scrape together enough to live.
But what could he do here?
Take missions?
Too early.
Get a part-time job?
No time.
Forget it.
There was always a way forward.
The first step was to cut expenses.
After breakfast, Yakumo went to a supply shop and purchased everything he needed for the barbecue.
He stored the supplies in a storage scroll before setting off on his morning run.
Before long, Mori Yasuko appeared, and the two of them headed to Training Ground Fourteen together.
“Yasuko, I’m thinking of suggesting that we go on a picnic and explore the outskirts of the Forest of Death today.
When the time comes, help me figure out how to persuade the others.”
Yakumo decided to bring Yasuko onto his side first.
With her support, convincing everyone else would be much easier.
“The Forest of Death…?
But isn’t it dangerous there?” Yasuko asked, looking slightly puzzled.
“Can I know why you want to go?”
“Because…
I want to go exploring.”
Mori Yasuko suddenly stepped in front of Yakumo.
Her large eyes fixed intently on his, as though she were trying to uncover the truth he was hiding.
Their eyes met.
The atmosphere grew a little strange.
“All right.
I’ll go with you.”
Yasuko withdrew her gaze, a beautiful blush spreading across her cheeks.
Yakumo, however, failed to notice.
Having received her agreement, he had already drawn his short blade and begun practicing the techniques contained in the Hatake Secret Art.
One repetition.
Then another.
At eight in the morning, Kakashi arrived at the training ground with his short blade on his back and began practicing alongside Yakumo.
As the undisputed top student in their class, Kakashi wasn’t arrogant.
He worked just as hard as anyone else.
Well, almost anyone else.
Might Guy wasn’t included in that comparison.
At nine o’clock, Rin Nohara arrived and began practicing chakra control beneath a tree.
Her goal was clear: she wanted to become a medical ninja who could support her teammates.
It wasn’t until ten that morning, when the weather had grown considerably hotter, that Obito Uchiha finally sauntered into the training ground.
“Seriously?!” Obito exclaimed, staring at the sweat-soaked Yakumo in disbelief.
“It’s our day off, and neither you nor Kakashi is taking a break?”
Because of the Ninja Academy’s unusual schedule, students attended classes for the first twenty-seven days of every month without a break.
The final three days were designated as holidays, giving them a chance to rest before the constant pressure drove them to exhaustion.
“Early birds catch the worm.
Hard work makes up for a lack of talent,” Yakumo replied.
By then, Obito had already crouched beneath the tree to watch Rin practice.
He hadn’t come to Training Ground Fourteen to train at all.
He was simply there to accompany Rin.
Sigh.
After resting for a moment, Yakumo picked up his blade again and resumed his training.
His posture was precise, and every strike was delivered with full commitment.
In Yakumo’s opinion, Obito’s habit of slacking off and taking things as they came was precisely why he would lack the strength to prevent tragedy when it eventually struck.
Then again, perhaps that wasn’t entirely fair.
Even if Obito had been much stronger, he still might not have been able to stop Madara’s plan.
The sun climbed high overhead, and the temperature continued rising until the weather became unsuitable for training.
The group had no choice but to take shelter beneath the tree.
“How about this?” Yakumo finally began putting his plan into action.
“Why don’t we go exploring in the Forest of Death and have a picnic while we’re there?”
“Sounds great!
The Forest of Death should be much cooler than this place.
I’m in,” Mori Yasuko immediately replied.
“Uh…
isn’t the Forest of Death dangerous?” Obito asked hesitantly, his tone suggesting that he would rather decline.
“Obito, don’t tell me you’re scared,” Yasuko said without hesitation, taunting him mercilessly.
“With that level of courage, you still go around claiming you’ll protect Rin?
Maybe you should give up on that idea.”
Her openly contemptuous gaze was the final straw.
Obito’s face turned red with anger.
“Who says I’m scared?!
Fine, let’s go!
Whoever chickens out is a coward!”
Ordinary provocation might not have worked, but when Rin was involved, Obito seemed to lose all rational judgment.
“Haha!
Don’t start trembling or crying when we get there!”
Yakumo turned to Kakashi.
“What do you think?”
Kakashi was actually the most difficult person to persuade.
Provocation rarely worked on him.
Unless he personally wanted to participate, there was little chance of changing his mind.
“If we’re only going to the outskirts, it should be fine.
When I was four, Father took me to train in the outskirts of the Forest of Death for a month.”
Wow.
Talk about casually flexing.
“Then it’s settled!” Yakumo declared with a laugh.
“I’ve already brought all the barbecue supplies.
We’ll hunt for the rest of the ingredients once we’re there!”