The moment Naruto finished speaking, the expression on Sasuke's clone froze. At first he thought Naruto was rubbing salt into his wounds. Then, thinking it through, he realized the tone held no mockery at all.
Naruto walked back down the trunk the same path he had taken up. Sasuke's clone stepped in with a stiff face. "This tree walking training… is it the same method you used to walk on water before"
"In broad strokes, yes," Naruto said, eyes bright. "But walking on water is much harder than climbing a tree."
Sasuke's clone nodded, thinking. "What is the point of this training"
Naruto gave him a surprised look. "That face does not match the question. Do not rush. I will show you exactly how to practice. It is not some lofty secret."
"Still, not bad. You finally learned how to play dumb with a straight face."
A flash of embarrassment crossed Sasuke's clone.
He had wanted to ask the moment Naruto took those first steps up the bark, but pride got in the way. He did not want to look desperate.
Naruto ignored the pride angle and pointed at his feet. "It is simple. Gather your chakra in your soles, then use that chakra like an adhesive to stick to the trunk."
"That simple"
Suspicion creased Sasuke's clone's brow.
"That simple," Naruto chuckled. "You will not match my control right away. It takes reps."
"Now, the answer to your real question. Why this matters."
Sasuke's clone stiffened again. He felt Naruto did not need to explain. If he succeeded, the answer would reveal itself.
Naruto kept going. "Right now your chakra molding is poor, and your control is rough. Your jutsu burn extra fuel and hit weak. This training tunes both. It teaches you to use chakra with finesse."
"A quick example. Once you grasp this, you can make more shadow clones. Your Sharingan will also last longer each time you open it."
Excitement flickered across Sasuke's clone.
He had already learned that clone training feeds experience back to the original. If he could make more clones, his growth would snowball.
He thought of the dozens of Narutos drilling in the trees and itched to start. But with Naruto standing there, he hesitated.
"Then I will not get in your way," Naruto said, turning for the edge of the grove.
He had taken only two steps when Sasuke's clone called out. "Bring me one more clone. I want it to go to the Nanga River to practice walking on water."
Naruto looked back, gaze meaningful. "Confident, are we. A reminder. The tricks are not identical."
"The trunk is fixed. Tree walking is about concentrating chakra at one stable point, then maintaining a steady stick."
"Water walking is messier. You must keep yourself afloat by pushing the right amount of chakra out through your soles, constantly adjusting the flow. The river is moving. Your chakra must change with it."
Sasuke's clone frowned. In that case, he could not train both at once. Better to keep one more clone on the tree work.
But why did Naruto give him that look again.
There it was. That look for fools. What did he get wrong this time He had not even started.
Where is the mistake
Before he could ask, Naruto was gone. A little later, another clone arrived to help.
At the Academy, class had just ended. Shikamaru drifted to the back corner where Naruto sat. He did not know this Naruto was a clone.
"Naruto, did the Lord Hokage approve your early graduation"
"No," Naruto said evenly. "He told me it is peacetime. There is no need to graduate early. He also said there is no jonin free to mentor me. The previous class has already been sorted into squads. There is no slot for me to join."
"You should have known already, right"
Shikamaru leaned on the wall, hands behind his head, sighing. "Father and I did go to the Hokage's office that day, but Lord Third only asked me about your recent behavior. After that, nothing. Father does not know the result either."
"Honestly, I was afraid he would approve your request."
Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Afraid of what"
Shikamaru's face went serious. "Father and I ran the numbers. If your request went through, there is a high chance the Hokage would push me to graduate alongside you."
"What is so bad about graduating early You say class is boring. Even if you graduate, you might not end up on my team."
"That is the problem." Shikamaru sighed. "Last night Father told me to write up your last two days of activity. He is probably submitting it now. You know the Lord Hokage assigned me to a long term observation."
"School is boring, but it is quiet. Once we graduate, it is missions with jonin everywhere. That life is a drag."
Naruto smiled. "You really are an honest friend."
Noon came quickly.
In the grove, Naruto was mid fight with the Third in the Mirror World when Kurama's warning tugged his focus.
Thwip. Thwip. Thwip.
Back in his body, he heard bolts firing from the mounted crossbows. Sasuke, encased in armor, weathered a chest full of hits and crouched atop the stone slab. Only two clones remained at the targets, practicing shuriken throws.
"Damn it."
Sasuke jumped down, ready to go again.
A quick sweep with his senses told Naruto where the others were. Sasuke had sent all five remaining clones deep into the trees to practice tree walking.
Time to make him face a fact.
Naruto dispelled his own clones in a chain of pops.
Sasuke looked over, confused. Why had Naruto cleared the field.
"Aren't you going to eat. Your clone in school barely spends chakra, but the clones here have been running on empty for a while."
Sasuke blinked, then dropped his clones without thinking.
Pain hammered his skull. Darkness rushed in. He keeled over like a felled log.
Naruto formed a fresh clone and left it to watch. The real body made a sign and shifted his face with Transformation, then slipped away.
Half an hour later, Sasuke stirred. Much later he pushed himself up against the slab, swaying.
"My head."
Naruto's clone spoke softly. "Now you know exactly how many bowls of rice your body can eat."
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