"Raizen, you really are a genius, but controlling the changes in elemental chakra isn't something you master overnight!"
Uncle Yamamoto's frown deepened as he glanced at Raizen's scorched arm.
"I know, Uncle," Raizen said, flexing his fingers as his arm slowly regained feeling. "I jumped the gun. I'm still too early to be messing with advanced ninjutsu."
A strong ninja isn't just strong because of flashy techniques—they build on a solid foundation. Many of the shadow-level shinobi in the great villages later on had no special bloodlines or secret arts. What set them apart was stamina, precision, and relentless basic training.
Since acquiring the Super Achievement System, Raizen had been itching to soak up every powerful ability in sight. His body could learn ninjutsu quickly, so he'd imagined becoming unstoppable. But the feedback from his lightning-nature chakra exercise had been brutal: raw power without control is a trap waiting to snap. Without a foundation, even the mightiest jutsu would become his undoing in a real fight.
"As long as you understand that!" Uncle Yamamoto nodded, satisfied to see Raizen taking the lesson seriously. Then he turned to the children of the clan.
"See this, all of you? Even a prodigy like Raizen respects the basics. Don't skip them!"
"Yes, Uncle Yamamoto!" the kids chorused, their faces bright with determination.
Raizen exhaled, shaking off the sting in his arm. If he wanted to manipulate chakra with precision, he had to start at the very beginning.
Step one: chakra control.
Most genin climbed trees or practiced walking on water. For Raizen, that was just the bare minimum. He wanted accuracy precise enough to shape and change chakra at will. To push himself further, he strapped on weighted shoes to increase gravity, then climbed trees. Any slip, any poor control of chakra, and he risked falling or tearing the bark beneath his feet.
Next, he tackled the waterfall near the family estate. A cascading wall of turbulent water—its flow unpredictable, its impact relentless. Each step required precise chakra output to balance and counteract the shifting currents.
Days blurred into one another. Raizen could be seen everywhere around the clan compound: hanging upside down from rooftops, balancing on narrow eaves, half a foot suspended in the air, all training his chakra control. The repeated falls and bruises only reinforced the lesson—mastery required patience.
After seven days, Raizen conquered the trees. Weighted or not, he could walk along branches at will, even upside down on rooftops with eyes closed.
Then came the waterfall. At first, even a cautious step sent him plunging into the lake below. Each failure stung, but the challenge exhilarated him rather than frustrated him. He fell again and again, rising each time, condensing chakra beneath his feet to defy the rushing water. Slowly, he climbed step by step toward the top.
Ten days later, Raizen ran and walked freely along the waterfall's face. Looking down at the torrent he had conquered, he felt a rare, sharp thrill in his chest—a sense of achievement and opening possibility that only came from relentless effort. The foundation had been laid. The next time he touched elemental ninjutsu, he would be ready.