Time moved into April. The weather was clear, the air slightly cool.
In recent years, the climate across the shinobi world had leaned colder—snow fell in Konohagakure during winter, and spring stretched on longer than usual.
Before the sun had even risen, Tenten had already finished her first nutritious breakfast, geared up, and headed toward the training ground near her home—a place she visited almost every day.
After training, she would return for a second meal. Compared to her teacher's childhood routine, it couldn't be called vastly different—only exactly the same.
By the time she arrived, Makoto was already waiting.
Children in the shinobi world matured early and were quite independent. After accompanying her a couple of times, Makoto had already told her to come on her own in the mornings.
Tenten bowed seriously.
"Good morning, sensei."
"Morning, Tenten. You don't need to bow every time you address me—I'm not that particular about it."
"But my parents said this is how you show respect to your sensei."
"They're right—but with me, you follow my rules."
"…Alright, I understand. Sensei, is today's training different? If not, I'll get started."
"No changes—but we won't be training here today. I'll take you somewhere new. Follow me—don't lose me."
After saying that, Makoto turned and headed toward the back mountain of Konoha.
Tenten maintained a steady rhythm of breathing as she jogged to keep up.
But for some reason, even though her teacher seemed to be walking slowly, she could never close the distance between them—no matter how much she sped up.
At that moment, Tenten recalled what her teacher had taught her: when faced with something you don't understand, observe carefully and find the key point.
And then she noticed—while walking slowly, her teacher's body seemed to be gliding forward as if pushed by the wind. And even without turning around, he somehow knew whether she had sped up.
Young Tenten refused to believe it. She gathered her strength and charged forward—but not only did she fail to catch up, she exhausted her stamina far too early.
She hadn't learned chakra refinement yet—her stamina was limited.
Looking at his disciple bent over, hands on her knees and panting, Makoto smiled.
"Are you an idiot? You knew you couldn't catch up even if you sped up—so why force it?"
"I just wanted to confirm whether it really was the wind pushing you forward!"
"Oh? Sharp observation—you actually noticed. Yes, it is the wind pushing me. As for what kind of wind… you'll have to find that answer yourself. Come on, I'll take you the rest of the way."
Makoto placed a hand on Tenten's shoulder and activated the Flying Thunder God Technique.
The girl felt her vision blur—and the familiar Konoha vanished. She now stood at the foot of a modest mountain.
Most people would feel some discomfort experiencing space-time movement for the first time, but Tenten showed no reaction at all. It seemed her affinity for space-time was indeed excellent.
Unfortunately, that was only one of the prerequisites for mastering the Flying Thunder God Technique. Without meeting other conditions—or having the right teacher—she would likely end up as nothing more than a storage-type ninja.
Tenten asked curiously, "Sensei, where is this?"
"The back mountain of Konoha, just behind the Hokage Rock."
"Why are we here?"
"To train, of course. This… will be my training dojo from now on."
"A dojo? But it's just a mountain—there aren't even any buildings."
"Tenten… now comes the moment to witness a miracle. Don't blink."
Makoto bent his knees and crouched, placing both hands on the ground. Following the construction blueprint he had spent days designing at home, he began transforming the area.
First:
Earth Release: Plaza Creation Technique.
A vast slope covered in forest at the mountain's base suddenly flipped, shattered, leveled, engraved with brick patterns, and hardened into stone—all in one seamless motion.
In an instant, the sloped forest terrain became a wide, flat stone plaza. Where it met the remaining forest at a height difference, a set of steps formed automatically.
Now, even a thousand aunties dancing square dance here wouldn't be a problem.
Next:
Wood Release: Wooden Manor Courtyard Technique.
Between the plaza and the mountain, a large two-story wooden courtyard complex rose from the ground. The side facing the plaza rotated outward, with the main gate opening toward the front.
Inside, every room was complete and fully functional—even underground water and electrical systems had already been reserved. With some simple finishing, it could be lived in immediately.
Third step:
Wood Release: Guardian Forest Technique.
Around the mountain, in the surrounding forest, eight saplings emerged from the ground at corresponding directions. Growing rapidly in the wind, they soon surpassed the height of the existing forest.
On the outward-facing side of each tree trunk, sealing runes appeared—yet they looked as though they had naturally grown there.
Together, they formed a barrier, enclosing the mountain and Makoto's dojo.
This barrier did not block outsiders—it only had detection capabilities, and contained a nested Genjutsu: False Surroundings Technique trigger.
If an intruder's genjutsu ability was inferior to Makoto's, they would unconsciously turn away, never able to enter.
However, the barrier required chakra to function—it needed a supply source. Either someone had to maintain it, or a tailed beast could be sealed underground as a power core.
Capture Naruto and bury him underneath?
Kushina would probably chase him all over Konoha trying to kill him.
Fortunately, Makoto had a solution.
Final step:
Wood Release: Natural Core Formation Technique.
Maintaining both palms on the ground, he focused completely, mobilizing chakra rich with vitality—combining Water and Earth attributes with a unique mechanism within his own cells—and infused it into the earth using the same method he had used when first awakening Wood Release.
At the center of the courtyard, a small green sapling broke through the ground and rapidly grew into a towering tree.
To avoid blocking sunlight, its canopy was not wide—but beneath the ground, its roots spread extensively, like tentacles, connecting with the eight outer trees to form a unified system.
This tree was different from ordinary Wood Release—it was essentially a clone of Makoto himself, created by consuming a portion of his own life force, capable of converting foreign natural energy.
As soon as it matured, it began working—channeling converted white natural energy into the outer rune trees, activating the barrier.
At the same time, excess energy diffused within the barrier, gradually turning the area into a training sanctuary filled with natural energy.
Only after reaching saturation would it begin expanding outward, enlarging its territory.
From the outside, however, nothing seemed unusual—just a mountain that suddenly had artificial structures at its base.
With that, the dojo's initial construction was complete.
Tenten watched without blinking. She didn't understand what she was seeing—but she was deeply shocked. Her eyes sparkled with admiration.
"So amazing, sensei! You're incredible!"
"Of course I am. Otherwise, how could I be your sensei?"
Makoto exhaled and stood up. The first three steps weren't much—but the final one had truly exhausted him.
Wood Release that could convert foreign natural energy was not something to use casually. Doing it often could literally cost him his life.
Fortunately, it was all worth it.
Like a farmer at harvest time, Makoto happily admired his work.
The entire dojo faced west to east, with excellent sunlight exposure—welcoming the rising sun every day.
The entire construction process had taken only ten minutes—but surveying the terrain, planning, and designing the barrier had taken him several days.
If ordinary workers had built this, it would have taken months.
Ninjutsu really was convenient for things like this.
Forget the crude, overly direct names—just tell me: is it fast or not? Is it useful or not?
Holding his disciple's small hand, Makoto led her up the short steps onto the plaza.
"Tenten, from now on, this is my dojo. You'll train here every day."
"Really? Sensei, that's great! This place feels… really comfortable."
"Of course it does. Why else would I go through all that trouble? Go on—start today's training."
Tenten immediately ran onto the plaza, full of energy.
Makoto walked to the entrance of the courtyard facing the plaza and looked at the empty space above the gate.
After thinking for a moment, he decided to leave it blank for now.
In the near future, a plaque bearing the right name would be hung there.
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