Naruto: The Hidden Shadow Style

After witnessing the speed enhancement granted by Haseo's Lightning Release, the small audience present quickly recognized the power of this jutsu. Therefore, they spontaneously offered their applause for Haseo's creation... although it was meant as praise, it came off as somewhat ironic.

After all, what Haseo was doing wasn't some kind of performance. He was developing a Ninjutsu that enabled Ninja to kill more effectively.

"Good job, Haseo. I didn't expect you to develop such a powerful Lightning Release jutsu in such a short time," Kōga said without hiding his admiration. This technique had been born right under his nose, and precisely because of that, he felt even more astonished.

"This is just a special Ninjutsu developed based on my own unique qualities... Also, thanks to the notes you gave me earlier, I was able to find the right approach so quickly," Haseo sincerely replied. Though happy it worked, he didn't think what he'd done was all that impressive. And had he really developed it in such a short amount of time?

That seemed quick only to those who didn't know how much time someone else had spent learning Sage Arts.

Kōga shook his head; he hadn't intended to take credit. The materials he had shown Haseo before were merely basic information. Countless people had seen those same materials, yet why hadn't they developed jutsu of this level after viewing them? Ultimately, it still came down to one's own ideas and the effort put forth.

[Lightning Release]

"Amazing Lightning Release. With enough practice from now on, I believe it will become a weapon you wield effortlessly," Sakumo Hatake added.

Because he had become a Ninja only recently, Haseo's taijutsu skills weren't refined. However, possessing exceptional speed already, if he could improve his limb coordination and reflex speed, he would quickly rise to join the ranks of elite ninja.

From initially being barely able to defend himself to now—Sakumo couldn't help but admit that Haseo had either already surpassed him or was about to. He silently urged himself to work even harder from now on... Right after lunch today, he definitely needed to step up his training.

Haseo nodded. Sakumo's words made sense. Though pleased with the jutsu's success, due to limited experience so far, his movements during combat remained overly simplistic—a problem that could only be solved through training and continuous battle experience.

However...

Haseo placed one hand on Sakumo's shoulder while using the thumb of his other hand to casually brush his nose and said, "There's one thing you got wrong though, Sakumo. The real threat isn't my Lightning Release... It's my Water Release."

[Water Release] is the strongest, so... Be water, my friend.

Having a jutsu ability was one thing; being able to skillfully utilize that ability was another. They weren't even in the same category. If he wanted to maximize his combat effectiveness, Haseo definitely needed to intensify his training… After all, there once was a ninja whose speed suddenly increased dramatically, but because he couldn't control it immediately, he accidentally ran straight into a wall and sprained his ankle. There was also a warrior who mastered shapeshifting jutsu but, due to mismanaging his new strength at first, ended up badly beating his own wife.

These were historical lessons that Haseo felt compelled to heed.

In any case, successfully developing this new ninja technique definitely improved Haseo's mood. No, more accurately, it wasn't merely pleasurable.

At times like this, he even somewhat understood why certain ninjas became so obsessed with creating Kinjutsu—people like The Second Hokage or Orochimaru. Their enthusiasm didn't stem solely from the sense of achievement and excitement gained by inventing a new jutsu, but also from the illusion that they'd transcended into a higher stage of existence when the new technique significantly enhanced their abilities.

That's why these people would become increasingly restless and eager, sinking deeper and deeper into their obsession.

At the same time, Haseo suddenly realized why his attitude toward war could be described as "not disliking." The reason was simple—it was "fresh." War was something he had never experienced in either of his past lives. Thus heading to the battlefield represented a completely novel experience for him. It was precisely this feeling of "newness" which enabled Haseo to move beyond the influences imposed by his past life, allowing him to finally accept that he really was a young man now.

So, since arriving at the Konoha front line, he had become livelier and more energetic. As the war continued, perhaps this sensation would gradually fade, but at the very least right now, the war was bringing about a positive change within him.

After completing this jutsu test, everyone returned to Konoha's camp from the lakeside. Putting aside each person's private thoughts for now, Haseo knew he absolutely had to leave the frontline hospital—after all, he no longer had any excuse to remain there.

Once they entered the Konoha base, the group parted ways. However, instead of returning directly to the frontline hospital to pack his belongings and prepare for discharge, Haseo first headed toward the logistical equipment department at the Konoha frontline, intending to find himself some more suitable weapons.

Putting his earlier Konoha training aside, once he actually reached the battlefield, he realized just how unsuitable kunai were for him.

The nimble body movements and close combat tendencies of ninjas determined their preference for short, sharp weapons. However, Kunai lacked hand guards—a ninja throwing knife effective for stabbing, but during parrying or defense, an enemy's weapon could easily slide down its blade and slice off one's fingers.

Moreover, although Kunai's four-edged tapered design provided excellent structural strength, leaving wounds shaped like diamonds upon impact, generally speaking, compared to flat-bladed tools, they lacked penetrating power.

Thus, arriving at the logistics section, Haseo made his request to the ninja in charge of weapon supplies.

"I see what you mean. Then how about daggers? Would that work for you?" Saying so, the ninja laid out several different lengths of daggers on a table.

Haseo picked through them and finally selected one measuring roughly forty-five centimeters in total length. He gave a satisfied nod after checking its weight.

"I'll take two of this type of dagger," Haseo said. "And… do they come with scabbards? Otherwise I'm afraid I might cut myself." Naturally, the weapons available here were all standard-issue mass-produced models, but as long as they met his needs, they would suffice. Even though these were mass-produced weapons, Konoha ensured strict quality control.

The ninja shot Haseo a glance. *You realize how much extra production cost and time it takes to outfit each dagger with a scabbard, don't you?* However, seeing that Haseo appeared to be just a young ninja, he refrained from outright refusal.

After flipping through various items for a while, the ninja finally found two matching scabbards.

Haseo slid the dagger into the scabbard, discovering that the blade was securely held in place by a spring-loaded catch at the mouth of the sheath—there was no danger of it falling out even when inverted. He attached one horizontally at his waist and the other diagonally across his back, positioned blade-downward so that the handle extended from behind his armpit to his side.

With this setup, he could pull out either blade in an instant—using either hand.

"Then… do you also have weapons approximately the same length as kunai? A knife would also work." Next, Haseo made his second request.

He had complaints about the piercing capability of kunai, but that didn't mean he didn't need weapons of that size. In some situations, a dagger could still be too long. Therefore, Haseo needed something similar to kunai in length without actually being kunai—a knife-like weapon.

However, the quartermaster ninja was now starting to look impatient. *Do you even know the cost difference between kunai and knives? When both are mass-consumed items, don't you understand cost management?!*

Yet again, Haseo's youthful appearance served to temper the man's response; otherwise, he might have shouted at him already.

"Just wait."

With those words, the ninja turned back into the tent behind him, where soon after came clattering sounds. When he emerged once more, half an hour had passed.

"Here," he dropped ten new weapons before Haseo with an expression clearly saying 'you'd better accept these or else.' "Exactly what you asked for—similar length to kunai, good piercing ability, but not kunai."

Though somewhat amused, Haseo couldn't help showing slight reluctance under the intimidating pressure—he ended up accepting them anyway. Indeed, the weapons perfectly matched his requirements, yet all they really were was quad-edged kunai hammered down into double-edged blades.

No wonder the guy had been able to make such modifications on the spot. Truthfully speaking, they were still kunai!

Seeing the man's expression, Haseo knew he couldn't push any further. Besides, he'd already gotten almost everything he came for. So he thanked the ninja and turned to leave.

Things were heading in the right direction, weren't they?

Or so it seemed?

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