Ping pong pong!
The sound of wooden hammers echoed.
On a wooden frame, a house was being repaired.
A Konoha villager wiped the sweat from his forehead, raised his hand, and waved to Yuichi below.
"Alright! Yuichi, I can handle the rest—thanks for your help!"
"Okay."
Yuichi turned and walked toward another house.
[Wood Style proficiency +1]
[Wood Style (Inheritance: 44.8% – Stage Two of Ability Inheritance)]
Wood Style inheritance continued to climb.
Yuichi allowed himself a faint smile.
Helping the people of Konoha rebuild their homes with Wood Style was far too convenient.
Not only did it win him the praise of uncles and aunties across the village—it also let him farm proficiency.
Why not kill two birds with one stone?
'System, open my character panel.'
The Chūnin Exam was over, and Yuichi's stats had gone through earth-shaking changes.
Character Panel
Chakra Attributes: Water, Earth, Wind, Fire, Yang
(Missing only Lightning and Yin to complete the set.)
Physique: Advanced Shinobi Physique (1762/1001299867)
The battles during the Chūnin Exams had boosted his physique proficiency by nearly a hundred points.
Mastered Ninjutsu:
Perfect: Substitution, Body Flicker, Shadow Clone
Water Style – Perfect:
Water Clone, Great Waterfall, Turbulent Water, Water Barrier, Hard Vortex Water Blade, Water Dragon Bomb, Water Fang Bullet, Water Severing Wave, Water Blade Cut, Water Stream Instant, Grand Water Surge, Water Whip
Elementary: Water Dragon Fang (0/2300)
(A technique gained from Hinata during the Exams—he hadn't had time to polish it yet.)
Fire Style – Perfect:
Fire Dragon Flame Bullet, Fire Dragon Stream, Phoenix Sage Fire, Fire Extinguishing Blast, Hidden Ash, Singing Fire Dragon, Fire Shooting Star, and more.
Earth Style – Perfect:
Earth Substitution, Earth Flow, Rock Slide River, Mountain Soil Wall, Stone Fist, Earth Flow River
Elementary: Other Earth Techniques
Lightning Style: Lightning Walk (0/750)
Wind Style – Perfect:
Great Breakthrough, Beast Wave Palm, Wind Blade, Wind Counter, Thousand-Faced Wind, Wind Shuriken, Vacuum Sphere, Vacuum Bullet
Wood Style (Inheritance 44.8% – Stage Two):
Perfect: Tree Binding Burial, Wood Lock Wall, Silent Binding, Deep Forest Emergence, Tree Boundary Wall, Thorn Binding, Wood Clone, Wood Transformation
Elementary: Wooden Golem, Wood Dragon, Wood Expulsion
Illusion: None mastered
Special Physiques:
Sage Body (55%)
Dead Bone Pulse (40%)
Bloodline Limits:
Wood Style
Dead Bone Pulse
Chakra Reserves: Slightly above an average Genin
On top of that, Yuichi had already mastered Hidden Mist and Rasengan, though the system didn't count them since they weren't part of its "gifts."
With so many ninjutsu perfected, he no longer had to worry about variety.
Especially Earth Style—Yuichi was a grandmaster. He could use virtually every Earth Jutsu, though only some had been pushed to "perfect." The rest remained at beginner level, waiting to be polished.
His plan: focus on the most practical and powerful Earth Style jutsu, and grind them to perfection first.
Closing the panel, Yuichi raised his eyes toward the next half-finished house.
"Uncle Kanon, let me help you!"
"Oh! Yuichi! Then I'll leave it to you."
"No problem!"
Yuichi placed both hands together.
"Wood Style!"
Boom!
Wooden planks burst from the ground, snapping into place and forming the skeleton of a house in the blink of an eye.
The villager gaped.
"Incredible, Yuichi! You must be a descendant of Lord Senju himself."
Yuichi smiled.
"Maybe. I'm not sure."
"You'll be a great shinobi one day. We all hope to see you become Hokage."
"I'll work hard," Yuichi said simply, before moving on to the next home.
From morning until night, Yuichi continued.
With Wood Style, entire homes rose in moments. What would've taken villagers weeks now took mere minutes.
Naturally, he became popular with every family he helped.
By now, Yuichi wasn't just "a promising Genin."
He was Konoha's rising star.
The sun dipped toward the horizon.
At the last house, Yuichi summoned Wood Style once more, forming the frame with ease.
[Wood Style proficiency +1]
[Congratulations! Host's Wood Style inheritance has increased to 45%]
[New Ability Unlocked: Wood Style Application – Diamond Force]
Diamond Force: A fusion of Wood Style and Weird Power Fist, amplifying physical strikes with Wood Style's strength.
Yuichi's eyes lit up.
A Wood-Style-enhanced version of Tsunade's monstrous strength?
Perfect.
His melee ability had just taken another leap. Combined with Body Flicker at perfection and Dead Bone Pulse's physique boosts, his speed and raw power would make him unstoppable.
Clenching his fists, he felt it.
That crushing strength, pulsing in his small hands.
Could he level a mountain with one punch now?
He almost wanted to test it immediately… but it was getting late.
Tomorrow, he would find somewhere outside the village to try.
For now—it was time to rest.
As Yuichi walked back, every Konoha shinobi he passed greeted him warmly.
Jōnin, Chūnin, even fellow Genin—everyone acknowledged him.
While he was chatting, a Jōnin approached.
"Yuichi, come with me. Lord Nara Shikaku wants to see you."
Shikaku?
Yuichi nodded without hesitation.
Most of Konoha was still in ruins, tents replacing homes. Shikaku himself lived in one of the large command tents, busy organizing the reconstruction.
When Yuichi entered, the other shinobi quietly withdrew, leaving only the two of them.
"Yuichi," Shikaku said with a faint smile, "we're fortunate to have you. Thanks to your Wood Style, rebuilding is moving faster than anyone imagined."
"It's nothing. It's my responsibility. After all, Konoha was destroyed because of me."
Shikaku chuckled.
"No one blames you. We all understand your anger. And in the end, not a single civilian was harmed. A few houses broken? That's a small price."
Yuichi nodded silently.
Then Shikaku's eyes sharpened.
"Yuichi, I know your strength better than most. You passed the Chūnin Exams… but your abilities are already far beyond a Chūnin's."
He paused.
"So—would you like to take the Jōnin assessment?"
Yuichi's eyes widened.
A Jōnin?
He looked straight at Shikaku and answered without hesitation.
"Of course I would."