Ino was reading seriously.
Inoichi sat watching her from about a meter away.
Yamanaka Rino appeared again, pouring a glass of water for both her husband and daughter.
She tugged at her husband, seemingly wanting to give Ino a quiet environment to read, but Inoichi gently shook his head, no, resisting interference was also part of training.
Not only did he not leave, but he pulled his wife aside, and they watched together.
He would stay with his daughter for as long as she read; if she could really read all night through sheer willpower, he would be overjoyed.
Uchiha Madara had a problem where he couldn't urinate if someone stood behind him, and Ino was also quite nervous now; with two adults sitting behind her, the feeling of being watched was very clear.
She had to resist mental interference, resist physical fatigue, and then still read seriously.
The auxiliary effects of the potion had completely worn off.
Ino knew she had to overcome the difficulties in front of her; she focused all her attention on the words, rejecting the signals of physical and mental discomfort, and slowly allowed herself to enter a state of relative self-forgetfulness.
Inoichi and Rino sat quietly, and the only sound in the room was the rustling of Ino turning pages.
The next day.
Even after a sleepless night, Inoichi Yamanaka still looked refreshed as he went to attend the Jonin meeting.
The Yamanaka Clan was not like those clans in fantasy novels that meticulously kept statistical records, such as "59th Clan Head learned Mind Body Switch Technique, took 7 days and 12 hours, ranked 322nd" or "88th Clan Head learned Mind Body Switch Technique, took 5 days and 11 hours, ranked 145th."
No matter how fast Ino learned, they wouldn't create a real-time ranking of all clan heads for her.
Inoichi knew his daughter was progressing faster than him, that her willpower was outstanding among her peers, and that her future achievements would definitely be higher than his; that was enough.
He had originally thought his daughter was lazy and lacked persistence, making her future worrisome, but he never expected her to be a genius; his joy was completely undisguised.
While the Third Hokage was speaking from the front, he appeared to be sitting upright, but his mind had actually long since wandered back home.
Jonin were the pillars of the Village, and at each weekly Jonin meeting, the Third Hokage would give a routine summary of the past week's affairs, which naturally included some personal opinions.
"...I know you are all very busy, so I'll keep it brief today.
I hope Jonin will strengthen the management of outsiders in the Village, conscientiously fulfill their duties, implement vigilance work, utilize your professional skills to enhance supervision and review of key individuals, prevent crime, improve the Village's spiritual outlook, achieve tangible results and accomplishments, and highlight our importance and significant status in the Land of Fire."
The Third Hokage wore his Hokage robe and a conical hat with the character "Fire" written on it. Was this old man, known as the "Strongest Hokage," truly the strongest? That question was debatable, but if it came to selecting the oldest Hokage, he was undisputed. The old man was already 69 years old, his body had significantly declined, and his face was covered in age spots.
The older people get, the more they talk.
He knew these Jonin didn't want to hear such nonsense, but as Hokage, he had to repeat it tirelessly.
While speaking clichéd platitudes, he observed the reactions of these people.
Might Guy sat upright, but his eyes were unfocused, clearly daydreaming.
Kakashi sat behind Might Guy, reading a novel.
The Third's biological son, Asuma Sarutobi, was secretly holding hands with the newly promoted Jonin, Kurenai Yuhi.
The remaining Jonin and Special Jonin displayed various expressions; some listened attentively, while others were inattentive.
Hmm? As the Third Hokage spoke, he suddenly saw Inoichi Yamanaka's face full of joy and couldn't help but be taken aback.
What was he so happy about? Why was the usually refined and gentle intelligence chief so happy today? Had he comprehended some truth of life from my speech? This young man is quite insightful! Good!
Usually, his speeches lasted thirty minutes, but today the Third Hokage was happy and in high spirits, speaking for forty-five minutes straight. Kakashi had even pulled out a second novel from his ninja pouch to read.
The Jonin Squad Leader, the head of the Nara Clan, Nara Shikaku, known as the "Tactician," also saw the very happy Inoichi Yamanaka at this moment. He felt a little surprised, wondering what his old friend was laughing about.
Surely he hadn't truly grasped some essence from the Third Hokage's long and tedious speech, had he? Or did these routine platitudes contain some important information that he had missed?
Shikaku, with an IQ of 200, scrutinized his old friend several times. No way? How come I can't hear anything?
After the meeting, he asked very directly, "Why are you so happy today?"
Inoichi didn't intend to hide it; there was nothing to conceal anyway, and keeping it bottled up was very uncomfortable.
He and Shikaku were indeed lifelong friends, but competition also existed. They competed when they were promoted to Chunin as children, competed on the battlefield, competed for wives, and even competed over having children. Shikamaru's birthday was September 22nd, while Ino's birthday was September 23rd; they would even bring up such things when drinking. Having been suppressed for too long, he had actually wanted to humblebrag for a while.
He said with a troubled expression, "I started teaching Ino the Yamanaka Clan's Secret Technique yesterday. This child, sigh, is so impetuous, and her willpower isn't firm enough. You know our clan's Mind Body Switch Technique, right?"
"I know," Shikaku nodded with a strange expression. "I remember it's quite difficult to get started."
"Our Mind Body Switch Technique requires passing through three stages to be successfully mastered. This child Ino's talent is still a bit lacking; it took her a whole night to pass the first two stages. Sigh, I'm really afraid that when I die and meet the ancestors of the Yamanaka Clan, I won't be able to account for myself! What will I say when the ancestors ask? Conditions are so good now, but this child Ino doesn't know how to work hard; it's truly worrying me to death."
Shikaku was a bit speechless. You're trying to provoke me first thing in the morning? So this is the kind of Inoichi Yamanaka you are.
Two stages in one night—is that still low aptitude? When you learned Mind Body Switch back then, did it take two months or three? I remember your dad was so angry he hung you from the rafters and beat you.
The three clans knew each other inside and out. Although they didn't know the specific secret medicines, steps, or incantations used in each other's Secret Techniques, the people of the three clans had a clear understanding of the difficulty of each other's Secret Technique training.
The Akimichi Clan's Secret Technique was the easiest to learn, with the lowest threshold. As long as one was willing to spend money, had a mouth and hands, ate and drank regularly, and then doubled their accumulated fat and Chakra during battle, it was fine.
The Nara Clan's Secret Technique had a certain learning threshold; intelligence, comprehension, and perseverance were all indispensable.
The Yamanaka Clan's Secret Technique was the most difficult to learn, and the introductory stage was extremely dangerous. During Mind Body Switch, a slight misstep could result in a vegetative state, which was the best outcome.