Training ground 41.
Three people stood on each corner.
On the left side, Rock Lee shouted "youth" and kicked the thick tree trunk.
"I can feel my youth!"
Without registering the pain, he continued kicking.
"Idiot!" Toji watched the brute destroy another tree, shook his head, and continued his thousand sword slashes.
With closed eyes, he slashed the sword with all his strength, but no matter how much he tried, he still couldn't get the feeling of hearing the breath of all things.
After another futile training, Toji sat on the ground helplessly.
"Kid, believe in yourself! Even without ninjutsu, you can become a remarkable ninja!"
"Come on, let's keep pushing our limits. How about fifty laps walking on our hands if we can't finish?"
"..." Toji glanced at the enthusiastic Might Guy and sighed.
He understood Guy's good intentions.
However, as someone who had reincarnated into this world, he knew better than anyone the limit of pure taijutsu.
Strong? Sure, but there was always a ceiling.
Even the pinnacle of Taijutsu, the Eight Gates, was effective only for minutes, like fireworks bursting across the dark canvas of the night, beautiful but short-lived.
In this brutal world of shinobi with all sorts of supernatural ninjutsu, Toji had no intention of becoming a firework.
But the reality was cruel. With the Heavenly restrictions that transmigrated him, he had no Ninjutsu talent, just like Rock Lee.
No matter how hard he trained, if he stuck to only taijutsu, he would at best reach Lee's level.
During the climactic battles, even after opening six gates, Lee's impact was more symbolic than practical.
Aside from his first fight against Gara, he could only watch his sensei and friends fight. All he could do was play a supporting role.
Toji could imagine the despair Lee must have felt in that moment. He refused to experience that same helplessness and become another extra.
He understood his situation clearly. Pure taijutsu alone had no future.
Fortunately, though the heavenly restriction took away his ability to use Ninjutsu, it gave him exceptional abilities.
First, his chakra control was exceptionally refined, almost perfect. Second, his physical strength and senses were top-tier.
His control over his body, especially over muscles and coordination, was excellent.
Even Guy himself often commented that even seasoned jonin might not have such mastery over their bodies.
Third, his learning speed was freakishly fast.
Over the past two years, he learned one more thing about the heavenly restriction. He could learn any physical techniques from other worlds, as long as he could train them himself.
So, he chose to practice Mihawk swordsmanship without hesitation.
If he could only reach 50% of Mihawk's level, Toji would be able to become an elite Jonin.
With a sword slash, he could destroy any elemental jutsu. But the progress had been ridiculously slow, making him question whether he had made the wrong choice.
"Toji," Guy's voice pulled him back. "Your ninjutsu and genjutsu talents are lacking... Are you giving up on taijutsu too?"
There was disappointment in his tone.
Guy had seen the boy's determination firsthand and had taken both Toji and Lee under his wing precisely because they never wavered in the face of adversity. Yet now, after two years of grueling training, Toji seemed to falter.
"Guy-sensei, I'm not giving up. I'm thinking of a different approach," Toji said.
"Both Lee and I may be unable to perform Ninjutsu, but we still have chakra, and I can control mine exceptionally well. So, I believe it's possible to develop techniques that rely solely on chakra."
Guy opened his mouth, but Toji stopped him, lifting his hand.
A small concentrated orb of chakra gathered in his palm. And it kept growing as he increased the chakra output.
Guy's eyes widened slightly.
'This... this resembles...'
There was no mistaking it. It was the Rasengan.
"I often run past the river nearby," Toji made an excuse, "and it made me think... if I could not only condense chakra but also make it rotate like a whirlpool, the destructive power would increase exponentially."
Toji wasn't a fool to only rely on physical techniques. Since he wasn't completely crippled and could use chakra well, then he'll learn all the jutsu that only worked with pure chakra.
The Rasengan was one of the few Jutsu that was comparable for someone like him with exceptional chakra control.
He mastered it a year ago but decided to hide it until he secured strong backing.
And now with Guy standing behind him, he had nothing to fear. Danzo wouldn't dare to play any tricks and mess with someone who could destroy the village.
"The technique you created... already exists. It's an A-rank ninjutsu developed by the Fourth Hokage. It's called Rasengan." Guy looked at him with a complicated expression.
Beside them, Rock Lee stopped his training and looked on the shimmering Rasengan with clenched fists.
"This..." Toji pretends to hesitate.
"Don't worry," Guy reassured. "It's not really a theft. Sometimes great minds just think alike. If your talent for ninjutsu and genjutsu were better, you'd undoubtedly have become a top-tier ninja."
There was genuine regret in Guy's voice. The boy in front of him lacked the conventional talents but compensated with pure chakra control and creativity... it was nothing short of astounding.
'Such tenacity and ingenuity... a tragedy of talent,' Guy thought.
"It's okay, Sensei," Toji smiled. "When one door closes, another opens. I will forge my own path, and I will be grateful for it.
"I still believe, even without ninjutsu, I can become incredibly strong."
Lee, his eyes shining, finally spoke. "Toji-kun! It's amazing you could figure this out on your own!"
Toji grinned and added, "We shouldn't just train our bodies. We must blend our taijutsu with chakra techniques."
Guy nodded approvingly. "That's called Ninja Body Techniques," he said. "Or nintaijutsu."
"Right!" Lee pumped his fist. No matter what, taijutsu would remain their foundation. He didn't feel much jealousy toward Toji, as he had long accepted that he wasn't talented. But with Guy's secret technique, he'll definitely reach the geniuses' height.
They resumed their relentless training under the setting sun, each one lost in his own thoughts.
After parting ways, Toji returned to his modest village-assigned apartment.
As he slid the door shut behind him, the day's events replayed vividly in his mind.
He knew that ninjutsu wasn't everything in this world, and he was only scratching the surface.
There were many secret techniques to gain strength despite the heavenly restriction. Sage Mode, natural energy, and cursed seal, but as a civilian-born orphan, he had to tread carefully.
Only after gaining enough strength and recognition would he be able to bring such advanced secrets.
"Forgive me again, Guy-sensei," he whispered, setting his mind. "But I have no other choice but to use you for now."
Toji wasn't willing to stay a margin figure for the rest of his life. He had the ambition to travel to space.
And for that, he set his sight on the chakra fruit that could possibly resolve his heavenly restriction and give him strength to travel the universe.
But getting the chakra fruit meant he had to let Madara's initial plans succeed, which would put him in the opposite direction of the ninja alliance.
"Or I could use them to achieve my goals without risking a conflict."
He was twelve years old this year. Graduation was only months away. And within a handful of years, the Fourth Great Ninja War would erupt across the world.
Time was running out.
Toji pulled out a jar filled with a mixture of sand and salt. And he started to separate them purely with chakra to increase his control.
"Even if you took Ninjutsu and Genjutsu from me, I'll get much stronger!"