Chapter 30: Master Level!
[Basic Taijutsu: Expert (999/1,000) → Master (1,000/10,000)]
An unstoppable wave of power exploded from the center of his chakra core, like a volcano that had slept for thousands of years suddenly spewing molten lava. It surged through his entire body at terrifying speed, racing along every chakra pathway.
Izumo felt as if every pore on his body had opened at once, every inch of his skin greedily absorbing that overwhelming power.
First came a tingling numbness from the top of his head, like a current of electricity running straight down his spine. A moment later, a warm, expanding sensation wrapped around all of his limbs.
It was a surreal experience—pain from muscle fibers being torn down and rebuilt by the rushing power, mixed with a deep, almost intoxicating pleasure.
He could clearly feel the qualitative change in his taijutsu.
It was no longer just a collection of techniques and raw strength. It had stepped into a new realm—
"The unity of body and will."
Expert-level taijutsu was nothing more than the result of polishing techniques left behind by predecessors until they reached near-perfection—a "high-level executor within the system."
But Master-level taijutsu meant breaking free from the shackles of technique itself, using one's own body as the standard to define the rules of combat—
A "rule-setter within the system."
At this moment, every basic movement had been completely internalized into muscle memory. Even without conscious thought, his body could naturally produce the most optimal response.
Dodging, which had once felt just a little stiff, now became as natural as breathing.
He could predict the trajectory of an enemy's attack from the faintest muscle twitch within 0.1 seconds, then adjust the fine details of his own movement with perfect precision.
When he exerted force, he could accurately control the contraction and relaxation of every single muscle fiber. A punch that once required the drive of his entire body could now erupt with even greater power using only localized muscles in his arm.
The flow of chakra inside him became crystal clear.
Where before he could only roughly guide chakra to strengthen his fists and kicks, now he could make his chakra resonate with his muscles, so that every strike carried a low, heavy sound as it split through the air.
He lowered his head and looked at his palms.
The wounds left behind by a kunai slash were slowly closing. The strength of his bones and muscles had now far surpassed what they had been at the Expert level.
The intense pain from taking that Iwagakure ninja's elbow strike earlier had already faded, replaced by a solid, powerful sensation that filled his entire body.
Izumo slowly clenched his fist.
A series of cracking sounds echoed from his knuckles, while the surging power within him felt as if it might burst through his skin at any moment.
He looked around.
Gunpowder smoke and dust still filled the ruins around him. Three Iwagakure ninja corpses lay not far away.
And yet, what he felt was not satisfaction.
Deep in his heart, a confidence he had never known before began to take root—
Right now, with taijutsu alone, he could easily defeat ten versions of his former self from just moments ago, before this evolution.
There was no doubt about it.
He now truly possessed strength on the level of a jōnin. He was even fully qualified to apply for certification as a Special Jōnin specializing in taijutsu.
The breakthrough in Basic Taijutsu turned Izumo into a tiger with wings on the battlefield.
But he didn't stop there.
A breakthrough in the Body Flicker Technique came quietly, during a pursuit that was far more dangerous.
It was a rain-soaked afternoon. Team Eight received intelligence that an Iwagakure intel ninja carrying a secret agreement between the Land of Grass and Iwagakure was trying to cross the border.
Izumo volunteered to chase alone and entered the dense Forest of Death by himself.
The Iwagakure ninja was thin, but moved like a ghost. He was extremely familiar with fighting in the forest, constantly using the trees to hide his body, even throwing out smoke bombs from time to time to disrupt vision.
Izumo chased relentlessly.
Rain soaked his hair and ninja clothes. Cold water ran down his cheeks, and his vision blurred behind the curtain of rain.
"Don't think you're getting away," he muttered.
Chakra surged beneath his feet, and his body shot forward like an arrow.
But the Iwagakure ninja suddenly turned back.
His hands flew through seals.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
A thick wall of earth shot up instantly, blocking Izumo's path.
Izumo lightly tapped the ground with the tip of his foot, borrowed the rebound, and leapt into the air. He sailed over the earthen wall and continued the chase without slowing.
As the distance closed, the Iwagakure ninja even began burning his own chakra.
His speed spiked again, turning into a brown shadow darting through the trees.
To intercept him, Izumo pushed the chakra in his body to its absolute limit.
His tenketsu pathways burned with sharp pain, as if they were about to tear apart.
The ground beneath his feet trembled under the pressure of his chakra, thin cracks spreading outward. Raindrops that fell into them evaporated instantly.
His figure became a stream of pale blue light, nearly invisible as it tore through the air resistance.
All he could hear was the roar of wind in his ears, the pounding of his own heartbeat, and the hiss of rain striking leaves.
He felt hot air slice past his ears.
The trees ahead retreated at terrifying speed, turning into blurred shadows.
At the exact moment the Iwagakure ninja was about to break out of the forest boundary, Izumo's speed suddenly jumped another level—
It was as if he had broken free from the shackles of gravity itself.
Like an instant shift through space, he appeared directly behind the intel ninja.
A cold kunai rose and settled with perfect precision against the enemy's neck.
The blade's tip cut into the skin, drawing a single drop of blood.
The Iwagakure ninja's body went rigid in an instant, his eyes filled with indescribable shock.
At the same time, the panel before Izumo's eyes refreshed once more:
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Join my Patreon here:
🔗 patreon.com/FaaanzKun
✅ Enjoy 25+ chapters ahead of WebNovel
✅ 2 new chapters every day (Monday–Saturday), exclusive on Patreon
🌙 Note: Sunday is a rest day, so there will be no updates tomorrow. Regular uploads resume as usual on Monday.
Join now and dive deeper into the story—weeks ahead of public release!
Thank you for your amazing support 💖
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —